Monofin Mod - Seeking a Mermaidenly Shape

[Faeriedaughter]

Hi, I own a finis wave monofin and I am interested in modifying it to create a more mermaidenly shape.

I've seem others make a kind of cover out of rubber to create a dolphin shape. I want to create a neoprene tail, and I am not convinced that a rubber covering would be be strong enough to create a convincing shape underneath the neoprene. I also want my tail to be able to hold it's shape out of the water and not look floppy or as if I'm hiding a manatee tail in a neoprene sausage.

So, I have a plan - I'd love it if you can give me any feedback on my plan, if there are any obvious errors I haven't seen.

Basically, I would be using a tough, flexible plastic sheeting to make a monofin sandwich. It would either cover almost the whole monofin on both sides or just cover the edges (though if i just cover the edges and do not meet let the two halves meet in the middle I am worried about strength and encouraging the monofin to tear/snap) and would be affixed to the monodin through strategic sewing (drilling economical small holes in the monofin/plastic sandwich and sewing through with a strong ocean/chlorine safe thread) and desigining the bread bits of the sandwich, as it were, around the grooves already present in the monofin for additional anchorage. I'd cut the end of the monofin with a gentle v shape, and I would sew the tips of the plastic fin points together.

I tried to attatch a sexy drawing to try to illustrate my idea but it won't let me :(


The things I am worried about are
1 - monofin flexibility vs plastic sheeting - if the movememnt of the monofin won't be compatible with the plastic and
2 - sewing through the monofin/plastic - I am afraid this will make the monofin to rigid/brittle, and the threading will break or pull at the base monofin.
I thought plastic on both sides of the monofin because I wanted it to be strong, and I wouldnt want pressure being constantly put on the additional plastic side, pulling against the thread and pulling it away from the monofin. But I think this may compromise the flexiness of the monofin and make it more difficult to use.

Alternativly, I have considered sewing plastic inserts into the actual tail costume (I want a removable monofin) and just sticking the monofin in the middle of that, so they are free to move independently of eachother. Of course, the issue then is if the plastic breaks, I'd have to unattach it and re sew it in.

Experienced mermaids, could you offer some advice? Do you think this would work?

[malinghi]

I'm no expert, but trying to sew plastics together sounds odd. I'm not saying it wouldn't work, but my first thought would be to glue the plastic to the monofin with an adhesive. The monofin is some kind of thermoplastic, and the plastic sheeting would presumably be acrylic or polycarbonate or something, which I think is a kind of thermoplastic. I imagine some kind of epoxy of something should bond them pretty well.

About the image, I'm sorry it didn't work for you. Were you trying to upload from your computer or from a URL? Did it give you an error message that the file size was too large?

[Mermaid Lorelei]

What might be easier is to get a pair of flippers with foot pockets, and attach a single piece of lexan (or something like it) with an adhesive. Trying to sew plastic won't work. Trust me. And be very careful what sort of plastic you get. A lot of kinds aren't strong enough for constant swimming and will crack or shatter.

[-Annwyn-]

If you're making a neoprene tail, then the neoprene will be thick enough to create the shape you're after in the fluke without the need to modify the monofin. So personally, don't stress about covering it with a plastic shape. In my honest opinion, the tips of the fluke look better when they're somewhat floppy. It looks more 'natural'.