Customer Reviews

P90X Chin-Up Bar

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(22)

 

 

After reading so many conflicting reviews on this product, I've decided to set the record straight. This product has taken an unfair beating mainly due to ignorant people writing reviews for the wrong product.

1) This product is the genuine Beachbody P90X pull-up bar. As the product description says, it is sold by Beachbody (producers of P90X) and fulfilled by Amazon. Other pull-up bars look just like this one and may be marketed as "ideal for P90X," but they have nothing to do with Beachbody. Those are generic brands that cost about half the price of this product. Many reviewers bought the generic bar, experienced problems with them (bad fasteners, foam that ripped, wobbly parts, etc), but then posted their review under this official Beachbody product. I received this product yesterday, assembled it, and saw no problems with it whatsoever. Details follow.

2) The pullup bar is easy to assemble. Many people complained that the instructions were very hard to follow. It's not. There are 5 unique shapes to this bar (you can count them out just by looking at the product picture) fastened by bolts. There are 8 long bolts and 2 slightly shorter bolts. A wrench and hex key are provided to tighten these bolts. All you do is stick the bolt through the holes and tighten the nut. The picture in the instructions show you how the pieces go together. I assembled the bar in about 10 minutes, and I only used the instruction manual to make sure I used the 2 short bolts in the right place. All other holes use the same long bolt. There are no left- or right-specific parts.

3) This pull-up bar does NOT require the included mounting brackets. These brackets are included for additional safety. If you are applying any weight to the bar, it is impossible for it to slip off the casing of your doorway. In fact, weight hanging from the bar makes it even more secure. This is because the design of the bar creates a force that diverts your weight into a horizontal direction (the way you're facing when you hang on it), and the bar on the opposite side of the door applies an equal but opposite force the other direction. In other words, by hanging on the bar, the bar is squeezing the depth of the door. This is why you may cause a dent in your casing along the sides of the door. The only way to remove the bar from the doorway casing is to push up on the bar. If you're hanging on the bar, there's no way to cause a net upward force to dislodge the bar from its death-pinch on the doorway. You'd have to push off from something solid, or you have to be making some very extreme jerky motions with your body.

4) The correctly assembled product is sturdy and does not rattle, flex, or wiggle in any way. You may notice some abrasion noise from where the main bar (the long, one-piece bar that spans about 41" across) rests on the side casing of your doorway. The material on the bar is plastic and resembles a handlebar on a bike. I wrapped some of the protective packing foam that came with the packaging around the "handlebars" and it stopped all noise.

5) According to the product description, "the P90X fits doorways up to 32 inches wide and requires a sturdy doorframe with trim. The doorway should be a minimum of 5 inches wide and a maximum of 6.5 inches." The product was clearly designed for a standard 32" doorway opening with 2.5" colonial casing around the door. If your casing is fancier/wider, such as Stafford or Windsor styles, you may have a tighter fit. Based on my observations, this product will work safely up to an opening width of 36". The depth recommendation of 5" - 6.5" is accurate. Depending on the opening width of your door, you may get indentations in your casing from protruding parts of the bar. This is especially true if your doorway is between 29 and 31". The U-shape piece of the bar may rest directly on the casing, causing the dent. If your doorway is narrower than 29", you'll encounter no issues, since you'll likely have foam cushioning your casing.

6) The foam handles on this bar appear to be the durable kind. Years ago, I bought a generic bar that came with foam that lost its shape and eventually tore off the bar from use. This beachbody bar's foam feels firm, holds its shape after use, and appears to be durable. I can't attest to its longevity until I use it more.

I was torn between this product and the "Iron Gym Total Upper Body Workout Bar - Extreme Edition," which was recommended by several reviewers. As far as I can tell, that bar is also a decent one, and it costs less. I ended up getting the beachbody bar because the main bar (41" long) is one-piece. Is that worth an additional $33? Probably not. I didn't see people complaining about any structural issues with the Iron Gym. I figured I'd pay a bit extra for the the all-black bar, a purely aesthetic preference, and support Beachbody, the company that produced the awesome workout program P90X. If you're on a budget, I'm sure the Iron Gym would be an excellent choice as well.

I bought this because I lived in an apartment. I did NOT use anything other than the bar to work out with; in other words, I did NOT use the extra brackets. It is my opinion that you don't "have" to use them, but they are there for safety/legal reasons. If you have controlled and thoughtful motion, the way it sits on the door frame and pushes on the sides makes it sturdy enough. However, to remove the bar, you lift it up (as seen on TV). If you were not paying attention during a workout, I can see where the lawyers are afraid you might dislodge it... so therefore, the extra security of the brackets. Your choice.

