Wolverson competition kettlebell

DISCLAIMER! I am very excited about the new Wolverson competition bell. Past experience, however, has thought me that it can take at least some months to get to know a new bell. Hence, my impressions are not yet final.

As mentioned previously (LINK), the English company Wolverson has released a new competition kettlebell. As I collect - or, hoard - kettlebells I had to get a pair of them.

They were not too expensive compared to other bells and shipping within EC was like shipping within Sweden.

-Handle is 35mm in diameter - IUKL, IGSF, and Russian standard.
-Handle is also curbed which is nice ergonomically. So, far Leoko has been the only competition bell with curbed handle for sale in the West.
- A pecularity that I have only seen on bells in Latvia and on Internet pictures, is that the bottom is left open. You see that it is solid casting - thick walls - and center of mass in the upper part of the bell. That is like the Leoko-bell, but the latter has a bolt closing the bottom. A nice thing is that the open bottom guarantees no rattling. The Wolversons also make a low singing sound when they are hit together... like bells.
- As you see in the picture below, the opening under the handle is smaller than on some other brands (note e.g. the Compact, far left). I don't get as good a resting position in rack with the Wolversson as with some other brands. I have done a couple of 10minutes Long Cycle sets with the Wolversons, rack rest was not as comfortable as with the 28kg Compacts (that racks extremely well). Still, they are not hard to rack and it is not a big issue in LC for me, maybe in long sets of jerk only? This is the only thing I think a prospective buyer should consider, or try out, if possible.
      On the other hand, the Wolverssons clean easier (higher centre of gravity), similarly they also lock out easier than brands with weight centered in the bottom (the bells don't want to go out to the sides). I have not done any snatches to talk of with the W's.
- In sum, I like the Wolversons a lot.



 

The Wolverson bell has tapered handles that gets wider towards their base (grip itself is not thicker). Some Eastern bells are like that - I don't know yet if that implies any differences when it comes to lifting. I assume it means that more weight centered in upper half of the bell. So far, it also appears to be more gentle to the wrist (the handle is wider where it rests on the wrist).

Leoko, Eleiko, and now Wolverson, are the only 'western' bells I know of without Internet adresses on them.

These Wolverson bells have a crossbar inside them. I dont know why. Can it be in order to dampen sound? It is not like they would break without the crossbar.

Here is a pic of two Russian Titan bells. The Russian GS federation stipulates that that brand should be used at major championship (nationals etc).

Old Russian bell with open bottom.