What a silicone "neoprene" monofin looks like.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

Ive seen a few people recently asking about what silicone "neoprene" tails are like.

Ive got some images of the inside of a very recent one. Out of all the things wrong with this tail, the monofin is what horrifies me. Take a look:
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Because the stupid holes are WAY to large and so close together in the middle, thats where it bends back, making the downward stroke while swimming ineffective. This is what happened to it after 4 swims (one of which was an underwater shoot and I did very little swimming)
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See how bent back it is? How is that supposed to last? Im very surprised that didnt snap. The tail is neoprin and like a sponge, making the bending worse.

the ridges of the monofin were cut and NOT sanded down, leaving 90 degree corners and tearing the fluke from the inside out.

what does emailing mertailor accomplish? Nothing. I just sent off email #4 in the last two weeks. It took me posting on here before I got an answer last time I origionally brought up this and many other issues.

in the first set of emails He just keeps saying how pretty it is. Who cares? If it doesnt swim, why own it? Because he placed in crookedly inside the fluke it constantly pulled to one side. Making it very difficult to do anything in the water and thats dangerous. Im still getting the hang of this video editing/uploading to youtube thing, but I have a video MerMatt took and you can see the fluke folds almost in half when I put any force onto it.

I am not finished dealing with the mertailor but when I am I will post a full review of it. This issue is just the absolute largest. And I can finally be helpful by answering a couple questions a few mers had about this particular type of tail.


lovely isnt it?:mad:

[Mermaid Wesley]

Well the bend in the monofin is the way it comes. The wave is shaped like that out of the box as for the rest, I assume the holes are for glueing the monofin in place?


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[MerEmma]

Wow. There's not much even left to the monofin anymore, jeeze. The fin being bent slightly backwards though I don't think is an issue? Plastic can bend like that and still be bent back I believe without an issue. I don't feel like the bentness of it would influence swimming either...but those holes sure would.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

The other waves ive encountered and tried havent had that sharp of a bend, and they were much older then mine. I know the holes are for keeping it stuck together but the size of them is the scary part. I can see having a few small holes but this many huge ones doesnt leave me with much left. And the side holes cut out some of the ridges. if I pick it up aywhere but the foot pockets it just bends in half. I know the wave is floppy but this is ridiculous.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

Whatever he used to glue around the foot pockets bonded well to everything so I dont see the need for holes. Im still digging chunks of it out of the straps and its stuck very well.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

I apologize I didnt explian clearly enough earlier, when the monofin bends, its not horizontally. It bends in a v shape. The tips of it bend backwards, like a butterfly. When in the tail soaking wet, the tips touch bending backwards. It follows the shape of the holes, and looks close to what a butterfly's wings do. Im working on the video now since I cant think of a good way to word it.

[AniaR]

wow yeah. Guess he hasnt figured out how to get a tail to attach to the monofin. I think only 1 or 2 tail makers honestly have. But wow I wouldn't want holes that's almost no point to the monofin.

[Mermaid Wesley]

Oh wow. That's excessive bending. Okay. Yiiiikessss


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[Merman Arion]

FACEPALM :doh:


Envoyé de mon iPhone à l'aide de Tapatalk

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

ok so no luck yet on the video front but i did manage to get a couple screen grabs to kinda show a little more of the floppiness. ive seen lots of swimming videos and ive never seen another tail do this.
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this is an attempt at turning.
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[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

im guessing there is no way to save this monofin. the only thought i had was to possibly reenforce it with fiberglass but im not sure if that will stick.

wow thats a derp photo if ive ever seen one lol

[babsannee]

yeah does anyone know what glue he uses in the fin? I was hoping to get him to fix my tail (lots of issues) but he said he couldn't. My tail skin has completely separated form the fin, and I'd like to glue it back

[Merlia]

Wow :o

[Merman Arion]

Eric's spies have done their homework. He already defended himself... point for efforts :clap: :doh:

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[Yulia]

"Check out our reviews section, only the positive ones make it!"

[Yulia]

I can understand that he doesn't want to, but if someone from the company actually informed us here, and didn't just push all the problems away,
I would like them more.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

haha you should see what he said in his email to me! im screenshoting it now!
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i dont know whether to laugh or cry to be honest.

[AniaR]

They're banned from the forum so they can't reply here or answer things here. Always good to email and check.

[Merman Arion]

Wow... just WOW!! I'm trying to read how many subtle insults he has written on that mail.

"It may be possible that your swimming capabilities are not what you may have thought they were..."

REALLY, Eric?! Are you fucking serious here?

[Yulia]

Wow, some of the things he's right about, but multiple times bashing on your swimming skills!?

