Differences in C4 blade stiffness

[twentytwomonk]

I've had 2 different sets of C4 fins, Mustang 30 and Falcon 30, both the T350 carbon, not the T700. My Mustangs were just about the perfect stiffness. Not too stiff, but still great at coming up from depth. Now the Falcon 30 that I had were stiff as boards, not comfortable at all. I've heard people call Falcons up to 40 stiffness like wet noodles, and I was just curious if maybe I'm a sissy and need a softer blade or maybe I just had a set that was a little stiffer than normal.

 

[Claudio]

Hi twenty,

Unless someone has the leg strength of a horse, I never heard of anyone say the C4 40s feel like a noodle .

I have a pair of Mustang 40 (T350) and a pair of Fuegos 30 (T700) and the difference in stiffness between both are considerable. I wish my 40s did not hurt my ankles after a few hours cause I feel like I have jet propulsion on them.

Anyways, I think the reason why you feel the Falcon 30s are way harder than the Mustangs of the same stiffness is because of the rubber tendons on the side of the Falcon's footpockets. It makes the blades stiffer when compared to the Mustang.

What footpockets to you use? If you don't want to go back to a Mustang, you could look into either cutting the horns off the current footpockets you have on your Falcon blade, or you could get one of those Pathos footpockets from Greece. They have really thin tendons are are ideal for carbon blades. Send me a PM if you want me to point you to where you can get these footpockets here in the US.

Hope this helps. :friday

Cheers,
Claudio

 

[twentytwomonk]

I've been using Picasso mostly due to comfort and accessibility. I suppose I could try something new, but I wouldn't be able to try them on anywhere, and I hate getting uncomfortable pockets. I did trim back the tendons on the Picasso pockets, hoping to lighten up the Carbontek blades I had a few years ago, although I didn't notice much of a difference.

 

[Claudio]

I hear you... uncomfortable footpockets would surely ruin my day in the water too. Unfortunately, I am not as familiar with the fit of the Picasso footpocket.

Here is the link to a US online store that sells the Pathos: Pathos Footpockets - Pursuit Freediving & Spearfishing Gear.

I've handled a pair of these from a friend of mine and was impressed at how light it was and how thin the tendons were. The owner of the the above store should be able to tell you on how these fit in comparison with the Picasso's.

 

[twentytwomonk]

Thanks Claudio. The only issue that I had with the Picasso pockets was that they are mildly heavy, and tended to sink with a heavier blade. This caused me to constantly have to kick lightly to keep them afloat on the surface, wasting energy and oxygen, and throwing off my relaxation completely.