Barbells are essential to any home or box gym. We have an assortment of barbells to fit your level of training. Most of our bars come in a 20kg for men and 15kg for women. Women's hands tend to be smaller than a mans, so the "women's" bar features a 25mm shaft diameter vs. the "men's" 20kg and 28-32mm shaft.
Depending on your level of training we have some options to consider:
Our Wonder Bar is a great bar at a great price and is considered best for an entry-level athlete. The best box bar.
Seasoned athlete or affiliate owner, you may want to consider the Bomba Bar V3 or even the Fringe Sport Bar. The Bomba Bar is the best value American-made all-around training barbell you can get. Our Fringe Sport Olmypic Bars are the premiere training barbells for aspiring Olympians.
The Wonder Bar, Bomba Bar V2, and Fringe Sport Weightlifting Bar all come in a 20kg for men and 15kg for women. Women's hands tend to be smaller than a mans, so the "women's" bar features a 25mm shaft diameter vs. the "men's" 20kg and 28-32mm shaft.
For those younger athletes we have our OSO Mini Bar Barbell. It's a great training bar for kids to teach them technique and get them started with smaller weight.
Our 15lb Training Barbell is also a great training bar for those beginner lifters that are still working on perfecting their technique and form.
To work on your deadlift form, we have our Hex Bar or "Trap Bar".
For those strong man exercises we have our Axle "Fat" Bar, a killer on your forearms.
Each barbell is backed by our lifetime warranty against any manufacturer's defects.
This is my barbell. There are many like it, but this one is mine. My barbell is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. My barbell, without me, is useless. Without my barbell, I am useless. I must lift my barbell true.
What to Look For in a Barbell?
While shopping for your new bar there are a few things you’ll want to consider when purchasing your barbell.
Style: Are you a powerlifter, olympic lifter, or general mix of both (CrossFitters!). Depending on the lifts you’ll be performing, you’ll want a bar that will perform with you.
Knurl Depth/Aggressiveness: The crisscross hash-marks in the bar that act as a grip rather than just the bare steel. Powerlifters prefer a deep “cheese grater” style knurl while Olympic lifters prefer something a bit softer and crossfitters or functional fitness enthusiasts even less. For most lifters, look for a moderate depth knurl. For a competition bar for high level olympic or power lifters, look for an aggressive knurl. For WODers, look for a soft to moderate knurl.
Knurl Marking/Center/Width: For dedicated Olympic weightlifters. look for single knurl marks at IWF spec. For dedicated powerlifters, look for single knurl marks at IPF spec. For everyone else, don't worry about this so much.
Shaft Diameter: You’ll want a bar that fit’s in your hands and that you can hang on to. For female lifters, look for a 25mm shaft diameter. For dedicated olympic weightlifting (men), look for a 28mm shaft diameter. For everyone else, go with 28mm-29mm shaft diameter. True Olympic lifting barbells have a 28mm diameter while multi-purpose bars are usually around 28.5mm and powerlifting bars are thicker still.
Tensile Strength: The amount of force (load) a bar can take, resulting in bending, and return to straight again. For barbells to be used by strong lifters, look for a tensile strength above 180k PSI. Generally, you want to see a yield strength 10-20% below that, to ensure good "whip" on the bar.
Whip: If you train olympic weightlifting at a fairly high proficiency level, look for a "whippy" bar, like our 20kg FringeSport Olympic Weightlifting Barbell (also available in 15kg). If not, don't worry about whip.
Weight: For female lifters, look for a 15kg/33-35 pound barbell. For ultra beginner or teenage lifters, look for a 15 pound training bar. For everyone else, look for a 20kg/44-45 pound bar.
Collar Spin: For dedicated Olympic weightlifters, look for fast-spinning collars. For dedicated powerlifters, look for slow-to-moderate-spinning collars. For everyone else, look for a smooth spin, but speed is not so important.
Collar Loading Space: In general, look for a lot of "loading space" on the collar. Realistically though, this is not an issue (being able to lift more weight than you can put on the bar) for 95% of lifters.
Aesthetics: Find a barbell that you like the looks of. Keep in mind that black finished barbells tend to tarnish a bit more than chrome/silver barbells.
Best Use: Most lifters will never outgrow a good, all-around barbell. If you are specializing in a certain style of lifting (e.g., Oly), you might want to get a specialized barbell.
Place of Manufacture: Many people want a barbell made in the USA. That's great, and we make our Bomba V2 in the USA. However, don't overlook imported barbells. Taiwan turns out some really great steel, and China is FAST upping its barbell production technology and designs.
