Best Olympic bar?

[rm41400]

I have a standard 500# rated Troy bar that was included in a weight set I bought. Since high quality bars are not cheap ($150- $250) I was thinking about saving for one of these before I exceeded my existing bars raiting.

Who makes the best overall olympic bar rated 800# or higher? Give me a reccomendation for one that is in black oxide. I would prefer input from people who have personally used one or own one. Thanks!

Here is a good link for BB

http://www.dumbbellbuddy.com/index_p...c_regular.html

[dtrrman]

http://www.eleikosport.se/eng/Page.asp?PageNumber=48

probably the best made, I own one of their bars, an 80's vintage

http://www.ivanko.com/cgi-bin/produc...mm&subcat=bars

Also top notch quality.

York makes some good bars, in black or chrome. yorkbarbell.com I have a york competition bar frm the 70's, lots of spring in it.


DeMarco makes some quality US made bars:

http://64.233.179.104/search?q=cache...&ct=clnk&cd=10


I own one of each and fell comfortable with the quality and safety and don't fool around with bar quality. If a bar breaks with some serious weight on it some serious damage can occur, so no chances do i take. The eleiko training bar is strongly reccomended by some top experts as one the best affordable and safe bars to use for serious lifters The texas power bar is also a good quality item. Bear in mind Eleiko is probably the best and the prices reflect it, especially the competition series which go over a $1000 easily. If your doing any Olympic lifting involving dropping, don't fool around and get a top quality bar. The cheap bars with sportstore type sets have a tendency to break just before where the bar goes into the plate holding sleeves.

some other bar and equipment manufacturers to look at:

http://www.dynamic-eleiko.com/ US distributor of eleiko equipment
http://www.werksanusa.com/
http://www.uesaka.co.jp/
http://www.mavrikbarbell.com/

[Dinotrainer]

I have a standard 500# rated Troy bar that was included in a weight set I bought. Since high quality bars are not cheap ($150- $250) I was thinking about saving for one of these before I exceeded my existing bars raiting.

Who makes the best overall olympic bar rated 800# or higher? Give me a reccomendation for one that is in black oxide. I would prefer input from people who have personally used one or own one. Thanks!

Here is a good link for BB

http://www.dumbbellbuddy.com/index_p...c_regular.html

Get a "Texas power bar". The bar itself is black oxide, and the sleeves are polished steel. No junky, flaky chrome, and it's made in the U.S.A. It's rated for 1500 pounds, and is used in competitions all the time. What more could you ask for??? . Oh, and did I mention I LOVE mine, and use it all the time?

[smokeater]

Get a "Texas power bar". The bar itself is black oxide, and the sleeves are polished steel. No junky, flaky chrome, and it's made in the U.S.A. It's rated for 1500 pounds, and is used in competitions all the time. What more could you ask for??? . Oh, and did I mention I LOVE mine, and use it all the time?

The Texas Power Bar is the one used in Ronnie Coleman's famous 800lb squat video. Just for those who don't know.

[rm41400]

First of all, thanks all for the input!

However, I dont see myself intentionally dropping weight or anything like that. So with that in mind and the fact I probably will never have a single lift greater than say maybe 700# is it worth getting the Texas power bar or another like it rated at 1500#? With my specific lifting goals (700# or less lifts) in mind do you think one of these would be as good a choice but a little more economical? Besides black oxide and the weight rating the only other feature that seems important may be having bearings in the sleeves.

I kinda think maybe this would be the high end of the market for me (unless there are some other features I am missing)

http://www.dumbbellbuddy.com/bars_tr..._aob1200b.html

this one is rated @ the same as the texas power bar and $50.00 less

http://www.dumbbellbuddy.com/bars_tr..._aob1500b.html

http://www.dumbbellbuddy.com/bars_ca...ar_ob86pb.html

This one looks nice

http://www.dumbbellbuddy.com/bars_ha...lk_ib867b.html

[dtrrman]

heres a couple of good articles on bars and their makeup and for choosing.
slanted towards Ivanko, but the overall info is good for any choice.


http://www.gmv.com.au/default.asp?pa...&cnid=4&site=1

http://www.gmv.com.au/default.asp?pa...&cnid=4&site=1

[dtrrman]

http://ivanko.com/article5.pdf

Good info on bar breaking.

