A bit early into the video so not sure if you saw mine, but I had bent sleeves. I also know of at least 3 other people who had similar issues and/or needed the bar replaced. I decided to just get a refund at this point as I don't see this as much of an upgrade for someone that owns the Duffalo and would rather wait until Rogue figures out the QC issues on this one. But if they fix it, very appealing at that price point for what you get.
Mine were bent and I'm still waiting for my replacement bar. I don't have the Duffalo Bar but if I did I'd probably do the same because they look very similar. This was my first bar I purchased on day one of release so I'm not too upset but more surprised since it's coming from Rogue.
@@richards6431 I think it's hard to tell if it left the warehouse like this (as they come with a double signed QC check) or if they were damaged in transit b/c of the packaging and loose bar inside.
@@BasementBrandon Maybe. I sure hope it was damaged in transit. All i know is I bought a curl bar from Rogue with some sloppy knurl, and a OHPB with a fairly noticeable blemish on the shaft which they said was normal machining. At any rate I want Rogue to succeed at these specialty bars, even if I feel they have been missing the mark.
I just received my bar yesterday and it was packed so well it took me a huge chunk of time to get bar out. So far I'm extremely impressed. I had lusted after the Kabuki but couldn't justify the added cost. I'm very impressed with the bar so far. Honestly, after seeing it in person I'm surprised it doesn't cost more.
I've worked at UPS in Canada for 7 years and Rogue is NOTORIUS for being one of the absolute WORST shippers. Their stuff almost always comes in really low quality and already open and or broken packaging. Does not matter if it's a dumbbell, barbell or kettlebell, chances are it's open or will open before it gets to the customer.
i bought a $500 all stainless rogue power bar, it came in 1 long box with both ends stapled shut was extremely difficult to open, no foam or anything on the ends of the bar, and the bar wasn’t even in a plastic bag and it was covered in dust and cardboard particles
I’m in the uk and UPS are the worst couriers I have come across, my bars from strength shop never turn up, I always end up getting a refund because UPS tracking is absolutely useless. I have now named UPS as Useless Parcel Service
The StrongArm Sport Buffalo bar is the way to go in my opinion. At $369 with free shipping you can’t beat the value it brings. It’s cheaper than rogue and kabuki and way better than titan Yukon. At 32 MM with an aggressive knurl and 92 inches in length. It does not tip at all and feels great while squatting with you can’t beat it.
I would avoid the Titan bar at all costs. They shipped me two different bars and both had bends that put the sleeves at different angles. The 2nd bar (a replacement) was so incorrectly bent from the factory that they had to bore out the bushing for the sleeve to fit and even then the sleeve would bind on the bar and not rotate.
Good comparison. I bought the Kabuki Strength bar over a year ago and love it. Great Rogue has a product and I have a lot of Rogue stuff I really like but Kabuki is king of specialty bars.
I had the Titan Yukon bar for a bit and I never had any issues with it on a Titan Rack. Now I have Rep PR5K so not sure if the less wide rack would have any impact with a Yukon but while I had it the Yukon was great! This CB4 looks good! Maybe they can do a post bend knurl in the future, somehow..
Yeah I currently have the Yukon bar and a rogue rack and I’ve never had it fall out of the rack. I have had it slide to one side in the J cups which is a bit unnerving but it never actually fell out.
Same experience for me. I use my Yukon bar on the RM-6 rack and have had no safety issues. My only complaint (minor) is the knurling is bland compared to my Ohio bar.
Really luv my Nickel plated Kabuki Duffalo Bar. So much that it is extremely frustrating waiting for the their Power Bar in nickel to restock. I was curious about this bar and wondered if it would be a worthwhile upgrade to the the Duffalo. My post service years shoulders lack some mobility required to get into a proper low bar squat position. These types of bars are the only ones that allow it with minimal pain. It still hurts a little on the final set across, but it’s manageable. The Kabuki nickel is absolutely the most beautiful bar I have ever seen. Nothing else even compares, it handily outshines stainless steel. As for knurling, there is none better then Kabuki. It sticks better yet it isn’t nearly as “peaky” so it is actually more comfortable. Thank you for the review Coop.
This bar looks like a great option. However, I have the Yukon bar and I find to be fine for my needs, as I don't use it a ton and it's half the price of the cb4. These types of bars are super comfortable on my wrists and shoulders when squatting and are awesome for bench pressing as well, providing a little extra range of motion. Great review, Coop!
