Hand Grippers: Types, Brands and What to Buy

How torsion-spring hand grippers work, how they are rated, the main brands and their level names (Captains of Crush, GHP, Baraban, Grip Genie, Cannon Standard and more), and how to choose a first set.

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Hand Grippers: Types, Brands and What to Buy

Hand grippers are torsion-spring tools for training and testing crushing grip. Two handles are joined by a coiled steel spring, and the user squeezes the handles together until they touch. They are small, cheap compared with most strength equipment, and portable, which makes them the most common grip tool. They are also the basis of the best-known crushing grip records, IronMind's Captains of Crush certifications.

Key facts

  • A successful close means the handle ends touch
  • Resistance rises as the handles close, so the last part of the close is hardest
  • Ratings are nominal: units of the same model vary
  • Brand scales are not interchangeable; independent raters measure each unit
  • Cannon PowerWorks has rated more than 22,500 grippers by hanging weight from the handles

How a gripper works

A torsion-spring gripper stores energy in its coil. As the handles close, the spring winds tighter and the force needed to keep closing it rises, so the final stretch before the handles touch is the hardest. Three details change how hard a given gripper feels:

  • Spring. Wire diameter, coil geometry and heat treatment set the stiffness. They vary within a production run, which is why two units of one model differ.
  • Set width. The handle spread at the start of the close. A wider set is harder because the hand works over a longer range. Certification rules fix a minimum: IronMind's credit card rule does not allow a start narrower than a credit card's width.
  • Handle geometry. Handle length, knurling and closed width all matter. Cannon PowerWorks measured the closed handle width of Grip Genie grippers at 1.44 inches (about 36 mm), against 1.50 inches for IronMind and Gillingham grippers. Small differences like this make brand-to-brand comparison by label unreliable.

Springs can also soften with heavy use, so a well-used gripper may close easier than a new one of the same model.

Ratings

The number a maker gives a gripper is a nominal rating, a target for the model. A calibrated or measured rating is a test of one unit. See Gripper Ratings for the difference.

The most widely used independent figures come from Cannon PowerWorks, which rates grippers by hanging weight from the handles until the gripper closes and records the result in whole pounds. Its published data, updated January 2026, covers more than 22,500 grippers, and its comparison chart uses only brand-new, unfiled grippers. For each model it lists the average, the most common rating, the lowest and highest seen, and how many units fell within 2 percent of the average. Cannon also rates individual grippers to order; the service includes cleaning and oiling the spring, more than 30 full closes, and a stamped tag showing the rating. Cannon notes that its method gives different figures from makers' own ratings.

A gripper's label names the model, not the unit in your hand. If the exact number matters, use a measured rating and note who measured it.

Brands and level names

Brand Levels What the label means
IronMind Captains of Crush Guide, Sport, Trainer, Point Five, No. 1 to No. 4 (eleven levels) Nominal pounds, 60 to 365 lb
Gillingham High Performance (GHP) Levels 1 to 10 Level numbers
Robert Baraban RB 70 to RB 365, plus an adjustable model Level names, not ratings
Heavy Grips HG 100 to HG 350 Sold as nominal pounds
Grip Genie Genie Gripper Levels 1 to 7 Level numbers with stated ratings
Golden Grip Levels 1 to 6 Stated range 23 to 135 kg (50 to 300 lb)
Cannon PowerWorks Standard Tin (Sn) to Chromium (Cr), twelve levels named after metals Element names; Cannon publishes measured averages

IronMind Captains of Crush. The reference line in grip sport, made in Nevada City, California. Ratings run from 60 lb (Guide) to 365 lb (No. 4). IronMind certifies closes on the No. 3, 3.5 and 4, and on the No. 2 and 2.5 for women. See Captains of Crush Grippers and IronMind.

Gillingham High Performance. Designed by Wade Gillingham and sold through Gripper Superstore. Levels 1 to 9 went on sale in December 2011, with Level 10 to follow. Design features include variable knurling, "SmartMark" grooves, radiused handle ends and oil-tempered springs. In January 2024 the last new stock was reported to be selling out. See Gillingham High Performance.

Robert Baraban. Hand-made in Austria in Baraban's one-man shop and sold since 2003, according to Cannon PowerWorks. The RB number is a level name and, in Cannon's words, has no relation to the actual rating. Baraban himself certified on the Captains of Crush No. 3 in 1997.

