How Much Does a Trap Bar Weigh? The standard weight range for a trap bar (or hex bar) is between 20 and 44 pounds (9 and 18 kilograms). A trap bar or hex bar’s total weight can be affected by several factors, so it’s vital to double-check which one you’re using before estimating your rep max.
How Much Does a Trap Bar Weigh?
The hex bar likely weighs between 50 and 70 pounds. Common weight ranges are 50–60 pounds. Hex bars don’t have a set metric weight. Let’s take a look at several popular makes and models to get a feel for how much the average one weighs.
The vast majority of commercially available trap bars are designed only for use with Olympic weights. The diameter at each end is 2 inches.
What is a Hex Bar (or Trap Bar)?
Strength training with a hex bar is an alternative to deadlifts with a straight bar since it allows you to keep the weight closer to your body’s center of gravity, rather than in front of your legs. The hex bar deadlift is more accessible for those who have back problems due to injury or degeneration. Their lower back and hips will feel less strain.
Also known as a trap bar, after the trapezius muscles that run from the base of the skull to the tops of the shoulders. One exercise that targets them is the shrug, and this particular bar is optimal for that movement. Many people still use it for shrugs, but nowadays it’s more commonly used as a deadlift bar.
Because of its contemporary 6-sided (hex) shape, it is also known as a hex bar. Initially, Al Gerard created a bar with a diamond shape and a more basic design. The opening is large enough for an average person to step within while holding the bar’s grips.
You might use it for bench presses and overhead presses. This kind of workout is rarely performed, and when it is, it requires a specially-lengthened hex bar so that it can be stored in a power rack without touching the uprights.
How much do Different Trap Bars Weigh?
Trap bars come in a wide range of weights, grips, shapes, ways to “enter,” widths, and other characteristics. Generally speaking, the price of a bar increases with its weight. To give you a sense of how widely they can vary in weight, I’ve listed ten of the most popular trap bars available on the market below along with their various weights:
| Make | Weight (kg) | Weight (lbs) |
|---|---|---|
| Force USA | 20kg | 44lbs |
| Force USA Walkthrough | 30kg | 66lbs |
| Hammer Strength | 27kg | 60lbs |
| Eleiko | 25kg | 55lbs |
| CAP | 21kg | 46lbs |
| Titan | 27kg | 60lbs |
| Rogue | 27kg | 60lbs |
| Sumo Strength | 30kg | 66lbs |
| Commercial Fitness | 24kg | 53lbs |
| Iron Edge | 23kg | 50lbs |
| Gym Direct | 20kg | 44lbs |
| Little Bloke Fitness | 22kg | 49lbs |
| Catch Fitness | 22kg | 49lbs |
| Elite Fitness | 30kg | 66lbs |
| Alpha fit | 23kg | 50lbs |
Advantages of Trap Bar Deadlift
1. Ideal for lifters that are taller
Taller athletes and gym patrons (6’ and up) frequently experience mechanical challenges when they attempting to accomplish traditional deadlifts. Tall people do not gain from leverages while deadlifting, claims Toronto-based strength coach Lee Boyce.
The worst posture for pulling strength, he claims, is to have your upper body behind the bar. “You’ll eventually be doing that if you have long legs, a short torso, and poor movement.”
One of the best characteristics of trap bars is the variety in handle heights. When pulling from ordinary bar height, tall people may feel as though they are doing a deficit pull, especially if they lack the ability to lower themselves to that level. If you are tall or have limited mobility for deadlifts, a trap bar may be a safer alternative.
2. The center of the weight is in the body
When using the trap bar, the weight often moves up and down with your body. That is, not there in front of you. This makes it easier for lifters who are unskilled or who lack lumbar stability to perform a better technical lift. When doing a normal deadlift, the weight is in front of the body.
An inappropriate method results in an excessive amount of force being applied to the lumbar spine. Since you are “stepping inside” the weight rather than having it out in front of you, the hip pivot is given more attention.
