Speed Bag Roundup

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  • Teetu
    Member
    • Aug 2006
    • 33

    Speed Bag Roundup

    I was thinking that it would be nice if there was a review of all the speed bag brands out there. Of course this would be difficult for two reasons, the first being that speed bags reviews are highly subjective and the second is that it's an expensive task to acquire all the bags out there.

    So I'm going to list whatever brands I can conjure up (mostly from Tim's list of speed bag vendors) and hopefully people can comment on what they've hit and if there are any other brands worth mentioning. Since I'm a beginner I'm in no position to come up with some review criteria- but I'm thinking build quality/durability, shape, feel (soft/hard), bladder, rebound, loop, and aesthetics might be a starting point.

    Also, I figure that Alan probably had been exposed to just about every brand out there and naturally he would be the best person for the task- but I'm not trying to volunteer anyone. Maybe since Tim and Alan both have sites they might be able to get some review samples!

    Over the course of the next year, I plan on trying out at least half of these brands.

    Brands (updated!):
    Everlast
    Title
    Ringside
    TKO
    Top Contender
    Grant
    Rival
    Cleto Reyes
    Pro Mex
    Century
    Boes
    Last edited by Teetu; 08-30-2006, 09:12 PM.
  • Speedbag
    Author of the Speed Bag Bible, founder of speedbagcentral.com

    • Feb 2006
    • 7123

    #2
    speed bag roundup

    I have hit them all except Rival.

    Today, My personal collection is about 30 or so bags of the following brands:

    Title
    TKO
    Grant
    Ringside
    Everlast
    Top Contender

    I do not own:
    Rival
    Cleto Reyes
    Pro Mex
    Century

    I can't really say that I remember anything specific about any particular bags. I do remember Cleto Reyes was "heavy" to me.

    The problem is, Some of the brands have changed styles, shapes and materials. Today's Ringside bag is not the same as they made several years ago. Most Everlast I have used were great bags, but lately there seems to be a lot of problems with lopsided products. Title bags are currently very nice, but are "light" compared to other brands. Whether you like that or not is personal preference. I have had no quality problems with Title or Ringside Bags. All have held up well, and I have about 6 or 7 of each.

    I am biased slightly to several brands, and tend to use them exclusively. I can't see paying the price for some brands, when equally good versions are available for much less.

    I'd love to hit the Rival Bags, just because their so colorful. But I can't see paying for one for that reason.
    Last edited by Speedbag; 08-27-2006, 08:44 PM.
    Speed Bag

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    The Art of the Bag

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    • longshot454
      Speed Bag Trainee
      • Aug 2006
      • 7

      #3
      I have everlast bags for my workouts, i do have a bit of a lopsidedness to the bag, but i don't think it makes that much of a difference(maby it does and i just don't know). one bag that you didn't mention are boes, i have only seen them in one store but they are a great little bag. really well built.

      Comment

      • Chris M
        Speed Bag Guru
        • Mar 2006
        • 750

        #4
        Originally posted by longshot454
        I have everlast bags for my workouts, i do have a bit of a lopsidedness to the bag, but i don't think it makes that much of a difference(maby it does and i just don't know). one bag that you didn't mention are boes, i have only seen them in one store but they are a great little bag. really well built.
        After reading your opinion on the Boes bag, I decided to check them out and saw that they have a 14" bag! Wow I love bigger bags so I ordered one, I'll post a review when I get it. I really enjoy slamming my 10x12 Title, so I can only imagine what this thing is going to be like. I enjoy the weight of the bigger bags too!

        Comment

        • Teetu
          Member
          • Aug 2006
          • 33

          #5
          Yeah, the rival bags definately look cool. I was a little surprised to see their biggest bag is a 9X6. I'll probably get one in a few months or so, but I guess it mostly depends if I'm still very committed to speed bagging.

          I ordered a everlast professional speed bag, which seems to be the name for all their bags, and hopefully it will be here tomorrow. I think it's their newest model http://store.everlastboxing.com/ever...peed-bags.html

          Comment

          • Tim
            Administrator and Founder of SpeedBagForum.com


            • Jan 2006
            • 3461

            #6
            Originally posted by Teetu
            I ordered a everlast professional speed bag, which seems to be the name for all their bags, and hopefully it will be here tomorrow. I think it's their newest model http://store.everlastboxing.com/ever...peed-bags.html
            Cool, let us know how it works out... I want one of those in 6x4 size.