@@GarageGymReviews thank you for the video! Perhaps a little more in-depth comparison with the Yukon. I think many of us who own a Yukon could find upgrading to the the Rogue very enticing, especially at this price point. But whether it’s that much better would be really good to know, especially as my main gripe with the Yukon is the passive knurl. I can make it work, but OPB knurling would be amazing if it’s worth the change. Thanks!
If you even think you have a climate control issue in your gym, don’t get the Duffalo zinc plated. For just over a year now, I have it racked next to an Eleiko bare-steel powerlifting bar which has really mild rusting. The kabuki on the other hand is in very poor condition now with white rust. Same as the transformer bar. I’ve managed to stop it on the transformer bar by taping up most of the exposed areas. Clearly, I have a humidity issue, but zinc plated should be way more corrosive resistant than bare steel.
@@hitleractually8180 I’d need electricity first. It’s not that bad anyway, just temperature fluctuations in the UK causing condensation on the metal. Cerakote Texas power bar and Squat bar are absolutely spotless. Which takes us full circle to the whole point of my initial comment. Wish the rogue had been out back when I bought the Duffalo.
@@danredmond5589 The Rogue bar sucks, though. Duffalo is the shit. Run an extension cord down there and get that dehumifier running. Texas Power Bars suck dick, btw
Definitely a pretty bar from 20 ft away. If they work out the kinks, it will shine pretty brightly as a buffalo bar contender. Edit: also, thanks for calling out some of the tactics (jacking up prices after your reviews like the raptor bike, the fringe sport bar you spoke on in this video etc.) some of these companies are using. You are a real one for that, Coop
Titan fixed the issue with the Yukon bar, you’ll notice it’s a little longer on one side which maybe bothersome if you have OCD, however I have loaded 25KG plates with no issues on both J-cups and monolift arms.
Titan Yukon, I got it on sale for $179 ( with free shipping! ) and love its versatility and beefy build. I’ve never had the safety tip over issue but I do have a wider rack. Titan has been improving their QC the last few years, hopefully the trend continues as their price points make it possible for many of us to finally own gear and attachments ( Monolifts, Iso-arms, etc ) that were once considered out of reach.
The kabuki falls while loading as well, if you put one plate on and push the bar so the end of the sleeve is against the J cup you can load the other side safely.. this works when unloading too
I snagged the green cerakote duffalo recently. It was a hard decision between that and rogue but really glad I went with buki. Has actually became my favorite bar in my whole collection. And that buki knurl you can't beat.
Have you tested the original buffalo bar from ironmind? I'm wondering if they still stack up to what's available on the market today, especially at the price point that they are at.
I’ve had the Yukon bar for about a year and I have never had an issue with it flipping over! I do squat off the rogue monolift attachments so maybe that is why but I like the Yukon a lot!
Im waiting on my CB-4 to come! To add to Coops comment about shipping, Rogue products have taken a while to ship. I ordered my barbell May 1st and it seems as if I will have to wait until July to receive it. WHICH ISNT TOO BAD considering i waited nearly a year for Texas Power Bars to send me my deadlift bar. Rouge is worth the wait. Just excited to squat wither.
I have a Titan bar and in Rouge Rack the The bar would tip over with a 45 but on my REP rack I can put 45 on it and it will not tip over. And when I was using my Rogue rack I would just put 25s on it first I’ve never had the issue
These bars are made for huge human forklifts, not regular folks like us. I think it's an extremely unnessary purchase, as a power bar and a Safety Squat Bar will do the trick.
I respectfully disagree sir. Buffalo bars still allow you to low bar squat (my preferred style of squat) and takes pressure of the shoulders. The safety squat bar takes pressure off the shoulders but changes the movement.
@@nickt3169 I think this brings up whats the point of low bar squatting? You can get fantastic leg development without going lowbar. I may be wrong but perhaps these buffalo bars were made for people who compete and by necessity have to do a lift with a straight bar, but lack the shoulder mobility to squat that way all the time.
To be fair you should compare the price of the Blemished Kabuki (10% less, packaging second to none and barely a scratch) to the CB-4 with the imperfections in the knurling and the shipping issues. Surprised you did not talk about the sheer length and weight of this bar vs the Duffalo since many are in narrow spaces. IMO you have had years with the Duffalo, you may need to have more than a few weeks with this one before you crown a new champ.
