Hangboard for repeaters:Trango vs Beastie vs ?

Beastmaker vs the new Trango board for repeaters? Any opinions from people who have used one or the other or both?

I just purchased the Trango Rock Prodigy Center hangboard and love it. I like the fact that it's two pieces and gets rid of the entire middle of the board where I can't even use those holds to begin with because it just feels unnatural for my arms to hang so close together. It's also nice because I can adjust the distance between the two boards to fit my body size. The pinches are freak'n awesome (see below for long fingers) and comparing this board to the last board I had, the Metolius Simulator, the pockets are so much better. With the new Trango board when I use the two finger pockets my fingers do not touch the side of the slots at all.

I do have two hang-ups with the Trango board:
1) The sloper. I personally find the sloper way too easy so that in order to get the most out of it I have to add quite a bit of weight. I think the texture on it is a too much and I don't find it aggressive enough. I really liked the flat sloper that was on the Metolius Simulator board which closely matches the sloper on the Beastmaker board.

2) The pinch: The pinches have (3) different positions. For my long, gangly fingers when I use the widest pinch I'm finding it difficult to not cheat the hold, because my super long middle finger tends to lay across the top of the pinch where it is horizontal and flat and essentially I end of cheating the hang for that particular position. I've tried to adjust my hand, and hang lower down on the pinch, but it's not helping much. I wish the pinches were a little longer to prevent this from happening.

All in all I really love the Trango board and the problems that I'm having may not affect everyone so for some it just may be the perfect board and for others you may want a more aggressive sloper to work out on, or just add a ton of weight to accomodate.

first comment so you don't have to read my epic novel.... check out the RPTC video that shows how to set it up, the features, etc.

as i am somewhat biased, i will try to be as straight up as possible. most people who know me, know that i will give them a pretty frank opinion regardless of the scenario. (my boss loves this about me, but he also doesn't let me talk at meetings :)

i have used the beastmakers only a few times, so i am not ultra dialed into it, but here are my first impressions.

the holds on the beastmaker are all flat/level. i found this to be ok for the full crimp position and 3 finger open position, but kind of weird for 2 finger pockets. when i would initiate my hang, it felt like i was always trying to sort my fingers out and get them into a comfortable position. also, my middle finger is really long, so on the 2 finger pockets (particularly the index/middle combo) i would have to fidget a bit to get them set.

the interior holds on the beastmaker are close together (as they are on basically every hangboard out there). usually the most difficult grips are closest together. when hanging these grips, i have always had problems with my thumbs fighting with each other while they dangle. also, i find this tight positioning to be kind of tough on my elbows and shoulders, and really tough on my wrists.

a lot of the folks really like the wood, but i felt it was a bit slippery for me - although that being said i have total butterfingers. (kind of a side note, but the quality of the wood of the beastmaker boards is a LOT better than that of the metolius wood grips boards. i have seen 6 to 10 wood grips boards, and all of them had significant defects in the wood that would absolutely destroy your skin if you did a serious HB workout. all of the beastmaker boards that i have seen, maybe 15 to 20, had flawless wood.)

i have not used the RPTC yet, but i know a fair amount about it. i think probably the most important thing about the board is that it was designed my mark and mike anderson. they are probably the foremost experts in the world on using a hangboard. to be honest with you, i can't really think of anybody who is even in the same league in terms of HB knowledge. this of itself does not a good hangboard make!

luckily, they are also ultra-analytical and ultra detail oriented. the amount of time, effort, worry, and consideration for the first time user through the guy who can hang 1 arm monos is pretty crazy. when i sat down and looked this thing over, everything that i have disliked about the numerous hangboards i have owned has been addressed. to be honest with you, when i look at it i am still pretty blown away. i haven't fondled the holds yet, but i feel like i already know what they will feel like. man, i can't wait until i throw the coal to it on those monos, slayer playing so loud people can hear it in the next time zone. yeah baby!!!

anyway, enough jabbering....

the RPTC configuration is set up so that you can adjust the distance between the left and right hand. you can also rotate the boards to help line them up in a comfortable position. also, the holds are set up with angles and curveature to help be more friendly on wrists, elbows, and shoulders. for me, the pockets are really key - being able to adjust the positions of the pockets is going to help me train these in the most comfortable position possible. with all of my old hangboards, i felt like i would hit a ceiling with the pockets, but that it wasn't really 100% a strength issue. usually it was sort of a discomfort feeling.

one of the interesting things about the RPTC board is the variable depth primary edges near the top. for most serious hangboarders, this is a big no-no. it makes it really hard to perfectly repeat the hold each time you grab it, and you will always have the urge to cheat your way over to the fattest part of the hold.

at first, i was totally shocked that they were setting it up this way. the key thing is that there are a couple little bumps at the back of the edges so that your fingers can feel them and you know that you are grabbing the same part of the hold every rep. this was a pretty clever idea.

the variable edge with these bumps allows a beginning hangboarder to start with the biggest edge, and over time as they get stronger they can make gradual transitions to smaller edges. the way these edges are laid out, there are a lot of options. with most hangboards you have 2 or 3 edges to choose from, and sometimes the jump from one edge to another is pretty significant. the RPTC setup lets you bite off a little chunk at a time.

then there is the crimp. i know what this crimp will feel like as it is very similar to the one i built and have used the last couple years. you will probably want to put your big boy panties on for this one. definitely ease into this one by taking a ton of weight off and slowly building up.

jarthur's comments about the pinches are duly noted and i can relate to them, as i have very long fingers. i think what he is saying is that his middle finger extends beyond the flat pinching surface, and the last pad of his finger is able to grab the rounded part at the end of the pinch. if you are weak as i am on pinches this will probably be a godsend :) but, if you have long fingers it might take a conscious effort to avoid grabbing the back.

i'm not a huge sloper guy, so i couldn't give a valid assessment.

hope some of this helps :)

Thanks for all the great feedback on the RPTC!

