I have done some research, 1st monofin help

[Mermaid Julie]

I have read some posts here, looking for my first monofin. I live in the USA, in Oregon. My size is 9. I saw where one girl was recommended the foil, good price, doesn't look real "mermaidy" to me, but if for my tail if I must get something different later it is no problem, right now I am going to just swim with it and condition myself. The Mahina models are appealing, they look great, what about availability in USA, price, fit, etc? What about booties, should I use them? Sizing with booties? I hear bigger is better than smaller, yes? (foot pockets) Any suggestions? Help please?!? My first tail will be fabric, I am sure.

[Mermaid_Sarina]

Hi lovely! I have a Mahina fin. I'm happy to answer some questions about it if you'd like. I don't know about the pricing with shipping to the US or whether you can find them in shops there because I'm Australian but I can help you out with the other things :)

Booties: I have neoprene booties, if you're getting the Mahina try to get lycra socks or just wear normal socks underneath. The foot pocket for me personally is very tight (I think most people find that. Please correct me if I'm wrong) and the neoprene is to thick to fit :) The main reason to wear booties or socks is that it can rub. When I first used the fin without socks I got some really bad cuts and scars from where it rubbed against my feet. And I know some people wear the booties to keep it from hurting their ankles :) But It is a really nice fin!

My feet are size 9 and they fit perfectly in the size 9-11 fin. So if you're an Australian 9 that should fit you perfectly! They look awesome in fabric tails because you have the mermaid style shape :)

Good luck! I hope you find a monofin you like :) And welcome to Mernetwork!

[Meghara July]

Hi! I definitely recommend the Mahina. It's a bit more pricey but it will last, is perfect for conditioning, can be used in a pool a lake or the ocean, and is perfect for a fabric tail. You can get them shipped to the USA and you may even be able to find them on Amazon. They have a chart which will tell you in inches which size is best for you, plus it corresponds with your shoe size. They tell you which US size is equal to the Australian size. I found it so useful when helping customers (I'm a fabric tail maker) find the right fitting monofin for them.

Here is the link (https://www.mahinamermaid.com/images/stories/merfins_size_chart.jpg) to the chart if you would like to see it. :)

[Mermaid Jaffa]

Sun Tail Nunui monofin. Its roughly the same size as a Mahina Merfin and much lighter to carry.

[Merfin_Aurora_Oceania]

I presently wear a Mahina, on the Southern hemisphere and I've been wearing this baby from October to April and I can feel that winter is almost upon us (so no more swimming for me) however great for the Northern hemisphere as its almost time to get your swim wear on YAH!

I've performed dolphin kicks and twirls, handstands and so forth, I've had a really pleasant experience from it. I go super super fast (rock blasted) too. I'm usually prone to blisters also however I didn't once receive blisters which is really rare for me, ever so grateful.

The fin is very fluid moving, it feels natural and I've loved the experience its given me. I regularly swim with the lifeguard patrol zone, even though I know there is a black version recently released for the Mahina, I haven't once been mistaken as a shark by the lifeguards lol.

There are 3 colours to choose from, black, red and blue. I picked the blue as its my most loved colour :)

All the best in your choices.

[Obelia]

I have two mahina's - a green/blue one in a medium size, and more recently a black one in a size small (I'd have gotten that earlier, but the smaller size was only recently made available to me). The green/blue and coral/red ones seem to be made from a slightly stiffer rubber - I find they have greater propulsion, but rubbed a little more, than the softer black one. Not sure if the different stiffness is due to different batches/random irregularities, but most of my pod have similar experiences with them. I LOVE the black one :) :) - I can swim with it for hours on end - fitness/distance and tricks/play. I do use neoprene socks - learnt my lesson on the green/blue one, and just continued wearing them with the black one. I should really try without them and see if that rubber is softer after all.....

[RNHime]

To the OP, I was fortunate to be in between/within both sizes and took a chance on the kids Large last year. I'm generally a 7 in US shoes, but of course went by actual foot measurement. Mahina's size chart is accurate! Erring on the side of slightly larger rather than smaller makes sense, as you'll want to wear socks/booties. You would want that in basically any fin.

