The Barbell Thread
I was skimming through the Crossfit thread thread, and I was noticing people were looking for weight sets/bars. So I decided to make a thread about it.
Barbell Info:
Most people that buy bars from any Canadian retailers are getting cheap China made CAP brand barbells (the ones with hex bolts at the ends). These bars have a low weight capacity. Most of these bars come with 300lb, 500lb, or 1000lb capacity (Go Mango's are 1000lb caps.)
These capacity numbers are basically determined by putting a bar on a rack, and adding weight until it breaks. These ratings are extremely inaccurate as most Crossfit/Olympic lifters will be using dynamic lifts. Basically, a stationary weight capacity does not translate to the bar moving. Therefore, bars will most likely bend before this given rating.
I have heard that the 1000lb capacity bar bent after loading 600lb on it a few times. A 500lb cap bar would also most likely bend if you dropped it 3 feet with ~200lb on it (not great for Olympic lifters).
What to look for when buying barbells:
There are really only three things to look for when buying a new barbell (coating is personal preference.)
#1: Type of bar
Olympic bar: Olympic bars will be a bit whippy, and will have Olympic knurling/ring marks spaced for the Oly lifts. These bars will be more expensive than powerlifting bars, as they have to have a high PSI rating to cope with the dropping/have a whippy+strong metal characteristic making the metal processing more difficult.
Powerlifting/General bar: These bars will most likely not be whippy, as you do not want it to whip on your back while doing rep work on squats and bench. Most people will want to use this bar, as most gym bars have powerlifting knurling marks. There are also bars with both powerlifting and olympic knurling marks. These are general use bars, and are the best IMO.
#2: PSI rating (not lb capacity)
One should should look for PSI ratings when buying a barbell, and not lb ratings (which are extrapolated from PSI ratings.) These PSI ratings are yield strength/tensile strength ratings. These are the readings where the bar will start to PERMANENTLY deform. Bars...especially whippy Olympic bars will deform before this rating, but will bend back HOPEFULLY to their original spec.
The following are rough PSI ratings of popular/non specialty bars, and their respective US online pricing excluding shipping/customs:
Cap bar (1200lb rating): 130K PSI (~$150)
Pendlay Econ: 125K PSI (discontinued. Non econs are $300, unsure of PSI rating on those)
Sonirex all terrain bar:150k PSI (~$350)
Rogue bar: 155K PSI (~$250)
Hampton bar (1500lb rating): 165K PSI (~$250)
Texas Power Bar: 185K PSI (~$300)
York Elite-Olympic Bar: 195K PSI (~$450)
York Burgerner and Rippetoe bar: 205K PSI (~$300)
Regular Ivanko bar (IPF approved): 200K PSI (~$500)
Stainless Steel Ivanko or Eleiko IPF competition bar: 210-220k PSI (~$1000 USD) **For reference, this bar bent when loaded with 900lb and dropped 3 feet.
#3: Dimensions
All Olympic barbells have sleeves that are 2inches in diameter, and range from 5-7 feet in width. However, one would need to get one that is 6 to 7 feet if you want the bar to fit in a cage/Olympic bench. As for knurling dimensions, ideally you would want to look for a bar that has both PL/OLY knurlings.
Another important criteria is how thick it is. Normally, crappy quality bars are 30-32mm thick because they need the thickness to make up for their lack of material/processing quality. IPF uses 29mm thick bars, and IWF uses 28mm. A thicker bar may help develop grip strength, but it will hinder rep work. I would say a good median is 28.5 or 29mm for general gym work.
A good place to get bars:
While looking for a bar myself, I stumbled upon this website:
http://www.roguecanada.ca/store/bars.php
This place just opened up in Edmonton a month ago, so delivery/customs will not a problem. The pricing is the best I've found if one includes shipping/custom fees. I'm thinking of picking up a B&R bar when I bend my 1000lb CAP bar. The lifetime warranty against bending on the Rouge Bar sounds tempting, but the B&R is superior, has a center knurl for squats, and has less whip. If I have the extra $50 to spare, I will buy the B&R.
Go-Mango fitness can order in most bars. You'll have to call for a quote however.
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