If you’ve built up any type of home gym over the last few years, you know that not every adjustable dumbbell is created equal.

From click and slide models to old-school iron clankers that use weight plates, most have their pros and cons. We decided to test the Gungnir Dumbler ($499 per pair), a top-shelf pair of dumbbells that brings new-school design to the classic construct, to see if this weight plate-loadable dumbbell lives up to the buzz or if your money is best spent elsewhere.

“This is a loadable adjustable dumbbell that allows you to use your existing Olympic plates that have a two-inch hole in order to slide these on and create whatever dumbbell size you want,” says David Otey, C.S.C.S, a Men’s Health Advisory Board member, noting that with loadable Olympic dumbbells, Gungnir has really separated themselves from the rest of the home dumbbell market.

The built-in mechanism itself is a big win here. “A lot of the concerns that I've always had with loadable Olympic dumbbells is that they're very reliant on the collar,” says Otey. “So if you're gonna end up doing curls or presses, or any kind of weight where you're moving, and the plate has to face downward, you're really relying on the collar holding that plate there to make sure that you can actually sustain it, and it's not going to slide off.”

He adds that another benefit to this design is that you're able to use the existing pieces of equipment that you have in your gym, so you don’t have to buy an entire rack to hold a lot of weights. Otey’s also a big fan of the high-quality materials and clean finish of the product, highlighting that “the machining is very different from any other loadable dumbbell you would have; the ability for the mechanisms to move back and forth is different from any dumbbell you've ever seen.”

Still, it’s not all roses and stainless steels. The sticker shock for this product is substantial and “it's relatively tedious to try and change the weights,” so you have to spend a bit of time between sets.

Another downside? It’s tough to maneuver both dumbbells with more load. The Dumbler has a max capacity of 264 pounds, but Otey found that the most comfortable way you can load these dumbbells is with 75 pounds. Accessory movements like biceps curls and triceps extensions might also create a lot of clanging.

If you want to know whether we give the Gungnir Dumbler the MH Strong seal of approval, plus, who we think this product is best for, you’ll have to watch the video to find out.

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Are These At-Home Dumbbells Worth It? | Men’s Health Muscle

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