The 'No Excuses Homemade Equipment Crew'

[olebuck]

Lots of great ideas. Was thinking of just using wooden standards on either side that are thicker than the height of 45# plate rather than adding legs (storage reasons) .

[owasM]

i would also like to know that, if someone experienced could chime in

the pull ups bars on my strut rack were around 3mm thick pipe welded to 5mm angle iron, (i had theese done by a welder) and the angle iron shows no sign of penatration but held up fine.

could someone shed some light on this,
i'm going to be building another heavier duty yoke, i've found a deal on 4x4" 6mm steel .. for the actual weight horns and cross bar i will have holes drilled and welded inside so no prob there on strength.
but the base will be 4x4x6mm too, any problem welding that up using 150amps considering theres no weight loaded on the weld at all?

[jackbravo]

we have a Novatel 3" gel memory foam mattress topper






so my son had an accident at night while sleeping with us, and it soaked through to the foam mattress unfortunately. my wife wants it out of the house. so I was thinking, since we spent 100$ on the thing, can i cut this up and make it into a foam pad for a box squat and wrap it in vinyl? I know they're usually closed-cell and this is open-cell.....




a couple of things i'm not sure about is how to gauge the height. since the memory foam will compress quite a bit, should i compress several layers together before wrapping it in vinyl? or do I just stack a couple of layers together and wrap them loosely? with a queen size mattress, I have quite a bit to work with so I will likely experiment, but wanted to ask for opinions first.

[irongrandpa]

Today I took my hex bar(which was free) and made it into a rackable hex bar. First , I cut the existing sleeves back to 3.5 in. then welded on a 16 in. sleeve, finished by putting on a 2in. sleeve, overlapping the existing sleeve by 3.5 in. and the new sleeve by 3.5 in. My welding is not pretty but it does hold solidly. As I mentioned, the bar was free and the pipe I got from scrap for free, total cost was my time and a few welding rods.

[KBKB]

Today I took my hex bar(which was free) and made it into a rackable hex bar. First , I cut the existing sleeves back to 3.5 in. then welded on a 16 in. sleeve, finished by putting on a 2in. sleeve, overlapping the existing sleeve by 3.5 in. and the new sleeve by 3.5 in. My welding is not pretty but it does hold solidly. As I mentioned, the bar was free and the pipe I got from scrap for free, total cost was my time and a few welding rods.

Looks good!

Do you plan on using it for overhead press?

[DamonB82]

Today I took my hex bar(which was free) and made it into a rackable hex bar. First , I cut the existing sleeves back to 3.5 in. then welded on a 16 in. sleeve, finished by putting on a 2in. sleeve, overlapping the existing sleeve by 3.5 in. and the new sleeve by 3.5 in. My welding is not pretty but it does hold solidly. As I mentioned, the bar was free and the pipe I got from scrap for free, total cost was my time and a few welding rods.

Do you have more pics of your rack?

[irongrandpa]

Do you have more pics of your rack?

Here are some pics of the rack.

[irongrandpa]

Looks good!

Do you plan on using it for overhead press?

I've never tried them but I'll try them and see if I like them. The main reason I made this bar rackable was to be able to load the weights easier. If you look at the side base pieces, you'll see that I left the back and front high enough to load 45's with about 3/4 in. of clearance off the floor, then I can roll or lift the bar towards the middle which is cut out lower to allow the plates to rest on the floor.

[jackbravo]

Here are some pics of the rack.

best wooden rack i've seen!

[ProtienandIron]

I remember saying the same about Irongrandpas rack when I first saw it. I really like the way its joined together athe the bottom.

Great idea for reusing the memory foam. That said, I don't think your lad will thank you for sharing the information when he gets an account here in 10 years time.

[ProtienandIron]

Please welcome our newest member;

-!!!---!!!- No Excuses Homemade Equipment Crew #30 -!!!---!!!- Olebuck

[jgood602]

Very cool been thinking about doing the same kinda thing. looks good

[Vermonter]

I haven't contributed in a while, and sadly I don't have any pictures to share but I do have a cool little activity I wanted to talk about that doesn't take much to put together.

