PVC Dumbbell/Weight Bar

Have you find yourself in a position where you want to start working out from the comfort of your home, but you don't want to spent much for basic equipment? Me too! (Also let's admit it, we love building stuff!) That's why I decided to build those low-cost PVC dumbbell and weight bar.

Materials:

(#1 Note: I preferred all the PVC pipes to be of an enhanced type as seen and with rubber inlined connections, for increased strength and tightness, but the project can 100% be successful with regular PVC as well.)

(#2 Note: The straight PVC pipe length mentioned bellow is enough for a dumbbell and a weighted bar.)

(#3 Note: Feel free to purchase muffs and caps of different sizes, if you want to create various weights for your training.)

• 1 straight pipe / diameter 40mm (1.5784") (Φ40) / length 750mm (29.5276")
• 4 pipe caps / diameter 40mm (1.5784") (Φ40)
• 8 pipe caps / diameter 75mm (2.95276") (Φ75)
• 4 sleeve muffs / diameter 40mm (1.5784") (Φ40)
• 4 sleeve muffs / diameter 75mm (2.95276") (Φ75)
• 4 machine screws / diameter 8mm (5/16 inch)
• 8 flat rings / diameter 8mm (5/16 inch)
• 4 metal nuts / diameter 8mm (5/16 inch)
• PVC adhesive glue
• For this project I used two 5kg (11.02lbs) bags of tiles glue as a weight. (That's because I had it sitting in the garage, so feel free to use the weight of your choice. I recommend medium or coarse sand.)
• Optional: A metal or wooden rod for the extra TIP provided at the end.

Tools:

• Power drill with 8mm (5/16 inch) drill point
• A simple saw
• Screwdriver
• Nut socket or pliers for the nuts
• A marker
• Protective gloves
• A scale and a big bowl
• Optional: A vice to assist you while cutting the pipe

(#4 Note: For all the steps that include PVC glue application, be sure that you are in a well ventilated place.)

Alright, put your gloves on and let's start with measuring and cutting out the two handlebars.

Firstly, place the first Φ40 muff above of the one end of the straight pipe. Then place your hand right next to it and the next Φ40 muff next to your hand. Grab the marker and mark the cutting point. This will serve as the weight bar handlebar.

Secondly, measure a length on the pipe equal to double the length of a Φ40 muff. Then mark the cutting point as well. This will serve as the dumbbell handlebar.

Now it's time to cut out the marked parts.

After getting the two parts cut, place some PVC glue on all ends of the two cut pipes and adjust a Φ40 muff at each end.

Let's prepare the caps for the following step.

Grab all of the Φ40 caps and four of the Φ75 caps and mark the center of each cap with your marker. Now drill through the marked point and make sure that you have a clean centered hole on each cap.

It's time for the most crucial (yet quite simple) part of the project.

To start with, place the PVC adhesive glue on the top of the drilled Φ40 caps. After that, pair each one of those with a Φ75 cap by using a screw, flat rings and a nut on each pair. Make sure to use flat rings on both sides of the screw and tight the pair well.

We're almost there!

So, grab the four Φ75 muffs and place a cap on one end of each one shielding it with a bit of glue. Now let's move on to filing the muffs. You can weight the sand (or whatever material you chose) using a scale along with a big bowl and mark the muff with the number of the weight that will contain. If you've chosen to use tile glue as well, make sure to check the proportions of glue to water on the bag of your product, (for me it was a 1:4 water to glue powder).

Important: Take into account that when the second cap will be placed it'll capture a bit of the muffs volume. So, don't fill the muff to the absolute maximum and be prepare to clean any excessive material that may come out at the following part.

Finally, place the connecting-caps on top of each Φ75 muff, using the PVC adhesive glue to ensure it is tight.

And now the very last step!

Apply the PVC adhesive glue on all the four ends of the handlebars that you built before. Adjust a weight to each side of the bar and...ta-da! Your PVC dumbbell/weight bar is ready!

Extra Tip: If you plan to use greater weights in general and want some extra strength on the build you can drill a hole through the handlebar and the connecting tip of the weight-muff and put a screw or a metal/wooden rod as seen in the sketch above.

Enjoy!