Kettle Clamp

[Wheyum]

Been looking at picking up a dark horse rack in the future and saw these kb clamp things I've never seen before.

Anyone have one of these? Thoughts?

http://store.sorinex.com/kettleclamp-p/kclamp.htm

[LimitStrength]

Been looking at picking up a dark horse rack in the future and saw these kb clamp things I've never seen before.

Anyone have one of these? Thoughts?

http://store.sorinex.com/kettleclamp-p/kclamp.htm

You could def use it for swings, but beyond that the adjustable kettlebell handles prevent you from doing pressing movements and the like. Looks like that gear would slam into your wrist if you want to do snatches or cleans or what have you with KBs.

Plus for $200 you could probably buy a set of used iron cast KB and be able to do all the movements comfortably.

If you only want to do KB swings, you could get it, although there are cheaper options. If you want to do more KB movements, better off investing in some used KBs

[KBKB]

Looks interesting. Here are photos from the site:





I think it'd be good for swings and maybe TGUs, but perhaps not much else. I can't imagine cleaning or snatching it.

[jackbravo]

i think you can use these for the following:

-farmer's walk (set of 2, attach to barbells)/suitcase carry
-"indexing" chin-up handles on your power-rack
-as "barbell hookers" to turn your bar into a safety squat bar

looks like a pita to put on though, and they cost 400$ for a pair

[matrix563]

i got excited till i realized you could not do all the kettle bell stuff a kettlebell could do, i guess i'll just get some ironmaster ones at some point .

[KBKB]

i got excited till i realized you could not do all the kettle bell stuff a kettlebell could do, i guess i'll just get some ironmaster ones at some point .

The VF Adjustable Kettlebell is another option:





However, if you read the blurb on the product page, it seems that they don't have a lot of confidence in it:

NOTICE - This product is recommended to be used outside clear from personal property, animals or people. Since the Adjusable Kettlebell is in the testing kit phase, we urge you to use it and send us feedback, but due to multi-piece construction and the ballistic nature of kettlebell lifting it could become loose. It's also possible for the screw or nut to be under or over tightened. Over tightening may cause the rod to pull off. Under tightening may cause the plates to be too loose. Keep things tight, often. Lift at your own risk. We do not warranty this product.

The problem with the Ironmaster kettlebell is that it's not shaped properly for utilizing preferred form for doing cleans and snatches. If you try doing a clean or a snatch using the form the way that most GS folks recommend, you'll end up with the corner of the bell resting against the forearm, which is not very comfortable. That said, if you do a snatch in which you "punch through", so that the bell goes over the hand (or the hand goes under the bell), you'll end up with the flat side of the bell against the forearm, which feels a lot better. Something similar can be done for the clean.

[KeithTheSnake]

The VF Adjustable Kettlebell is another option:





However, if you read the blurb on the product page, it seems that they don't have a lot of confidence in it:

NOTICE - This product is recommended to be used outside clear from personal property, animals or people. Since the Adjusable Kettlebell is in the testing kit phase, we urge you to use it and send us feedback, but due to multi-piece construction and the ballistic nature of kettlebell lifting it could become loose. It's also possible for the screw or nut to be under or over tightened. Over tightening may cause the rod to pull off. Under tightening may cause the plates to be too loose. Keep things tight, often. Lift at your own risk. We do not warranty this product.

The problem with the Ironmaster kettlebell is that it's not shaped properly for utilizing preferred form for doing cleans and snatches. If you try doing a clean or a snatch using the form the way that most GS folks recommend, you'll end up with the corner of the bell resting against the forearm, which is not very comfortable. That said, if you do a snatch in which you "punch through", so that the bell goes over the hand (or the hand goes under the bell), you'll end up with the flat side of the bell against the forearm, which feels a lot better. Something similar can be done for the clean.

I still like this adjustable kettlebell better than the clamps. The clamps won't act like a kettlebell. This adjustable kettlebell at least operates like one, it has the shape of a competition bell, and it's half the price. I'd say this is the next best thing to having a collection of solid bells.

[KBKB]

I still like this adjustable kettlebell better than the clamps. The clamps won't act like a kettlebell. This adjustable kettlebell at least operates like one, it has the shape of a competition bell, and it's half the price. I'd say this is the next best thing to having a collection of solid bells.

I agree.

It's not clear to me... Do you have one of those VF Adjustable Kettlebells? If so, I'd love to see a review...

