TITAN 20-inch Plate loadable Atlas Stone vs Squat Max HD

This is a comparison between the TITAN plate loadable Atlas stone and Squat Max HD including pros, cons, and alternatives. The Original was published in Which Strongman equipment to get from TITAN. Follow the links for details

Overview and review Squat Max MD

The Squat Max MD comes in at $950 and is a great addition to your existing rack to widen the possible exercises you can do. This article was originally published in "which accessory equipment to get for your rogue rack".

What else to consider from Rogue

Overview of the Squat Max MD

The squat max MD is a Hip belt squat setup which can be attached to your rack. The main benefits of hip belt squats are rehab and simulation of certain exercises. If you have athletes with shoulder injuries which keep them from barbell squatting this is an alternative. It also helps with decompressing the lower back when athletes are challenged with lower back problems.

The specs of the squat max MD are:

Made in the USA
Black
160LB
Length 44.75”
Width 29”
Platform height 18” - 24”
Rogue multi belt
Narrow stance plate

Compared to other pulley systems this is free weight and therefore has a more direct transition of the weight to the athlete.

Pros of the Squat Max MD

The Squat Max MD has a lower cost than most other comparable machines with pulleys or a platform. It is also a safer setup than Boxes combined with a dip belt. I personally also see a good application for Strongman athletes as the Squat max closer simulates Strongman events than a pulley solution. The narrow stance plate is a nice addition to vary your training.

Cons of the Squat Max MD

An elevated platform means trip hazards and higher injury risk. You have to get on and off the platform and in case of a malfunction you fall off the platform. Compared to the Rhino Belt machine I can also imagine that the Squat max MD is more prone to break if you bang it around too much.

Alternatives to the Squat Max MD

Alternatives to the squat Max MD are

Rhino belt squat
Boxes and a hip belt

In my opinion, the Rhino belt squat is currently the best option in the market for any kind of hip belt work. It is secure, allows for many setups and is easy to get in and out off. The only downside is that the weight will not be central below the lifter which for some training scenarios might be preferred. Still, I think that is rather the exception than the rule. The downside of the Rhino is the price tag. If you are mucky and already own an RM6 rack you can go for the Drop-In option which is roughly $500 more than the Squat max. If you need to get the standalone version we are taking twice the price of the Squat max.

If you already have boxes, a hip belt, and plates you can build your own hip belt squat. Stack the boxes to the desired height. Attach the plates to yourself with a hip belt. Work away. While most gyms have the necessary equipment this setup has two major disadvantages. It is almost impossible to do this reasonable by yourself so you need a coach to help you in and out of the setup. The setup is as makeshift as they come. The good news is that you have to invest exactly zero additional dollars if you already have the equipment. The bad news is that you are creating a health and safety hazard that probably won’t hold in a court case, but check with your insurance and lawyers.

Summary for the Squat Max MD

The squat max MD is a low budget option for a safe hip belt squat. Especially when you already have a Rogue rack.

Overview and review of the TITAN 20-inch Plate loadable Atlas Stone

This is an overview of the TITAN 20-inch plate loadable Atlas stone including pros, cons, and alternatives. The Original was published in Which Strongman equipment to get from TITAN. Follow the links for details.

TITAN 20-Inch Plate loadable Atlas stone $650

Overview of the TITAN 20-inch Plate loadable Atlas stone

The TITAN 20-inch Atlas stone is a 175-lb shallow steel sphere with an insert so that you can add plates to it to make the weight scale. This makes it an adjustable training tool for beginners and professionals alike, as the maximum load ranges to 500 pounds depending on what type of plates you use. This is a great tool for someone who is serious about their strongman training. The full specifications of this Atlas stone are:

- The staple of the strongman competition, train with an Atlas Stone

- 20-inch diameter is within competition range (anywhere from 8 to 24-inches)

- Add weight plates to ramp up intensity while you practice your form

- Durable steel construction will last for years with proper use

- Overall Diameter: 20-in.

- Material: Steel

- Weight Capacity: 400 lb.

- Product Weight: 175 lb.

