Posts by Dan

Good thread. Thanks for the info monster and Pucho. Although I think one level of stiffness difference between fins is too much. You should get the other blade reinforced monster to bring up to the same stiffness.

I did try it with soy sauce and it was good. I sliced it too thick though. I think this one should be sliced real thin. I have to get some wasabi.

The lighting made it look scary.

I shave the top of my feet, that reduces some of the friction. Do you use socks? There's no reason for that to happen if you're wearing socks. I dove barefoot with the new H Dessault footpockets and even though I haven't been diving enough to build up callouses I still didn't get any skin rubbed off. I believe Riffe footpockets are Spetton branded for Riffe.

It's enough that you took my lesser amberjack for chum LOL

Sorry to hear you can't dive often. Good luck with the sale.

Without prompting my wife told me today that she could eat bonito all day long and that the next time I see one to catch it. Para los gustos estan los colores.

Hello Virgili, nice pics.

I have some information to the contrary. As a foreigner you can buy a fishing license which includes a spearfishing license. The office to do this near Havana is located in Miramar and the license cost 50 USD five years ago. You get a little plastic tag which some of the guys attach to their wetsuit. The Cuban national pays the same amount but in Cuban pesos.

On the north coast diving between Havana and Matanzas I've never known of a foreigner being asked to present this license. They truly have more important things on their agenda as far as harassing foreigners like busting the unlicensed private houses they stay in and of course the girls.

Making friends in Cuba is of course key. I can see you did very well as in all my time there I haven't been able to go spearfishing on a private motor boat, too much control over that. I did go out a couple of times on a catamaran.

Cojones! That's a massive bull. And the tuna not too shabby either Thanks for sharing chad.

Did the tuna give a hard fight? What's the rigging on the gun you shot it with?

Yes there was a lot of blood.

About the "holding shot".. You can see the wound in the tail in the first pic, it was above the spine. When I was filleting the fish today I had to cut through the fish's topline in the area above the wound. I had a hard time doing it with a fillet knife. That topline is very tough and I'm not surprised it held the spear.

Speardiver C90 Carbon Blades are available at the Spearfishing Store.

Speardiver C90 carbon blades features

• Two year warranty on carbon blades (normal conditions of use).
• Fit all standard foot pockets.
• Blade length: 30" (76cm).
• Complete fin length (blade and foot pocket) approximately 36" (90cm) depending on foot pocket size.
• Blade width: 8.27" (21cm).
• Blade weight (medium stiffness): 10.7oz (304g).
• 25º built in toe angle.
• Water channeling rails for stabilization.
• Foot pocket rails for easy installation of the blades in foot pockets. No gluing is needed.
• 3 stiffnesses:

1. Medium soft (MS) A very light blade suitable for experienced divers who can get the same propulsion out of a soft blade using proper kicking form, and for divers who get knee and ankle pain from stiffer blades.
2. Medium (M) A light fast blade for all around diving.
3. Medium hard (MH) A stiffer blade for divers who prefer a stronger kicking style.

These blades are very durable and will not break when exposed to stresses that traditionally carbon blades have not been able to handle. You may recall this test I did a couple of months back.

Video: Carbon Blade Test

The blades have water channeling rails and rails that will snap into foot pocket tendons. We had rails designed and made specifically for this application. If you don't have experience with rails you may not be aware how important they are for ease of installation of blades in foot pockets and retention strength, as well as fin stabilization.

Reviews

EFFORTLESS!!!!!

Quote from Mariner

That pretty much sums up the CF blades Dan let me try out. I cracked one of my Waterways(that will be another thread) So I started asking about the CF blades. He said I could try some out before I bought a pair. (Thanks Dan!!!!) I got off work early last week and headed up to his house where he promptly installed them into my Omer footpockets. We went out for a shore dive from his house. I had prior commitments, so we only went out to the first reef. Depths were between 15-20. I couldn't really tell a difference on the descent because it was so shallow, but laying on the bottom and kicking up I think it was less than 3 kicks to go up. Today I went outwith my GF and let her take pictures of coral and shit while I went to go play. Depths were between 35-50fsw. Seas were 2-3ft with a nice wind chop and a mild current. Surafce swimming I liked how the fins moved me along at nice brisk pace. Even going into the current I didn't have to continually kick. 2-3 kicks and coast...Underwater is where the blades really shine. The snappiness compared to the fiberglass is unbelievable. Descents and ascents are soooooooooo much easier now. Doesn't require a full kick from the hips just small ones with your calves.

fin review OR cabron carbon review thread

Quote from LunkerBuster

So I picked up a pair of the med/stiff "pargo" carbon fins yesterday along with a pair of the H dessaulst pockets..Dan was kind enough to install them for me and i was very excited to try them having only ever used plastic fins.

upon holding them and messing with them I was very impressed, they really threw everything i had previously thought about carbon fins out of the window. they were flexible, had a high modulus and felt very tough and sturdy. I have read several comparisons of fins and carbon is clearly the best and i had very high hopes, even more after holding the fins in my hand.

