Inexpensive USA-Made Olympic Bar

[michaelnel]

FedEx just dropped off the 7' Olympic bar I bought from Jesup Gym via their EBay store.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...romZR40QQfviZ1

This USA-manufactured Power Place Products bar is a far cry from the cheap Chinese bar that came with my 300lb Sports Authority Olympic set. First off, it's larger diameter (1 1/4" versus the TSA bar's 1 1/8"). That 1/8" doesn't sound like much, but it sure feels different. I have fairly large hands, so the larger diameter actually fits me better.

It's not chromed. The main part of the bar is either unfinished or iron oxide... it's kind of dark grey and shows rainbow colors from some angles. Maybe it's some kind of anodizing. Dunno... no rust on it.

The sleeves are stainless steel and machined, not cast. The sleeves are well lubricated (there is some grease coming out where the sleeve meets the main bar) and they move very freely. According to Jesup, the sleeves are pinned in place, and there is no bolt showing on the end of the bar so that appears to be the case. The sleeves have fine concentric grooves machined into them that serve to keep spring-type collars from sliding. The TSA bar has them too, but they are much coarser on the TSA bar.

The knurling is much different than on the TSA bar. On the TSA bar the knurling is very mild, not giving the hands very much traction. On this PPP bar the knurling is finer, but MUCH sharper, giving excellent grip. While the TSA bar has the short knurled section in the center, the PPP bar is plain in the center. I'm not sure at my level of experience if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I guess if you were doing close grip benches it would be nice to have knurling there, but since I have both bars now I could always use the TSA for that if it became an issue.

I weighed it... 44lbs on the dot. The TSA bar is only 34. I assume it is 44lbs so that when you add a set of collars it gets you right around 45lbs. My spring collars weigh about 4 3/4 oz each, so the bare bar with 2 collars is a little over 44 1/2 lbs.

In short, the TSA bar feels like a cheap toy compared to the PPP bar, which feels very commercial / industrial by comparison. I think the PPP bar is worth the money ($129 including shipping), even if it cost more than my entire 300lb set *including* the cheap bar.

It's still not an expensive bar, but it looks like a very good value to me.

[BDI6942]

Originally Posted by michaelnel

FedEx just dropped off the 7' Olympic bar I bought from Jesup Gym via their EBay store.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...romZR40QQfviZ1

This USA-manufactured Power Place Products bar is a far cry from the cheap Chinese bar that came with my 300lb Sports Authority Olympic set. First off, it's larger diameter (1 1/4" versus the TSA bar's 1 1/8"). That 1/8" doesn't sound like much, but it sure feels different. I have fairly large hands, so the larger diameter actually fits me better.

It's not chromed. The main part of the bar is either unfinished or iron oxide... it's kind of dark grey and shows rainbow colors from some angles. Maybe it's some kind of anodizing. Dunno... no rust on it.

The sleeves are stainless steel and machined, not cast. The sleeves are well lubricated (there is some grease coming out where the sleeve meets the main bar) and they move very freely. According to Jesup, the sleeves are pinned in place, and there is no bolt showing on the end of the bar so that appears to be the case. The sleeves have fine concentric grooves machined into them that serve to keep spring-type collars from sliding. The TSA bar has them too, but they are much coarser on the TSA bar.

The knurling is much different than on the TSA bar. On the TSA bar the knurling is very mild, not giving the hands very much traction. On this PPP bar the knurling is finer, but MUCH sharper, giving excellent grip. While the TSA bar has the short knurled section in the center, the PPP bar is plain in the center. I'm not sure at my level of experience if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I guess if you were doing close grip benches it would be nice to have knurling there, but since I have both bars now I could always use the TSA for that if it became an issue.

I weighed it... 44lbs on the dot. The TSA bar is only 34. I assume it is 44lbs so that when you add a set of collars it gets you right around 45lbs. My spring collars weigh about 4 3/4 oz each, so the bare bar with 2 collars is a little over 44 1/2 lbs.

