home-made clubell

[Jean Luc]

Hello, i live in France and it is very expensive to order a clubbell from USA or UK. i 'd like to begin the training anyway. does anyone here have an idea how to build an "interim" clubbell?

[bob_stra]

You have some options

(1) The simplest one is to get a PVC pipe. Glue something (eg: cistern plug) / attach something (ie: pipe stopper) over one end. Put a wooden dowel (about the length of the pipe) inside the pipe. Fill pipe with sand. Seal other end. Wrap whole thing in duct tape.

Advantages - cheap. All up you shouldn't have to spend more than $10-15 this way. Also can buy pipe to exact length, so if you're tall, you can make shorter clubs etc.

Disadvantage - no knurling, so "slippery when wet". Ends are likely to be rounded, so won't stay upright when placed on floor. Pipe all one width, unlike clubbells - can't get as much filling inside?

Modifications - can use plastic baseball bats in place of PVC pipe. Some have knurling on them. The profile is somewhat closer to real clubbells. However, the ends are still rounded. Plus, being that plastic baseball bats cost $2-5, the plastic is quite thin and can readily split if you bang them into the floor doing swing etc.

You can use concrete to make heavier clubs. My home-made ones are abt 5 lbs filled with sand. I've read of 20 lbs being made using concrete.

(2) Lathe a club from a piece of wood

Advantages - relatively cheap. Can make to length. Can make some kind of wooden knurling.

Disadvantages - time consuming. Need expertise. Need wood

(3) Use a sledgehammer

Advantages - ready made. Relatively cheap ($20-30 depending on weight). Some have rubberized grip. Some are square, so sledge stands upright by itself. Lots weight (e.g.: my sledge is 20 lbs. I've seen some go upto 40 lbs). Come in different lengths - heavier ones seem to be longer, designed for swinging. Come in different weights.

Disadvantages - weight is offset, so the lifting experience is brutal. End of sledgehammer is quite wide, so you have to make allowances on certain techniques where sledge is moving close to head / feet.

You can also make your own sledgehammer by taking a sturdy length of wood (ie: axe handle) and a plastic bucket. Place the length of wood in a bucket, fill bucket with concrete. Allow to set. Remove / break off bucket.

(4) Trawl second hand stores for indian clubs or similar.

(5) Trawl junkyards / scrapyards for similar.

Take your pick ;-)

(I'd love to hear of other suggestions)

[Jean Luc]

Thank you for your great ideas ! 8) I'll try.
I have another suggestion : to fill a baseball club in aluminium (hollow of course !) with plumb pounder and liquid glue (to stick the plumb and make a solid mass).

[bob_stra]

Thank you for your great ideas ! 8) I'll try.
I have another suggestion : to fill a baseball club in aluminium (hollow of course !) with plumb pounder and liquid glue (to stick the plumb and make a solid mass).

Different! I'd been keen to hear how heavy such an invention would turn out to be.

Some words on the concrete recipe can be seen here -

http://tinyurl.com/28o5h

There should be something on here too -

http://www.geocities.com/fightraining/otherhomemadelinks.htm

Finally, remember you can use sledgehammers to do sledgehammer workouts, ala

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/inmag10.htm

Not CST, but occasionally fun to bash things, no?

Addendum:

I just realized that this might be useful -

On construction (including extra long clubs)
http://bigsteel.iwarp.com/Articles2/IndianClubs/Clubs.html

Another thought - could the vibration from sledgehammer bashing workouts go towards increasing bone density? This -

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2001/ast02nov_1.htm

Followed by this -

http://www.stumptuous.com/bonebuilding.html

I think it's plausible, but I get over-excited sometimes ;-)

[Brian Martens]

Here's what I did:

I happened to have an old barbell with threaded (screw-on) collars. I cut the bar (using a hack saw and an 18-tooth blade) 27 inches from each end.

If you have a wide assortment of 1.25, 2.25, 3, and 5 pound plates like I do, you can load it all the way up to Bruiser class. I had extra threaded collars from a dumbell set, and I double up on each club for safety's sake.

Of course, I don't actually recommend this to anyone; I'm just using these contraptions until I have enough cash for the real thing.

Brian

Edit- I forgot to mention I used electrician tape on the grip to fatten it to Bruiser size, about 4.7" circumference.

[Cilian McHugh]

I'm probably preaching to the choir here, but:

If you're using a barbell solution with collars (even two) please, please, please proceed with EXTREME CAUTION.
The nature of ballistic, and in fact all CST, exercises means that a lot of lateral stress is placed on the collars, from angles that barbells were not designed to resist.

