I know that kettlebells seem expensive for what they are. I mean, how much can it cost to make an iron ball with a handle, right? Well, you can see the process by watching this video (click “watch The Making of a Kettlebell“). As you can see, more goes into building a kettlebell than you might think. Add to that the cost of doing business and profit margin, and you can see how the final cost can add up. You can get these, the Gold-Standard in kettlebells, here.
For a little lower price, you can get DD’s Russian Reds. These are the same one-piece cast iron construction as the regular DD kettlebells, except for the finish. The regular kettlebells are powder-coated, which involves baking-on the final finish producing a higher quality, longer lasting finish. The Russian Reds on the other hand, are simply painted. This results in a less expensive kettlebell. As a matter of fact in the reviews, some trainees actually like the finish on the Russian Reds better than the standard DD kettlebells.
If you’re looking at cheap kettlebells, you should consider a few things:
- Are they one-piece cast, or an iron ball with an added steel handle?
- Is the handle thick or thin?
- How is the spacing between the ball and the handle?
I’ve looked around for inexpensive kettlebells and have found a promising option. Muscle Driver kettlebells are significantly less expensive than Dragon Door, and have gotten good reviews. In addition, their shipping is lower as well.
At any rate, in the grand scheme of things kettlebells are inexpensive training tools. As I’ve said before, I’ve gotten more “bang for the buck” from kettlebells than anything else. And of course there are the advantages of space-savings and portability, they’ll last a lifetime, plus they just look cool.
And for training material – especially when you’re just starting out – you won’t do much better than Enter the Kettlebell.
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Dragon Door kettlebells are NOT made in the USA. They are made in China and have been for years.
Hi Josh,
This post is almost three years old. Life constantly intervenes and lately I haven’t had the time for this site (or even for working out) I would like.
At the time I wrote this, I was under the impression DD kettlebells were made in the US. It seems that was a selling point for them.
If things have changed, I’ll adjust this post accordingly. Thanks for the heads up.
Jason