Grip is Fun.

[Douglas Carney]

3 minutes ago, Charles Jones said:

...  since grip is basically pulling from the floor, I need to make sure the rest of my body wont start holding back my grip training in the future. Even though I don't care much about maxing on DL, I was really excited about hitting the 315 milestone today and double overhand too. 18 months ago i needed straps to lift 275+.

That's awesome!  Clear evidence your grip is getting stronger.

And based on my experience, I think it's smart for you to work in DL now and then.  I'm have to go back and work on that because my posterior chain seems to be holding me back these days.

[matek]

6 hours ago, Charles Jones said:

I haven't dead lift heavy in about 18 months and back then my max was 295. Its not something I really care about but since grip is basically pulling from the floor, I need to make sure the rest of my body wont start holding back my grip training in the future. Even though I don't care much about maxing on DL, I was really excited about hitting the 315 milestone today and double overhand too. 18 months ago i needed straps to lift 275+.

I'll likely start incorporating dead lifts in my training once a week, maybe sets of 3 to 5 reps with straps to save my grip for more fun things.

I don't know why I look purple in the video, all the lights were on as they normally are, lol.

 

Nice work man. Also, great/fast progress on blobs!

Btw better use collars for the loadable inch trainer because a sudden tilt and you'll crush your toes  (+you want to minimize plate rotation) 

[Mitch Jones]

3 minutes ago, matek said:

Nice work man. Also, great/fast progress on blobs!

Btw better use collars for the loadable inch trainer because a sudden tilt and you'll crush your toes  (+you want to minimize plate rotation) 

Thanks! I had collars on at the beginning, but never put them back on mostly out of laziness. I have some much better collars coming from arm assassins that won't be such a pain to put on and they have the ability to have chains attached to them for another variation of the lift.

I was thinking about using rubber bands between the handle and plates to generate some friction so they won't spin. I'll try that next time to see if its worth the trouble.

[Douglas Carney]

12 minutes ago, matek said:

... Also, great/fast progress on blobs!

Second that...  Keep up the hard work!

[Mitch Jones]

Grippers today.

Did some levering yesterday with a sledge hammer. Wrists are pretty sore and effected my gripper work a little. I need to  write up a program rather than just working out whenever. Grip addiction is causing me to be less forward thinking. Started a diet this morning. Hopefully this one lasts longer than a week. Starting weight: 197lb. Goal: 170lb.

Grippers

Right

98rgc 5 sets of doubles paused

96rgc 3 sets of triples for speed

Left

96rgc 5 sets of doubles paused

89rgc 3 sets of triples for speed

 

[John Knowlton]

Nice grip work

good luck with the diet.

[Mitch Jones]

Inch trainer and bending today.

Got a new max on the 2 3/8" loadable Dumbell today, but only about 4 pounds. I probably could have got that last time. I put a rubber band around where the plate closest to the handle sits. There was no plate rotation with it and felt a little more difficult than last time. Wrists are still a little sore from levering the other day but I tried bending anyway and happy with the result.

Inch loadable Dumbell 2 3/8"

99.95lb - 7 singles right and left

102.5 - 1 single right and left

 

Bending

Warmed up with a 40d nail DO.

Timber ties x4 DO.

60d wouldn't budge

The crush was harder than normal maybe because I did chest today which is my normal Wednesday workout. Maybe I could kink nails and lever on Wednesdays and finish them another day of the week away from chest day? I have Wednesday as my thick bar and wrist day, so that might work. I can finish them Saturday before or after deadlifts.

Wrote a weekly program I think will work out. Grippers will go to once a week and blobs twice in 4 weeks:

Sunday blobs

Monday grippers

Wednesday thick bar and bending(kink)/levering

Friday grippers

Saturday deadlift and bending(sweep, crush)

Edited August 16, 2023 by Charles Jones
typo

[Mitch Jones]

Grippers today.

