Speed bag training has a lot of incredible benefits and the cool thing is that everyone including a seasoned boxer to people, who have only fitness goals, can use this boxing training tool for their needs.
It does not only improve punching skills but it also improves vital skills like hand-eye coordination, reflexes, and any boxer can use them in the ring!
With that being said, in order to get a good speed bag session, speed bag platform’s importance is just vital.
You can check out the reviews of best speed bag platforms and find one for your need as some are perfect for home, boxing gyms and some are adjustable…
Table of Contents
- Xmark XM-2811 (Best One!)
- Balazs I-box Speed Bag Platform
- XMark XM-4441
- Everlast Elite Adjustable Speed Bag Platform (Best Value!)
- Ezspeedbag Platform (Perfect for home)
- The Buying Guide
- Frequently Asked Questions
1. X-Mark Adjustable Speed Bag Platform XM-2811
Quality of Materials: 9.9 / 10.0
Cost Efficiency: 8.5 / 10.0
Check It out: on Amazon
Exclusive Features
- Durable Oak Drum
- Last Long Years
- 15” adjustability
- Comes with really good swivel
- Quiet
X-Mark’s this product has absolutely superior qualities and it is the best adjustable speed bag platform on the market.
It has 24-inch drum and it is made of oak which does the job, absorbs the shock pretty well. It is smooth and the thickness is 1.5 inch which is more than enough to absorb the shock.
It has a glossy finish and it just looks really cool. When you look at the drum closely, you can see the finest details.
The 11 gauge steel is extra sturdy and will not have any vibration issues even after years. The drum also helps with that as it absorbs the shock extra well. The whole construction is built to minimize the vibration and these improve the durability tremendously.
Thanks to the minimized vibration and the quality drum, you will only hear that classic speed bag sound and nothing more while punching. So if you don’t want your neighbors to come to your home while working out, this is quite a solid option.
The speed bag platform comes with a professional grade swivel which costs higher and performs way better than the regular speed bag swivels. I practiced with this very swivel and your speed bag will not be stuck and you can hang any speed bag to it. It is made of really quality steel and I know that many of you worry that you will get a really low-quality swivel with a speed bag platform but this is not the case at all with this XM-2811.
It also has 15-inch adjustability which is a lot and many people, who have different heights, can train with it and get optimal speed bag training performance from XM-2811.
The price: The price of XM-2811 might be high for some people. However, considering the quality materials, design, sturdiness… X-Mark XM-2811 is just perfect.
The qualities are amazing and it also offers adjustability. These are the reasons why you can literally see this speed bag platform in every 1 of 3 commercial gyms. As a side note, it has a bulkier construction than the others.
Note: It is the perfect match with XM-2845 heavy bag stand.
Check out the short video below and see this platform in action!
2. Balazs I-box Speed Bag Platform
Quality of Materials: 9.1 / 10.0
Cost Efficiency: 8.8 / 10.0
Exclusive Features
- Solid frame
- Last long years
- 12” adjustability
- Comes with a professional swivel
- Really easy to install
Balazs has a really rigid V-frame. It is made of steel and you just need to feel and see this at the gym. It is literally rock solid. It has 11 gauge steel tubing.
It has a wood drum and it has a 24-inch diameter. It is thick enough to last and provide good recoil rate.
You can adjust this platform with knobs and the adjustability length is 12” which is more than enough for boxing gyms so anyone can train with this amazing platform and have good punching experience.
Balazs I-Box comes with a quite good swivel (Pro Level 2) which can accommodate any speed bag out there.
The installation of this one is fairly easy. There are only a few places for screws and mounting and you can do it pretty much under 10 minutes.
It comes with 3 color selections and in my opinion, the black one looks really cool and can be a great fit for every boxing gym.
This platform is made in the USA and thanks to really sturdy construction it can last for a long time. The only drawback of this platform is the lack of adjustability. But other than this, the qualities of Balazs I-box are top notch.
3. XMark XM-4441
Quality of Materials: 9.2 / 10.0
Cost Efficiency: 9.3 / 10.0
Exclusive Features
- Sturdy construction
- 15-inch adjustability
- Comes with a professional swivel
- Offers good value
This is another model of XM series. Even though it is the second best platform of XMark it is still better than the most products on the market.
