The
Compared to other hex bars on the market, there aren’t a lot with the same quality level that Rogue brings to the table.
I looked at a bunch of options before deciding on the
Here is my Rogue Fitness Review if you want to check out why you should invest in them in the first place!
Let’s get started!
Table Of Contents
Specs
First up, we have the specs!
- Brand: Rogue Fitness
- Made In USA: Yes
- Color: Black Powder
- Weight: 60 lbs
- Overall Length: 88.5″
- Hex Width: 28.5″. So there’s a ton of room for lifters of all sizes!
- Handles: Two Sets of Knurled Handles; spaced 25″ from the center with a 1.34″ diameter.
Also, if you're curious about how much trap bars, specialty bars, and Olympic barbells weigh - my article covers the main ones here.
Main Features
There are a couple of features that the
These main features are as follows:
- Hex Width
- Knurling & Handles
- Sleeves
- Black Powder
- Weight Capacity
- Square Steel Tubing
- Range Of Motion
These five features of the Rogue Trap Bar are why I went with the
If this Trap Bar didn’t have the right combination of these five features, I might have picked those instead.
I’ll go over each one in-depth now!
- Made In USA
- 60LB Total Weight
- 88.5" Total Length
- 28.5" Width
- 9" Height
- 1.34" Diameter Handles
- 1.5" SCH 80 Pipe Sleeves
- Knurled Handles
- 16" Loadable Sleeve Space
- Specialty Trap Bar
Hex Width
The biggest issue I have with cheaper trap bars is that they’re so damn small!
If you want to see my top recommendations for different trap bars and barbells in general, check out my best barbells guide here!
For smaller lifters, this is fine! But for bigger lifters (we all want to be bigger, right?), it’s a huge pain getting in and out of them!
On my previous trap bar, which was the god-awful CAP Barbell Trap Bar, it was so narrow that I felt claustrophobic inside the cage.
My hands were super close to my sides, and I felt like it absolutely prevented me from overloading properly.
Once I switched to the
I recently pulled a 10 rep max for 20 reps as soon as I switched to the
That’s a big difference overnight, and I absolutely contribute it to the
Getting yourself into the strongest position that allows you to do the most weight for the most reps is what strength training is all about, after all!
The knurled handles are also spaced perfectly for me, which I’ll go over in the next section.
The cage itself is around 28.5″ in width, which is just right for bigger and smaller lifters alike!
If you’re looking for a trap bar for bigger and taller lifters that need more space, the
Knurling & Handles
This was the second factor I had to consider, the knurling and the set of handles themselves.
I wanted something that had a nice, solid knurling that wasn’t going to rip my hands up but also wasn’t slippery like cheaper bars tend to be.
Luckily with the
This knurl makes it really easy to get a grip on the
Believe me, I’ve used the latter for a couple of years, and so have others; it has not broken in and got better at all. The knurl on cheaper bars is just not worth it.
That’s also probably part of why I could do more reps on my Trap Bar Deadlift overnight.
The knurling on the Rogue Trap Bar is one of the main selling points for me, and I’m sure many others will agree!
Along with the knurling, the
If you use the lower height, it forces you to get much lower, and for shorter lifters, it definitely seems to work well.
However, I went with this instead of the TB-1 Trap Bar was simple; I wanted to use the raised knurled handles. Sure, while this might reduce the range of motion, it allows taller lifters to lift more comfortably.
If you’re taller, it’s going to be very difficult to set up properly on some movements. Sometimes the Conventional Deadlift isn’t the right tool for your goals. Which is the main reason I switched to the trap bar deadlift in the first place.
By using the higher set of handles, I’m able to get into a much stronger position without compromising my technique.
I’m sure many of you understand the need for higher handles just like I do.
And if you ever want to do other variations with a greater range of motion, you just flip the bar over and use the lower knurled handles. Easy!
All in all, the handle design of the
If you have different goals, maybe the TB-1 Trap Bar is fine. But in my mind, just spending a little more and having both options is a better investment.
If you want to learn about the best barbell knurlings, check out my barbell buying guide here!
Sleeves
The sleeves on a Trap Bar can make or break the entire thing. Most trap bars have really short sleeves that can only hold a couple of hundred lbs.
If you’re using super bulky bumper plates found in most commercial gyms, it’s going to be even lower.
Check out my guide on the best ways to get weight plates if you need more in your home gym.
The solution is longer sleeves, of course!
The sleeves on my old Trap Bar are only around 10″. Even with the thinnest plates, you’ll never reach the 1,000-weight capacity it claims to have.
The Rogue Trap Bar has some of the longest sleeves I’ve ever seen on this type of Bar!
They’re 16″ long, and some lifters have even pushed the
So you know for a fact it’s as durable as they say while also allowing for more plates regardless of if they’re thick bumper plates or not.
If you need a trap bar that can hold as many plates as possible, the
Black Powder Coat
While Black powder coats aren’t as long-lasting and maintenance-free as stainless steel, I still prefer the look!
Even the coat on my Ohio Bar I bought 5+ years ago looks amazing.
So while it might not contribute to the functionality of the bar, having equipment that looks cool and fits a color theme for your gym is always a nice plus.
It might seem silly, but lifting with a bar that looks cool to you might be all it takes to keep progressing over the long haul.
Just a theory, though, of course:)
Weight Capacity
Finally, we come to the weight capacity.
A barbell is only as good as how much you can load it with, which goes for specialty bars as well.