Beware, however, that the bar fits only standard doors. I've since moved into a townhouse with smaller spaces, and if there isn't room ABOVE the door, it won't work (the ceiling is flush with the door frame in the areas I have doors). Also, your door can't be WIDER than the bar (as in two double doors that open), because it needs the sides of the door frame to push against.

If you have normal sized doors, this is the one for you. The brackets? You can probably do without, but in case a lawyer is reading this... I'll say that you should use the brackets....

I assumed, incorrectly, that because this looked like the type of pull-up bar that mounts on a door without screws that it was. It isn't. You have to screw two clamps in with four screws. That's my fault for making a wrong assumption.

However, I'd like to be able to not put holes over my doors, and move the bar from doorway to doorway. So that's a design drawback from my perspective.

That being said, the bar is very nice and very sturdy. Its configuration allows for a number of hand positions. It states very clearly not to use the device for inversion.

This was great. I love how it physically hooks over the jamb w/ the supplied brackets, ensuring the bar does not come off the door jamb. I read many reviews on other bars where the bar came off the door jamb while someone was doing a pullup. I'm glad I got this one. The instructions are not as clear as I would have like. When assembling it, do not tighten anything down until it's all assembled - the bar needs some freeplay to properly line up the holes. The measurements on the instructions to drill the holes in the wall above the jamb were wrong. Essentially, the two brackets must fit between the curved support bars. This was not clear, and the measurements provided would not have resulted in this. The piece of the device that rests against the vertical door jamb will make indentations in it (from your body weight). I solved this by spending $4 at the hardware store for some pipe insulation (the foam tubes). I use this as padding, so it's no issue. Very pleased.

I recently purchased the p90x system so i was looking for a good chin up bar to go with it, i looked around and found the identical bar at 39.95. If you're looking for a good pull-up bar that doesn't require mounting hardware at a cheaper price, look at the iron gym extreme.

First off, yes, I have the real Beachbody version. Not a knock-off or generic.
The bar assembly itself is very easy, however it wobbles side to side a bit. Not really enough to notice when you're using it, but still, the engineer in me is bothered to no end by this. The alan screws will not tighten enough to keep this from happening.
The big problem, however, is the brackets. I was unenthusiastic enough to begin with about punching 8 1/4in holes in my wall, and this turned to outright rage when I realized that the directions are incorrect. I measured EXACTLY 13.75in between the inside edges of the brackets, just like it says on the instructions. Believe me, I build things for a living - I installed these brackets to specification. However, 13.75in is too close. The brackets hit the vertical bars that hold up the "bracing" bar (that goes on the opposite side of the door from the handles), which prevents the bracing bar from ever slotting into the brackets.
I refuse to further damage my house or to modify the bar (for fear I may want to return it). Lucky for me, I've realized that the brackets aren't required at all. Huh. You'd think they'd mention something like that somewhere in the instructions...

In short - do not use the brackets. If you DO want to use the brackets, measure the space yourself, so that the horizontal bracing bar will slot properly in them, and not be obstructed by the two L-shaped bars that connect it to the side with the handles. I have not measured but I would estimate you'd want either 10in (to slot between the L-shaped bars) or 15in (to slot on the outside). Definitely not anywhere between 12-14in though.

Great product. Im 210lbs and it has held up for the last 90 days without a budge. Solid, easy to take down and put back up! I have worked out with it on the p90x program (great program) and it has done great for my back and strength training. Best product for the money spent. Enjoy!

I have just spent the last hour trying to securely mount this bar. This experience leaves me questioning the honesty of all the five star reviews... When I assembled the bar I was impressed with the quality of the bar itself. When I opened the mounting hardware box I thought they must be kidding.

When the bar is hung as instructed it acts like a lever (or crowbar.) Your body weight on the grip side naturally pulls the bottom of the mounting hardware away from the wall. The eight flimsy drywall screws provided instantly tear away from the drywall. I can't imagine why they specified these brackets and fasteners. This is a recipe for disaster and product failure!

The description is really lacking. Not only do you have to put brackets in your door frame, but if you have an older house with wide doorframes, this won't work. This is a little hard to explain, but the width of the pull up bar was fine but the back stabilizer part couldn't hook because from front to back our door frames are too wide.

why pay 99.99 when you can buy the same exact pull bar for 40.00 from iron gym. Theyre the same exact tools, one just says P90X. It seems like people need to buy the recommended "P90x" bands, yoga mats, .. etc etc. No need people, save your money and go to find a better deal. It doesnt matter if its "P90x" theyre all the same thing, youll see the same results... they just slap on the name from beachbody/p90x.