This is actually quite similar to XM-2811 however there are some vital differences…
First of all, XM-4441’s mainframe is made of heavy-duty steel and XM-2811’s mainframe is 11 gauge steel. This one’s steel mainframe is less sturdy and thinner however it is still really solid. With that being said the drum of XM-4441 is made of quality wood but it is not oak. Oak is obviously superior to this.
Other than these, the adjustability, recoil rate, the design, the drum’s thickness (1.5 inches) … is the same. This platform also has a professional grade swivel and is ready for action.
It has 15” adjustability and it is quite a lot.
Shortly it will last less than XM-2811 but other than these, every quality is top-notch.
So why did XMark start producing a similar product? The following is my opinion, however, I guess it is obvious that many people don’t prefer breaking the bank for XM-2811 (the speed bag platform at the number one spot) and want to choose a more affordable yet really quality one which is XMark XM-4441.
4. Everlast Elite Adjustable Speed Bag Platform
Quality of Materials: 8.8 / 10.0
Cost Efficiency: 10.0 / 10.0
Exclusive Features
- Good construction
- 8-inch Adjustability
- Offers excellent value!
- Comes with good swivel
- You can hang double end bag to it
- Cheap price!
- 4 months warranty
This platform has a 24-inch drum as well and it has enough area to accommodate any speed bag workout.
Normally, speed bag platforms have knobs to adjust the height whereas Everlast uses lock pins to adjust it. Obviously, you can’t change the height as easy as other adjustable speed bag platforms. However, it only takes a few more seconds. So you won’t be losing much time while doing it. You can adjust it by 8 inches.
It comes with brace boards, assembly tools, and a swivel. However, there is not any wall mounting hardware.
Also, if you have anchors for a double end bag, you can hang double end bag to it. It is compatible with any size of double end bag.
Warranty: It has a 4 months warranty and you can return this platform if you are not satisfied with the performance or anything about it during the period.
Price: Now let’s get to the amazing part. This speed bag platform simply offers incredible value. You get around 2 years of good training performance and 8-inch adjustability. Even though it does not come with wall mount hardware, these are inexpensive and can be found easily.
Installation: The manual is straightforward and this platform is really popular so you can find a lot of installation tutorials (videos) online.
Hands down, Everlast Elite is the best cheap speed bag platform on the market.
Check out more Details (my Everlast Speed Bag Platform Review)
5. Ezspeedbag Platform
Quality of Materials: 8.3 / 10.0
Cost Efficiency: 8.9 / 10.0
Exclusive Features
- Good construction
- Very easy to install
- Really ergonomic construction
- Perfect choice for homes
- You can do pull-ups with it!
Ezspeedbag Platform has a lot of amazing unique qualities. This platform actually can satisfy a lot of people’s needs.
The drum is made of quality steel and it is sturdy enough for you to do sessions for years. It is 18 inches and quite ergonomic.
You can set it up in any doorway and start pounding the bag. The drum is not too rigid and does not have rough edges so if you hit your hand elbow etc. accidentally it is less likely to cause any injuries, cuts which happen a lot with the other speed bag platforms which are not made of quality wood.
It has a quite ergonomic design and steel tubing construction and it is ideal for small places.
The cool thing is that you can also do pull-ups with it as it has an integrated pull-up bar. Is not this amazing? It can be a great tool to develop upper back muscles. You can get stronger at your own place and it can get you a sweat on.
In addition to these, it comes with a lifetime warranty! It is just amazing how Ezspeedbag Platform offers a lot of unique qualities and also has a lifetime warranty.
The Buying Guide
There are a lot of things which determine the quality of a speed bag platform and in the section, you can read all about them so you can make a more educated choice.
The Materials and Features
Drum
A drum should be made of quality wood which absorbs the shock well so it delivers less shock to steel tubing as this improves the durability of speed bag vastly. This makes sure that your speed bag platform will not start shaking any time soon. A good drum also provides a good recoil rate so your speed bag can bounce well and you can punch it properly. Considering my thorough research and experiences, oak drums provide these quite well. Many industry experts say that oak is the best wood for speed bag platform and the wood just works better than other materials.
The drum should also have a certain thickness so it can distribute the shock every time you punch a speed bag. The minimum thickness should be 1 inch as anything below that does not provide good shock dispersion. And if it is less than that and the drum is made of wood, it is guaranteed that it will not last for long years.