Felt good getting started. Decided to go a little off plan since I got a new gripper. Was able to close my new Standard Platinum with my right hand, but missed with the left.

Right

102rgc x1

118rgc x1 PR

102rcg 3 sets of doubles, paused

96rcg  3 sets coin holds for time

Left

102rgc x1

118rgc x miss

102rcg 3 sets of doubles, paused

96rcg  3 sets coin holds for time

[Kluv#0]

Very nice close - congrats on the PR

[Mitch Jones]

Blobs today.

I slipped a disc in my back deadlifting Saturday, definitely not a muscle . first time anything like that has happened to me. i was distracted and just didn't set up and brace correctly before that rep. i feel a lot better today and today was my first workout at the gym and with grip. I still have plenty of discomfort to train around, so all my lifts today were from the top of a step ladder so i didn't have to bend over. It will probably be like this for a few weeks. taking it one day at a time.

Overall happy with the workout. made some great progress with adding magnetic weights.

Right

half 75 - 2

half 85 - 2

half 75 +2.5lb - 1         half 75 +3.75lb - 1      half 75 +5lb - 2

half 75 +6.25lb - 1      half 75 +7.5lb - Miss

half 95 - Miss

Left

half 75 - 2

half 85 - 1, 1 Miss

half 75 +2.5lb - 1         half 75 +3.75lb - Miss       half 75 +2.5lb - 4

 

The 1/2 75 with 7.5lb added felt doable but my grip was getting worn out. The half 85 is a next gen and more narrow than my half 75, so i added weight to the half 75 to better prepare me for the half 95.

[Blacksmith513]

Sorry about your back.... Glad to see your still training though.

[Mitch Jones]

Bending today.

I did legs today at the gym. Mostly body weigh, single leg movements and machines to keep the load off my back. Back feels better today, just some nagging discomfort. that will probably be there a while. This will be a good learning experience.

Timber ties are getting much easier but i still can't budge a 60d bright nail. I got light headed and dizzy on 2 of 3 hits and just decided to stop. I have some yellow nails from Iron Mind coming to help bridge that gap. I think they are somewhere in between timber ties and 60d brights.

Bending

Bent 10 Timber ties DO with focus mostly on technique during the kink and keeping my wrists in a good position.

[Blacksmith513]

1 hour ago, Charles Jones said:

Bending today.

I did legs today at the gym. Mostly body weigh, single leg movements and machines to keep the load off my back. Back feels better today, just some nagging discomfort. that will probably be there a while. This will be a good learning experience.

Timber ties are getting much easier but i still can't budge a 60d bright nail. I got light headed and dizzy on 2 of 3 hits and just decided to stop. I have some yellow nails from Iron Mind coming to help bridge that gap. I think they are somewhere in between timber ties and 60d brights.

Bending

Bent 10 Timber ties DO with focus mostly on technique during the kink and keeping my wrists in a good position.

Those 60d brights are crazy hard. At least the ones from Home Depot. I did two DO before in singles... Ended up making my hands numb for a day.   I recommend some drill rod. You will get it. I highly recommend recording a few bends each week. 

In doubles at least the kink portion feels harder than g5s..

[Bigfoot Grip]

45 minutes ago, Blacksmith513 said:

Those 60d brights are crazy hard. At least the ones from Home Depot. I did two DO before in singles... Ended up making my hands numb for a day.   I recommend some drill rod. You will get it. I highly recommend recording a few bends each week. 

In doubles at least the kink portion feels harder than g5s..

I've had the same experience Joe. The 1/4" 6" g5's feel easier than the 60d brights. It's funny that the IM Blue nail is often considered the equivalent because they feel worlds apart lol. I found some old thread once on the board and I could have sworn some guys said they've had 60's rated over 400lbs lol. I can believe it! 

[Mitch Jones]

2 hours ago, Blacksmith513 said:

Those 60d brights are crazy hard. At least the ones from Home Depot. I did two DO before in singles... Ended up making my hands numb for a day.   I recommend some drill rod. You will get it. I highly recommend recording a few bends each week. 

