BongersHandheld Deep Tissue & Trigger Point Massage Tool (Blissful Blue)

I've had ongoing back issues for a few years now, so I was excited to see these at a very reasonable price on Amazon. They work fantastic but one of the two handles has loosend and is slowly deteriorating already! The wood is intact, but the silver ring at the base came unglued two days ago, so that's any easy fix right? And just tonight the metal "rod" is sliding from side to side within the handle! I'm the only one that uses the Bongers, so it's not a matter of over-use, or mis-handling. I already threw my box away, not thinking that one of the two Bongers would do this so quickly. It appeared to be a very sturdy product when I received it last week.Now I'm afraid to use this on myself as one of the metal rods could launch right out of the handle! I'm contacting the seller to see if I can do a swap-out. If I can get a pair that don't have the same QC issue, this will go up to 5 stars, as it is a great massage tool!***********UPDATE**** May 13, 2010After some confusing correspondence with Amazon CS, I sent an email to Bodyback directly and just yesterday I received a replacement pair. This pair is actually different! The Ball-end is still blue, but the steel rod on this pair were a blued-steel and the handles a stained golden-oak color (like the Amazon pic), whereas the first pair I received were a shiny steel with clear stained wood handles. Even the box was different between each pair. It's obvious the replacement pair are of a better quality than the first set and I am extremely pleased!It took awhile to get the issue resolved, but it IS resolved and I am pounding my aches away!I've changed my rating from 4 to 5 stars.

These are so great for back relief to do by yourself. Have another set in another room

These were purchased as a gift, but I have received thanks several times.

Update: The metal shaft broke a couple days later. I admit that I'm rough with them so I'm keeping the rating high because they should be a great value for most people. I simply epoxy'd the ball onto a thick drumstick and all is good. I suppose now I can make my own for life! The ball is nothing more than a soft athletic play ball (foam-based) you can find in a sporting goods store if you want to make your own.Original Post:I'm a 35 year old athletic male. I have some sort of myofascial issues along my spine, across my shoulders, and into the base of the neck. I'm so tight at times it seems like a hard shell of stuck tissue layers. Anyways, these Bongers work great to beat on my back (whipping around the side of my body) and break up some of the tissue. The problem is they aren't really built for rough use like I use them and the balls went soaring off into the air after about 20 min of use. This is fine though as I wasn't expecting them to be robust enough for me... I simply fixed them with some epoxy and they seem to be holding up pretty well so far. It's a great product for $20 and I would recommend them to others. I've used many different self-massagers for my problems and this is definitely in my daily bag of tricks. There is something about the percussive action that really helps. But I hope that the company looks into some other robust methods to build them in the future for people that really like to hit themselves hard!

I have used Bongers for over 25 years... the "rubber" does wear out and in that time this is only the 3d pair I have owned so they last about 12+ years. I love them and am thankful for them as they untighten especially my shoulders when I have no other help. Definitely cheaper than a massage therapist but especially useful when one is not around. It was my massage therapist who 25 years ago both told me about them and used them in her practice on me.

Most often I use a single Bonger on my trapezius muscles when necessary and find that it does a good job of easing pain & tension.

Good

Had some years ago and have been looking for new ones for a long time. I take one to work with me. Really helps relieve the muscle soreness in the shoulders.