Viper098
01-31-2010, 03:00 PM
After feeling peer pressure when a poster suggested my spring clips were (not his words) cheesy compared to the rest of my equipment, I decided to look for a good strong bar collar.
I found what I was looking for and got a great price as well, $29.00/pr
Bulldog 2" power clamps.
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad293/watchowner/strength-accessories/1-bulldog.jpg
I will tell you they are strong and have already protected me from disaster when I missed racking after a squat rep. The spring clips I was using prior to the Bulldogs would have, in my opinion, slipped and I would have been looking at a hole in my wall or worse.
The clamp measures 2.5"W by .5" thick by 2.875 tall (not counting the T handle)
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad293/watchowner/strength-accessories/2-bulldog.jpg
They do take up more space on your bar versus cheaper spring clamps but for safety reasons, it does not bother me. Plus I can still put three 45lb plates and one 25lb plate on each side and my bar is a 6' Olympic. People with a 7' bar can still crank up the weight since you have 6" more on your sleeve then I do.
The aluminum is extruded so it is much stronger then cast but not as strong as forged but forged in this device is not needed since we are not talking twisting or pulling action on the collar but rather compression.
There is a 1/4" medium coarse threaded rod that is securely screwed into a steel cylinder inside the collar:
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad293/watchowner/strength-accessories/3-bulldog.jpg
When you tighten down the T handle, the steel cylinder is pulled up and displaced out of it's resting spot.(which when resting allows the clamp to slip on the bar easily) This action puts tension on the bar sleeve to prevent the collar from slipping and your weights falling off..
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad293/watchowner/strength-accessories/4-bulldog.jpg
The T handle is nylon and is 1/16" thick which makes it heavy duty for a small T1 handle. Inside there is a threaded steel insert for the threaded rod to screw into to.
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad293/watchowner/strength-accessories/5-bulldog.jpg
I give these collars an A+ for strength, A+ for price and an A for the nylon T handle because I would have rather seen aluminum or steel used instead of the nylon even though I rate the nylon heavy duty.
If you are in the market for new bar collars, Bulldog power clamps are a sure bet!
I found what I was looking for and got a great price as well, $29.00/pr
Bulldog 2" power clamps.
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad293/watchowner/strength-accessories/1-bulldog.jpg
I will tell you they are strong and have already protected me from disaster when I missed racking after a squat rep. The spring clips I was using prior to the Bulldogs would have, in my opinion, slipped and I would have been looking at a hole in my wall or worse.
The clamp measures 2.5"W by .5" thick by 2.875 tall (not counting the T handle)
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad293/watchowner/strength-accessories/2-bulldog.jpg
They do take up more space on your bar versus cheaper spring clamps but for safety reasons, it does not bother me. Plus I can still put three 45lb plates and one 25lb plate on each side and my bar is a 6' Olympic. People with a 7' bar can still crank up the weight since you have 6" more on your sleeve then I do.
The aluminum is extruded so it is much stronger then cast but not as strong as forged but forged in this device is not needed since we are not talking twisting or pulling action on the collar but rather compression.
There is a 1/4" medium coarse threaded rod that is securely screwed into a steel cylinder inside the collar:
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad293/watchowner/strength-accessories/3-bulldog.jpg
When you tighten down the T handle, the steel cylinder is pulled up and displaced out of it's resting spot.(which when resting allows the clamp to slip on the bar easily) This action puts tension on the bar sleeve to prevent the collar from slipping and your weights falling off..
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad293/watchowner/strength-accessories/4-bulldog.jpg
The T handle is nylon and is 1/16" thick which makes it heavy duty for a small T1 handle. Inside there is a threaded steel insert for the threaded rod to screw into to.
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad293/watchowner/strength-accessories/5-bulldog.jpg
I give these collars an A+ for strength, A+ for price and an A for the nylon T handle because I would have rather seen aluminum or steel used instead of the nylon even though I rate the nylon heavy duty.
If you are in the market for new bar collars, Bulldog power clamps are a sure bet!