Posts by Dan

Perception can swing any way. Strictly speaking the only thing required by the airlines is that pneumatic speargun be empty/decompressed.

I wasn't going to ask the diver to unpack, so I didn't inspect the back of the fins. But it's clear from the picture that one of the blades broke well below the screw attachment, which is right behind the red toe plate. If one blade breaking is not related to screws then it's safe to conclude there are other factors responsible.

Screws are a current and valid system for blade retention in foot pockets. I have no issues with it if the foot pocket is good, the blade is good, and the screws have a backing plate that distributes the pressure from the screws over a larger area.

In reality even blade failure along the screw line is indicative of bad blades and/or lack of support by the foot pocket tendons and can't be blamed on the screws. Which brings me to the next point. Tendons on a foot pocket is a desirable feature, necessary for blade support and stabilization through the water channeling effect the tendons create together with the blade rails. There is absolutely no negative associated with tendons.
I would not call tendonless foot pockets a trend, the concept has been around a long time, was adapted by very few manufacturers and dropped just as quickly. Currently I'm only aware of the C4 fins that use this system. From personal experience I can say there have been many broken C4 fins. They are basically priced so high that the cost of warranty replacement is built in.

I had the Seac Motus foot pockets lying around for a couple of years since they first came out. I didn't like them so I didn't offer them in the store, and never reviewed them because I didn't think they'd catch on.

I was with my dog at the beach, saw a diver coming out of the water and stopped to chat. Found out he broke both his fin blades, they're the Seac Motus fiberglass fins. He was tired from swimming back without fins and towing the board. He said he was very careful with the fins. Ironically he got the fiberglass fins for beach dives so as not to damage his carbon fins. It prompted me to write the review.

This is the hardware the Seac Motus foot pocket comes with. The typical toe plate, bottom support plate, two screws and two tendon end clips.

The foot pocket feels light weighing 566 grams at size 45-46, that's 100 grams less than the OMER Stingray foot pocket. It's hard to describe, the texture or feel of it doesn't inspire confidence. Being able to fold the bottom in the manner shown below is not something I would expect from a good foot pocket.

The tendon stiffness is between soft and moderate. I look for moderate stiffness tendons so the blade gets support from the foot pocket over one third of it's length. Soft tendons and lack of support, apart from poorly made blades, can cause blade failure exactly in the area where our diver broke his.

I always look forward to new foot pockets. There are so many different shaped feet, it's good to have options a diver can try. I don't feel the Seac Motus foot pockets fill any gaps fit or price wise. As far as performance the soft bottom is something I would stay away from. I'd stick with tried and true foot pockets like OMER Stingray if they fit.

Wow it even has a hamon, a fake one most likely to make it look like the steel was folded. Still a nice touch.

Welcome to the forum.

Hookinfish, if it's spearfishing/diving related advice you're asking about, I think this area is easier to dive and offers more opportunities than what you're accustomed to in California.
Living here in general.. summer's hard because of the heat, the rest of the year is great.
I think south Florida can be a rough place, dealing with undesirables, so it's good to maintain a vigilant attitude. But this of course depends on where you go and what you do.

Marco, I think Fort Lauderdale can't be beat for convenience. Fort Lauderdale international airport is 15 minutes from my place. The beach is 5 minutes. Port Everglades to launch the boat into the Atlantic is 20 minutes. Homestead and the Keys, for the kind of diving you'd expect from some Caribbean destination is 1 to 2 hours drive away. Most importantly the Freedive Store is right there for all your spearfishing gear needs

I'm also curious what it weighs.

How much Mike? Is this the kind that you paddle kneeling?

The Oceanic F11 was discontinued three years ago. If there are some still available it's old stock. I don't know why it was discontinued only one year after being released.

I understand that if the user replaces the Suunto D4F battery themselves it voids the warranty. I think the Suunto D4F is an elegant watch. If I was on the market for a freediving computer I'd get the D4F and replace the battery myself anyways when the time came.

The Suunto D4F case back is fastened with two Torx screws.

Interesting video, thanks for sharing.

Depends on the bands and how hard you can pull. When I rig mine with 6ft shooting line, the spear hits the end of it still having some momentum (8mm shaft). So I'd say 6ft plus 4ft (3/4 of a 60" shaft) for a total range of 10ft from the tip of the sling. I never purposefully shot a sling at a target to measure range.

I finally found a situation where a polespear is preferred over a sling. Met a diver yesterday who because of a shoulder injury could not pull the sling bands. But he could push the polespear with one hand while maintaining the other hand fixed, and keep the grip on the loaded polespear. So if someone has a shoullder injury and it hurts too much load a sling, the polespear may be a good option. Before the polespear I'd still try switching the hands with the sling.

Elvasport Finboard could have potential as a spearfishing board. Probably the best design I've seen for finning, the body position looks ideal. It also looks light/easy to carry. But no apparent place to secure a speargun. I think it's marketed for divers who swim out there to twiddle their thumbs. Most shore diving spearos will find it a expensive at 890 € for the fiberglass base model, and 1630 € for the carbon version.

Elavasport Visio, the more affordable Polyethelyn version. An interesting characteristic of this board is the window. In all honesty this is something I envisioned years ago. I suggested incorporating a window to Banksboard creator John. Probably cost prohibitive at 399 €. The shore diving segment of the market are normally budget conscious. Still it's a great concept.

Which sea do you hunt?

Quote from marginatus

The Piranha should be an evolution of the Zero...

The true evolution of the OMER Zero 3 mask is the OMER UP-M1 Umberto Pelizzari Mask.

and the OMER UP-M1C Umberto Pelizzari Carbon Mask.

Welcome to the forum. Good luck with the buddy search.

The Nile-Tec Tuna Speargun is a very well made bluewater gun and is currently offered with at a nice discount.

Gamble paid off. Satisfying when it works out like that.

I too don't like the steel muzzle design, as you said I don't see the benefit. Looks like you've taken a different approach to make sure the shaft tabs don't hit the muzzle by making it lower than the track. I think this will work.

mossad, why do you prefer this muzzle to conventional band holes?

You should taper the edges of the metal plate to guide the shaft into muzzle. Reverse direction of what I did here to guide the shaft into the enclosed track.