barbell choices

[nkupianist]

Hi,

I have a yet another question about best equipment choice for my gym's situation. I'm lucky to lift at place where ownership is making real efforts to make the place powerlifting-friendly. As part of this effort, they've agreed to purchase an all-purpose power bar. Currently, we have 2 old-school split sleeve Yorks that have held up for > 30 years and are still pretty good for pulls, aside from a bit of knurl wear, but they have no center knurl. The new bar would be primarily used for squats and pulls from the floor/blocks. The budget ceiling is around $350. As I mentioned in my previous platform thread, the gym is in a humid basement that sometimes gets wet due to plumbing issues. As a result, rust is a legitimate concern. The gym is seeking my input on what to purchase.

The candidates I currently have sent them based on my research include:

• Ohio Power Bar (45 pound version) (bare steel or black zinc)

• Texas Power Bar

• B&R Bar

• Westside Power Bar

https://www.roguefitness.com/rogue-west ... er-bar-2-0

• EliteFTS Power Bar (likely to go on sale Labor Day weekend)

https://www.elitefts.com/catalog/produc ... power-bar/

Based on what I've read in other forums/sub-threads here, among all the bars above that have been in production a while, I'm leaning toward the Ohio Power Bar. It seems most people prefer it over the Texas Power Bar, and our gym will never be a good fit for weightlifting, making the dual knurl marks of the B&R of no value. I don't see a distinct reason NOT to consider the Westside model, but I also see no compelling reasons to buy it over the Ohio Power Bar. If anyone has a history with the B&R, Westside or Texas bar along with a compelling reason to consider it over an OBP or EliteFTS bar, I'm open. I'm just excluding all stainless models from consideration due primarily to price but also to the reduced strength ratings of these bars per Rogue. The gym isn't a hardcore PL gym, but we have to plan on idiotic gym bros occasionally dropping the bars onto pins or other such stupidity, so the stronger the better.

My primary questions:

• In a higher-moisture environment, would black zinc finishes be the best compromise between knurl and rust potential, or would you go with bare steel? Based on how positive most reviews of steel are, I tend to lean toward doing steel if available in the final model we decide on and spending the saved money on oil and a nice brush. Heck, I'll take over oiling responsibilities as long as I'm at the gym for all I care. It seems that oiling it at some regular interval should mostly take care of rust concerns.

• Does anyone have any thoughts on/experience with the new EliteFTS Power Bar? Depending on the extent of their Labor Day sales, it might represent an economical option. Additionally, I noticed it's 28.5mm vs. the more common 29, potentially making it slightly better for hooking deads for manlet-handed individuals such as myself. This is not a primary concern, as the Yorks we currently have are 27 or 28 based on feel

I'm currently leaning strongest toward advocating a bare steel 45 pound Ohio Power Bar along with oil/a brush since black Zinc would need some level of maintenance anyway but cost more and possibly have an inferior feel in the hands depending on who you ask. The OPB seems to have the best reviews and track record in terms of knurl and durability, and $250 for a bare steel is a very good deal given its tensile strength and F-ratings (the metallurgists of the forum can debunk this sentence if these data points aren't meaningful).

I'm open to other models not being considered as well, as long as it's <=$350. Feel free to include input outside the explicit scope of my questions. Thanks in advance all.

[TimK]

If I were you, instead of getting the bare steel and spending all my spare time fighting the uphill battle of keeping it brushed and oiled while it gets tons of use day in and day out, I would rather just give the gym owner an extra $50 out of my pocket and tell him to get the stainless OPB. I don't know much about Rogue's "F Scale" but the graphic mentions being dropped from overhead, i.e. olympic lifting. I think any bar is going to get bent if people abuse it with super heavy rack pulls or drop it off their back onto the pins while squatting, regardless of the F rating.

[SeanHerbison]

all-purpose power bar.

I think I know what you mean, but that's kind of an oxymoron. Power bars are specifically for the slow lifts.

I'm leaning toward the Ohio Power Bar.

That's the way I'd go.

I'm just excluding all stainless models from consideration due primarily to price but also to the reduced strength ratings of these bars per Rogue. The gym isn't a hardcore PL gym, but we have to plan on idiotic gym bros occasionally dropping the bars onto pins or other such stupidity, so the stronger the better.

My primary questions:

• In a higher-moisture environment, would black zinc finishes be the best compromise between knurl and rust potential, or would you go with bare steel?

If you're in a high-moisture environment, I wouldn't get bare steel, as much as I love it. That said, personally I'd ask if you could chip in a bit and get the stainless steel. That'll give you the best feel other than bare steel, it will be very resistant to rust, and anything "idiotic gym bros" will do to bend it would probably bend the bare steel or black zinc versions as well.

One other option would be Cerakote. I would choose that below stainless but above zinc.

Edit: Looks like Tim beat me to it.

[nkupianist]

Ok, I have two individuals substantially stronger/more experienced than myself with essentially identical suggestions. This is helpful. Thank you. The only bar I've seen that, at least on paper and based on testing videos, seems nearly indestructible is the new Kabuki Power Bar, which included very heavy drops onto pins in its testing, but that's way outside the budget.

