Safety Squat Bars

[TimK]

I think Duffin endorses manufactures

FTFY

[OCG]

TBH I don't think the transformer bar is worth it and I've heard of people having problems with Duffin's products and getting shit shipped in a timely manner. To quote myself talking about my gym's bar:

The bluing is real pretty. It works I guess. The design has a few flaws to it. The sleeve is just kind of loose and held in by a little tab. The adjustment knobs on the end, aside from being sharp as fuck, stick out and hit the plates so they don't sit flush. 99% of the time it doesn't get adjusted at all so that's money well spent. The long ass handles either hit your legs, or if you hold them down the bottom your arms will keep you from hitting depth. I have my concerns about the longevity of the 12 point/nut system on the adjustment given it doesn't seem to be made of real hard steel.

That said, it does function as a SSB. It's not bad, it's just not great, and a lot of the "innovative" features either end up just getting in the way or not being used.

The Duffalo bar my gym has is honestly pretty rough too. Finish not great, has this wonderful open bushing design for all the crap to get in and yeah, it's pretty rusty.

[mgil]

TBH I don't think the transformer bar is worth it and I've heard of people having problems with Duffin's products and getting shit shipped in a timely manner. To quote myself talking about my gym's bar:

The bluing is real pretty. It works I guess. The design has a few flaws to it. The sleeve is just kind of loose and held in by a little tab. The adjustment knobs on the end, aside from being sharp as fuck, stick out and hit the plates so they don't sit flush. 99% of the time it doesn't get adjusted at all so that's money well spent. The long ass handles either hit your legs, or if you hold them down the bottom your arms will keep you from hitting depth. I have my concerns about the longevity of the 12 point/nut system on the adjustment given it doesn't seem to be made of real hard steel.

That said, it does function as a SSB. It's not bad, it's just not great, and a lot of the "innovative" features either end up just getting in the way or not being used.

The Duffalo bar my gym has is honestly pretty rough too. Finish not great, has this wonderful open bushing design for all the crap to get in and yeah, it's pretty rusty.

From watching some videos of folks using it, I was suspect that the bar is trying to solve too many problems.

For a gym that “needs” this bar, they’d be better off contacting Black Widow or Edge and just having the geometry altered as needed on 3-4 bars. Sure, you’re out 2x the money, but you’ve probably bought bars that will last longer and multiple SSBs can be used across different stations.

Also, no pieces to lose.

[mgil]

A couple more bones to pick...



If there are 12 unique angular positions and 4 unique extension positions, that is 48 total positions, not 36. At least that’s what the Counting Principle tells me.

But wait, only 5 of the angular positions are recommended! Only 20 now advisable. I’m sure a little more engineering could’ve made those five positions the only ones the bar would work in (like a tab and slot rejection feature) since it would appear that putting the weight behind the bar makes it necessary for the lifter to work hard to hold the weight in place while lifting; essentially the opposite of “safe”.

[gtl]

IMO, it's the price that makes it hard to justify the Transformer. I got my Edge Fitness Systems bar for $265 shipped on Black Friday.

If the bar is going to be your sole bar for squatting, perhaps spending a little bit more is worth it. But, people buy shit that they end up not using or using enough to justify the purchase anyways.

Derek Binford just got the Transformer (IG: coach_binford). I'll be curious what he has to say after a few more uses and playing with the different positions.

[TimK]

I just ordered the Elite FTS SS Yoke bar. They had a sale and it was $45 off, came to $380 shipped. I would have gladly bought the Edge Fitness bar for $315 shipped but they have a 2-3 week lead time whereas Elite ships out in 2-3 days. Since the SSB squat is the only squat I'll be able to for a while as I recover I didn't want to wait.

I thought about going cheap and getting the Titan but it seems to have a multitude of problems. Handles too far apart, camber parallel to handles, very whippy. I figured I'd be better off spending more and getting something that would still be worth using as a variation and that I wouldn't hate after I'm able to return to regular training.

[murphyreedus]

I just ordered the Elite FTS SS Yoke bar. They had a sale and it was $45 off, came to $380 shipped. I would have gladly bought the Edge Fitness bar for $315 shipped but they have a 2-3 week lead time whereas Elite ships out in 2-3 days. Since the SSB squat is the only squat I'll be able to for a while as I recover I didn't want to wait.

I thought about going cheap and getting the Titan but it seems to have a multitude of problems. Handles too far apart, camber parallel to handles, very whippy. I figured I'd be better off spending more and getting something that would still be worth using as a variation and that I wouldn't hate after I'm able to return to regular training.

You will not regret going with the EliteFTS over the Titan. If I didn't have my Rogue SSB, EliteFTS would be my first choice.

