This is could be a decent beginner bar, but I bought it to upgrade from my Titan Atlas and it did not feel like an upgrade. The lack of knurling by the sleeves is the best part of this bar and I wish more bars came with this option to make rollers and j-cups last longer. I can feel the knurling in my hands more, but my passive Atlas seems to stick better. Calling this bar aggressive is a bad joke, and since I'm returning it to get store credit towards either the black diamond or double, I'm not sure if I can trust anything Rep calls "aggressive." The nickel finish was also underwhelming, and might have blunted the knurling. It certainly is not the finish you want on your sleeves. My hard chrome Atlas has no wear on the sleeves after 4 years using bumpers or iron plates, but the Badlands' sleeves got scratch the first day I used it. At $260, you don't save much when the black diamond and double black start around $300. This bar has some cool ideas, but I'd skip it for its price and finish. I'd rather get a Titan bar for cheaper or a premium bar for not much more.
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