Lock-Jaw - Ridiculous Labeling?

[Jeremy Schultz]

Sorry, I must apologize up-front, because this post is nothing more than an outlet for me to vent.

And I have to say that I love Lock-Jaw's products, which is what prompted me to buy a couple of pairs of the Lock-Jaw Elites as soon as they came out.

Here's my issue, though. The "instruction manual" that accompanies the Lock-Jaws has a statement in it that goes something like this - "NEVER use Lock-Jaw products on a barbell that will be lifted over your head (such as "triceps extensions, pull-overs, etc)".

Now, obviously this is a case of a company using this wording to cover their a$$, but it seems that "legalese" can/should only go so far.

First, if these Lock-Jaws can't be used for overhead lifts, then they aren't very useful products - no oly-lifting, no bench pressing, no jerks of any kind, no OHS, no shoulder work at all, etc.

Second, we see these Lock-Jaws used when the Games are televised, and they are clearly being used for overhead lifts.

Do any other companies that make barbell collars have labeling like this? IDK, I guess it just bugs me that they are so willing to tell people not to use their product, for fear of being sued. How would you feel if you bought a Ferrari, and the driver's manual used big letters on the front page that said "NEVER drive this car faster than 35mph"?

Sorry for the rant.

[David Shamah]

the reason they give you that warning is most likely because you can use Olympic dumbbell handles and do pullovers that go over your face.
you have to hold onto the top plates and the rest of the dumbbell is hanging over your head. if by any chance the collar gets loose and the plates slide off say goodbye to that face of yours.
no collar can guarantee the plates from falling or sliding onto your head and it wouldn't be wise to test it out.

[David Shamah]

the overhead work they are talking about is when the plates are directly overhead not when the barbell is overhead but the plates.
thats why they mentioned pullovers and tricep extensions.
the plates sit overhead not the bar.
olympic lifting, benching....you don't necessarily need collars at all

[Eddie Dimaguila]

Liability

[Jeremy Schultz]

Originally Posted by David Shamah

the reason they give you that warning is most likely because you can use Olympic dumbbell handles and do pullovers that go over your face.
you have to hold onto the top plates and the rest of the dumbbell is hanging over your head. if by any chance the collar gets loose and the plates slide off say goodbye to that face of yours.
no collar can guarantee the plates from falling or sliding onto your head and it wouldn't be wise to test it out.

Originally Posted by David Shamah

the overhead work they are talking about is when the plates are directly overhead not when the barbell is overhead but the plates.
thats why they mentioned pullovers and tricep extensions.
the plates sit overhead not the bar.
olympic lifting, benching....you don't necessarily need collars at all

This may indeed be the case, except for the fact that they also have a clause to "NEVER hold the bar vertically with the Lock-jaw holding the plates", so if the first sentence refers to what you are talking about, then they have two completely redundant sentences.

At any rate, the answer is rhetorical. Probably just an effect of our overly-litigious society, where people need to be warned against using products for what they were intended to be used for.

[David Allen Rogers]

There's nothing wrong with the warning. It's pretty clear what they mean by specifying triceps extensions, pull-overs, etc.. They repeat it in two different wordings because the people who are most likely to not know any better are exactly the ones who needed it emphasized. It would be suicidal to hold weight over your head that is secured only with a LockJaw. Some people might not realize that and expect the collars to be more secure than they really are. No big deal.

[PaulEwing]

Originally Posted by Jeremy Schultz

This may indeed be the case, except for the fact that they also have a clause to "NEVER hold the bar vertically with the Lock-jaw holding the plates", so if the first sentence refers to what you are talking about, then they have two completely redundant sentences.

At any rate, the answer is rhetorical. Probably just an effect of our overly-litigious society, where people need to be warned against using products for what they were intended to be used for.

How are those redundant? Holding it vertical means the exact same thing as the other sentence. When you do triceps extensions, you are holding the bar vertically. When you do a jerk, you are holding the bar horizontally. They are explicitly stating that the locks should only be used for lifts where the bar stays horizontal and there is no danger of the plates falling and injuring the athlete.

I think you're just overanalyzing the whole thing.

[Jeremy Schultz]

Originally Posted by PaulEwing

How are those redundant? Holding it vertical means the exact same thing as the other sentence. When you do triceps extensions, you are holding the bar vertically. When you do a jerk, you are holding the bar horizontally. They are explicitly stating that the locks should only be used for lifts where the bar stays horizontal and there is no danger of the plates falling and injuring the athlete.

I think you're just overanalyzing the whole thing.

Ummm, I don't understand what you are saying. The definition of redundant is "Needlessly wordy or repetitive in expression". In others words, redundant MEANS that they mean the exact same thing. Which is what I just said...

And, yes, I kind of admitted in the first sentence of the first post that I was overanalyzing. Sorry for the worthless thread...

[Joey Dussel]

Lock Jaw also makes smaller collars that go on 1" diameter "barbells" (like the kind used in "Group Power" or Body Burn or Body Pump or whatever". Those workout methods have overhead lifts that may involve a bar in the vertical position. The manual is probably the same for all clip models (just like a new Concept 2 Rower comes with a manual for the Model D and Model E rower) so that the company can save of printing.

Don't get too "in your own head" about this whole thing.

-Joey