There are many things you should know to choose the right weightlifting barbell for your strength training. In this article, I will list all the features of a barbell. You can pick the best barbell for home gym after reading.
What is Olympic Barbell?
Olympic barbell vs standard barbell
Olympic barbells are installed with 2 inch (50mm) sleeves. You need to use it with 2 inch ( 50mm) olympic barbell weight plates. They’re heavier than standard barbells and can load more weight. Nowadays, almost all commercial gyms and most home gym users choose olympic barbells.
Types of Olympic Barbell
Introduction based on usage
Olympic weightlifting Barbells
It’s designed for weightlifting exercises like Snatch ,Clean and Jerk….
The standard weightlifting barbell size is 220 cm in length, 20 kg in weight, 28mm in shaft diameter. It’s with IWF knurling mark and installed with needle bearings.
Powerlifting Barbells
It’s designed for Power Barbell Training exercises like Squat, Bench Press , Deadlift….
The standard powerlifting barbell size is 220 cm in length, 20 kg in weight, 29 mm in shaft diameter. It’s with IPF knurling mark and installed with bushing.
Multi Purpose Hybrid Barbells
It’s designed for multi purpose and gym Crossfit barbell training.
The hybrid barbell size is 220 cm in length, 20 kg in weight, 28 mm or 28.5 mm in shaft diameter. It’s with IPF and IWF knurling marks and normally installed with needle bearings.
Specialty Barbells
It’s designed for special training. For example: easy curl ez bar for bicep training,hex barbell for deadlift，squat barbell for squat… Bucks Sports offers a wide range of specialty Bars, including squat bar with handles,deadlift barbell,dumbbell barbell,shorty barbell,cambered barbell,swiss barbell, axle barbell, curling bar, duffalo bar,kids barbell,buffalo barbell,technique barbell,tsunami barbell,benchpress bar,oso mini bar, bamboo barbell….
Olympic Barbells Structure
Bushing Olympic Barbell
Bushings installed in the sleeves which make the sleeves more stable and withstand drop. It’s made for heavy weight exercises which don’t need fast spinning like squat, bench press and deadlift.
Needle Bearing Olympic Barbell
Needle bearings installed in the sleeves which make the sleeves spinning fast and smooth without any stuck. It’s made for exercises which need fast spinning like clean and jerk.
Knurling for the Olympic Barbells
Knurl Mark
Powerlifting Knurl- the distance between the marks is 810 mm
Weightlifting Knurl- the distance between the marks is 910 mm
Knurling Patterns
Hill knurling：It’s a rhombus pattern with a flat and smooth surface. It’s mostly used for all the regular olympic barbells.
Mountain knurling： It’s like a mountain summit with a sharp point on the top. It provides great grip. But it hurts your hands a lot. Only used for professional powerlifting bars.
Volcano knurling: It’s actually an improved version of the mountain knurling. There is a hole in the middle of the top point. In this way, it doesn’t hurt your hand a lot while providing enough grip.
Dimensions of Olympic Barbells
Olympic barbell weight
Men’s Olympic Barbell weighs 20kg
Women’s Olympic Barbell weighs 15kg
Olympic barbell length
4ft 5ft 6ft 7ft olympic barbell, so many sizes for the barbell. Which one to buy?
Here is the mostly used size:
Men’s Olympic Barbell length is 220 cm (7 ft / 86 in )
Women’s Olympic Barbell weighs 201cm (6.5 ft )
Olympic barbell diameter
The diameter of the sleeves are 50mm
Men’s Olympic Barbell shaft diameter is normally 28mm, 28.5mm, 29mm
Junior’s Barbell and Women’s Olympic Barbell shaft diameter is 25mm
Olympic Barbell Finish
Here are the most barbell surface treatments you can see on the market.
Benefits and defects.
Silver Color Olympic Barbell
Chrome Barbell: most economic. Grip feeling not good.
Hard Chrome Barbell: durable, not much , highly recommended.
Bright Zinc Barbell: close to hard chrome, has a yellow color feeling.
Stainless Steel Barbell : durable, best in anti rust, too expensive.
Black Color Olympic Barbell :
Black Oxide Barbell: best grip feeling on knurling,very close to bare steel. easy to rust.
Black Phosphate Barbell: It’s a matte black powder feeling coating very close to cerakote.
Black Zinc Barbell: shiny black. Durable and anti rust.
QBQ (Quench Polish Quench): It’s the most durable and anti rust black coating ,but expensive.
Other Color Olympic Barbell :
Cerakote Barbell : colorful , anti rust, nice grip feeling, expensive
Gold Barbell (Titanium plating) ：nice gold color, anti rust.expensive
Oxide: for aluminium barbells，colorful.
Olympic Barbell Tensile Strength and Max Load.
Tensile strength represents the maximum stress the barbell can endure while being pulled or stretched.The Max load defines the limits within which the barbell can be safely used.
Here is a rough idea for your reference:
Max Load 1000 lb barbell has a tensile strength of 150,000 PSI
Max Load 1500 lb barbell has a tensile strength of 190,000 PSI
Max Load 2000 lb barbell has a tensile strength of 210,000 PSI
What decides the Olympic Barbell Price？
The main points which decide the price of olympic barbells are loading capacity and finish. Here is a rough idea for your reference.
For Loading Capacity: 2000 lb ＞ 1500 b ＞ 1000 lb ＞ 500 lb
For Surface Treatment: Stainless Steel ＞Cerakote ＞ Hard Chrome ＞Chrome
Conclusion
If you are a personal buyer , With the information above, you can choose the right olympic bar according to your budget and your training purpose.
If you are a distributor or brand owner, Buck Sports is an experienced Chinese Barbell Factory in China, we custom barbell as your design. We can recommend the best fit for your market. Feel free to contact us.