Pros of the TITAN 20-inch plate loadable Atlas stone

Ready Made
Smooth surface
Stable hull
Loadable

This TITAN 20-inch Atlas stone has the big advantage that it already comes as a perfect sphere. This saves you the hassle of making one yourself and the possibility of ending up with an egg rather than with a sphere depending on your craftsmanship. This makes it a time saving purchase, especially when you are not strong in the DIY department. Big Atlas stones can take up to a week to fully dry and be ready for use if you make them yourself.

Another advantage of the TITAN 20-inch plate loadable Atlas stone as its smooth surface. This reduces the risk of injury on the hands and brings your training closer to real world competition. Self made Atlas stones will usually have more gravel on them depending on how you mix the cement. You either live with that and train with it or you have to sand them down. If you do not have the tools for that it will either take a long time using sandpaper or on investment of a couple of hundred dollars / euros in a proper sanding machine to do the job.

Compared to sandbags which are the latest trend in home strongman training the TITAN 20-inch loadable stone has the advantage of a stable hull. This is closer to real world competition as the cement spheres used there are unforgiving on the hands and therefore harder to grip. The sandbags from Rogue are high quality and great if you want to use stones to become more explosive and for cardio training. They still can be formed even if you load them with lead shot. This means that they are easier to grip and therefore not a proper simulation of the actual Atlas stone strongman event,

Compared to cement stones the plate loadable 20-inch Atlas stones has the huge advantage of being plate loadable. This means that you can train at different weights while remaining space efficient. Rather than having 6-12 different stones in your home you only have one. This also means that you can better control your progression towards improving you one repetition maximum. Cement stones usually have jumps of 10kg and higher and their weight is also always a little inaccurate. With the loadable stone from TITAN you can be more precise.

Cons of the TITAN 20- inch plate loadable Atlas stone

The cons of the TITAN 20-inch loadable Atlas stone are:

Static size
Many small parts
Higher injury risk
Price
TITAN finish

The static size of the TITAN plate loadable 20-inch Atlas stone is not an accurate reflection of competition conditions for strongman. Cement Atlas stones will vary in size based on their weight and grow in diameter. If you want to truly prepare for a multiple stone to platform event you will need multiple stones with various diameters as the handling is slightly different.

To make the mechanics of the loading of the sphere work the TITAN atlas stones comes with separator rings and a handle. These are the type of items that will get lost very quickly in a commercial gym and render a $650 piece of equipment useless, or at least, if you lose the seprators, you might as well just buy one 175 pound atlas stone and be done with it. This makes it a sub optimal solution for commercial gyms as these are prime items to be lost or stolen on a dare.

Compared to the softer strongman sandbags on the market the injury risk is higher. If you want to use strongman training for conditioning or building bullet proof physiques, rather than for maximum strength and lifts to platforms, you are better off with the sand bags. They are more forgiving on beginners.

$650 is a big price tag, especially if you are considering a purchase of multiple items for your gym. This is unfortunately not the economic road to travel if you want to train an entire class or have a collection of stones of various weights. For these scenarios you are better of to either buy molds and hone on your cement and sanding skills or go with the sandbags and fill them with a variety of rubber, play sand and lead shot depending on who is attending class. Combined with an Atlas stone platform you are hitting the $1000 mark for this training set up. For this you can collect a full home gym from TITAN consisting of a rack, bar and plates.

As with most things from TITAN they are a budget copy of another high end product that is already in the market. In this case TITAN copied the Mike Bartos Atlas stone which is $925 and has a slightly worse finish. TITAN products have the tendency to be that 1mm off or use that slightly inferior steel to make the product to beat the competition on price. That is not the end of the world and it is still usable, just not as nice as the real thing.

