is there a rough concensus? or just pick and choose. ive been doing straight(stiff)-legged

Two different exercises for two different target muscles.

SLDL - Hamstrings
Normal Deadlifts - Lower back

Do them both. SLDLs on leg day, and normal deads on back day.

All this junk below means both are good compound exercises that affect a bunch of muscles. I prefer the bent-legged. I would rather get more isolation on hamstrings from leg curl machines for full contraction.


Straight-legged Deadlift

Muscles

Target
Hamstrings

Synergists
Erector Spinae
Gluteus Maximus
Adductor Magnus

Stabilizers
Trapezius, Middle
Rhomboids
Latissimus Dorsi
Trapezius, Upper
Levator Scapulae
Trapezius, Lower

Antagonist Stabilizers
Rectus Abdominis
Obliques

Bent-legged Deadlift

Muscles

Target
Gluteus Maximus
Erector Spinae

Synergists
Adductor Magnus
Quadriceps
Soleus

Dynamic Stabilizers
Hamstrings
Gastrocnemius

Stabilizers
Trapezius, Middle
Trapezius, Upper
Levator Scapulae
Rhomboids

Antagonist Stabilizers
Rectus Abdominis
Obliques

Two different exercises for two different target muscles.Agreed, the only thing they have in common is the word deadlift.

Agreed, the only thing they have in common is the word deadlift.


And you hold stinkin heavy amounts of weight!

And you hold stinkin heavy amounts of weight!
I just added conventional deadlifts to my routine (back day); I've been doing stiff-legged-deadlifts on leg day for a few months. I can go WAY heavier with conventional deadlifts than SLDL's. Is this to be expected? Or have I just discovered my hamstrings are really weak?

im the opposite. I can do more SLDL than standard ones. Prob cause I cant lower my thighs to parallel the floor and i find it difficult trying to keep the bar close to legs without it getting sore.

I just added conventional deadlifts to my routine (back day); I've been doing stiff-legged-deadlifts on leg day for a few months. I can go WAY heavier with conventional deadlifts than SLDL's. Is this to be expected? Or have I just discovered my hamstrings are really weak?

Yes, this is to be expected. There's more muscles involved in the conventional ones. Just wait until you've been doing them for a while, your conventional will far outpace the stiff-legged.

For example, for 5x5 I can conventional dead 315, but only 255 for stiff-legged. I fully expect that I'll hit 400 for conventional deads before I hit 300 for stiff-legged.

I just added conventional deadlifts to my routine (back day); I've been doing stiff-legged-deadlifts on leg day for a few months. I can go WAY heavier with conventional deadlifts than SLDL's. Is this to be expected? Or have I just discovered my hamstrings are really weak?

If anyone is stiff-legging more than they're deadlifiting, something is not right... at all. Stiff-legs are a much less "powerful" movement than deadlifts and the weight used should be considerably lower. Of course this is just an example, but in sets, I stiff-leg around 130-140 lbs while I deadlift around 225-250 lbs.

And as has been said, both would be ideal in a workout routine on different days.

Nah - your butt is tremendously larger than your hamstrings and is used to lifting your whole body weight multiple times a day - hamstrings not so much.

Good to hear. I've only done them once so far, had to increase the weight with each set but I didn't reach my working weight yet. Tomorrow is chest & back day again so I'll keep increasing the weight. Maybe I'll find my working weight then. I don't want to increase more than 20lb/set even if I'm not at my working weight yet - gotta give the body some time to acclimate to the movement.