            Comment

            • Teetu
              Member
              • Aug 2006
              • 33

              #7
              Take my words with a grain of salt- because I'm a just beginner. But perhaps since I am a beginner I haven’t developed a bias and can offer a more subjective review. I'm just hoping my mini-reviews might assist other beginners in the future, since everyone else here is far more experienced than me.

              So I’ve acquired 3 bags so far, which are the Everlast 4213 (11X8), the Everlast professional speed bag (10X7), and the Title 10X7. My picture below confirms what experienced people have already stated; and that is sizes vary not only from one manufacturer to the next but also from model to model within the same manufacturer. As you can see my 11X8 bag doesn't appear any taller than the 10X7 bags, but it is clearly fatter than the other two. Also, you can see that the two 10X7 bags are also not identical in their size either, so I'll obviously keep these bags as a size reference for each manufacturer. For example, I think that the title 10X7 bag would fall between an everlast 9X6 and 10X7 as far as size goes. With that said, I think the smallest Everlast bag I will buy will be a 9X6 and the smallest title bag for me would be a 10X7.

              I'll start with the Everlast 4213 bag since it's the first I got off eBay for $10. It has very nice, smooth leather that is very soft on the hands (although the welting will rip up your hands). The build construction is pretty heavy duty and looks like it could last a very long time in a gym. Unfortunately the welts are of the plastic variety and need some serious breaking in. It is because of this that I'm not too crazy about the bag, simply because it will rebound erratically and is taking a very long time to break in (although it has improved). The rebound is pretty good, and I really like the fat shape of it.

              The next bag I got was the title 10X7 bag which I really started my training on. The build of the bag is not as heavy duty as the Everlasts I have seen, but it's still constructed very well and has a nice shape. I can tell why so many people here like the title bags, because they are a sort of middle ground bag that doesn't try to be too bulky and heavy duty- but at the same time doesn't try to be a minimalist bag either. I really like how you can comfortably hit it without hand protection and lay right into it- it's just that soft. The rebound is definitely different than the Everlast bags, and that is purely a matter of preference. Overall I would characterize the bag as being a lighter bag than the everlast variety. It takes less power to get it going and the rebounds feel lighter as well. The welts on the title bag are perfect in that they require no breaking in and don't tear up your hands. The only thing I wasn't crazy about was the loop length- mine wasn't as long as I've seen some people's here but definitely longer than the Everlast’s (but this can be easily remedied).

              My newest bag is the everlast professional 10X7 bag, not to be confused with their older model "pro bags". The leather on the newer bags are definitely different- I'd say it falls somewhere between the leather on the old everlast bags and the new Title bags. The only way I can describe it is that it's smoother and seems less porous, and therefore appears to be softer but not quite as heavy duty as the old leather bags. These bags are advertised as having new rubber bladders, and I must say I would characterize the bag's rebound as being more "rubbery"/bouncy than the previous two bags. The bag itself seems a little bulkier than the title equivalent, and so naturally the bag is heavier than the title bag. I prefer this bag over the title because you can hit it a bit harder and not have the bag go too fast. For a beginner like me it is sometimes difficult to hit the title bag just light enough that I can practice new combos, but with the everlast professional bag I can use a more comfortable level of power and not have the bag run away on me. As far as rebound goes it's really a tossup for me as far as the title vs everlast goes, I think it would simply depend on whether or not I'm in the finesse or power hitting mood. The welts on the Everlast Professional are much better than on the 4213, and don't affect the rebounds during the break in period (although the welts aren't as soft as the title's).

              One thing I wanted to mention was bag lopsidedness. I originally thought 2 of my bags were lopsided, but what I failed to notice is that I wasn't orienting the bag properly to look for symmetry. For example, the newer everlast bag does not have it's logo on one of the symmetrical axis of the bag; it's actually on the left half of the bag. You need to look underneath the bag to see how the "panels" of the bag are stitched together to get an idea of where the symmetrical axis should be.
              Attached Files
              Last edited by Teetu; 09-01-2006, 05:04 PM.

              Comment

              • Chris M
                Speed Bag Guru
                • Mar 2006
                • 750

                #8
                Thanks for your review Teetu. I'm surprised at how close in height those three bags are. I really need to take some pictures of my setups and my bags and submit my reivews and explain my favorites and why.

                Chris

                Comment

                • Tim
                  Administrator and Founder of SpeedBagForum.com


                  • Jan 2006
                  • 3461

                  #9
                  Originally posted by Teetu View Post
                  Take my words with a grain of salt- because I'm a just beginner. But perhaps since I am a beginner I haven’t developed a bias and can offer a more subjective review. I'm just hoping my mini-reviews might assist other beginners in the future, since everyone else here is far more experienced than me.
                  Thanks for taking the time to post that, good stuff. I think you summed up why I like my Title bag - light and easy on the hands, that's exactly what I like about it. I want to try one of those everlast bags as well.

