If the way to the gym is too far or the membership fee is too steep, you have two options: hang in there or hang in there. For the second, mobile pull-up bars for your own four walls seem to be a practical option. But what can the small fitness equipment do? Do the poles keep what the manufacturers promise? The star took a close look at three current models and put them to the test.
The Springos pull-up bar comes in an unadorned cardboard box. Inside you will find the pole wrapped in cling film, a small bag with two rubber rings and two small screws (optional attachment). The instruction manual is more than spartan. It consists of exactly one DIN A4 sheet. Logically, you don’t learn much from it. You should also be able to speak the English language. The bar itself feels solid. The black and red synthetic rubber grip pads are pleasingly wide. The weld seams on the end pieces of the pull-up bar do not inspire confidence quite as much. At least one side of our test product was not worked properly here. If you are looking for and need small exercise examples for strength training, you should not throw away the packaging. There are five exercises with tips – from the simple holding position to sit-ups. Of course also in English.
The pole installs in a door frame in minutes. To do this, the two ends are unscrewed evenly, as with a telescopic rod, until the rod clamps by itself. Attention: A left-hand thread is installed on one side. The training device is finally fixed by hand-tightening the rod on the handle. This is especially important for older doors and door frames. Because: The more the rod is pulled, the more pressure the frames have to withstand. If you want to be sure that the rod is hanging exactly horizontally, it is best to use a tape measure or a folding rule before finally fixing it. The pull-up bar is ready for use. And keeps what the instructions promise. With a load of around 80 kilograms, the steel rod held tight and didn’t move a millimeter. In the practical test, she had to withstand a few pull-ups and simple holding exercises. The cushions are non-slip, even with sweaty hands there is no risk of slipping. And the door frames also remained intact in our test. The hard rubber stoppers on the end pieces didn’t leave any unsightly marks.
The Springos pull-up bar is not a high-end training device. But that was not to be expected at a price of less than 20 euros. Apart from a poorly processed weld seam, the steel horizontal bar makes a decent impression. It is attached quickly and easily and had no problems with the pull-ups of the 80-kilo tester. A more detailed map or brochure with some exercise examples and tips would be desirable for those new to home workouts.
When a successful top athlete recommends a piece of fitness equipment, that should mean something. Arnd Peiffer, Olympic champion and one of the most successful biathletes of recent years, is a testimonial from Schildkröt Fitness and adorns the packaging of the multifunctional door bar. A guarantee of quality? Well, optically, the fitness device for your own four walls makes a very valuable impression. The package includes four steel rods padded with green polyurethane, multilingual (construction) instructions as well as screws, nuts and a suitable multifunctional tool for assembly. With the help of the instructions and a little manual skill, this is a matter of a few minutes. The screwed-together mobile fitness device, which was designed both as a pull-up bar and for strength training on the floor, weighs a little more than two kilograms. A brochure with practice examples is not included. As with the other two devices, you have to make do with exercise suggestions from the Internet. Small minus point.
To avoid a nasty surprise, the depth of the door frame should be measured before screwing it together (or even better: before buying it). It should be between twelve and a maximum of 24 centimeters. Otherwise the door bar cannot be securely fixed in the frame. In our case, we came to almost 18 centimeters. The door bar fitted perfectly with the middle holes. Tip: Before the metal brackets are fixed to the crossbar, hold both on the door frame to find the correct position and hole.
Finally, the Schildkröt multifunctional door bar with the PVC cross member is placed on the upper edge of the door frame. On the other side of the door, the two ends of the crossbar press against the door frame (see image). Now you can train. Pull-ups worked without any problems with a tester weighing 80 kilograms. The bar is bombproof. It can be pulled both in the classic grip and on the short handles. The green grip pads are comparatively soft and hardly structured. With sweaty or wet hands, the grip was not optimal in our test. The ends of the pull-up bar, which are also padded, protect the door frame from scratches. For strength exercises, such as sit-ups or push-ups, the door bar must be placed on an exercise or yoga mat, the carpet or another dull floor covering. On laminate, tiles or parquet, the device slips away during training and, in the worst case, scratches the floor.
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Versatile and solidly constructed training device for the home. The assembly is simple, the material is stable. In contrast to the telescopic pull-up bars, however, the door bar does not fit in all door frames. You can also use it to train your abdominal, torso and shoulder muscles on the floor. Clear advantage. The price: The Schildkröt door bar is significantly more bulky than the simple bars for clamping. Another disadvantage: It is not a permanent solution. Unless you install it in a passage without a door, because it won’t close if the device is hanging in the door frame. The PVC upholstery is a bit too thick and soft for our taste. This is at the expense of grip. For less than 30 euros, the Schildkröt door bar is a good investment for anyone who wants to do something for their fitness at home.
Similar to the Springos bar, the Sveltus pull-up bar is delivered in a narrow cardboard box to save space. The content is also almost identical. In addition to the steel rod itself, a small bag with two rubber rings and screws for optional fixing in the door frame appears. In addition, a one-page user manual in English. There you will learn briefly and concisely how the rod should be mounted. There are also four practice examples on the back. What else do you notice? The two grip pads were each provided with four notches, which should probably ensure better grip. The stitching on the end pieces is clean and the black rubber tips, which are supposed to protect the door frame, fit perfectly. A bit strange: the packaging states the maximum load as 100 kilograms. The user manual mentions a “maximum body weight” of 120 kilograms.
The principle of the telescopic rod is simple. And it works. The rod is adjusted via the rotating end pieces so that it holds in the door frame, whereby one side with a left-hand thread also works here. For a secure hold, the handle with the two pads must then be carefully tightened. Here, too, the principle applies: after firm comes broken. At the latest when it creaks in the frame, the rod should be securely fixed. In our test, the bar withstood the approximately 80 kilograms of the tester without any problems. The intelligently structured pads with the notches are easy to grip. Even with wet hands, pull-ups and longer hanging exercises were no problem. And here, too, the rubberized dropouts left no traces or even dents on the light frame.
In the test, the pull-up bar from Sveltus seemed to us to be a bit better thought out and of higher quality than the competitor product from Springos. The grip pads are cleverly designed and the device gives an overall stable impression. For beginners, more detailed tips on exercises would also be desirable. In our opinion, a sparsely printed leaflet is not enough. However, the bar easily withstood the pull-up test. And that is exactly what the fairly inexpensive fitness device from the French brand is there for.
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