Brand-Newbie With Some Questions

[MetalMule]

Hello,

I'm considering buying a speed bag in the near future and have some questions. Apologies if any of them have already been answered. I did some forum searching and didn't immediately find answers.

1. Are there any disadvantages to the 36"-diameter board as compared to the 24" board, other than that it costs more and takes up a little more space? Performance disadvantages? If I have the space and money (and I'm not sure I do), is there any reason not to go with a 36" board? All the 36" boards I've seen in my search so far have been wall-mounted. Do they exist in the freestanding models, too?

2. In the section of the site on the history of the speed bag, Alan Kahn wrote that the bag used to be suspended overhead in an open space, allowing full movement around it. It wasn't until the bag was moved against a wall that baggers replaced the self-defense stance with the "facing-forward" stance. How feasible is it to use a fighting stance with the different modern platform configurations? With the wall-mounted type? With the freestanding? Does the configuration make a difference?

3. Is it possible to do much footwork with the freestanding models? It doesn't look like the supporting poles would allow much at all.

4. I'm 6'6". My wall is eight feet tall. Will that be tall enough for me to mount a platform high enough for my height?

5. I'm the only person who'll be using the bag. Do you think would be worth it to spend the extra money on a height-adjustable model so I won't have to worry about making myself slightly taller (with some kind of platform under me) when I go to smaller bags?

Well, that's all I've got for now. Thanks.

[Chris M]

Hello,

I'm considering buying a speed bag in the near future and have some questions. Apologies if any of them have already been answered. I did some forum searching and didn't immediately find answers.

1. Are there any disadvantages to the 36"-diameter board as compared to the 24" board, other than that it costs more and takes up a little more space? Performance disadvantages? If I have the space and money (and I'm not sure I do), is there any reason not to go with a 36" board? All the 36" boards I've seen in my search so far have been wall-mounted. Do they exist in the freestanding models, too? The 36" board will allow you to use bigger bags if you need to. Another advantage is the bigger board will have more mass, which will reduce vibration. If you can swing it, the wall mounted speed bags vibrate much less and give you the least amount of troubles from what I've seen. I've never owned a freestanding one, but from my observations here, it seems that the wall mounted are preferable.

2. In the section of the site on the history of the speed bag, Alan Kahn wrote that the bag used to be suspended overhead in an open space, allowing full movement around it. It wasn't until the bag was moved against a wall that baggers replaced the self-defense stance with the "facing-forward" stance. How feasible is it to use a fighting stance with the different modern platform configurations? With the wall-mounted type? With the freestanding? Does the configuration make a difference? I'll leave this to be answered by Alan or someone else who might have actually used the speed bag in a fighting stance.

3. Is it possible to do much footwork with the freestanding models? It doesn't look like the supporting poles would allow much at all. You most certainly can do footwork on any of them, maybe I don't understand your question. You're not going to get 360 degree access like you can on other bags.

4. I'm 6'6". My wall is eight feet tall. Will that be tall enough for me to mount a platform high enough for my height? The consensus around here is that the belly part of the bag, or the thickest part of the teardrop should be at your mouth level. Depending on what kind of bag you get, it is certainly possible. Some designs allow the bag to be mounted higher. I went with a Balasz Ibox and it allows the drum to be mounted almost all the way up to the ceiling. http://www.balazsboxing.com/cgi-bin/...ge&page=MS0433

5. I'm the only person who'll be using the bag. Do you think would be worth it to spend the extra money on a height-adjustable model so I won't have to worry about making myself slightly taller (with some kind of platform under me) when I go to smaller bags? If you're only going to use one size bag, go with a non-adjustable. If you want to graduate to smaller faster bags, you'll need to lower it because as you go to smaller bags, you'll need to drop the drum a little to get the bag at optimum height.

Well, that's all I've got for now. Thanks.

Hope that helps.

[Speedbag]

I'm considering buying a speed bag in the near future and have some questions. Apologies if any of them have already been answered. I did some forum searching and didn't immediately find answers.

1. Are there any disadvantages to the 36"-diameter board as compared to the 24" board, other than that it costs more and takes up a little more space? Performance disadvantages? If I have the space and money (and I'm not sure I do), is there any reason not to go with a 36" board? All the 36" boards I've seen in my search so far have been wall-mounted. Do they exist in the freestanding models, too? The only disadvantage to a larger boards that I've seen is not having a wall frame that can support it, or room for it. I have seen freestanding frames with 30 & 36 inch boards, but they require a much heavier base to counteract the weight of the board. The best freestanding frame available is from Balazsboxing.com. (it has a 30 inch board).


2. In the section of the site on the history of the speed bag, Alan Kahn wrote that the bag used to be suspended overhead in an open space, allowing full movement around it. It wasn't until the bag was moved against a wall that baggers replaced the self-defense stance with the "facing-forward" stance. How feasible is it to use a fighting stance with the different modern platform configurations? With the wall-mounted type? With the freestanding? Does the configuration make a difference?
You can still do footwork on a wall unit or standing frame, but you will have to modify the distance you can move in any direction. You can always adopt whatever fighting stance you want when hitting the speed bag, just realize that if have one foot or arm back further than the other it will effect the timing of your combinations, since one fist will travel further than the other and probably hit with a bit more power, effecting bag speed.

Footwork tips

3. Is it possible to do much footwork with the freestanding models? It doesn't look like the supporting poles would allow much at all. You have modify the distance you can move. On some stands it might not be worth the effort.


4. I'm 6'6". My wall is eight feet tall. Will that be tall enough for me to mount a platform high enough for my height? That depends on the size of the platform. If it's a large heavy frame, probably not. This board, with little top hardware, would probably work fine.

5. I'm the only person who'll be using the bag. Do you think would be worth it to spend the extra money on a height-adjustable model so I won't have to worry about making myself slightly taller (with some kind of platform under me) when I go to smaller bags? I would say Yes, only because the adjustable models are heavier duty and may hold up better to the punching power you will deliver. At 6'6" you're powering a LOT of punch, and I wouldn't want to be the bag receiving those punches! The cheaper, lighter material units are gonna have a tough time handing your full force punching..

Hope it helps. Good luck and welcome to the forum.