Using a nice bar in a shitty rack

[AdamW]

Hey coach, just a quick question. My setup at home isn't great and first things first I'm looking to replace my barbell. Currently have one of those cheap piece of shit hex bolt bars they sell as part of sets.

My rack is pretty awful, but I can't afford to replace it any time in the near future. The big concern for me is the J-Hook design. Rather than being a wide cup that the bar sits in, it's a very narrow hook that hits the bar over a very small surface area.



I'm 99% sure I'm being a nitpicky bitch but I thought I would ask anyways, is re-racking the bar on these shitty hooks going to damage the bar over time or will it be alright? $300 on a new bar is a significant investment for me and obviously I'd like to take care of it the best I can.

Thanks Rip!

[Mark Rippetoe]

Good question, actually. These hooks won't hurt the shafty of the bar itself, but all that weight on a small surface area interface will definitely mar the knurl. Can you get these fixed at a welding shop?

[Convectuoso07]

Maybe a short term fix, but you could probably pad them with something like pipe insulation and duct tape.

[John Bono]

Wrap the hooks in enough duct tape so it acts like a cushion.

[skipbeat]

those pins look god awful to use my friend. i'm in a similar situation, my rack is built like shit and i can't use safeties for any of the lifts (holes don't go down far enough, 2 inches between them, bar hits them during squat, etc..). i just broke my $80 barbell, i dumped it off my back in the hole and the sleeve cracked in half lol. i'm looking for a new bar but i'm not sure if i want to buy a nice durable one, i'll probably buy another shitty one so i can fuck that one up too until i get a better rack. i don't have bumpers and i'm pretty rough with the cleans, so i'm bound to bend the bar regardless

[AdamW]

Thanks for the insight, glad I asked. I will look into it and see if I can get these modified somehow, they could stand to have a much shorter lip as well.

[Mac Ward]

Knurl on my zinc coated bars is worn down on the ends where they sit in a standard rack and rub against the metal. Get rubber or some sort of hardened plastic to cover that metal on your rack. Not sure how it would attach, but not doing so will destroy the knurling for sure. If you're a tall guy like me, that spot will be right at your snatch grip if your rack is wide. My wife and I have bars that NEVER go in racks for this reason.

[Mark Rippetoe]

Wrap the hooks in enough duct tape so it acts like a cushion.

That will last for about 3 re-rackings at 250+. The problem is the psi on the knurl due to the small surface area.

[AdamW]

Rip do you have any problems with this sort of thing using your round pins? It's technically even more PSI on the infinitely small surface of the pin it would be touching but maybe being round avoids the issue somehow. If so I could probably come up with a fix by drilling out the holes in my rack so they go through both sides and have bolts fashioned up.

[Michael Loucas]

My rack is kind of similar to that, its gunrack style and I didn't realize until too late how badly it messes up knurling. Luckily though I've only done it to my texas power bar that I bought off craigslist for cheap. Its already beyond saving so I don't even worry about it anymore and I don't snatch with it anyway. I just make sure I keep my bushing and bearing bar off the rack. When I move to a place with taller ceilings (or a garage I can use) I'm going to buy a much better one.

This is exactly what it looks like (mine is white):

GPR3702.jpg