I have a suspension trainer set up in my garage gym that I use as a warm up before every workout. Their primary use is for a warm up exercise that is a combination of assisted pull-ups and assisted bodyweight squats. Basically I just have the handles at chin height and pull myself up while standing out of a squat. I can easily vary how much of the work is being done with either upper body or lower body. As I said, this is just a good warm-up and stretch that I enjoy.

Anyhow, I was checking out some videos with people doing "belt squats", and after a forum search noticed that many people here do them as well. Their main benefit seems to be that they provide a great leg workout just as normal squats do, while providing relief for your back. Additionally, they free up your arms (since you aren't holding the barbell) so you can really go for it on a few more reps, without fear of failing since you can simply pull yourself up with your hands assisting your squat.

So I placed a couple of wooden stands underneath my suspension trainer, loaded up my weight belt and gave it a shot. SO AWESOME. I will be the first to admit that I am no squatting rock star, but I will say being able to go ass-to-grass and work to that last rep, while being able to assist yourself is absolutely incredible. I feel like I got a thorough leg workout without killing my back, and was able to push my limits "in the hole" without fear.
I know that with the safeties set in my power rack I shouldn't be "afraid" of failing a rep with barbell squats....and I am not really, but it always sucks to fail. Being able to assist myself that little bit to finish a set is huge to me. Hell, I could even use this to go heavy and work on squat negatives....hrmm.

Anyhow, I can't recommend belt squats enough. If you have the means and initiative, give them a try.

[matrix563]

can i do belt squats by using a lower pulley and standing far enough way? i'd attach my dip belt to it. any photos of your trainer vermonter?

also:




its about 36 inches from the shiny part to the other end.

so i guess similar to this: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tchlink:top:en

any pros or cons of my approach vs just buying that bar?

the webbing won't slide off. those grips are on there pretty good i tried tugging with my hands to remove and it didn't work. i wanted to remove it, i just prefer knurling and i think it has knurling to the end of the lat bar.

[Vermonter]

Yes, you can certainly use your lower pulley for the belt squat. It is a little different since the resistance isn't directed straight down through the entire range of motion, but it works.

The main reason I didn't go that route is I didn't want to have to set anything up to prop up the weight stack while I got it loaded and got into place, etc. If you don't prop up the weight stack initially, you need to start out really far "in the hole" at the beginning of the set, and it is a hassle to work with. I'd have to have the lengths of the connection from my belt to the pulley just right.
It was much simpler to loop chain through the plates and hang them. With the pulley set up I'd be afraid of having my crotch pinned to the machine or something.
With free weights I can just rest the plates on the stands, or even step down and just place them on the floor while I get unhooked.

[KBKB]

The main reason I didn't go that route is I didn't want to have to set anything up to prop up the weight stack while I got it loaded and got into place, etc. If you don't prop up the weight stack initially, you need to start out really far "in the hole" at the beginning of the set, and it is a hassle to work with.

I had this very same issue when I tried belt squats with the Ironmaster cable tower.

[KBKB]

Since we're talking about belt squats, here's my belt squat set up:





I haven't done them in a long time. It takes just long enough to set up that it never really became part of my routine. If I had a lot of space, I'd leave it set up so that it wouldn't be an issue.

[Vermonter]

I haven't done them in a long time. It takes just long enough to set up that it never really became part of my routine. If I had a lot of space, I'd leave it set up so that it wouldn't be an issue.

Yeah, I can relate. That is why it took me this long to try them out. It is hard to beat "just set up under the bar, and squat" as far as prep time goes.

Chances are I will keep my stands available nearby since I have the space and always have my weight trainer set up anyway. If I want to do something with less prep time I can just throw on my 40 lb. weight vest and do one legged step ups instead. For when I really want to go heavy, the belt squat seems the most ideal, though.

