Budget Minded Beginner Freediving Fin + Snorkel Suggestions

[EcchiK]

Hello all!

Ok, here's my sob story. I'm starting out in freediving and want to start buying some decent equipment I can practice with. Currenty all I have is snorkeling equipment and not so much geared towards freediving.

For now I can live with the mask I have. But I want a good pair of freediving fins and a snorkel.

Conditions:

Budget: 150 Euro MAX
Type of Fin: Bi-fin
Diving Conditions: Mainly pool but future diving would involve cold(er) water. (i.e. Belgium, Netherlands, Canada)
Foot size: I'm a 41-42 euro size but I'm pretty sure I have wide feet. I have Mares Avantre fins in 41-42 but get foot cramps after about 30 mins of swimming/dynamics in them.

Any good suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I'm not limiting my choices to any brands or makers as there's such a wide range of choices for freediving fins that I don't want to miss out on any potential gold mines.

Edit: Comfort is very important to me as I want to use these fins for a long time and be able to freedive all day. Also, should I consider these fins already with socks? (If so, which thickness should Igo with? 5mm for pool training may be too warm but will 3 mm for colder waters be too cool?)

 

[Dennis77]

Hi.

I would highly recommend:

Cressi Gara 3000 LD (here in Germany 90 Euro)

Snorkel; Cressi Corsica (10 Euro)

Then you can also go for a Mask. Cressi Minima (32 Euro) or Cressi Occhio Plus (35 Euro).


No. I don´t work for Cressi or sell Cressi Equipment. But I´m very satsified with their products.

 

[spaghetti]

You can't go wrong with Cressi.
Otherwise, within the limit of the 150 euro budget:
C4 Wahoo Brown: Acqua Sport Grosseto - Scheda prodotto
Seac Sub Fibrex: Pinne fibrex 40/42 : Tutto Pesca Mare

 

[EcchiK]

Is there a difference between C4 brown and green? (Aside from colour of course!) Stiffness difference? or identical?

EDIT: 'Nother question: Are the Gara 3000 footpockets same in shape as the Gara Professional? (Reason I ask is because someone at the Apnea club I'm joining has Professional's so a good chance to check fit)

 

[cdavis]

For a budget, Cressis are about as good as it gets. However, for 5 mil booties, you want to check and make sure they are wide enough, especially if you plan to wear them a long time. Cressis run on the narrow side, great for barefoot, but sometimes not so good for thick booties. Only way to be sure is try'em before you buy'em.

Connor

 

[K.Johansson]

From my experience, the Gara 3000 is hard on my feet (shoe size 47) and i get cramps after 20-30 min (in pool for some reason i don't get cramp while diving outside) but i am very satisfied with them, the response i get from them are perfect.

I strongly recommend Cressi Gara 3000.

 

[spaghetti]

Same as Connor Davis said on Cressi footpocket: the Gara's and Professional aren't exactly the same, but they're both in the classic Cressi "style", narrower than the average.
As for C4 Wahoo's, I know they offer a green blade type that's especially recommended for freediving, and a brown type that's specifically recommended for spearfishing. But they're basically the same fins: the only difference is in the different angle of the "water rails" (those bits of rubber on the sides of the blade).

 

[ptoot]

Hello EcchiK,

a big hi from Brussels. I recently ordered the funny looking Whalebone fins and I am very happy with them. I am a beginner apneist and love to fiddle with the stiffness cursor on the blades; At the same site I bought the suggested Occhio plus (also use it for scuba).
The fins, in size 41_42 cost me € 40 (felt like a thief) and the mask € 27 or similar.
Bought the Minima on vacation in Sharm, nice mask as well.
I used the translate option from google in order to place my order, don't speak a word of Italian.
Package was sent extremely quickly and I am very happy with the merchandise. The total of the order was under €100 including delivery to Belgium.
I work in Brussels, you're welcome to try my gear at Nemo (need an instructor present though).