If that is the case, these speed bag platforms’ drums may become loose and start vibrating before you practice a year.
The drum should have enough area to accommodate any speed bag whether it is hanged to a swivel or a chain. Obviously, when you use a chain, (you need to use a chain with speed bags filled with sand) the area of the drum should be larger. An 18-inch diameter board is more than enough for it.
Considering my experiences, the metal drum is quite rough on speed bag’s cover material. It can cut the cover material and cause a lot of defects. These ones are quite cheap but you actually lose money with these as these can make your speed bag useless in no time. I also experienced that these also start vibrating way sooner than the others. And of course there are exceptions to this rule but there is only a few. I personally know one which is one of the best speed bag platforms which I trained with. However, unlike the other drums, which are made of some kind of metal, that platform was quite pricey.
Tubing
Tubing connects drum to wherever you will place it. It basically holds the platform and absorbs the shock. So it needs to be top-notch. The steel is the most preferred material for it and the gauge should be at least 10 for decent durability period.
These provide good recoil rate and this is the most important thing for your session to benefit you. So make sure that these are solid and have high user ratings before you decide to get a speed bag platform. Some of these have additional support and these basically add support to a platform. However, it is interesting that generally, these are the speed bag platforms which are made of lower quality materials.
The durability depends on the drum and tubing. If these are solid, the platform can withstand constant punishment over a decade! This is why some of the companies above trust their products and can give 10 years and even a lifetime warranty.
Frequently Asked Questions and General Information
The Price: The price varies a lot. If the drum is thicker and oak is used for making the drum you should expect to pay a lot. The general consensus is that it is best to spend extra money on this essential boxing training tool. It is definitely worth the investment as it can help to hone your skills for years. In order to purchase a good speed bag platform, you should expect to break the bank for it.
As a side note, many platforms don’t come with a speed bag and some don’t come with installation hardware as well so you need to keep in mind these while purchasing a platform.
Adjustable Platforms: Adjustable platforms are great for any gym and home if there are multiple people to train. You can adjust the height for your preference and generally, the knobs are used for it.
Obviously, adjustable speed bag platforms are preferred a lot in boxing gyms so everyone can punch the bags properly. Obviously, when the adjustable length increases, more people can train with the bag.
Should You Get a new Swivel? Many platforms come with a swivel. However, these don’t tend to be made of high-quality steel. Some companies use the cheapest swivels and don’t even sell them on the market. If that is the case, you need to get a good swivel.
Should You Care about Warranty at all? Yes, you should. Sometimes the speed bag platform can start vibrating after a couple of months and these can become useless. After this point, the speed bag will not bounce well etc. The tubing may also cause problems if you are training a lot. So obviously getting a platform, which has a long warranty period, is a better choice.
What are the Shipment Costs?
I get this question from time to time in the comment section.
I don’t know your product, its weight, the company… So you need to ask wherever you are buying.
Why Everyone Should Definitely Use This Training Tool?
It improves speed, striking techniques, burns shoulder muscles…
You can also practice a lot of different punching combinations, and do footwork…
Speed bag training benefits boxers in so many ways and they simply can’t get some of these benefits elsewhere. It also helps boxers to keep hands up and stay sharp all the time as they need to focus during a match all the time. By just observing a fighter you can realize whether the boxer does a lot of speed bag sessions or not.
You can also burn calories and even build some shoulder muscle! Many people also use this boxing training tool for fitness purposes.
You can check out here for the benefits of this training. In that article, you can read all about these in detail.
Note: Sometimes speed bag training can make a lot of noise. This can be because of your speed bag platform or it can be another reason. If you are having this problem check out how you can make your speed bag session quiet.
How to Choose Best Sped Bag Platform for home?
Definitely get one which is extremely quiet so your neighbors don’t hear a thing while pounding a speed bag. If you will install it yourself, I am sure that many of you prefer easy installation as you don’t have much experience with it. Also, you may not have enough space to accommodate a giant speed bag platform. So you need to prefer a speed bag which has a smaller drum and ergonomic design. In this list, you can definitely find one fits these criteria.
The Portability
If you travel or move a lot like I do and want to bring your platform with you, you need a platform which is portable, light, and easy to install.
How to Mount a Speed Bag Platform?
