Review of Rogue Safety squat bar

[alexthaman]

After adding a couple of specialty bars in my collection (rackable hex bar and multi grip bar) which i purchased both from Rogue and was really satisfied with, I decided to add the safety squat bar from rogue to my collection of bars. It arrived in good condition, the box for transport was still in perfect shape when it arrived to me. The bar was looking exactly like the bar picture on Rogue's site.



Looking it at it seemed like the paint on the sleeves was not the same paint that was used on my hex bar. I touched the bar with my nail and moved it a bit and here is what the bar looked like at that time



After seeing the result I emailed Rogue with that picture in attachment, they told me they were aware of that problem and they will ship another bar to me when they complete the tests on them. I asked them how long should it take, they answered me: we don't have an ETA on this, just keep the bar for now and beat it as much as you can, when we are finished we will contact you and send the bar.
That same afternoon I decided to test the bar. I loaded two plates on each side and here is the result.




I emailed Rogue right away with the pictures, my gym was full of paint dust and I did not want to keep it as it was because I knew i wont use it. Rogue answered me that I just have to box it and when they receive it they will refund me. I did not have a box that big and I wanted them to refund me before i ship.... But I really like using the bar except for the paint so I asked Rogue what can they do if i keep the bar and refinish it myself. They offered me a 200$ gift card to keep it but I was able to negociate for 250$. Having paid the bar 480$ (I live in Canada) 250$ seemed fair. Within 4 hours I received a gift car of 250$ usd.
I grinded the whole sleeves of the bar and painted them with good paint. Now I am waiting for it to dry and I will test the bar this afternoon.

The thing that pissed me off the most is that they were aware of the paint defect but they sent the bar anyway? I dont think it is the way to do business. I am very disapointed from Rogue on this one. I can understand that sometimes you have problems when running a business but when you know them you should make sure it wont happen again. Went on Rogue site this morning, the bar is still available and IN STOCK. I think they should make it out of stock until they figure this out!

[Accutron]

That's terrible.

[ProtienandIron]

Thats not good, but I think rogue have acted quite honourably in this case. In a company as big as Rogue, sending bad stock out is an easy mistake to make. They've offered full replacement, refund, and in this case a substantial partial refund. With regards to the 'in stock' status, I would guess that they have already changed the paint being used on any further produced bars. So long as the paint on the rest of the bar is ok, I think I would be quite happy getting a half price bar since its an area that gets scratched through normal use anyway.

I don't want to play devils advocate, but it seems to me you haven't had to rough a ride here. But its good to mention it here so that other potential customers can ring beforehand to question the bar they will be recieving and make sure its from good stock.

[alexthaman]

Dont get me wrong, i am happy how all that ended. I am just saying that they told me they were aware of the problem but shipped anyway. They offered me good options and i am happy with my bar that cost me 230$ and having to repaint both sleeves, it took me an hour to save 250$ and i they are now all good for use. I was just posting that so the other members be aware of the problem before ordering one of these bars.

[thejosef]

Rogue is a pretty large company. It's damn difficult to have every one on the team on the same page all the time. Bottom line, they make mistakes, like any other big company. But from my experience and many others, they work Very hard to fix any issues until you are satisfied. It looks like ended up getting a pretty great bar for a nice discount. Enjoy it, and let us know what you buy with that 250.

[817boy]

My thoughts:

Thats crappy of R to keep selling this bar even though they have problems (that they are aware of) to anyone. I mean do they seriously expect someone to spend $400 and not contact them when the bar starts to deteriorate w/in 1 training session.

Its like when they came out w/ a new version of their reverse hyper and one guy on there FB page said "i appreciate yall selling me your old version, when the new version was coming out w/ in a week.

Rogue did give you a refund though and even said they would send you out a free one (whenever they fixed the problem). If i was you i would have done this because you could have had your messed up bar re powder coated. then when R sent you the new bar you could have sold the old bar for $200-$250.

Maybe R should start actually testing their products thoroughly. To me it seems they come up w/ a product, use it for a few training sessions and if it does what its suppose to do, they start mass producing it and selling it to general public.



hate to bring up EFS, but when they come up w/ a product they test it for months to make sure it will hold up. They test it and then if they dont like it they modify it till they are satisfied. They did that w/ their new Yoke SS Bar. If you look at vids dave was using the ss bar like 6 months before they released it to the public.


