In this article; this bar review of sorts; I will be talking about American Barbell’s three major power bars – the Mammoth, the Elite, and the Grizzly. I’ll go over all of the specifications for each bar, discuss the pros and cons of each, and talk about comparable competitor’s bars. I’m also going to go [...]
Equipment Reviews
The new Matt Chan Bar is here; an updated yet still true-to-form version of what is typically considered to be Rogue’s most unique and versatile multi-purpose bar, and incidentally the bar that has always been one of my personal favorites over the years. The new Chan Bar is stronger, it’s more resilient, and it’s flashier, [...]
On a whim I picked up Rogue’s new Weight Releasers; a more refined adaptation of the old school, eccentric loading, powerlifting accessory. I’m not exactly sure what compelled me to buy them. I wasn’t exactly in the market for them, but buy them I most certainly did. So now that I own weight releasers I’ve [...]
About a year ago, Vulcan released a new version of the black rubber-coated hex dumbbell; an innovative new dumbbell that abandoned the partially knurled steel handle found on the vast majority of hex dumbbells, and replaced it with a textured, highly tactile, rubber-coated handle. These rubber-grip handles not only offer a far superior grip to [...]
After a couple of months of thinking to myself that I really need to review the PR-5000; Rep Fitness’ biggest and most nicely-equipped power rack; I finally stopped procrastinating and pulled the trigger on one. Well wouldn’t you know it – now that I have one I kind of wish that I had done it [...]
I started my garage gym about seven years ago; the very day that I moved into my current house in fact. I can clearly remember placing my very first equipment order for a bar, power rack, and a set of bumper plates from Rogue immediately after closing on the house. I was so enthusiastic about [...]
I decided to throw a couple pieces of storage equipment into the Garage Gyms review mix, and I wanted to start with the Rep Fitness Bar & Bumper Plate Tree; a very popular vertical weight tree that I have gotten a surprising number of inquiries and questions about over the last couple months. Why is [...]
Rogue’s Socket Pull-Up Bar is a replacement pull-up bar for Rogue power racks and squat stands. It’s meant to replace the straight, powder-coated pull-up bars that comes standard with all power racks. So why would anyone want or need to replace one straight pull-up bar with another? That’s what I’m going to talk about in [...]
As popular as the new Rep FB-5000 Competition Bench is and as many questions as I get on both the frame and the pads, it seemed negligent of me to not get the new 14″ Rep Wide Pad in front of me for a review as well. So I did, and this is that review. [...]
Iron Company was kind enough to send to me a custom-sized and custom dated Forged Passion Power Belt to check out. This is a review for that belt. The 13 mm, Forged Passion Belt is a made-to-order leather powerlifting belt. It’s assembled in the USA using two thick layers of premium sole leather rather than multiple [...]
This will be a fairly short post meant only to show the few subtle differences between three major brands of competition-style bumper plates; the Rep Fitness Competition Bumper, the Vulcan Absolute Competition Bumper, and the Rogue Fitness Trainer 2.0 Bumper. There are other brands obviously; some of which are low-quality, some that are comparable to [...]
This is a review for the Force USA MyRack Modular Power Rack. This comprehensive and rather lengthy review will cover not only the centerpiece of the MyRack system; the power rack itself; but also the complete line of accessories and attachments currently available for it. Fear not, for a table of contents can be found following [...]
This is a comprehensive review of the new Rep Fitness FB-5000 Competition Flat Bench; a relatively new bench that offers virtually unlimited load capacity on a lightweight, low-profile, foot-drive-friendly frame – and for a very attractive price. Introduction The FB-5000 was designed to be used in conjunction with the thick, grippy vinyl pads; pads like [...]
This is a review of the Powertec WorkBench Levergym System; a multi-use, plate-loaded gym station designed to give a home gym owner with limited floor space and limited funds access to a large variety of machine-based resistance exercises. It features both a low and high pulley system, adjustable pressing arms, and an adjustable, detachable bench. [...]
This is a review of the Iron Company 5150 Olympic Weightlifting Bar; a new 20 kg, 28 mm, multi-purpose bar that has many premium features, a fair price, and specifications that rival some of today’s most popular mid-range Olympic and WOD bars. On paper this bar is definitely promising; offering us versatility, durability, and a [...]