First of all, all speed bag platforms on this list come with thorough installation guides and there are also tutorials online as well. So you will know how exactly you will mount. With that being said, one method may work for a particular speed bag platform but the other may not. Also, a speed bag platform may need different tools and equipment to install. So be sure to follow the instructions of your own speed bag platform’s installation guide.
How to Determine the Height?
Choose the height properly. Your head and the speed bag platform should be at the same level. After determining that, you can start mounting it.
Installation Tools: Even though the speed bag platforms generally come with all the necessary hardware for installation some may not and you may need to buy them yourself. However, these are quite basic tools like screws, bolts, fasteners, wall mounts which can be found easily.
Which Speed Bag Platform is easy to install?
You basically need to check out the customer reviews, watch installation tutorials as there are many speed bag platform brands and models. So it is basically not possible to write and compare each one of them.
When should you get a New Speed Bag Platform?
Your speed bag platform will vibrate sooner or later or a drum might get loose a bit etc. After having these issues, your speed bag’s rebound rate will not be optimal and you won’t have proper punching experience.
The second most common reason is that the tubing may not hold the drum well and because of that reason, it can start shaking. This actually happens a lot with platforms which have low-quality tubing.
After reading this writing, I am confident that you will find a good platform for your need as there are the reviews of best speed bag platforms and a thorough buying guide above. And if you decided which speed bag platform to buy, you can check out these good speed bags to start doing speed bag training.
If you have any questions about the topic or want to know about the performance of a specific platform model, just leave your comment below.
Wow, these speed bag platforms look great! I think that I am a little bit confused, though! I am wondering which one should be the best platform for me that I have no experience yet and I need something stable and easy to use?
Best wishes,
Rebecca!
You are beginner and you want stable platform. Then XMark Adjustable is just for you. It will stay like a rock and it has lifetime warranty 😉 It is also incredibly suitable for all swivels. So you can always get incredible and same punching experience.
I’ve been reading your posts about boxing gloves and martial arts gloves with interest since my daughter has been involved with martial arts. I’m really interested in the Ez-Frame for the doorway for her. Seems perfect for her dorm at school!
It is always nice kids to interest in boxing training 😉 Ez- Frame will be perfect for doorway and it is quite portable and very light product as well.
The XMark Adjustable looks suitable to me as a beginner. My only concern is that the warranty is only for North America. Are there any other bag platforms where warranty is valid worldwide?
I think none of them have worldwide warranty. But I think you can have a look at Everlast Speed bag platform. Everlast is very well established and has branches in several countries. It can have a branch in yours.
Hi Furkan, I have only used punching bags during my martial arts practice. Now that you tell me it is good for shoulders, I will be looking forward to buy one. I think XM-2811 would be a better choice. I will go check it out. Thanks for making this easy. This is an excellent comparison of the products. Liked it.
I sometimes neglect speed bag training too and XM-2811 would be seriously perfect for anyone who is looking for speed bag sessions.
I probably love the 1st one! I have training on this speed bag before, but just stopped after injured of my elbow. Will start back soon!
In my opinion XMark XM-2811 is great too. After you recover you can train with larger speed bags and the adjustment period will be definitely shorter 😉
This is actually super comprehensive. Thanks so much for the review. I know that the vibration and flimsy aspects of some of these platforms can really get in the way of smooth training.
When stuff starts to get wobbly it really throws off my game. I will definitely keep all this in mind when going after the next platform. My current one sort of sucks so I’ll probably be upgrading soon.
-Dalton
Hi Dalton,
Vibration just sucks and I seriously hate it during the training. I am glad you liked it man, I am sure any of these platforms will give you training session without vibration 😉
Boxing is a great way to stay in shape, it’s been awhile since I took classes but I’m looking to get started again but didn’t get much experience using the speed bags.
Thanks for beaming the importance of best Speed bag platform. In my opinion i prefer the XMark Adjustable Speed Bag Platform XM-2811
It is a really great platform and you will love it
Really enjoyed this post! I had no idea that the EZ Speed Bag Platform existed. I was literally talking to my son last week about getting a speed bag and how nice it would be to get one that was fixed into the wall. The fact that you can do pull-ups on it as well is pretty nice. You gave it a durability rating of only 8.6 so I’m a little worried about that. I was curious of the rating was low because of the bag or the platform itself? Any help would be appreciated.
