Hello there,
I wouldn't say that the Balance Body is a copy of the Gratz: their "archival" reformer was in the market way ahead of Gratz. In 2009 Gratz turn down my offer of giving them the original measurements with the following sentence: "we already produce the original".
As I said then, the "archival market" will explode -which it did- and everyone will come up with their own version of whatever...
A few years ago I gave a Wunda workshop in NY for the first time in the US including the exercises that use the box (in my studio we have been doing them for years) Now, out of the blue Gratz is producing the "Gratz archival wunda box" -with the wrong measurements too. And there was a very sad pictura of Cristina Gadar (I think that is her name) placing it under her feet, as a foot rest (wah???) and doing some weird variation of the Twist 1 without involving the legs: the whole set up is wrong but nevertheless she puts it up online. Lately is crazy: everyone wants to be in the race and they do the silliest things.
Just because some maker slaps the word "archival", "authentic" or "original" doesn't mean a thing. Take the little block for the Reformer: Gratz changed it into a cube with a pin -dangerous: I know a colleague in another studio who stepped on the damn thing: way to get a stigmata!!- now they change it back to the "archival" version:
1. They changed it, so replacing it is not a feat.
2. I cannot possibly be archival because it didn't exist at the time of Joe, even Romana refused to use it.
The spring in the Gratz neck stretcher is ridiculously hard and thus, dangerous for the neck.
THe feel of the original?? where to star?? The original reformers do NOT work for you or slide smoothly home. They are kind of wild the client really has to concentrate to move it exactly to where you want to move it. YOU decide where home is. No stopper either way: the carriage is home before it actually touches... and many other things. They are not really crowd pleasers. Nor are the safe. My colleagues had to get used to it -some still don't like it- and working on them totally changes the way you think about the method. Note: I am NOT talking about any of the "archival" reformers in the market.
I am currently building another one!!!
This time I am building it "a la Mr. Desio".
Also finishing more Spine correctors (To cover different versions from Joseph) and a spanking new Ladder Barrel with moving tray and table!
- Carving New Gears-01-.jpg (58.94 KiB) Viewed 7193 times
Carving new gears at the router table.
- New Reformer Frame-01-.jpg (52.32 KiB) Viewed 7193 times
New Reformer frame.
- New Ladder Barrel-01-.jpg (47.27 KiB) Viewed 7193 times
New Ladder Barrel
but I really am curious about how different does it feel to workout on it instead of a BB or Gratz.
but as I said, try, and then get the one that you like the most. Most brands will work for many exercises but so far no brand will allow you to do all the exercises without adjustments.
...anyway... what kind of solutions do you adopt for taller people in your studio? Did you provide gears on your reformers , did you build longer ones?