Instead of bending forward and attempting to lift the weight with your back at the bottom of the lift, you sit back. People who frequently lift with their backs rather than their hips can benefit greatly from using trap bars to increase their functional strength. Trap bars are especially useful for taller lifters.
3. An impartial lockout
Deadlifters typically hyperextend their backs at the height of the lift. This is done to balance the weight in front of them. It may seem rewarding to be locked out in this way, but it is not a safe situation to be in.
Using a hex bar stops this by maintaining a vertical and neutral position at the peak of the lift rather than attempting to counterbalance the weight in front of you.
4. Neutrally holding the bar
The neutral grasp has always been my favorite aspect of trap bars. Years of competitive swimming have left me with sensitive shoulders, and I’ve learned that if I want to lift heavy weights for deadlifts, I can only really do it with a neutral grip (and two heaping spoonfuls of pre-workout, obviously).
Simply put, I am unable to employ a mixed or underhand grip with the internally rotated shoulders grip. I can focus on hooking the bar into the air with my hips, glutes, and back instead of worrying about how my shoulders and biceps are responding because of the neutral grip.
Generally speaking, neutral and angled grips are more comfortable and closely resemble “natural” patterns.
5. Increase your power
Athletes should focus on the trap bar deadlift because it provides for greater power recruitment than standard deadlifts. In one paper [1], twenty competent men underwent 1RM testing using a barbell and a hex bar. Maximum force, power, and velocity were all higher on the hex bar.
When you consider that this exercise is often safer and produces more power than other types of deadlifting, it quickly solidifies itself as an essential component of the athlete’s training program.
6. Less frightening for novices
Observing the hyper-extended lockouts, ripped biceps, and scratched shins may deter the typical gym patron from trying to deadlift. The trap bar gets around several of such barriers. It also shortens the time needed to perfect deadlift technique.
Although they seem simple, deadlifts require coaching and practice to effectively master. A trap bar is a great transitional tool to straight-bar deadlifts since your hips can sit lower, the bar won’t slash your shins, and you can have a better knowledge of how the move should be done.
7. The uses for trap bars are many
The trap bar is equally as beneficial as its more formal brethren, despite the fact that we typically consider the barbell to be the gold standard for large exercises in the gym. The overhead press (Woop Woop, with a neutral grip), farmer’s walks, floor presses, split squats, and other exercises can all be done with a trap bar. The barbell always gets more attention, but the trap bar is cunning-sly in its adaptability.
Summary
The standard weight range for a trap bar (or hex bar) is between 20 and 44 pounds (9 and 18 kilograms). A trap bar or hex bar’s total weight can be affected by several factors, so it’s vital to double-check which one you’re using.
Is that a hex bar or a trap bar?
Both names have the same meaning. After its creator, powerlifter, and engineer Al Gerard, who created the first trap bar in the 1980s, the bar was formerly referred to as the Gerard Trap Bar. He saw that while holding dumbbells at his side, the pain was absent when squatting in a rack.
He, therefore, started attempting to set up a mechanism to lift massive loads so that the load was closer to his center of gravity. He tried a few different shapes, such as hexagonal, rectangular, and even circular, but the trapezoidal shape proved to be the most effective.
Before other manufacturers of strength training equipment began to produce their own in the early 2000s as the bar gained popularity among NFL teams, Gerard sold his new invention for a few years. The bar is currently available in many different shapes, such as trapezoidal and hexagonal.
How Much Do Plates Add to the Weight of a Hex Bar?
An unloaded hex bar’s weight is one thing to know. If you put weight plates to a hex bar, how heavy is it? In order to get an answer, you’ll need to do some math. However, it can be time-consuming if the hex bar in question is significantly heavier than average. In light of this, I developed a tool to determine the mass of hex bars.
Simply choose the desired number of plates, their diameter, and the weight of the bar itself. The calculator is then used to determine the overall weight of the loaded bar.
