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Thread: Is black iron pipe strong enough for spotter bars?

  1. #1
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    Default Is black iron pipe strong enough for spotter bars?

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    I'm in the process of figuring out how/if I want to build a power rack for my home gym, and have come across several designs that use black iron pipe (often only 3/4" in diameter) for the spotter bars. Maybe I'm underestimating how strong they are, but that doesn't seem strong enough to be able to handle the hundreds of pounds that could potentially be sitting on them. Especially since the cylindrical bar and cylindrical pipe would concentrate the stress on a single point. Does anyone have experience with putting large amounts of weight on these pipes? How much can they hold?

  2. #2
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    What’s the pipe wall thickness?

  3. #3
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    May 2020
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    They will do the job depending on how heavy the weight and how quickly it’s moving. If you’re talking about a bench press that simply didn’t go back up and you need to set it down, you’ll probably be fine unless it’s several hundred pounds.

  4. #4
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    Jan 2018
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    No the pipe alone is definitely not strong enough pipe is rated for burst strength only

    Now sliding a piece of pipe over a correctly sized cold rolled steel pin does spread the impact load if you drop a bar on it but they are a pain to use


    Drill bigger holes and use 1 inch or 1-1/8 th inch cold rolled steel pins

  5. #5
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    Aug 2020
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    Your best and safest option is going to a local steel supplier and buying some 3/4" solid steel rod from their scrap, and have cut to whatever length you need to fit in your rack, then welding some large 3/4" fender washers with like a 2" OD, onto the ends for the stop.

  6. #6
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    3/4-inch 1018 will bend the first time anything is dropped on it. You'll need 1.25".

  7. #7
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    Back when I was still new to the trade, I welded up a pair of Bending Dogs (levers) and used 1” regular black pipe (Schedule 40) for the 4' arms. They bent the first time I used them, and that was my arm strength alone. Note: When you build a curved railing, you have to bend them to correct the helix that happens when you bend a spiral.

  8. #8
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    Jan 2021
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    Lubbock, TX
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    I think you are probably referring to the "Buff Dudes" youtube channel design that a lot of people are building. I'm thinking of building the same one with some modifications. You are right to be skeptical of the pipe safety pins and I also think that is the only flaw in their design. They are using 60" of pipe and there's no way that is not bending on the first impact that is not a gentle resting of the barbell. However, their pipe J-hooks are shown in another video to rack over 1000lbs with no issue. I think it is due to the lack of length in that application making it stronger. The pipe also works fine as a pullup/chinup bar. If I build this thing, I'm using 1" diameter cold rolled steel 1018 rods instead that I can source locally pretty easily. It may interest you that I found these set screw collars on Amazon that may work well as a stop on the steel rod, saving you from having to contract a welder to weld on washers.
    Amazon.com
    I'll post if they work out for me if I wind up building this rack. I'm also going to decrease the depth of the rack as I think 43" is way more than necessary, which will reduce the cost of the steel pins as they don't need to be as long. Shorter should be stronger as well.

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