Heavy Grips. Sold as HG 100, 150, 200, 250, 300 and 350, with sellers describing them as rated 100 to 350 lb. Cannon PowerWorks' measured averages are far lower, about 45 lb for the HG 100 and about 180 lb for the HG 350. The gap shows why labels from different brands cannot be compared directly.

Grip Genie. Fixed-resistance grippers with aluminium handles and steel springs, in seven levels. The maker states ratings from under 100 lb (Level 1) to 400 lb (Level 7), and gives a Captains of Crush equivalent for each. See Grip Genie.

Golden Grip. A Dutch brand founded in 2020 whose six gripper levels span a stated 23 to 135 kg. See Golden Grip.

Cannon PowerWorks Standard. Made in the USA for Cannon PowerWorks of Minnesota and sold since 2021, the Standard line is one of the gripper lines still in production. Each level is named after a metal, from soft tin to hard chromium, and stamped with the element's symbol on one handle and an "SG" logo on the other. They have pinned, aggressively knurled aluminium handles and uncoated oil-tempered springs, with a slightly larger coil diameter than most brands. Because Cannon makes and rates them itself, every level has a measured average rather than a nominal label, and the units are unusually consistent: for most levels more than 80 percent of the grippers Cannon rated fell within 2 percent of the average, against roughly 50 to 70 percent for most other lines on its chart.

Level Symbol Cannon average (lb) Range seen (lb) Grippers rated
Tin Sn 51 48–54 104
Zinc Zn 60 59–63 115
Silver Ag 83 80–88 192
Gold Au 95 90–100 326
Copper Cu 106 100–110 184
Platinum Pt 116 110–121 493
Iron Fe 136 128–141 682
Nickel Ni 152 145–169 219
Cobalt Co 162 157–169 436
Titanium Ti 176 (first generation), 179 (pinned) 170–187 176
Tungsten W 194 189–203 285
Chromium Cr 236 230–247 88

Nickel is deliberately varied: Cannon mounted it three ways, so each Nickel is sold by its own rating (about 140 to 157 lb) rather than as one level. Titanium was made in two versions, the original and a later pinned-handle one. In late 2026 Cannon listed most levels at $32 (Nickel $37), with stock varying by level; Copper was not listed in the shop at that time. The steps of roughly 10 to 20 lb between levels suit the buy-in-threes approach below.

Comparing brands

Brand labels don't line up, so compare grippers using measured figures from the same rater. On Cannon's chart the Captains of Crush averages are No. 1 75 lb, No. 1.5 85 lb, No. 2 103 lb, No. 2.5 125 lb, No. 3 148 lb, No. 3.5 176 lb and No. 4 213 lb. So a CoC No. 3 sits between the Standard Iron (136 lb) and Nickel (152 lb), and Cobalt (162 lb) is a little harder than the No. 3.

Training with grippers

Gripper training uses a handful of standard methods, usually rotated through a week:

  • Reps on a gripper that can be closed several times, for volume and practice at setting the gripper.
  • Heavy singles on a gripper near the lifter's limit, with full rest between attempts.
  • Negatives: closing a gripper too hard for one hand with both hands, then resisting the opening with one.
  • Holds: closing a gripper and holding the handles together for time.

Technique matters as much as strength at the top levels. How the gripper sits in the hand and how it is set before the close both change the result. For programming and technique, see Crushing Grip: How to Train It. Extensor work (opening the hand against resistance) is a common addition to balance heavy gripper training.

What to buy

A common approach is to buy grippers in groups of three: one that can be closed for reps, one that can be closed only once or not quite, and one as a goal. Steps of roughly 10 to 20 lb between grippers are easier to bridge than large jumps. Other practical points:

  • Stay with one brand at first, because handle shape and width differ between brands and the labels are not equivalent.
  • If you are chasing a specific benchmark or a certification level, buy a rated gripper or have yours rated, and note who rated it.
  • Used grippers are widely traded in grip communities. A worn spring may make one easier than its label, so a measured rating is more useful than the model name.
  • Train for a certification on the maker's own gripper, because certification is done on a specific model under its maker's rules.

See also

Heavy closes and negatives load the finger flexor tendons hard. Warm up, build up gradually, and stop at pain. See safety.

Sources

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