Bench weight limit...

[Kutusov]

Hi,

I haven't been to this forum for a long time. Have been working out with DB only but I think it's time for a barbell. I was looking into buying a bench but on the few shops that sell them around here, no one knows how to answer my question.

The benches they sell are, well, not impressive but they are cheap. The thing is almost all of them have a 110Kg weight limit. Now, two guys at different stores told me this is just a bar weight limit, doesn't count if you are on top of it or not. This just doesn't make any sense as you can easily have a costumer that doubles the amount of weight on the bench.

So what exacly is this weight limit thing? What does it mean? I hope I'm wrong on this one, that would save me a lot of money

 

[Karky]

weight limit could be for the rack, where you rack the bar, and not the bench itself. I dunno..

 

[evolution]

I wouldn't exceed the 110kg weight limit at all. Look on craigslist for a deal. At least one shop will have a competitive quality bench.

 

[Kutusov]

But that's the thing, no one knows... They just say "Weight limit 110Kg"... And because they are from some rubbish brand, there's no website or anything to check that out. Oh well, might as well get a better one and not be worried about the thing collapsing on me. I was thinking on getting on of those bench/squat rack combos anyway...

Thanks Karky, hope you're keeping your axes sharp as ever. Thank u also, Evo

 

[Karky]

well I'm not sure, just a guess.

 

[Kutusov]

I wouldn't exceed the 110kg weight limit at all. Look on craigslist for a deal. At least one shop will have a competitive quality bench.

Nothing in there but I'll keep on looking. Problem is I'm from Portugal, so there's not much of this things for sale around here. Lot's of guided weight machines though but I want to stick to free weights. Thanks again guys!

 

[Phate89]

Can you lift 110KG, if not don't worry about it yet.

 

[Kutusov]

No I don't, way far from it! So the limit is just for the rack?

This is getting me confused because some independent benches (with no rack attached, to be used with squat racks) have a limit arround this numbers... 110, 115kg of user weight. But if you lift a loaded bar up, that means that the weight on the bench is you + the loaded bar... How do you go about this things? Because those poor young guys at the store just look blank at me and then they look around to see if the boss is anywhere near before telling me they don't have a clue about it.

EDIT: Sorry Phate89, I misread you. I weight 80kg, so my question is if the bench can only handle just 30 more kilos or not.... 110kg is a limit to what? Rack? Bench? And if it is the rack only, how should I know how much does the actual bench holds?

 

[Kutusov]

Ok, I think I figured this out. This limitation instructions seam to be standardized by the manufacturers to a point where they turn almost meaningless.

By looking around at several benches, it is now clear to me that weight limitations refer to the several racks and supports they may have, not the bench itself. The bench that I was looking to buy has a 110 Kg rack limit and the same amount on those leg thingies they come with...

If, in the end, the damn thing falls on top of me, I let you know (... I hope...)