REP fitness Gladiator WL barbell vs Sabre barbell

This is a comparison between the REP fitness Gladiator WL bar and the REP fitness Sabre barbell. Follow the links for more details.

Overview and review of the REP fitness Sabre barbell

This is an overview of the REP fitness Sabre barbell including the pros, cons, and alternatives. This article was originally posted in which barbell to buy from REP Fitness. Follow the links for more information.

Rep Sabre Bar $179

The REP sabre bar is what I would recommend to someone who walks up to me and says "I want a decent barbell, but it shouldn't cost much" and does not provide me with any extra information about what they want to use it for. The price point is good and you get a decent barbell that you can use for several lifts. It is not for the professional powerlifter and weightlifter, but this population is smaller than the industry wants you to believe. The full specifications of this barbell are:

150k tensile strength
1000 lb rating
28.5mm (25 mm women's) diameter
20kg length 87.4"
15kg length 79.13"
Zinc coating
High-performance ball-bearing sleeve design.
Dual knurl markings.
No center knurl on women's barbell. Men's barbell has an option with center knurl or without.
1-year warranty

This is a good bar if you want to build your home gym for $500 to $1000 including plates rack and everything else. It still functions as a proper barbell, without being fancy on any of the specific features. Also a good buy in bulk for a commercial gym that does not specialize in powerlifting or weightlifting.

Pros of the Rep Sabre Bar

The pros of the REP fitness Sabre bar are:

Price point
All-around design
No extra features
Warranty

This barbell is simple and to the point. Noting fancy but still better than an axle bar or the basic barbell model from REP fitness. This barbell has a zinc coating against rust and is 28.5mm in diameter which is right between weightlifting and powerlifting standards. Compared to the basic barbell from REP fitness it also comes with a warranty

Cons of the Rep Sabre Bar

The cons of the REP Sabre bar are:

Imported
No bearing
No aggressive knurl
No center knurl

As you are getting one of the lower range models of REP fitness with this barbell you will also get nothing fancy on the extras. Each feature has been stripped down to the bare minimum will you still get a warranty. Good for your purse and decent for your experience.

Alternatives to the Rep Sabre Bar

Alternatives to the REP Sabre bar are:

The black sabre bar is the same barbell with the exception that a black coat has been applied. If you want to spice things up a little with black color, then this is the bar to get instead of the sabre basic model.

The Rogue Ohio bar would be the equivalent in the Rogue portfolio to the REP fitness sabre bar. This is the basic barbell that Rogue started their vast portfolio. This leaves you with more options for individualizing your barbell than with REP fitness, but the base model comes at a higher price than the sabre bar.

The Rogue Echo bar is Rogue's approach to making a barbell as cheap as possible. This is the bar they advertise to be taken into the field by the military as it won't hurt that much if it gets abused based on the price per item. If you want to go as low as possible on the sticker price.

The TITAN Atlas bar is TITAN fitness's take on a full barbell at the lowest possible price. If you want to build your entire home gym as cheap as possible with new equipment, then they are probably the best address to get in touch with in the US. The only downside is that they need to cut some corners on service to make these low prices possible.

Conclusion for the Rep Sabre Bar

The REP Sabre bar is a solid barbell for anyone who wants to optimize their budget and still wants a minimal warranty with the barbell. If i owned a gym that had a lot of average strength clients, then this would be the barbell I would buy in bulk.

Overview and review of the REP fitness Gladiator WL barbell

This is an overview of the REP fitness Gladiator WL barbell including the pros, cons, and alternatives. This article was originally posted in which barbell to buy from REP Fitness. Follow the links for more information.

