Posts by lidiver

I got a muzzle from Tin Man for 3 5/8 bands for a JBL gun. I doesn't show any stress cracks, and I installed 2 much smaller spikes on it (3mm diameter, 5mm length outside the delrin) that I use for shooting line routing.

I'm posting this as to suggest a different way to insert the spike - instead of a press-fit, the small pins I used are threaded and I screwed them into pilot holes in the muzzle. It might be a better holding system without stressing too much the delrin with the stress-fit.

Stefan

Quote from Dan

Some of this will be pretty basic, but I'm often reminded how many guys don't understand rails. There are two kinds of rails; water channeling, and tendon rails.

Water channeling rails

Water channeling rails are used to channel water down the blade, they eliminate the fin slipping off the water effect during the down stroke. This can be felt with many plastic fins which usually lack water channeling rails, and with some fiberglass and carbon blades where the manufacturer cut corners and didn't install good rails. Watch the beginning of this video of Sheri Daye using DiveR fins, notice the erratic movement of the fins on the descent. This is partially due to the DiveR being longer than the conventional 90cm, and is exaggerated because they lack water channeling rails, the fins become harder to control.

Ideally the water channeling rails start where the footpocket tendons end and continue all the way to the front edge of the blade. The height of the rails should be about 1.5cm/a little over .5". The grade of rubber of the water channeling rails should be soft enough that they don't interfere with the flexing of the blade, but stiff enough to maintain a straight profile. Another function of these rails is to protect the side edges of the blade against impact, the edge is where fiber fins are most sensitive.

https://spearfishing.world/ima…aphicPursuitLogo04718.jpg

Here is the schematic for the Pursuit water channeling rails.

https://spearfishing.world/ima…nelingRailSchematic-1.jpg

There has been little variation on the concept of water channeling rails. C4 came out with something they call the flap. Just as the name suggest it's a piece of loose rubber in addition to the normal rail height, that flaps around. I'm not sure what their reasoning for it is, but from what I hear people that get these fins end up cutting that part of the rail off. I never tried this flap but I miss it on my fins like I miss it on my ****. See the behavior of the rails when the blade is flexed, doesn't look efficient for water channeling.

EDIT - I found out the flap name is in reference to the shape of the front edge of the C4 not the rail flap.

https://spearfishing.world/image/C4FuegoFlex.jpg

https://spearfishing.world/image/C4Flap.jpg

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This quote about the C4 is a classic:
"C4 came out with something they call the flap. Just as the name suggest it's a piece of loose rubber in addition to the normal rail height, that flaps around. I'm not sure what their reasoning for it is, but from what I hear people that get these fins end up cutting it off. I never tried this flap but I miss it on my fins like I miss it on my ****."

The "flap" is the extension at the end of the fin (an exaggerated curved out cut versus the standard "curved in" cut at the end of the blade). Pursuit offers a cut that resembles a "flap". DiveR comes with a "flap" cut. It has nothing to do with the rubber rail, and obviously it is carbon.

Many folks are breaking the flap as it is exposed and cannot take too much abuse. When that happens they cut off the flap on the other fin and keep using them.

C4 being a rather small fin, removing the cut is making it even smaller. I'm not a fan of the C4 - too small/soft to get me moving.

As for the side rails - some folks in the PFI training team would not touch fins without or with small side rails. Considering they're making many 100ft drops per day and plenty between 100 and 200' per week I'm sure they know what they're talking. Watching Kirk dropping to 200' with C4 mustangs with cut-off flaps is something else.

That plate is tiny - on may reels the support plat is at least the size of the spool - that way the stress on screws/wood is much less.

I have a pair that is beat up - one pocket started to tear up at the rail, the other one is perfect. I glued the rail and seems to hold fine, but the pockets are too narrow for my duck feet. You can have them both for $30 plus shipping. They are not new, but if you have the habit of breaking them having a spare or two is a good idea. Let me know if you're interested and I'll take some picture so that you can better asses the damage on the glued one and the overall shape.

Quote from Tin Man

The only thing I really know about machining clear stuff is that it won't be clear anymore where you cut it. The tool will leave tiny scratches that make it look frosted. Maybe it can be polised back to clear, but I've never tried.

There is no need to machine the clear lens - that one has to be cut only as a circle from a good (uv/scratch resistant acrylic).

The machining is for the "lens ring"- the thing that will get screwed onto the original ring and hold the new lens in place on top of the original lens+ring. That new ring doesn't have to be clear - it can be any color, black white or opaque.

it seems that you can buy a 12"x12" sheet 1/8 thick for $5:
http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=24785&catid=704

Use a "circular drill" to cut a round lens... cut about 12 lenses from one sheet...

maybe cutting a round lens from a sheet of plexiglass would work...

Hi,
I have an Atomic Frameless that I got last season. I tried it once in the ocean and once in the pool and it doesn't fit my face. It is like brand new as I couldn't complete not one dive - it flood before I reached 30ft, and in the pool it also flood in a matter of seconds.

The problem is with my face, not the mask- at the pool I gave it to my buddy to try it out and he did a few laps underwater without any issues... but his face is wider than mine. I can feel how the mas is just too big for my face...

