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Pathos Carbon vs Pathos Abyss Carbon?

Thread Status: Hello , There was no answer in this thread for more than 60 days.
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SubSub

Well-Known Member
Aug 26, 2015
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I'm hunting for some new fins and I'm curious of the Pathos carbon ones. But there is a older one, the "Pathos Carbon", and a newer one, the "Pathos Abyss Carbon".

Do any of you guys know what the difference is between these two? Just looking at them, they look virtually identical, exept the graphics.

I have googled around quite a bit trying to find a comparison between them, but there is generally speaking not many tests at all regarding the Pathos range.

Have any of you guys tried them both and can give me a hint of what differs between the two... exept the €90 price difference. :)

Pathos carbon vs abyss.png



On a side note. I love Pathos products, I have yet to find one that is not top notch quality. But with that said I must say they must be one of the worst companies when it comes to accessability and information! Their website is a freaking joke! No english version at all (exept the old catalogue from 2016), only some crappy italian and spanish version that looks and feels like it is from the 90s and to top that off, it is totally impossible to get hold of them via e-mail or FB. Tried them all, but they simply don't answer.
 
The difference between them is the fabrication process of the blade. Regular are kept under pressure for two days in comparison the abyss five days. The abyss has five layers of carbon probably thinner/less towards the tip.
Apnea passion has done severe testing on carbon fins.
I am in the market for a pair myself. The candidates are Pathos Abyss, Cetma Mantra or Molchanov with custom footpockets. Price/quality I think Pathos are the best but it's the custom footpocket that I would love to try with my weird feet.


Sent from the abyss
 
Thanks Kodama!

Yeah, I read that test, and the Abyss stood out as a very competent fin.

Ok. So is that the only difference? When comparing pics the Abyss seems slightly longer too.

How do you think the durability of thinner blade is? Easier to crack etc, or vice versa due to the longer production process? I'm mostly doing shore dives, and around reef / not open water.
 
Thanks Kodama!

Yeah, I read that test, and the Abyss stood out as a very competent fin.

Ok. So is that the only difference? When comparing pics the Abyss seems slightly longer too.

How do you think the durability of thinner blade is? Easier to crack etc, or vice versa due to the longer production process? I'm mostly doing shore dives, and around reef / not open water.

Without being able to test both versions it's going to be difficult to judge the difference but I would dare to believe that the Abyss is the better performer.
I do a lot of shore diving myself and I am sure that carbon fins would get beaten up over time. My omer stingrays are deeply scratched all over and once I start using new cf fins I will probably reserve them for when the conditions are calm and there is less chance of damage.
In the end I would not care too much about scratches as long as the damage remains cosmetical. I am sure the fish won't care.
I don't think they are easier to crack since most good cf fins are thinner towards the tip.
When you are shore diving we often cover quite some distance at the surface and I believe that the ease with which you paddle on the surface with cf fins is an added benefit.
The danger of damage is mainly during entry or exit on a rocky shoreline with rough conditions just use a pair of plastic fins on those days.


Sent from the abyss
 
Thanks again for you feedback Kodama.

Normally I enter the water without fins and put them on a bit out. I don’t care about cosmetical damage, I just don’t want to splash out 400€ and break the fins straight away. There has been so much talk here and there about the fragile nature of CF fins, and since I don’t have any empirical knowledge about this product yet I’m a bit sketched before buying one. :)
 
Apparently there is an option between Pathos foot pockets with hard or soft rails and this influences the way the cf blade responds. With the hard rail it is mainly the tip that flexes and with the soft rails the entire blade bends more.

Opening a new tread on the subject


Sent from the abyss
 
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Hi every body !
Today I just get my first carbon fins(Pathos Abbys) and I'm disapointed because I think they are faulty. Please watch my movie and tell me faulty or not.



Regards Jarek
 
The fins are fine! I have mine for about 6 months now and use them twice a week. Very satisfied with them. They also have the small air bubbles. It is just a sign that they use the minimum amount of epoxy. This really is a good thing rather than anything else.
I had read about this also before I bought mine and it didn’t turn me off.
It is a feature not a bug!
Let us know how you like them when you have tried them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
This is the way they are made, and supposed to be. It is not air bubbles though.

You can read more about it here:
http://www.apneapassion.com/equipment/dossier-and-xrays/pathos-abyss-fins-the-ultralight/


Aesthetic design
A very nice glossy carbon fiber shows a very regular weave. In some limited areas of the surface some tiny holes on the surface of the resin are present, which evidence the tentative to use the minimum quantity of resin to reduce weight to the minimum. This aspect does not necessarily mean these are weak points, as the pathos Abyss have been tested deeply for reliability, but for sure they represent the will to reach an extreme limit in resin quantity reduction.

Lamination

Pathos declares to use a lamination of the carbon fibre sheets with a V profile, solution partially visibile looking at the light reflexs on the fin, which actually create a sort of X, a little bit like the Carbonio GFT Alpha. Pathos also indicates that the blades are 100% carbon fibre, so there are no layers of glass fiber or kevlar as done by some other companies.

The lamination itself, meaning the process of laying the carbon fiber sheets with the resin inside the mould, is obtained with loulds that work at extremely high pressure (not declared) so to eliminate any possible air bubble inside the resin (which would reperesent a point of weakness), and reduce to the minimum the quantity of resin, so to have an as much as possible light blade. The process is brought forwad with the blades kept two days in the moulds and subsequently a day at very high temperature (not declared) for the final hardening.
 
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those are so called pinholes. it is just an estetic issue. as the other poster said it is due to the laminate dot being resin-rich.

this is what a problematic bubble looks like

29%20air%20bubble.JPG
 
Thank you all for quick response. Bacause of you I don't have any doubts. Definitely I will give feedback about fins but I live in UK so have to wait till may to try them :(
Present water temperature in canal La Manche 7 celcius degrees.
 
These are the new 2018 Pathos fins.
I am so happy I got the old ones before they will phase out. I really don’t like the bulge on the tip of these new fins. Seems way too fragile for my kind of diving.
c3fa9f3f83c3c83dbe0075333374a5e4.jpg



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Will be interesting to see some test results on the new fins vs the abyss! I still have not got myself a pair of new fins....

But Pathos total lack of customer service really pisses me off. Super arrogant and just totally shitty behaviour towards the customers. I have contacted them numerous times over the years, but not one time have I received a reply.
 
Will be interesting to see some test results on the new fins vs the abyss! I still have not got myself a pair of new fins.

I find it hard to believe that these new fins would be so much better and actually cause a measurable improvement in performance.
Companies often have many reasons to change their product line besides making a better product.

Finding a pair of carbon fins with a stiffness and bending profile that works for you will certainly improve performance compared to plastic fins. But from there on it is much more important to invest in proper finning technique than anything else. That means guided practice and muscle strengthening.

I am always amazed how many experienced spearos I see ascending bending their knees so high as if they are riding a bicycle.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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Happy New Year, everyone!
So after those years, Abyss or Maximum, for shore and shallow (<20m) diving in NSW?
 
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