Kettlebell Showdown: Top Brands Compared

I know I’ve talked exclusively about Dragon Door kettlebells on this blog – and that’s truly because I think they’re the best. I’m not personally biased one way or the other just because I’m an RKC – I just want the best ‘bells. And it’s funny, as kettlebell brand seems to be a kind of sensitive topic for people in the kettlebell community. So I thought I would put together a list of major brands of kettlebells with a few of the good and bad things about each. This list is by no means exhaustive – feel free to leave your opinion on the best kettlebell brand in the comments section. If there are any brands that you like and use that I’ve left out, feel free to point that out as well.

1st Tier Brands: Ader + Dragon Door

It seems that the kettlebell brands most widely used are Dragon Door and Ader – this is just from personal observation and other discussions I’ve seen about this topic.

Dragon Door:

• Generally agreed upon that the ‘bell is more comfortable
• DD ‘bells have a nice, flat bottom that’s great for stuff like renegade rows
• Nicely built and well balanced ‘bell
• For a more detailed review of the Dragon Door ‘bells, click here

Ader:

• Harder to grip, which could be a good or bad thing depending on how you look at it
• Generally well reviewed bell and slightly cheaper price than Dragon Door

2nd Tier Brands: Powermax + Apollo

These ‘bells aren’t as good quality and aren’t as well made – they’re also considerably cheaper. Reviews aren’t as good across the board. But, the lower price makes them attractive to some – and if you’re just planning on doing some occasional swings with them – maybe using them for CrossFit workouts or something – they’re probably just fine in all honesty.

• Powermax
• Apollo

Adjustables

This is a new kettlebell breed. The purists like myself would never consider something like this, but for some, it may be a good option. Positives are that one can have only one kettlebell and adjust the weight as you get stronger, switch exercises, etc.

• Bowflex
• Kettlestack

So there you have a review of the different kettlebell brands! Which one is your favorite?

P.S. Our Sacramento Boot Camp uses many kettlebells in our classes, for kettlebell routines that we use visit sacramentobootcamp.net