DIY Equipment

[Clay Simczyk]

I think I started one of those previous DIY threads. Here's my barbell rack for those of you who have less wall space:

Instagram

[MBasic]

I think I started one of those previous DIY threads. Here's my barbell rack for those of you who have less wall space:

Instagram

that's a cool rack.

But as an aside (has really nothing to do with the rack) my gym stores bars this way,
hanging from the sleeve collar vertically . . .but near the platforms.

Funniest thing, they have the Cheap 32mm bar with the huge Hex/allen bolt in the end.

So basically, every time a bar-bell was dropped, the Allen bolt would turn just a little bit.
The threads being pulled "down hill" by the weight of the bar. . . coupled with the vibrations.
I was using the adjacent platform, and then the bar came crashing down, like a ghost did it.
Big glass window right there . . .up on the 2nd story too. They're lucky nothing serious happens.

The sleeve was still hanging there, balancing ontop of the hook/rack.
It took a while for everybody to figure what happened.

No one uses those bars, because they're crap, so must've been hanging there for quite a while.
Most likely, the bar was put up there with the bolt loose I'm sure . . . but it backed ALL the way out.

As I said above, I'm not poo-poo-ing on your rack . . .
that scenario can only happen with those shitty bars + commercial gym (high volume of dropped deads and cleans, etc)

Was just funny.

[Clay Simczyk]

Ha! Yeah, the first bar is a B&R and the rest are crap and just there because I don't want to throw them out or sell them used to some unsuspecting sucker.

[Moorefoodnow]

I made a DL jack out of wood and prettied it up! I included the sketches I used for the original wood design!

It is a pleasure to use and only weighs about 3lbs.

Stain and fancy stuff optional.

[sbrl_19]

I made a DL jack out of wood and prettied it up! I included the sketches I used for the original wood design!

It is a pleasure to use and only weighs about 3lbs.

Stain and fancy stuff optional.

This is awesome. Thanks for sharing. I have a DIY DL in progress now but it’s much crappier design. I built what’s basically a proof concept to see if it would work and it does, so I was going to do another other one with more refined cuts and a few changes for better balance etc but I might scrap it an use your design!!

[sbrl_19]

It doesn’t have any balance issues? That’s one of the issues with my mock up - seems like it would benefit from being wider.

[Moorefoodnow]

It doesn’t have any balance issues? That’s one of the issues with my mock up - seems like it would benefit from being wider.

No major balance issues for me. A little wobble if I really slam a plate on but I agree it would be better if it was wider!

[sbrl_19]

No major balance issues for me. A little wobble if I really slam a plate on but I agree it would be better if it was wider!

I made it today and it’s glorious. Need to clean it up some more and I want to stain it but not sure when i’ll get to that. Won’t be today. Thanks again.

What did you use for your graphic?

[Moorefoodnow]

I made it today and it’s glorious. Need to clean it up some more and I want to stain it but not sure when i’ll get to that. Won’t be today. Thanks again.

What did you use for your graphic?

Very cool man! Cleaning it up took me forever. Sanding the handle smooth was especially time consuming.

I used a die cut vinyl sticker and put an extra coat of polyurethane over top of it!

[TomF]

Being cheap, I built a squat rack. Laminated the posts from three 2x4s each, the middle one with strategically placed gaps where the rails or pins (heavy wall 1" square pipe) go through. The tops and bottoms of the posts are glued mortise/tenon jointed (full size of middle 2x4 of the posts) into other bits of construction lumber which are themselves lag bolted to ceiling and floor joists, respectively. The lowest setting for my bench press safety bars is actually 2x4's fixed permanently between the posts with joist hangers. The front posts have a 1" pipe permanently fixed between them for chinups, set in friction-fit holes drilled through 2 layers of those triple 2x4 posts, assembled before the posts were fixed into final position. Then either diagonal braces were added, or construction metal plates screwed into place across joints to ensure that everything remained stiff and plumb.

I've been lifting in this for close on a decade, racking barbells into the mid 300s. Solid.

Yeah, I know Rip's comment about not liking wooden squat racks for the same reason he doesn't like wooden cars. And yeah, a C-channel Rip rack would be better - but I can't weld. A Rogue rack would be better too, but I had kids to raise on one household income. Bottom line for me is that if someone has construction experience, utterly over builds the shit out of something so that it looks more like timber framing than a stud wall, most of us can make something that will hold more than we ever will. It was, for me, the choice that enabled me to invest in a decent bar, and actually get underway. And though I could now replace it, there is no need.

Note. This is not a post advocating sticking a couple of 2x4s into 5 gallon buckets of cement, and calling them squat stands. I had my kids lifting in this thing, and was not interested in crippling them.