Equipment: Cheaper to build or buy.

Admiral_Derp
Admiral_Derp Posts: 866 Member
edited January 17 in Fitness and Exercise
None of the gyms around me have a squat rack. (At least none of the ones I've found so far, but there really aren't many.) It's ridiculous. So I'm really, really wanting to get my own, but a nice one can be pretty expensive. The other day I was on the Starting Strength website(startingstrength.com) and saw this: rack1.jpg

What's really cool, is that they include the plans to build it: (http://startingstrength.com/files/starting_strength_rack.pdf). But, I'm wondering if it would really be cheaper to do that than to just buy one? Anybody know enough about the cost of metal and possibly the cost of paying someone to make it, to give me a rough estimate? (I don't know if I could find someone who'd let me borrow a welder, and a grinder.)

Replies

  • Brad805
    Brad805 Posts: 289 Member
    I built my smith rack, and it was a ton of work. I know a girl from Ireland that built her power rack out of wood and did an excellent job, but I can tell she had awesome woodwork skills before attempting such a project. Drilling all the holes so they are aligned properly is the biggest part of this project. It is very easy to get a hole or two out of alignment and then the rods will not slide properly. Unless you have some experience building with steel I would be inclined to simply go buy a powertec rack or something similar. My rack is a powertec and it has worked fine for years. I was goofing around with 405lb rack pulls this week and it held it..

    Good luck
  • Admiral_Derp
    Admiral_Derp Posts: 866 Member
    Yeah, I work a lot better with wood than metal. I'd have to hire somebody to build it. I bet I cold modify the design and build it myself out of 4x4s. It would be solid, but ridiculously heavy though.
  • Admiral_Derp
    Admiral_Derp Posts: 866 Member
    bumping now that more people are awake...
  • danimalkeys
    danimalkeys Posts: 982 Member
    by the time you collect and purchase the materials, get someone who can weld good enough to hold several hundred lbs of weight, assemble it- consider the time you'll spend as a cost as well- it's cheaper to purchase one. 300 bucks gets you a pretty good rack that can handle anything a home gym can throw at it. I've had 700+ lbs on mine and it's not a high end one at all.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
    I looked at it at one point and it was pretty much a wash. I came to the conclusion that I would buy rather than build if I were making a home gym. Amazon has some decently priced racks.
  • tross0924
    tross0924 Posts: 909 Member
    The wood cost me $80 and the screws, pipe, and paint another $30 ish. So for under $125 I have a power rack. Took 6 hours to build (I'm not a whiz with wood construction) using only a cordless drill, and cordless circular saw. I can squat, bench, and do pull ups in it without a spotter. I've had 500 lbs resting on it and it was perfectly stable.

    If you're at all handy, I'd say build is the way to go.
  • Admiral_Derp
    Admiral_Derp Posts: 866 Member
    The wood cost me $80 and the screws, pipe, and paint another $30 ish. So for under $125 I have a power rack. Took 6 hours to build (I'm not a whiz with wood construction) using only a cordless drill, and cordless circular saw. I can squat, bench, and do pull ups in it without a spotter. I've had 500 lbs resting on it and it was perfectly stable.

    If you're at all handy, I'd say build is the way to go.

    I'd rather go with something I can build if I can get away with it, just because I like DIY projects. And I can definitely handle something between 100 and 200 bucks. (Gives me more money to spend on plates!) How long have you been using it?
  • Admiral_Derp
    Admiral_Derp Posts: 866 Member
    I had seen a couple of good ones on Amazon. Funds are kind of tight right now though. I guess if push comes to shove, I'll just have to wait it out.
  • wmagoo27
    wmagoo27 Posts: 201 Member
    The wood cost me $80 and the screws, pipe, and paint another $30 ish. So for under $125 I have a power rack. Took 6 hours to build (I'm not a whiz with wood construction) using only a cordless drill, and cordless circular saw. I can squat, bench, and do pull ups in it without a spotter. I've had 500 lbs resting on it and it was perfectly stable.

    If you're at all handy, I'd say build is the way to go.

    I'd rather go with something I can build if I can get away with it, just because I like DIY projects. And I can definitely handle something between 100 and 200 bucks. (Gives me more money to spend on plates!) How long have you been using it?

    There's nothing wrong with building your own power rack if it's done correctly. I've seen good ones and poor ones. Some look like death traps. That being said, there are a lot of resources out there for DIY gear. Here are a few sites you may find usefull.

    http://www.home-gym-bodybuilding.com/homemade-power-rack.html
    http://www.rosstraining.com/articles.html
    http://diystrengthgear.blogspot.com/2012/02/homemade-exercise-equipment-resource.html
    http://www.fullcirclepadding.com/
  • tross0924
    tross0924 Posts: 909 Member
    The wood cost me $80 and the screws, pipe, and paint another $30 ish. So for under $125 I have a power rack. Took 6 hours to build (I'm not a whiz with wood construction) using only a cordless drill, and cordless circular saw. I can squat, bench, and do pull ups in it without a spotter. I've had 500 lbs resting on it and it was perfectly stable.

    If you're at all handy, I'd say build is the way to go.

    I'd rather go with something I can build if I can get away with it, just because I like DIY projects. And I can definitely handle something between 100 and 200 bucks. (Gives me more money to spend on plates!) How long have you been using it?

    18 ish months.
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