Discovering a barbell that performs nicely for powerlifting, Olympic weightlifting, and basic energy coaching with out burning a deep gap in your pocket may be difficult. Fortunately, REP Health leveled up its barbell lineup in the summertime of 2023 with a high-quality mannequin that checks these packing containers (and plenty of extra): the Colorado Bar. Our Breaking Muscle staff of licensed private trainers, CrossFit lovers, and energy and conditioning coaches completely examined this multi-purpose bar’s capacity to deal with conventional powerlifting actions like squats and deadlifts, in addition to dynamic lifts like cleans and snatches.  

Sturdy, reliable, and various, the brand new flagship barbell from probably the most respected health gear producers delivers severe bang on your buck. On this REP Health Colorado Bar evaluate, we’ll dive deeper into what makes this mannequin top-of-the-line values available on the market by breaking down its specs, highlighting its strengths, and seeing the way it stacks up in opposition to the competitors.

Key Takeaways

• The Colorado Bar checks in at an inexpensive worth level of $319.99 to $329.99 for the 20-kilogram (44-pound) mannequin. There’s additionally a 15-kilogram (33-pound) model that prices between $269.99 and $279.99.
• You’ve two end choices with this barbell: a tough chrome shaft with chrome sleeves, or a Cerakote shaft with Duracoat sleeves. Plus, the Cerakote model provides you the liberty to flex your inventive muscle mass with 5 colour decisions for the shaft.
• Whereas IPF knurl markings and a 1,500-pound weight capability give it an influence bar really feel, the inclusion of IWF knurl markings and the absence of a middle knurl additionally make the Colorado Bar well-suited for Olympic lifts. As well as, composite bushings make for an total quieter lifting expertise.

REP Health Colorado Bar

4.5

• Materials: Metal
• Weight: 20 kilograms (44 kilos)
• Weight capability: 680.2 kilograms (1,500 kilos)
• Tensile energy: 190 KSI
• Loadable sleeve size: 16.1 inches
• Knurling: Average
• Guarantee: Lifetime

Test Worth

REP Health Colorado Bar Execs

• The power to buy a Cerakote model of the Colorado Bar ought to attraction to house fitness center house owners who practice in a non-climate-controlled surroundings. As a result of any such shaft coating supplies superior safety from the weather than exhausting chrome, those that practice open air or in humid garages will recognize higher corrosion resistance courtesy of Cerakote.
• The Colorado Bar’s composite bushings not solely enable for a clean and regular spin but in addition give it a tighter tolerance. One other good thing about choosing composite over bronze bushings is much less noise when your weight plates hit the ground.
• Between its versatility and construct high quality, the Colorado bar can function the one barbell in your house fitness center. For those who don’t have an enormous finances for fitness center gear, you possibly can cowl a number of bases by investing in a multi-use bar that’s able to dealing with a variety of lifts.

REP Health Colorado Bar Cons

• An absence of aggressive knurling and a solid-but-not-elite tensile energy of 190,000 PSI make this barbell simply an okay alternative for powerlifters. In case your exercises primarily revolve across the squat, deadlift, and bench press, a specialty bar tailor-made to your coaching fashion could also be a wiser alternative.
• Paying north of $300 for a barbell produced outdoors of the USA might stop some individuals from going the Colorado route. There are American firms that provide comparable options at a extra tolerable worth level.
• Though Cerakote shaft coating gives higher corrosion resistance than exhausting chrome, it nonetheless falls in need of a chrome steel end. Those that choose the high-end look and distinct knurling of a chrome steel bar ought to move on the Colorado barbell. Nonetheless, be ready to pay a premium for these benefits.

REP Health Colorado Bar Specs

REP Health Colorado Bar Score

From specialty bars designed for energy racks to Olympic barbells made for extra dynamic actions, the Breaking Muscle staff has put numerous barbells by way of the wringer to find out what separates the perfect from the remaining. Testing greater than 75 fashions utilizing a gauntlet of squats, cleans, presses, and different lifts, we developed a proprietary scoring system to rank them based mostly on a number of elements, corresponding to worth, knurling, versatility, and sturdiness.

