Dumbbells have been an integral part of any trainers and lifters' gym kit for as long as gyms have existed. If you're a beginner to elite lifter looking to perform compound lifts, strengthen a particular muscle group or improve sports performance with functional training, dumbbells are a great versatile addition to your home gym.
Over the years, dumbbell technology has evolved with different grip designs, handle dimensions, and materials used to give the dumbbells different characteristics and uses.
Adjustable dumbbells consist of a handle and adjustable weight plates that can be changed as needed. The dumbbell handles are made from different metals and finished with different grip designs to help keep a strong grip during intense workouts.
Dumbbell handles are crafted by pouring molten hot metal into a precise mold to ensure each handle is the correct size, weight, and length. The handles are manufactured according to normal or Olympic standards which changes the above characteristics and uses.
This makes choosing the right dumbbell handle a hard choice. In this article, I've reviewed my top 4 Olympic dumbbell handles and given my top pick.
Top 4 Best Olympic Dumbbell Handles Reviewed
- Diliboz Olympic Dumbbell Handle - Top pick
- STOZM Olympic Dumbbell Handles
- Cap Olympic Dumbbell Handle
- AboveGenius Olympic Dumbbell Handles
1. Diliboz Olympic Dumbbell Handle - Top Pick Olympic Dumbbell Handle
Diliboz is a sport and outdoor innovative equipment company based in Texas, USA. The brand’s mission is to improve everyone's quality of life by designing and producing great products.
Diliboz is a group of fitness enthusiasts with a shared passion for doing something exciting. The brand states to research fitness technology from around the world and discover innovative ways to workout at home.
Dilboz aims to deliver high-quality products at affordable prices. The brand works with innovators and mastermind fitness geniuses to deliver cool products and product ranges.
Bar Weight: 14 lbs
Length: 20 inches
Material: Alloy steel
Handle Diameter: 28 mm
Grip Type: Medium-depth diamond knurling
Weight Limit: 200 lbs
Warranty: Lifetime warranty
Coming in the top spot for my top 4 Olympic dumbbell handles is the handle produced by Dilboz, a company based in Texas, USA. The dumbbell handle received the best total score for handle comfort, weight limits, materials, quality, and price.
The handle is made from heavy-duty steel that's designed to handle weight up to 200 lbs without breaking. The handle has 14 lbs of solid steel throughout and has a chrome finish, protecting it from rusting.
The handle grip is designed with medium-depth diamond knurling to ensure a strong grip during sweaty, intense workouts.
The handle features sleeves on both ends, designed to make changing weights quick and easy.
The handle is 20 inches long with a 2-inch diameter for Olympic or standard plates.
Diliboz states that the dumbbell handle is perfect for intense workouts such as HIIT training, CrossFit, bodybuilding, and weight training.
The Olympic dumbbell comes with a lifetime warranty under minimal conditions, with the brand confident in the product quality and design process.
The brand logo and name are featured on each end of the handle in blue and white.
Positives:
Big 200 lb weight limit for each handle
Lifetime warranty
14lbs of solid steel construction
Aesthetically appealing design
Could be better:
Only sold as a single handle
Based in the USA, Stozm lives by the motto ‘train like an olympian’. The brand believes in the less-is-more approach when it comes to fitness equipment. Stozm states that you don't need all the equipment under the sun, just a select few pieces in their perfect form.
Stozm believes in taking charge of your life like a storm, one day at a time. The brand also states ‘get ready to push yourself to a new level’ with their original, in-house designed gear guaranteed to rock your world.
Bar Weight: 8 lbs
Length (L x W x H): 20 inches
Material: Steel
Handle Diameter: 25 mm
Grip Type: Medium depth diamond knurling
Weight Limit: 150 lbs
Warranty: 5 year warranty + 30 day return
Another excellent choice when looking to add some Olympic adjustable dumbbells to your home collection is the handles designed and sold by Stozm, a brand based in the USA.
The dumbbell handles are made from heavy solid steel designed to handle up to 150 lbs without bending or breaking. The handles have a chrome-plated finish, protecting them from the environment and giving them a nice appearance.
The handle grip features medium-depth diamond knurling, ensuring a strong grip throughout any workout.
The dumbbell handles are 20 inches long with a 2-inch sleeve diameter, making them compatible with Olympic and standard weight plates. The sleeves rotate when using to reduce wrist pressure and reduce contact between the weight plates and the handles.
