Take advantage of boneyard sales if you can. I have never heard of someone being disappointed with what they got. I feel like the type of people who utilize them are perfectly fine with the minor defects. You can get lucky and get a cerakote bar for a non-cerakote price. My wife got a sweet blue cerakote one as a gift to convince her to start lifting with me. The low start weight provides a good jumping off point for her or anyone that is detrained and looking to get started. A passive beater bar probably would do just as good. Getting this one could allow you to make the gym more approachable and accommodating without telling someone that they aren’t strong enough to use your good stuff yet, so they have to deal with crap. Get your wife, friends, or family that is interested a decent bar they will want to use.

When I purchased this, it was listed as a power bar and stated that it would have center knurling. It does not have center knurling. It’s an Oly bar. It was my first bar for my home gym, along with the Tru Grit Bumper Plates. They were both on sale, but maybe I was duped there. The plates were $1/piece but the shipping was basically double the original cost. For what I got, it was hardly worth it. However, it took me from zero gym to some gym. For the most part, this whippy, sort of skinny bar gets broken out for rows or cleans. I’ll bring it out to my yard to do lunges or whatever other movement that beats up a bar. It went from my only/best option to a beater bar. If you can find this on the resale market or whatever bar that qualifies as a single step above a dangerous, cheap, hex lock bar, I would go for it. If someone is selling plates you want including a random barbell, I would go for it. This is beyond serviceable for a beater bar and I am ok with that.

The problem it solves is having to build and store multiple boards for pressing. It also helps you if you short on another amenity required to board press, friends. The foam is dense but does feel like it has a semi-limited shelf life. To compare it to a similar product, the Elite FTS shoulder saver only comes in 2 sizes. Each of these blocks allows for 3-4 pressing levels. I have heard the shoulder saver is better at doing the job. So the question is, do you want something that does one thing better or one thing that does more, but not as well.

If you’re unsure, and have been riding the line on this one, it is time to take the leap. This certification is a gateway drug into the Massenomics cult of good dudes and silly goosery you won’t regret being a part of, unless you ignored the line in the sand and ended up on the wrong side of history. Without the elitism of first rounders being a thing any more, certification was the best thing I’ve ever done, and it allowed me to finally get strong. Because of it, I am Crü now and have no regrets.

The conical shape is a pro and a con leading to make the pick easier if you know how to do it well. With it being top heavy, it will want to lean forward on you. Once you have it, the taper does make front carries easier. You could hold on to your won wrists. At 150, it’s a great size and weight to get good conditioning in. If you’re into strongman, this shouldn’t be your only bag because you’ll probably never see it. But it’s weird weight displacement might make it useful to simulate natural stones, where you really have to pay attention to where and how you’re moving it. Compared to the Cerberus bag, the outer layer does feel a little thin, but I’ve never once felt like it would break on me.