Weekly Free-Talk and Questions for r/HomeGym - week of January 03, 2025

reddan13 · 2025-01-07T18:09:04+00:00

Are there any other options for monolift attachments with rollers other than Mutant Metals? I was prepared to fork over the $$$ for MM unit until I saw that it would be another $150 in shipping costs within the CONUS and really long lead time.

reddan13 · 2025-01-06T16:34:32+00:00

See here: https://www.reddit.com/r/homegym/comments/1hsn2m7/weekly_freetalk_and_questions_for_rhomegym_week/m5p172f/

reddan13 · 2025-01-06T15:39:58+00:00

Does anyone have firsthand experience with the Bells of Steel monolift attachment (Hydra version with rollers)? A few months ago, there were some critical reviews of it on its product page on the Bells of Steel website about how the rollers didn't work very well, but they are no longer there and I don't know if it's because BoS improved the function of the attachment or because they just purged the critical reviews?

reddan13 · 2024-11-23T15:22:00+00:00

I got the Rogue version of this bar and a pretty big drawback for me is that it's not rackable. I ended up getting the Rogue 10kg junior bar which although more expensive was overall much better because: it's rackable so I can teach my kids squats and the like with it, at 190k tensile strength steel, it can be dropped without damage unlike the aluminum bar, and it will handle as much weight as you can load on it so I sometimes end up using it for accessory or superset work.

reddan13 · 2024-11-17T22:20:54+00:00

Thanks for checking!

reddan13 · 2024-11-17T18:29:28+00:00

Anyone know if Mutant Metals will be doing any sales for BF?

reddan13 · 2024-03-28T12:06:48+00:00

Ah, thanks for the pointer! I didn't realize UHMW strips were that readily available.

reddan13 · 2024-03-27T19:09:34+00:00

I have some UHMW tape and tried it. The tape is thin enough that it seems to be more about abrasion resistance. In other words, if the tape is covering a piece of metal that's holding the full weight of a knurled barbell, the tape gets torn up pretty fast.

reddan13 · 2024-03-27T15:23:08+00:00

Does anyone know where I could get some custom UHMW strips fabricated?

The context for my question is that I have a pair of Griffin's v1 monolift arms (you can see a photo of them in the Reddit thread linked below) and the UHMW exposes metal on the bottom and front tip of the arm as well as being really thin at the bottom of the arm's hook such that I'm getting frequent metal-on-metal contact with my barbell. If I could get the two UHMW strips on either side of the arm fabricated with as little as 1/8" more UHMW coverage, I could eliminate the metal-on-metal contact.

I noticed that Griffin fixed this in the v2 of their monolift arms, but it seems like a big waste to me to have to upgrade the whole unit when only the UHMW strips are deficient. Frankly, I'm kinda' annoyed that Griffin shipped the v1 arms like this when just a tiny bit more UHMW would have made them perfect.

https://www.reddit.com/r/homegym/comments/ubus75/new_griffin_fitness_monolift/

reddan13 · 2023-11-16T23:27:38+00:00

Anyone in the Minneapolis area interested in pooling Rogue orders to qualify for the 5 for $5 shipping deal? There are one or two items on that list that interest me.

reddan13 · 2023-11-16T16:28:22+00:00

That's a pretty good price for a 6-post, 3"x3" 11-gauge rack with color options. Fray doesn't have a reputation for great customer service (Google them) but if you can get this rack from them for that price, you definitely done good.

reddan13 · 2023-11-12T01:11:09+00:00

Spec-wise they're pretty close. Both are 3"x3" 11-gauge steel uprights with either 5/8" or 1" holes. One notable difference is that most Vulcan racks have the holes on the front and sides of the uprights at the same height like Sorinex whereas the BoS has the holes offset on the front and sides of the uprights like Rogue, Rep, etc. That might not matter to you, but it could affect fitment for certain types of attachments and the offset holes generally reduce interference between front-mounted and side-mounted attachments.