@@carps_gym Affiliate links are lucrative if you have the web traffic...a few reviewers are true to their opinions no matter what and say the same things about a given product consistently when comparing new products to existing ones and that is becoming clearer as time goes on.
@@joecowan3719 yep! When you know they are getting paid suddenly it’s the new best one out there when the last one was the new best thing out there. That’s why you really gotta respect the dude grinding that last few videos had no affiliation with and they don’t even have an affiliate program
I bought the original Fringe Sport Longhorn on your recommendation and it’s become a cornerstone of my routine. I understand that current production Longhorns are inferior but wish you had compared the Rogue to the original Fringe Sport. If I use a buffalo bar every other day, is it worth upgrading from original Longhorn to CB-4?
ive never used any specialty bars but ive been thinking about trying them..i wish they made one of these with safety handles. I have busted up shoulders that make is really difficult to hold the bar..
I'm just trying to decide between a Buffalo style bar or a Safety Squat Bar to save my crusty shoulder. I'll never squat 800lbs+ like Coop, but I'm not going to quit squatting.
You probably want a belt squat. Rogue makes a great one. I have it. It's fantastic. I also have a Duffalo and EliteFTS SS Yoke. I would say if you're relegated to a bar instead of a belt squat, I would get a good SSB. It's easier on the shoulders than the Duffalo.
1. So engineer/designer admits it’s not the greatest steel as in imperfections? So why not lower the price! 2. Seems it needs a longer flat before the sleeve for racking like the Kabuki.
Coop! Can you please do an opinion review on the most to least essential specialty bars for a home gym??? Could compare the specialty bar types based on versatility, how much quality it adds to exercises you use it for relative to a standard barbell perhaps, and value. Trap bars, EZ curl bars, safety squat bars, multi grip bars, cambered bars, bamboo bars, and beyond!
I have the ohio bar, rogue junior bar, synergee trap bar, kabuki SSB, kabuki cadillac... and now the CB-4. CB-4 is an absolute game changer for those with limited shoulder mobility, and eliminates need for SSB (IMO). The CB-4 is also amazing for benching, and it eliminates need for cadillac (parallel / multi-grip is not that helpful). Lastly, for dealifting, ohio bar is great for traditional pulls, but the small frame 55lb synergee trap bar is amazing for loading up with weight and doing a squatty DL - much easier on lower back. My other favorite piece of specialty equipment is the Titan roller for bulgarians (and Titan GHD).
I would say that an uneven curve would be justification for replacement, even from the Boneyard. That's much different from some double-tracked knurling like we see on their others. - Coop
@@GarageGymReviews thank you but I am common folk and no special treatment for me. Rogue's customer service as of late has been inconsistent, five years ago absolutely now IDK... I bought some bumpers from rogue at issue was a couple pairs and the first customer rep agreed they needed to be replaced but sent only a plate of each denomination at issue not pairs... Then when trying to get the proper quantity resolved a different rep intially disagreed that a replacement was warranted for the issue despite the earlier determination and partial replacement... It all depends on who you get unfortunately and I can see someone saying boneyard bars are all sales final and sticking to it
@@rodolfomedini9931 While the Boneyard bars do not have Rogue's typical warranty, they do guarantee they will function just like the regular bars. I bought a Boneyard Ohio Power Bar and one of the sleeves was oversized to the point some of my plates would not fit the bar. Normally sleeves are just under 50mm and this bar had one that was over 50.6mm. I emailed Rogue and they quickly shipped me a replacement sleeve.
Initially it feels a bit unstable but then you get used to it. There is a bit more forward lean as well. I'm squatting on the cb4 these days due to bicep/shoulder issues. It's an amazing bar.
