A macebell is a steel ball on the end of a long handle, and the handle is the point. Holding it near the end puts the whole load a metre from your hands, so the lever, not the number on the ball, is what your shoulders and grip are working against. That changes how you pick one. The lightest mace in the range is enough to make a 360 hard, and the heaviest is a serious tool.
The lever, not the mass
A 4kg dumbbell is a 4kg dumbbell wherever you hold it. A 4kg macebell held at the end of its 79cm handle is a very different load, because the ball is trying to rotate the handle out of your hands the whole way round a swing. Choke up toward the ball and the same mace gets lighter. Slide down to the end and it gets heavier. One mace therefore covers a wider range than its weight suggests, which is why the sizes step by 2kg rather than by one.
Start lighter than you think
For 360s, 10-to-2s and anything that passes the ball behind your back, start with the 2kg or the 4kg and learn the path before adding load. The movement has to be smooth through the point where the ball is behind you, and a mace that is too heavy is what makes it jerky. Presses, squats and carries with the mace held short can use more weight, and that is where the 6kg, 8kg and 10kg come in.
Length and clearance
The handle grows with the weight. The 2kg mace is 68cm long, the 4kg is 79cm, and the 6kg, 8kg and 10kg are 103cm to 106cm. A swing takes the ball over your head and behind your back, so the space you need is more than the length of the mace in every direction around you and above you. A low ceiling or a wall behind you rules out the longer maces for swinging, though not for the short-grip work.
Construction
Every mace in the range is one piece of solid steel with a textured handle. There is no thread between ball and handle to work loose. Head widths run from 9cm to 12cm and do not simply grow with the weight. The 2kg and the 10kg are both 12cm across, and the 4kg to 8kg sit between 9cm and 11cm.
What to check on the product page
- Overall length, against the room you will swing in.
- Weight, and whether the listing is one mace or more.
- Handle finish. All five are textured steel.
The RooFitness macebells compared
| Macebell | Mass | Length | Head width |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2kg Steel Macebell | 2kg | 68cm | 12cm |
| 4kg Steel Macebell | 4kg | 79cm | 9cm |
| 6kg Steel Macebell | 6kg | 103cm | 10cm |
| 8kg Steel Macebell | 8kg | 105cm | 11cm |
| 10kg Steel Macebell | 10kg | 106cm | 12cm |