The package contains a pair of 2-inch dumbbell handles and 4 spring collars. You can also add red or blue fat grips to the package if you wish.
The dumbbell handles and collars come with a 5-year warranty and 30-day return guarantee. The brand logo isn't featured on the dumbbell handles anywhere.
Positives:
Solid steel construction
Comes with 4 spring collars
Decent 150 lb weight limit
Could be better:
No lifetime warranty
Founded in 1982, Cap has been a leading distributor and provider of fitness equipment for over 25 years. Cap started producing only free weights and weight benches before building the brand to now sell more than 1000 products in 30 categories.
Cap states that whether you're looking for something to train with at home or use in a commercial setting, Cap has you covered. The brand strives to provide quality products to give its customers a significant advantage in an ever-changing market.
Bar Weight: 8 lbs
Length: 20 inches
Material: Steel
Handle Diameter: 25 mm
Grip Type: Medium-depth knurling
Weight Limit: 150 lbs
Warranty: 30-day manufacturer
Produced by CAP Barbell, a leading manufacturer for over 25 years, these Olympic dumbbell handles are a solid choice.
The dumbbell handle is made from heavy-duty steel with a black powder coat finish, designed to hold up to 150 lbs.
The black powder coat helps to prevent the dumbbell handle from oxidizing, making it more durable for repeated use.
The handle has medium depth knurling to help keep a tight grip during use. The rotating handle sleeves have bronze bushings, helping to reduce the pressure on your wrist and forearm during use.
The machined sleeve is designed to make loading and unloading weight plates easy.
The dumbbell handles are 20 inches long and 2 inches in diameter, making them suitable for both standard and Olympic weightlifting plates. The dumbbell handle is black and does not feature the brand logo or name.
The package contains 1 dumbbell handle meaning you need to buy it twice for the pair. The dumbbell handle comes with a 30-day manufacturer warranty
Positives:
Black powder coat finish
Rotating handle sleeves with bronze bushings
Solid steel construction
Could be better:
Only sold as a single handle
AboveGenius was founded in 2020, at a time when home workout equipment was in high demand and supplies were limited. This meant people had to pay more for equipment if they wanted to keep fit. AboveGenius decided they wanted to bring fitness equipment to the consumer at a reasonable cost.
The brand aims to help everyone keep fit by creating their ideal home gym, providing affordable but sturdy strength equipment.
Bar Weight: 6.3 lbs
Length: 16 inches
Material: Steel
Handle Diameter: 25 mm
Grip Type: Medium depth knurling
Weight Limit: 100 lbs
Warranty: 1 year
Rounding out my top 4 best Olympic dumbbell handles is the Olympic dumbbells set produced by AboveGenius, a brand founded during a tough time for most fitness enthusiasts.
The dumbbell handle is made from solid steel with a well-plated chrome finish, designed to protect the handle against rust and corrosion.
Each bar weighs 6.3 lbs unloaded and can hold up to 100 lbs of weight, giving a decent range of exercise options.
The 25 mm grip handle is designed with medium-depth knurling to prevent your hands from slipping if you get sweaty during a workout. At each end of the handle, the rotating sleeves help to relieve pressure on the bar during use.
The dumbbell handles are 16 inches long with a 2-inch sleeve diameter, making them compatible with both Olympic and standard weight plates.
The package contains a pair of Olympic dumbbell handles with 4 spring collars and comes with a 1-year warranty. The brand name and logo aren't featured.
Positives:
Solid steel construction
Comes as a pair with 4 spring collars
Cheaper price option
Could be better:
Longer warranty
Lower weight capacity
Subscribe!
Get more reviews about training equipment, special offers and discounts from different stores.
What are Olympic Dumbbell Handles?
Olympic and standard dumbbell handles are both designed to hold weight plates for a range of unilateral exercises with some key differences that make the Olympic ones stand out.
Olympic dumbbell bars are commonly around 20 inches long and made with a solid steel core, making the dumbbell handles heavier than standard ones.
The handles usually feature knurling on the grips with 2-inch rotating sleeves at each end, designed to fit both Olympic and standard plates. The rotating sleeves make them ideal for dynamic lifting and reduce stress on your wrist and elbows compared with standard dumbbell handles.