Salukes, Frank

 

[ptoot]

I forgot the URL:

Pinne subacquee : Tutto Pesca Mare
Maschere subacquee : Tutto Pesca Mare

 

[EcchiK]

Yes! Potential freediving buddy in Brussels! Jackpot! PM sent. You're the second person to refer me to that site, I think I just have to check it out then...

Ooooh! And tax return just came in so my budget may go up slightly

 

[vali]

the seacsub fins are good only if u have strong legs...if u have strong legs seacsub is a good choyce...i have seacsub and work very good
there are fins with stiff blades

 

[EcchiK]

I recently ordered the funny looking Whalebone fins and I am very happy with them.

I can't seem to find the Whalebone fins on their site anymore. Are they still there?

Currently my choice is leaning towards the 3000ld but still open for other possibilities. Just wanna try out the pockets now.

 

[ptoot]

They seem to be gone

 

[trux]

I can't seem to find the Whalebone fins on their site anymore. Are they still there?

As far as I know they are bancrupt. I managed to get the Whalebones for 40€ in a sale off at chasse-sous-marine.net but I do not see them there anymore, so they are likely sold out. Not sure if you can still find them elsewhere. Try Google Shopping and eBay.

 

[EcchiK]

Trux, the whalebones any good? Should I stick with the 3000's?

 

[trux]

Trux, the whalebones any good? Should I stick with the 3000's?

Frankly told, I tried dozens of different longfins, from different plastic models, over fiberglass, to C4, and some other carbon models, but I see very little difference between them. The whalebones are as good as any other of the models I tested, and I am quite happy with them. The footpockets are nice. The whalebone principle is a useless gadget, and I do not feel any difference regardless of the position of the slider. It just looks quite fragile, and I do not think it will hold long. However for the price I got the whole fins, I would not even find footpockets alone. So if they ever break, I'll simply put some cheap plastic blades into them. From the geometry point of view (and feeling), I liked the most the C4 Flaps, but after I broke them, I am no more willing to pay 2, 3 or 4 hundreds of Euros for fins, when I know I can achieve the very same performance even with the cheapest plastic fins. Even with short rubber fins, the difference is minimal.

And the most paradoxical is that my PB in dynamics without fins is currently actually 25% higher than with fins. Well, it is true I did not try any max attempt with fins since longer time, since I am focusing on DNF right now. Anyway, I am rather looking into the possibility to make some good frog-kick fins. I have the ones from Speedo, but they are not good at all for gliding, so am thinking about trying to create something myself. I am pretty sure it can work better than bi-fins, and perhaps even better than a monofin.

 

[hteas]

Do pay attention to the width of the fins. If the Mares are narrow enough to cause crramps, the cressis are likely to cause them sooner. Prices at DiveInn for Dessault plastic fins are well under 100 euros, and would be a good choice. They are much wider, have medium stiffness, and are quite strong.
Howard

 

[hteas]

Trux,
have you tried building anything yet?
How about a bellows that straps to both feet, and pushes water out the back?

 

[trux]

No, I did not build anything yet, just made some sketches with couple of ideas. There are so many different possibilities, and so little was experimented in this field (and I know it relatively well, because I am looking for weird propulsion systems and patents all the time)! And I am pretty confident there are ways to get something working really well.

I did not even think about bellows you describe (if I understand it well), just about some kind of calmar propulsion - a rubber tube around both legs for low drag, hiding some kind of "bellows" as you tell that could be powered by pressing legs together (well, perhaps it is finally the same idea you mean too), but it is not my favorite one, and I am not quite persuaded it would perform the best. But one never knows - it is a pity there are not much more experimenters with high manufacturing skills and proper technology available (and sufficient funds, and time) - like for example Ted Ciamillo with his Lunocet, who would experiment with such ideas.

 

[EcchiK]

Ok, so I think I'm gonna end up with some Omer fins. Either Winter 3 or Ice 3. (Ice 3 would be nice but more expensive)

I've heard the Omer footpocket is wider so that's my reason for going that direction.

Now, one more question, does the ICE3 have the same hardness as the Winter 3?

Thanks for all the help!