Rep Gladiator WL $289

The REP Gladiator WL is a variation on the Gladiator design from REP fitness that provides a center knurl, good tensile strength, and bearing on the sleeves for under $300. If you are looking for a solid weightlifting barbell that does not break the bank, you have probably found your perfect match. The full specifications of this barbell run as following:

28mm diameter (25mm for 15kg bar)
20 kg (45lb) or 15kg (35lb) option
1500 lb static rating
3 Needle bearings and 2 bushings per sleeve
Ribbed sleeves to keep weights from sliding while training.
Hard Chrome coating - rust-resistant coating
Center Knurl on WL and SS barbell
No Center Knurl on MX Gladiator and 15kg
Medium Depth Knurl
230k tensile, 210k yield
5 year warranty

A great barbell maximizes the important ingredients that make a good weightlifting barbell like the tensile strength and center knurl while compromising on some components like the sleeves to keep the cost as low as possible. I love the thought process that went into this to make a good weightlifting barbell affordable for the average Joe.

Pros of the Rep Gladiator WL

The pros of the Gladiator WL:

Price
Design

If you want a weightlifting barbell, but do not want to spend $700 to $1000 just on one piece of equipment for your home gym, then this is a great choice. I love what REP fitness has done her to put the best of the weightlifting world into a piece of steel, without making it too expensive. Yes, you will compromise with this barbell, but you can not have it all when you buy new and want to save money at the same time.

Cons of the Rep Gladiator WL

The cons of the REP Gladiator WL barbell are:

Not IWF approved
No full bearing on the sleeves
Imported
Color options

Currently, this barbell is not IWF approved. If you want to train as close to competition standards as possible you either need to opt for the Rogue weightlifting barbell series or the Eleiko barbells. Most Olympic lifting events on the international stage still use Eleiko equipment, while Rogue fitness is catching up in market share in the United States and international Invitation events. It will be interesting to see whether we will see Rogue equipment on one of the next Olympic events for lifting.

This bar will not spin as smoothly as the fully breed Olympic barbells from Rogue, Eleiko, or REP fitness as the sleeves are a bushing and bearing hybrid. This is a choice for this barbell to keep costs down as bearing is a specialized material that comes at a higher cost.

This barbell is imported and therefore manufactured and packaged in China. If this rubs your patriotic streak up the wring way you will have to opt for Sorinex or Rogue fitness who through lengths to keep their production and supply chain as local to the United States as possible.

There are no color options on this barbell as REP fitness does not provide a wide range of sleeves or Cerakote coating for their barbells. This might change in the future when sales volumes go up and REP fitness gets the chance to invest in the production lines of their overseas vendors.

Alternatives to the Rep Gladiator WL

Alternatives to the REP Gladiator WL bar are:

The REP Gladiator MX barbell is very similar to the Gladiator WL. The main differences are the full bearing sleeves and no center knurl which makes it more of an all-round barbell than the WL. Weigh up between these two barbells what you will actually use it most for and make a decision on what to get.

The REP Excalibur is the better choice if you want a Lifetime warranty instead of a 5-year warranty on your barbell. In return, you make some considerable sacrifices on the features of the barbell which I personally would not be willing to make. But I have never filed a warranty case in my entire life, so I am probably not the best person to advise on this perk.

The Rogue Pyrros bar is the top-of-the-line weightlifting barbell from Rogue. If you want a barbell that is IWF approved and connects you to one of the greatest talents in Olympic weightlifting to date then this is the right piece of metal for you. The only downside is that the price is considerably higher than anything you would find in the REP fitness range.

The TITAN Blues city weightlifting barbell is TITAN's approach to weightlifting barbells with bearing sleeves. If you want to bring the low-cost idea to its final conclusion TITAN is a safe bet. What you get in money saved you might regret shipping and quality control wise by purchasing through TITAN as they have to cut some corners to make the low prices across their entire portfolio feasible.

Conclusion for the Rep Gladiator WL

The REP Gladiator WL barbell is a solid choice for someone who wants to save some money on ha high-quality weightlifting barbell. Thi bar makes some compromises in the design to bring the cost down, but these make sense. Especially if you see oly lifts as a more dynamic alternative to powerlifting for training at home, rather than chasing Olympic medals, then this is the perfect fit of a barbell for you.