Brush to clean barbell

[Wilhelm]

always washed my hands with dawn before lifting, but that proved to not be enough.

I'm not trying to give you hard time, but why are you against using even a slight amount of chalk?

I'm not against it, I just don't need it yet with my hook grip. 425 is my top pull, and nothing slips at all.
Maybe someday i will actually need it. That would be kind of cool.
I suppose the nice knurl of the OPB could be a factor in this.

[cgeorg]

So, I'm kind of embarrassed to even post this, but my Rogue Ohio Bar, Black Oxide coating currently looks like this, and it won't get better until I face my shame:



What's my best course of action going forward? Something like this, mentioned earlier in the thread?



And then WD-40 and rag it?

Also, how did it get like this? It started happening basically right away, a year ago (I'm a tan perineum for waiting this long to address it.) I know the dungeon looks shitty but it's not wet. I thought the coating should have kept this from happening?

[Wilhelm]

For maintenance, i've settled on a brass brush and 3 in One oil.
Tried a nylon brush at first, and while it will get dry chalk out (i barely ever use chalk) , the brass brussh and oil cleans the knurl so well i can feel the difference very strongly after cleaning.

Obviously you're going to need to do an initial restoration.
I'd go with a soft crimped wire wheel and a drill. They make them in brass, but a steel one should be fine, and might get the coating off better.
I wouldn't bother trying to preserve any of the zinc
Do it outside or there in the basement, but put tarps down over as large an area as you can.
Those bristles dislodge, even with a hand held brush, and they can get in your bare feet, or your pet's.

I'd used a big magnet to sweep the area as well.
Probably another benefit of using a soft steel crimped wire wheel.

I just use a small toothbrush sized brass brush and a liberal amount of oil, and brush out from the center, cleaning up the excess out toward the ends.
The oil works well as a solvent for the skin and oil that fills the knurl.

Since dealing with some initial rust, i now just oil and brush my bare steel OPB every month or two.
If you squeeze it dry with a soft rag, the oil had no effect on grip.

[murphyreedus]

Black oxide isn't going to slow down rust as much as other coatings.

If it were my bar I'd try just hitting it with Simple Green and a nylon brush, and then WD-40 and rag it. See how it looks after that. If there are really bad spots left pull out the wire wheel.

[Cody]

@cgeorg Do what @murphyreedus said. I'd actually just try wd40 and a brush first, but simple green is golden if you already have some on hand.

Going forward, just clean out chalk and use wd40 and a rag at regular intervals. You'll have to figure out just how frequent that needs to be with experimentation. Could be every session, weekly, monthly, etc.

[iamsmu]

So, I'm kind of embarrassed to even post this, but my Rogue Ohio Bar, Black Oxide coating currently looks like this, and it won't get better until I face my shame:

I have one that looks worse. It turned green. They sent me a replacement. I don't think it's your fault. I'm surprised that the sleeves look like this too. Do you chalk the sleeves? Man, it's a mess. . . . The new one is kept in the basement with low humidity. With the chalk cleaned every workout, it's been fine. The old one failed in places that had never seen chalk though, such as the center. Your bar even failed on the sleeves. Of course you don't chalk them. That black oxide coating seems to be inconsistent. I have a Bella with the same coating and it's never had an issue. Either way, I'll never buy another black oxide coated bar. . . . .

[Ragholmes]

So, I'm kind of embarrassed to even post this, but my Rogue Ohio Bar, Black Oxide coating currently looks like this, and it won't get better until I face my shame

No shame in that. I have the same bar, same coating, maybe 4 years old now. My sleeves don't look like that, but my knurling is probably a bit worse.
I have brushed it and oiled it a few times, but it comes back. I've been hesitant to hit it with a wire wheel because I figured that would strip the coating. But at this point the coating doesn't seem to be doing much to protect it, so..?
I bought my wife a Cerakote Bella bar maybe 2 years ago that still looks brand new. She doesn't use it as often as I use mine, but it's still out in the garage in the same environment and with zero maintenance. Wish they had the Cerakote when I bought mine.

[Allentown]

Also, how did it get like this? It started happening basically right away, a year ago (I'm a tan perineum for waiting this long to address it.) I know the dungeon looks shitty but it's not wet. I thought the coating should have kept this from happening?

That's kind of crazy. My Rogue Power Bar with the black oxide coat is... 10 years old (?!) now, and at most I have a few spots where the coating is worn off, and a few discolored spots but nothing like that. And it's been in an easily dampened garage for the whole time (lots of rain causes some seeping in a corner, and cars with rain/snow in there, etc). I didn't do anything at all to it for probably 6 years when I finally bought a brass brush. Last few years I will brush it once or twice a month during the winter if I remember...

I even frequently have to remind myself not to lean on/hang on to the collar while playing with my phone/writing in my log between sets, especially when it's cold outside and I am sweaty.