I’ve owned this trap bar for 1.5 years. The chrome seem good – no cracking or chipping. It may be “hard chrome”, which is what you want in lifting bars. Build quality seems solid and I have no concerns about it’s welds. The dimensions are great. The handles are a comfortable width, height, and diameter for both me (6’, around 200lbs) and my wife (5’10, around 125lbs). No issues with the standing area being too small even with my “winter coat.” Really, it’s perfect in many ways and I do like it’s smaller width overall. Some trap bars are just crazy wide.
I removed two stars because (1) the knurling is horrible and (2) the sleeves are short (9-3/8” loadable sleeve per side). So, there’s a trade-off for the shorter width that I like. And while the sleeves are probably adequate for most, even me if I used iron, but for those looking to lift BIG, you’ll probably need longer sleeves.
1: The knurling was stamped to a pyramid but left sharp. It’s pretty darn aggressive to say the least. I took a file to it and it’s still sharp. I just wear gloves and that mitigates the issue. So, chalk it up as getting what you paid for but not a critical flaw.
There was one serious issue here though: there was a super sharp piece of metal hanging off the edge of the knurling when we got it, it sliced a deep cut into my finger when I lifted it to just move it without any weight. I filed it off.
2: The sleeves are a bit short. The maximum weight I can fit is 281.4 lbs of bumper plate (115 per side), or 411.4 lbs of urethane coated iron (180 per side). I would get a better bar (which have longer sleeves) and more bumper plates before I used iron plates. Comes down to using the right tool for the job. Even if it’s another set of plates to buy. My bar weighs 51.4 lbs.
My legs are about average for a guy. Certainly not tree trunks like a power lifter. More of a runner’s tone. Though I do find that I’m moving up in weight and even though I expect to hit plateaus at times, I may eventually outgrow this bar and still not have built tree trunk legs (not that I want them).
I didn’t know of brands like REP fitness and Rogue when I bought this bar, though had I, I certainly would have paid $264 for the REP bar. The knurling is awesome (they hone a smooth bowl at the top of each pyramid, so it grips but doesn’t cut). Also, I would not outgrow it. But of course it’s twice the price.
So, if you’re looking for a budget bar, is this bar a good option? Yes, absolutely, with a couple caveats (knurling, sleeve length). If you’ve got the money to consider other options, buy once, cry once – with a reputable brand like REP or Rogue.
I attached pictures of the bar loaded with bumper plates and also with urethane coated iron. You see that there isn’t quite enough space to fit the purple clamp, though there’s enough to make what I think is safe contact. …It’s a squat, not a kettlebell swing.
All the best in your fit-life goals!
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