Right here’s how the REP Colorado Bar scored throughout every class.

REP Health Colorado Bar In-Depth Evaluate

The Colorado Bar might not be a real celebrity at one job, however its versatility is what makes it shine. With a number of end choices, high-quality construct supplies, and ample tensile energy for many lifters, we imagine it’s an awesome possibility for anybody who likes to change up their kind of coaching. Most significantly, REP’s flagship barbell supplies wonderful worth since it could possibly fulfill a number of duties.

Worth and Worth

The value for the Colorado Bar varies relying on what measurement and end you like. The 15-kilogram (33-pound) mannequin, which is finest fitted to rookies, feminine lifters, and smaller athletes, begins at $269.99 for the exhausting chrome end. For $10 extra, you possibly can select a black or pink Cerakote shaft coating with Duracoat sleeves.

Alternatively, the bottom worth for the 20-kilogram Colorado Bar is $319.99. For a mixed-use barbell in a tough chrome end, the associated fee falls about in keeping with the business common. For instance, the Rogue Health Ohio Bar ranges between $275 to $415, relying on the end. Nonetheless, it might be value upping your finances a bit to get higher corrosion resistance and longevity. At $329.99, the Cerakote-finished Colorado Bar nonetheless brings loads of worth, particularly since you possibly can select between 5 shaft coating colours so as to add some inventive aptitude to your own home fitness center setup.

Furthermore, you don’t have to stress about freight prices. As of this writing, REP Health gives free delivery, which might prevent a minimum of $25. Total, the Colorado bar packs a ton of customizable choices right into a well-priced piece of fitness center gear, making it our choose for the finest finances barbell. We rated it 4 out of 5 stars for the worth.

Supply

Let’s simply say ordering a barbell on Amazon is usually a bit like taking part in with fireplace. After I ordered a budget-friendly one for my house fitness center, the supply course of ended up being a serious dud, with a low-quality bar from a wholly totally different model than I had chosen arriving in broken packaging that left the endcaps uncovered. Evidently, that disappointing expertise left a bitter style in my mouth about having a barbell shipped to my entrance door.

Fortunately for our product testers, REP Health made certain the Colorado Bar arrived at our warehouse in Springfield, MO, with zero points. I used to be happy to listen to it suffered no harm throughout its journey. Nicely-packaged and well-protected, we gave REP 5 out of 5 stars for a clean, painless supply course of.

Building, Supplies, and Coating

With a 28.5-millimeter shaft, the 20-kilogram Colorado Bar comes near the 29-millimeter mark you’ll discover in most energy bars. A part of its attraction is that it has a shaft diameter that falls proper in between Olympic and powerlifting requirements.

REP provides you ample end choices with the Colorado Bar, together with Cerakote (which is available in black, blue, inexperienced, purple, or white) or exhausting chrome with exhausting chrome sleeves. Nonetheless, needless to say chrome plating can cut back the longevity of a bar by 50 %, which isn’t splendid in the event you drop the bar lots. Primarily based on our collective information about barbells and the particular metal every model makes use of, we’d estimate that the Colorado bar can final a minimum of 30 years in a house fitness center setting.

In the meantime, the Cerakote bars have a lifespan of greater than 50 years because of their F2-R score. In contrast to the F1-R-rated chrome model, they function Duracoat sleeves that present larger ranges of scratch and corrosion resistance by way of a chemical course of that hardens the surface of the metal to create a clean black end.

Talking of seamless, the Colorado Bar’s clean sleeves make loading and unloading your weight plates a breeze. Whereas I benefit from the effectivity of clean sleeves, different Breaking Muscle workers members like our Critiques Editor Amanda Dvorak choose ribbed sleeves because the plates keep in place higher even with out collars.

Mix that with a cultured endcap design that has the corporate emblem, title, and weight of the bar laser-etched on the within of the sleeve, and you’ve got all of the makings of a premium bar at a non-premium worth. Total, the Colorado scored 4.5 out of 5 stars for building.

