Sebakfins fiberglass fins

[donmoore]

I ordered some Sebakfins Freediving Stereofins Pro Blades yesterday. Jyri, the guy at Sebakfins, was real nice and is combining the shipping with another order to a U.S. customer who is going to ship mine to me when he gets them.

It’s hard making a choice without getting to try anything. My reason for the Sebakfins is the bend they have in front of the foot pocket. I like angle, because my feet don’t bend straight very well. I found out from Omer that their new bat fins are straight like Matrix and Waterways.

After some consulting with Jyri I ordered the 22x75 cm Medium stiffness. I will post how I like them. I will use Omer foot pockets with them. That is what Sebak puts on them if you order them with the foot pockets.

The link is http://www.sebakfins.net
don

 

[sturgeon]

I too have a pair of the Sebak Pro blades on the way for testing at the upcoming USA Spearfishing Nationals (8/21). Jyri seems like a nice guy and has been very patient with my many questions. The Pro blades are angled at the heel like C4 but are not made out of fiberglass. There're made from some other nearly indestructable, highly reactive substance that is hand laid at the Sebak shop. Jyri said you can bend fiberglass but it becomes so expensive it's not worth it. That's why nobody offeres angled fiberglass/fiberplastic fins.

I'll let everybody know what I think of them after I return from the Nationals.

Scott T.

 

[donmoore]

Scott,
Which ones (stiffness, size) did you order?
don

P.S. Maybe your the one who is suppose to ship mine onto me when you get them.

 

[sturgeon]

Don,

It sounds like I got the same ones as you (Pro blades with angled heel, medium stiffness, blue color). Jyri wanted to send me 10 pair of all different kinds to try out for the Nationals and then send the ones I didn't want on to other guys in the USA that he would provide addresses for. But I told him it would be too much for me to deal with all that trying to get ready for and scout for a National competition so I only have 1 pair on the way. I thought that was an extremely nice proposition he made me though. Some of the fins he was going to send me were like $400 just for the blades. BTW, he's putting my fins in OMER Millennium pockets for me.

I ended up selling my Waterways because of the no angle thing. I have absolutely zero flexibility in my ankles. When I kick barefoot with a kickboard I don't even move. I hear some people are so inflexible that they go backwards.

Take care and I'm looking forward to seeing what we think about these fins. I'm pretty excited about getting them in time for the Nationals. Jyri said they're wider and shorter than C4's. Sounds just like my OMER Carbon Pro's which I love for spearfishing because of their great manuverabilty.

 

[donmoore]

Scott,
I am looking forward to your review, because you will be the only one on the board who has owned both Waterway and Sebak. Plus you’re a national champ who knows a few things!

That is interesting what Jyri said they are made of. I don’t understand what these manufactures are saying about fiberglass be expensive to layup in a bend. I have done plenty of fiberglass work on boats and almost everything was bent. Sebak does say they are vacuum packed, which I know is top technology. Vacuum packing gets just the right mixture of resin to cloth, which makes it strong and light.

Sebak are more expensive than the flat blades of the other manufactures, but it makes sense because hand laying should cost more than cutting them from sheets. They are still cheaper than carbon.

They make the fins in both 20 and 22 cm wide. I was a little scarred the medium stiffness might not be enough, since I am getting deeper and deeper in my dives, but maybe with the wider width they will feel stiffer. Seems like you said you had wished you had gotten softer Waterways. I know a lot of people have said that about fiberglass fins and Matrix even has a warning about it on their web page. I guess the fins need to bend to get the benefit of the springiness.

Good luck at the nationals.
don

 

[sturgeon]

Don,

Thanks for the kind words. I'll post what I think of the new blades as soon as I return from Rhode Island (8/25).

