Mares: Scuba Diving Fins 101

February 28, 2018

One thing every diver should know, may it be an amateur or a professional, is that scuba gears are an investment. Choosing which to purchase could be quite difficult especially when there’s a whole smorgasbord to choose from. During your dive mission, you wouldn’t want to exhaust all your energy by moving about the water, this is why divers need fins. Fins help increase one’s thrust power and protect their feet from scratching against the reef. Below are tips you’ll need when choosing fins that are a perfect match for you and your dive mission.

1. Ease of wearing

Tess out how easily and effortlessly one can put and remove the fins in and out of the water.

2. Adjustable fit

Assess the effectiveness usage of the straps and buckles.

3. Comfort and fit

Check the overall security and ease of the fin when worn during a dive mission.

4. Stability

Test out if fins have tendency to stagger, hit each other or slice side to side during the kick cycle

5. Power

Assess the intensity of the effort put into one’s kick produce during the kick cycle.

6. Kicking Style

Check the overall efficiency and ease of the in when performing different kicking styles such as the frog kick, dolphin kick and etc.

7. Acceleration

Test out how quick one can increase their speed thru their kicks while underwater.

8. Maneuverability

Assess how easily one can get in and out of confined spaces and how one can shift from one direction to another.

Do take note that fins are also gauged for buoyancy, weight and material used for their design or technology. Find the perfect pair for your dive and be responsible when maintaining it so that the investment could stick around for more dive missions.

Mares X-Stream Fins: Your X-traordinary Power Underwater

October 28, 2017October 27, 2017

Your diving fin is a massive factor in the overall success of your dive. That is why it is utterly important to have a fin that will give you great kicks without compromising comfort while diving. Thus, Mares X-Stream Fin was developed — ingeniously engineered and meticulously designed to give exceptional style and thrusting power underwater. We dissected its features and technologies to bits and we’ve come up with a list of why the X-Stream is apparently X-traordinary:

Mares X-Stream distinct materials

The Mares X-Stream Fin is carefully crafted with three distinct materials — each with its own mission: thermoplastic, stiff black rubber, and a clear, soft rubber.

The thermoplastic material is for the blade frame and footboard. The stiff black rubber, on the other hand, is over-molded on the blade’s side rails and at the juncture of the fin’s next-generation Optimized Pivoting Blade (OPB). Finally, the clear, soft rubber is used on the foot pocket and on the blade’s super channel center panel. These distinct, premium materials make Mares X-Stream comfortable, lightweight and one that delivers both stability and a lot of snap.

Mares X-Stream lightweight design

Mares X-Stream is extremely light for a full-size fin but proves to be one of the fastest fins on the speed course, generating great power for less effort. Removing areas of the fins that don’t contribute to thrust, it weighs only 0.66kg per fin. The fins are very light so it takes less effort to move them through the water.

Mares X-Stream reduces parachute effect

The Mares X-Stream perforated foot pocket is an interesting detail as it not only eliminates drag but also makes the pocket more flexible. It also reduces sucking effect when removing the fin after a dive. This also allows the fins to get on and off easily even while in the water.

Mares X-Stream hinged blade

The Optimized Pivoting Blade (OPB) feature of the Mares X-Stream delivers a propulsive blade snap that propels you forward more efficiently on every downward stroke. It increases the efficiency of the divers kicks while reducing negative trust. The fin also earned solid marks for performance using all kicking styles.

Mares X-Stream channel thrust technology

The clear, soft rubber used on the blade creates a super channel allowing you the best performance with minimal effort; it creates a large flexible central panel that helps propel water-flow more efficiently down the fin blade instead of letting it spill over the sides.

Mares X-Stream quick release ABS plus buckles

This ingenious feature of the Mares X-Stream allows you to easily open and close the buckles even while wearing thick neoprene gloves. The ABS plus buckles allow donning and doffing the fins without adjusting the straps. The double button release also prevents the buckle from accidentally opening making it very user-friendly.

Mares X-Stream comfortable fit

The fusion of softer materials with stiffer materials creates a foot pocket with an unmatched comfortable fit — while ensuring all the power of the foot is transferred to the blades.

With all these innovative features and technologies welded on it, the Mares X-Stream promises an overall comfort and lightweight-ness with unparalleled stability and X-traordinary power. Plus, it also looks really good under the water.

The Best of Mares Fins: Which of these Mares Fins Fit You?

July 30, 2018August 26, 2017

Equally critical and exciting, scuba diving is a serious water sport that need ingeniously engineered gears to navigate better underwater regardless—the water condition and temperature. Just like other gears, your diving fins will significantly define the quality of your dive. So, choosing a fin that fits you and being familiar with it is extremely important as it allows for more precision during your dives and leads to a higher confidence level. On the list are the best of Mares fins for the choosing — each one ergonomically designed and intricately engineered to ensure durability, comfort, and style.

Mares Power Plana Tec for a badass kick

Though it looks domineering and intimidating, the Power Plana proved to be surprisingly manageable, earning good points for stability, acceleration and maneuverability. Weighing 1.3kg each (size regular) and boasting its charcoal black natural rubber material, the Power Plana is more badass than ever. These Mares paddles move a lot of water. So if you are looking for power, stability, efficiency plus a badass design, Mares Power Plana Tec are the fins that fit you.

Mares X-Stream Open Heel Dive Fins for extreme thrusting power

The Mares X-Stream are your extreme diving fins as you can probably tell from the first glance. While getting the large blades to power you through the water smoothly, a large flex point at the front of the foot pocket helps relieve stress on your joints. The vented foot pocket works great with both bare feet and neoprene diving boots. These are certainly one of the highest quality diving fins in terms of construction materials and performance—usually appealing to intermediate or advanced divers. An excellent investment for any diver looking for premium level gear.

Mares Avanti Quattro Plus Open Heel for comfort and solid thrust

Another great scuba diving fin design that combines stiffer plastics with soft channels to help add some extra oomph to your kicks. The Mares Avanti Quattro adds a very useful bungee style backstrap allowing no fiddling with adjustments: just slip the fin on, and the back strap stretches to snugly hold it in place. Quick, easy and power is the name of the game for the Mares Avanti Quattro—providing rock solid thrust when kicking and undeniable ease of use.

A powerful fin laced with solid stability and efficiency is utterly paramount for serious divers, but above all these, comfort and fit is a feature that cannot be ignored when choosing your own diving fin. May you find the right ones for you!

Check our catalogue for Mares Fins