That's just... Not okay. At all.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

yeah. i shall have to show all the emails and i promise i will in my official review. i just am waiting for the bbb case to be resolved first so i have the full story and there is no insinuation on my part at all. i am not bashing him as a person. i am pointing out my own experience.

im not new to swimming in fins, and am more then capable if i had a proper tail.

in the first string of emails he said i had to pay and ship it and this one he offers it. he just kept telling me how pretty it looked and it doesnt matter if it dosent swim. it constantly pulled to the right and gave me bad cramps in just one leg because i was compensating. the drag gets worse every time i use it and i now have to take in the waist AGAIN.

my order on his website as of a couple hours ago says its neoprene. i do notice he chaged the decription of this type on his website to say basic silicone, and that was within 3 days of me saying it was fraud to say it neoprene when its not. this email and his website are contradictory to say the least

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

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[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

this is my order on his website
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the front page still says neoprene tho
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[Mermaid Nessie]

I made my own Alex Plus & neoprene tail and from what I have learned is that neoprene is typically and should be backed with nylon on each side. This can be an easy way to distinguish the difference between neoPRENE and neoPRIN. Neoprene is a rubbery/ spongey type texture. Neoprin is a way cheaper material which does not hold up. Here is a picture of my tail. Note: You can see the materials in layers. Alex Plus, nylon backing (thin grey layer underneath the Alex Plus), neoprene (black stuff) and nylon backing (it's black so it looks like the neoprene, but it's there)

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As for the monofin, that looks horrid :'(. I wouldn't imagine you would be able to propel much in the water. Is it possible to replace it with a new mononfin?

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

This is mine. Its not solid in the middle. It kind of resembles velcro.
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Im going to need a new mono I think. I dont see how to salvage it.

Side note : even the care sheet for my tail says silicone neoprene.

[Mermaid Nessie]

One of our mermaids has the same tail and it is made out of the same stuff. He's right, it's not neoprene, which, from what I've learned, should have been used. But he is advertising it as neoprene & silicone, therefore that is what you should have got. Neoprene holds up much better, retains it's elasticity and is backed on both sides with nylon, otherwise it is near impossible to get on/off. I'm so sorry this happened to you :(

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

Thanks nessie.

I can understand some things, but I have previously sent him photos of the other damage to the tail. He just obviously wasnt the one who was responding, or didnt care to remember.

I can understand drilling holes to secure it, but not hole over 2 inches wide, and cutting off ridges to do so. Much smaller holes would have worked fine because the edge around it was full of silicone. He didnt even remove the excess plastic around the holes he cut. If he had sanded the ridges down on the edge so they werent sharp, I would never have had to take it apart. The fluke was starting to tear right at the end of the monofin, and would have left me with a very small fluke.

plus side. I got some black vinyl floor matting similar to hannas fringe and because the tail is neoprin, the edges have stayed folded so I may be able to sandwich a new fin and ge silicone the crap out of it. Its not much, but it could make it work till I finish my tail im making.

There is no reason for this other then it being badly built. He keeps changing the story in every email I get and there is no reason to be so condescending and telling me its my swimming ability. Especially since its his work on the monofin causing it.

My tail has been babies since day one. It gets a bath and soak after every use and I use fans and dry towels to dry it (which takes 3 to 4 days because the middle of the neoprin is open and allows water in) it lays flat on a super soft bed and there isnt a scratch on it anywhere. Only the wear marks from the monofin edges. Ive only swam in dive tanks with it so ive never scraped the fluke. One tank had a plastic liner covering the bottom and sides and the tank in my hometown its smooth tile.

Ive been swimming for 3 decades. I love the water. Its not new to swim in a monofin, just the skin. I didnt go full silicone right off the bat. I didnt want a fabric tail. Im going to make one I can swim in instead of just playing dress up in. So I can put my new monofin in it and have a tail until my silicone one is complete.

ive swam with another mer and hes seen my issues first hand. Our first swim I spent most of the time out of my tail trying to fix the strap. Too much silicone where they wound to the plastic so it wouldnt go back in. Has to contact finis for help.

[Mermaid Nessie]

I've heard a lot of horror stories from him and more specifically these tails. Very unprofessional and rude of him to be blaming his poor work on your abilities. There is basically no monofin left, it was completely murdered. I can understand cutting it down to fit into the tail, but that is ridiculous.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

Thats what I said to him. Every other word out of his mouth is a lie, and that hes proven with his latest emails.

Ive opened up a file with the BBB in florida. There are 5 other cases theyve settled involving him. 2 false advertising and 3 for product quality.

It wouldnt matter if I sent it back. It would still have holes and still be made of neoprin and still just as useless. So glad I saved all my gift money from christmas and my birthday for this..........

[PearlieMae]

I love how it remains unsigned, technically.

[AniaR]

*sneaks in with the meme because how often do you get to use it?*

http://i1.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/353/279/e31.jpg

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

Im not sure what you mean pearlie.

I agree, that is an awesome meme and totally fits. I never intended this to be a bash the mertailor thread (as much as I would love to state my full unabridged opinion but that isnt called for)

I seen a few people ask about this type of tail so i decided to show whats inside it.

His new versions look alot longer so it seems hes no longer cutting the monofins up except the holes, so thats good for future purchasers.