I have C4 30's and like the stiffness on those. I have a friend who has the 40's and likes those also but he's a lot bigger than me. I'm a pretty small guy (5'5", 150) coupled with the fact that I dive all day long so medium stiffness works well for me. The OMER's I have are the same dimensions (22cm x 74cm) of the Sebak's we're getting. My OMER's are a little easier on the legs and ankles then even the C4 30's. The C4's are longer and only 20cm wide. C4's have a little more push up and down but the OMER's seem to be more maneuverable (a benefit if you're shooting fish). If I were planning on putting on fins for just a couple hours or so to dive deep I could probably go with stiffer fins but after getting too stiff with my Waterway's I'm a little paranoid. So I figured I'd play it safe and stick with mediums. Especially since there won't be time before I leave to scout for the Nationals to exchange them.

Congratulations on increasing your depth! Keep up the good work but be safe about it. If you ever make it to S. FL, I dive every weekend and your welcome on my boat anytime.

Scott T.

 

[sturgeon]

I just received my pair of Sebak Pro fins. Jyri also threw in a prototype pair of their new premiere fins called the Pro Hybrid for testing at the Nationals. Both sets of fins look very nice. The Pro's are a fiberglass-like material and are blue in color. The Hybrids are a dark-greenish color and are a carbon/kevlar mix. I ordered medium stiffness on the Pro's but they seem a little softer than what I would have expected for medium. That's ok though, I was looking for a fin I could wear everyday for 2 weeks strait and bang around on rocks in shallow dirty water, so they should be perfect.

The Hybrids look awesome! They are wider (24 cm) and shorter then the Pro's and have a very nice stiffness to them. As a spearfisherman I prefer wider shorter fins over longer skinny models like C4's because they seem more maneuverable and are easier on the ankles and legs after a long day of diving.

I haven't tried either pair yet so I can't vouch for their performance but they sure look like Sebak knows what they're doing. I'm very impressed with the side rail configuration. They were made to fit the OMER Millennium pockets perfectly (no alteration whatsoever needed and pre-drilled to boot). It looks like a lot of thought has gone into the design of these fins and that's what I like to see, an eye for detail. The blades do not have a hook cut out of them like C4's so I recommend the Millennium pockets although I'm sure with some minor alteration, other pockets would fit also.

I leave today for Rhode Island and will return on the 24th of August. I'll report back what I think of the fins as soon as I get back home.

Scott T.

 

[unirdna]

Austin,

How would you compare the stiffness of the 'hard' sebak stereo pros to Cressi Gara HF's? Thrust? More kicks to get up from 60 feet? Fewer? This would give me a reference to [at least] 'ballpark' my fin selection.


Interesting thoughts Jon (with that whole 'angle theory'). I guess we'll see..... Is Jyri sending both pairs of fins with footpockets? It may be a tossup between the stiff and the xstiff then. If he does send both (one to buy and one to try), we'll have to send him a nice fruitcake this Christmas .

 

[Austin]

Ted,

I felt like the Hybrid had more thrust that my HFs. I did not use the Pros in water deeper than 40 feet. But they also had more thrust than my HFs. THe HFs feel like a solid board on my feet where the sebak blades would bend a snap back providing more thrust. Your legs still might be strong enough for the Extra Hard if you cycle as much as you do. But I know that my legs are not strong enough at this time.

Austin

 

[unirdna]

Good comments, Austin. Thanks.

Can't wait to try em out .

Ted

 

[donmoore]

I ordered the Med. You guys got me worried now. They haven't arrived yet and I too want them for the deep.
donmoore

 

[Austin]

Tested Medium Classics

Here is the review I wrote Jyri and Mikko on the Medium Classics.

After getting the fins on Friday the first thing I did was to install the Classic blades onto the foot pockets. The installation was very easy. The blades slipped right into thhandleoø·m (¸m opendir¸m @¸m file:13t seemed easiest to slip on the blade top down. After getting the blade seated I screwed them in and push on the black clips at the top of the rib. Total installation time was less than 10 minutes. The installation was very easy even though I had never installed blades on Omer fins before.

I noticed instantly that the Blades were wider and shorter than my Cressi fins. Also the blade was softer. However the blade also had a much nicer bend when under force. The Cressi fins felt like a board were as the Classics felt like a good fin.

