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Post by daustin on Sept 4, 2015 14:41:18 GMT -7
Any commentary on how the 30 deg sloper feels compared to the current ersatz sloper above the pinch on the RPTC? I'm not sure I would qualify the top of the RPTC pinch as a sloper really, feels like more of a juggy flat edge, doesn't seem to engage the whole hand in the same way that a sloper does. Will the Forge 30 deg be similar or will it be more of a 'true' sloper?
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Post by MarkAnderson on Sept 4, 2015 14:52:57 GMT -7
It's more of a true sloper--it's tilted 30 degrees from the plane of the RPTC pinch "sloper". That said, it's kinda funky and we hesitate to advertise it as a hold due to:
1) the pinch fins project (towards user's forearms) from the leading edge allowing some forearm scumming or just annoying interference 2) they are rotated relative to horizontal (the same way/amount the pinches are rotated ~20 degrees?) so you can use some compression to stay on them.
I don't think I've ever actually hung on them, so I don't really know how they feel. Bump this thread tonight and I'll test them out.
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Post by MarkAnderson on Sept 4, 2015 20:36:37 GMT -7
Ok, I hung on the pinch slopers. They're better than I expected, but still kinda funky. The pinch fins don't interfere with your forearms. The palm lays on the outer-most finger surface of the pinch (the surface used for the wide or medium pinch), and the fingers lay on the 30 degree sloper. The palm definitely contributes to staying on the hold, though it's mostly on the fingers. But it feels more like holding onto a big rounded volume than a pure, constant-steepness sloper.
The most notable characteristic of this grip is that you have to flex at the wrist* in addition to flexing at the MCP joint. That's a pretty unusual posture for hangboarding, although it's not unheard of in gym bouldering. If you were going to use this for hangboarding it would be wise to monitor your wrists closely for any unusual tweaks.
(*if you have an RPTC you can feel this joint angle by place your palms flat against the outer RPTC pinch fin)
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Post by Chris W on Sept 8, 2015 10:37:54 GMT -7
Mark/Mike, I'm curious about the half crimp and full crimp on the forge. Did you feel like the grips:
1) Allowed you to keep the grip position more consistent and more objective
2) were simply more ergonomic
3) both
My big gripe with my half crimp grip is that it's hard to keep track of the grip position objectively. Other grips are either on or off. It's harder to judge a finger position in the midst of battle. Hopefully that makes sense...
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Post by MarkAnderson on Sept 8, 2015 14:27:22 GMT -7
Still holding out hope that Mike will post here...good for you
I still think we aren't on the same page regarding grip terminology. What do you mean by "half crimp"? For what I would call a half crimp (or really "Semi-closed crimp" or "open hand edge"), I've never had any issue with determining a failure point on either board. Like you said, I'm either on or off. I'm also not trying to maintain any particular grip position, I'm just trying to squeeze like hell in order to stay on.
What I call a full crimp (or more likely, a "closed crimp") is a different story. This grip often starts out as a closed crimp and then slowly opens over the course of the workout and over the course of the Strength Phase. The Forge's thumb notch does help with this. If you set your thumb properly, and don't permit it to slide, it will make it much more difficult for your fingers to open. If your thumb pops off, you are hosed and you will pop off.
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Post by Chris W on Sept 8, 2015 20:48:59 GMT -7
Still holding out hope that Mike will post here...good for you
Hope springs eternal!
By half crimp, I mean 90+ degrees of flexion around the PIP joint of the IMRP fingers on a 1 pad edge.
By full crimp, I mean the same position as a full crimp with thumb wrap over the index finger, simply minus the thumb wrap
I understand we could have different definitions of the grips. It is also quite probable that we are using very different sized holds. I've been using the SVDER at the largest part for my "half crimp" grip. My main goal with training my "half crimp" was to put my fingers at a different angle to stress the muscles and tendons differently. I noticed that, while bouldering, I almost never crimped, regardless of how tiny the holds got. If I did need to crimp, I was felt very weak with the grip position.