[PearlieMae]

I meant how it was signed "the crew of mertailor Llc"

He won't even put his own name in it, presumably so he can later deny he sent it to you.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

Thats what I figured as well pearlie. Between the two sets of emails I have with him, its like they are written by two separate people. Although the amount of not-so-well-hidden snark leads me to think today was actually eric.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

A bit ot, but pearlie, I absolutely love your daughters quote in your signature! It makes me giggle everytime I see it. A very welcome sight today!

[mermaidpaige]

http://youtu.be/Dpq1YivJodU
Mermaid Paige www.facebook.com/mermaidpaigevirginiabeach has one of these basic silicone tails. She is 9 and has had this tail for over a year now. Everyone that has met her at Mer-Palooza 2013, NCMerfest 2014, and Mermaids by the Sea 2014 (where she was on Discovery Channel Oct 21) knows that she has no issues swimming in this tail and with the mono-fin. She has 2 tails and this is her favorite. We will be buying another one this year because I need the stretch of the material since she is still growing and the tail is light enough for her to swim with ease. She needs another because she is growing like at weed and the tail is starting to slide down her butt. The mono-fin was easy to reach in and loosen the straps. There are numerous videos of her swimming (Mermaid Monday at Lake Rawlings) and she is very natural at it. We love this tail and mono-fin. Let me know what you all think. She is 9 and if she can do it, anyone can do it.

[mermaidpaige]

My daughter has had a wonderful time with the "Mer-community" but reading these posts are quite disappointing. I can't believe how quickly everyone is to get "nasty." Really? It's a big ocean....If you don't like a product or it's not for you...great, make your own or buy someone else's product. I am grateful that Paige has found such a loving community of people to be involved with but I don't like this side of it at all. I hope that she never has to see or read it.

[Talia]

Mermaidpaige,

I am guessing you are really Mermaid Paige's mother. Several things:

This is hardly the first issue that has come up with Eric's work. I have never had contact with him, nor own any of his products, and it is thanks to reviews like the one at hand that I never will. There are plenty of people that have had problems with Eric's tails, and not only he has been less than kind in resolving any of them.

There is also the fact that the BBB has been implicated with him several times. That does not happen if you provide a good product and a good customer service, along with truthful information. That is why in this network people provide screenshots, because he is constantly changing the descriptions in his website to later deny they were ever there.

I am happy your daughter has a good tail and it is holding up for her. But that does not mean every person he sends a tail to gets a good product. "This side of it all" you are referring to is rightful indignation when people spend their hard earned money and don't get the product he advertises. People have got wrong colors, wrong sizes, wrong designs, and according to Eric, it is always someone else's fault; they did not measure themselves properly, they were not clear about what they were asking for, they did not specify details, or in this case, "your swimming capabilities are not what you think they are".

You say "My daughter has had a wonderful time with the "Mer-community" but reading these posts are quite disappointing. I can't believe how quickly everyone is to get "nasty." I am grateful that Paige has found such a loving community of people to be involved with but I don't like this side of it at all. I hope that she never has to see or read it."

If you take the time to peruse this forum, you will see that most people here get along fabulously. But as with any community, drama is bound to happen sooner or later. And of course, you should know that your daughter will experience it sooner or later, and to think otherwise is very naive on your part.

[Echidna]

We love this tail and mono-fin. Let me know what you all think. She is 9 and if she can do it, anyone can do it.

glad to hear.
Have you considered, though, that a monofin suited for the strength and bodymass of a nine-year-old might NOT be enough to propel a trained, fully grown woman?
The tail Mermaid Jamie got was botched.
A single look at the monofin will tell you that.

The emails she got from the business were nothing but insults, blaming the bad product on her "swimming capabilities", but I wouldn't have expected anything else from them at this point, it's what they do:
hide behind boyfriend, deny everything, cite pointless facts ("it is not called neoprin, it is called fabric spacer" yea so? it's still crap, whatever you call it), and of course, no refund policy.

And what's up with all those "athletes and scuba divers" who test and approve the products?
I have a hard time imagining someone going, "ok, so we swam in this fabulous monofin cut down to almost nothing and drilled like a swiss cheese. The propulsion is zero, great job, you can start mass production".

Not to mention, that SCUBA divers should not test a product meant for swimmers and freedivers.

I am glad for anyone who has a Mertailor product and is happy with it;
but that doesn't change the fact that many of his products are bad quality and cause their owners more hassle than anything else.

If you are one of the few who have no issues, be grateful and know that you've been lucky.

[Talia]

The front page is already changed:

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And also, I noticed that Mermaid Paige is on the Mertailor website as publicity:

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You can see that picture on her Facebook page as well.

[PearlieMae]

A bit ot, but pearlie, I absolutely love your daughters quote in your signature! It makes me giggle everytime I see it. A very welcome sight today!