I'll stop stressing over metrics that offer seemingly little defense against abuse-related damage anyway. I'm probably over-stating the issue, as the old Yorks are still pristinely straight.

@SeanHerbison fair point on the "all purpose" wording. A better phrasing would have been "an all purpose powerlifting bar" as opposed to something specifically meant for squats (IE a super thick, stiff squat bar) or pulls (a deadlift bar).

I also completely missed the Cerakote somehow. Thanks! This actually might be the perfect compromise. I'm hesitant to chip in, as the gym is nearing a potential ownership shift, and I don't know what direction things will go in if that occurs - the person looking to exit the partnership is the main advocate for the powerlifting enthusiasts. I'd be bummed if I helped them buy a bar then ended up leaving anyway.

Thanks for all suggestions thus far, along with any additional comments.

[SeanHerbison]

A better phrasing would have been "an all purpose powerlifting bar" as opposed to something specifically meant for squats (IE a super thick, stiff squat bar) or pulls (a deadlift bar).

Ahh, I get it now. When I see "all purpose" I usually think something that can be used for powerlifting or Olympic lifting. But that distinction makes sense too.

[nkupianist]

A better phrasing would have been "an all purpose powerlifting bar" as opposed to something specifically meant for squats (IE a super thick, stiff squat bar) or pulls (a deadlift bar).

Ahh, I get it now. When I see "all purpose" I usually think something that can be used for powerlifting or Olympic lifting. But that distinction makes sense too.

Yeah, between equipment limitations, skill limitations, and my own personal disinterest in the Olympic lifts, I forget that anything other than the slow lifts even exists when I make such statements. Haha.

[bobmen10000]

all-purpose power bar.

I think I know what you mean, but that's kind of an oxymoron. Power bars are specifically for the slow lifts.

I'm leaning toward the Ohio Power Bar.

That's the way I'd go.

I'm just excluding all stainless models from consideration due primarily to price but also to the reduced strength ratings of these bars per Rogue. The gym isn't a hardcore PL gym, but we have to plan on idiotic gym bros occasionally dropping the bars onto pins or other such stupidity, so the stronger the better.

My primary questions:

• In a higher-moisture environment, would black zinc finishes be the best compromise between knurl and rust potential, or would you go with bare steel?

If you're in a high-moisture environment, I wouldn't get bare steel, as much as I love it. That said, personally I'd ask if you could chip in a bit and get the stainless steel. That'll give you the best feel other than bare steel, it will be very resistant to rust, and anything "idiotic gym bros" will do to bend it would probably bend the bare steel or black zinc versions as well.

One other option would be Cerakote. I would choose that below stainless but above zinc.

Edit: Looks like Tim beat me to it.

It may be better now but the Rogue cerakote (not just the sleeves which they mention) chips easily in my experience. I dinged a Ohio bar on an a j cup, not terribly hard mind you, and it left a visible mark on the middle of my bar, left a few other marks as well from minor use like rough reracks on squats and the like. Nevertheless, cerakote looks sweet...which doesn't really matter but kind of does.

[nkupianist]

all-purpose power bar.

I think I know what you mean, but that's kind of an oxymoron. Power bars are specifically for the slow lifts.

I'm leaning toward the Ohio Power Bar.

That's the way I'd go.

I'm just excluding all stainless models from consideration due primarily to price but also to the reduced strength ratings of these bars per Rogue. The gym isn't a hardcore PL gym, but we have to plan on idiotic gym bros occasionally dropping the bars onto pins or other such stupidity, so the stronger the better.

My primary questions:

• In a higher-moisture environment, would black zinc finishes be the best compromise between knurl and rust potential, or would you go with bare steel?

If you're in a high-moisture environment, I wouldn't get bare steel, as much as I love it. That said, personally I'd ask if you could chip in a bit and get the stainless steel. That'll give you the best feel other than bare steel, it will be very resistant to rust, and anything "idiotic gym bros" will do to bend it would probably bend the bare steel or black zinc versions as well.

One other option would be Cerakote. I would choose that below stainless but above zinc.

Edit: Looks like Tim beat me to it.

It may be better now but the Rogue cerakote (not just the sleeves which they mention) chips easily in my experience. I dinged a Ohio bar on an a j cup, not terribly hard mind you, and it left a visible mark on the middle of my bar, left a few other marks as well from minor use like rough reracks on squats and the like. Nevertheless, cerakote looks sweet...which doesn't really matter but kind of does.

This is helpful. Given the thinness of the protective coating, I'm guessing a chip = no more rust resistance on that spot, either. It's probably best to just plan on people being rough on it, especially after-hours when the gym is open by keycard but no staff is around. Thanks for this helpful point. I'm surprised the first review I came on didn't mention this. I wondered about that as soon as I saw "ceramic" in the description.

[Allentown]

stainless OPB

[SeanHerbison]

It may be better now but the Rogue cerakote (not just the sleeves which they mention) chips easily in my experience.

