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Small crimps to supplement hangboard.

Original Post
Dylan Colon · · Eugene, OR · Joined Jun 2009 · Points: 491

Hello all.

I have a Metolius Simulator 3D hangboard at home, and I have been on a plateau long enough that I'm motivated to get serious with some workouts on it. There is one slight problem though, which has to deal with the fact that most of my goal routes are at Smith Rock, land of the tiny razor-edge on just barely overhanging rock.

The smallest edge on the Metolius board is pretty big compared to the crux holds on the routes that interest me most right now (Taco Chips is an example). I've been thinking about buying some small crimp holds (like Teknic Meatlets, teknikhandholds.com/product…. The problem is that these holds come in sets where no two holds are exactly alike, and I want two perfectly identical holds to try hanging on (with weight removed). I'm also interested in training pain tolerance (safely) because discomfort, rather than pump, is a common reason for me to let go while on the rock.

Any recommendation for getting some small edges to train on?

Go Back to Super Topo · · Lex · Joined Dec 2010 · Points: 285

Add weight

Many studies show that more stress on larger holds is more beneficial than less stress on smaller holds. The Anderson brothers have written a few articles on this, though I cannot find them off hand

kennyp · · Vegas · Joined Apr 2010 · Points: 75

Popsicle sticks. Use them as shims to make the holds on your board smaller. If you wanna get really fancy you can come up with a Velcro system to hold them in place.

JCM · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 115
mozeman wrote:Add weight Many studies show that more stress on larger holds is more beneficial than less stress on smaller holds. The Anderson brothers have written a few articles on this, though I cannot find them off hand
Actually, it seems to me like the Andersons are pretty highly in favor of using small holds with weight removed, if your goal routes warrant it. Their big emphasis is specificity; if you climb (or, rather, want to climb) on tiny holds, you should train on tiny holds. This often entails removing weight with a pulley system. More here rockclimberstrainingmanual.….

Other sources, including Eva Lopez, favor the point you make, that greater gains are made by using bigger holds with more weight. Mike Doyle follows this approach too; he trained for the tiny crimps on Neccesary Evil by hanging astonishing (150+ lbs) amounts of added weight on non-tiny holds. There is probably some truth to both arguments, and it may be wise to address both of them. For my "bread and butter" grips, mainly the 1/2 crimp, I like to do both approaches. I'll train a larger (2 cm) edge with weight added to blast the forearms with a fair bit of weight, and also train a smaller (<1 cm) edge with weight removed to get used to the leverage, angles, and pain of a smaller hold.

In short, it is worth it to add in some smaller holds. In addition to those mentioned above, some other options for doing this are:

- Make your own edges out of wood. Get some scraps of decent-quality wood of the correct thickness, and file it down to bevel the edge. This is a very, very good option. It is cheap, customizable, and wood is a nice material to train on.

- Invest in a new hangboard. Metolius hangboards kind of suck. There aren't any small edges, and the texture is this strange unpleasant combination that can be painful and slick at the same time. For really small edges, the best options available are the Rock Prodigy Board, the Bam Board (fully adjustable means you can choose exactly the edge size you want), the Moon Board, and the Eva Lopez boards. I like the Bam Board the most out of these, but that largely is due to a preference for the wood texture. Most of these are pretty spendy, so that is a consideration.
Rui Ferreira · · Boulder, CO · Joined Jul 2003 · Points: 903

Core Climbing in the UK makes symmetrical mirror image crimp holds

coreclimbing.co.uk/shop/cli…

They are all half pad in depth. I have them on my system board and not on the hangboard, but they could easily be adapted to a back board for finger strength training routines.

slim · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2004 · Points: 1,103
JCM wrote: - Make your own edges out of wood. Get some scraps of decent-quality wood of the correct thickness, and file it down to bevel the edge. This is a very, very good option. It is cheap, customizable, and wood is a nice material to train on.
I think this is the easiest way to get a good crimp setup. I have some approx 3/8" molding that i use for my medium crimps and it works really well, you can round the edges a bit so it isn't too uncomfortable.
jdberndt · · Seattle, WA · Joined Sep 2010 · Points: 200

Um, just thinking out loud:

You could buy two sets.

Or, call the company to ask if you can get two of the same hold.

Or, look at system holds, which often come in pairs, e.g. atomikclimbingholds.com/bol….

frankstoneline · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2009 · Points: 30
jdberndt wrote:Um, just thinking out loud: You could buy two sets. Or, call the company to ask if you can get two of the same hold. Or, look at system holds, which often come in pairs, e.g. atomikclimbingholds.com/bol….
The holds he's talking about arent symmetrical, so even with two sets the left hand and right hand grips would be different.

Wood strips or systems grips are probably your best bet!

(edited to add: atomikclimbingholds.com/bol…
those might do you well)
jdberndt · · Seattle, WA · Joined Sep 2010 · Points: 200

Oh. I get it now. Ignore me and carry on.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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