Happy to oblige! :D

[AniaR]

Okay folks, I think we gotta slow down just a wee bit. I know everyone gets passionate around issues of poor quality tails, and it becomes an us VS them that can get crazy. I believe Paige's mom was probably talking to Eric about this and was either inspired to make a post, or asked to post about her personal experience. I know Paige's mom and Paige. I met them at NCmerfest and they are kick ass ladies. I don't want to see them scared off the community because they are happy with their experience. You gotta realize not only did they have an experience that was positive, they have spent good times with Eric and know him personally. Just please keep in mind that sometimes when people jump in here it's because they are concerned about a friend. I'm not saying at all that it excuses poor behaviour, I just want you to think about it is all.

I feel like Eric was doing a really good job for a while there at managing things like this without the back and forth. I'm sorry to see it escalated into nasty emails and FB posts.

I think in future there's a couple of things that can help prevent this sort of thing. And I speak as one of the very first angry mertailor customers who sorta set the ball rolling years ago. So this isn't to put you down in any way Jamie. Believe me I have been there! This is just sort of my perspective thing.

On the one end regardless of what's written on his website, googling him and those specific tails will tell you that people have known for at least 7 years it was neoprin (spacer material) and caulking. (alex plus now replaced by higher grade silicone). While I do believe people should get what they pay for (meaning information NEEDS to be more upfront) I also think people need to have more accurate expectations of what they're paying for. That comes on both his end, and the customers end. These tails aren't known for being top of the line... they aren't meant to be. While they're a cheaper option for many they just don't hold up as well and neither do most tails in those price brackets from other tail makers either. Now this isn't me saying anything untoward about Jamie, just sort of stating it as a general reminder (because I did make an entire thread about tail expectations before) that it's important people don't buy these types of tails with the intention of doing loads of work with them. Upgrading to more reliable silicone is a much better choice in that regard.

I know many tail makers have tried loads of things to get those monofins to bond inside the tail. Maybe this is or isnt the best idea, but I know people have tried sanding them down, a variety of glues and caulkings, different spacing materials like Nessie showed. It seems to me this was just another attempt at making it work because really, there's no other reason to put holes in the monofin. Some tail makers are doing away with monofins totally and just having foot pockets with stronger silicone for the fluke. I think in this case it was probably an attempt not only to make it bond but to prevent the fluke from filling up with water which is one of the main issues for most tail makers.

I'm not sure about the issue of refund/exchange but it's standard that once you tamper with something (e.g. take it apart it anyway) the refund is then void.

Since that's the case and Jamie is stuck with it like it is, I think the best solution here Jamie is to put a new monofin in.
Full disclaimer: I'm not a tail maker, these are just tips I learned from having a similar tail and it's all try at your own risk.

I can tell you from my own experiences of owning a similar tail, that you can use faster curing but coloured silicone on the inside to bond the fluke since you wont see the inside anyway. I usually then buy a small clip on fan from somewhere like target and you can shove it right down to help dry it. Put something heavy on it. It'll probably take double the curing time listed on the bottle because it's harder for the air to get in to dry it. In terms of the never ending stretching you can reinforce any soft spots on the INSIDE of the tail with different materials to help prevent it from stretching into a hole. Mermaid Mimi who owns my old tail has found glueing denim on the inside really helps, because it stretches with the neoprin but not enough to tear it. Mimi has also sewn a ribbon through loops on the inside waist of her tail so she can pull it tight like a draw string to tighten the waist as needed- without compromising the look of the tail. She also coloured and sewed on strips of loose denim to make heel fins and a dorsal fin and it looks like it's always been part of the tail. Much more durable as well.

Mimi's tail is my old one and is nearing 7 years old and she uses it a lot. it's NOT in great condition at all, but we've been able to make it last until hopefully one day we can afford to get her a custom one (we keep looking for used ones but Mimi is very tall so it's rare that I see one that would fit her). Though we talk about it a lot and she prefers not having a higher quality silicone because of just how much work she does with kids. She likes being able to repair this one on her own and wouldn't want the stress of repairing silicone.

For context sake and ideas, here's some pics of Mimi's tail that might inspire you Jamie. I encourage you to message "mermaid mimi" on FB for tips she's really good with them. Just keep in mind her tail is alex, but most of the things still apply.

https://scontent-a-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpa1/t31.0-8/10515285_1473031569641888_3334245255700576731_o.jp g

https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpf1/t31.0-8/10333320_1482466348698410_6804252829836576170_o.jp g

^there's no photoshopping there in terms of changing issues on her tail. Just brightening of colours all around cuz the shot was taken at twilight.

Here's a video taken last week that shows her swimming with it. Mimi makes this tail work despite all those problems but also, since it was my old tail... it's too short for her. Hence why she wears all those lovely things. She still loves the tail to death. :p


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxpWdXP6SBM

My point in sharing all that is just hopefully to inspire you that yes these tails can last a while if you've got the drive to take care of them and come up with solutions. But ideally you'd want to go up a level in tails so that you don't have to worry about that stuff.

Now as for Paige's Mom, I just wanna say I hope you DO search around the community here and see what a wonderful place it can be. Tails are tricky. They are so personal to people and people invest money but also a lot of faith in their tail makers. It's hard to wait for something and have it turn out less than what you expected. No one likes to limit their dreams because of their tail. Paige can learn so much from mernetwork and even end up making lifelong friends so I hope you wont judge too quickly based on this one experience.

