What Jane Really Thinks About: the Bob and Brad Q2 Mini Massage Gun

Hey there folks! If you are a fan of this blog or subscribe to my newsletter you’ll note that from time to time I like to give my opinion about various fitness-related items. Those opinions have always been unsolicited.

Until today.

About a month ago I was contacted by a rep from the Bob and Brad company asking if I would be willing to review one of their massage guns. My first thoughts were pretty much, “um, who are you and is this a scam?” Well, as it turns out it was not a scam. Sweet!

But to answer the “who are you” part…Bob and Brad are a couple of physical therapists based out of Winona, MN. They are pretty popular on social media and have a very successful YouTube channel. They claim to be “the most famous physical therapists on the internet”. And they asked me, the Most Famous Personal Trainer on the Internet* to review their Q2 Mini Massage Gun. So here we go!

What’s in the Box?

The Q2 Mini Massage Gun comes with five attachments (and some spare rubber sleeves) in a travel case that measures about seven inches square. You also get a USB-A to USB-C charging cable; they assume you have a wall adapter, or some other USB socket to plug into.

The Q2 Mini Massage Gun by Bob and Brad

The massage head attachments include:

• Ball head: for large muscles

• Air cushion head: for sensitive areas where you would want more gentle pressure

• Bullet head: for small muscle areas, trigger points, etc

• U-shaped head: primarily for massage along the spine

• Flat head: for all parts of the body

Note that, in general, the smaller the surface area of the massage head, the more intense the massaging will be. The Air cushion head looks more like an accordion, which presumably cushions the impact and makes it better for more sensitive areas. Or, as the manual states, it is best suited for “sensitive body meat relaxation.” (Which I find hilarious.)

Use yer head. Massage head, that is.

size and shape

In terms of size, the Q2 is pretty compact compared to a lot of the regular full-size guns you see for sale:

The Bob and Brad Q2 gun compared to a larger competitor-brand gun.

One thing I did like ergonomically is how the handle extends on both sides of the massage head; this allows you to grip the gun in a variety of ways. I had a lot of my clients try out the Q2, and the ones who owned a larger model stated how much easier it was to handle than their gun, especially for massaging hard-to-reach areas on the back. Personally, I still had to struggle a little getting the very center of my back, but luckily I don’t get sore there too often.

Massaging the back: some shoulder mobility required.

massaging power

Another friend let me try out her gun with the Q2. In terms of power, the Q2 had a similar output to the larger gun. I didn’t do a full comparison of the speeds, but to be honest, I felt like the lowest level of the Q2 was sufficient for my needs.

I don’t normally get dressed up for a product reviews but hey it was a party.

I have a lot of soreness and tightness in my neck/upper traps, so I was eager to try out the air-cushioned head. It was…yikes. Apparently I’m pretty sensitive, because even on the lowest setting, it felt like my brain was rattling in my skull.

Neck massaging was pretty intense. Perhaps a little too intense.

Other attributes

The Q2 massage gun had a nice heft to it; it was well-designed and felt well made.

The massage gun also seems to hold a charge pretty well. After the first charge (which takes 3 hours), I’ve used it—sparingly—over the past few weeks and haven’t had to charge it yet. I think they claim three hours of operation on a single charge. In case you were hoping for a non-stop massage-a-thon, though, the massager does turn off after ten minutes of operation.

Finally, the amazon site claims a “whisper-soft experience". I will say that with ambient noise, I wasn’t able to hear it operate from about six feet away. But if you fire this thing up, people close-by WILL hear it. However, the sound wasn’t too bad. People may not be bothered by the motor, but if you, say, tried to do a little massaging in your next business meeting, people are going to wonder about the vibrator noise. (Just sayin’.)

Overall Rating: 8 out of 10

The Q2 is compact, portable, relatively quiet, and definitely powerful. I think that it is well-designed and intuitive to use. Of the eight people who tried it out, almost everyone liked the performance; and the two people who already owned massage guns liked the Q2 as much or more than their model.

The things I wasn’t crazy about: It was hard to reach certain areas of my back; would a change to the handle improve this? Also, why not throw in a wall adapter to go with the power cable? These are both minor quibbles. I think my main issue was that the speed was a little rough for the really sensitive areas; it was tough to get past the “brain rattle” when massaging my neck and upper shoulders.

I didn’t have much experience with massage guns before reviewing this model. So has the Q2 changed my life forever? Sadly, I can’t say that I’m hooked on the massage gun lifestyle. But if you’re interested in buying a massage gun, I think this is a solid model to start with.

The retail price is listed as $130, but it seems to always be on sale for like $60. It’s cheaper than a visit to my massage therapist, although not as fun because my massage therapist is a very cool lady. :D

If you would like to give Bob and Brad some of your hard-earned dollars, you can buy a Q2 through this link. (Do I get a cut? I dunno, they didn’t say that I would. But hey, feel free to try it and I’ll find out!)

* That my mom has heard of