Thanks for letting us know about the bar and also that R was willing to fix their mistake. REPS

[dumb.bell]

I don't think it was a mistake, but rather a calculation! You know there is a potential cosmetic defect, but instead of making a person wait and chancing a lost sale, you ship it with the potential that you will have to remedy the situation. You also know that only a certain percentage of people will complain. I think they are simply maximizing present sales.

[dumb.bell]

I think there are two types of people. Those who view the equipment as a tool to get the job done, and those that appreciate the equipment in an of itself (almost like art). Many on this forum appear to the be the latter of the two (including myself).

[BuckWyld]

I am pretty sure that the Rogue SS bar was out of stock for quite a while and only came back in stock recently. It's possible that this is a problem with a new batch that they are just finding out about as people receive the bars.

[alexthaman]

I think there are two types of people. Those who view the equipment as a tool to get the job done, and those that appreciate the equipment in an of itself (almost like art). Many on this forum appear to the be the latter of the two (including myself).

Exactly, for more than 400$ i was expecting a pièce of art, i wanted it to be faultless. I think it was calculated, they did not want to loose the sale, they were thinking there is 75% chances that the costumer keeps the bar an dont return it. They tried and it has not work out!

[alexthaman]

My thoughts:

Thats crappy of R to keep selling this bar even though they have problems (that they are aware of) to anyone. I mean do they seriously expect someone to spend $400 and not contact them when the bar starts to deteriorate w/in 1 training session.

Its like when they came out w/ a new version of their reverse hyper and one guy on there FB page said "i appreciate yall selling me your old version, when the new version was coming out w/ in a week.

Rogue did give you a refund though and even said they would send you out a free one (whenever they fixed the problem). If i was you i would have done this because you could have had your messed up bar re powder coated. then when R sent you the new bar you could have sold the old bar for $200-$250

The options were return the bar for full refund or keep the bar until new version is complete than return the old bar and we will ship the new one or 250$ and keep the bar.

[skrebs01]

The options were return the bar for full refund or keep the bar until new version is complete than return the old bar and we will ship the new one or 250$ and keep the bar.

Looks like a great way to get a safety squat bar for $150

[Wildtim]

I am pretty sure that the Rogue SS bar was out of stock for quite a while and only came back in stock recently. It's possible that this is a problem with a new batch that they are just finding out about as people receive the bars.

That sounds correct. Get in a new shipment after you've been out of stock, ship a buttload right away, then find out your supplier screwed up with the curing of the paint. I bet when they found out the crapped themselves wondering what it would do to their reputation and how they were going to fix it.

Sounds like they are handling it pretty well so far, good on them.

[BAVE]

I would have said you should have bought an EliteFTS SS bar but mine came in with a busted end cap and a handle that did not fit due to bad threads. They eventually replaced the handle (more than a month later) but not the damaged end cap.

[twirp]

Some people on here like bare steel bars

[817boy]

I would have said you should have bought an EliteFTS SS bar but mine came in with a busted end cap and a handle that did not fit due to bad threads. They eventually replaced the handle (more than a month later) but not the damaged end cap.

EFS needs to step up their customer service. I dont hear complaints very often about EFS, but when i do it seems they take a lil too long to fix whats wrong.

Your case in point. Should have taken no longer than 7-10 business days to get that at your door. And they should have fixed the busted endcap.

[CBoxer]

EFS needs to step up their customer service. I dont hear complaints very often about EFS, but when i do it seems they take a lil too long to fix whats wrong.

Your case in point. Should have taken no longer than 7-10 business days to get that at your door. And they should have fixed the busted endcap.

My EliteFTS SS bar that was a gift from my wife had the problem with the handles that wouldn't fit, but they overnighted me a new bar with a return label for the old bar. They told my wife that they had been having this issue and that they were taking the bars off the site for a bit to get the problem worked out with the supplier or something. This was a little while back (2-3 months maybe) so perhaps they have fixed this issue.