What I'd like to see happen:
-I think it would be good for Eric to be as upfront as possible on his website, but I do understand (as we've discussed in other threads before) why he worries about the negative connotations of the materials. I think he has such a huge client base, there are loads of people who will still buy and not care in the slightest
-I also think a better reply to the emails on his part might be something along the lines of simply stating this is the way they've chosen to make the product and if people would prefer higher quality they should consider the higher quality tails. it's blunt, to the point, but not insulting anyone or making assumptions about them.
-It would be nice if he refunded it, but I do get why they don't offer it after people take their tails apart. We took ours apart too.

And since it's the topic right now, and maybe doesn't necessarily apply as much in this situation but it's something I've seen a lot of so I'm going to take the chance to bring it up. In most cases it would be great if people emailed the tail maker first before posting. Sometimes I think tail makers (not just Eric) get a bit out of joint when people run to the forum first before even giving them a chance to address concerns. (I'm not sure if you did that or not Jamie I'm just stating it generally, please don't feel personally singled out!) I think it automatically sets the tone for tail makers to be defensive. I have seen loads of people post issues about my tail maker without letting her know and I know it hurts her feelings because she works so hard and if there's an issue she wants a chance to fix it before people throw her under the bus. I don't think that's unreasonable because if you bought a laptop and it had issues, you'd attempt to get them fixed first before posting a review online you know? I find people use the forum as a way to keep tail makers accountable, but they aren't always necessarily being fair to the tail makers before doing that. I think yeah, if someone isn't replying to your emails after a while, or has given you an unsatisfactory response then totally go for it. But there HAVE been a few mertailor issues (along with other tail makers) where the issues were resolved really quickly but people never bothered to follow up on their mernetwork thread stating as much, and the tail makers had NO CLUE there was a problem because they hadn't been informed first.

And obviously not in this situation- because Jamie has offered up her emails so we know emails have happened. I do wanna say a lot of times on mernetwork I observe people complaining about not hearing from tail makers, and when I approach tail makers about it (it's happened with 3 different tail makers recently) the tail makers can actually produce emails where they WERE communicating with the client, they were being nice and professional, and the client was more than willing to accept the tail makers terms, or wait time, or whatever... but then they come on the forum and act like they're not getting anywhere with the tail maker and the tail maker is being unprofessional, and they're complaining about wait times or repairs that they were totally accepting of and nice to the tail maker about. My point in sharing that, is sometimes people's posts on the forum are very much skewed in their favour and we don't get the whole stories. I believe it happens enough that it directly contributes to why most tail makers don't post on here, and do get so upset and snippy when people make posts on the forum. Again, this doesn't apply specifically to Jamie but I have been looking for a way to bring up the point so I hope people won't mind that I've sort of derailed slightly. I just think it's an important one to make.

Jamie, I know you're going to have a lot of fun with your silicone experimenting and I hope through that you're able to create yourself the perfect dream tail. I'm sorry you've had this experience. I know how frustrating it can be. But as I say in my book and workshops we all start somewhere and a creative person can make these things work for them in a professional way. It sucks that you have to, but from all your awesome posts on here I know you're up to the task. Good luck!

[Talia]

I usually don't like being involved in these kind of things. I will say this and then drop the issue.

Paige's mother came here and explained her daughter's case, minimizing the lived experiences of other people - then she accused the rest of the people in this thread of being "nasty", and extended the label to the rest of the Mer-community. I find that quite rude, since we can see by the number of post she has not been here much, and probably does not know personally many of the people around here, specially because many of us do not even live in the US.

They may have had a great experience with Eric; that's wonderful, good for them all - that does not mean everyone else in the world had it too, nor are their feelings in the matter any less valid than those of Paige and her mother.

I understand that she may have come here to defend a friend. But there are ways and ways to express one's opinion. Saying "if she can do it, anyone can do it" it's like implying that Jamie, or anyone else having troubles with Eric's tails are useless and do not know how to swim or take care of a tail. At least, that's how I read it. If that's not what she wanted to say, she shoud have worded the things she wanted to express better.

That is all.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

Wow, im late with the popcorn!

Talia and Echidna, you guys rock my fins!

When it comes to eric, he only returned 2 of my emails (8 sent so far) and thats only after ive mentioned him on a public spot. He told me he would not pay to ship it to be fixed and he would not give me my money back.

So I find it total crap that in his last email he says hed pay to fix it. Shipping it back to him would have cost more then the tail is worth and WILL NOT change the fact that its fake neoprene. He advertised it and obviously knows thats fraud or wouldnt be changing his webpage, right?