My problem with training this grip is being objective about my finger position. Perhaps the edge that you are using for your "half crimp" is small enough that if your fingers open, your pinkie pops off.
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tango
New Member
Posts: 34
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Post by tango on Oct 22, 2015 12:50:35 GMT -7
Took my first spin on the Forge today in starting a new hangboarding phase. Damn, it is intense. I was quite humbled by the amount of weight I had to take off. If difficulty is any indication, there is a wealth of improvement to look forward to in my strength gains. Kudos, and thanks, to the Andersons.
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Post by tedwelser on Nov 12, 2015 14:57:36 GMT -7
I have both boards set up, but the Forge I put up with a french cleat. I wrote a short post about it, but here is the key photo, and here are my key questions, some which I just thought of now. 1. Why does the pulley set ship with such flimsy eyebolts? 2. I plan to continue with the intermediate routine and I wonder about if I should keep some grips the same for the sake of comparability across seasons or if I should transition completely to the new board. 3. If I mainly climb steeper routes [11 and 12] at the Red and New, what should the ideal weight range be for a given grip? I feel as though the answer is something like during the course of a HB season working from -10 to +30 or so. This means, that for me, if I were working 2 finger pockets I might want to stick with the deeper RPTC, but if I were working IMR I should use the shallower option on the Forge.
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Post by MarkAnderson on Nov 12, 2015 16:09:35 GMT -7
1. I'm sorry to hear about that; I wish I had more influence but oddly it seems the more successful "my" products are, the less my input is desired. Anyway, I'm going to pretend this was a rhetorical question and move to #2.
2. Great question. When I got my Forge I switched 5 of 6 grips immediately...and then immediately regretted it. I ultimately settled on switching 3 of 6 grips the first cycle (with the intent to switch 2 more during my next cycle--the 6th I don't have any plans to change).
My thinking was this: at this point much of my motivation while hangboarding is rooted in the desire to destroy my previous PRs. By switching every grip at once, I had no PRs to destroy, and that was demotivating. By switching a sub-set, I still had some PRs to keep me motivated during the first cycle, and next cycle I will have new (Forge-based) PRs to go after. YMMV
3. I have no idea, but your proposal sounds about right?
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Post by Mike Dalby on Nov 13, 2015 11:16:25 GMT -7
Mark, Could you tell us which grips you're switching?
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Post by MarkAnderson on Nov 13, 2015 18:13:52 GMT -7
The first cycle I switched (from RPTC to Forge) Mono, IM, and Semi-closed crimp. Next cycle I will switch closed crimp and MR. I don't plant to switch my pinch grip any time soon.
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Post by Mike Dalby on Nov 17, 2015 10:59:22 GMT -7
The first cycle I switched (from RPTC to Forge) Mono, IM, and Semi-closed crimp. Next cycle I will switch closed crimp and MR. I don't plant to switch my pinch grip any time soon. Thanks Mark! Are you doing your Semi-Closed Crimp on the VDER or the 'Slopey Crimp'? I've been doing mine on the RPTC SVDER and I'm trying to decide which one I should switch to on the Forge.
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Post by MarkAnderson on Nov 17, 2015 18:12:28 GMT -7
VDER
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Post by Chris W on Nov 22, 2015 12:00:43 GMT -7
Mounted the Forge in preparation for tomorrows HB 1 session crimp grip. You weren't kidding when you said it was a more advanced HB than the RPTC. The texture is feels almost slick in comparison. And the Forge sloper? Not a chance in [heck] I'll be hanging from that any time soon.
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nabis
New Member
Posts: 11
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Post by nabis on Nov 23, 2015 1:30:15 GMT -7
Can somebody tell me, if I can get one of the boards in europe. I was looking on the trango website but they don't seem to have dealers in europe.
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