It's just my opinion that you can't expect these purchases to always be perfect the first time; **** happens. The thing you can expect is that the company will make things right in the end. EliteFTS and Rogue have always done that for me. Congrats on the cheap, but awesome SS bar. If Rogues bar is like their other products I'm sure it's a great piece.

[BAVE]

My EliteFTS SS bar that was a gift from my wife had the problem with the handles that wouldn't fit, but they overnighted me a new bar with a return label for the old bar. They told my wife that they had been having this issue and that they were taking the bars off the site for a bit to get the problem worked out with the supplier or something. This was a little while back (2-3 months maybe) so perhaps they have fixed this issue.

It's just my opinion that you can't expect these purchases to always be perfect the first time; **** happens. The thing you can expect is that the company will make things right in the end. EliteFTS and Rogue have always done that for me. Congrats on the cheap, but awesome SS bar. If Rogues bar is like their other products I'm sure it's a great piece.

Do the threads on your handles screw all the way into the bar or are there still threads exposed? My bar's handles only screw in a bit less than half way.

[CBoxer]

Do the threads on your handles screw all the way into the bar or are there still threads exposed? My bar's handles only screw in about half way but lock in pretty tight at the same half-way point on both sides.

In my original post I didn't quite explain well what was wrong with mine exactly. It was only one of the handles that had an issue and it went maybe 1/3 to 1/2 of the way. I originally hoped they would just send me one handle. The new bar came with handles that screw in all of the way with no threads exposed.

[BAVE]

In my original post I didn't quite explain well what was wrong with mine exactly. It was only one of the handles that had an issue and it went maybe 1/3 to 1/2 of the way. I originally hoped they would just send me one handle. The new bar came with handles that screw in all of the way with no threads exposed.

Ok I'll have to email Ronda at EliteFTS to see if they can swap it out for the correctly manufactured bar. This one will see a lot of use at my center so I'd better not take chances with the handles coming loose.

[kbdub]

We had a few people email in regards to this thread so I figured I should post an update.

1) We use machined sleeves (same as our barbells) on our specialty bars, not straight pipe. Industry norm is to use a piece of 1.5" pipe. Most barbell collars don't clamp tight to 1.5" pipe due to the smaller 1.9" OD.

2) Powder coat does not want to hold to the machined surface. We have been working on slower line speeds etc to get it to hold. We have also tried removing the ridges but are still having some issues.

3) We are testing black zinc on all specialty bars with machined sleeves. The first samples should be received today and tested over the weekend.

Kris

[alexthaman]

We had a few people email in regards to this thread so I figured I should post an update.

1) We use machined sleeves (same as our barbells) on our specialty bars, not straight pipe. Industry norm is to use a piece of 1.5" pipe. Most barbell collars don't clamp tight to 1.5" pipe due to the smaller 1.9" OD.

2) Powder coat does not want to hold to the machined surface. We have been working on slower line speeds etc to get it to hold. We have also tried removing the ridges but are still having some issues.

3) We are testing black zinc on all specialty bars with machined sleeves. The first samples should be received today and tested over the weekend.

Kris

Hi Kris, I hope you can find a way so that the paint would hold to the bar. All my speciality bars are from rogue, i have a trap bar, a multigrip bar and a ssb. I have paint coming off from all the sleeves of those bars but the only one that was really bad was the ssb. The other ones are not that bad, a couple of spots but nothing more. I really like the fact that you guys use sleeves on your bars that i can fit collars on. This is the main reason for all my specialty bars come from Rogue.
Except that problem, i really love the bar, great padding, great handles... I improved my squat a lot by using this bar. I think it is a great addition to any gym for people with injuries or people that are having difficulty holding a barbell on their back. Makes it easier the keep the barbell on the right place which give you the opportunity to really focus on the form of the movement.
Keep on improving your products, i really like Rogue and I am really pleased with all my equipment coming from you. Hi plan on buying the adjustable bench ab-2 (old nebula 1080) but i wait for the decline option...

thanks for the update on your products

Alex

[DamonB82]

Why not just leave the sleeves bare, then ADVISE customers to oil ever so often? I think it'd look awesome without paint on the sleevIes!

