THERE WAS SOMETHING uncannily familiar about these fins when I received them. It didn’t take me long to spot that they were almost exact replicas of the Sherwood Fusion fins but with the stainless-steel spring-straps that I first saw on a pair of Seac GP100 4x4s. more...

At first glance these fins resemble the lightweight Mares X-Stream design, but that is where any similarity stops.
more...

CHOOSING A PAIR OF FINS you like is a very personal affair. They’ve got to fit properly, be comfortable and do the job.
My biggest fear is of taking a new pair of fins on a dive trip to find that they are ineffective. There’s nothing worse than working your heart out and getting nowhere. more...

Hollis, through its UK distributor Oceanic, sent me a pair of its latest F2s to try. These are also black, but made from a lightweight single technopolymer. Otherwise they boast many of the features so beloved of those who like to decompress in a horizontal way. more...

In size XL, these had the largest footpockets on any fins I have seen in a long while. more...

EVERYONE MAKES MISTAKES. I know I do.
One error has been caused by my being unaware that Mares continues to manufacture the classic Mares Plana Avanti Quattro fins. more...

THE MAN RESPONSIBLE for these Predator Power fins told me enthusiastically that they would change my diving life. more...

For as long as we can remember, Mares Plana Avanti Quattros have been the fins by which others are judged. Has a worthy successor finally arrived? JOHN BANTIN thinks Mares has done it again more...

No mention of Force fins should ever be made without reference to their inventor and manufacturer Bob Evans. he was born in Paris but is resident in California. Think of the character played by Dustin Hoffman in Meet the Fockers. more...

I’VE SPENT A LOT OF TIME FINNING my heart out round Wraysbury Lake looking at a speedometer while wearing Oceanic V16 fins and supervising others doing the same thing. more...

The new Aqua Lung Hotshot fins are the response to the criticism that the blades of the Slingshot were too big. They look very similar, but the whole fin in size XL measures only 54cm from heel to tip.
more...

These X-Stream fins could be the worthy successor to the Quattros. They weigh in at around 200g less per pair, which is good news when travelling.
What a pity they simply don't look as sleek and sexy, and they're certainly not cheap! more...

I HAVE HAD SOME EMBARRASSING EXPERIENCES with unfamiliar test fins, going on multi-day dive trips only to find that I don't get on with them. more...

At one time all divers seemed to use heavy rubber Jetfins. Then, a long time ago now, a company in Italy produced a pair of lightweight fins that were so superior in many ways that they took the world market by storm. more...

I GET SENT NEARLY EVERY FIN on the market to try. In the old days, when I set off on a diving trip, I'd also pack a tried and trusted pair too - just in case. more...

There are some good fins on the market and some that, frankly, seem worse than useless, so it's always with a little trepidation that I set off on a long diving trip with a new and untried pair. It's misery finding that you are trapped far from home using fins you don't like, and it has happened to me too often.
At the last minute, I substituted a set of Oceanic Aeris Velocity X3 fins for a tried and trusted pair and set off for a long-haul trip to the Far East, where currents are known often to be fiercer than pictures of brightly coloured reefs would have us believe. more...

THE QUEST TO MAKE A BETTER MOUSETRAP goes on, and this time it's a US company that thinks it has come up with a better set of fins for divers. more...

Each pair of Force Fins is moulded under the eagle eye of sculptor Bob Evans in California. The material he uses may account for much of the whopping retail price, but it's almost indestructible. more...

Designed and made in Italy, the Power 5s use a very conventional-looking paddle-fin design that is quite rigid, even though it has soft rubber inserts. more...

The new Mares Raptor fin is a Nature's Wing design with a bit of Mares' own input, too. more...

WHAT AM I DOING, showing you a picture of the wrong end of some manky-looking fins? Well, they are fitted with the single most effective improvement you can make to your finning - 'spring-straps'. more...

more...

more...

These fins have generous foot-pockets that encompass nearly all of the foot and so do not impart any loading onto the user's ankles. more...

While swimming with three tanks, the Quattro Excel shifted a lot of water and I made quick progress. Full marks there. more...