Jarthur, on the sloper, I recommend you take some sandpaper to the texture. You should be able to get it to your liking with a few minutes of sanding. Since texture is always going to be a matter of personal preference, my approach was to err on the side of too much, figuring people who wanted less could fine-tune it with a little simple sanding. Perhaps not ideal, but I couldn't see how else to satisfying users of differing tastes.

On the pinch, if you're not already doing so, I suggest only using the first two pads of your fingers on the upper pinch surface. I know there will be temptation to cheat on this grip, but I couldn't figure out a way to prevent that without using excessive plastic or creating a shape that would get stuck in the mold. Perhaps you could cover the flat survace with vaseline to discourage cheating :)

arnm wrote:If only it came with a guarantee to improve four letter grades in six months.

i think you gotta make a deal with the devil for that one!

I'm looking to sell a Beastmaker 2000 which I won in a comp. I've only used it for 3 weeks, so it pretty much looks and feels brand new.

I really like the board and find the wood texture to be extremely comfortable and skin friendly, but I climb primarily in Southern California all year long, so training on pockets doesn't cater to my needs that well.

If anyone is interested, I'm in the Riverside County area and would be willing to sell it for $80.

One more thing, if you want to learn more about the features of the RPTC, what I think about it, and videos of the RPTC in use, you can find that info here

Monomaniac wrote:Thanks for all the great feedback on the RPTC! Jarthur, on the sloper, I recommend you take some sandpaper to the texture. You should be able to get it to your liking with a few minutes of sanding. Since texture is always going to be a matter of personal preference, my approach was to err on the side of too much, figuring people who wanted less could fine-tune it with a little simple sanding. Perhaps not ideal, but I couldn't see how else to satisfying users of differing tastes. On the pinch, if you're not already doing so, I suggest only using the first two pads of your fingers on the upper pinch surface. I know there will be temptation to cheat on this grip, but I couldn't figure out a way to prevent that without using excessive plastic or creating a shape that would get stuck in the mold. Perhaps you could cover the flat survace with vaseline to discourage cheating :)

Thanks for the response! I figured I would at first just keep adding weight for the first couple of seasons with the sloper and see if over time the texture would naturally smooth out a bit. If that doesn't help then your suggestion to sand down the hold sounds like the solution.

I found out real fast with the first two sessions how bad I suck at pinches. Using the wide pinch I had to take 70/67.5/65# off the first (3) sets and the next session I was at 67.5/65/62.5#. Tonight will be another 2.5# reduction in all 3 sets. So I'm getting better albeit rather slowly. During the 2nd session I was more conscious about keeping my fingers lower on the grips to avoid cheating on the hold.

One problem I had during the crimps was during a set of 7-sec on, 3-sec rest when I got close to the end of the set I would quickly shake my arms, or take a dab of chalk. For me the position index bumps were not the easiest to use in the middle of a workout (easy to use for the 1st rep of each set since you have more time to adjust your hands perfectly). So by placing a tick of chalk as to where my index should go if I needed a quick shake during a set I was able to visually see where my hand needed to go to complete the sets.

The main thing to take away from my comments is that every thing can be solved fairly easily. People with super long middle fingers may find it easy to cheat the wide and middle pinches, but being consistent about your fingers being positioned lower on the pinch will solve that problem. And as Monomaniac suggested if the sloper has too much friction sanding it down should do the trick. Personally I feel like this board has everything one would want without having to purchase additional holds.

one thing that might be less messy than vaseline (on the back of the pinch) would be to sand it down until it is ultra smooth. i will probably do this. do the pinches line your arms up with your shoulders pretty well?

like the idea about adding the chalk tick marks also. that can make it easier to find really quickly.

Monomaniac wrote:Perhaps you could cover the flat survace with vaseline to discourage cheating :)

Or in jarthur's case, some Antihydral might be another possible deterrent!

Jarthur,

How does the rung size compare to the Metolius Simulator? I have the old style simulator and only the bottom row is useful to me. I'm not wild about the small radius on the edges either, the texture is so rough it wrecks my skin. It looks like the texture on the radii is smoother on the RPTC, does it feel better on your skin?

Tipton wrote:Jarthur, How does the rung size compare to the Metolius Simulator? I have the old style simulator and only the bottom row is useful to me. I'm not wild about the small radius on the edges either, the texture is so rough it wrecks my skin. It looks like the texture on the radii is smoother on the RPTC, does it feel better on your skin?

Much better in my opinion. I couldn't even use the larger two finger pockets on my Metolius Simulator anymore because of the pain it was causing from the abrasive nature of the sides of the pockets. Even on the larger pockets of the Trango Rock Prodigy Center (TRPC) there is absolutely no discomfort to any of my digits when using them. I've always had pretty narrow fingers, but now that I'm 38 I think my knuckles are starting to swell up after years of crimping which made the Metolius two finger pockets miserable lately.

The 3-finger slot has these individual slots for each finger which is super comfortable. The other 3 pockets are flat on the bottom, but for all 3 two-finger combinations (Index-Middle, Middle-Ring, Ring-Pinkie) the only contact area when using the pockets is just the bottom pad of my fingers. So for me this board has completely eliminated the side friction that was happening with the Metolius Simulator. The 3-finger pocket is also is designed to be used as a mono on the outer part of this hold. Just below that is a slightly harder 2-finger pocket with the same mono feature. So far the texture on the pockets and crimps is damn near perfect. It's not too rough, and not too smooth. I set my hangboard up nearly identical to Monomaniacs with the pulley system and fan blowing directly only my hands so the only time I need to take a quick dab of chalk is on the last rep of each set, but only for certain grips.