Other/Mixed Goofing around with the Bully

[North Coast Miller]

Here's another look at a full size sparring dummy I made years ago and recently repaired - originally showed it off over in the DIY equipment thread, and the "Life Protection System" thread rekindled my interest. Feel free to comment, critique, heckle. I'm in the early stages of a partial redesign using the existing model as a chassis.

Originally created as a solution to shiftwork and lack of sparring time, is reasonably articulated and can be used in a couple of modes. Used in conjunction with formal training, this widget noticeably improved my footwork application, sparring - esp knife work, as well as just plain being a lot of fun before the shoulders fell apart.

Lots of mumbling and some background info along with simple knife defense:


and some "closed door" and elbow up block and counters, the first punches it has thrown in over a decade:

 

[Bret S.]

How long did it take to build 'The Bully'? The mechanism looks complicated yet still clean, the strikes are progressively faster as they come out it seems, is there a cam involved in the shoulder/tricep area?

 

[North Coast Miller]

How long did it take to build 'The Bully'? The mechanism looks complicated yet still clean, the strikes are progressively faster as they come out it seems, is there a cam involved in the shoulder/tricep area?

The upper body has a lot more mass than it appears but very little friction, rotates on a steel cap under the head. The arms generate max resistance in the relaxed pose, progressively easier as it rotates and the arm comes up. In fact earlier versions had even less resistance but the arms wouldn't reset without manually doing so. The arms could actually be much heavier and would still throw pretty fast if done with a partner - that would be the 'tactical' model capable of KOing someone.

The first version only threw punches from the hip - very similar to a reverse punch.

There is definitely a knack to using the hip belt, but pretty simple to learn. Generating force through the hips actually improves (or seems to) hip mobility in practice, and more importantly coordinating hand movements to hip. Where it really shines s setting it up to block, then it is responding after the fact and very good stand in for an opponent.

When you initiate the strike, your hip movement and start of defensive reaction is ahead of the strike - still good for conditioning but not really surprising. All that is no longer the case when a partner provides the power.

It took over year to dial it in, the base concept only took a few weeks. The hip belt and the shoulders by far the hardest part to make functional. 85% of it just blew out of my brain and onto notebook in a very short time.

Will be doing a few more clips but have been crazy busy lately.

 

[Bret S.]

The arms could actually be much heavier and would still throw pretty fast if done with a partner - that would be the 'tactical' model capable of KOing someone.

That would be a YT sensation video, or better yet someone actually knocking themselves silly while practicing

When you initiate the strike, your hip movement and start of defensive reaction is ahead of the strike - still good for conditioning but not really surprising. All that is no longer the case when a partner provides the power.

This mimics my MA style with hips driving a guided block for instance, which loads the hips for a counter strike.

85% of it just blew out of my brain and onto notebook in a very short time.

Amazing job, very creative!

 

[North Coast Miller]

Thanks!
My wife was really the inspiration for it - she told me I should have a man-sized dummy hanging from a rope on a pole, like a giant cat toy.
"Hmmm, a sparring dummy that's attached to the user..."

That would be a YT sensation video, or better yet someone actually knocking themselves silly while practicing

I did manage to knock my glasses off once.

 

[North Coast Miller]

A little more tinkering with the practical and impractical. Another thing it does well, forearm conditioning.

 

[Bret S.]

It seems to pretty versatile, I like the forearm conditioning aspect. Despite the fact you must initiate the movement of the bully it's a pretty good timing exercise regarding blocking and countering.
It reminds me of one step sparring where the attack is choreographed and you practice timing, balance, body position etc. I would like to have it around for sure if there is nobody to train with, it would be interesting to mimic with a partner what the bully does and compare the results/feeling/timing etc..

 

[North Coast Miller]

For me, it definitely reprogrammed a few things I had been taught but never really developed prior.

A lot of the Gunting I learned in FMA has to hit accurately or it won't have a good effect - these aren't power shots and a heavy jacket pretty much eliminates it as an option. Throwing power shots at the upper arm is just too difficult to do a lot of with a partner, but it can be really effective bareknuckle.