[Brian Martens]

Yeah, I have to make sure they're tightened down after every set. It's definitely a pain. Such is the nature of these Frankenstein home projects.

Bri

[Jean Luc]

Hello, i have realized my project to fill an aluminium baseball club whith plumb. i have drilled a hole at the end of the club (0.5 inch) with an electric drill, i have melt 15 pounds of plumb in a saucepan and introduced it in the club whith a funnel. caution! use a saucepan in stainless steel not in aluminium. The plumb melt very well on the fire of a cooker, it gets very easily liquid and the 15 pounds fills almost exactly the club (a little is in excess).

Try this and you wont be deceived! I think it is the best what we can do if we don't have a real clubbell.

Jean Luc ANDRE

[Mike Baldwin]

I would like to highlight just one situation that occurred here in Australia only a few years ago.

One of my mates, who had trained well in excess of twenty years in both ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ styles, started making great gains in both his own, and more importantly, in his training colleagues' (some people call them ‘students’) developments.

He became widely respected both here in Australia and overseas. In fact, he was invited extensively to countries world-wide and presented some of his material several times throughout different parts of Europe. He was definitely one of the ‘golden boys of the moment’.

Unfortunately, he was encouraged to grant access to all and sundry, even making videos of his private training sessions with individuals and groups. This included great details of aspects of his training gear and processes.

Unfortunately, he was further encouraged greatly to continue. He invested several hundred thousand dollars in a training facility for the hoards that were going to come.

THEY DIDN’T!!!

His videos (official and 'unofficial ' private training sessions) were pirated/copied at phenomenal rates and “shared around”. His wife (women often do know best) and his friends tried to highlight to him that, in essence, he was being ‘rooted up the a…’ (unfortunate Aussie expression but I believe apt) and expressed great concern for his financial gamble.

Whilst he thought people would 'do the right thing’, they didn’t.

He lost everything. He was in the ‘shit’ for several hundreds of thousands of dollars, the stress blew his family apart and he has been working himself into the ground since, refusing to go bankrupt and to pay back all monies he owed.

He will no longer discuss martial arts nor have anything to do with it. He was a gold gem and is now lost to health and martial arts because people, within their own small circle of influence, thought that 'his missing out on my little bit’ won’t hurt him.

I point out to you:

<sum> Scott’s material and equipment continues to be cutting edge.
<sum> Nikolay’s service is second to none.
<sum> Patents in multiple countries cost a fortune.
<sum> Both of these men have business expenses and then have to provide for their families.
<sum> Both of these men commit far more time to their material and getting it out there than is really healthy for a balanced family life. ( Scott and Nikolay's partners really must be very, very, very understanding and supportive !!!!!!!!!!!!!! )

I put it to you, that soon as you can, you should purchase the material and equipment that has been made available for you.

Should you really copy that tape for your friend ?? Should you really copy that tape for your other friend ?? Should you be encouraging your training partners to buy their own copies of Scott’s material ??? Have you bought the real thing (clubbell) yet ???????

From a personal point of view, it very often costs more in postage to here in Australia to access Rmax material, than for the material itself. However, I no longer even ask Nikolay how much it will cost. I pay whatever it is.

I respect these men and, VERY SELFISHLY, wish them to enjoy a very, very, very good life so that the material will continue to EVOLVE and FLOW.

I highlight selfishly because I want Scott and Nikolay to continue to do 'their thing' so that I can continue to access their material and also enjoy a better and better life.

Great Respect.




:D

[Scott Sonnon]

Thank you for your kind words. They're appreciated (by my family as well. :wink: )

[Coach Jones]

Beautifully put, Mike. I couldn't agree more.
-Brandon Jones, CST

[Cilian McHugh]

Fantastic post, I really couldn't agree more with the copying tapes point specifically.
I have loaned some of Scott's tapes to close friends for a week or two so that they can form their own impressions, but if they like it I expect them to buy their own copies.
The material available via Scott's remote courses is something that with proper training will 99.99% prduce results. Given the phenomenally high satisfaction rating that Scott has developed he could easily place himself outside the reach of the 'average' enthusiast, but he hasn't. Therefore we should continue to support his work (self-perpetuating really).

Also, I agree wholeheartedly with your praise of Nikolay. The man is a consummate professional, and one of the reasons why I and many others have invested thousands of dollars in RMAX materials.