machonachos
New member
Oh man...you got me looking at barracudas in a different way now
Snorkel gear
- Thread starter sam.basye
- Start date
HeavyWater247
New member
Kind of depends on how much snorkeling experience you've had. I'm taking you don't do it too often as your asking advice. I'll give my opinion based on that.
I'm taking it you mainly float at the top of the water and don't spend too much time diving below the surface.
Masks:
My favorites are Cressi or Mares. My most recent mask is and Omersub Alien Mask and absolutely love it. It's actually a spearfishing/freediving mask but the skirt is super thin and flexible/comfortable. The most important thing for a mask is fit. If you can try it on in person, take the mask and put it against your face without putting the strap on. Inhale through your nose to create suction. If the mask stays on firmly, you have a good fit.
Snorkel:
I've use them all. My favorite is a plain snorkel but to me, the easiest to use for beginners is the ones with the purge valves/"dry tops". Reason being is that they require little effort on exhaling to clear the snorkel and can give you some confidence with breathing if you are not comfortable with having water in the snorkel while breathing. The problem though with these two is that my experience with the purge valves is that they eventually wear out over time and don't seal the valve and you will get water leaking back into the snorkel pretty much rendering it useless. The dry tops kind of make the snorkel top heavy and it can tend to lean a bit so you have to adjust your head accordingly, but that is relative to the design. I've seen some snorkels with rather clean designs for the dry tops and they look like they would work well. Pretty much any snorkel will work, it's just a matter of how comfortable you are using them and how long you expect to use it/replace it as you gain experience/comfort using it.
Fins:
I currently have a pair of Mares Volo Race Full Foot fins and a pair of Avanti Quattro Open Heel and both are awesome. Some people like fins that are split. My preference is anything from Mares, Scuba Pro, or Cressi and you can't go wrong.
I always purchase my gear for the most part from Leisure Pro...to me they are the Amazon of the Scuba/Snorkel world.
Hope that helps!
I'm taking it you mainly float at the top of the water and don't spend too much time diving below the surface.
Masks:
My favorites are Cressi or Mares. My most recent mask is and Omersub Alien Mask and absolutely love it. It's actually a spearfishing/freediving mask but the skirt is super thin and flexible/comfortable. The most important thing for a mask is fit. If you can try it on in person, take the mask and put it against your face without putting the strap on. Inhale through your nose to create suction. If the mask stays on firmly, you have a good fit.
Snorkel:
I've use them all. My favorite is a plain snorkel but to me, the easiest to use for beginners is the ones with the purge valves/"dry tops". Reason being is that they require little effort on exhaling to clear the snorkel and can give you some confidence with breathing if you are not comfortable with having water in the snorkel while breathing. The problem though with these two is that my experience with the purge valves is that they eventually wear out over time and don't seal the valve and you will get water leaking back into the snorkel pretty much rendering it useless. The dry tops kind of make the snorkel top heavy and it can tend to lean a bit so you have to adjust your head accordingly, but that is relative to the design. I've seen some snorkels with rather clean designs for the dry tops and they look like they would work well. Pretty much any snorkel will work, it's just a matter of how comfortable you are using them and how long you expect to use it/replace it as you gain experience/comfort using it.
Fins:
I currently have a pair of Mares Volo Race Full Foot fins and a pair of Avanti Quattro Open Heel and both are awesome. Some people like fins that are split. My preference is anything from Mares, Scuba Pro, or Cressi and you can't go wrong.
I always purchase my gear for the most part from Leisure Pro...to me they are the Amazon of the Scuba/Snorkel world.
Hope that helps!
