Obligatory warning and disclaimer: A poorly constructed pull up bar can be dangerous. We cannot accept any responsibility for any injuries or damages that may be caused by following any of the information on this page. A well constructed pull up bar can also be dangerous if you fool around with it, so be careful!
One of the things I’ve been really missing since I moved earlier this year is my pull up bar. It was just a regular in-door pull up bar, the kind you stick in a doorway, but it sure saw a lot of use.
My new place doesn’t have any doorways that can take it, or a ceiling high enough that I could mount one inside which would not end with me cracking my head. So for the last few months I just got some pull ups in whenever I could, but not being able to do them on the regular at home was bugging me some.
Having watched the Kavadlo brothers’ video of their backyard pull up bar, I figured that I could probably build that, but not having a garden or anywhere I could dig down, I was kind of stuck. It took me a while to realize that the solution was literally staring me in the face.
This kind of pipe and clamp arrangement can be found nearly everywhere around here. It’s used to hold up displays, create safety structures, and even hold up roadsigns in some cases. In other words, I figured a structure made from this stuff would probably take my weight.
Measuring up
Once the idea struck, I decided on a corner of my terrace which I could use for this and started to draw up some plans.
I’ll be straight here: given the choice, I’d still rather build a bar at ground level and rooted into the ground. It’s just more stable and generally safer. This wasn’t me designing a better bar, this was me designing a bar that fit into the resources I had available.
Determining the dimensions was easy. I just measured the available space and left some clearance so it wouldn’t be on the edge of the terrace. This gave me a 1m x 1m area. The height was equally straightforward. I knew I wanted it high enough that I could deadhang from it without touching the floor, so I measured the highest point on a wall I could reach at a stretch, and added a few centimetres on top. That came to two metres twenty.
A quick trip to the ironmonger later, and I had five 1m pipes, four 2.20m pipes, four L connectors, four corner connectors and two T connectors. I had gotten the corner connectors in case the structure needed additional reinforcement, but it turns out it’s strong enough as it is. Getting another four L connectors instead of the corner connectors should work fine.
The thickness of the pipe was determined by the highly scientific method of checking which size felt best in the hand. If you’re not certain, you might want to go a bit thinner. Thinner bars are easier to grip than thicker ones, although thicker ones are better to develop grip strength.
While I was at it I also got a can of emulsion paint to protect the frame from the elements.
Assembly
Putting the frame together was really easy, and took under half an hour all told. It would have been somewhat easier if I hadn’t chosen to do it under a searing July sun, which made handling the metal unpleasant to say the least.
The frame was assembled horizontally so I could reach all parts of it more easily while I was working on it. All the parts were loosely tightened at this point so I could make adjustments as I went along. Once everything was in place, I tightened up everything again, covered the floor, and started painting it over.
Between waiting for the paint to dry, and turning the thing over, this was the longest part of the project. In the end I ended up doing a few minutes every day before heading off to work. Slow, but it could easily be packed over a weekend if I had wanted to.
Once the frame was assembled, I bolted it onto the wall. This is necessary as it prevents it from tipping over, as well as stabilizing the structure. Using small blocks of wood between the wall and the pipe allows it to be tightened further.
The frame is oriented in that way because I think the weakest point is where the pull up bar meets the horizontal support furthest away from the wall. If something breaks, I’d much rather it broke in a direction that won’t send me flying off a few floors! That said, I haven’t been able to do so much as rattle it so far, and I’ve tried.
The location of the frame makes it impossible to do some manoeuvres on the bar and very dangerous to do some others, but I’m ok with that. I don’t practice those moves very often, so I’m happy to leave them to whenever I have the occasional access to a safer place to do them. What I wanted was somewhere to do bread and butter pull ups and leg raises, and this one works a treat.
The main point I’m trying to get across here is, lack of equipment shouldn’t be an obstacle. A pull up bar is practically the only piece of hardware you need for most callisthenic exercises, and even that is easily bought, built, or jury-rigged. If you want to do it, you’ll find a way!
The Hour of the Guinea Pig
If you follow us on twitter or facebook, you’ll already have heard that we’re working on a book, titled “The Hour of the Guinea Pig”. This book will be about health, fitness, exercise, and self experimentation – kind of “Average Norm: The Director’s Cut”, if you will.
While we will be revisiting and expanding on some of the subjects we have discussed or will discuss on this blog, most of it will be new material. If you want to get a quick preview, the introductory chapter is online here. Let us know what you think!