Mares Avanti Superchannel Open Heel Dive Fins Yellow XL

The Mares Avanti series of fins are top sellers for a reason! For me, these fins are medium power and easy on the legs. Good for scissor and frog kicks. The back strap is fine but I prefer a spring for that extra stretch.

After a long search

I always seem to have a tough time with surface current on the return to the boat. My fin collection runs from those PowerPlanas, US Divers Blades, Appollo Bio Split fins, Aeris Velocity, Avanti Quatro, and now these SuperChannels; which are the best "fighting current" fins in my arsenal. I'm not a big diver, rather average 5'-7" height and 160lbs, these fins fit me fine. I will have to come up with a strap buckle replacement when it breaks on me. If you don't figure it how it supposed to work before going into the ocean, you'll most likely break the buckle. You may need to use ankle weights to help submerge your fin so you don't just slap the surface water especially if you are just snorkeling.These are my favorite fins todate!

FIN-TASTIC !

OK Divers.. here is the scoop on these fins.. SIZING: I am a size 11 and bought the regulars and they fit with a little room to spare. I wore a 3mm bootie so if you want to go bigger sole and thicker mil you should be ok.I found them to be very comfortable.FUNCTIONALITY: I used these for the first time in Roatan and completed 17 dives with them. They propeled me thru the water very quickly. Did not find it necessary to exert extra effort. They have a quick release mechanism and the strap adjusts easily. I like the way they look also.I wanted a quality product and did not want to spend a fortune or go bargain basement either.I made the right purchase. highly recommend.

I'm very happy

The fins are comfortable and the bungee mount is great. No more broken buckles, lost rubbers. With one quick movement you can remove and put on the fins (or vice versa :)). For now, after a dozen or so dives, there is no problem with them. They scratched slightly when entering the water on a rocky bottom.

Lots of choices, yet one durable classic set of fins.

During my observation of many many fins on dive boats, this Mares fin stands out to be the one with fewest issues. That is to say, some folks have talked about their fins not being good. Since my first set of Mares super-channel to now my most recent super-channels with Bungee Strap, I have been a fan. The older version has a rubber strap that can break if used improperly. This bungee strap is a bit more durable, and seems to hold up similar to well admired spring metal straps. I am a fan.

Love these fins, but not the new buckle

I have 2 sets of these fins. I have them in size small for wetsuit diving and size regular for drysuit diving. I wear size 8 boots, but with a hard sole bottom for wetsuit diving and rock boots with my drysuit.I like these fins because I can do all the fin strokes well with them. Yeah, I prefer Apollo Biofins for flutter kicking, but the Apollo's are heavy in the water. These are light. If you have floaty feet...check out the Apollo's. These Mares Superchannel fins enable frog kicks and various turning kicks much better than the Apollo fins, so if you need to maneuver, better take these. They also travel lighter than Apollo's, so these were the fins I used on my last trip...to Kona. The only bad thing was those shore entries/exits on volcanic rock were not kind to ... MoreI have 2 sets of these fins. I have them in size small for wetsuit diving and size regular for drysuit diving. I wear size 8 boots, but with a hard sole bottom for wetsuit diving and rock boots with my drysuit.I like these fins because I can do all the fin strokes well with them. Yeah, I prefer Apollo Biofins for flutter kicking, but the Apollo's are heavy in the water. These are light. If you have floaty feet...check out the Apollo's. These Mares Superchannel fins enable frog kicks and various turning kicks much better than the Apollo fins, so if you need to maneuver, better take these. They also travel lighter than Apollo's, so these were the fins I used on my last trip...to Kona. The only bad thing was those shore entries/exits on volcanic rock were not kind to these plastic fins!!! Lots of scratches on the bottom.I also switched out the regular straps for the Mares Bungee straps. They worked great! The regular buckle straps are okay if you have no gloves on, or thin gloves. Trying to work the buckles gets tough with about 3mm gloves. Thicker gloves makes it that much worse. The older style buckles Mares used to have are actually better than these new ones...as long as you have gloves on. The older style buckles were really tough on your finger nails tending to catch them and bend back if you weren't really careful. At least the new buckles aren't dangerous to your nails. I can really recommend the Bungee straps...much better than the heavy spring straps. The Bungee straps and these Superchannel fins make a great combination!

Mares got it right....