Forcing the opponent to commit to their block - Bas Ruten talked about this in an interview. Most people pull power from a shot if they see a block in the way, he just keeps going - if you hit hard enough they still lose a beat and if you're ready for the impact, you don't.Is also possible to defeat a block if not executed well.

On the flip side it teaches you to really power into your blocks if you do see it coming. And since the path is a little jerky and never follows exactly the same line even if you know what's coming, your blocks and redirects have to cover a little larger area. It wasn't until I trained on the Bully that I became interested in 52 handblocks.

Where this model falls down is the relatively slow speed, especially of retraction, and it won't throw a corkscrew punch, so does not develop a strong instinct to cover vs shots over your guard. The next version will accommodate the corkscrew, speed will be an ongoing challenge

Things I noticed in a sparring environment after using it for a few months was I had somewhat better diagonal footwork penetration. Also much improved ability to trap and counter on an opponent's block, and with that a greater willingness to commit to my strikes as I was always looking to play off the opponent's reaction. With the Bully there is ALWAYS an action or reaction, sort of the opposite of a heavy bag. Sparring also became more impersonal, it conditions you to not even bother looking at opponent's face or to feel any ego at all.

As you mention, it is really training a moment in time - at least when training solo. One, two, three and that's about it. Is a lot more dynamic with a partner on the handlebars. Almost everything that "works" vs the Bully can work on a person, many things a person can do that cannot be modeled using the Bully.

 

[kiwipete]

@North Coast Miller - I'm a complete novice when it comes to MA but I think that having the bully to provide a sense of basic feedback is great.

I don't think the perceived slow action is a negative because it could be an opportunity to be mindful of stance, positioning, breathing - whereas faster speeds would loose that 'think-feeling' space.

On a different note... In my mind I imagine working a particular strike/ block over and over and over - and then at random intervals the bully would throw a different strike to react to.

To do that perhaps it is possible to motorise the mechanism??... I know that's going down a more difficult path and where the line is I'm not sure because if you were to go to that extreme perhaps finding a 'live' partner maybe easier!

 

[North Coast Miller]

@ kiwipete,
I think the way I wound up using it - to reinforce stuff I'd already learned and to gently pressure test specific techniques is where it works best.

I never did manage to use it much with a partner on the handles, but the times I did, the thing was like taking on the terminator - easily absorbing jabs and snappy kicks. You had to keep moving and use the hardest hitting skills you have in ways you might never do against a person in a training environment. Great in small doses but a recipe for injury if overdone.

Motorizing would be cool, or maybe come up with some way to store rotational energy and release it intermittently like one of Theo Jansen's Strandbeest creations. This Summer I'm going to get back to it, have a lot of ideas how to run the cabling that could make it a lot more versatile.

 

[Bret S.]

Hmmm.. I never got a notification on post #6

 

[Steve Freides]

Hmmm.. I never got a notification on post #6

@Bret S., if - a big "if," I realize - if you missed the notification from the forum for a thread you're watching, you won't receive a second one. A slightly longer explanation is in the next paragraph.

The way the notification system works is this: You get notified about a thread you're watching when the first new-to-you post is made on the forum. You only receive additional notifications _after_ you've gone onto the forum and visited the thread and read the latest postings - once you've done that, the switch is flipped and you will again receive notice about any further new postings.

I hope that clears things up a bit - our forum software is very widely used and very robust. That doesn't mean it's perfect but it does mean that it's working as it should be in the overwhelming majority of instances.

If I can be of further assistance, please PM me.

Thanks.

-S-

 

[Bret S.]

@Bret S., if - a big "if," I realize - if you missed the notification from the forum for a thread you're watching, you won't receive a second one. A slightly longer explanation is in the next paragraph.

The way the notification system works is this: You get notified about a thread you're watching when the first new-to-you post is made on the forum. You only receive additional notifications _after_ you've gone onto the forum and visited the thread and read the latest postings - once you've done that, the switch is flipped and you will again receive notice about any further new postings.

I hope that clears things up a bit - our forum software is very widely used and very robust. That doesn't mean it's perfect but it does mean that it's working as it should be in the overwhelming majority of instances.

If I can be of further assistance, please PM me.

Thanks.

-S-

Thanks Steve