I don't have much personal experience with it, but yeah, I don't understand why you would cerakote the sleeves. I think Coop has brought that up a few times on his channel as well.

[Allentown]

I don't have much personal experience with it, but yeah, I don't understand why you would cerakote the sleeves. I think Coop has brought that up a few times on his channel as well.

A red bar with black sleeves would go very well in my mostly Star Wars/Darth Vader-ish themed gym decorations. Though a stainless power bar and lightsaber would cost about the same and both look better and be more functional.

[torkins]

I would choose that below stainless but above zinc.

Why rate zinc lower? Does it change the awesome feel of the bare steel substantially? My wife has a black zinc Bella but I've never had two of the same bar to compare between zinc and not.

[SeanHerbison]

Why rate zinc lower? Does it change the awesome feel of the bare steel substantially? My wife has a black zinc Bella but I've never had two of the same bar to compare between zinc and not.

I'm not a bar expert, and I have very limited experience with having cerakote in my hands. With that said, I believe cerakote will hold up to humidity better, and from the little bit I have felt it, I preferred the feel of cerakote, but not by a huge margin, like I do with bare steel.

Edit: And yeah, it generally looks nicer.

[TimK]

I would choose that below stainless but above zinc.

Why rate zinc lower? Does it change the awesome feel of the bare steel substantially? My wife has a black zinc Bella but I've never had two of the same bar to compare between zinc and not.

I haven't compared directly either but I have seen a lot of reviews online saying that the zinc coating "fills in" the knurling to some degree and therefore makes it less grippy, compared to the bare steel or SS.

[Allentown]

Why rate zinc lower? Does it change the awesome feel of the bare steel substantially? My wife has a black zinc Bella but I've never had two of the same bar to compare between zinc and not.

My only bar is a black zinc Rogue Power Bar, which they discontinued and replaced with the pretty similar OPB. Personally I like it better than the B&R (sorry @Root) but not as much as the bare steel OPB. Don't think I've used a zinc OPB. Stainless OPB just seems like the Ark of the BB.

[nkupianist]

After doing quite a bit of review reading, the presence of the cerakote on the sleeves is the only really dominant complaint about the cerakote OPB. As long as it's not going to wear down to the extent of being more or less bare steel, I'm not incredibly worried about the cosmetics of wear.

At this point I see no reason to do anything besides one of the OPB offerings. I'm leaning toward suggesting one of the following OPBs, in order of preference:

• stainless (probably not happening)

• cerakote

• zinc

• bare steel

It's a shame I doubt bare steel would hold up - I love the patina look of our old Yorks, but it probably took them a long time of decent maintenance to get there.

I live within under 2 hours of Rogue's office. What I might do instead of offer to pitch in is offer to pick up a stainless/ceratoke in person to save them a bit of shipping if they'll drop a bit more for either.

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions.

[Skid]

I have a couple of Rogue Zinc bars that have held up very well over the past few years for multiple users. The knurling on the zinc is actually preferred over my IPF Bull bar which is a little too aggressive for regular deadlift use. I would recommend the Zinc bars to anyone.

[nkupianist]

I have a couple of Rogue Zinc bars that have held up very well over the past few years for multiple users. The knurling on the zinc is actually preferred over my IPF Bull bar which is a little too aggressive for regular deadlift use. I would recommend the Zinc bars to anyone.

This is actually a nice counterpoint. It seems everyone who's bought one hasn't regretted the zinc. I'm sticking to my list of preferences I listed a bit ago when talking to the gym ownership, but in the likely event that cerakote/stainless are vetoed, I feel better about zinc now than I did a couple hours ago.

I might have exaggerated the level of moisture. It's not as bad as what you'd get in a non-climate controlled garage. It's a climate controlled gym, and 99% of the water issues happen during business hours when the restaurant above has a drain clog. I suspect anything above bare steel will be ok provided no one expects to be able to never perform any maintenance to the bar.

I'll be very surprised if stainless is chosen, but I'd say any one of the other 3 is up for grabs as far as what the gym decides. Ultimately it's their choice. I'll let everyone know what they do, assuming they move on it. Thanks for the help.

[Allentown]

I might have exaggerated the level of moisture. It's not as bad as what you'd get in a non-climate controlled garage. It's a climate controlled gym, and 99% of the water issues happen during business hours when the restaurant above has a drain clog. I suspect anything above bare steel will be ok provided no one expects to be able to never perform any maintenance to the bar.

In that case I think bare steel would be perfectly fine, just sometimes brush them down with nylon/brass brushes. Like have whoever sweeps the chalk off the floor spend an extra 5min and brush the bars first.

[damufunman]

At the weightlifting gym I was lifting at for a bit last summer (4-Star Strength in Livonia, MI for anyone interested, great place) they had all the bars on horizontal wall racks and asked that you brush the bars off after you used them. Perfectly reasonable, IMO, even if there weren't any bare steel, mostly chrome and black zinc as far as I could tell. Is this not something that can be expected to be done at this place?