Lunocet photos from DEMA

ILDiver said:

Fondueset....I hate you! !

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I hate him more!:t

no no wait, blue hole AND lunocet! i hate him the mostest

See you when you are back in three weeks, Fondueset....

Do hope you will consider returning.

Oh Yeah...bitches...

So, how does it work?

From that picture it looks like it works like crap, and the expression on your face is one of pure dissapointment. rofl

Did it get you any closer to the carp?

How comfortable are the footplates with thick socks on?

When are you going to ditch your hyperfin?


Jon

A few things stood out in this first 45 minute run. First - there was a strong North wind, Air temp was in the mid-20s F with substantial windchill - my right eyebrow froze solid when I got out. Water was a balmy 43F - no big deal though a little rough on my as-yet-unfamiliar-with-bicycle-shoes hands. Also prohibitive of breaching since we all know what happens when you splash back down.

Keep in mind - these are observations and not conclusions. Over the next 3 weeks the Lunocet will be subjected to very thorough daily evaluation by at least 3 divers. Me, Eric Fattah and Peter Scott. We'll write up a thorough review. Ted Ciamillo has asked that we be completely candid in all respects and has expressed his openness to making changes.

Construction - With the Lunocet there will be none of the usual monofin travel anxiety. This thing is very well built and weighs almost nothing -less than the average laptop. If you need to you can break it down and fold it in half!

Comfort- As you can see, the Lunocet human interface is pretty much the cycling shoe of your choice. I indulged in 6 mil socks and this is by far the most comfortable thing I've ever had on my feet in the water. My feet were never anything but warm and comfy.

Swimming Technique - being contrary by nature I employed proper monofin technique - despite having been advised that this is not the best approach with the Lunocet.
In this preliminary run I found it much easier to maintain straight knees than with my Hyperfin. I also found that the Lunocet seemed to respond very well to this approach - which goes right against my expectations and all advice.

My dive buddy observed less overall body movement with the lunocet. He said I did not have as much full body undulation - but it felt to me like the overall movement was less because less was required to counteract the mass of the fin. The Lunocet changes direction more easily than a standard monofin. Experiments with bent knees just did not feel good to me. Anything more than a few degrees felt like a huge waste of energy. Straight leg cruising felt best and awesome. Again -no conclusions - more experimentation in style and in adjusting the tensioners on the fin is needed.

Performance In the couple of tests I did over a known distance the Lunocet seemed to do quite well.
My dive buddy, however, said it appeared I was moving about 1/3 to 1/4 more slowly that with my hyperfin - or about the same as my Waterway Nemo based on his ability to keep up.
The fin felt best with continuous motion - gliding felt a bit draggy. But it felt very good with both very fast small amplitude kicks - almost in the 'fast twitch' mode - and larger, slow undulations - both of which I was able to do very comfortably with straight legs.

erratum
Surface swimming face down was not immediately rewarding. The sideways 'serpentine' style may be more the way to go - either that or a more dramatic dolphin- style butterfly stroke.

This fin is quieter than any monofin I've used. I was swimming into schools of lake trout with far fewer spookings. If you are into fish stalking at all it makes a huge difference.

Entries need some work - the lunocet is very light and does not drive you down at all -and getting the undulation going seemed a little awkward. Work in progress technique-wise there.

Ascents are fast and easy. I was tempted to try breaching but sitting in the surf getting into the shoes gave me enough of that.

Comms in the Blue Hole will be sporadic at best - expect a more substantive review in about 3 weeks.

doffs hat in respect and gratitude

Mahalos Fondueset.

I like the sounds of it so far- folds in half for travel, comfortable with 6mm socks, on par with the hyperfin.

Just a couple of quick questions.

First, does it really use cycling shoes? All of mine are made out of leather and I'm wondering how long they'll last in water- especially salt water.

Second, are you using a front-mount snorkel for surface swimming?

Jon

I picked up a pair of Shimonos for about $65 - synthetic leather with mesh and a big drain hole in the toe. That's what it uses - only a two point attachment seems to do the job just fine.

Just a Riffe Stable normal type snork - works fine with my hyper but I think a front snork might bear fruit with the Lunocet.

Also - I was using a neck weight.

Are the shoes bolted in place, or do they clip in like bike pedals? I can see the strange looks already when I walk into the bikeshop with my wetsuit socks on.:blackeye

I think the front-mount snorkel will make a huge difference. I never was able to get a standard snorkel to work very well with a monofin, but a front-mount lets me swim for more than an hour with ease.

Did you get the carbonfiber version?

This thing is starting to sound better all the time.

Jon

This is the first production unit - the same one Ted's been using - its carbon fiber. Clips would be nice but the shoes screw in.

The thing is so light its hard to keep it in the water surface swimming - but a more hard-core dolphin kick might do the trick.

It floats and I'm guessing compression will not be an issue - but we'll be testing that soon enough

I've found if you tell the bike shop guys what it is and who invented it their little eyes light right up.

Fondueset I think I speak for all of us when I say that we appreciate the sacrifice you're making here. Sometimes someone gets called, and you've manned up to take the pain for the good of mankind. Well, freediving mankind anyway.
We hope you survive this trying time. Our hearts are with you.
Godspeed,
Erik Young RSW.

Its the least I can do for a community that has brought me into the realm of the likes of Eliossub wetsuits, Triton Monofins and Island_sands.

Fyi - surface photos are courtesy tripped out photographer and intrepid dive-buddy, Jason Lome Jason's Photography

I understand it may be warm, and worse, near this Blue Hole - and that the bright-thing-which-annoys may be more of a nuisance than usual. But rest assured; I embark upon this hero's journey with the spirit of Deeper Blue guiding my efforts, several pounds of power bars and an ample suppy of Dr. Hauschka's Sunscreen.

Now the testing only, maybe next is training the whole Navy Seals with them on how to use it. My respect for the hardwork and dedications of those guys. Hail!!!

PS

if you get tired with the demo piece, you can send them to anybody here hehehe

Fondueset said:

several pounds of power bars and an ample suppy of Dr. Hauschka's Sunscreen.

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there's that, and the spicy conch salad at Max's (his name is Gary) too. Ask him to tell you some shark stories AFTER a dive..

(I'm not talking to Fondueset here, as I hate him and I am not speaking to him! )

I can't wait to read the reports from the upcoming trip. Maybe I'll get to see this fin in person next year!

Great photos, Chris. Your personal photog rocks - nice and surreal colours!

Yes, I am one of the lucky few who will try out the Looney. There will be much Tomlunonery at the Blue Hole. I'm going to be the first to attempt a breach with moose antlers strapped to my head.

Breaching will be all about streamlining, no matter what the propulsion. The person with the ability to flick themselves out of the water with a torso rippling with snake-like muscles will win.

I would really like to see a top-ranked finswimmer give breaching a go - just to see if they can do it or how close they are.

We'll also be testing the DOLfin - a high-aspect ratio device with a lot of potential for open water swimming, recreational freediving and year-round use. Videos and photos to come.

Pete

Great work Fondueset, thanks very much for your detailed reports on this project!

Let´s phantasize, if it works great, everybody wants it, so maybe they´ll start mass production, which will lower the cost, so everybody can afford it, even me, yeah, that´d be great ;-)

by the sounds of it, it's not that great for surface swimming which is something they emphasise on their blog as being good for. also on the site it has a section on "Hydrotouring" which is all about long distance surface swimming. sounds like some of their marketing claims are being called out already...