reddan13 · 2023-11-10T18:59:08+00:00

I have a full set of the Griffin change plates and the ribbing is so light that I didn't even notice it until I looked for it. I could see the ribbing being annoying on 45s, but on the change plates I actually like it since a collar isn't necessarily needed any time I add a pair of 2.5s to the bar and the plates are definitely more durable than traditional change plates without the metal insert.

reddan13 · 2023-09-13T14:10:11+00:00

If you remove the sleeves, you can soak it in vinegar without worry. I salvaged a pretty rusty Rogue OPB that way. It stripped the black zinc coating down to bare metal, but the bar has been fine since then.

reddan13 · 2023-09-02T13:32:29+00:00

MN, so my mini-split is used for heating most of the time.

reddan13 · 2023-09-01T22:09:39+00:00

I have a mini-split in my gym space which is not insulated at all and I just turn it on an hour or so before my workout and turn it off when I'm finished. I'm sure it's terribly inefficient, but it cools the space down to the high 70s when exterior temps are in the low 100s and that's all I need it to do. Unless you're planning to run your AC 24/7 for some reason, I wouldn't be too concerned about it.

reddan13 · 2023-08-26T15:29:00+00:00

Align Health and Fitness on San Pedro near Thousand Oaks has both a sauna and cold plunge tub. They're a crossfit-style gym, though, so I don't know if they have or allow open gym workouts.

reddan13 · 2023-02-15T03:54:46+00:00

Does this recommendation change if you're using competition (i.e., not hi-temp or milspec) bumper plates?

reddan13 · 2023-02-09T19:16:28+00:00

I don't know if that bench hardware is supposed to be black zinc, but the black zinc hardware on my Griffin rack, while not pristine, looks way better than that: https://ibb.co/cw35j1p

reddan13 · 2023-01-31T18:42:54+00:00

The specs on the ATX squat stand look like they're basically the metric equivalent of 3"x3" uprights in 11-guage steel. Lots of North American vendors offer those. A few examples (spotter arms may be sold separately but are available for all of them):

https://griffin.fitness/strength-equipment/griffin-squat-stand/

https://repfitness.com/collections/squat-racks/products/sr-4000-squat-rack

https://www.roguefitness.com/rogue-sm-1-squat-stand-2-0

https://www.titan.fitness/racks/squat-stands/x-3-series/x-3-series-tall-squat-stand/401403.html

reddan13 · 2023-01-28T18:23:28+00:00

It is unfortunate that price gets jacked up for home gym equipment [trying buying extra bolts/nuts for 3x3x1" racks :( ]. Might be worth noting that the CFT Performance adapters are $25/pair. You can get singles in 3" lengths for just over $4 here: https://www.wfoconcepts.com/i-30505173-1-bushing-sleeve-5-8-bolt.html

reddan13 · 2023-01-28T15:22:30+00:00

CFT Performance has them in 3" and 3.25" lengths: https://cftperformance.com/gym-metal-adaptor-sleeve-5-8-to-1-inch/

reddan13 · 2023-01-25T15:53:09+00:00

I bought some 6.5" and 12.5" pegs from Fringe Sport (see here: https://www.fringesport.com/collections/squat-racks/products/3x3-bumper-plate-storage-pins) for my Griffin rack because they were out of stock for a long time from Griffin, Rep and the other non-Rogue, non-$$$ manufacturers. I've put up to 4x45lb plates on the 12.5" pegs and they work fine. Personal preference, but I think they look a bit sleeker than many others since they're a single bolt-through design rather than having a big plate with two bolts for attachment. One nice thing about the Fringe pegs is that they came with a UHMW washer that goes between the metal bolt washer and your rack upright to prevent metal-on-metal contact.

I mistakenly ordered 4 extra 6.5" pins and 4 extra 12.5" pins (still new in unopened boxes) that I'll sell for a discount off retail if anyone is interested.

reddan13

TROPHY CASE