mares smart +2

i dont really know whats the difference apart from the fact that the gorilla has more kickback compared to the standard Nova? at least thats the kind of mixed reviews people have been saying,i suppose i wont personally know until i compare them.

This post has been edited by KiraTomaru: Jun 26 2016, 12:21 AM

Just wanna get the OWD over with.. I guess Ill wait for MIDE..

This post has been edited by Sham903n: Jun 26 2016, 12:30 AM

Wow. Have you tried any of them?
Those are quality stuff. But depending on your needs, you might find that they may not fit all situations in the future. Personally i wouldn't suggest spending so much so early on, especially on booties. Mid-range brands would suffice, granting you space for error and to consider another purchase. Unless of course, money is not an issue.

I admit i'm not a gear tester, nor do i have personal experience with many different kinds of gear. But based on what i've been through, priorities change over time. I thought i'd make only 1 fin purchase for life, but in the end i realized i needed smaller ones. Bought 3 masks coz the first was poorly planned and the second cracked. Others i've heard changed their bcd from a full-featured back-inflate to the basic jacket because of hassle, durability, and the fact that to teach students they need to practice what they preach.

Then later on, who knows you might even consider getting a full set. That's when the more serious purchases are contemplated. Or you might consider underwater photography. That's when you splash the cash. So save up while you can.

Just my few cents though..those are still awesome gear to get if you can afford it easily..

Consider getting thicker booties (5-7mm), or one with thick soles... but I don't know whether you can find such booties in your size in the first place

Although I personally am using seawing and I always say they are the best fins ever and I love my fins till bits. I would still say, go try it out first before buying. Seawing gorilla is like 2 pieces of planks, make sure your legs have muscles. evansoon might be able to sell you his gorillas. Prepare to pay at least rm700+ for any seawing, gorilla is more expensive. I'm not sure with the conversion rates now.

Booties - we mostly use seapro booties. You can get it from rainbow runner shop at MIDE for below rm100. It's cheap and serves its purpose for general diving around SEA. Plus I like how the center part has the hard thingy and it fits nicely with my seawing nova to protect the center part of my feet from getting bruise if I fin a lot. I've had other booties but seapro was my first and it's still my favourite.

Mask - actually the only piece of equipment I would suggest you to get before your course. If you have the budget, go ahead and get your preferred one. I assure you, you will definitely have more than one mask (at a time) thruout your diving life. A cheap mask is generally around rm100, a good one is around rm100-200, and higher end ones are rm250+ or so.

Since you like scubapro, if you have friends or family traveling to Hong Kong soon, get them to check the dive shops there.

Well for starters i do cycle alot,i dont suppose that should do some damage in the water and 700+ refers to the gorilla or standard nova? diving express is selling the gorilla for about 640 but the color they have available is orange which is a tad bit obnoxious personally

well as for booties and masks,generally i like to follow a few hard and fast rules which i carry over from PC Building which is to not underspend or overspend but spend on the best thing you can afford within a given set budget which is about 1100 for the said 3 basic equipment which shouldnt be too bad.

as for branding i dont really mind,it really isnt a must to get everything from scubapro with the exception of the fins

i guess from the information ive gathered so far im still within my set target budget assuming i go with the average prices youve mentioned 700ish?(fins) + 100(booties) + 150(mask) = 950ish?
although i hope during MIDE the seawings would be cheaper than expected...?

It's amazing for fighting currents, but I notice I hardly fin lol. Seawing is selling like rm800+ if not mistaken, check with Sealantis (distributor) and Scuba Warehouse (might be cheaper than Sealantis). Scubapro is expensive in Malaysia. Diving express is the hk based online shop right? I've gotten my seawings from them as well, so did Evan and his orange gorilla. We used to be able to get a pair of seawings for like rm400

Our MIDE isn't exactly WOW pricing for scubapro. Like I said, scubapro ain't cheap in Malaysia. If you can source from overseas, by all means, do it.

Yea booties is around that price, below rm200 can get pretty good ones. You might wanna increase your budget for mask a bit though if you're looking for frameless and stuffs.