As for paiges mom, blaming me for erics shoddy work puts you in the same light as him in my eyes and I dont appreciate it when ive provided proof. You have no right to judge my ability as ive been a very good swimmer for long then your child has been alive. Im glad she likes her tail, but since eric uses her for advertisement it doesnt surprise me that her tail is holding up. He only puts effort in to his tails when he chooses, and not for every one like every other tailmaker. And considering the high cost of the product. Thats just unacceptable.

the fact that these are your first posts leads me to believe the only reason you joined was to defend eric because he is banned from here. Thats fine. Its not going to change my opinion.

Raina: not knowing about this place till after I ordered is the issue, I ordered last year and only found this place a couple weeks before I actually got my tail. Which makes me sad that he cant live up to expectation of proper production. Seeing the magic you works on your tail gave me the inspiration I needed to fix this myself either way. Ive got some supplies and new hanna inspired fringe so I think I can do it. You guys did an amazing job and I would love to chat with mimi about it! Is she on here?

I gave him the chance to respond to three previous emails in the last week. He only responded once I mentioned him here. I have said more then once that this isnt a bash eric thread. This is to show those who are asking about this particular type of tail. So I showed them. Ive provided screenshots and when I deal with the bbb, I will be sure to include all my emails and fb convos and copy of my care sheet, and people can decide for themselves. Hes just mad because im not someone he can walk all over. And he has no right to speak to my swimming ability. He has no idea how well I swim, or the fact that even in the crocked beyond floppy tail im still able to do some small flips. No barrel rolls, as the fin is way to floppy to turn at all (you can see it fold in half when I try, pics in an earlier post.

If the bbb decides that me opening it voids anything (how would it, eric already said he doesnt refund) then thats their choice. The claim im making with them is that he advertised one product and delivered another. Thats not a lie I made up. Opening it only further proves shoddy workmanship. This thread is about the monofin and its issues. There are many other issues with this tail.

He said in the email I posted he wanted to see pics of the damage if I had them. I did send him all those images when I had to deal with him the first time.


If anyone wishes, I would be more then happy to post the emails here (including my responses).


This behavior of eric to send a child to fight his battles is beyond the pale and disgusts me greatly. I feel for the girl.

[AniaR]

Paige's mother came here and explained her daughter's case, minimizing the lived experiences of other people - then she accused the rest of the people in this thread of being "nasty", and extended the label to the rest of the Mer-community. I find that quite rude, since we can see by the number of post she has not been here much, and probably does not know personally many of the people around here, specially because many of us do not even live in the US.

I see where you're coming from, but a lot of people outside the community who look into it don't have the best opinion of it because they aren't in it. I say this from a place of watching a friend of mine get singled out on a FB thread and knowing that while people made some valid points, a lot of it went well beyond and I felt the need to speak out for my friend. I'm not offering it as an excuse, or saying you're wrong to say what you are. I just don't want Paige's mom to be viewed as some kinda lackie or someone just running their mouth is all. Or a fake person with a fake account. She and her daughter are excellent well respected mermaids entitled to their opinions, and I can 100% appreciate how this post could come off the wrong way to someone on the outside. It's a lot of assumptions to jump to about a person you don't know, and just perpetuates the "hate network" rumour. All I saw her express was that she had a good experience and was shocked how negative everyone was being, and it made her concerned. I think that's valid from her point of view. She didnt say anyone lied or made up their issues. She just brought what she could to the conversation.


Jamie- my posts were more trying to springboard off your sucky experience to elaborate more generally. I did my best to give you any specific solutions to your specific scenario that I could. I hope you'll follow up with Mimi cuz she's great. She's not on here, but you can find her on FB "Mermaid Mimi". I know you aren't making a bash eric thread you're trying to tell your story but some people do enjoy jumping in on the sensationalism and my joke about it escalating wasn't directed at you so much as his emails and posts. I believe you did everything you said you did and my intention was not to call that into question- sorry if it came off that way. I just find these threads end up very multi-faceted and sort of opening a pandora's box of issues to be addressed. It does frustrate me that 7 years later this is still an issue. I remember he stopped making these tails for a while but then brought them back due to demand.

[Mermaid Wesley]

I WISH I had access to alcohol. This thread would make a stellar drinking game. Everything someone personally insults someone else drink. Every time mertailor responds to something "without having seen the mernetwork post" drink. Sounds like a good time :)


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[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

Raina, I take no offense to any of your posts. I wanted to reiterate my point for those who felt I was was unjustly judging and blaming eric. He could be a very nice person face to face, I dont honestly know. Never met him and never plan to. But the workmanship I can speak to, and to be repeatedly told its my ability thats the issue is really starting to piss me off. I know thats not you!

I appreciate everything youve said, you have much more experience then I, so I would gladly take advice. Im making my husband get me your books as a christmas gift ;) and I shall definitly head over to fb and find mimi!

I do see hes now making a different fluke shape for them so I think this is an issue with not only me. They look like full monofins in them. I hope so. I dont want others to work hard and save up to end up with junk like I did.

Im glad paige has a good tail. But whoever posted in her name has absolutely no right to speak of me that way. Thats beyond unprofessional.

