How high should the pins be for a pin press?

Set them at or just below the point where your bench press slows down or stalls. For many lifters that is a few inches above the chest, as shown here, while pins set higher turn it into lockout work for the triceps.

Should the bar start on the pins or be lowered to them?

The standard pin press starts with the bar resting on the pins, so the first rep is a press from a dead stop with no lowering first. Some lifters unrack the bar and lower it to the pins instead, which works as long as the bar settles fully before each press.

Will I lift more on a pin press than on a regular bench press?

It depends on the pin height. With the pins set high, most lifters can press more than their bench press, but from pins a few inches off the chest the load is often similar or a little lighter, because there is no rebound to help the bar start moving.

How is the pin press different from a floor press or a board press?

In a Barbell Floor Press the floor stops your upper arms and your legs can't help, so no rack is needed. In a board press the bar pauses on boards held against your chest and you keep holding the weight, while the pins take the whole load between reps.

Can the pin press replace the regular bench press?

No. It trains only part of the range and leaves out lowering the bar and reversing it off the chest, so it works best as an accessory alongside full-range Barbell Bench Press training.

Can I do pin presses without a spotter?

Yes, as long as the pins are set correctly. A missed rep comes to rest on the pins above your chest, so you can slide out from under the bar.

Barbell Pin Press

What Is the Barbell Pin Press?

Barbell Pin Press is a compound exercise that primarily targets the chest and also engages the triceps and front shoulders. It is an intermediate-level movement that starts every rep with the bar resting on the safety pins of a power rack, a few inches above the chest, so each press begins from a dead stop instead of a rebound.

The pin press is a partial bench press used mainly by powerlifters and strength athletes to build strength at a chosen point of the lift, usually at or just below the spot where their bench press stalls. Because the bar rests on the pins before each rep, the stretch and rebound you get from lowering into a regular bench press are gone, and you have to produce force from a standstill. That makes it a useful accessory for lifters who lose speed or tightness a few inches off the chest, and it usually sits after the main bench press work in a session.

Pin height decides where the work goes. Low pins, like the setup shown here, keep the chest as the main driver and the movement close to a regular Barbell Bench Press. Raising the pins shortens the press toward lockout and puts more of the load on the triceps. A study of trained men pressing a guided bar found that working only the top half of the bench press produced higher triceps activity than either the full range or the bottom half, along with higher chest activity than the full range. A closer grip shifts the work toward the triceps as well.

The pin press suits lifters who already bench with consistent technique and want to strengthen a weak range, practice staying tight from a dead start, or press without the bottom of the movement when that part bothers their shoulders. If you are newer to pressing, build a solid full-range bench press first. The Barbell Floor Press is a similar dead-stop partial press when you have no rack, and the full bench press stays the main lift that the pin press supports rather than replaces.

Muscles Worked

MuscleActivation

Pectoralis Major: Primary
Deltoid: High
Triceps Brachii (Lateral Head): High
Triceps Brachii (Long Head): High
Triceps Brachii (Medial Head): High
Latissimus Dorsi: Low
Serratus Anterior: Low
Erector Spinae: Minimal
Rhomboid Major: Minimal

Instructions

Place a flat bench inside a power rack and set both safety pins at the same height, so the bar rests a few inches above your chest when you lie under it.
Load the bar on the pins, lie back on the bench with your eyes under the bar, and plant your feet flat on the floor.
Grip the bar with an overhand grip a little wider than shoulder width, thumbs wrapped around it and wrists stacked over your elbows.
Pull your shoulder blades back and down, lift your chest toward the bar, and keep your head, upper back and hips on the bench.
Take a breath, brace your core, and squeeze the bar hard with your elbows angled in toward your torso.
Press the bar up off the pins from a dead stop, driving it up and slightly back until your arms are straight over your shoulders.
Lower the bar under control back to the pins and let it settle completely, without bouncing.
With the bar at rest, reset your shoulder blades, take a fresh breath and brace, then press the next rep.
After the last rep, leave the bar on the pins and slide out from under it.

Common Mistakes

Bouncing off the pins
Tapping the pins and pressing straight back up brings back the rebound the dead stop is meant to remove, so let the bar settle fully before each rep.
Pins at the wrong height
Pins set far from where your bench actually stalls, or so low the bar touches your chest, train a different range than the one you need.
Relaxing between reps
Letting the shoulder blades and chest sag while the bar rests on the pins leaves the next rep starting loose, with the shoulders rolled forward.
Jerking the bar off the pins
Snapping the bar off the pins without first squeezing it and building tension makes the start uneven and pulls the bar out of its groove.
Flaring the elbows
Pressing with the elbows straight out to the sides shifts strain onto the front of the shoulder instead of keeping it on the chest and triceps.
Lifting the hips
Driving the hips off the bench to break the bar off the pins strains the lower back and changes the pressing angle.

Injuries

Barbell Pin Press is a medium risk exercise when performed with proper technique. The pins catch the bar on a missed rep, which removes the danger of being pinned, but the press still loads the shoulders, elbows and chest heavily. The front of the shoulder takes strain when the elbows flare wide or the shoulder blades lose their position, the back of the elbow can get irritated when heavy loads are added too quickly, and the wrists ache when they bend back under the bar.

Set both pins in the same hole and check the bar sits level before you lie down. Reset your shoulder blades and brace before every rep, keep the elbows angled in toward the torso, and stack the wrists over the elbows. Lower the bar to the pins under control rather than dropping it, and add weight in small steps, since a short range lets you load more than your body may be ready for.

To make it easier, lighten the load or switch to the Barbell Floor Press. Lifters whose shoulders dislike the bottom of the bench press can often press more comfortably from pins set a little higher. To progress, lower the pins toward the chest or build back toward the full Barbell Bench Press.

Stop the set if you feel sharp pain at the front of the shoulder, a pulling or tearing sensation in the chest or armpit, or pain at the back of the elbow that builds rep after rep.

Overview

Primary Focus: Chest
Equipment: Barbell and bench
Modality: Strength
Difficulty: Intermediate

Alternative Exercises

Other Names for the Barbell Pin Press

The Barbell Pin Press is also known as:

Pin Bench Press

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How high should the pins be for a pin press?: Set them at or just below the point where your bench press slows down or stalls. For many lifters that is a few inches above the chest, as shown here, while pins set higher turn it into lockout work for the triceps.
Q: Should the bar start on the pins or be lowered to them?: The standard pin press starts with the bar resting on the pins, so the first rep is a press from a dead stop with no lowering first. Some lifters unrack the bar and lower it to the pins instead, which works as long as the bar settles fully before each press.
Q: Will I lift more on a pin press than on a regular bench press?: It depends on the pin height. With the pins set high, most lifters can press more than their bench press, but from pins a few inches off the chest the load is often similar or a little lighter, because there is no rebound to help the bar start moving.
Q: How is the pin press different from a floor press or a board press?: In a Barbell Floor Press the floor stops your upper arms and your legs can't help, so no rack is needed. In a board press the bar pauses on boards held against your chest and you keep holding the weight, while the pins take the whole load between reps.
Q: Can the pin press replace the regular bench press?: No. It trains only part of the range and leaves out lowering the bar and reversing it off the chest, so it works best as an accessory alongside full-range Barbell Bench Press training.
Q: Can I do pin presses without a spotter?: Yes, as long as the pins are set correctly. A missed rep comes to rest on the pins above your chest, so you can slide out from under the bar.