Poll of the Day > why does a bar with lots of weight(gym) on it seem to bend but not break.

(+) Yeah! (+)

Like, when there is a lot of weight, say for a bench press.

It looks like the bar could snap at any moment, see, for example, the first one here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEhDXqFUyAw

Do...Do the bars ever snap?

Because they're steel, not ABS.
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Kyuubi4269 posted...

Because they're steel, not ABS.

My ABS are steel homie

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It's designed that way. They do snap from time to time though.

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A weightlifter walks into a bar

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They only snap when the user doesn't have full control of the force.

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Metalsonic66 posted...

A weightlifter walks into a bar

He wakes up with a bad headache.
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Smarkil posted...

My ABS are steel homie

Oh, snap!

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I imagine they use more malleable metals or maybe temper them a certain way so that theyll bend under pressure rather than break which would likely cause injury

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Also possible they're measured and tested to be compatible with the weights being used

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That's how they be. Really, it'd take tens of thousands of pounds for them to break (in the way you're likely imagining). More realistically, they'd bend to a point where they can't return to their original shape.

Solids have a yield point where they will deform and be unable to revert to their original shape. Any amount of force prior to that yield point, and they can return to their original shape. Steel in particular is very ductile material.

The lifters picks the bar up in a relatively wide stance (compared to the overall length of the bar), so the weight is supported by the lifter. If they picked it up at one point, it would likely bend and deform.

Think about a paperclip. You can easily apply too much force and bend it. It's a little harder to break it from just pulling it apart.

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If the bar ain't bending you're just pretending.

Broadly, because steel manages to be a very strong material while still being malleable enough to avoid being brittle. This is why it's used so often for structural purposes: You need some flex to avoid having the whole thing shatter whenever a particularly strong force is applied. There's an entire industry built around tweaking steel's properties to optimize it for various applications, and the steel used in weight bars (at least high-quality ones) has been chosen to be optimal for the forces the bar will face.

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It's simple physics. Hot cells make more heat than cold ones. If I were to ride my bike at a full speed, it would increase my temperature by more than two degrees. Because hot bodies radiate heat more, they are able to absorb more heat. This force creates the Law of Conservation of Energy. This gives each individual at the earth's surface the same amount of heat equal to their mass times the heat of thermal radiation.

With a very heavy bar, the heat will be distributed more evenly over the body. This will cause the bar to bend around the center without breaking. It also helps to prevent abrasion on the bar's body

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