In doubles at least the kink portion feels harder than g5s..

 

1 hour ago, Bigfoot Grip said:

6" g5's feel easier than the 60d brights.

I'll have to try the g5 bolts next time to see if I can do anything to them. I've only bent in suede, haven't experimented yet with cordura or leather. I'll start recording some bends soon to check my form.

I bought a 30lb box of 60d brights from home depot, so hopefully I can get them going before my 30lb box of timber ties run out.

I was going by this picture I found on ECGB when I chose to get some yellows from IM. It's from 2004 if I remember right, but maybe still relevant enough to go by.

 

[Bigfoot Grip]

3 hours ago, Charles Jones said:

 

I'll have to try the g5 bolts next time to see if I can do anything to them. I've only bent in suede, haven't experimented yet with cordura or leather. I'll start recording some bends soon to check my form.

I bought a 30lb box of 60d brights from home depot, so hopefully I can get them going before my 30lb box of timber ties run out.

I was going by this picture I found on ECGB when I chose to get some yellows from IM. It's from 2004 if I remember right, but maybe still relevant enough to go by.

 

The grade 5's are kinda cool just because they feel different than bending CRS bars(like IM's). I'm hesitant to say this but so far it feels like they have more fight through the whole bend as opposed to CRS bars. Could be wrong though. Also I only bend DU style so that could play a part  I've seen that chart from ECG and tbh my 60d's feel like the step before the Grade 8 or red nail lol. Compared to my grade 5's rated 330lbs they feel significantly harder. Going off my memory the veteran benders on the board who either rate steel or have buddies who do I recall saying they've rated 60's up to 415lbs or something insane. The strangest aspect of bending to me is possibly the huge variation in 60's. And to think I thought grippers could be all over the place 

[Mitch Jones]

Grippers today.

Left and Right

Warm-up with unrated HG100 filed and 89rgc filed.

Working sets - 96rgc - 5 sets of triples, paused.

Back is doing better every day but I still have to be cautious with it. Elbows got a little sore from bending my first IM yellow nail last week. Took 3 hits to kink, the rest was easy. I was dog sitting for some friends on the opposite side of town last week so my workout schedule is off. Today puts me back on track. Rest day tomorrow, then Wednesday, I'll do some bending while I watch the hurricane pass by.

[matek]

On 8/25/2023 at 12:23 AM, Bigfoot Grip said:

The grade 5's are kinda cool just because they feel different than bending CRS bars(like IM's). I'm hesitant to say this but so far it feels like they have more fight through the whole bend as opposed to CRS bars. Could be wrong though. Also I only bend DU style so that could play a part  I've seen that chart from ECG and tbh my 60d's feel like the step before the Grade 8 or red nail lol. Compared to my grade 5's rated 330lbs they feel significantly harder. Going off my memory the veteran benders on the board who either rate steel or have buddies who do I recall saying they've rated 60's up to 415lbs or something insane. The strangest aspect of bending to me is possibly the huge variation in 60's. And to think I thought grippers could be all over the place 

This.
Based on my experience, the most consisent thing to bend is drill rod (the same type of course, like O-1), and the most inconsisent are nails. So far I only had one strange batch for a 7.4mm SK95 drill rod, which feels almost the same as the "usual" 7.7mm stock.
CRS stock and bolts can vary a lot as well, true, but nails are all over the place. It still has a great value for bending, of course. Btw I label my CRS stock based on the date I ordered it, it helps me to assess my performance better (is it a harder/softer/usual batch). 

[Mitch Jones]

Bending today.

After weeks of struggling on the 60d's that wouldn't budge for me, I finally bent my first today. I did not record it because I thought I wouldn't get it today but I recorded the second bend. This was very encouraging as I now feel I don't have 30 pounds of nails for nothing lol. I feel like leather wraps may have made it a little easier. Every other bend I've tried was in suede until today I decided to try cordura and leathers.