The Rogue Trap Bar doesn’t have an official spec for its weight capacity, but I can tell it’s at least 1,500+ lbs!
Here’s why I think that is the case!
This is a pretty famous video of the Forsaken Warrior doing a 1,000+ Trap Bar Deadlift. And if you look, he’s using the
And yes, he blacks out for a bit right after but can you blame the guy? That’s what super heavyweights can do to you!
Also, don’t worry he’s totally fine!
It’s important to me to have a bar that can hold as much weight as possible.
Sure, I’ll probably never deadlift 1,000 lbs, and that’s not one of my goals. It would require a lot of dedication, genetics, and special sports supplements to get to that level of strength.
But still, I want a bar that can hold a ton of weight, so I never have to buy another one or worry about getting stronger than the bar’s weight capacity.
If you get a trap bar that’s only rated for a couple of hundred lbs, eventually, you’re going to have to replace it.
As I always say, but nice, don’t buy twice.
Price
This Trap Bar used to be around $500 but has dropped considerably down to $395.
Considering how versatile the
After all, it can hold over 1,000 lbs with its square steel tubing, and great knurled handles for the best grip possible, and the black coat looks great.
Also, the two sets of handles are better than one set of handles after all!
If you have any lower back issues and need to deadlift with a more vertical torso, the high handles are especially useful!
This is actually a really fairly priced trap bar and is definitely worth it for most home gym owners.
Weight & Overall Dimensions
The
At a whopping 88.5″ with 16″ long sleeves, the
The sleeve length is by far one of my favorite features of the
Let alone bumper plates that a lot of garage gym owners love to use.
It’s super heavy-duty and weighs 60 lbs, which is pretty solid compared to the weight of an Olympic barbell.
All in all, while this might seem overbuilt for a garage gym, I’m happy with it and I know others are as well!
What Others Have To Say
There are a ton of reviews about pretty much every single piece of Rogue Fitness equipment.
They have an incredible track record when it comes to the quality of their products. The
When I really want to get a good idea of what others are saying, I definitely like checking out the company’s website, of course. But to get a better idea, I go to places like Reddit as people are supercritical on there, and bad reviews won’t be removed.
This makes it a good way to actually see if a product is as good as people say or if it’s all hype.
Here’s the main one that I found on Reddit that brings up all of the best points about the
“From my research, 90% of all cheap travel bars have 6” sleeves which doesn’t allow you to add much weight at all (especially bumpers), and they have a low weight capacity between 350-450lbs MAX)
I’ve used $500 trap bars and $80 trap bars, and I prefer the more expensive one because, to me, it’s more versatile (rackable, longer sleeves, better build quality, literally feels better in your hands, more durable, etc.)
But depending on your training style and current abilities, a cheaper alternative may work. Depending on your budget as well.
I had the original rogue TB-1 trap bar with only low handles and hated it, but now with the
Rogue TB-2 and both high and low handles, I’m completely in love.”
And of course, there are over 100 reviews on Rogues site with a rating of 4.8 stars on average. Obviously, there are a ton of people that love this bar and what it can do.
Here’s the most thorough review that I found on there!
“At some point in life, you learn the hard way that it’s worth paying for quality and that if you skimp on it the first time, you eventually end up having to pay for the quality product anyway, when the cheaper one lets you down.
When using this trap bar, you can feel the quality. The frame is constructed from square steel tubing, which keeps the weight down while giving the bar a great deal of rigidity — it literally feels as solid as a rock, no matter how heavy the weight.
The thickness of the handles is just right, as is the knurling. The welds are reassuringly generous, as is the length of the sleeves. The whole thing is covered in thick powder coating. And best of all, it comes in black.
The only thing that bothers me a little is that the sleeves are just a little thinner than standard Olympic sleeves (1.91″ instead of 2″), which means that I can’t use my regular spring collars with this bar. But other than that, it’s pretty much perfect.”
As you can see, most people who bought the
Who Should Buy The Rogue TB-2 Trap Bar
- Anyone who needs a trap bar that is rackable and wants a high and low set of handles.
- Any lifter who needs a high weight capacity and long sleeves to load a ton of weight on the bar.
- Taller lifters that have a hard time performing Conventional Deadlifts will love the
Rogue TB-2 and its high handles. - If you want the perfect amount of knurling for a solid grip the
Rogue TB-2 is a great option.
Who Shouldn’t Buy The Rogue TB-2 Trap Bar
- Smaller lifters might find the distance between the handles to be too far apart.
- The sleeves have a slightly lower diameter than traditional barbells, so if you don’t want to invest in more collars the
Rogue TB-2 might not be a good fit. - Although the
Rogue TB-2 is only around $400, some might not have the budget for it. So instead, I recommend Titans Trap Bar as it’s the best value on the market! - If you want a trap bar with a more durable coat, I recommend getting a trap bar without this type of coat on the sleeves – as it chips pretty easily on the collars especially. The best value that I’ve found is Reps Open Trap Bar as it has hard chrome on the sleeves and a bunch of other premium features for the same price as the
Rogue TB-2 .
Conclusion
What do you think of the
Let me know in the comments section below right now!
You can get your own Rogue TB-2 Trap Bar here, and I have more equipment that I recommend in this guide.
Until next time,
-Dante
I’ll have a video of this up on my YouTube channel within the next week. If you want to subscribe now so you can be notified when it goes live, I’ll put the link below!
https://www.youtube.com/c/dante-redgrave-strength