Knurling

As a mixed-use bar, the Colorado comes with twin knurl markings for Worldwide Weightlifting Federation (IWF) and Worldwide Powerlifting Federation (IPF) specs. This makes it simple to establish the place to position your arms when bench urgent or performing different lifts, like snatches. On the identical time, the absence of a middle knurl means that you can comfortably carry out Olympic-style actions (like cleans) or high-volume overhead presses with out having to fret about scraping up your throat.

The knurling sample on the Colorado Bar isn’t fairly as aggressive as what you may discover in an influence bar like REP’s Double Black Diamond Bar, which options deep mountain-style knurling that makes it splendid for deadlifting however not splendid for extra dynamic actions. As an alternative, REP went with a medium-depth, volcano-style knurling that also supplies ample grip with out tearing up your arms throughout high-repetition coaching classes. For many athletes, volcano knurling works finest, because it supplies 4 factors of contact on every marking, resulting in a superior grip and fewer slippage.

Creating ample friction with out being too abrasive, the Colorado Bar’s medium knurling sample scored 4.5 out of 5 stars on our grading scale.

Rotation System

REP actually paid consideration to the small print of the Colorado Bar’s rotation system. Quite than following the business commonplace of placing bronze bushings in a multi-purpose bar (like Rogue did with each the Ohio Bar and the extra economically priced Echo Bar), they went the additional mile by utilizing composite bushings.

Moreover lasting longer than their bronze counterparts, composite bushings cut back the quantity of noise when dropping the bar whereas nonetheless offering good spin — one thing our product testers took word of throughout their coaching classes with the Colorado. Plus, composite bushings additionally make for tighter tolerances, which means there’s much less wobble between the sleeve and the shaft. 

REP’s determination to make the Colorado Bar with bushings as an alternative of bearings caters on to followers of the large three lifts. Energy bars normally function bushings as a result of the sleeves spin extra slowly, which makes the barbell really feel extra balanced whereas performing deadlifts and bench presses. 

Alternatively, weightlifting bars usually use faster-spinning bearings that play a vital position when the barbell is rapidly altering instructions throughout snatches and cleans. As well as, the superior spin charge from bearings additionally helps cut back stress on the joints once you execute the “catch” portion of a clear or snatch. Nonetheless, most multi-purpose bars depart bearings behind for bushings because the latter are extra versatile, quieter, and cheaper. 

Between a clean spin charge, enhanced sturdiness, and a quieter lifting expertise, the Colorado Bar earned 4.5 out of 5 stars for its rotation system.

Versatility

Particularly designed to accommodate a wide range of exercise kinds, the Colorado Bar is the final word Swiss military knife. With a tensile energy score of 190,000 kilos per sq. inch (PSI), you possibly can confidently crush PRs with none issues. The truth is, the Colorado bar has the identical PSI score as rivals just like the TITAN Sequence Cerakote Olympic Barbell from Titan Health and the Rogue Ohio Bar.

Additionally able to getting used for non-powerlifting workouts like curls, overhead presses, and cleans, the Colorado Bar can deal with absolutely anything you throw its method. It could not outperform a specialty bar, however in the event you’re in search of one barbell to rule all of them in your house fitness center, this all-around beast can definitely stand as much as the duty.

All in all, we gave the Colorado Bar 5 out of 5 stars for versatility.

Sturdiness

As one in every of its newer fashions, the Colorado Bar has but to point out the way it can maintain up over time. However based mostly on the supplies and design, we’re assured it would proceed to carry out nicely and look good for the lengthy haul.

That stated, the most secure route — a minimum of from a sturdiness standpoint — is to go together with the Cerakote model. Different barbells we’ve examined that function this end have lasted greater than six months with out rusting. Contemplating a lot of them are saved in non-temperature-controlled rooms, that speaks volumes concerning the stage of safety Cerakote supplies.