All DO

1 timber tie in suede

2 timber ties in cordura

3 60d in leathers

1 IM yellow nail in suede

[Mitch Jones]

Even though i finished the bending workout hours ago, I couldn't help myself and went for a 6" x 1/4" cert bar from ECGB. Kink was easier than the crush on this one. Nails have been the opposite for me so far. In any event, my elbows are telling me to settle down. Today has been a good day.

[Blacksmith513]

10 minutes ago, Charles Jones said:

Even though i finished the bending workout hours ago, I couldn't help myself and went for a 6" x 1/4" cert bar from ECGB. Kink was easier than the crush on this one. Nails have been the opposite for me so far. In any event, my elbows are telling me to settle down. Today has been a good day.

awesome work. I find that with the 60d brights also.  The kink is the hard part.

 

dont be afraid to chalk up your hands and those wraps.

[Mitch Jones]

Grippers today.

Short workout, felt good. Tendons at the elbows still a little tender from bending Wednesday.

Warm up - unrated HG100 filed, 89rgc filed.

Right

102rgc - 3 sets of triples, long pause

Left

96rgc - 3 sets of triples, long pause

Levering

Tied a judo belt around a 10lb plate and did 3 sets of 50, 40, 40 reps each hand of radial deviation to get some blood to the tender spots in my lower arms.

[Mitch Jones]

Bending today.

Some progress today but no new completed bends. I attempted to record a 6.5" x 9/32" cert bar DO from ECGB. At 5 minutes I was 3/8" away from finishing but the bar left the frame so many times without me realizing it, It would have been a fail anyway. I learned a lot though. Drill rod is a humbling experience, my crush needs so much work. Bent my first grade 5 bolt today also, but was out of gas around 90°. I'll save that bolt to work on crush another day. The IM yellow and 60d were the easiest they have been today, slow but steady progress there.

All DO

6 timber ties

1 ECGB 6.5" x 9/32" failed by 3/8"

1 IM yellow nail

1 60d bright

1 grade 5 bolt 6" × 1/4" failed by a lot

I want to keep going today but the elbows say to stop.

 

[Blacksmith513]

1 hour ago, Charles Jones said:

Bending today.

Some progress today but no new completed bends. I attempted to record a 6.5" x 9/32" cert bar DO from ECGB. At 5 minutes I was 3/8" away from finishing but the bar left the frame so many times without me realizing it, It would have been a fail anyway. I learned a lot though. Drill rod is a humbling experience, my crush needs so much work. Bent my first grade 5 bolt today also, but was out of gas around 90°. I'll save that bolt to work on crush another day. The IM yellow and 60d were the easiest they have been today, slow but steady progress there.

All DO

6 timber ties

1 ECGB 6.5" x 9/32" failed by 3/8"

1 IM yellow nail

1 60d bright

1 grade 5 bolt 6" × 1/4" failed by a lot

I want to keep going today but the elbows say to stop.

 

That’s not a fail at all. Nice work. Listen to your elbows. Back off a little if need be.

your making good progress. I’ve only bent a few bolts. But you gotta work fast and hit hard, gotta keep that steel hot.

Edited September 2, 2023 by Blacksmith513

[Mitch Jones]

59 minutes ago, Blacksmith513 said:

That’s not a fail at all. Nice work. Listen to your elbows. Back off a little if need be.

your making good progress. I’ve only bent a few bolts. But you gotta work fast and hit hard, gotta keep that steel hot.

Thanks! Its on this harder steel where I'm really learning how to hit harder. Its like i start with my arms and chest but it wont budge until i get my lats involved. Its just a lot of muscle to activate all at once. So thats what I'll be focusing on, activating every muscle i can at the same time to hit harder sooner. Just rewatched the recording and my first hit on the 6.5x9/32 bar was 9 seconds and it didn't even move until after 7 seconds lol. That was the first bend where i really felt my lats engage before it started moving.