TITAN 20-inch Plate loadable Atlas Stone vs T-3 series Yoke
This is a comparison between the TITAN loadable Atlas stone and TITAN Yoke 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 of the TITAN T-3 Series Yoke
This is an overview of the TITAN T-3 series Yoke including pros, cons, and alternatives. The Original was published in Which Strongman equipment to get from TITAN. Follow the links for details
TITAN T-3 series Yoke $380
Overview of the TITAN T3 series Yoke
The
TITAN T3 series Yoke is the
Yoke version of the best selling
TITAN T3 rack. With the
yoke you get an additional fat crossbar to use it as a
yoke, feet, and four uprights four plate storage. This unit also easily breaks down for storage and is very space efficient. Yokes are often overlooked as a very good, cheap alternative to a squat stand or
rack. What you will need to purchase in addition is a pir of spotter arms and J cups to use the
Yoke in this way. That bring the overall investment nearer to the $500 to $600 mark. Still, I highly recommend
yokes, especially if you place it in a garage gym. The full list of specifications for this
yoke is:
- Great alternative to a Power Rack - Serves the same purpose with other functions in one.
- Use as a Squat / Press Stand, Push or Drag Sled, or Yoke.
- A staple for Strongman training.
- Adjustable crossbar to custom fit your height.
- Integrated vertical plate storage.
- 2" hole spacing on uprights | 1" Westside spacing through the bench zone.
- Compact 72" design means you can use the Titan Yoke anywhere you train.
- 2.95" Crossbar Diameter.
- Now compatible with competition plates!
- Weight: 166 LB
- Height: 72"
- Inside width: 45"
- Footprint: 51" x 52"
- Uprights: 2"x3" 11 gauge steel
- Weight capacity: 750 LB
This is a great budget option for a commercial gym or home gym, that wants to get the maximum out of their dollar. Apart from yoke carries this yoke can be used for stone lifts over the bar, be used as a regular squat stand and plate storage. It also comes with feet so that you do not need to bolt it to the ground to be safe.
Pros of the TITAN T-3 series Yoke
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Versatility
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Price
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Compact design
The TITAN comes with a wide range of possible exercise you can do it with it. You can use it as a squat stand, pull up bar, plate storage and create a complete gym in itself at a lower cost than a
full rack. The price of
TITAN T-3 Yoke is great compared to other
rack options from TITAN, but also compared to the Rogue Y1 which costs $495 instead of the $380 ask price from TITAN. The compact design also helps to collapse and store it away quickly if you need to. This makes it a good option for a garage gym setup, where you also want to use the garage for its original purpose or as a workshop.
Cons of the TITAN T-3 series Yoke
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TITAN finish
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Bigger footprint compared to a half rack
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No Full safeties, only spotter arms
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Spotter arms and J-cups not included
The TITAN finish means that TITAN generally as a higher risk of the coating being not optimal or the welds being a bit sloppy compared to other brands in the market like Eleiko and Rogue Fitness. As most of the TITAN equipment costs considerably less than the competition they need to cut corners by hiring part time or summer workers, or a bit more lenient quality control. That doesn't make the equipment unusable, but if you want consistent quality with your purchase and not have a bad feeling about how it might turn out on delivery, Rogue and Eleiko are the safer bet. That being said, for a
yoke it is a great price.
If space is a concern you have to keep in mind that the four uprights including the plates you might store on them make the footprint f a
yoke considerably larger compared to a simple half
rack. If space is a concern for you, but you still want to train heavy, you might want to look into a half
rack rather than a
yoke to save some space. The trade off is that a half
rack can not be used for any carries or sled pushes.
The last thing is that
Yokes only have two instead of four uprights. This means that you can only use potter arms as a safety. I personally hugely dislike spotter arms as this is the only piece of equipment I have manged to break with
rack pulls. It was not pretty. I also find that you are easy to miss the spotter arms on a bench press or squat. The longer the spotter arms, the easier it is to actually hit them on a fail, but the more likely they become to break at the fixation point. If you want to squat heavy by yourself and know that you fail from time to time, you are better of getting a half rack or full
rack with safety pins.
What is a bit of a shame is that the J-Cups and spotter arms are not included with the purchase at $380 which would make it a really sweet deal to build a home gym. The matching T-series spotter arms are an additional $100 and the J-Cups another $70 to complete a home gym setup that can also be safely used for squats and bench presses.
Alternatives to the TITAN T-3 series Yoke
The
TITAN T3 rack is made of the steel gauges than the
Yoke. IT can also be purchased in color and various heights, depending on your needs. The TITAN T-3 is a long staple of TITAN and a solid option for a home gym when someone is bench pressing and squatting heavy on a regular basis. If you do not like spotter arms or dropping weights when you go all balls out, this is the better option from TITAN. The price will be about $100 to $200 higher than for the
yoke as you will get more steel in your delivery.
The
X-3 series from TITAN is one step up from The T series and uses thicker uprights which makes these
racks more stable. Compared to the
T-3 Yoke you will probably invest $200 to $300 more depending on what you ultimately decide for. The X-3 line also has
racks which offer feet on the bottom of the
rack so that it does not need to be bolted to the ground. This is a good option for home gym for someone who does not only lift heavy, but also will do a lot of pull ups, band pulls and other exercises where you pull the
rack in different directions. The extra thickness of the tubing makes this
rack more stable for these scenarios than the T-3- line. This is not relevant if you only squat and bench press as this doesn't shake the
rack as much.
The R
ogue RML 390 rack is a half rack from Rogue comes in various colors and starts at a price of $1.015. While the price is considerably higher than the
TITAN racks and
yokes, you will get some of the finest fitness equipment that money can buy. Rogue is not the best option when you are on a budget but is almost unmatched in quality, customer service and forward thinking in the market. If you want to make sure that some american veterans get paid for the making your
rack, you have a way higher chance of your equipment being made by someone who is fairly paid and in a stable job by buying Rogue equipment. If you only want the cheapest price tag, Rogue is the wrong place to look.
The
Rogue Yoke is the original from which TITAN made a lower cost copy. Rogue offer their
Yoke in two different heights at a price point of $495 and $560. While Rogue caters a little more towards the crossfit crowd and suburban dads, TITAN caters a little more to the ones who want to build a steel dungeon in their basement for cheap. I am a huge Rogue Fan and therefore biased and would get the
Rogue Yoke if it was only between a
Yoke from Rogue or
Yoke from TITAN as the prices are fairly close together. $100 bucks for piece of mind that a might not have to force some components, have some missing screws on delivery or any other funny business is worth the while for me. However, if you are intending to build a steel dungeon and also buy a bunch of plate loaded machines on the same ticket / outfit an entire home gym on a budget, than TITAN is a serious contender as you can save a lot and also have a wider choice in machines.
Conclusion for the TITAN T-3 series Yoke
The
TITAN T-3 Yoke is a great option for building a simple home gym. In fact,
Yokes are often overlooked for this purpose, especially if you have quite a bit of space to play around with. Be careful to also put the spotter arms and J-Cups into your basket when you are purchasing as it can be frustrating to buy these things piece meal and then have to wait and pay for shipping twice. It does what it says on the tin, but if you are lifting several hundred pounds of weight regularly by yourself, get a full cage instead. I know there is many people out there who do it just with a squat stand, but better to be safe than sorry.
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
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Ready Made
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Smooth surface
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Stable hull
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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
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Static size
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Many small parts
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Higher injury risk
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Price
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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
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Already have a gym
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You are training at home
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Do not have the space to store multiple atlas stones
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Do not have the time or craftsmanship to make your own stones
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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.