Everyone strives for a goal, one of which may be a 500 bench.  The problem is how do you achieve it?  For me it was a mystery until I discovered a method of training known as the conjugate method.  This is done along with the dynamic method with submaximal weights on a second day, 72 hours later.   Today we have 29 people who have done at least 500, four who have done over 600, and the youngest person ever to bench 700.  Here's how. 
    On Sunday we use the dynamic method.  The weight is 55% of a contest max with a shirt.  If for some reason you compete without a shirt, 60% is used.  We do 8-10 sets of 3 reps. It's best to use three or more grips In a workout.  Most of the sets are done with a grip inside the power rings on the bar, that is, with the little finger inside the ring.  Using grips inside the rings will aid greatly in triceps and anterior delt development.  
      The reps must be very explosive.  Lower the bar quickly, but under control.  Lowering contributes to raising, or concentric, strength.  Lowering a bar slowly will 
build muscle mass but not strength.   Please, I beg you, stop reading bodybuilding magazines.  They have contributed greatly to ruining strength training in the United 
States.  After all, plyometrics is the energy gained by the body dropping and then responding to that dropping with reversal, or explosive, strength. 
     The bar should be pushed back up in a straight line, not back over the face.  This requires strong triceps.  This path is a shorter distance and requires no shoulder rotation, 
which is also much safer.  The barbell will always seek the strongest  muscle group; that's why most push  the bar over the face.  Their delts are stronger than their triceps.  But it should be the reverse.  One sees a lot of shoulder and pec injuries, but seldom do you see a triceps injury. Why? The triceps have never been pushed to their maximum, potential. 
      We do approximately 20 reps out of 200 above our training weight.  We may add only 30-50 pounds to the bar, mainly to check that bar speed remains high.  If your bar 
speed, or reversal strength slows, you have a problem.  After all, this would still be a very submaximal weight if you bench press 500 and train with 275, or 55%.  You could 
also do a few singles, but not with more than 90% and not very often.   We found this interferes with the max effort day three days later.

      After bench pressing, go first to triceps work. Basically 60 total reps are done with dumbbells, broken down into 5 sets of 10 reps or possibly 7 sets of 8 reps. The palms should be facing inward, toward the body, when dumbbells are used for extensions. When a barbell is used, 40 reps should be done, bringing the bar to the forehead, chin or throat. 
      Paul Dicks presses with a regular bar or a Safety Squat Bar can be done. 
       We do a lot of J.M. presses, named after J. M. Blakely: with a close grip, lower the bar to 4-5 inches off the chest above the nipples, hold for a split second, and press back up.  This is a very effective exercise. 
        After triceps, do front raises with a bar, plate, or dumbbells.  Heavy weights used.  Also do side delts with dumbbells or a cable, rear delts, 4 or 5 sets of lats, a few hammer curls.  Do delt and lat work by feel, but continuously do more and heavier weight.