400? you mean like 5 years ago when the nova was originally released? because currently at diving express with all said and done including shipping is about roughly 720MYR assuming during MIDE if i someone price matches it or thereabouts i might as well bite the bullet and get it there and then. additionally hence the 1100ish i plan to set aside which allows for some wiggle room.

there was another online store which i found called scubastore but there doesnt seem to be a way for me to add items to the cart so i could gauge the shipping prices which frustrated me. the seawing gorilla was going for about 595MYR which does look like a steal but alas the site seems broken to me with no way to try to register as a customer or even add items as a guest.

Oh 5 years only? I guess so haha. It was around 2011 or so when I first tried on my friend's seawing and fell in love with it. She bought it for below rm400 in hk then since she was a stewardess and flew there often. I think my first pair was around rm400+ (early 2013) then second pair around rm500+ (mid 2014). I remember KL pricing was always around rm800 or so. You have to consider our awesome currency as well

MIDE is in a month's time. Just wait for MIDE and then decide later.

yeah thats what im planning to do after all,im just asking around right now to find out what the situation is like. you know like testing the waters

Hi all!

That is about a US 4.5.I do plan to try more in MIDE. Do they run out of sizes too early?

I was looking inititally for full foot, paddle type fin with reasonable power but not too stiff. But at my size, I think my choices are limited. and I did manage to fit into the Mares Plana Avanti Excel XS so that will be my last option.

Definitely going to consider thicker booties/wearing neoprene socks with full foot, if its going to help with fitting! I can fit into size 5 or 6 booties, my ankles are just too narrow.

So far I do have in mind to check these out at MIDE (since I found them to be available in smaller sizes)
- Oceanic Viper
- Tusa Solla
- Mares Volo Race with booties/ thicker socks
- Aqualung Shot FX
- Gull mew and Gull coco

Any opinion?

Thanks very much!!!

The avanti excels have a pretty decent reputation. Good feedback on the kicks. Volos, on the other hand, are softer and i've heard they don't do well in currents. The gull rubber fins are great too, i've yet to hear any complaints about them. And the solid colors are attractive too. Be mindful that rubber fins are negatively buoyant though. Might affect your trim a bit.

Can't comment about the others. No hearsay nor tried them before

Full foot vs open heel is a bit of a dilemma. Personal preference i feel. I always thought open heel should be the way to go, coz it's versatile, allows for bootie use (those long walks on the shore and those dirty boat floors) and just feels more secure on my foot. But after a few rounds of washing up gear, i start to feel the hassle. And plus full foot fins are the choice for freediving. More streamlined.

from what i read arent full foot better for warmer waters and cheaper too?

Cheaper yes. For warmer waters not necessarily so. Cold waters require more insulation and that's where the booties come in. That's why open heels are more versatile, just in case you decide to dive overseas.

Many girls I know with smaller feet uses Mares X-stream as well. So far only good reviews about that pair of fins.

and light weight too..

x stream....

how a bout Tusa sollar?

Let me comment some points for Seawing Nova and Seawing Nova Gorilla...
1. Seawing never got cheaper in MIDE. Last year discount was like 10-20% depend who u r to them, Seatlxntxs.
2. Scubapro products best you deal with HK Diving Express, they usually having end year sales one. I got mine as a gift from there also about RM500 back in 2013.
3. Seawing Nova Gorilla, generally u require more strength to kick and hence the stronger propulsion and u get to swim further. But if u r not sportman/athlete/frequent exercise person, avoid this as you may get cramp often.
4. Seawing Nova, I in love with this fins. Generally it works well thru out all situation. Straps, flex rubber part, older batch tends to tear. Now they said they make it "Indestrutible" not sure how true is tat...
5. Another way is buy from Lazada.
For example: This Seawing Nova Product LZD Links selling RM748.
If you have Maybank card, buy on Wednesday on app, u get additional 12% off which your final price would be around RM658.24 or which ever discount code allow you to get more value.
For Size wise, u go Seatlantix and try out lo, and buy online. For RM658.24 is not too bad wat! No need to rebut with people in MIDE plus u get additional BCards Points or AirAsia Points... hahahaa...
*Even shop give u discounted price in MIDE, I think RM658.24 is still hard to beat unless u go HK!

In case you wanna dive with sharks in future, let's say Bahamas. Diving with Tiger Sharks.
I've been warned not to bring striking colors types gears down there. U don wanna have a test bite on your gears from those sharks right!?

This post has been edited by ukiya: Jun 27 2016, 10:38 AM