10-06-2008, 05:16 PM
[quote flygoddess]Well you know me and my pictures. I had to go back and think about my fins, because several look familiar.
First off, I have a very cool pair still, that I have no picture of. They are the hard plastic flipper sole, with a total nylon upper. Not the best in choppy water, but great on small calm lakes or even a pool.
They fold flat so very easy to transport, in fact that is what they were designed for.
Secondly, I still have the regular molded plastic. Again same functions as the backpackables. Very easy to get on, but these are hard on shoes:
Then I bought these, They are the Browning. I no longer have these. The back strap was a pain to adjust, tight and hard on the boot, and tired me out. Plus the rear strap didn't last very long:
Next I went with a pair called "TURTLES" Pretty much the same results as the Brownings:
Which leaves me to where I am todayand have been for the past 5+ years:
BUT, I am a on the thin side however 5'8" tall. I kick with my legs down like sitting in a chair and kicking a ball. I don't need to move my feet much at all, but in real bad weather I am very mobile.
Let me say, ALL fins work on calm water[
] the test is 3' waves LOL[/quote]
I fin the same way as you for the record. Stroke is from legs slightly below me (knees bent past 90 degrees) to legs out (maybe slightly more than 45 degrees out). This is at full tilt boogie though. For cruising and positioning I probably propel more on ankle movement.
Not a problem for me, but those fins with the fixed rear loop and adjustable buckles and belts over the top are not a good deal for those with large feet. I floated with a buddy this weekend who used a pair of those (Size 14 wading boots!!) and there was hardly 4" of blade out from under his toes. I felt bad for the guy churning around.
The Brownings look very similar to the Planas, but mine are not vented. I'm not sure what the purpose of those are except maybe they make the fins big to look good, but vent them so they aren't as resistant? Marketing? Big spoiler on a Honda Civic tactic... I agree the rubber strap does wear out, but you should only need to adjust them once. The foot pocket is well suited for a flexible shoe without big lace hooks and rings like the water shoes, but may be too confining for true wading boots.
I wonder if they tired you out because you were used to a certain cadence of finning, and this cadence actually was propelling you faster than you needed to go at the expense of extra energy? I think I discovered in my testing that barely a loping idle of a kick cadence with my big fins resulted in the same velocity as a relatively brisk pace using the Force fins.
If you could explain how a fin is better or worse in a chope though, I'd appreciate it. I can't see how it'd make a differnce...
Do you feel with your Browning fins that if you had to fight a breeze back home you'd either be slower or not make it (due to power or loss of energy or cramping) vs the Force? Seems like the using Force Fins is akin to riding a road bike with hill gearing selected. Not fast on the flats, but if you hit a hill, you're prepared to chug on up. The "big fins" are akin to the same bike on cruise gear. Slower to accelerate, but you can maintain higher speed with similar effort. Problem may be that depending on the size of the hill (= wind) you may or may not be able to get up.
Current, on the other hand, is a different story. I think that the big fins win in current as your water speed needs to be as faster in the current. If you can't get enough water speed with your fins because of size and cadence limitations, you're effed!
I really would like to do more testing as I'm having fun, but when I'm on the water I just want to fish too much!
I'll keep y'all posted.
_SHig
[signature]
First off, I have a very cool pair still, that I have no picture of. They are the hard plastic flipper sole, with a total nylon upper. Not the best in choppy water, but great on small calm lakes or even a pool.
They fold flat so very easy to transport, in fact that is what they were designed for.
Secondly, I still have the regular molded plastic. Again same functions as the backpackables. Very easy to get on, but these are hard on shoes:
Then I bought these, They are the Browning. I no longer have these. The back strap was a pain to adjust, tight and hard on the boot, and tired me out. Plus the rear strap didn't last very long:
Next I went with a pair called "TURTLES" Pretty much the same results as the Brownings:
Which leaves me to where I am todayand have been for the past 5+ years:
BUT, I am a on the thin side however 5'8" tall. I kick with my legs down like sitting in a chair and kicking a ball. I don't need to move my feet much at all, but in real bad weather I am very mobile.
Let me say, ALL fins work on calm water[
] the test is 3' waves LOL[/quote]I fin the same way as you for the record. Stroke is from legs slightly below me (knees bent past 90 degrees) to legs out (maybe slightly more than 45 degrees out). This is at full tilt boogie though. For cruising and positioning I probably propel more on ankle movement.
Not a problem for me, but those fins with the fixed rear loop and adjustable buckles and belts over the top are not a good deal for those with large feet. I floated with a buddy this weekend who used a pair of those (Size 14 wading boots!!) and there was hardly 4" of blade out from under his toes. I felt bad for the guy churning around.
The Brownings look very similar to the Planas, but mine are not vented. I'm not sure what the purpose of those are except maybe they make the fins big to look good, but vent them so they aren't as resistant? Marketing? Big spoiler on a Honda Civic tactic... I agree the rubber strap does wear out, but you should only need to adjust them once. The foot pocket is well suited for a flexible shoe without big lace hooks and rings like the water shoes, but may be too confining for true wading boots.
I wonder if they tired you out because you were used to a certain cadence of finning, and this cadence actually was propelling you faster than you needed to go at the expense of extra energy? I think I discovered in my testing that barely a loping idle of a kick cadence with my big fins resulted in the same velocity as a relatively brisk pace using the Force fins.
If you could explain how a fin is better or worse in a chope though, I'd appreciate it. I can't see how it'd make a differnce...
Do you feel with your Browning fins that if you had to fight a breeze back home you'd either be slower or not make it (due to power or loss of energy or cramping) vs the Force? Seems like the using Force Fins is akin to riding a road bike with hill gearing selected. Not fast on the flats, but if you hit a hill, you're prepared to chug on up. The "big fins" are akin to the same bike on cruise gear. Slower to accelerate, but you can maintain higher speed with similar effort. Problem may be that depending on the size of the hill (= wind) you may or may not be able to get up.
Current, on the other hand, is a different story. I think that the big fins win in current as your water speed needs to be as faster in the current. If you can't get enough water speed with your fins because of size and cadence limitations, you're effed!
I really would like to do more testing as I'm having fun, but when I'm on the water I just want to fish too much!
I'll keep y'all posted.
_SHig
[signature]