I know in forums it can get out of hand. I tried to keep it down by stating on a few posts that its not a bash eric thread (although I would love to spew what I really think from my face but I dont think that amount of bad language is acceptable anywhere, even for a sailor) but I am very tired of his games.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

I WISH I had access to alcohol. This thread would make a stellar drinking game. Everything someone personally insults someone else drink. Every time mertailor responds to something "without having seen the mernetwork post" drink. Sounds like a good time :)


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Im so doing this on the weekend! Ill let ya know how far I make it before im too plastered to write ;)

[Mermaid Wesley]

Lmao great


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[Echidna]

I know in forums it can get out of hand. I tried to keep it down by stating on a few posts that its not a bash eric thread (although I would love to spew what I really think from my face but I dont think that amount of bad language is acceptable anywhere, even for a sailor) but I am very tired of his games.

:hug:
I can relate.
If I had paid money and received a monofin looking like that, I'd so want to whack the seller with it and demand he swim in it for awhile, and then dare to repeat any of his "your skillz aren't up to the task"-bs.
That said, if you replace the monofin, you might get some use out of the tail after all.

Besides, this hasn't been a "bash" thread in any way imo.
You stated your experience, and the photos of the product speak for themselves.

Children have it a bit easier to swim with fragile, small, or cheap monofins.
A seller should be upfront about what clientele a product is suited for.

Although it looks a lot like the holes came out much bigger than expected, and instead of putting in a new, useable monofin, he just shipped the tail with it anyway.

[Tetra]

This tread was a wild ride from start to finish lol. But I'd just like to point out that while nobody should assume anything about anyone personally, criticisms of customer interactions and product quality really are very helpful and necessary and I really appreciated this feed and the hard evidence it presented. I was leaning toward Mertailor before reading feeds like this, but the information has helped me decide that there are other tailmakers that will be a better fit for me when the time comes for me to get a nice silicone tail. So thank you!

[PearlieMae]

Echidna, so often, I think we are from the same pod!

The video of mermaid Paige is lovely, but I have to say, even for a small person, there isn't a lot of push through the water with that REALLY floppy/flowy fin, in my opinion.

[Mer-gal]

I just bought a finis wave mono fin, and it is bent like that too. It is brand new and I was wondering if it could possibly not be Eric's fault that it is bent?

[Yulia]

I just bought a finis wave mono fin, and it is bent like that too. It is brand new and I was wondering if it could possibly not be Eric's fault that it is bent?
Mine is also bent that way, but I think she meant another type of bend.

[Mer-gal]

Mine is also bent that way, but I think she meant another type of bend.

this may sound like a stupid question, but, what other type of bend?

[Yulia]

this may sound like a stupid question, but, what other type of bend?

"I apologize I didnt explian clearly enough earlier, when the monofin bends, its not horizontally. It bends in a v shape. The tips of it bend backwards, like a butterfly. When in the tail soaking wet, the tips touch bending backwards. It follows the shape of the holes, and looks close to what a butterfly's wings do. Im working on the video now since I cant think of a good way to word it."

From the first page, there's pictures there too. :)

[Echidna]

Echidna, so often, I think we are from the same pod!

well, we are!
or will be, once I manage to win more than 17 bucks from the lottery, which was my last result lol.


Regarding the monofin bend; the slight downward curve visible from the side is normal with Finis monofins.

The problem with Mermaid Jamie's monofin is that the excessive cutting and especially drilling made it unstable, so it no longer bends in a natural way when used, and will probably snap if she swims with a bit more force.

That happens easily if a monofin is too thin/floppy, while at the same time, it's really hard to swim with such a fin and you're still hardly moving.

Edit, Yulia was faster :p

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

This tread was a wild ride from start to finish lol. But I'd just like to point out that while nobody should assume anything about anyone personally, criticisms of customer interactions and product quality really are very helpful and necessary and I really appreciated this feed and the hard evidence it presented. I was leaning toward Mertailor before reading feeds like this, but the information has helped me decide that there are other tailmakers that will be a better fit for me when the time comes for me to get a nice silicone tail. So thank you!

Im so glad. If this thread helped just one person from all this grief, thats awesome.

Thanks Yulia and Pearlie for explaining that. Yes the fin is normally bent a bit, the middle of my monofin has the factory curve, the outside edges are getting more and more bend because it folds the tips so they touch. Im trying to get a good photo of it to show the middle and the edges. One of the sides folds more because the whole fluke is crooked. I could feel something not right with it when I swam and tried to put some power behind it.

If he had just said, yes thats unstable ill send you a new one, this thread wouldnt exist. Sending it to him means the same crap cut job. No thank you. Then hed have my money and my tail.

As per Rainas suggestion I have messaged mermaid Mimi for some helpful tips to fix the esthetic of it.

Slightly ot, but I feel the water gods and goddesses have smiled upon me because ive been notified by dhl my new triton monofin for my silicone tail is to be delivered today! I can finally swim again!


