It Doesn’t Matter What Barbell You Buy For Your Home Gym

Buying a barbell for your home gym can be a nightmare. With literal thousands of options to dig through, trying to pick the right knurling, coating, length, diameter, sleeve style, bar type, and more can quickly turn into a never-ending homework assignment.
Today I’m going to walk through a little science experiment that I think will help alleviate some of that burden, and give you my recommendation on how to choose a barbell for your home gym.
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Audio / Video Credits
Intro
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Outro
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[@GrayMatterLifting]

If you played along with the intro test, you rock! Have some discount codes for your next garage gym purchase: graymatterlifting.com/garage-gym-equipment-discount-codes/

[@BasementBrandon]

My entire life is a lie.

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@BasementBrandon no arguments here my friend 😁

[@aghoover]

Don’t let your wife watch this

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@aghoover lol

[@davidb1975a]

🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@TheKurtlocker]

A good knurl makes all the difference and is something that typically separates the good from the bad

[@davorzdralo8000]

No, it doesn't. Anyone lifting heavy should be using straps, gloves etc. If Ronnie Coleman could use gloves, so can you. Keep the macho bullshit away. And knurling is irrelevant if you use any of those.

[@michaelbbarefoot]

If you’re competing in powerlifting it absolutely matters.

[@TJMcDVM]

Planet Stank-WantTo Fitness over here. My first legit barbell was also $50 used from an old gym. Did the job for all the lifts including Oly for over a year. Only downside was the oxidation left on my hands, shirt, and shorts after every session. Great video as usual!

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@TJMcDVM yeah the cheapo bar already shows signs of rust

[@carps_gym]

Had a guy ask me if deadlifting inside the rack is possible. I said I have done it a few times, but Joe Gray lives in there! If he can we can!

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@carps_gym not my favorite life choice, but it works. And the space to dedicate a platform elsewhere is just not in the cards.

[@larryperchick5399]

Super timely and helpful video for me as I'm putting together my first home gym. Thank you!

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@larryperchick5399 you bet! Any questions let me know.

[@patch14s1]

Greatest piece of advice. "Just buy a bar."

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@patch14s1 yep! Just buy one and use it.

[@kidbrown2010]

My gym has shit bars with no knurling and I have a bar at home with better but still shit knurling. It takes the enjoyment out of the lift. I would never spend a fortune on a bar, but I do hope to buy the BOS Barbell. I think you don't need the bar to be expensive, but for enjoyment factor it's just better if it's not cheapest one.

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@kidbrown2010 I'm with ya there. The BoS BareNaked Bar is a solid choice.

[@TonyNovation]

I identify as a medium volcano knurl stainless steel barbell with bushings, 45 lbs. Don't you dare call me 20 kgs.

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@TonyNovation deal

[@Grumpyoldman666]

Well to be fair, I’ve bent several beginner basic bars doing both squats and deadlifts. If you’re maxing out under 400 pounds absolutely any bar is fine. Once your crossing over 500 on dead’s and squats then bar wobble and permanently bending bars is a reality.

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@Grumpyoldman666 totally possible. My goal here wasn't exactly to say, hey I squatted 500lbs with this bar, so you can too. It was more saying, it held on fine. And MOST people will never squat over 350lbs. So they'd be fine all day long.

[@Grumpyoldman666]

@@GrayMatterLifting Oh I get that buddy, just trying to temper people’s expectations with a budget bar vs the reality of you kinda get what you pay for too

[@hartzogLovesScience]

You didn’t give a hard test for someone lifting on and off since the 1980s. For the past few decades, my bar was a solid steel bar, not a barbell. It worked!

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@hartzogLovesScience my legit first "bar" was a steel pipe from Home Depot lol .. so I feel ya.

[@BaldurNorddahl]

About 25 years ago I bought a barbell and then used it only for a very short while before it got stored in a shed. About a year ago the doctor told me to get lifting or get diabetes. The bar was found slightly rusty. It went through some rust removal and I have been using it 2-3 times a week since. While it has served me well, I will probably get a better bar soon. The knurling is very passive and it is also 21.4 kg instead of 20 kg. All marks of being a cheap bar, but I did not know any better back then. Please remember that while I can't lift any impressive weight, my grip is also weak, so I am having trouble during deadlift. I feel that a better knurl is the way to go so I can avoid chalk and straps for a while.

[@davorzdralo8000]

You shouldn't be avoiding them. Deadlift is not a grip exercise. You should try to take the grip out of the equation completely.

[@GymCrafter]

Solid video! Lots of people need to see this. That said, I'll think I'll go buy a couple more bars now!😂

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@GymCrafter I mean, I'm gonna do like 3 months worth of videos on cable attachments in 2025. For no valid reason I just spent close to $1,000 on cable attachments after already filling up 6 wall control boards with attachments... So, yeah 😁

[@GymCrafter]

@@GrayMatterLifting Looking forward to it! I think I'll end up with a single stack soon and will need some good attachments Really enjoying the channel. It's fun to watch all of the smaller (for now) channels like ours try to figure out what to show and review since Gluck and Coop have the big stuff on lock down. I also really appreciate the "how to go about building a garage gym" content. It really helps people, and since there aren't a lot of affiliate commissions involved in that type of video, you don't see many people making them.