Mares knocked one out of the park with this design...seriously...this fin...does almost EVRY kick well..EXCELLS...in a frog kick...a nice high amplitude scissor kick turns you into a rocket ship...great torque if you have to have a hole shot...and a SUPERBLY responsive cruiser if you just want to cover some ground without real effort.Capable of backkicks..not GREAT..but adequate..comfortable foot pocket..size is on..perfect street shoe size up to a 5mm soft sole bootie..go up one for a 7mm or hard sole would be my recomendation. I use these for classes...poolwork..and my fin of choice for Keys trips. Also use them with a drysuit...Very responsive fin..lots of feedback thru the footpocket...its just a great fin. ABS system..does its job. What can I say?..its just a ... MoreMares knocked one out of the park with this design...seriously...this fin...does almost EVRY kick well..EXCELLS...in a frog kick...a nice high amplitude scissor kick turns you into a rocket ship...great torque if you have to have a hole shot...and a SUPERBLY responsive cruiser if you just want to cover some ground without real effort.Capable of backkicks..not GREAT..but adequate..comfortable foot pocket..size is on..perfect street shoe size up to a 5mm soft sole bootie..go up one for a 7mm or hard sole would be my recomendation. I use these for classes...poolwork..and my fin of choice for Keys trips. Also use them with a drysuit...Very responsive fin..lots of feedback thru the footpocket...its just a great fin. ABS system..does its job. What can I say?..its just a GREAT all around fin imo...and no...Mares doesn't pay me lol.

Powerhouse

I like using full foot fins but we were going to Cuaracao and had a lot of rough shore dives planned, they worked great. The first day we tried a snorkle dive and found that the fins did not work that well as you lost the water on the fin when it hit the surface and some of the down stroke was needed to load the fin again. BUT, the first scuba dive was unbelivable. The power this fins produce with a slow long stroke was fantastic. Frog kicks worked great, lots of forward movement with little effort. The fins did not feel heavy in the water and the buckel system was easy once you learned to squeeze the clip on the end and the whole buckle released back and the strap would almost fall off. Put your foot in the fins and push the buckle system toward the end and click ... MoreI like using full foot fins but we were going to Cuaracao and had a lot of rough shore dives planned, they worked great. The first day we tried a snorkle dive and found that the fins did not work that well as you lost the water on the fin when it hit the surface and some of the down stroke was needed to load the fin again. BUT, the first scuba dive was unbelivable. The power this fins produce with a slow long stroke was fantastic. Frog kicks worked great, lots of forward movement with little effort. The fins did not feel heavy in the water and the buckel system was easy once you learned to squeeze the clip on the end and the whole buckle released back and the strap would almost fall off. Put your foot in the fins and push the buckle system toward the end and click your in, very easy, even with gloves. My legs did not get tired or crampup. If used correcly these fins will save you air as you will need less leg movement for the same forward motion. My wife also has the same fins and we had to watch where we were to keep behind the guild.

Real good open water fins

Purchased these fins to use in open water diving and/or snorkeling as I was looking for a fin that would be "easier on the legs" than my heavy black rubber "tech" fins that I use in cave and cenote diving. These fins pretty well fit the bill. A somewhat stiffer paddle fin with channel's, that was designed to scoop the water and then channel it off behind you, which in turn gives you good forward propulsion. An efficient fin that does quite well in moderate and stronger currents; and that can also handle different kick styles if wanted. A much, much better fin when in current or under a load than most composite type or split fins. In my opinion, this fin is very comparable to a Mares Quattro Plus fin - but less expensive. Only drawback for me was the heel strap. ... MorePurchased these fins to use in open water diving and/or snorkeling as I was looking for a fin that would be "easier on the legs" than my heavy black rubber "tech" fins that I use in cave and cenote diving. These fins pretty well fit the bill. A somewhat stiffer paddle fin with channel's, that was designed to scoop the water and then channel it off behind you, which in turn gives you good forward propulsion. An efficient fin that does quite well in moderate and stronger currents; and that can also handle different kick styles if wanted. A much, much better fin when in current or under a load than most composite type or split fins. In my opinion, this fin is very comparable to a Mares Quattro Plus fin - but less expensive. Only drawback for me was the heel strap. While it has a unique design and does work well, I do prefer using a spring or bungee style strap. Just a personnel preference which does not reflect on the quality or performance of this fin. Another real good Mares product that I can easily recommend due to it's being a very well constructed, designed, and efficient fin. Hope this helps and safe diving!

Too buoyant unable to kick

Well built, good customer service. These are humongous! Have tried to use the fins twice with 6mm boots. The combined buoyancy is so high it is nearly impossible to get meaningful propulsion. Had to revert each time to my shorty fins. Interested in solutions to my dilemma to recover value from my purchase.