Warranty: Most high quality barbells come with a lifetime warranty. However, if a barbell works well for a year, chances are you will never need a warranty longer than that. All of our barbells come with a lifetime warranty against manufacturers defects.
Price: Often a hugely overlooked measure. Make sure to look at the total cost including shipping of any barbells. We offer free shipping to the contiguous United States.
Olympic Weightlifting vs Other Weightlifting
Olympic Weightlifting Barbell: An Olympic weightlifter needs an Olympic Barbell. Period. When it comes down to deciding the right type of Oly bar however there are a couple things to think about. Knurling is one of the first things to look at before you make your purchase. Most Olympic barbells have a fairly aggressive knurling for improved grip, however some more than others and depending on the amount of training you plan on doing, you want to choose a bar that won’t tear up your hands but will provide a solid grip for you to hang on to.
You also want to look at rotation of the barbell collars as well as the amount of “whip” the bar has the ability to create. More rotation adds for smoother transitions after the second pull of the clean or snatch and more whip provides easier and more transfer of energy into the bar when standing up from a clean or dipping into a jerk.
We tested the highest of the high as well as econ low end barbells in our search to design the best olympic training bar and with the help of 2x Olympian Chad Vaughn, we think we’ve hit the mark.
Other Weightlifting Barbell: Much like an Olympic weightlifting bar, knurling and whip are important factors to take into account when looking for a good functional fitness style training bar. However just as importantly is the durability of the barbell itself as well as the price range.
You’ll want to find a bar that has good tensile strength, is rust resistant, and is made in a fashion that can repeatedly withstand the volume of drops it will have to take during metcons like Grace or Isabel.
There are several bars that vary slightly but are all excellent training bars that can be found here.
Why do women lift on 15kg barbells?
Most Olympic weightlifting barbells weigh 20kg (44lb), which is considered standard or a "mens" bar. Women typically use a 15kg (33lb) barbell. The most significant difference between the men and women's bars is the shaft diameter. The mens bars are 28-32mm diameter, whereas womens bars are standard at 25mm diameter. Why is this? Women typically have smaller hands than men. When women do a snatch, clean, thruster or overhead movement she will want to have proper grip on the bar, a thinner bar is going to help because of her smaller hands.
The two main differences you are going to see with a men and women's Olympic barbells is going to be the weight and the shaft diameter. Some other minor differences you may see are length of the bar, knurl, plate loading length, and the weight capacity.
Bushing vs Bearing
Our 20kg Wonder Bar comes in a bronze bushing and needle bearing cartridges. Both bars are excellent for lifting and provide spin.
Needle bearing cartridges in the collars provide a little more spin than a bushing barbell.
Bearing barbells have a slightly smoother rotation and cost a little more than a bushing.
Bearing barbells are typically used for faster lifts, such as Olympic lifts.
Bushing barbells are typically used for heavy or slower lifts, such as power lifting movements.
Bushing Wonder Bar
Bearing Wonder Bar
Bomba V2
Fringe Sport Weightlifting
Fringe Sport Power Bar
Fringe Sport Hybrid Bar
Bushing Wonder Bar
Bearing Wonder Bar
Bomba V3
Fringe Sport Weightlifting
Fringe Sport Power Bar
Fringe Sport Hybrid Bar
Barbell Type
Bushing
Bearing
Bushing
Bearing
Bushing
Bearing
Weight
20kg or 15kg
20kg or 15kg
20kg or 15kg
20kg or 15kg
20kg
20kg
PSI
202,000 (160,000 -15kg)
202,000 (160,000 -15kg)
205,000 (160,000 -15kg)
216,000 (216,000 -15kg)
216,000
216,000
Whip
Stiff
Stiff
Moderate
Whippy
Stiff
Moderate
Warranty
Lifetime
Lifetime
Lifetime
Lifetime
Lifetime
Lifetime
Shaft Diameter
28mm (25mm -15kg)
28mm (25mm -15kg)
28mm (25mm -15kg)
28mm (25mm -15kg)
29mm
28.5mm
Knurl
Dual
Dual
Dual
IWF + Center Knurl
IPF + Center Knurl
Dual + Center Knurl
Spin
Moderate
Fast
Moderate
Oly
Moderate
Fast
Best Use
Garage Gym, WODing & Oly
Garage Gym, WODing & Oly
Garage Gym, Oly, Powerlifting
Oly & Everything
Powerlifting: Slow lifts and power lift movements - squat, deadlift, and bench.
Built for experienced, strong lifters who combine Oly, Powerlifting, and WODing.
