Captains of Crush Grippers - History

History

Torsion-spring grippers date back at least as far as the beginning of the 20th century, and are used for both testing and building grip strength. Historically, torsion-spring grippers were not considered serious training tools because, among other things, they were not very difficult to close.

In 1964, Iron Man magazine advertised a new line of grippers called the "Super Heavy Iron Man Grip Developer." These grippers had steel handles and thick springs and an “arguably somewhat primitive” design, but what distinguished them from torsion-spring grippers of the past was how difficult the Iron Man grippers were to close. The Iron Man ad billed the grippers as the "world’s strongest grip of this type."

Iron Man magazine had stopped advertising its grippers in 1977 due to lack of sales, but the grippers had some followers, one of whom was IronMind founder Randall J. Strossen. In 1990, Strossen contacted Warren Tetting, who had made the Iron Man Grippers, and asked if he would be interested in making grippers for IronMind. The design of the original Iron Man Grippers varied in such features as the diameter of their handles, whether or not the handles were knurled, and whether the grippers had keepers on the springs.

IronMind sought to refine these nutcracker-style grippers, first by improving their consistency and standardizing their features. The company introduced its grippers in the summer of 1990 in three different strengths (#1, #2 and #3) and with standardized features such as knurled handles.

In subsequent models, IronMind continued improving the accuracy, durability and appearance of the grippers. At the end of 1990, IronMind introduced the Silver Crush Gripper, which had chrome-plated handles and springs, a uniform knurling pattern, and the same three models of increasing difficulty as the first group: the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3. Leading grip-strength figures as Richard Sorin and John Brookfield were early users.