Alternatives to the TITAN 20- inch plate loadable Atlas stone

These are the alternatives o the 20-inch loadable Atlas stones:

The Hybrid molds vary in price from $75 - $140 depending what size you are getting. A full set of these molds from 10" diameter to 19" diameter will cost you the same as the loadable Atlas stone from TITAN. The advantage of these molds is that you can easily transport them to any site you want to have a competition in and make the stones right there, rather than having to pay for haulage of a couple of tons of stones. The mammoth set will also give you more flexibility to create multiple stones over and over again. This is the better purchase for any one who runs a gym that is focused on strongman competitions with multiple athletes or has the space at home and the time to put into the self made stones. Even if a some breaks, you can remake one and still have the real thing that would be used in competition. A slight disadvantage of the hybrid mold is that it works with screws and is made of metal. This means that you need to do more preparation when making them compared to a slater mold and that the mold is also less forgiving for bad craftsmanship.

In my personal opinion the slater molds are your best bet to make your own stones. They offer a wider range of diameters to make stones ranging from 8" to 24" priced from $50 to $220. They are more forgiving than the hybrid molds when transported, as the plastic mold will bounce back into shape where the hybrid does not. They are also lighter. The process of making a stone involves duct tape, cement, the mold and the ring. This also makes it easier and more forgiving to make the stones as you have more freedom to manipulate the cement once it is in the mold. The only downside for the hybrid and slater stones is that they are stones and therefore bear a higher injury risk and are a bit of a pain to make. Still only little compares in the world of strength to the satisfaction of lifting a heavy stone on your shoulder.

The Rogue rubber Atlas stones are Rogue Fitness take on making Atlas stones more palatable for the masses. These stones have an iron core which then gets encapsulated by a rubber outer layer. This reduces the injury risk and is also easier on the floor of the gym compared to the cement stones used in strongman competitions. Another advantage is that these stones are ready to go when delivered and have the right diameter depending on their weight. The Rogue rubber Atlas stones range from 10" to 18" in diameter and 50lb to 200lb in weight. The prices range from $125 to $360 for an individual stone while a set can be had for $480 or $915 (225lb/450lb set). These stones are great for a commercial gym that wants to offer Atlas stones to their clients without the hassle of making them and possibly being sued by the landlord or the members themselves. The disadvantage of these stones is the rubber outer layer. It is easier to grip then cement and can also get very hot when left in the sun.

The Rogue Strongman sandbags come in various forms ranging from the tombstone, cube, husafell, cyclone and cylinder shape. They can be filled with pay sand, lead shot, or rubber to provide a wide range of weights and sizes. When empty they can be easily folded up and stored away. The prices range from $85 to $150 and it depends on you which ones you would like to mix and match for your training. The filling system is sturdy and you will not have any filling on the floor. The only downside is that these are not anything like the real deal of a unforgiving stone. They can be molded and shaped quite a bit by the lifter, maybe even grabbed which makes lifting them a lot easier. These sandbags will only ever be a simulation of the Atlas stones competition, but in most scenarios that is more than enough and the variety you can get for $650 compared to the loadable titan stone is not to be sneered at.

The TITAN husafell stone is a simulation of carrying the world famous husafell stone. This stone weighs 110lbs empty and can be loaded with almost anything you have in the gym. The husafell stone simulates a carrying event and is therefore different from the Atlas stone event which goes from the ground to the shoulder. It is still something to be considered, especially when you spread the investment of the 20-inch loadable Atlas stone over several other strongman training items for variety.

Conclusion for the TITAN 20-inch plate loadable Atlas stone

The TITAN 20-inch plate loadable Atlas stone is great if you

Already have a gym
You are training at home
Do not have the space to store multiple atlas stones
Do not have the time or craftsmanship to make your own stones
Your training is one rep max focused for stone lifting

For this the Atlas stone is the absolute perfect match and worth the $650 dollars. If you have the space and want to make your own stones, go for the slater molds instead. It will be a pain at the start as it will probably take a month or two to get your hole set of stones ready, but once it is, you will never go back. Commercial gyms are probably best advised to go for a collection of Rogue strongman sandbags of various sizes and shapes. With this you keep the training interesting, can play around a lot and keep the injury risk low. You probably only have one or two people on your roster who are really willing and able to lift proper Atlas stones so shell out $650 for training a group, rather than one individual.