Olympic bar

[McNamee]

I know olympic bars weigh in around 44 pounds however I have one I purchased from my neighbor who was an alternate for the 1984 US Olympic team ( for snatch ) and the bar seems heavier. The grip of the bar also seems to be of a larger diameter. I can find no markings on the bar but looks to be of good quality ( black oxide finish ). Are there olympic bars that are heavier than 44 pounds? thanks

[Rich McClain]

There are two types of Oly bars I know of. If you spin the end and it spins easy you have the better of the two. Weight should be 55#s. I had one that came with the weights which bent with 255 on it doing squats and the ends didn't spin that well. I'm not so sure about the differences in diameters. Mine are the same. One more thing. Some bumper plates are kilos only. The holes in the weights and the bar are narrower than lbs oly weights and bars.

[michaelmckenna]

Sorry I'm ressurecting a "dead" post. First off, there is no one who was an alternate to the Olymics just for the snatch. Your neighbor may well have been alternate to the Olympic team in 1984, which means he is either Mike Davis or Lou Mercado, each of whom was a 100 kg lifter: http://www.lifttilyadie.com/Results/Oly ... yYear.htm;

As for the bars, there are many types. A top quality weightlifting or powerlifting bar meets IWF Specifications (weightlifting) http://www.iwf.net/doc/technical.pdf or IPF Specs (powerlifting)http://www.rmlccolorado.com/images/IPF_rulebook_05_2009.pdf. Powerlifting bars have a different knurling pattern than weightlifting bars.

If you were sold an Eleiko, Werksan, Ivanko, or older York Bar, you would know because the name brand is probably stamped on the end of the bar. There are some other IWF certified brands, or other brands which meet IWF specs and are not certified (Pendlay Bars, for instance, and some of the Rogue bars). Again, the names of these bars is usually emblazoned on the bar in some fashon. Uesaka also makes an IWF certified bar, and I mention them (and Rogue), specifically because they make a block oxide bar.

The sleeves of nice bars are needle bearing bars (York elite, Eleiko, Werksan, some Rogiue bars, pendlay): the sleeve of the bar rotates around the core bar on a series of needle bearings (like ball bearings, but needle shaped). Uesaka makes the finesy quality bushing bar; that is, the sleeves rotate on a brash bushing around the basic bar.

The diameter of all IWF/IPF certified bars is 28 mm. That is pretty thin, and the steel required to make such a bar is very expensive. Most of these bars have a tensile strength upwards of 170,000 psi before they break; Eleiko will have, usually, 190,000 psi or better. All IWF/IPF certified bars weigh 20 kg (44 pounds). The diameter of an inexpensive bar is usually thicker than 28 mm, usually 30 mm, since the steel used is cheap and, therefore, needs to made thicker to withstand heavier weights.

Because these bars are milled to specifications, the plates designed for these bars are also made to strict specifications. So, an eleiko or Werksan plate, and the old York Elite plates, will fit tightly around the end of the bar, and will not fit the regular exercise bars that are made cheaply (the diameter of the outer sleeve of a bar is just under 2 inches, so that a cheap bar will not accept IWF spec'd plates, as a cheap bar will probably have a 2 inch diameter.

There are several bars made and sold by companies in the US, including Ironmind, Sorinex, and EliteFTS which are purposefully thicker than a regular Olympic Bar and which weigh more than 20 kg/ 45 pounds. Some of these may be block oxide. Ironind has a bar which is 55 pounds and has a 32 mm diameter, I believe. I have their buffalo bar, which is the same diameter.

The easiest way to tell if you have a nice bar or a cheap bar is the sleeve attachment. If there is a hex screw right on the end, your bar is probably cheaper, thicker, and may weigh anything around 45 pounds, give or take four or five pounds. I know of none of the nicer, bigger bars made by Ironmind, etc. which are black oxide, though some of them do have hex screw connections. If you take some pictures, we can better help you.