What’s wrong with cheap kettlebells

Kettlebells are designed for weightlifting workouts, which means they are inevitably subject to strong impacts. Therefore, their entire construction must be of top-notch standards, with excellent sturdiness and excellent resistance to rust, chipping, and breaking. These desirable characteristics can be achieved by using high-quality metals and finishes, but this may affect the cost of the product. Therefore, low-cost kettlebells will not be able to guarantee these qualities and withstand long-term circulation.

• Low-quality handles

The handle is critical and needs to be produced at the highest level, as it directly affects how the user holds the kettlebell. While a well-designed and premium-finished handle can benefit any exercise routine, a poor-quality handle can cause skin irritation, annoyance, an uncomfortable grip, and even the potential for undesirable injuries.

Not only that, but cheap kettlebells are not made from a solid, one-piece casting. Instead, the body and handle are cast separately and then welded together. This welding can lead to a poor connection and ridges where the handle joins the body. Especially as you lift heavier weights, a broken handle can be very dangerous, not only to you but also to your floor, when doing exercises like kettlebell swings. Besides, scratches and sharp edges on the handles of kettlebells can also cut your hands.

In addition, cheap kettlebells often don’t strictly follow the rules regarding handle size and the size between the handle and the kettlebell. As a result, you may end up buying a kettlebell with problems such as an extra-thick handle, a handle width that is too narrow, or a handle spacing that is too narrow.

• Incorrect weights and uneven weight distribution

Since cheap kettlebells are primarily made of a certain amount of solid metal with added fillers (usually sand and cement), the weight may not match what the manufacturer states on the label. This can be particularly troublesome when exercising, as your muscles may not receive enough tension or lead to a false perception of the trainee’s ability.

• Surface coating may not be perfect

Since the price is much lower than other manufacturers on the market, cheap kettlebells are unlikely to have excellent coatings – especially powder coatings; with such low-quality coatings, peeling, patching, fading and other defects are inevitable, causing the appearance and durability of the kettlebell to deteriorate rapidly. Therefore, don’t have too high expectations on the coating quality of cheap kettlebell products, you are likely to be disappointed.

Final Thoughts

Kettlebells are one of those rare pieces of fitness equipment that are worth the hype, and while money is a limited resource for most of us and we have to make many difficult decisions about how to spend it, kettlebells or any other fitness product are worth the long-term investment and are not recommended to be purchased on the cheap.