The Garden variety Hex Bar
The most typical hex bar you’ll encounter is this one. raised handles, a chrome finish, and round tubing. Since they all originate from the same Chinese producers, the brand doesn’t important unless you stumble across one with differing specifications.
This one is 55 lbs. heavy. Its overall length is 71 inches, and its loadable ends—which I won’t call sleeves because they are all one piece and don’t rotate on a hex bar—are 16 inches long. This allows for rather a substantial loading.
Others might weigh 45 lbs, measure 56′′ overall, and only have loadable ends that are 10′′ long. That explains the weight disparity. Depending on the types of plates you have and the weight you want to lift, shorter sleeves like that might be acceptable.
In comparison to 45lb iron plates, bumper plates, as seen in the image above, occupy about half the space on the bar. Hex bars with only the lower handles flat with the rest of the bar and no higher handles will likely lose 5 pounds.
Super Heavy Example: Rough TB-1
The 68-pound Rogue TB-1 version 2.0 is depicted here. There is only one set of handles that are flush with the tube. The Rogue TB-1’s first iteration weighed 78 lbs. The weight was decreased for version 2.0, although not so much to give users a lighter starting weight (78 lbs. isn’t much for a deadlift), but rather to make the bar a little more portable.
When carrying hex bars about carelessly, you run the risk of bashing them against other objects.
Kind of Heavy: Rough TB-2
Just 2 pounds heavier than the TB-1 in weight is the Rogue TB-2, which weigh 60 lbs. The extra raised handles of the TB-2, which appear to weigh just one pound apiece, are the only variation between the TB-1 and TB-2. You can start in a higher position thanks to these handles.
Additionally, the elevated handles make the lift much simpler than the flush grips, which might cause the bar to veer forward or back if you don’t hold it firmly in the middle. Huge 89′′ long hex bars are used by Rogue. That’s 7’5″.
They were constructed so long to make them “rackable,” or appropriately fit on a 48" wide power rack, allowing you to load weight plates without restriction.
Light Weight: Titan Hex Bar
The 44 lb. Titan’s hex bar is at the lighter end. One that is almost identical to it is offered by other businesses, with minor changes in the specs. As you can see, they don’t use the 1.5′′ square tubing like Rogue employs, instead using round tubing throughout.
This bar has an overall length of 56 inches, but its ends are only 9.75 inches long, which is about average for the length of most hex bars you may come across. This type of bar is not long enough to be rackable, in contrast to Rogue’s bar.
Is It a Deadlift Bar or Squat Bar?
The movement’s mechanics more closely resemble a squat than a deadlift. In a squat, the weight is more vertically aligned with your body and your torso is slightly more erectt. In a deadlift, the bar is in front of you and requires more hip flexion to get your shoulders over it and the bar in front of your knees as you draw it up.
Despite this, we refer to it as a particular form of deadlift bar rather than a squat bar because you reach down and pick the bar up off the floor as opposed to having it rest on your upper back.
Which hex deadlift bar should you buy?
The question of which hex deadlift bar to purchase is unique to you. The trap bar you should purchase largely depends on your level of fitness. Purchasing the normal Gerald trap bar is the best choice for a novice.
A seasoned vet, however, may decide to use the extra-large hex bar to add additional plates and shape their ideal bodies. If you combine a wider variety of workouts, you can quickly accomplish your fitness objectives. An excellent instrument for carrying out that task is a hex deadlift bar.
Real muscular gain is achieved by using good form while gradually lifting noticeably heavier weights. One of the equipment pieces designed for appropriate form when performing exercises like bent-over rows, squat jumps, and deadlifts is the hex deadlift bar.
Why are hex bars heavier than other types of barbells?
In contrast to traditional barbells like Olympic and powerlifting bars, hexagonal barbells don’t have a fixed weight. One explanation for this is that they are not used in competitive settings.
Even though relatively few of us participate in powerlifting or weightlifting competitions, the majority of the bars you see in your local gym are constructed to adhere to competition regulations, which include a standard length and weight (barbells usually weigh 20kg or 44lbs).
