The Overkill Grayline Bench Shirt: Hands-On

I got a Grayline. 

I then had the opportunity to try it out this past Tuesday.

I've never felt a poly material like this before.

First- let me share where I'm at. 

I'm 11 weeks out from the IPA Strength Spectacular in York, now to be run by F8. There is a title belt and money on the line. I didn't get this shirt until last week, and only got to try it on then. With any other shirt, I would have to put it off until next meet to have time to break it in. 

However, with the Grayline, Rudy told me there is no break-in. I can touch day 1, and to PR if I was feeling ready. He did not lie.

Not only did I touch last night, I touched a 25lb PR. 

Being custom made to over 10 measurements, of course it fit like a glove. Due to how stretchy this material is, it looks tiny. I didn't think I'd get it past my forearms- but it stretches over you like a second skin. 

Mine is 3 layers all around. I told Rudy I had benched 610 in a meet and wanted a shirt that would get me past 700, and he suggested that ply count. 

Since posting my bench from Tuesday, I've gotten countless DMs asking how it behaves. To give some more depth, here is my assessment of the poly: it's like nothing I've ever used before. When you take the weight out, it glides down like you were in a slingshot or ram. Then, depending on the weight, it locks up harder than anything and stops. When I found the goldilocks weight, for me 635 as shown above; it felt like I was taking the bar down in a widowmaker, then it stopped on my belly like I hit a brick wall. When I heard press, it threw the weight up all but effortlessly. It's a truly unique shirt. I wouldn't say it's as stretchy as an SDP, but I would argue that's a good thing. It's not as stiff as the old Evil Twin, either. 

As far as I can tell, a lot of the power from this shirt lies in the sleeves. The chestplate is not very tight at all, and the collar isn't huge, either. Thus, I didn't play with it much after getting it on other than pulling the sleeves as far in as I can, and pulling the slack our of the belly when I was laying on the bench.

Overall it's very easy to use, and I know I have a lot of potential left in this shirt long term. If you're not familiar with other Overkill shirts, they last people their entire careers, not just a training cycle or two. 

If you were on the fence about the new material, buy one ASAP. There is and will continue to be a long line for these, for good reason. I think once it gets in the hands of some big names, it's going to do some damage.