ReelDuel

split fin or not. what would you buy and why. I am a big guy with strong legs and my wife is small so what are the pros and cons to fins? Thanks

FelixH

I haven't tried splits, but they say you get more thrust with less effort.

lobsterman

All though the old scuba pro jet fins were designed in the late 60's they are still one of the strongest fins on the market. However you will need strong legs to opperate for any length of time. I have settled down to the Atomic split fins for ease of use, no leg cramping.

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countryjwh

i myself dont like split fins, but that is just my own opinion.

matthewy8

ask evensplit he helped me pick mine out. he can explain it all very easily.

Telum Pisces

For spearfishing, I do not like split fins. For regualar moving about looking at wrecks, I like split fins. Split fins technically give you more thrust with less effort, but still do not give you more thrust if you have the leg power to move a regualar fin. I have had to give chase of a fish sometimes when split fins would have not give me the thrust I needed to track it down before it disappeared.

Evensplit

Ah, the split fin discussion has made it to the home front...:letsdrink

First of all,all split fins are not created equal. The Atomics and the Apollo's were the first true designed from the start split fins, and most of the rest are loose copies of them. Seeing the amazing popularity in the new design, some companies took existing fins and put a split in them and called them split fins (these are the models you see for $99).They don't work, and some of them are so bad that it's funny -unless you're the one that paid $99 for them.

Split fins require a slightly different kick - not as wide as you use with traditional fins. You can use the same old kick you've been using, and they'll work fine, but to really get the full performance out of them you've got to modify it a bit.

Split fins take some getting used to because they provide little feedback - they create little resistance on the kick, and to those that have been using traditional blade style fins (especially rockets or jets) it feels like they're not getting any power from them. This is why most of the scoffers say they don't like them.."they don't have any power"...

The true split fins (atomic and apollo)provide excellent speed and power. I've used them for many years now, in all situations, and have not wished for anything else. Whether towing rescue students through the surf, kicking upcurrent in rivers, pulling a boat to shore, or trying to catch the AJ that swam off with the stringer, they've provided the speed and power I've needed.

There are a few Tech divers thatdon't like them while wearingdoubles because they're more difficult to frog kick and scull with, but there are some that say they're fine - I don't dotech dives, so I'll have to trust their call.

Leg cramps, and sore knees and ankles are not an issue with split fins - the lack of resistance makes the split much more forgiving on the body - so much so that the Navyhas beenevaluating them for use by spec ops and rescue swimmers.

If you'd like to try a pair of Atomic Splits, come on by the shop next time you're headed out, you cantry mine.

Telum Pisces

Jim,

What is this kick modification that you speak of. Because I am in the crowd that didn't like them because of the lack of thrust when I tried them. Maybe I didn't move my legs to the right music or something.

spearfisher

the kick modification that Jim is refering to is a shorter versionof the traditional scissor kick with a little more ankle control to it. The traditional scissor kick is a wide sweeping kick (like you are swimming free style). When you are swimming with a good split fin, the side rails of the fin give it the stability, and prevent the fin from over flexing. Good quality split fins should not bend greater than 45 degrees frontto back when kicking, so to get the full power out of the fin when horizontally planed out you should not have to kick any further than the top of you tank to the bottom of your chest roughly.

Atomics website has some really good info on the split fin, i.e. how they work and why. They also have a quicktime video that you can watch on this page that shows you what a split fin looks like when it is kicked.

http://www.atomicaquatics.com/splitfin2.html

bmoore

I prefer the scuba pro jet fins.I use the extra large size. I do a bit of cave diving/tech divingand split fins can cause line entanglement and silt outs which we need to avoid.