I’m using the #1 on my best day I did 13 reps with it. Still not ready to move up to a #2. Many of my friends who lift weights and are pretty strong overall could not quite close my #1 so it’s not as easy as it would seem.
They recently introduced 1.5 and 2.5 models. One complaint (they finally listened after almost a decade of bitching) was that the jump between grips was too much.
AGAIN crushing stregth is different then other grip strength. Most people who dont train grip specifically have a strong sweep when the close the gripper but do not have a strong close.
That is why you come to s screeching halt the closer you get to closing it and also takes a while getting past that last 1/4to 1/8th inch.
This usually means that you have a weak pinky, ring finger or both.Sometimes you might have bad set which leads to poor leverage. There are lots of ways to bump up to the next level of gripper.
Overcrush, reps on a lower gripper, negatives, using a cut gripper(shortening the handle so you have less leverage) etc. I used all of these methods to close the #2.Just took a little time.Now I can close the #2 anytime, even without warming up.
[quote]Sentoguy wrote:
One of the people who I know for a fact closed the #3 the very first time he tried it is one of my martial arts instructors, Charlie Lysak. [/quote]
I haven’t heard his name in many years. He is a bad, bad man! 
I closed the #1 right out of the box. I had to work a week or so to get the #2.
At this point, I can rep with the number 2, rep the Heavy Hands 250 and close the #2.5 and the HH 300.
Still workin on the # 3. Soon enough. I’ll prob. close the HH 350 before I get the #3. The HH’s handles are longer and make it easier to close for me (i have relatively small hands).
At one time I trained my grip a lot…did the grippers, lever bars, pinch gripping, the whole deal.
Now, I just bring a few grippers with me when I walk my dog and bang out a bunch of sets and reps.
On thing that helped my pinkie and ring fingers was the IM Tug. I think I have a #5…really good for working the individual fingers.
BTW, here’s a cool trick. This can work for reps or a single. Get a gripper in the hand you wanna work, and another gripper in you non-working hand. In the non-working hand, squeeze the gripper maybe 1/2 way and hold it there, then do you grip work with the gripping hand.
I guarntee you’ll get several more reps than normal (or close a gripper you’ve been really close to closing).
Here’s a #1 I destroyed earlier
[quote]YourXLNS wrote:
Sentoguy wrote:
One of the people who I know for a fact closed the #3 the very first time he tried it is one of my martial arts instructors, Charlie Lysak.
I haven’t heard his name in many years. He is a bad, bad man!
[/quote]
Yes, yes he is. Thank God he’s on my side. 
Well, I feel like a total pussy now, thanks guys.
My hands are also tired from playing with that stupid thing, and I have a contest with farmers this saturday. Not the smartest move on my part.
I have massive respect for anyone who can close the #3, it has got to be a bitch out of the box.
Monopoly
I think that grip strength depends a lot upon what your previous sports/lifting experience is. I played tennis competitively when I was younger and picked up a C of C 100 pound, #1, and #2 about two years ago. I am very lean naturally but I got to the point where I could do 25 reps with my dominant hand on the #1 and I even closed the #2 a few times at my peak…prepare for some wicked finger callouses if you train frequently with the grippers.
I think hand size also plays a large role in your ability to close the last 1/4 of the rep out.