I then tried on the foot pocket. It was very comfortable but a little loose in the heel. I made a fin holder out of an old neoprene boot. This worked ok but I will be buying fin holders this week. I also might try wearing the neo fin holder inside the fin to fill out the foot pocket. In a short 3 hour dive I got a little blister on my left heal. This is probaly because the foot pocket was too loose. I will see how it is with the fin holder and double boots next time. That was the only problem I had with the foot pockets. They were very comfortable.

Now the part you are waiting for, the blade. I first tried the fin in a spot with a lot of current. I usually have a very hard time swimming against the current at this spot. As I swam against the current I noticed that I was moving pretty good without kicking very hard. I also noticed I did not get tired as quickly as my other fins. The Classic Medium stiffness fins propelled me much better than the Cressi fins in strong current.

Next we moved to a deeper location. This spot ranges from 20 to 50 ft. plus. When diving the shallower areas I found the fin performs very well. I was able to kick up with very little effort. When applying more force to the fins I could come up even faster. At this point my dive partner told me that he could see the fin bending in an arc, where out other fins would hardly bend. I'd say these fins are great for surface swimming and shallow dives. We then ventured out into 40 to 50 ft water. Here the current pick up a little. Normally my dive partner swims a lot better then me in the current because he is bigger and stronger. This time however, he was always falling behind. Coming up from 40-50 ft with this fin work great at first. I was not pushing myself too much. However when I pushed the fin a little harder I could feel that I was overpowering the fin. Therefore I would not use this fin in water deeper than 30-40 ft.

This fin was a great performer. I did put a few scratches into the fin. They show up in the water, but are hard to see when the fin is dry. The fin is a little translucent on land, but in the water the light just seemed to reflect off the fin instead of camoflauging the fin. This is not necessarily bad because most fins are visible in the water. Over all I am very impressed with this fin. I will make it my shallow water fin unless one of the other 2 blades performs better.

I did notice that the Hybrid and Classic blades have very similar dimensions. However the Pro(Chameleon) blades I was sent are about an inch longer and about an inch skinnier than the Classic and Hybrid. The dimensions of the Chameleon blades are similar to my Cressi Fins.

Aloha and thanks,

Austin

 

[rigdvr]

any input Don? I browsed that site and those hybrids caught my eye...anyone know when they will be available?

 

[donmoore]

Mike,
I just used them Saturday for the first time. The angle is a few more degrees than the Omer Millennium’s and I really like it. I never felt right with the Millenniums and I was getting sores on the upper heal of the boots and the top of the toes, which I believe was because the fins wanted to be straighter with my body than I was capable of bending my feet.

I received the medium stiffness, and they are a little soft for going deep. Jyri, is sending me the hard ones right now. I only have to pay shipping for them and for returning the mediums. The fiberglass (or what ever they are) has excellent snap and is more efficient than anything I have used before. They also look really cool; a slightly greenish translucent. Quality is excellent. Foot pockets bolt perfectly.

My dive partner has Cressi Gara 2000 HF’s which have about the same stiffness as the mediums, but with less angle. He is similar in size and weight to me and I had a lot more speed on the surface than he did.

I wasn’t feeling good that day, because I pulled a muscle in my neck earlier in the week and was on muscle relaxers and antinflamatories. I didn’t take many deep dives, but I did manage to shoot a new state record in Horse Eye Jack. 20 lbs and 36 inches. The rod and reel record, which I am not competing against, is 23 lbs and 24 inches. How mine was able to be 50% longer and weigh 3lbs less, of the same species, is a mystery to me. I guess it was one lean, in shape, fish!
don

 

[sturgeon]

Everyone,

I'm back from the Nationals. This year was not a good one for me. I had a big striper come in on me during the comp that if I had gotten it my score would have gone from middle of the pack to top 10. Oh well, there's always next year in Hawaii.