[blindedge]

Thanks for the heads up. Im happy it worked out for you but I would have hated to have gone through all that trouble. They should not be selling the product if they KNOW it has problems, or atleast make the customers aware before buying.

[tmonkey]

We had a few people email in regards to this thread so I figured I should post an update.

1) We use machined sleeves (same as our barbells) on our specialty bars, not straight pipe. Industry norm is to use a piece of 1.5" pipe. Most barbell collars don't clamp tight to 1.5" pipe due to the smaller 1.9" OD.

2) Powder coat does not want to hold to the machined surface. We have been working on slower line speeds etc to get it to hold. We have also tried removing the ridges but are still having some issues.

3) We are testing black zinc on all specialty bars with machined sleeves. The first samples should be received today and tested over the weekend.

Kris

Any update on this?

[tmonkey]

Any update on this?

yeah - no - can anyone recommend a good ss bar? Wanted to get one from them but I really don't want to wait until that may or may not figure it out. I was going to order then bitch for a discount but didn't want to play that game either.





TMonkey:
Are you still having paint issues with the safety squat bar? I see it is still powder coated but I thought you were going to use a black zinc coating to help improve that scratching issue.




Call accepted by operator Rogue Chat. Currently in room: Rogue Chat, TMonkey.

Rogue Chat:
Hey TMonk how are you doing?
TM:
great
Rogue Chat:
We are very close to having the fix now.
Rogue Chat:
I do not believe we will continue to powder coat the sleeves though.
TM:
any idea on a date
TM:
any discounts on the current bar?
Rogue Chat:
A month or two..
TM:
also do you have them right at the store for pickup?
Rogue Chat:
Yes, but right now we will only have the old style.
TM:
are you going to discount those down?
Rogue Chat:
I cannot comment as to whether or not they will be discounted.
TM:
I would order one now with a discount if that matters but at full price I am going to look around. It is just a lot of money for a bar when the paint flakes right off.
Rogue Chat:
I Agree, I would see if you could hold off for the new one.
Rogue Chat:
It shouldn't be more than the bar offered now.
TM:
ok - i'll see if i can wait thanks

[Cleveland33]

I don't think it was a mistake, but rather a calculation! You know there is a potential cosmetic defect, but instead of making a person wait and chancing a lost sale, you ship it with the potential that you will have to remedy the situation. You also know that only a certain percentage of people will complain. I think they are simply maximizing present sales.

I know this is old, but since it got bumped I thought I would chime in.

I don't think it's a calculated risk on complaints, but you have to have a line you draw when an issue is worth pulling stock. You are not going to pull stock on an item because one person calls in to complain - or even more depending on how many you have shipped. BUT when someone else calls to complain about it, it is a KNOWN problem. Think about it if you were running a business - do say five complaints out of 1,000 shipments warrant pulling stock and running an evaluation? I don't think so, unless it is a safety issue.

[tjp15785]

Just chiming in, received one for Xmas. Haven't been on here much lately, so was unaware of issues with paint on this bar. I love this bar, but paint is starting to pop off. For $400 I would hope this wouldn't be an issue.

I generally like Rogue, but I am beginning to be a bit curious of them. I have reviewed some of their items on their website and curiously the item I gave the lowest review never has posted to their site, but all others have, hmmmm.

[alexthaman]

I cant believe that many months after they still ship bars with the same problem i reported them... It shows how much they care?

I had problems with Rogue on my two last orders. There was this problem with the paint peeling off on safety squat bar, i already owned a gun rack for 1 year, on the same order with the ssb i ordered a second gun rack, i have the same problem with it and the bar, i can peel the paint off with my nails... I think rogue has a general problem with paint recently! I ordered a few rogue items before and everything came perfect and nice. But recently they grew up and i think their quality went down as they grew up.

It is very sad that Rogue acts like that with their customers. They sell really expensive stuff and we expect more for that kind of money. 400$ is expensive for that bar and they should resolve the paint issue before shipping more defective bars.

I made a few review on their website and the only one showing are the good ones... I guess this is why we have this forum to share our experiences...

[tmonkey]

I called them and was not pleased with the person I spoke with.

they also made it sound like a new bar is ready but they want to ship all of these out first before making the new bars available

i bought the elitefts bar on black friday and could not be happier