A Speed Bag set-up includes a Board, swivel and bag…but it has to be set up to be used. Speed Bag setups come in a few varieties and each will be present here.
Wall Units
Years ago, in the more golden age of boxing and the outdoor camps, the speed bag was suspended in the middle of its own ring, or in the corner of a large training ring. The boxer could then have 360 degree movement around it. But when most training facilities moved indoors the speed bag ring was lost and it was moved to a wall. Unfortunately, this eliminated the full degree of movement and footwork capability. It also produced a classic “facing front” speed bag punching stance which is not optimum for self defense.
Speed Bag wall units usually attach to a wall, but may be modified to attach to a support column, Poles or perhaps an overhead support system. The main thing is they are very stable and are fixed to that location. There are several choices of sizes and the styles.
Economy Equipment
These types of setups are the lowest in cost, require the least amount of wall space and are the lightest in weight. They come in two styles, with and without a height adjustment slot. Usually they come with a light weight 24 inch board. They are best for the home environment or location where only a few people will be punching the bag and a lot of height adjustment is not needed. For most bedroom or finished wall setups, it is recommended to create a two or three strip wall frame of light lumber (1×4 boards) and attach the speed bag vertical mounts to the wood rather than directly to the wall.
Heavy Duty – Professional Model Wall units
These units are larger in size and usually much heavier They may have a 30 or 36 inch board. These are best for high use areas, such as boxing gyms, martial art schools or health clubs. Several styles and brands are available with a wide variety of prices.
Note the above samples all have two vertical support struts that attach to the wall. The are the most stable. Another variation on wall units uses one vertical strut. These perform fairly well but do tend to have more shake and vibration, particularly when the bag rebounds to the sides of the board.
Free Standing
Free standing frames are a speed bag stand that sits on the floor. These are often used in areas where there is no place or desire for a wall attachment.
Free standing frames come in several types. One type is solely a speed bag attachment and another type is a dual bag stand with a speed bag and a heavy bag attached.
The BalazsBoxing UBS model shown above is rock solid for punching, however it weighs over 300 pounds and costs over $1000.00, making it a serious investment. Of course there are other models of free standing frames made by different companies. There are pro’s and con’s to these types of units. The good things are most of them can be moved around easily, can be used in apartments or rental homes, and may adjust higher or lower than a wall unit. On the negative side, they are much less stable than a wall unit and require some type of stabilization, by either weights on the board or floor pod, or straps. Otherwise they will creep along the floor and sway back and forth with the force of punching. The greatest problem with free standing frames is the single vertical pole, which seems to have problems holding the board still during use. It is difficult to find these units with two vertical struts for board support. Unfortunately we do not recommend free standing frames due to their negative aspects. Of course a free standing speed bag is better than NO speed bag but it is hard to get any speed with them.
VERTICAL SPEED BAG
The Standard speed bag set up has the wall unit hung “horizontally”, with the bag hanging under it. But a speed bag can also be set up “vertically”, meaning the bag bounces up and down vertically to the board, instead of horizontally. This was more common in “the old days” and very popular during the early 1900’s with Vaudeville and performers called “Fancy Baggers”. It disappeared for a while but vertical speed bag has recently made a resurgence as speed baggers look for more workout variety and more footage emerges of these setups. A vertical setup is shown below:
Vertical speed bags are usually not easily adjustable and some people like the bag setup up higher, requiring less back bend and some like it lower were the arms are hanging down more.
Vertical bags also allow for the unique feature of using the knees .
DOOR FRAME SETUP
Occasionally there have attempts at putting a speed bag board inside a door frame.
IT IS WITH GREAT SADNESS THAT WE ANNOUNCE THE SUDDEN PASSING OF CHRIS REA ON APRIL 9, 2021. HE WAS A GREAT AND ENTHUSIASTIC FRIEND TO THE SPEED BAG COMMUNITY AND THIS WEBSITE. HIS “EZspeedbag” DOORWAY SPEED BAG SYSTEM WAS BRILLIANT IN FORM AND FUNCTION. TOTALLY UNSURPASSED FOR IT’S NICHE. We mourn your loss.
developed by Chris Rea (in picture), he had been very involved with the international speed bag community and continually upgraded his system with new and better materials to the point of having a very stable speed bag setup, yielding a challenging workout. The best part is that the system was portable and could be used in virtually any standard doorway for people of any height. Sadly, this product has been discontinued.
Speed Bag set up Tips:
- The smaller home wall units hold up best if only medium size of small bags are used, sizes 11×8 or smaller
- To reduce vibration and increased stability, it is recommended to use speed bag wall units with two vertical wall poles. These will hold steadier when performing techniques that move the bag sideways, such as the hook punch. Single pole units seem to sway a lot more.
- Some places put weights or sand bags on top of the wall unit board to reduce vibration. This may be unsafe because the weight can shift and fall on your head. Keep the top of the board clear.
UNIQUE SPEED BAG SETUPS
Throught the years Speedbagcentral has seen many different speed bag setups. Many are very creative, some self made and often show a dedication and love for speed bag training. Below are a few of the amazing setups found around the world.
A number of speed baggers have created “mobile speed bag” set ups.
Through 2009 and 2010 the legendary Rock Band Foreigner featured the mighty Brian Tichy on drums. Brian Tichy is known in the speed bag world as “BT” or “The Speed Bag Dragon.” Throughout their tour BT put speed bag wall units inside the gear truck and at almost every tour stop he had avid baggers join him to punch before the show. This became legendary in speed bag history as “The Speed Bag Truck”.
An amazing double speed bag board that attaches to a truck, created by “SpeedyT” Tommy Tabino, an east coast speed bag master.
Due to his ingenious design, this same unit doubles as a vertical setup
Here is an avid speed bagger (Aaron Duke) who fashioned a speed bag set up to be lifted up by a forklift.
Aaron also has a speed bag on his boat dock
Speed Bag Drums – Created by BlueManGroup, November 2001
