Announcement
Michael Eckert is joining the Battle Bunker team.
Alongside that we are expanding the lineup, launching the Battle Bunker Academy, and opening the Battle Bunker Beta Program.
The beta program is a small insider group that works closer with us: helping develop products, reviewing them before release, and getting first access to everything new.
Applications are read by hand. The first group is small on purpose.
What is happening
Four announcements we want you to know about.
This is the biggest set of changes since we started. Here is all of it in one place.
Two companies, one team.
Michael has become one of the most trusted names in grip strength and calisthenics, with mentions from Joe Rogan, Tim Ferriss and plenty of others who follow his climbing and the grip and training devices he builds.
He ran BarBreaker. Austen built Battle Bunker. After six years of collaborating from two different companies, the two efforts become one under Battle Bunker.
The lineup is expanding.
A dip belt, an upgraded MK2 vest and grip strength tools are all in the works.
Michael and Austen are actively working on new gear for the lineup, and beta members will see it before anyone else.
The Battle Bunker Academy is launching.
The Battle Bunker Academy is a massive hub for learning. 16 courses where we teach everything we know, through video courses and demos.
It is also where we will live stream with the community, take questions and talk things through. The whole thing is built around education.
We are targeting a launch in September.
The Battle Bunker Beta Program is open.
An insider group that sees things before anyone else. Beta members get first look at new products, tell us what is wrong with them while we can still change it, and share honest public reviews on Amazon, TikTok Shop and the site.
We are adding a few people to the team during this transition, and this is one of them.
Who is behind it
The two names on this.
Both bios are editable in the theme editor. Fill in Michael's before this page goes public.
Austen Alexander
Founder, Battle Bunker
Austen founded Battle Bunker and runs it day to day. He served seven years in the United States Navy, and the standards the gear is built around are ones he had to pass himself.
Business became the hobby when he got out. He likes the nitty gritty of it, the analytics and the operations, the parts most people find boring. He has come up through police and military academy environments, has trained units and agency personnel directly rather than only selling to them, and coaches people to their first pull-up through the free four week program.
- Seven years in the United States Navy
- Founder of Battle Bunker
- Police academy and military academy experience
- Coaches people to their first pull-up
Michael Eckert
Partner, Battle Bunker
Michael has become one of the most trusted names in grip strength and calisthenics. People follow him for the climbing, and for the grip and training devices and techniques he designs and builds. He has been mentioned by Joe Rogan, Tim Ferriss and plenty of others.
He founded BarBreaker before joining Battle Bunker. What he loves is grip work, designing good gear, climbing, and getting stronger.
- Founder of BarBreaker
- Grip strength and calisthenics
- Mentioned by Joe Rogan and Tim Ferriss
- Designs grip and training devices
How this started
Six years in the making.
Austen and Michael met at a Dave and Buster's in Florida, after following each other on Instagram for a long time. Both were in the military, both were chasing the same things, and it turned into a friendship fast.
They started collaborating almost immediately: pull-up videos, social content, ideas passed back and forth. Michael was running BarBreaker. Austen had started Battle Bunker. One of them loves analytics and operations, the other loves grip, design and climbing.
Six years on, they decided to stop running two efforts and combine them into one.
Filmed four years ago, well before any of this was a business.
Shared roots
- Strength and fitness The foundation both of us built everything else on
- Grip strength and climbing Hands first. Everything else follows the grip
- Pull ups The rep that both of us keep coming back to
- The American dream Build it here, build it right, and own the outcome
The job
What being a beta tester means.
It is a small group who get things early, help shape them, and tell us honestly how they held up. No deadlines, no quotas.
Reviews and product testing
Help us with honest reviews and real product testing. You get the gear, you put it through its paces, and you tell us how it actually held up.
Input on what is in development
Give us your thoughts and opinions on things still in development, while there is still time to change them. This is the part most brands skip.
Create content with the gear
Create content with our gear for social and marketing. Only if you want to, and it stays yours.
First dibs on what is new
Get first dibs on new products for testing and reviewing, while supplies last.
The trade
What you get out of it.
You are doing real work for us, so the trade is real too.
- Keep the gear
- The test unit is yours. We do not ask for it back.
- First access to new releases
- You see and use products before they go on the site, and you help decide what ships.
- A real say in the build
- Sizing, stitching and hardware have all been changed because a tester said so.
- Inside the room
- You are in the first beta community, talking to the people who build the gear instead of a support queue.
Application
Apply to the beta program.
Five minutes, no account needed. The answer that really decides it is the one about why you want in.
Common questions
Before you apply
Does it cost anything?
No. We send the gear and we cover shipping, and you keep it.
Do I need a following?
No. A following helps us get the word out, but feedback is what we pick for. Plenty of good applicants have no social presence at all.
How much time does it take?
As much or as little as you want. There is no deadline and no quota. Train with the gear, and when you have something worth telling us, tell us. That is the whole thing.
Do I have to be military?
No. Military, law enforcement and first responder backgrounds get a close look because the gear is built to that standard, but serious athletes and coaches are in the group too.
What if I end up hating the product?
Then say so, in detail. That is the most useful thing a beta member can send us and it is the reason the program exists.
How will I know if I got in?
We email you. Groups open when a product is close to ready, so there can be a few weeks between applying and hearing back. If you are not a fit for the first group we keep you on file for the next one.
Battle Bunker LLC. Veteran founded. Beta gear is pre-production and can change before release. Selection is at our discretion and applying does not guarantee a spot.