I have always used thin cotton socks in my fin. I plan to get thin neoprene/swim socks instead just so I don't wear them out so fast. The fin felt a little tight on my feet when I first put it on but it seemed to take the shape of my feet after the first wearing and I was never bothered by it feeling too tight after that. Some people have chosen to cut away the top portion of the foot pocket for extra room, so it's always an option.

It also never rubbed at my toes, and I have very picky little toes that will not stand for being squeezed and packed into a shoe with a narrow toe. I can wiggle my toes in the fin's foot pocket! After my first few long swims in the fin I did have a few pink spots on the sides of my feet. Not full-on blisters, but tender areas. They healed and I was fine for the rest of the summer swimming season. I believe better socks will help prevent that from happening again.

My suggestion is to try it and be patient before immediately cutting into it if you think you need to. Let the rubber mold to your feet for awhile before even swimming in it (easy - you're going to want to laze around the house after you get it, just enjoying seeing your legs end in a big, pretty fin). And don't swim for a very long time in it for the first few swims.


I have two mahina's - a green/blue one in a medium size, and more recently a black one in a size small (I'd have gotten that earlier, but the smaller size was only recently made available to me). The green/blue and coral/red ones seem to be made from a slightly stiffer rubber - I find they have greater propulsion, but rubbed a little more, than the softer black one. Not sure if the different stiffness is due to different batches/random irregularities, but most of my pod have similar experiences with them. I LOVE the black one :) :) - I can swim with it for hours on end - fitness/distance and tricks/play. I do use neoprene socks - learnt my lesson on the green/blue one, and just continued wearing them with the black one. I should really try without them and see if that rubber is softer after all.....

Obelia, I'd be interested in hearing more about your findings!! My current fin is orange. Not exactly my color, but also not the worst, and it does pop against the blue pool, so yay for high visibility underwater. I was considering getting a Black Merfin if they ever showed up at a US seller, just for the fact that it might be better to have something that looked a little less "pool-toy" and more "swim equipment" in some situations. However I love the propulsion and feel of my orange fin... I would hate to pay so much for a monofin that I think will be the same and discover it feels slower... blah. Also, the kids large fits me exactly, I love how it doesn't wiggle anywhere on my feet as I swim. I almost wonder if a softer adult Small would feel too loose compared to my very secure kids fin... hmmm...

Please do post an update!!

[Obelia]

If it helps - the black merfin does seem to have as much propulsion as my blue/green, it's just a lot smoother. That being said, I did feel a difference when I used my heavy fabric tail (I'm a sucker for punishment - my heavy tail has a stack of trailing fabric that creates a LOT of drag. It looks amazing underwater - it's whole purpose was for filming/photos - but I do have to work twice as hard to move it through the water). If you're using it by itself, or with a simple fabric tailcover, the black one feels much more natural to use, and I feel like I can get a little more acceleration than the blue/green one :)

I've never tried the kids sizes, but the size chart on the Mahina website indicates that the adult small is only very slightly larger than the childrens medium (thats the largest one available in kids, right? I couldn't find a 'large' on the chart). I think the biggest difference is about a 1/2-inch more length in the footpocket (the width difference is barely noticable - 3mm); if you keep your feet back against the heel strap, I'd wager you'd not notice much difference in fit overall.

Oh - and swimming on your side at the surface of the water in the black merfin, so that one of the tail flukes pokes up into the air, looks exactly like you're being chased by a shark!!! ;) Funny in the pool, wouldn't want to try it at the beach!

[RNHime]

Ah, okay!

Yes, I'm stupid and forget that the largest kids size is only called medium... That is what I meant! lol.

Yes, my heels are right against the straps. I suppose I should say that I'm more of a size 6.5 in length, but many shoes feel too tight on my toes so I have to go with a 7. But it seemed like most people were saying the Merfin was better for narrow feet. I'm glad I took the chance!