We dove the second reef off of meade today..25ft to the top of the reef, 35 to the sand, gently sloping off to 38 in some places...give or take a foot or two.

the foot pockets are a lot harder and a tiny bit tighter than my old garas. they fit well and are pretty much perfect with a 1mm neoprene sock. i would like a 2mm just to make it a little more snug around the toes, but it might not be do-able. that is a small point as they are generally quite comfortable

upon jumping off the yak and cruising around to check the vis, i was struck by how easy it felt to kick and what a huge difference angled blades makes for surface swimming. this alone was a huge improvement.

I dove to check the anchor, make sure it wasn't on any coral or anything, and i was quite impressed with how easily i got to the bottom. I found that i use slightly different muscles when finning which I assume has more to do with the angle than the carbon. throughout the day I was pleased to find myself able to get places easier. that is the simplest way to describe it, I wasn't any better at diving, diving was just easier...i feel like the more i get used to diving with them, the more i will be able to turn it into better diving, as in, by knowing that I can move about easier, particularly on ascent, i will be more relaxed and calm which will turn into longer dives.

the best example i can give was a particular shot. I was diving near the end of the day and had been schooled by small bait fish throughout the day and had considered taking a shot at one as a skill shot. So it was nearing the end of the day and I saw a small rainbow runner, maybe 11 inches hauling ass about 25 ft below the surface. so I dove and found him again and saw his path and tried to predict his movement and the fish saw me so he took off, I started sprinting the way I would with my old fins and damned if I wasn't able to stay with him enough to pull off a very nice stone shot on him as he pushed out to like 15 ft...

he would have been gone daddy gone before.....at the end of the day, they are just fins and are only as good as the diver, BUT, these are without a doubt the best fins available without consideration of the price, and when one does consider that, it is a no-brainer. I look forward to many many dives with them and I highly recommend them to anyone.

Display More

__________________

Also known as false Albacore and little Tuna. Bear in mind I never hook and line so the only fish I get is spearfishing. I've been wanting to shoot this bonito for a while now because I find it very challenging, they appear fast out of nowhere, always zooming around like bullets and never stop moving.

Yesterday up north with Rolo, Emil and Alan I managed to shoot this one. It was a long shot as the fish was on the move away from me and I was kicking hard to catch up. I hit it just above the tail and it took off fast but it was a holding shot. I was concerned about the fish shaking the spear and played it gently. When it came within sight out of the blue from my left side came Emil with a solid backup shot, good call.

Later on the boat I was lightly made fun of because as it turns out bonito is not valued as a food fish. I never knew this because I never caught one. At worst I thought it will be dog food. I was proud of the shot and thought it was a beautiful fish. It's the closest I got to shooting something tuna like. I think the fish went around 8-9lb.

It's really built like a bullet. Check out this pic where you can see that the pectoral fin has a cavity behind it. When held flat against the body the fin fits exactly into this cavity and fish becomes super streamlined.

As promised the meat of the bonito is red like red wine.

I was also told that it tastes bad. I cooked a few small portions in different ways. The best way turned out to be to lightly season the small fillets and fry. The color change from wine red to gray reminded me of the cooking characteristics of liver, I bet it will be great with sauteed onions. The red meat although reminiscent of the very fishy tasting lateral line in most fish does not taste fishy at all. The texture and complete lack of fishy taste make it almost like eating some kind of land meat. I'm really sensitive to the fishy taste, I don't like it, and the bonito didn't have it.

I served my wife some and she said "que rico, es como si fuera carne" and asked what it's called. I mispronounced it and called it bonita which sealed the deal The bonito is not a big target for me but I think if I get a chance I will shoot another in the future. I have a preference for feeding my dog red fish meat anyways.

It is a winner.

Congrats on a great product Jeff. I'm using the 1st generation 1.25lb pinch weights for a year now and wouldn't want to dive with another weight ever again. Taking the weights on and off is so easy making it much more likely that I'll adjust my weight as soon as it's needed. You've truly given a gift to the diving community.

Thanks for the inquiry, I'll put something up today.

I get "This video is not available in your country due to copyright restrictions".

Welcome to the forum.

Around that time I liked Grendizer. I really waited for the episodes, they ended each at the most tense moment. http://www.grendizer.net/Grendizer.html

Sheepshead

But do you know what's Chee he?

Marco, what do you think about the new Sporasub products? http://www.sporasub.com/prodotti_ing.html?lingua=ING

etc.