Anyway, back to the thread:

My blue Pro medium blades were perfect for the diving conditions up in RI. They seemed soft to the feel when I got them but they performed very nicely in the water. One thing I noticed is that they are very smooth and uniform in their transition of power. I wore them for 2 weeks strait and they were very comfortable on the legs and yet still provided a nice push. Due to the conditions up there I never dove deeper then about 55ft with them but I was extremely heavy at that depth because I had to be weighted heavy enough to also be able to dive in 8-10 ft of water. The Pro's had no problem getting me back up from 50 ft even though I was as heavy as an anchor down there. The Pro Hybrids were a little too stiff for me in those conditions (much swimming and many, many shallow dives). I'm looking forward to putting them to the test here in Florida and I'll report back with the results when I do.

Scott T.

 

[donmoore]

Scott,
Good to hear from you again. That is too bad about the nationals this year. I heard the conditions were pretty bad too. Good luck next year in Hawaii. When is the date in Hawaii? I am thinking about taking the family to Hawaii next year.

So are you saying the Hybrids are stiffer than the Pro - Mediums?
don

 

[sturgeon]

Don,

The 2004 Nationals in Hawaii were originally scheduled for late August but that would have given divers who made the World Team only about 3 weeks before they'd have to compete in Chile. So, USOA is asking the hosting Council to move the date to an earlier time. Nothing's for sure right now, we should know shortly. They are probably going to be sometime in July on the island of Oahu.

Yes, in my opinion the Hybrids are significantly stiffer than the medium Pro blades.

Scott T.

 

[Mikko]

Hi!

I can officially confirm this.
Standard model of Hybrid is indeed stiffer than any medium stiffness of any other model.

Hybrid is a top of the line blade designed for top athletes with considerable kicking power. I have personally tested this fin for almost three months now. I feel that this stiffness is pretty much right. There will also be a stiffer + version of Hybrid for those big lads out there.

I have been happy with the surface swimming with these, but most of all the rigidity gives you quite an edge whe you are diving deep. In my opinion there is nothing more annoying than an "empty" kick when you are running out of air.

This model has also been tested extensively in South Africa. This stiffness has been agreed to be ideal by all testers so far.

Questions or opinions? Catch me at mikko@specialfins.com

Cheers,
Mikko

 

[unirdna]

I received my steropro fins from specialfins last week. Out of the box, I was immediately pleased. The fins fit into the omer pockets perfectly and securely without the need for glue. Holes matched up nice, screws went in firmly, blade slid in easily....all that crap that usually gives you grief was not there...nice. The omer pockets include two, small plastic clasps that secure the tips of the rails to the fin. The design is simple and effective.

The stiffness ("hard") seemed perfect. And the 'snap' was easily felt when I bent the blade by hand. When I grabbed the tip of the blade and pulled, the bend started at the tip and progressed to the middle of the fin. When I performed this same test on my dessaults and garas, the result was that the fin started bending in the middle.

I've only had the chance to test these fins in a shallow lake (10m). From what I felt, these fins were significantly stiffer than my beloved dessaults......good news, since this is what I want. I have wanted a stiff pair of fins for going deep for quite some time, but being afraid of breaking the carbon, I've held off. Anyway, from the short dives I got to do, these fins seems to give me what I need -- thrust. Man do these babies move the water. And you can feel that 'snap' even after the kick is done. I do have to put a little more muscle to my kicks, but the added push is well worth it. Without changing my kicking style, I found that I had to tighten my mask strap to keep it from leaking on the way up. I also noticed that my body was coming out of the water 6-12 inches further, upon surfacing, than with my dessaults. Jon also tried em out briefly, and seemed to like em. I'll leave it to him, if he wants to add his comments.

Tomorrow, I intend to travel to lake wazee and test the fins on dives ~100 feet. Having already taken my dessaults to the 100-foot mark many times, I will have at least one comparison to make. I'll let you all know how it goes.

Ted

 

[Murat]

Hey there....

I have opportunity to buy OMER BAT fins for 170 euro. But i don't need anyother fin till i practice skills more and get down 30+ meter. Now i saw those sebak hybrid fins but they are 390 euro. Can anyone used them both??? Any comparision? Is it worth to pay that much money for a beginner spero or Bat fins perform more or less same with less than half price???