Stone lifting tools

Exposing oneself to as many different stones in training as possible is a great start. It will help an athlete understand the great variance to be encountered on natural stones and stones in general, including atlas stones. Access to stones can be an athletes biggest limiting factor, though lifting with any stone is better than none at all. Looking at sets of between reps with moderate weight stones and lower rep sets for heavier stones is a good guide.

Loading onto platforms of varying heights, shouldering or simply triple extending with the stone are all perfectly acceptable methods. Stone training should be restricted to at most twice per week if other events and regular training in the gym are also being performed. More than this will become too taxing on tendons and injury will surely follow. Personally I would never train stones more frequently than once per week. Natural Stones and certainly any stones of renown, will be lifted with the assistance of chalk only.

Due to the nature of the majority of natural stones, the use of tacky is frivolous anyway and will likely be more of a hindrance than a help. Woe betide any person who attempts to touch a traditional Scottish lifting stone with tacky.

There are multiple ways to lift stones and each style of lift should be trained if desired to be attempted in the wild. Examples may include shouldering, extending, overhead pressing, bear hugging, loading and even walking with the stones. Below is a compilation video of natural stones being lifted. It demonstrates a great variety of surface conditions, stone shape and size, and lifting methods. Although none of these are Scottish lifting stones, the principle is the same.

Lifting stones as mother nature made them, where mother nature placed them, with little or no assistance save for your own strength. The next video is of a natural stone lifting run in competition at the Southern Highlander contest in Victoria.

The variation in size, weight and shape of the natural stones is again apparent, as is the variation of grips and lifting techniques required to lift them. Specific grip training is often neglected by strongmen as the events themselves tend to work the grip quite well anyway.

However, additional grip specific work can be very beneficial, as strong hands and wrists are very much a requisite when lifting stones of any description. Double overhand axle deadlifting is another great grip exercise. In fact double overhand deadlifts even on a regular bar are important for developing a world class grip. Early sets in a deadlift workout should be completed double overhand until it is necessary due to grip fatigue to swap to an alternating grip. Ignoring this opportunity for an incidental grip workout during a posterior chain workout is just silly.

Lifting atlas stones is another strongman specific exercise that along with improving overall stone lifting ability very directly improves arm and wrist strength immensely. These must be your grip bread and butter and quite obviously, these movements are very important for developing strength as a strength athlete or stone lifter overall.

There are many grip specific exercises that few people outside the grip world would ever attempt, but that can be beneficial to the budding stone lifter too for a little additional development. Grippers in the fashion of CoC style are great for developing crushing strength which helps develop finger tendon strength. Plate pinches, inch dumbell lifting or thick handled dumbell lifts, upside down kettlebell lifts or blob lifts can all be used to great effect for developing overall hand strength and durability.

On the day of the stone lifting attempt conditions may vary wildly. Mother nature may have decided that you will be lifting in the rain, snow, wind, or direct sweltering sunshine. Each condition presents its own challenge and may indeed make the stone lift infinitely more difficult. First consideration once you have arrived at the location and found the stone itself, is the ability to have a sufficient warm-up before attempting the lift, to avoid injury and making this attempt your last.

As the tines become free, it will slide back to the default open position to allow for next lift cycle. The Rocklift also excels at picking up brush and debris, especially in hard to reach places such as deep ditches or ravines.

Brush rakes for dozers can assist in this process. Rock lifting tongs are an extremely versatile attachment that allows contractors the ability to make easy work out of otherwise difficult tasks. Available in models to handle capacities of 3, , 6, and 12, pounds.

Custom models also available. Height restrictions for rock grabs may apply. Kenco below the hook lifting products are designed, manufactured and tested in compliance with the latest revisions of the ASME B Patented under United States Patent No. Safety Shackles. Screw Pin Shackles. Lewis Pin Sets. Stone Lifting Clamps. Spreader Bar Replacement Parts.

Curb Lifting Clamp. Mausoleum Lifting Pin. Stone Setting Bar With Rollers. Pinch Bars. Setting Bars. Digging Bars. Call us today for your stone setting tool needs.