Producers won’t have to focus on having the bar built to a specific weight as a result. The trap/hex bar is only utilized during exercise. Another reason why the weight on hex bars can vary so much is because each one is built differently and has a distinct design that requires a varied amount of material.
The amount of steel and/or chromium used in the construction, as well as the bar’s shape, which changes depending on the product, all affect weight. Like other specialty bars, they don’t “need” to be a set weight for any reason other than practicality (EZ curl bars are the same, the bar weight is all over the place).
Summary
Real muscular gain is achieved by using good form while gradually lifting noticeably heavier weights. An excellent instrument for carrying out that task is the hex deadlift bar. Hexagonal barbells have no set weight, unlike Olympic and powerlifting bars.
FAQ’s
1. How much does a steel trap bar weigh?
A trap bar will weigh between 30 and 50 pounds. But the typical hex bar is the Gerard kind, which weighs about 45 lbs.
2. How much does a men’s trap bar weigh?
According to Wickham, they can be utilized for trap shoulder shrugs, farmer carries, and deadlift variations. They normally weigh between 35 and 65 pounds.
3. Which is the harderr trap bar or the deadlift?
Because trap bar deadlifts are theoretically a little simpler to complete, they are excellent for beginners. The grip is simpler to achieve, the bar path is straight, and your lower back isn’t put under as much strain. When performing barbell deadlifts, it’s simple to hit your shins with the bar.
4. How heavy is the deadlift trap bar?
This 90 lb. deadlift bar comes with three grip sizes: 1.25", 1.5", and 2". Due to the inventive design, plates can be loaded and unloaded while the bar is on the floor. It is possible to load the deadlift trap bar with up to 1,000 lbs.
5. Is Hex Bar easier than a deadlift?
Many men believe that performing deadlifts with a hex bar is less taxing on their backs and more comfortable all around, even though the regular deadlift performed with an Olympic barbell is the most popular way to perform deadlifts and the technique utilized in deadlift contests.
6. How much do Olympic trap bars weigh?
Here’s a simple breakdown of the weight of trap bars so you can lift them correctly. One of my favorite gym bars is the trap bar. Trap bars range in weight from 28 pounds to 75 pounds, depending on the manufacturer and size, in contrast to Olympic and powerlifting barbells, which weigh 20 kg (44 lbs).
7. Do trap bar deadlifts count?
Deadlifts using a trap bar strengthen the back, hamstrings, and glutes. The key advantage is that they are better for persons with back problems because they are less stressful on the lumbar spine than barbell deadlifts. They are simpler to master and need less technical skill than barbell deadlifts.
8. Why is it called a trap bar?
Powerlifting competitor Al Gerard created, patented, and trademarked the trap bar. It is frequently believed that the muscle it was intended to train, the top fibers of the trapezius muscles, inspired the name of the exercise.
9. Is trap bar deadlift better?
Similar loads are used in both exercises, however, most people can deadlift more weight with a trap bar, particularly when utilizing the high handles. The hip hinge pattern is trained by both types of deadlifts, however, the barbell deadlift has somewhat greater peak spine and hip moments, and the trap bar deadlift has a larger peak knee moment.
10. What is the world record for trap bar deadlift?
Pea achieved a personal best (PR) of 1,000 pounds (455 kilograms) in the conventional deadlift in December 2020. The Texas Titan had torn 1,145 pounds (520 kilos) off blocks a month earlier.
Conclusion
The standard weight range for a trap bar (or hex bar) is between 20 and 44 pounds (9 and 18 kilograms). The vast majority of commercially available trap bars are designed only for use with Olympic weights. Hex bars don’t have a set metric weight, so it’s important to double-check which one you’re using. Trap bars come in a wide range of weights, grips, shapes, and ways to “enter”. The handles on trap bars come at various heights, which is one of its best features. A trap bar can be a safer alternative if you are tall or have poor mobility for deadlifts.