In short, the TSA bar feels like a cheap toy compared to the PPP bar, which feels very commercial / industrial by comparison. I think the PPP bar is worth the money ($129 including shipping), even if it cost more than my entire 300lb set *including* the cheap bar.

It's still not an expensive bar, but it looks like a very good value to me.

I value my half dozen cheap chinese bars. You should see all the cheap hookers that hang around em..............

[dtrrman]

Originally Posted by michaelnel

FedEx just dropped off the 7' Olympic bar I bought from Jesup Gym via their EBay store.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...romZR40QQfviZ1

This USA-manufactured Power Place Products bar is a far cry from the cheap Chinese bar that came with my 300lb Sports Authority Olympic set. First off, it's larger diameter (1 1/4" versus the TSA bar's 1 1/8"). That 1/8" doesn't sound like much, but it sure feels different. I have fairly large hands, so the larger diameter actually fits me better.

It's not chromed. The main part of the bar is either unfinished or iron oxide... it's kind of dark grey and shows rainbow colors from some angles. Maybe it's some kind of anodizing. Dunno... no rust on it.

The sleeves are stainless steel and machined, not cast. The sleeves are well lubricated (there is some grease coming out where the sleeve meets the main bar) and they move very freely. According to Jesup, the sleeves are pinned in place, and there is no bolt showing on the end of the bar so that appears to be the case. The sleeves have fine concentric grooves machined into them that serve to keep spring-type collars from sliding. The TSA bar has them too, but they are much coarser on the TSA bar.

The knurling is much different than on the TSA bar. On the TSA bar the knurling is very mild, not giving the hands very much traction. On this PPP bar the knurling is finer, but MUCH sharper, giving excellent grip. While the TSA bar has the short knurled section in the center, the PPP bar is plain in the center. I'm not sure at my level of experience if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I guess if you were doing close grip benches it would be nice to have knurling there, but since I have both bars now I could always use the TSA for that if it became an issue.

I weighed it... 44lbs on the dot. The TSA bar is only 34. I assume it is 44lbs so that when you add a set of collars it gets you right around 45lbs. My spring collars weigh about 4 3/4 oz each, so the bare bar with 2 collars is a little over 44 1/2 lbs.

In short, the TSA bar feels like a cheap toy compared to the PPP bar, which feels very commercial / industrial by comparison. I think the PPP bar is worth the money ($129 including shipping), even if it cost more than my entire 300lb set *including* the cheap bar.

It's still not an expensive bar, but it looks like a very good value to me.

Glad to hear its a good quality piece of american made steel. 44lbs, an actual 20KG, amazing, I'l look into this piece for a back-up bar.

[dtrrman]

I have dealt with Jesup before they are a square deal dealer.

[Dinotrainer]

Originally Posted by michaelnel

While the TSA bar has the short knurled section in the center, the PPP bar is plain in the center. I'm not sure at my level of experience if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I guess if you were doing close grip benches it would be nice to have knurling there, but since I have both bars now I could always use the TSA for that if it became an issue.

Olympic 'Power' bars designed for Powerlifting and general all around use have knurling in the center for extra 'traction' on your back when used for squatting, but knurling in the center is typically not seen on Olympic bars that are specifically made for Olympic type lifting. If need be, you can always use athletic tape in the bars middle section for extra grip.

[michaelnel]

Originally Posted by Dinotrainer

Olympic 'Power' bars designed for Powerlifting and general all around use have knurling in the center for extra 'traction' on your back when used for squatting, but knurling in the center is typically not seen on Olympic bars that are specifically made for Olympic type lifting. If need be, you can always use athletic tape in the bars middle section for extra grip.

I hadn't thought about the center knurling being used for squats. I squatted with it yesterday and didn't notice any difference there. But I tell ya what, the rest of the knurling on that bar is so sharp that I think I am glad it's not knurled where it rides on my back!

[michaelnel]

Originally Posted by dtrrman

I have dealt with Jesup before they are a square deal dealer.

They sure are. I have ordered most of the stuff I have from them and the transactions have been flawless each time.