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Making a DIY Pull Up Bar at Home in 5 Easy Steps

June 15, 2016 By Harris Reynolds 13 Comments


You may also like 7 Secrets To Making Lasting Changes To Your Health In 2020


Sometimes homemade is great. Sometimes it’s not. In the case of my pull-up bar…it is ridiculous. As in ridiculously awesome.  If you you want to build a DIY pull up bar you are in the right place.  Below is what I built in my back yard over the past couple weekends. First, load up the family for a trip to your local Lowes or Home Depot store.

If you have kids, get them involved. The more your kids put down their iPods and get involved with a real project the better. Here are my three older girls with me at Lowes.

lowes trip for pull up bar materials

I had to ask several Lowes employees before I found someone that had a clue. Reading this post will help you know what to ask for.

Materials to Build a DIY Pull Up Bar

  • 2 4×6, 12-foot posts (use treated lumber)
  • 1 4 foot, 1-inch threaded pipe
  • 2 1-inch floor flanges
  • 1 tube of Loctite Threadlocker
  • 8 wood screws (I got one pack of #14 screws and two packs of #12 screws… nine total)
  • 1 tube of thread glue/sealant (this is to keep the threaded pull up bar from unscrewing when you crank on it)
  • 4 80-pound bags of Quikcrete

All this cost me almost exactly $125, which I consider to be a very reasonable investment in my own and my family’s fitness.

Tools

You will need a few tools to make this happen. Work smarter, not harder right?

  • 1 PhD (as in Post Hole Digger…I borrowed the joke and the tool from my neighbor Bud — saved me $35…thanks Bud!
  • 1 skill saw — My father-in-law bought me one of these a couple months ago. Thanks Mr. Baswell! If you don’t have one, they’re approximately $40 at Lowes. You will only need this if your posts are too long.
  • 1 cordless drill
  • 1 4-foot level
  • 1 person willing to work — that is me in this case!

The skill saw is only required if your posts are too long. Lowes had 8-foot posts and 12-foot posts. I went with the 12-footers and needed to make a cut. There was a six inch difference in the depth of my holes and a two inch decline between my holes, so there was a four inch (6 – 2) difference in the post length after my cuts.

Keep this in mind…you want to have a level bar when doing this. You need to keep in mind any variables when doing this project such as the length of holes, the length of posts, the incline between posts, etc.

Making a DIY Pull Up Bar in 5 Simple Steps

Step 1: Glue and Screw Flanges to Pipe

One of the harder parts of this project is figuring out how to easily connect the bar to the posts.  Well, with a tip from my twin brother, Todd, I used some floor flanges with female threads and a one-inch pipe with male threads. He also suggested that I get some kind of glue to help seal the connection between the bar and the flanges.

After putting the Threadlocker sealant on the pipe threads, screw the floor flange on.  Do this on both sides.

i7XiI2oh9X7i8ua5.jpg

Optional step – Have any helpers practice some overhead squats with the pipe. Here is my oldest daughter. I should have her watch my Overhead Squat Video to work on her form a bit. But she looks good for a ten year old!

overhead squats with pull up bar pipe

Step 2: Dig the Holes

The only labor-intensive part of this project is digging the holes. In general, I recommend digging them both two feet deep. I actually dug one 30 inches and one 24 inches, but that makes the calculations more complex. To keep it simple, you can keep things as uniform as possible.

hole for pull up bar two feet deep

Step 3: Cut the Posts

As I mentioned, this is only necessary if you have posts that are too long. With my 12-foot posts I needed to cut them in order to keep the bar from being the height of a basketball goal. You want to have a small jump to reach the bar, but not an all out leap.

If you have 12 -foot posts and two foot holes, and your ground is level, then you need to cut off about 18 inches to have your bar at 8 feet. Remember, with the flanges screwed into the posts, your bar will be a few inches below the top of the posts.

Step 4: Connect the Bar to the Posts

It may be debatable whether step 4 or 5 should go first.  I chose to connect the bar to the posts first.  The idea here is that if the bar is connected evenly to the posts from the top of the bar, you can then adjust the final level of the pull up bar by digging the hole deeper or adding dirt back to your holes.

This is the step where the cordless drill comes in handy.  I used a pencil to mark the holes, then drilled some holes with a bit before screwing them in. I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but I am not the dullest either!

drilling screws into bar and posts

Screw the flange into the first post…

connect pull up bar to posts

… then into the second post, making sure each side is symmetrically positioned from the top. Connecting the first post is easy. Notice below how I elevated each post on a bag of Quikcrete to make it easier to screw the second flange into the other post.

posts elevated on quikcrete

Step 5: Set the Posts

After the bar is connected to the posts, the last step is setting the posts. This is the most difficult part. Why? Because it is critical to ensure that the bar is level on the top and that each of the posts are straight up.

Ideally, you’ll have some help making sure that the post is in the right position while you dump Quikcrete into the hole. I had some help from my oldest daughter.

After ensuring your posts are straight and level, dump in the Quikcrete bit by bit and add some water all along the way.  I used a long crowbar to mix the Quikcrete and water in the hole.

setting post of pull up bar

Take your time setting the posts.  Again, you want it level and straight.  Better to take your time getting it right than to rush the project and have a crooked, slanting pull up bar in your backyard.  That is no good.