My only issue with having to put a new fin in it the extra cost to me, which I feel is his screw up. Its unfair that ill have to shell out 100 buck to get a new one because he botched this one. Maybe the bbb can offer him to send me a new one instead of money back. Ill take either at this point.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

Ok guys. I know its older, but I wanted to give a bit of an update on my monofin.

I fixed the damn thing! I was in such a hurry to get it done in time for my first party as a mer so I didnt photo document it like I should have.

I used Gorilla tape and gorilla epoxy.

First i took a heat gun on low heat and warmed it up, then placed heavy bottles on it and let it cool and it helped flatten it back to a more normal shape. Then I took it to my vertical belt sander to sand off the bad edges. It was then that I discovered he didnt even cut it evenly and one side was longer then the other. (Another reason it swam crooked)

Then I placed gorilla tape on on the bottom of the fin so the glue side was visible through the holes. Then I filled each hole with gorilla epoxy and let it dry.

I placed more gorilla tape over the top of the holes and created a night tight seal.

I took to bamboo skewers, wrapped them in the tape, and glued them over the bottom hole to kind of replace the missing ridges he cut away. Once that all dried I used GE 1 window and door silicone to sandwich the fluke back together.


I trimmed alot of silicone out of the fluke first. The fluke is still crooked, but it no longer folds like butterfly wings and I can actually move in the water.

I used more of the GE 1 mixed with pearl ex pigment to cover the seams and add some new color to the fluke.

Here she is after paint (I am not done yet, I have more colors to add and I want to see if I can get some tiny shells to kind of hide where the holes were since the material there is stretched out. I used pearl ex duo red/blue and I have interference blue for more details.

27230


Also I found this on on the interweb from merfest. It has pearl in her new basic and paige in her old one like mine. You can clearly see in the fluke the same holes I have. So is not just my monofin he did this too. Kinda funny since her mom defended him not knowing he did the same thing to her tail.
27231
heres the full size version where you can see better. You can see pearls tail has a more intact fin with what appears to be no holes. So obviously me creating a fuss has done something.
27232



Theres another mer who posted her fluke tore from the unsanded ridges. I do not regret opening the fluke. Matt was at the party with me and even he seen the difference in the fluke movement! When I hold my fluke up it stays up! It doesnt flop over anymore. But it stinks like vinegar, which makes me wonder if my tail was actually dragonskin or not. I know he used caulk to sandwich the fluke in at the very least.

I wanted to put the repair info in so other can use it if the need to. I can confirm thus far the repair is holding beautifully!

[Rett]

I was laughing all through this thread at Eric's comments. How he blatantly denies ever saying it is Neoprene is totally bs (you totally proved that one with your screenshots). So is his comment about how silicone cant fuse to real neoprene (Raven from Merbellas totally proves this is possibly by the silicone/NeoprENE hyrbid tails she used to offer). I also laughed at how his website says neoprin is durable (that stuff stretches worse than anything! Thats the exact opposite of durable!) Dont mean to bash Eric, but his company will be the last company I go to for a tail. I'll stick to a tail-maker who has mostly good reviews (and doesnt delete the bad ones) and produces actual good quality lasting tails. Even if his performance tails are better than this basic one he sold you, reading about your experience has left a sour taste in my mouth about ever ordering from his company!

Im glad you were able to fix up your tail enough that it is (at least temporarily) usable. I guess we all owe you now for giving us the heads up before anyone else wastes their money ;)

[AniaR]

those tails are actually quite a few years old even though the photo is recent. Pearl's tail has pretty much all the same problems we see here I saw it in person. Her fill silicone one is totally split down the side and doesn't fit her well and hurts her feet. She doesn't publicly complain- she and Eric are friends. But I was personally shocked when I saw it. Paige hasnt had any issues with her tails that I know of other than she grows like a weed hehe so she's too tall for it now.

But yeah I'd say those tails are actually older than yours.

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

I just find it funny that her mom defended his work when the same thing is clearly wrong with that one. Ive got a lot of size and weight on that girl. And if you check out my avatar you can see the circles from the holes and that was the second time I wore it. Hadnt even swam in it yet.


Now that its fixed it swims much better. I of course, forgot my new underwater camera again so no pics yet to show the difference. But I can turn in it now. The fluke is still crooked and its the material itself so im gonna open it up and trim some off to make it even and add some drainage. And take the waist in again. But im going to add an elastic waistband to it I think. The silicone is cracking and peeling now so I will recoat the whole thing anyways.

With the legal aspect against him, I went from avenues here to Florida and all their avenues. They couldnt force a refund but at this point I dont even care. I have a rather long detailed video I shot but I seem to be inept at editing it. Ill post it and that will be that. He ignored all but the florida trade people but just used this thread, which only proved my point. I wasnt able to respond in time due to a close family members death. I can still go to the federal trade commission but I honestly have better things to do with my time. Karma seems to be kicking him in the butt lately so im good with offering this warning based on my obvious results.

Im glad it helps people from playing russian roulette with a tail but I dont think hes changed his methods much and probably wont. Funny, since my method worked and didnt involve holes.......... go figure.