TEST IMERSION:
FREEDIVING SPIRIT CARBON FINS
Finally we have had the chance to test the famous Freediving Spirit, one of the best French carbon fins. Presented in 2008 by the long established company Imersion, they are the outcome of the precious collaboration with the champion Stephane Mifsud.
These carbon blades are mounted on classic Imersion foot pockets that, for those who have never tried them, are characterized by an extreme softness and by a "large plantar foot" profile very comfortable for many spearos. The foot pockets wrap the foot in an excellent manner and the side rails, which are also very flexible, play a decisive role during kicking. However, the limit of these foot pockets is represented by the necessity of using glue or silicone to fix the blades in because they are not equipped with any system able to do that such as the upper holes for the screws or the hole under the heel as the OMER’s one.
Furthermore, the groove inside the rails does not have a T-shaped profile but a simple perpendicular cut, then any blade provided with a tooth on the edge would simply not fit. This therefore justifies the fact that these Imersion fins are pre-assembled sold with blades glued in the foot pockets. The combination of these two elements certainly limits the user whenever he decides to change the blades, but why changing something that perfectly works as it is? Let's see the numbers of these wonders.
The blades are provided in one hardness only and are 21cm wide. The overall length of the fins (including foot pockets then) is 97cm and from the front end of the foot pocket up to the tip of the blade they are 67cm long. The tip has a trapezoidal shape oriented towards the outside, which ensures an increase of thrust but that might be difficult to protect when crawling in close contact of the bottom rocks. Right for this purpose, the last 30cm of the blade edges are covered with a thin sheath of rubber. Finally these fins are characterized by a strong angle, as seen in the picture, and are standard supplied with a useful neoprene bag with Velcro closure.
Honestly, the extreme softness of both the blades and the foot pockets foreshadowed a weak thrust, and even the lightness feeling coming from the very first few kicks in the water has deceived even the most experienced divers who in fact had to finally change their minds noticing the ease with which they moved. These fins can be used for all types of spearfishing even though they are designed to provide the best performance during deep dives.Honnêtement, l'extrême souplesse des voilures et des chaussons préfigurait une poussée faible, et même à travers les premiers battements dans l’eau, le sentiment de légèreté a trompé les pécheurs les plus expérimentés qui n’ont pu éviter enfin de remarquer la facilité avec laquelle s’étaient déplacés. Ces voilures s’adaptent bien à tous les types de pêche, même si elles ont été conçues pour garantir la performance la meilleure en profondeur.