[KBKB]

its about 36 inches from the shiny part to the other end.

so i guess similar to this: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tchlink:top:en

I have a shorter (less wide) pro-style lat bar. I really like it. For a while, I was having elbow problems and things hurt less when I used the neutral grip of the pro-style bar. I used trigger point therapy to sort out the problems with my elbows and now I can either style of pull down bar without pain.

One issue that I can see with the set-up in your photo is that you might not have enough range of motion due to the fact that the webbing drops the handles pretty low.

[matrix563]

yeah i know thats why i'm gonna get some shorter webbing . thats a 6 inch length. i wonder how short it can be sold? 2 inches would be great. i like your belt squat KBKB

[KBKB]

i wonder how short it can be sold? 2 inches would be great.

I have some short ones that I bought when I first started climbing, but they're hard to find now because manufacturers are selling "dogbones", which is basically a sewn loop with stitching all through the middle section so that there is only a small loop just big enough for a carabiner at each end.

Try doing multiple wraps around the bar with the ones you already have; basically you're creating a prusik hitch around the bar instead of a girth hitch. (A prusik is just a girth hitch with more wraps.) If you wrap it enough, you should be able to end up with a fairly small loop at the end that's just big enough for your carabiner.

[hardNheavy2011]

Haven't built much lately, but I did manage to make this wheelbarrow thing to torture myself with. I use it with my sled and it's an awesome workout. It will hold 720lbs, but I haven't loaded it up that heavy yet....actually, I'm not sure I could handle that much anyway. haha I made the handles adjustable since one of the guys I train with sometimes is 6'3 280lbs. LOL

[jgood602]

Love the wheel barrow that's BA

[ProtienandIron]

Haven't built much lately, but I did manage to make this wheelbarrow thing to torture myself with. I use it with my sled and it's an awesome workout. It will hold 720lbs, but I haven't loaded it up that heavy yet....actually, I'm not sure I could handle that much anyway. haha I made the handles adjustable since one of the guys I train with sometimes is 6'3 280lbs. LOL

That thing needs flame decals going up the side HNH. One of my favourite pieces to date.

[Aussieguy101]

Haven't built much lately, but I did manage to make this wheelbarrow thing to torture myself with. I use it with my sled and it's an awesome workout. It will hold 720lbs, but I haven't loaded it up that heavy yet....actually, I'm not sure I could handle that much anyway. haha I made the handles adjustable since one of the guys I train with sometimes is 6'3 280lbs. LOL

Looks unreal ! great work and reps !

[My2BoysDad]

Just managed to get through all the posts and have to say they are very impressive. I am more impressed with down home engineering and ingenuity than with store bought any day, not to mention that a good portion of these projects can withstand much greater abuse than that purchased off the shelf.

Having just gotten back into lifting after 20 years (to get rid of the spare tire), I also decided to fabricate much of my gear. So far I have a power rack weight tree and small dumbbell rack. A flat bench and perhaps a FID bench are next.

When I figure out how to post pictures I would like will contribute to this thread.

[My2BoysDad]

Here's my home built power rack. It uses 2"x2"x3/16" (7 gauge) HSS with 1.125" solid safety bars with plate storage. Hole spacing is 2" in the bench zone as well as the J-hook areas for benching and 4" higher up.

Photos prior to and after paint.

[lrd3]

Here's my home built power rack. It uses 2"x2"x3/16" (7 gauge) HSS with 1.125" solid safety bars with plate storage.
Photos prior to and after paint.

nice work..

[owasM]

Here's my home built power rack. It uses 2"x2"x3/16" (7 gauge) HSS with 1.125" solid safety bars with plate storage. Hole spacing is 2" in the bench zone as well as the J-hook areas for benching and 4" higher up.

Photos prior to and after paint.

looks like a tank! nice job.

[Vermonter]

Here's my home built power rack. It uses 2"x2"x3/16" (7 gauge) HSS with 1.125" solid safety bars with plate storage. Hole spacing is 2" in the bench zone as well as the J-hook areas for benching and 4" higher up.


Photos prior to and after paint.

That is really impressive. How much did materials cost you?