Whilst the Olympic dumbbell handles are usually more expensive compared to standard ones, they can hold more weight and are designed to last a lot longer than standard ones.
The dumbbells are shorter versions of an Olympic barbell. Lifters can get used to the feel, knurling, and thickness of a barbell.
The design and construction of Olympic dumbbell handles make them suitable for a wide range of uses. They can be used by beginner lifters wanting a solid dumbbell handle to last a lifetime to elite-level lifters looking to load the handle for heavy compound movements or practice with the same grip as an Olympic barbell.
They can be used to focus on strengthening a particular muscle group, work on muscular imbalances, or for sports-specific functional training to improve performance.
Whatever your goal, the design of Olympic dumbbells makes them a worthwhile lifetime investment even with the initial higher price point.
How to Pick the Best Olympic Dumbbell Handles
Durability
If you're paying a higher price for Olympic dumbbell handles, you want them to last a long time. Durable handles will last longer and prevent any injuries when lifting. Dumbbell handles made from steel are more durable than cheaper metals but more expensive.
Grip Knurling
When lifting, you want to focus on performing the movement correctly rather than the dumbbells slipping out of your hands. Knurling helps to strengthen grip and prevent the dumbbells from moving. Make sure the knurling isn't too sharp that it injures your hands but still helps to improve your grip.
Maximum weight load
When choosing a loadable Olympic dumbbell handle, make sure to consider the maximum load for each handle. If you're an elite lifter wanting to perform heavy compound movements, you might need dumbbell handles that can handle a big amount of weight. If you mainly want to use the dumbbells for accessory movements or functional training, handles that can take a lower amount of weight may be enough for you.
Weight distribution
Make sure the dumbbell handles distribute weight evenly on each side. High-quality Olympic dumbbell handles are designed to evenly distribute weight, helping to prevent wrist injuries as you increase the weight.
Length
Make sure the length of the Olympic dumbbell handle is more than the breadth of your hand. For males and females, the average hand length is 3.5 and 3.1 inches respectively. Make sure the handle is longer than this.
Olympic Dumbbell Handles FAQs
Can I use olympic plates on dumbbells?
Yes, you can. The 2-inch Olympic size dumbbell handles are designed to fit Olympic weight plates meaning you can use other plates you have at home to load the dumbbell handles.
The dumbbell handles are designed to handle a large amount of weight meaning heavy exercises can be performed but make sure the size of the plates loaded doesn’t impede your movement.
How much do Olympic dumbbell handles weigh?
Olympic dumbbell handles commonly weigh approximately 10 lbs each and are usually 20 inches long. If you want slightly smaller ones, some brands do offer shorter 14.5-inch handles that weigh 9 lbs each and 15-inch handles weighing 8.2 lbs each.
Why are Olympic weights better than standard ones?
Olympic weights have several qualities that make them the better choice over standard ones. They are more adaptable as they can fit on both Olympic and standard dumbbell and barbell handles, they usually have built-in grip handles to help keep a stronger grip and the ends of the handles move separately from the bar.
They are the only types approved for use in competition meaning you should opt to use Olympic plates if you want to compete.
Which Olympic Dumbbell Handle is the best?
If you're looking for a set of dumbbells for Olympic weights, choosing a set of high-quality Olympic dumbbell handles is a worthwhile investment despite the higher cost.
The handles are more durable, able to handle a higher amount of weight, and help lifters to get used to the grip and feel of an Olympic barbell.
The handles manufactured and sold by Diliboz are my top pick out of my 4 best Olympic dumbbell handles available online in 2022. They received the highest total score for handle comfort, weight limits, materials, quality, and price.
Do you have your own Olympic dumbbell handles at home? Which ones are you planning to buy? Let me know in the comments below.
Also read:
References:
- Best Olympic Dumbbell Handles of 2021 // FitNotch:
https://fitnotch.com/best-olympic-dumbbell-handles/#How_to_Choose_the_Right_Olympic_Dumbbell_Handles_for_Gym_or_Home
My name is Ihor and I have been a professional weightlifter since 1996. With over 20 years of competition experience, my resume includes European Champion in 2009 and the silver medalist at 2011's Senior World Championships – 105kg division.
I competed at the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics.
After hanging up my own competitive lifting shoes, I decided to share my huge background as a coach. I am currently coaching multiple athletes who are competing at national and international competitions.