Made a 3D printed Crimp trainer which is easy on the skin
I’ve been fascinated by the concept of "frictionless" training to force better finger engagement, so I decided to design and 3D print my own zero-abrasion crimp block.
First off, full credit where it’s due: this design is heavily inspired by the Comfy Crimp 2.0 by Hooper’s Beta. If you want a professionally manufactured, rigorously tested version (and to support their great content), you should absolutely buy the original here:Hooper's Beta Comfy Crimp 2.0
I wanted to share my DIY version and some of my in-gym load testing results for anyone else who dares to try 3D-printed training gear.
Like the original, it features heavily rounded edges (20mm and 12mm) and a smooth finish. Because there is virtually zero friction from the plastic, you can’t rely on skin drag. It completely punishes a passive grip and forces active FDP engagement and DIP flexion. If you relax, you dry fire instantly.
Load Testing Results
I took it to the gym this week to see how much abuse it could take.
- Weight of the block: ~130g of plastic (PLA)
- Comfortable Working Load: 60kg (132 lbs). It handled this weight easily with no creaking or flexing.
- Failure/Deformation Point: 78kg (172 lbs). When I stepped up to my full body weight, the block started to deform, but went back to shape when I removed the load, I WOULD NOT RECCOMEND pulling more than 70kg with this because I imagine that if it fails it can cause injury.
For standard no-hang lifting (where you are pulling a percentage of your body weight off a loading pin), the 60kg limit is actually plenty for my current maxes, but it’s clearly not safe for full-body suspension or dynamic loading at my weight.
If you want to try to print it for yourself you can find the model here https://makerworld.com/en/models/3143302-soft-crimp-easy-on-skin-crimp-trainer, you will just need to add some paracord and a carabiner.