Step 6: Enjoy

Here is the finished product. I am very happy with how it turned out. The bar is almost exactly 8 feet high and after I added 3 and 1/2 bags of Quikcrete this thing, it is rock solid! It takes 24 hours for the concrete and the posts to fully set up, so wait a day before cranking on the pull up bar. Don’t worry… there will be plenty of time, God willing, to rip some muscle ups on this thing. And don’t forget the toes to bar!

final homemade pull up bar

Step 7: Optionally, Add 2×4’s as Ladder for Kids

I haven’t done it yet, but I am going to screw four two-foot 2×4’s into the outer edge of one of the posts so that my younger kids can climb up and get on the bar.

Use common sense on which kids you allow to play on this. This is a real rig that would make our friends at Rogue Fitness proud. Treat it with respect. I can’t wait to rip on this thing!

If you have any questions shoot me a message and I’ll be glad to help. This is a very important piece of equipment for any home gym. Don’t be afraid of building a DIY-pull up bar! If I can do it you can do it and doing it yourself makes you appreciate it more.

Have fun!


You may also like 7 Secrets To Making Lasting Changes To Your Health In 2020

Summary
Article Name
Making a DIY Pull Up Bar at Home in 5 Easy Steps
Description
Sometimes homemade is great. Sometimes it's not. In the case of my pull-up bar...it is ridiculous. As in ridiculously awesome. Here is what I built in my back yard over the past couple weekends. First, load up the family for a trip to your local Lowes or Home Depot store.
Author
Harris Reynolds
FitnessHQ

Filed Under: Blog, Fitness

Comments

  1. Angel says

    May 20, 2016 at 2:01 am

    Thanks foe this post it really helped

    Reply
  2. Michael says

    October 10, 2016 at 11:43 pm

    Thanks so much for the info. I’m just curious if you have put this to the test of kipping pull ups? It certainly looks solid, but I’m wondering if it will handle 200+ lbs. in a kip or if I should add some outriggers for stability.

    Reply
    • Harris Reynolds says

      December 27, 2016 at 8:44 pm

      Yeah… I’ve done a bunch of kipping pullups on this rig. I’d love to understand how to measure the weight and force different designs can handle. This one is good for me and I *think* it’d be fine for up to 200 to 225 lbs. But I can only test it at 185 lbs. 🙂

      Reply
  3. GarageGymPlanner says

    December 9, 2016 at 11:33 am

    Awesome job! I have been wanting to try my hand at one too and you’ve given me the inspiration to do it.

    Reply
  4. Jessica says

    December 26, 2016 at 9:37 pm

    I am trying to hang a yoga arial trapeze…I wonder hiw sturdy this set up is. Any way to make it “industrial” I need it to hold 500 pounds. 3x my weight! Any advice?

    Reply
    • Harris Reynolds says

      December 27, 2016 at 8:47 pm

      Great question. I would definitely make the bar a bit larger… 1 and 1/4 inch or 1 1/2 inch. Another update is that I’d consider drilling holes into the wood and putting the flanges on the outside of the posts with the bar going through the center of them. That would make it more “industrial” strength.

      Reply
  5. Ben says

    April 4, 2017 at 2:26 am

    Awesome stuff. Just what I was looking for. All Chin Up Stations for outdoor use are between $700 and $2000.
    I will definitely give this try.

    Thanks very much man!!

    Ben

    Reply
  6. Anthony s says

    April 12, 2017 at 11:43 am

    What would you use to prevent the bar from rusting due to inclement weather?

    Reply
    • Harris Reynolds says

      April 12, 2017 at 1:58 pm

      Using galvanized hardware is the key here. Including the screws that you use. After two years the rig is still holding up well. May need to replace a couple screws at some point, but it has been a good rig.

      Reply
  7. Drew says

    May 24, 2017 at 1:07 pm

    Harris,

    I’m looking to build the same rig. Your instructions are the most simple and clear cut to follow that I’ve found on the internet. .

    What are you thoughts on buying a steel pipe with male threads that extends through the posts, then attaching the flanges on the outside of the posts. This way they’re not only screwed into the flanges, but also are going through the posts?

    Is your rig still sturdy? No trouble with pipe slipping out from flanges or anything?

    Drew

    Reply
    • Harris Reynolds says

      May 24, 2017 at 1:22 pm

      Andrew! Thanks for the comment. If there is one improvement to this rig you could make, it would be to do what you said. Drill holes in the posts so that the pipe can run through it and attach to flanges on the outside instead of the inside. This would be an extra level of complexity that could take an hour or two to figure out.

      My rig is still solid and very adequate for me (at 185 lbs). I might get a little nervous if a 250+ pounder was cranking on it doing hardcore kipping pull-ups. But honestly most BIG guys usually wouldn’t be able to do lots of pull-ups.

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. 6 Home Gym Ideas for the Fitness Fanatic on a Budget - FITNESS HQ says:
    March 8, 2016 at 7:52 pm

    […] going to be more difficult to create. However, with simple tutorials like ours on how to build a DIY Pull Up Bar or this one on building your own jump box at home, anyone can start building their own garage […]

    Reply
  2. How High Is Too High? | The Life and Times of Monkey, Buster, and Yessa says:
    September 5, 2016 at 5:31 pm

    […] scoured the internet to find ideas, and we headed to Home Depot early on Saturday morning with a list and a very hazy […]

    Reply

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