It is quite easy you can follow instructions in the manual. Also, you can install that platform to the doorway and you can do pull-ups. Just make sure that space will not be an issue then you are good to go.
The points are given according to material quality. And obviously, it does not match the durability of oak and you have to consider that the drum is not too thick. Also man you think of doing pull-ups and you will not do pull-ups with others. This also increases the vibration and shortens the durability but it is still decent. If it is above 8.5 you have nothing to worry about ; )
The young men in my family are so obsessed with their shoulders. They seem to believe that their muscles and shoulders show strength in their man-hood. No doubt, I will be sharing this post with them. I bet they will be attracted to the XMark XM-2811. Hope they won’t get confused with the others though, because this XMark XM-2811 seems like a good one.
Trust me on this we are all obsessed with big shoulders : ) XMark has a lot of models but when you look at the drum you can understand which one has more quality easily. Even when you look at the pictures carefully you can understand it. Well, if you can’t just look at the price. As you can guess more expensive one has way more quality.
That was a nice read! 😉
Only problem is, as someone who’s still a beginner in boxing, it’s hard to pick the right speedbag to begin with. But I have to say, the Ezspeedbag Platform looks like a good one as you can do so much more, like doing pull ups (which I also have to practice on haha).
No, it is not an issue at all. You can learn basic speed bag punching techniques in a short amount of time. You can check out Johnny’s guide for that. He also talks about rhythm and gives quite good and simple tips as well.
Ezspeedbag is quite versatile and if you also have fitness purposes it will accommodate you.
Wow! There is so much information here. It’s great that you mentioned that some don’t come with installation equipment or bags. That’s definitely important to know.
Yeah, some don’t come with necessary tools and people wonder how they should install it and try some silly things. So I provided which platforms don’t come with all the installation equipment.
Thanks for the informative post. I’m new to all this so need all the help I can get when choosing products. Your article is easy to read and very helpful, even for people like me 🙂
You are welcome.
Wow!
I never knew there are so many things to consider when it comes to buying a speed bag! I don’t personally need it but my husband loves boxing! I think he will like XMark XM-4441!
Yeah, there are seriously a lot of things to consider. Well, I know that any boxing enthusiast would appreciate XMark XM-4441.
Can you recommend a durable glove for working the heavy bag?
I’m injured so I can’t spar anymore, so I hit the bag 3 – 6 times per week but this is causing my gloves to wear out fast!
My 12oz ProBox gloves lasted about 4 months and even my 16oz Twins packed up pretty quick too.
I thought about some Cleto Reyes but probably too expensive just to hit the bag.
Cheers,
Dan
I understand. My doctor also said that I should not take hits any more. You must have a very conditioned body. 6 times per week is quite a lot. In my opinion, Cleto Reyes is good for advanced boxers who pound the bag regularly but as you said it is a bit pricey. Check out these bag glove recommendations.
Cheers bro.
Thanks for this very comprehensive review. My son asked for a speed bag for Christmas and I really had no idea what to even look for when purchasing one. I would really like to know how loud these are. I see that the EZ speedbag is for the house, but I’m wondering if I would be happier if this was mounted in the garage or basement?
Some platforms are quite suitable for the house. Some make less noise and EZ Speedbag is one of them. The used material is just better at absorbing the chock and thus it makes less noise. As for your question, It does not matter.
Maybe it’s because I’m new to these kinds of things, i.e. advanced fitness apparatuses, but aren’t the prices in general a bit…how shall I say, high? I mean, it’s something to hang something else that I’m essentially just punching over and over. The speed bag isn’t heavy and the platforms don’t look all that complex. I know it’s not a simple thing and I’m not trying to disrespect the craft or anything…but around a hundred dollars? Seems quite steep.
Some platforms have to have high prices at these are made of oak and high-quality steel. Well, if you can make your own speed bag platform, you can and save some money. But not everyone is capable of doing that. And even if a person can, I am not sure that he/she wants to spend long hours to build one.
In your opinion, which would be the best speed bag for someone with no prior experience?
Get a bigger speed bag so you can punch and learn basic punching techniques faster. You can grasp how to do left left right right in a minute! While trying to punch with the bottom of your fist you can aim the bag easier. Basically, everything will be easier with a big speed bag.