[ProtienandIron]

You could def use it for swings, but beyond that the adjustable kettlebell handles prevent you from doing pressing movements and the like. Looks like that gear would slam into your wrist if you want to do snatches or cleans or what have you with KBs.

Plus for $200 you could probably buy a set of used iron cast KB and be able to do all the movements comfortably.

If you only want to do KB swings, you could get it, although there are cheaper options. If you want to do more KB movements, better off investing in some used KBs

I agree with this^^. There was a time when KBs were expensive, but now days they are pretty cheap, and unlike dumbbells, you don't need a huge range of them to train with. In the true spirit of KB training, the most you really need is a couple of pairs/individuals.

Personally all I would use those things for is 1 arm rows, to improve the ROM, but nothing else.

[dekka213]

I emailed the manufacturer for the handle width on the KC and it was identical to the the kettlestack handles which i already own and struggle with on account of the size of my hands. My hands are freakishly masculine and two handed swings are only accomplished with 3 fingers inside. If you have big hands I understand IM kettlebell is wide width.

[daniel327]

The VF Adjustable Kettlebell is another option:

However, if you read the blurb on the product page, it seems that they don't have a lot of confidence in it:

That looks identical to my adjustable kettlebell, except for the colour (or color).

I've never had a problem with the housing or the weight stack becoming loose.

[KBKB]

I emailed the manufacturer for the handle width on the KC and it was identical to the the kettlestack handles which i already own and struggle with on account of the size of my hands. My hands are freakishly masculine and two handed swings are only accomplished with 3 fingers inside. If you have big hands I understand IM kettlebell is wide width.

I don't have freakishly large hands - I can't quite palm a basketball, for example. But my hands are wide enough to give me problems with two handed swings on some of the smaller bells that I own. My solution has been to switch to either one handed swings or double kettlebell swings. That said, the Ironmaster Kettlebell is probably the best kettlebell to use for two handed swings for those of us with wide hands.

Below are a few photos showing the amount of space available on the handles of a few of the bells that I own. Note that my left pinky (which is on the right hand side of the photos) don't fit very well when gripping the comp bell or the 36kg bell. When I used to do two-handed swings with 20kg and 24kg Lifeline bells, I'd sometimes use a three-fingered grip. I show that it in the 20kg bell photo. In each case, I also show a one-handed grip in the location of the handle that I would use for doing a clean or a snatch. For all but the Ironmaster Bell, I place my hand all the way to one side so that my thumb and forefinger are in the corner of the handle. On the Ironmaster bell, I've found that it better to just place your hand in the center of the handle for those movements.

20kg Lifeline USA Kettlebell:



28kg MDUSA V2 Pro Series Competition Kettlebell:



36kg Lifeline USA Kettlebell:



Ironmaster Kettlebell:

[smokeater]

Interesting concept but I'd stick with normal kettlebells, even if the cost wasn't $200 per handle. You really don't need any more than 3 kettlebells. Some people like to buy pairs. Personally I figure I'm already doing kettlebells for "functional" training so why not get a true "functional" workout and hold 2 different weighted kettlebells. Not a huge fan of the interchangable kettlebells but I understand why some are.

[KBKB]

Interesting concept but I'd stick with normal kettlebells, even if the cost wasn't $200 per handle. You really don't need any more than 3 kettlebells. Some people like to buy pairs. Personally I figure I'm already doing kettlebells for "functional" training so why not get a true "functional" workout and hold 2 different weighted kettlebells.

I used to do this for a while prior to purchasing additional bells so that I'd have doubles of the ones I use most frequently. It was alright; though I only did it with bells that were 4kg apart in weight. I'd alternate which hand got to hold the heavier bell from one set to the next.

[KBKB]

I came across this video by Bret Contreras demonstrating the KettleClamp:

[UTCFitness]

For heavy KB swings I started making an adjustable T-Handle that will hold up to 200lbs of 25s. It can also be used for deadlifts & RDLs. Check my youtube videos to see it.

[KBKB]

For heavy KB swings I started making an adjustable T-Handle that will hold up to 200lbs of 25s. It can also be used for deadlifts & RDLs. Check my youtube videos to see it.

I watched your video. It looks suitable for swings, but it seems that the height would limit the range of motion for deadlifts and RDLs.

[judgecrandall]

For anyone who wants to do 2-handed swings, I'd recommend making your own t-handle. It's cheaper than the other options, and is fully adjustable. I made mine based on Ross Enamait's blog post at RossTraining.com.

http://rosstraining.com/blog/2008/12...demonstration/

It cost me just over $20 at Home Depot. You can make it even cheaper if you use black pipe (but then you have to deal with residue all over your hands and plates) or a cap instead of a flange (but then the t-handle won't stand up on it's own).