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@GymCrafter agreed. The good news is, I'm not even personally interested in most of the big stuff. They can keep the 7000th barbell, adjustable bench, and rack variant. It doesn't do anything for me. I know there is a lot of money there cause it's the basics that everyone buys, but I just personally don't care. And if I'm not interested, I can't do a quality video. So I'll keep rocking with stuff I find interesting and want to talk about, and hope others find it interesting and helpful. And yeah, the videos that might be the most helpful are also the least lucrative lol . Weird how, you get deeper in the realm of it all and start to notice trends with certain channels.

[@GymCrafter]

@@GrayMatterLifting Great approach. I've always loved an old Zig Ziglar saying, "You can have everything you want in life if you just help enough other people get what they want." It's clear when people are putting money first. And tbh, even if you and I did review all that big stuff, our click through rate is next to nothing because people buy through those other channels anyway, or go direct to the mfr. Can't wait for your attachment vids! I'm looking to add a single stack to the gym and I know the attachments are what make or break that kind of gear.

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@GymCrafter yeah especially when they are so fast. Their videos are out a couple days after things launch. I can't do that. Which makes it even less of a want to do what "everyone else is doing".

[@path4061]

I feel much more stable squatting with my $300 29mm power bar (center knurling) vs my cheapie $125 28mm barbell (no center knurling). I always deadlift with my cheapie bar because the power bar just bites too much for heavy deadlifting. My cheapie is 10 years old and I need to do much more maintenance on it vs my cerakote powerbar (but that is only 1 year old). I would have been fine with just the cheapie, but I like to spoil myself with semi-nice stuff sometimes.

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@path4061 totally fair. And everyone is going to find their personal like for knurling and what not. I'm not a super aggressive knurling fan personally, but for deadlifts I need some more bite.

[@ChrisCoul]

I have 2 cap beast. One was free the other I got in a weight set off Amazon. Been using them 4-6 days a week for a year and a half. Idk anything about barbells but they seem fine to me.

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@ChrisCoul that used to be the budget recommendation when I started my home gym. I think they stopped making them for awhile or did something different with the production. But otherwise, still a solid bar.

[@NoFate247]

45 lb bar dominating on the price to performance chart.....plus most of us normal humans aren't lifting super human weight like you

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@NoFate247 nailed it dude. Love me a good bar. But at the end of the day, you can get by with an ultra budget bar and it'll work.

[@NoFate247]

@@GrayMatterLifting I base my bar buying on the colors it comes in

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@NoFate247 honestly, at this point, it probably works.

[@InsaneCrazy255]

One of each barbell please

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@InsaneCrazy255 deal!

[@stealthassasin1day291]

I figured it out on 0:01 which bar cost what but I watch too many gym videos of barbells due to barbell envy. I myself only own a handful, wish* it was at least a quarter or Basemen Brandon's but would it make me any happier is what I keep asking myself.

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@stealthassasin1day291 I look at it a couple of ways. One, you gotta spend your money somehow. And if you have it, gym stuff is far from the worst thing. That said, I also look at it as, if I buy that $300 bar, would I be happier with a road trip with my family? If I skip the next 3 bars, that's a valid weekend trip to the coast and back. So are those things going to improve my time in the gym or just collect dust? For barbells, I haven't yet found a time where one more would do me well compared to what I have, especially stacked against my other life opportunities

[@Scottsdale_GarageGym]

I’ve actually eaten food WHILE searching for the perfect barbell. Where’s that on your fancy science chart?

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@Scottsdale_GarageGym you've reached peak HomeGym Owner

[@rodolfomedini9931]

B. $40, A.1980s, C$400... If i could see an end cap it would be easier the TPB has a long history so that might be the 1980s bar but for this video im assuming it's the $400 bar ... I wouldn't use the cheap chrome of oly lifts

[@rodolfomedini9931]

For Oly lifts*

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@rodolfomedini9931 agreed. There are definitely some specific uses where a cheap bar doesn't make sense.

[@fwiffo42]

A: 1980s B: $49 C: $400

[@carps_gym]

B, A, C

[@momsbasementgym]

A = 1980, B = $40, C = $400

[@seancreighton4393]

A. 1980s, B. $40, C. $400.

[@seancreighton4393]

Nice. The coatings is what gave it away. I got a nice rogue B&R bar I love.

[@kylegable4377]

B = $40 C = $400 A = 1980

[@carps_gym]

We’re Not Big Barbell!

[@GrayMatterLifting]

@@carps_gym we are the 999lb Club!!!