Thomas Inch (1881-1963) was a world famous strongman best known for his "challenge" dumbbell. Thick handled , heavy objects are always difficult to lift by people who do not work this aspect of grip in their occupation or in the gym. Those with short hands are disadvantaged , and even if the grip is strong there is a nasty tendency for the handle to twist as you lift. Some of the best thick-bar lifters had very large hands. Mine are fairly average (7 .75") whilst famous guys like Marx & Apollon had 8.5 & 9" hands respectively.
Here is a link to the story of Mr Inch. Not all his feats were verified. In fact some of these old time strongmen would have performed well in the circus that is professional wrestling today...
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ironhistory0.htm also
http://www.davidhorne-gripmaster.com/historyarticles3.htmlSome companies supply Inch-style replicas ; these are expensive and prohibitively so for people living in the southern continent.. So I made my own!
Here is my "world first" - the "
Inch Kettlebell" - 2 3/8" handle and the "George Jowett Kettlebell" 2" handle. More on Mr Jowett in the section on blacksmithing.
4" SS
handles , made June 2008 by APCO engineering in Hobart , that screw into the base of the competition style KB's - 2 models (2 & 2 3/8")
the 4"x2 3/8" handle dimensions are identical to that of the "Inch challenge " dumbbell.
With 2x28kg and 2x32 kg bells I get these combinations:
2” 57.6kg =127lb
2 3/8”
58.2kg =128lb
2” 65.6kg =144lb
2 3/8” 66.2kg =146lb
Thomas
Inch had at least 4 made up. One was only
75-80lb, the others were:
63.4kg = 140lb
69.5kg = 153lb
78.2kg = 172lb
- the famous “challenge” DB - the challenge was for a man to deadlift the bell. Later he changed that to clean & press but it is unlikely he himself achieved that feat.
So mine are obviously "trainers" , but they
feel reasonably heavy. I can deadlift the 128lb & 144lb versions as above.
Pretty average , but for a wide grip newbie it's a baseline & something to
work up from in my old age. Putting wide handled dumbbells overhead is another matter altogether!
On a technical note , these hollow KB bases are relatively
thin and I wouldn't want to be dropping these Inchoids onto concrete too often.
Also I got some grub screws cut as this will
keep the threads clean when I'm using the bells as kettlebells ; it would be a shame to strip the thread on these
punctured bells.
Old School BarbellsHollow globe barbells loaded with shot or sand were the staple of strongmen at the turn of last century. Being loadable they were easily portable from town to town - many of the strongmen travelled around giving strength exhibitions. Some even had their own custom made barbells. Handles varied from the usual thin style up to very thick handled bars that greatly favoured men with large hands .
This type of barbell has just become available in Australia
http://www.kettlebells.com.au/store/New-Products/, and I have one! Mine has a 60mm handle, the same diameter as the Inch dumbbell. The other model has a 40mm handle. The raw weight is 26kg but it's possible to get these arond 70kg I believe using lead shot. The company sells iron shot , cheaper and dare I say it "better for the environment". But not as heavy if you are wanting to go hard core - even so , melted lead would get this barbell pretty weighty.
The globes do not rotate thus one has to grip the bar hard yet relax enough to spin the bar during cleans to the chest. Also the shot shifts around a bit , all in all making this a challenging tool.
This should be nice for curls (hahaha!) , jerks , cleans and presses , light squats including Zerchers, one arm deadlifts (enabling me to gradually work up to the heavier of the Inch Kettlebells above), bent presses and rows. Not that I am a fan of the get up but I have done one with this bar and it's much harder than with a KB of the same weight...the bar balance element adds a little something...
Here she is : Note the grub screw for loading purposes and the soft surface - which is better for receiving those bad attempts.
