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Starting to build a home gym - Looking for advice
Well I have been on the fence for a few months about whether or not I want to pull the trigger on building a home gym and I have finally decided that its the way to go. I'm tired of working out at the YMCA and having to wait for one of the two power racks, or the looks I get as I hog one of the racks.
I purchased my first piece of equipment today. A used (but in very good shape) Rogue Bolt Together utility bench, which I scored for $80. Remaining pieces of equipment I need:
Necessity
Power Rack
Barbell
Weights
Wants: Can add later
Dip attachment
Mono lifts
Platform for Rack/Deadlift area (This I will build myself at some point with horse stall matts and plywood)
(Will add more wants as I think of things)
Power Rack
I've been looking now for 3+ months for a solid good quality used power rack, I've been looking mostly at Craigslist and facebook marketplace. No luck so far. I really love the thought of the Rogue RM-6 Monster Rack and I'm leaning towards buying this brand new from Rogue. I do not have a garage, so this would need to be setup in my basement. My only concern is that my basement Ceiling is 85.5" floor to drop ceiling and 90.5" floor to rafters. There is a section of my basement that isn't finished, so its concrete floor and rafters, this is probably where I will setup. If I get the 90" RM-6, will having just half an inch of room to spare be too tight? Will it impact doing pull-ups? Also at some point (probably 2+ years from now) I plan on renovating the entire basement. At that point the concrete floor will be covered and a ceiling put into place. I know Rogue sells a shorty version of the R-3 rack, I wonder if I'm better off going with that rack? I just love the look of the RM-6. Plus I have two young boys that I'd love to train and workout with some number of years down the road. I'm thinking a bigger rack would be better. Another potential option might be for me to contact Rogue and see if they will cut down the RM-6 by 6 inches, basically making it a RM-6 shorty.
Barbell
Whats the best general purpose barbell I should buy? One that I can use for both bench and deadlift etc? The B&R Bar 2.0? Maybe at some point down the line I buy another barbell more specific for Power Cleans and Deadlifts.
Weights
This is the part that kind of kills me to buy brand new since weight is...well just weight. But in the used market I'm seeing brands I never heard of (who knows how accurate), really old rusted plates, and I've seen some rogue bumper plates. If I'm only going to get one type of plates (Iron Vs. Bumper), what am I better off getting? Am I crazy to just buy the weights brand new? The thought of spending $1K or so on just the weights makes me a cringe a bit. I don't mind spending the money on other things (Rack, Bar etc)...
I know I'm probably over thinking all of this. Thank you for any help, guidance etc. It will be greatly appreciated.
Joe
Last edited by JLB105; 08-10-2017 at 09:40 AM.
✓ Member
Check out the garage gym thread, you'll see a lot of this discussed in depth. Don't get too hung up on the weights. As long as they're heavy and will stay on the bar, you're fine. Get a stall mat to absorb impact if they're all iron. You can always weight them to be sure of what they actually weight.
cwd
Yup, garage gym thread. Every topic you mention here is in it, it's huge.
Member
Rack: I see no value added in those big-ass Rogue racks. Lots of folks here use a simple Titan:Originally Posted by JLB105
https://www.titan.fitness/hd-power-rack.html
Bar: Yup, B&R 2.0
Weights: If buying used, look for milled plates (you'll see swirls in the back of the plate). Milled plates are usually accurate to within +/- 2%. Non-milled plates can vary wildly from stated weight.
Member
Wow...Not sure why I didn't think of looking at Titan. Just figured Rogue was the best and the way to go. I can save some serious money (over $1,000) going with a Titan rack. Do you see any benefit of going with a bigger T6 rack over a T3? Maybe its possible to make 2 work stations out of a T6 rack? So 2 people could be doing two different things at same time (Bench in the back, squat/press in the front? Any other benefit to having the bigger setup?
And they sell a shorty version of all their racks which has a height of 82", which would fit very nicely in my basement (even after I do a potential future renovation)
Last edited by JLB105; 08-10-2017 at 10:53 AM.
Member
You could probably get 2 stations on a single T3. Just spit safeties out either side.
Member
Did you borrow Kenny Croxdale's post template?
Member
Don't know who that is....but I'm guessing I'd like him :-)
Member
Depending on your space you may look for a squat stand instead of a rack. A serious squat stand (like Rogue's SML-2) will be more compact than a full rack, but still have everything you need, including spotter arms for benching and the pull up bar.
That said, the Titan rigs look nice, and appear to be a bargain.
Last edited by hector_garza; 08-10-2017 at 01:40 PM.
Member
Headers not redundant enough.
Doesn't say the same thing twice.
-hollismb
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