Basic Barbell Maintenance

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

(Throughout this article, you’ll find several videos related to today’s topic.)

My wife, Becky, and I have two bare steel bars in our garage gym, and while bare steel is unmatched in terms of grip and feel, it does require a bit of maintenance. Bars with a protective coating (e.g., zinc) will need some attention from time to time as well - simply less frequently. With all of this in mind, let’s dive into how to perform some simple barbell maintenance.

Brush the Chalk Off the Barbell
The upside of chalk is that it absorbs the moisture of your hands and thus provides a secure grip on the bar. However, the downside is that chalk can hold some of that moisture and keep it on the bar even after you’re done training, and that can encourage rust formation on your bar.

To prevent this, simply brush the chalk off the bar every time you’re done training. A cheap nylon bristle brush will do the job just fine, and brushing off the chalk will take you about 20 seconds tops. Every member at Testify does this (whether the bar is bare steel or not) as well, and it helps tremendously.

Oil the Barbell Shaft
About once a month (perhaps even more infrequently), you’ll need a few things: 3-IN-ONE Multi-Purpose Oil, a brass bristle brush, and a clean rage or two. The oil will help remove rust from the bar as well as apply a protective coating to help prevent future rust. Simply apply a bit of oil to the bar (watch the video above for an example) and then use the brass bristle brush to brush in the oil. After that, take a clean rag and then wipe down the bar to absorb any excess oil.

You can spend more time on any trouble spots, but if you’re doing this on a semi-regular basis, this will do an excellent job of protecting and caring for your bar. If you’ve got a bar that needs some serious rust removal, we also have a video that goes into depth on that process.

As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.

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