D8 olympic bar/ weights vs more expensive option

nerrad01

Im looking to buy an olympic bar and bumper plates. I can get something like this which is an elite bar and bumpers for €650. would this bar be decent or sh*t?

https://www.d8fitness.com/store/cross-training-2/colour-bumper-plates/

Its just for a home set up/ used for crossfit/ olympic lifts , or is it worthwhile spending the extra money getting a rogue bar and more expensive bumpers or totally overkill for a home set up?

Black Sheep

nerrad01 wrote: »

Im looking to buy an olympic bar and bumper plates. I can get something like this which is an elite bar and bumpers for €650. would this bar be decent or sh*t?

https://www.d8fitness.com/store/cross-training-2/colour-bumper-plates/

Its just for a home set up/ used for crossfit/ olympic lifts , or is it worthwhile spending the extra money getting a rogue bar and more expensive bumpers or totally overkill for a home set up?

I’ve bought a total of four of those bars for two different small gyms and they are decent enough, definitely not ****.

I haven’t crunched the numbers on whether that package is good value.

nerrad01

Black Sheep wrote: »

I’ve bought a total of four of those bars for two different small gyms and they are decent enough, definitely not ****.

I haven’t crunched the numbers on whether that package is good value.

That price seems hard to beat. I assume most good quality bumpers would be similar enough. It’s just is the rogue Ohio worth forking out €400 for compared to that bar from D8? Any opinions would be much appreciated

Black Sheep

nerrad01 wrote: »

That price seems hard to beat. I assume most good quality bumpers would be similar enough. It’s just is the rogue Ohio worth forking out €400 for compared to that bar from D8? Any opinions would be much appreciated

If you have the money a Rogue Ohio bar / Ohio power bar is a step up in terms of overall fit and finish, quality control etc. The regular Ohio bar feels a little whippier in the hands and the Ohio power bar is obviously much stiffer and with better knurling than the D8 bar. The power bar is the bigger upgrade I think, if you’re not doing cleans etc.

For your own gym I would always say it’s worth spending more on the bar, rack, adjustable bench and potentially the bumpers so really depends on your budget. If you can spend more, I personally would.

If I compare the D8 bars to my own Ohio bars then about 5 years on the coating on the D8 bars has gotten patchy, the sleeves are a little looser. However, those are on gym floors and overall they held up great. The specs are very good on paper. To me they feel a little “dead” in the hands but honestly I’m spoiled from having used some really top end bars over the years.

With bumpers I would be looking for true weight, good metal core to the bumpers and thin diameters on bigger plates. With budget bumpers you can get hugely thick plates that are unwieldly. Lighter cheap plates can warp. All of them can be prone to cracking.

Rogue and BLK box plate sets can be 1000-1400 or whatever, but I always mention Jordan as a good middle of the road option.

FrankGrimes

I have 2 olympic bars from D8 and lots of their bumper plates. Got them about 3yrs ago and had them outside for about a year so they’re a bit weather blasted but have to say there’s not a bother on them in terms of functionality and I wouldn’t be an expert but the bar seems grand to me. Squatting 180kg the other night was the first time I’ve noticed a bit of a bend in it when squatting, below 150kg I didn’t really notice much beyond a slight dip. Am a relative novice so other experts could comment on what a bar is supposed to do, but for me it has proven to be good value

Cill94

FrankGrimes wrote: »

I have 2 olympic bars from D8 and lots of their bumper plates. Got them about 3yrs ago and had them outside for about a year so they’re a bit weather blasted but have to say there’s not a bother on them in terms of functionality and I wouldn’t be an expert but the bar seems grand to me. Squatting 180kg the other night was the first time I’ve noticed a bit of a bend in it when squatting, below 150kg I didn’t really notice much beyond a slight dip. Am a relative novice so other experts could comment on what a bar is supposed to do, but for me it has proven to be good value

It's normal (and actually helpful) for a bar to 'flex' when it has enough weight on it. Deadlift bars are designed specifically to do this.

'Bending' on the other hand, is when the bar is permanently left in that state, and that's no bueno. Most cheap bars will bend at much lighter weights than their pricier counterparts. Can't specifically comment on the D8 bars as I've no experience with them.

Cole

nerrad01 wrote: »

That price seems hard to beat. I assume most good quality bumpers would be similar enough. It’s just is the rogue Ohio worth forking out €400 for compared to that bar from D8? Any opinions would be much appreciated

I bought that same set last year just before the first 'lock down'. It's done the job fine (bench/squat/DL) and I'm very happy with the purchase...it was €200 cheaper at the time though.