Biased towards Kabuki here for specialty bars, but impressive price difference and nice coating on Rogue. However, the fact that Rogue fails at its shipping like this is a major negative to such a large company imo, which could easily afford to do better
with their awesome customer service and warranty though, any shipping issue would be resolved quickly....shouldn't affect someone's choice based only on this in my opinion...as much as I like Kabuki it's not like you would be waiting another 6 months or so before they can send you a replacement product should anything happen :)
The Yukon Bar just needs the j hooks to be flipped so they can swivel inwards. Zero issues. 470 racked, loaded and reracked and no bar flipping. $175 for a Home Gym owner
This review and a few others are why I bought the CB-4. As a bar, it is amazing. But the sleeves? They are a hard no if your plates aren't compatible. I happen to use vulcan alphas, and they work wonderfully on all my other rogue bars. On this one, they constantly get stuck to the point that I have had to load additional weight on the opposite side of the bar to get a plate off that is stuck without pulling it off the j-cups. The safety implications are astounding. Unfortunately, rogue wants nothing to do with supporting that. They say the "friction is normal". I now have to ship a bar back, at my own cost because rogue designed sleeves that don't work with all standard plates. I simply need rogue to be more aggressive with their "note" and say "This sleeve is not compatible with all olympic plates". It would be great if they offered a sleeve rental (like one sleeve from the mg-4 made to mount to a rack) so you could try it. After you try your plates, return it and get the "rental fee" back minus nominal shipping or credit for the full amount to buy whatever rogue thing you want. For the life of me, I can't understand why they didn't make these sleeves a hair smaller to potentially avoid this issue. Rogue's lack of understanding and support for many customers having this issue means we have essentially thrown our money away by trusting rogue. Customers have resorted to sanding down the sleeves, applying wax, regular 3 in 1 oiling and even buying new plates just to use this bar. Buyer beware. I wish it weren't this way, but it is.
Basement Brandon has made several videos on that bar. I would consider another bar though. Texas squat bars have a lot of whip on them and the knurling wears down after a few months of use (something TPB owners never mention). I have had 4 Texas bars and all of them had knurling that wore down to nothing in 6 months of use. If you MUST get a squat bar, get the Rogue squat bar. It's stainless steel, very stiff, is relatively cheap and has knurling similar to a Kabuki squat bar.
I find it doesn't really take off pressure on the wrist, but changes the way you feel the pressure. It actually caused wrist pain for me the first few weeks I used a Duffalo, but I've since adjusted to it and it's very comfortable on the wrists now.
Takes pressure off of all of them. For me especially elbows. Because of the curve it molds into your back. Therefore you don’t have to keep as much pressure in the hands and thereby downstream joints.
This is one I want to get in. It's been around for a long time, but man, at $1k, not including shipping and raw steel, it would be hard to see it being better than this or Kabuki's.
The Kabuki bar is way too cambered. The Ironmind buffalo bar is the best buffalo bar on the market hands down. Also dude, not every one with a home gym is a 160 pounder lol
You're one of those *weight is weight* people who condemn others who buy expensive plates instead of rusty, junky used shit off Craigslist, aren't you? I swear, you people don't want the rest of us with money to have ANYTHING nice
@@portastsic Because its a waste of money for the majority of people. I'd say at most you need one bar to bench, do deadlifts, and cleans with, and maybe a squat safety bar or trap bar depending on if you have some ailments.
@@MudPig6110 respectfully, if buying bars motivates folks to train, I would call that a good investment. Limiting oneself because it feels absurd seems to be a waste. I enjoy hitting pr’s on all of my bars. It provides motivation as pr’s on a straight bar often don’t happen every week. Different bars provide different stimuli. I’m sure you’re familiar with how many folks advocate some form of a conjugate/muscle confusion training approach. When you don’t have the money for a bunch of different machines, bars can add variety, thereby advancement (gains). There are advocates of a conjugate style of training (Matt Wenning primarily) that feel the different angles of different bars reduces wear and tear on the joints by placing loads in differing places- leading to fewer injuries and the ability to train later in life. A buffalo bar really helped me train heavy pressing movements more regularly because I don’t suffer near the elbow pain after using it for squats. Yes, that’s an ailment and the average probably don’t train like me, but lots of folks out there could train more often and be more motivated if they found ways to not hurt. Bars are great. Training is great. Don’t allow a grumpy conservative, “back in my day”, “you don’t need that” mentality limit yourself or others. Perhaps motivation should be intrinsic and I’m using equipment as a crutch and not putting my head down and grinding with rusty old bars and plates…but if I’m getting stronger and having fun, I call that a win. (excluding people who just buy to show off on Instagram).
If you collect bars to mount on a wall to have people ooo and ahhh, great. Otherwise get a powerter levergym then you don't have spend a fortune, and have bars around every where.