It works with both olympic and standard plates. If you're using olympic plates, you just need one standard plate on top that will hold the olympic weights in place (with a hose clamp on top of that). The blog post says you should put a standard plate on the bottom, but you don't need this since the flange holds olympic plates on by itself, plus the flange itself actually prevents a standard plate from touching the base of the flange.

Here are pics of the t-handle by itself, and loaded with 50 lbs of plates (45 lbs of oly plates + 5 lbs of standard on top). So far the most weight I've had on it is 75 lbs, but Ross has used it with over 150 lbs without issue.

[UTCFitness]

I watched your video. It looks suitable for swings, but it seems that the height would limit the range of motion for deadlifts and RDLs.

It comes in a shorter version that holds 4 plates. But you're right, it's good for beginners to learn how to deadlift is what I should have said.

[KBKB]

For anyone who wants to do 2-handed swings, I'd recommend making your own t-handle. It's cheaper than the other options, and is fully adjustable.

I recently read an article about heavy swings by Bret Contreras. Bret has been doing heavy swings with a 203lb kettlebell.

The kettlebell he's using is made by Ader and I read somewhere that he purchased it on ebay, hopefully at a good price. I checked the prices for buying one new from Rogue Fitness. The 203lb Ader Monster Kettlebell is available for $489 not including shipping. This is an exorbitant amount to pay for a kettlebell that (for me, anyway) is useful for only one or two movements. I would certainly be able to deadlift it and possibly (hopefully!) be able to eventually do two handed swings with it. But I can't envision myself doing any one handed work with a kettlebell of that size, so one-handed swings, cleans, presses, snatches, etc are all out.

The other two solutions he recommends are the KettleClamp from Sorinex, which started out as the topic of this thread, and the T-handle. The KettleClamp may make sense if you have a lot of heavy dumbbells available, but the T-handle will, in most cases, allow for the use of more weight and is certainly the most affordable solution.

There's one solution that Bret didn't mention - double kettlebell swings. I have a 36kg and 40kg (79lb and 88lb) kettlebell. If I were work up to doing double kettlebell swings with this pair of kettlebells, I'd be at 167lbs, which seems pretty heavy to me. I think double kettlebell swings might be a good solution for those of us who already own a number of lighter weight kettlebells.

If I ever work up to wanting to do really heavy swings though, I'll build myself a T-handle.

[KBKB]

Rogue is now selling the KettleClamp. Here are photos from their site:

[ProtienandIron]

I like the look of that thing. I wonder what its like to press, particularly with bigger dumbbells?

[KBKB]

I like the look of that thing. I wonder what its like to press, particularly with bigger dumbbells?

Well, in order to press it, you'd need to clean it. I can't imagine doing that, especially with larger dumbbells.

I think its primary application is for doing swings.

I wonder what it's like using it for one-handed swings. It seems to me that it'd be harder to control with the mass further out from the center. When doing one handed swings, I frequently rotate the thumb side of my hand so that it's almost pointing backward on the back swing and rotate my hand so that it's pretty much horizontal at the top. If you have a one-handed swing style in which the thumb is kept upward during the entire movement, it'd probably be easier to control. I've tried it this way using ordinary kettlebells, but have not gotten accustomed to it yet.

[ProtienandIron]

Well, in order to press it, you'd need to clean it. I can't imagine doing that, especially with larger dumbbells.

I think its primary application is for doing swings.

I wonder what it's like using it for one-handed swings. It seems to me that it'd be harder to control with the mass further out from the center. When doing one handed swings, I frequently rotate the thumb side of my hand so that it's almost pointing backward on the back swing and rotate my hand so that it's pretty much horizontal at the top. If you have a one-handed swing style in which the thumb is kept upward during the entire movement, it'd probably be easier to control. I've tried it this way using ordinary kettlebells, but have not gotten accustomed to it yet.

I think you're right about the swings. My thinking is that if they had designed it with some sort of shroud over the clamping mechanism, it may have worked well for presses when the dumbbell is in he position shown top right.

[KBKB]

I think you're right about the swings. My thinking is that if they had designed it with some sort of shroud over the clamping mechanism, it may have worked well for presses when the dumbbell is in he position shown top right.

It might still work - even without a shroud - for that cleans and presses, but I'd want to see someone else try it first.

(I was nervous about hurting my wrist & arm when I first did cleans with real kettlebells.)