And in the event you’re nonetheless involved about longevity, REP stands behind its barbells with a lifetime guarantee (extra on that under). Finally, we rated the Colorado Bar 5 out of 5 stars for sturdiness.

Guarantee

All REP barbells include a lifetime guarantee. Nonetheless, the coverage solely covers manufacturing defects. So, in case your Colorado Bar will get broken resulting from negligent use (i.e., dropping it with iron weight plates loaded on it), you’re a bit out of luck. You’ll additionally run right into a roadblock in the event you retailer your barbell outdoors, as it will robotically void your guarantee. 

In comparison with different producers, REP Health doesn’t supply fairly the identical stage of protection. For instance, Rogue’s lifetime guarantee additionally consists of bending that’s not resulting from defective use or abusive dropping of the bar.

So, though the Colorado Bar features a lifetime guarantee, the defect-only disclaimer led to a rating of 4 out of 5 stars on this class.

REP Health Colorado Bar vs. Rogue Ohio Bar

It’s clear REP had one in every of its rivals in thoughts when developing with the Colorado Bar. Not solely is it named after the placement of the corporate’s headquarters identical to Rogue’s Ohio Bar, nevertheless it packs comparable options right into a similarly-priced product.

Regardless of minor variations in dimensions (the Colorado bar is 0.15 inches shorter with 0.3 fewer inches of loadable sleeve size), each bars have the identical shaft diameters (28.5 millimeters) and tensile energy score (190 KSI). Nonetheless, the Colorado Bar’s composite bushings give it a tighter tolerance and quieter sound than its competitor’s bronze bushings. Plus, our testers discovered it to have a bit extra aggressive knurling than the Ohio Bar.

Alternatively, Rogue gives a wider vary of end choices. The Ohio Bar is available in 5 totally different shaft coatings (black oxide, stainless-steel, black zinc, E-coat, or Cerakote) and 4 totally different sleeve coatings (chrome, proprietary black matte, vivid zinc, or stainless-steel). Because of this, the worth for this American-made barbell ranges from $295 to $465.

Total, both bar will work nicely along with your squat rack and might stand up to loads of pounding. REP might manufacture their merchandise in China, however they’ve established a rock-solid repute for high quality within the health gear business. Finally, although, if you would like a barbell produced within the USA that has a barely extra inclusive lifetime guarantee, Rogue’s Ohio Bar would be the option to go.

Rogue Health Ohio Bar

4.5

• Comes with a lifetime assure in opposition to bending
• Weighs 20 kilograms (about 44 kilos) and has a 28.5-millimeter diameter
• 16.4-inch loadable sleeve size
• Twin knurl rings and no heart knurl

Test Worth

REP Health Colorado Bar Buyer Critiques

There’s little question REP hit a house run by releasing the Colorado Bar in the course of the summer time of 2023. Inside just some months, prospects have discovered it to be a worthwhile funding for his or her house gyms based mostly on the overwhelmingly constructive suggestions. With 4.9 stars based mostly on 75 opinions, lifters across the nation have fallen in love with the newest addition to REP’s line of house fitness center gear.

Moreover being impressed with the look and total end of the Colorado Bar, prospects additionally recognize the medium-aggressive knurling and clean spin charge courtesy of the composite bushings. One consumer famous that the oil out of your fingers reveals by way of on the black end, which can make going with one other colour a much less tense different. 

Last Verdict: Is the REP Health Colorado Bar Value It?

The REP Health Colorado Bar brings a premium really feel at a reasonably inexpensive worth. Whereas there are definitely cheaper choices obtainable, house fitness center lovers who worth versatility and a spotlight to element shouldn’t hesitate to drag the set off on REP’s new flagship barbell.

For lower than $330, you may get a high-quality, Cerakote-finished bar that’s designed to deal with nearly any kind of exercise, comes with a lifetime guarantee, and might anchor your storage fitness center setup all by itself. Though the Rogue Ohio Bar is definitely a worthy contender resulting from its sturdiness, worth, and efficiency, you possibly can confidently name upon the Colorado Bar that will help you obtain your strength- and muscle-building targets.

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