A great advantage of Okie Grips is their ability to "buckle around" plates when loading or unloading a bar. You can slip a plate on the end of the bar, unbuckle the collar, slide the plate up and rebuckle the collar in one smooth movement. This is much faster than loosening traditional collars, sliding them off the end of the bar, sitting them down, picking up a plate, sliding it on, bending over and picking up the collar (sometimes after you have looked around for it for a while), then sliding it back on the end of the bar, pushing it up to the plates, and tightening it.

Okie Grips are also much faster when removing plates, just unbuckle the collar, pull the plates you want to take off back toward the end of the bar, rebuckle the collar, then pull the plates off the end of the bar and put them down.

Buckling over the side of the bar is a tremendous aid when loading 45 pound plates on and off a power rack for squatting. It makes life much easier. One of the major powerlifting meet producers has used them for many years to speed up their power lifting meets (plus their loaders really appreciate them at the end of the day). Okie Grips significantly speed up workouts! Reducing collar change time really benefits crowded facilities, especially college athletic weight training facilities trying to run several groups of people through in a day. They have more time for workouts or can run another group through at the end of the day in the time they save. Or even close up and go home early once in a while!

Okie Grips are not approved for doing "dumbbell pull overs" with olympic dumbbells. They are not recommended for deadlifts, snatches or jerks. The lever may unlatch when the plates hit the ground at higher velocities, especially if the lever happen to be on the "down" side when the plates hit.

Several college athletic facilities use them very successfully for power cleans. Their athletes are instructed not to "drop" the bar. Okie Grips are not recommended for power cleans if the bar will be "dropped" or lowered at high velocities.

Okie Grips in use with 1170 pounds on the bar being bounced repeatedly against power rack pins doing quarter squats. You can barely see the collars at both ends of the bar. They stuck on like glue. Thats me in the photo.

Weight Room Percentage Chart

We designed the Weight Room Percentage Chart. It is used worldwide by over 5,000 facilities. This 19 inch by 35 inch poster printed on heavy card stock can be used to project your max in the bench press and squat from the number of reps you can do with a lighter weight. It also can be used to determine how much weight to load on the bar for a percentage workout (for instance, a coach may have every body doing 5 reps with 80 percent of their max). Football teams love it because it allows them to frequently test for a new max without having to allow players a couple rest days to rest to obtain a true max and without having to use maximum weights which could cause injury. Players then use the new max and the coach's percentage workout to determine what amount of weight to load for future workouts. This chart is NOT a prescribed workout - the coach or lifter needs to determine a percentage workout (number of sets and reps at various percentages of the lifter's max). The chart can be used to determine the lifter's max the lifter's max, then the amount of weight to put on the bar for the percentages prescribed by the coach can be determined by the chart. The photo at left shows the chart laying on a dark background. In addition to the large 19 X 35 chart shown at left, we also have several smaller 8 1/2 inch by 11 inch versions (one is shown at right) that can be viewed online for free or downloaded for a small fee on our Weight Lifting Percentage Chart Page.

The instructions in the lower left corner of the Weight Room Percentage Chart explain how to use the chart to project your max. The full chart covers max lifts from 80 pounds to 950 pounds. For example, if your are able to bench press 210 pounds for 5 reps, look down the 5 Rep column for 210 pounds. When you find it, move left to the Max Column to read 235 pounds. Your projected bench press max is 240 pounds.

The chart is great for use in weight training classes. It is also great for use by individuals following a workout that was published as percentages. Although the max projection feature only covers the bench press and squat lifts, the percentage calculations can be used for any lift. Our wide range of maxs (80 to 950 pounds) will cover most exercises. It can even be used to calculate percentages for weight machines.

Note to competitive lifters: If you project your max not using lifting accessories (competitive belts, bench press shirts, knee wraps, etc.), when you add those accessories your max will be higher than projected by the chart.

Two for $20 and $5 per each additional copy. Free Shipping.

If you are interested in max's below 80 pounds or other special charts, see our Weight Lifting Percentage Chart Page.

Foam and Vinyl for Reupholstering Weight Lifting Equipment

We market two reupholstery products, foam and vinyl, for the reupholstering of weight lifting equipment.

Installation instructions, tool lists, cleaning and care instructions, and other information regarding their use can be found in our Reupholstering Weight Lifting Equipment section.

Vinyl

Our vinyl is tear resistant, abrasion resistant, sulfide stain (sweat resistant) and is especially great for use in outdoor prison recreation yards. Correctional Institutions are our major consumers. This is not the pretty, soft to the touch, sissy fabric you see in yuppie gyms. This stuff is where the rubber meets the road! Its for very hard service in extreme conditions. You can cut it with a knife, but it absolutely will NOT tear. It is currently used by over 200 state, federal and contract correctional facilities. Most of these institutions lift outdoors under the most brutal conditions imaginable (sun, heat, sand, rain, gravel, dirt, sweat and grime). In addition to correctional use (outdoors or inside), we also especially recommend our vinyl for "high use" high school and college facilities. If you manage a "high use" weight training facility, this is the material for you !! It takes approximately one running yard to cover a bench press. Please see our full set of Reupholstery Page for additional information, including detailed installation instructions.

Our vinyl is available in black and gray. It is sold by the running yard as it is rolled off of 50 inch wide rolls. One running yard is one yard long and 50 inches wide.

If you manage a correctional recreational facility, a high school athletic or high school recreational facility, or a college athletic or college recreational facility and would like to test our vinyl, please contact us and we will send you a sample large enough to cover a bench press. Please ask for the "bench press sample size". We supply swatch sized samples to other facilities on request.

$20 per running yard

10 percent discount on full 50 yard rolls. Makes a 50 yard roll $895

Please specify BLACK or GRAY Freight is prepaid and added to invoice.

Foam

Our high density, virgin, nonloaded foam is very durable. It is the perfect companion part to our vinyl. It is available in two thicknesses (1 1/4 inch and 2 inch) in slabs precut to 12 inches by 48 inches which will fit most bench tops. 1 1/4 is the most popular thickness for bench press tops. We also have large sheets (40 inches by 72 inches) of the 1 1/4 inch thickness for cutting replacement foam from for other pieces of weight lifting equipment. These large sheets can be easily cut to shape using an electric carving knife.

We generally recommend 1 1/4 inch thickness for anything you put your back against and 2 inch thickness for leg extensions and anything you put your stomach, chest, or face against.

We supply small (approximately 3 inches by 3 inches) samples to all institutions and facilities on request.

1 1/4 inch thickness 12 inch by 48 inch slab     $25 40 inch by 72 inch sheet     $125	2 inch thickness 12 inch by 48 inch slab     $40 40 inch by 72 inch sheet     $200
Freight is prepaid and added to invoice Contact us if you need a freight quote.

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