The mask is amazing and this weekend I'll go and buy the medium - but for now it is obvious that the large size doesn't fit me and I have to sell.

I'm asking $70 plus shipping. At LeisurePro it sells for $99:
http://www.leisurepro.com/Prod…1%2c729/ATMMFR.html?Hit=1

Can you use any kind of transparent polycarbonate as the flat lens to be added to the gopro housing? Or it has to be a lens from another housing as those might still have some optics build in?

I'm attaching all my guns to my belt, but that is something that might be OK for the type of diving we're doing in NE: striped bass in 30-70 ft, medium to heavy current, lots of structure to get gear tangled into.

If the situation asks for, will not try to unclip the gun - I will just drop the belt. That way the gun will stay where is dropped and I'll be able to recover it at a later time, and since I am under stress already ditching the belt is a good thing.

This setup would not work on deeper waters... or the setup would work, but you cannot recover it

I wouldn't use the thing from mako to attach the gun to my hand as it is now: while I can be prepared to drop the belt, I have a harder time accommodating the thought of dropping the arm and going to recover it at a later time.

There is one small change that actually would make that contraption work: the buckles are "pressure-rated" (they are designed to give up at a certain force). If the buckles would be easily interchangeable then you could choose between buckles that give up at 10lb pull, 20lb pull etc depending on the type of dive/diver. That would be a more elegant solution compared to a string that will break.

Other option would be to attach it in the same way a float line is attached -with a snubber.

I still prefer, for my shallow dives, the gun attached to the belt and being dropped with the belt.

Stefan

I would consider the Mako Oceanic 140 with 3 14mm bands and open muzzle. I would NOT get that shaft - I would try to find one with a full shark fin, 7mm or 7.2mm

Mako Oceanic has the larger barrel - 28 mm ID - and that helps with the recoil.

I have the Nemo Black #5... All I can say is that I am so looking forward to receive the C100s

The way fins rate in my book is something like "C4 -40: useless wet noodles; Nemo #5- good nimble all-around fins"... However this week I tried some fins that for the first time I had to take a step back, bow deep and say that "it is too much of a fin for me".

A friend got from Hanapaa the EXTRA HARD carbon fins they sell... Compared to the Nemo stifness, they would rate probably a notch over 7 (Nemo stops at 5), and they are a bit longer than Nemo. For the amount of force required to bend them, there was very little "spring" back - pretty much like bending a 2x4. The footpockets were also a bad match (Omer) and the blade was pocking badly in the sole.

I swim with fins a lot and normally I don't feel anything in the joints, but with these ones after 15 minutes my knees had enough. Now I trully understand why folks are saying about some fins " too stiff, not efficient for me".

Is anybody else using those fins? Is is a matter of "growing up" to them or due to the manufacturing process they lack the effciency?

Stefan

Based on some tests that I run (and I still have to publish the results) I'll switch from one fat band to 2 5/8 (that is after I finish my current stock of 7/8 rubber).

2 5/8 provide more energy than 1 3/4 (and comparable to one 7/8), but they are so much easier to load... With many folks upgrading their shafts on the euro guns from the classic 6.5mm to 6.75 , 7 or 7.5mm getting 50lb more of force helps, an usually the trigger and barrel will hold that extra 50lb.

#1: Euro 100, shaft 140
#2: Euro 115, Shaft 150
#3: Euro 90, Shaft 130

All euro guns (true euro, not like rife-euro) are measured by indicating only the length of the pipe.

If the euro 90 would pack enough power and weight/flotation it would be probably the most used on the NE coast. The Mako Oceanic with the 28mm barrel and 2 5/8 bands is a good move in that direction.

It seems that somebody found a solution for the GoPro focus problem:
http://www.eyeofmine.com/gopro/

The Contour HD with housing is twice the price of GoPro - it comes to $600... For that price you can get a regular point and shoot camera with a housing.

There are a few video posted for Contour HD, some in less than ideal conditions (haze, 80ft deep). It doesn't have the same problem as GoPro.

However the view quality seems less than Flip and probably less than any respectable camera.

...based on this video it seems to perform better than the GoPro:

http://vholdr.com/video/underw…-fit-vholdr-and-contourhd

It is more expensive, but not as expensive a prosumer camera, and it is a helmet cam that you can install on the gun or helmet.

Quote from Marco

Welcome Stefan. You were using extremely stiff fins. What´s your weight?

Thanks for the warm welcome, guys!

I walk at an average of 240 for 6' tall - definitely overweight... I tried plenty of fins but at over $400 a pop it is getting expensive to keep trying. I had high hopes for the C4 40, but I find them soft as wet noodles. The trick with the #5 is not to even think about overpowering them or bending them at 90 degrees - it will not happen. But put the right pressure on them and they will take you through the nastiest stuff you can imagine - including swimming big fish up when the reel jams.

Can you pour-in a new guide? Use the router to made a deeper channel (plenty images and instructions on the gun building threads), then pour in the compound and re-cut the channel - it will be shallower in the middle (or deeper, or to the left or right depending of the bend) but it will be true and a much cheaper solution than replacing the stock.