                  Comment

                  • Teetu
                    Member
                    • Aug 2006
                    • 33

                    #10
                    I originally stated that I preferred the everlast professional bag slightly over the Title bag, but now I'm an advocate of having different brands. I felt that when I initially went from the title to the everlast, that I had more control over the everlast because it was a bit heavier and had a more rubbery rebound that was more forgiving. Now that I went back to the title I noticed that my control has improved on it, and that it felt easier to control my hands with the lighter impact.

                    So I guess what I'm trying to say is that I learn different things on each bag and they are sort of working in tandem in helping me improve!

                    I'm going to order a everlast professional 9X6 soon (which should be just a little smaller than my title 10X7) just to mix it up a little more. I also need to post a video soon so you guys can give me feedback, because I would really like to correct any mistakes before I progress anymore.

                    Comment

                    • Rider
                      Speed Bag Trainee
                      • Sep 2006
                      • 1

                      #11
                      Different bags

                      I've owned bags by Everlast, Tuf-Wear, and Title over the years, starting with huge ones when I was learning, then going on down to 9x6 and 5x8 today. I had problems with balance with the Tuf-Wear, which changing bladders wouldn't solve, but I suppose everyone gets a turkey now and then. I always had good luck with Everlast, though they changed the shape of their 9x6 - the most recent one was fatter than an earlier one, so I returned it and got a 5x8 Title. I now do all my work with a 9x6 and 5x8 Title, and think these are tops!

                      I use a (metal) ball swivel with the 9x6 and a chain link swivel with the 5x8, just switching them off and tightening with a pipe wrench. The chain link is faster and I notice no difference in accuracy, though when I first started using it, I think the ball swivel seemed a hair more predictable.

                      I built my own platform, suspended from basement rafters with 2x4s with inch and a half boards nailed to them, but am now going to put on an extra inch and a half layer of boards to lower the hitting surface more from my beginning days hitting a pumpkin.

                      Comment

                      • longshot454
                        Speed Bag Trainee
                        • Aug 2006
                        • 7

                        #12
                        ok, i just bought the smallest speedbag i have seen. It's by boes and it is a number 7, i figure that it is probably 5X3, man does it ever move. deffinitly try one if you get a chance. they are really lite, wondering if any one has ever experimented with wieghting the bag? i guess i will give it a try, i'll let you know how it goes.

                        Comment

                        • HRC51ED
                          Speed Bag Trainee
                          • Sep 2006
                          • 17

                          #13
                          Top Contender Speed Bag

                          Got My New Top Contender Speed Bag And Fell In Love With It Right From The Start. I'v E Used All Types Of Speed Bags From Cleto-reyes To Everlast And The Top Contender Scores Big! Though The Company Claims To Produce Boxing Equipment Aat Low Or Competitive Prices(ex:realistic By Radio Shack) Don't Get Fooled And Think This Is A Cheap Imitator Due To It's 19.99 Price. Rebound Was Fast, Leather Soft, And Leather Seems To Be Of Good Quality The Only Question Now Is It's Durability And Longevity. If It Sustains A Good Life, Then This Will Be The Only Bag I Will Use!

                          Comment

                          • Tim
                            Administrator and Founder of SpeedBagForum.com


                            • Jan 2006
                            • 3461

                            #14
                            Originally posted by HRC51ED View Post
                            Don't Get Fooled And Think This Is A Cheap Imitator Due To It's 19.99 Price.
                            I'll agree to that. The best speed bags aren't the highest priced ones.

                            Comment

                            • the need for speed
                              Speed Bag Trainee
                              • Sep 2006
                              • 6

                              #15
                              Contender is a great bag for the price. But really anything that has Ringside on it I highly recommend. Currently I have a 9x6 Contender which is a great bag. Balanced, takes a beating, good leather. My previous bag was a 8x5(?) ringside which was phenomenal. Had it for years, then it developed a goiter. I used everlast in the past and would just blow throw them. Once I switched to Ringside, I haven't gone back. I was lucky to pick up a Grant 6x4 on clearance from Title boxing. The model (called Japanese style) is discontinued. By far the best construction of any bag I had ever had. Seams are perfect, great grade of leather. Perfectly balanced with pin point accuracy. It is a 'light' bag, so I find myself swinging really hard and heavy to make her dance. But 2 minutes into a 3 minute round and my shoulders are screaming, I can see the manufacturers point.

                              Comment

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