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Old Forum Kettlebells: how much does shape matter?

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Paul156

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Hi all. im looking to buy myself 2 x 24kg kettlebells and taking cost into account I've noticed that sport style kettlebells are quite a bit cheaper than the bigger handled traditional style. I've read somewhere that the handle shape can be a factor when training but I'm wondering how much and whether I can justify paying quite a bit more. In terms of my usage, I'm looking to start kettlebell strong. Thanks in advance for all of your thoughts.
 
I've never used the sport KBs, but when doing doubles you have to consider the finish of the bell as they will bounce off of each other sometimes. I've heard that the sport ones (depending on brand and finish) will chip, which is not something to worry about with true solid cast bells. Before you make the call on price, be sure you've got some information on how the finish holds up on the brand you're considering.
 
I have 3x Elite Black (bought from Tenacity.se) 2x 16kg, 1x24kg.
I also have 1x Noname cheap 20kg, 2x Dragondoor-bells.

I will never recommend a noname kettlebell again, it is cheaper for a reason, rough, winded and 0.5kg difference.

The RKC-ones are perfect for snatches, TGU's and presses. They are not ideal for swinging ( the outer fingers are in the way). This it "top of the line".

My Elite Black are better suited for swinging but not so comfortable for snatching/pressing/TGU's. A big warning, the painting WILL crack if you use doubles!

I have looked at the competition bells as they all have the same size and thus would translate better technique-wise between sizes. But they are way to expensive for me to consider buying doubles of each size.
 
The latest iteration of Rogue Fitness KBs are wide enough to fit all of my fingers in, even at weights as low as 1 pood. Even the 26 lb, actually. Plus, they're less expensive than many other brands, sometimes dramatically so. As compared to DD, Rogue bells usually cost as much WITH shipping as DD bells cost BEFORE shipping, so the difference between sport/cast wouldn't be nearly as dramatic. . They've been recommended to me by three different SFG as well.
 
The handles on the competition bells are thinner than cast iron bells. This will reduce the pain in your forearms when swinging heavier bells for reps.  In this case, pain is weakness leaving the body.   I like it when my forearms hurt.  It means that there will be a big, heavy deadlift in my future due to the grip strength being developed.

Also, the length of the competition bell's handle is smaller.   You might have a harder time wrapping your fingers from both hands around it.   No 2 handed swinging in girya competition as far as I know.

Girya sport (competition bell) is geared towards maximing reps while minimizing your effort.  Hardstyle kettlebell (cast iron) training is all about developing your body, hence maximing your effort.

 
 
Comp bells are great. Even the cheap ones will be better than most iron kettlebells out there, apart from DD, Rogue and maybe PB bells (never used them).

The grip issue is not something to worry about. Do GS athletes have poor grips? Do you think Valery Fedorenko should use fatter-handled KBs to improve his grip?

And worrying about paint chipping on a kettlebell is like worrying about your car tyres getting dirty.
 
Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if VF or any other GS competitor used a hook grip so that he doesn't tire out his forearms.  Their goal is to hit their target number of reps with minimal effort.

 

 
 
I'm curious where you are looking that competition bells are cheaper? As far as I know they're more expensive no matter what brand due to the use of steel.
 
im gonna second the grip ishue.

specially if your planing on doing a certification or tactical strength challenge

i intentionally train my snatch test with a 24.5kg kettlebell with very thick handle. Then i know that when i do my "real" test it will be more easy rather than harder than normal practice. i would rather show up at and use thinner handle and lighter kb than the other way around.

and it worked i have never passed the snatch test at home but at my SFG i passed it (PR)

Kettlebells are forever they will out live you and your children if you buy quality. And a pair of 24's will alway be something to go back to.
 
Thanks for all your thoughts. Phil, the cheaper sport bells were on e bay. When I look around eBay and various websites, I see variable prices but also variable shapes. I know better than to go for the plastic type ones but otherwise I thought I'd get your thoughts on how much other factors matter. If you search kettlebells on eBay you'll see the variety. The rogue fitness ones look good but it doesn't look like they deliver to uk. Thanks tho.
 
Paul-> They have a EU-store, but they only sell “ader”-bells (big handles) and Pro-Grade (competition).
Their “pro grade” is cheaper than DD-bells here in Sweden.

Solution: Give us a European reseller of Strongfirst.
 
Wolverson comp bells in the UK.

 

No decent bell will have any paint that could chip off the handle ...not that you should be banging the handles together anyway. Steel bells will have bare steel handles, and decent iron bells such as DD will have such a thin coating that it may wear away nicely and smoothly, but even if it did chip won't leave deep voids.

I bought a cheap second hand Australian 'ironedge' 24kg cast iron bell which has a horrible thick powder coat, which when I tried to sand off revealed a thicker layer of yellow primer underneath. When this hits my DD 24 paint flies off and leaves a 3mm deep hole.

Pretty sure the paint chipping was referring to banging the bells together and leaving a chipped band around the center of the bell ...not that there's anything wrong with that.
 
I'll second the Wolverson recommendation. I buy them in pairs as they are cheaper than two individual bells and they are pretty good quality.
 
Chipping is in varying degrees. When you have a solid bell, paint chipping is cosmetic and I agree, that's not very important. But when you have a bell that has some kind of filler or hardened shaping putty on the outside, a "chip" can be much, much worse. I was on vacation in Mexico and found a matching pair of bells to use for my training, but there was bondo on the handle that had chipped away, so snatches with that bell were not possible and cleans were still dicey.
 
I will third wolverson I use their comp kettlebells but have no experience with their cast kettlebells.

bought mine from their eBay store!
 
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