[j_neatherlin]

Get a "Texas power bar". The bar itself is black oxide, and the sleeves are polished steel. No junky, flaky chrome, and it's made in the U.S.A. It's rated for 1500 pounds, and is used in competitions all the time. What more could you ask for??? . Oh, and did I mention I LOVE mine, and use it all the time?

my vote is for a Texas power bar as well

[Dinotrainer]

First of all, thanks all for the input!

However, I dont see myself intentionally dropping weight or anything like that. So with that in mind and the fact I probably will never have a single lift greater than say maybe 700# is it worth getting the Texas power bar or another like it rated at 1500#? With my specific lifting goals (700# or less lifts) in mind do you think one of these would be as good a choice but a little more economical? Besides black oxide and the weight rating the only other feature that seems important may be having bearings in the sleeves.

I kinda think maybe this would be the high end of the market for me (unless there are some other features I am missing)

http://www.dumbbellbuddy.com/bars_tr..._aob1200b.html

this one is rated @ the same as the texas power bar and $50.00 less

http://www.dumbbellbuddy.com/bars_tr..._aob1500b.html

http://www.dumbbellbuddy.com/bars_ca...ar_ob86pb.html

This one looks nice

http://www.dumbbellbuddy.com/bars_ha...lk_ib867b.html

All of those bars look good, with the "Cap" brand bar being my least favorite. I have a couple of "Cap" brand bars, and while they are actually more than adequate for their use, there's just something "special" about the look and feel of the higher quality bars. By the way, I have seen the genuine "Texas power bar" for sale as recently as this past summer for just $200 with shipping included, so it's possible deals like that, or near it, are still around if you look.

[Dinotrainer]

heres a couple of good articles on bars and their makeup and for choosing.
slanted towards Ivanko, but the overall info is good for any choice.


http://www.gmv.com.au/default.asp?pa...&cnid=4&site=1

http://www.gmv.com.au/default.asp?pa...&cnid=4&site=1

Excellent links all around. Thanks

[rm41400]

Thanks dtrrman for the good articles. I did read them, and in the future I may drop some big bucks ($300 -$700) for an elieko or equal.

For now though I ordered the "Texas Power Bar" from PFC for $200.00. This was the best price I could find anywhere and I have had a good experience with them before.

http://www.pfc-fitness.com/index.cfm...ower%20Bar.htm

and

this Troy bar

http://www.pfc-fitness.com/index.cfm...Curl%20Bar.htm

They combined shipping and my total was only $290.00 shipping and all. Thanks again for everyones help! I will let you know what I think when I get em.

[dtrrman]

Looks like good stuff, the texas power bar is a good choice.

[John Hicks]

The Texas Power Bar is the one used in Ronnie Coleman's famous 800lb squat video. Just for those who don't know.

If you wanted a top-notch squat bar, check out IronMind... they have one especially made for squatting called the Buffalo Bar. It's expensive ($349 plus $65 S&H), but then anything worth it usually is!

[rm41400]

If you wanted a top-notch squat bar, check out IronMind... they have one especially made for squatting called the Buffalo Bar. It's expensive ($349 plus $65 S&H), but then anything worth it usually is!

If anyone is interested in this bar check ebay right now.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Iron-Mind-Squat-...QQcmdZViewItem

It is currently at $150.00 + shipping. It could be a great deal if someone wants a squat only bar.

[C Man]

Looks like someone didn't take very good care of their bar. Probably clean up ok though.

[dtrrman]

The discoloring on the one end looks like a repair weld, I would be careful on this one.

[muscleboy14]

http://troybarbell.ericsgym.com/olym...rbar/index.htm
Has a 1500lb weight capacity

[GhettoWorkout]

What's the best and cheapest bar that can support 300 lbs that I can buy?

Like what's the price range?

[david4zero8]

Get a "Texas power bar". The bar itself is black oxide, and the sleeves are polished steel. No junky, flaky chrome, and it's made in the U.S.A. It's rated for 1500 pounds, and is used in competitions all the time. What more could you ask for??? . Oh, and did I mention I LOVE mine, and use it all the time?

I second the texas power bar for “bang for the buck.” The only thing you have to watch out for is the light surface rust that can occur around the knurling if you do not use the bar everyday or do not wipe down the bar after every use. The knurling is a little too "fine," wears down rather quickly [personally i like the feel of a courser knurling], but the use of chalk can help with both cases listed above.

[rm41400]

What's the best and cheapest bar that can support 300 lbs that I can buy?

Like what's the price range?

Most all the cheap olympic bars should be rated for that. My Troy kit bar from a 300# set wast rated @ 500#. The set was about $150.00.