Gym Talk

This is a review of the Elite Weightlifting Bar – an Olympic training bar that’s manufactured by one of the most established and experienced bar manufacturers that you have probably never heard of; a Taiwanese company called Gymway. Gymway has been producing mid-range and high-performance, private-label bars for many years now; longer than most of [...]

This is a review of the new Thrasher Air Bike by Vulcan Strength. a heavy-duty, affordable alternative to the Schwinn Airdyne Pro and Assault Air Bikes; and a feature-rich, similarly-priced alternative to the Rogue Echo. In this review I am going to go into pretty good detail on the specifications, dimensions, and features of the [...]

This is my comprehensive review of Ironmaster’s extremely popular, Quick Lock Adjustable Dumbbell Set. This review covers the standard 75-pound dumbbell pair with the stand, and Ironmaster’s Heavy Handle Plate Kit; an optional accessory that increases the weight of the handles and the maximum weight of each dumbbell by 15-pounds. In this review I’m going [...]

I don’t know if you’ve noticed or not, but there a ton of new bumper plates hitting the market that claim to be made in the USA. Companies like Rogue Fitness, Sorinex, Wright’s, Fringe Sport, and more now have their own branded version of the recycled, crumb rubber bumper plate. What’s the deal with that? [...]

This is an extensive review of the Texas Body Building Bar; Texas Power Bar’s newest bar, and the result of a collaboration with pro bodybuilder and Texas native, Branch Warren. The Texas Body Building Bar has been a terribly fun bar for me to review. I have thoroughly enjoyed training with it for the last [...]

This product is available for sale starting July 13th, 2020. I’ve had it for months though; in case you are wondering how my review predates its official release.  This is a review of the Rep Fitness Belt Squat Attachment – a $279 rack accessory that can turn a power rack into a fully-functional, plate-loaded, belt [...]

Rogue recently added yet another finish option for the 45-pound version of the Ohio Power Bar. That’s right, now in addition to bare steel, stainless steel, black zinc, and Cerakote you can pick up the OPB with Rogue’s black E-Coat finish. You know, just on the off chance you thought there was a shortage of [...]

This is a review for the Rep Fitness Deep Knurl Power Bar EX, a high-tensile strength, fully-stainless steel, aggressively-knurled powerlifting bar. Many of you may be wondering what took me so long to get around to this review. The Rep Deep Knurl has been available for a couple of months now, and those of you [...]

Welcome to the Garage Gym’s Olympic Barbell Review and Shopping Guide. If you happen to be in the market for a quality weightlifting bar, power bar, WOD bar, or a general-purpose bar, then you’ve come to the right place. If you’re interested in learning the basics of barbell construction, then again, you’ve come to the [...]

This is a review for the Fringe Sport 20 kg Hybrid Bar, a high-tensile strength, multi-purpose barbell that readers have suggested I review a surprising amount of times since its release. Well I finally snatched one up, and here is that review. The Hybrid Bar is a 28.5 mm, dual-marked bar intended to offer a [...]

I previously reviewed the Buddy Capps Texas Deadlift Bar back June of 2019, and I gave it  a very positive review with zero hesitation. It is an amazing training implement put out by an impressive company. Texas Power Bars (Capps Welding) is a highly experienced, reputable, and knowledgeable company that’s been in the business since [...]

This is a quick review of the Vulcan Strength 1-Basic Safety Squat Bar (SSB); an affordable yet fully-functional alternative to pretty much every other safety squat bar on the market. Being offered for the low price of $209, the Vulcan 1-Basic Safety Squat Bar sports a 700-lb max capacity, true 50 mm sleeves (no axle [...]

This is a review of the Rep Fitness AB-5200,  a commercial-grade, adjustable ladder bench with not only all the standard features you’d expect from a commercial bench, but a number of very unique characteristics as well; things like grippy vinyl, improved mobility, an optional spotter platform, and more. The 5200 is also one of the [...]

If you’re serious about training at home, then you’re going to want some form of power rack or squat stand in your garage gym in order to get the most out of your workouts. You’ll need somewhere to rack the bar for overhead presses and squats, and you’ll also want access to safety spotters so [...]