[Cody]

@TimK Titan makes garbage bars. You made a fine choice.

[TimK]

Got my Elite FTS SS/Yoke Bar today and used it for the first time. Really makes you fight to maintain thoracic extension and my abs were sore after the last set. I think squatting like this for a few months could potentially lead to PR's when I go back to regular squats (at least I hope so). Bar was very comfortable to use although I had to keep my elbow to the side slightly so I wouldn't hit my knee at the bottom. The clear coat scraped clean off the bar when reracking on the bare metal j-hooks. I had heard this about the Elite FTS bar in reviews prior to purchasing so I wasn't too upset about it. Overall I am happy with the purchase and I think that this will be a valuable variation to use even after I'm done recovering from the surgery.

[KOTJ]

Edge fitness SSB would be my first choice.

Cost and design. I'm not a fan of the short handles on the Elite FTS SSB. Minor quibble too: grips slide off easily.

[JC]

If anyone in the south of England (or anywhere really, you just gotta drive here!) wants a pseudo SSB for free I got a spare. Warning: I made it myself, don't sue me!

[bobmen10000]

Edge fitness SSB would be my first choice.

Cost and design. I'm not a fan of the short handles on the Elite FTS SSB. Minor quibble too: grips slide off easily.

I think the first version of Elite SSB was made/designed by Rick (the who runs Edge Fitness).

[Wilhelm]

Does the Edge SSB require specialty collars?
What is the rackable width of the Edge Yoke SS?
* I Emailed them these questions just now.

Here is the reply -
You can use collars on Yoke SS Bar as long as they are made to fit 1.9". Standard barbells use a 2" diameter so certain collars made for these won't work on the SS Bar. You may already have a collar that fits since you mentioned OSO but this collar (or something similar) will fit: https://www.roguefitness.com/oso-axle-collars-gear/


We also have an easy solution that we use in our display gym and have customers that use them as well. Home Depot sells 99 cent quick clamps that work as a collar. Here's a link: https://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-2-in-Sp ... /100027346

Distance between the sleeves is approximately 52". Hope this helps, let me know if you have any other questions.

So much more clearance for racking.
Sweet.
I already have a couple pairs of those sping clamps.

[Cody]

Does the Edge SSB require specialty collars?

Almost every specialty bar requires different collars than what you use on an Olympic barbell. If it has very "Olympic barbell" looking sleeves, it won't.

I'm a big fan of the York style spin lock collars. They use a wing nut to clamp the main part of the collars, and fit practically every bar ever.

[Wilhelm]

Does the Edge SSB require specialty collars?

Almost every specialty bar requires different collars than what you use on an Olympic barbell. If it has very "Olympic barbell" looking sleeves, it won't.

I'm a big fan of the York style spin lock collars. They use a wing nut to clamp the main part of the collars, and fit practically every bar ever.

Same as these?
https://yorkbarbell.com/product/2-inch- ... lars-pair/

This seems really a good choice since i could use them on both bars.
I wonder about the ultimate lifespan of my OSOs.

Looks like they are competition weight, so even plate lifts on the straight bar wouldn't be as pretty with change plates instead.

[Cody]

Same as these?
https://yorkbarbell.com/product/2-inch- ... lars-pair/

This seems really a good choice since i could use them on both bars.
I wonder about the ultimate lifespan of my OSOs.

Looks like they are competition weight, so even plate lifts on the straight bar wouldn't be as pretty with change plates instead.

That's it! They're really excellent collars. After you tighten the wing nuts, you twist the star and it pushes the plates tight. Really excellent for deadlifts, and again, fits specially bars just fine.

Also, they're heavy chunks of steel. Nothing to fail, unlike plastic or light aluminum...

[mbasic]

(post redacted, not useful)

[murphyreedus]

I'm a big fan of the York style spin lock collars.

I have a bunch of spinlock collars and they all lock down tight on my strongman stuff except for a pair of Ivanko collars. My new favorites for strongman stuff are the 80s York speed collars, but I wouldn't use them on a nice new SSB:

this is idiotic

Pipe only comes in so many sizes, so most specialty bars use 1.5" pipe, which only has a 1.9" OD. You might be able to use metric pipe and get closer, but then you put any kind of coated finish on it and you get problems with plates not fitting, like Titan's stuff. You can use round tubing, but then you need to turn down the ends so that plates will fit.

[Cody]

this is idiotic

Such a useful contribution to the thread!

See what Murphy Reedus wrote to understand why you're off base.

[mgil]

@Wilhelm and others, I picked up a pair of the Lock-Jaw 1.9” axle collars and they are great. Not cheap, but very secure* and easy to use.

*See video of my missing a J hook and the plates staying in place.