Ok so I have a torn labrum in my left shoulder. I tore it 3 years ago ( confirmed by a recent MRI when I re injured myself) and I rehabed it myself as best I could back in the day just thinking I sprained something. Unitl a month ago I didn’t really have any issues other than an occasional pain here or there. I did some dips and it popped back open or tore worse. Now my shoulder is a wreck but is getting better pain wise but still bugs me. I plan to have surgury at some point in the near future.
Squatting with a Texas Power bar all the time really jacks up my left shoulder. Aside from the labrum pain I get wicked Biceps tendonitus. It doesn’t really matter how wide or narrow I hold the bar. Afterwards it feels like totall A$$ - only on the left side. I have tried front squats but anything over about 205 feels like a steak knife twisting in my front delt area.
I own an EFS YOKE bar already. I have been wanting to add a new bar in anyways but the shoulder is expediting the decision.
What I’m wondering is if anyone had any experience with the bars I mentioned in the title? I have used a Giant cambered bar a time or two so I get how the bar puts emphasis on the hips and lower back and legs. The Rackable bar is $300, the Spider bar is $469. I’m wondering if the handles are worth the extra $169. Do they simply just allows for an easier grip and or allowing one to not even hold the bar like the Yoke bar? Unlike some of y’all I’m not a broke college kid lol so money is not a problem. Is there another option that I’m not thinking of?
Haven’t used the spider bar but love my yoke bar and my cambered bar. I’d say with the spider bar it’ll probably take a bit of stress off your shoulders similar to the yoke bar. I’ve noticed that my cambered bar doesn’t beat me up but can be awkward to hold especially if I’m tight in my shoulders. I will say that a buffalo bar beats me up much much less than our texas power bar so that’s some food for thought as well.
[quote]LiquidMercury wrote:
Haven’t used the spider bar but love my yoke bar and my cambered bar. I’d say with the spider bar it’ll probably take a bit of stress off your shoulders similar to the yoke bar. I’ve noticed that my cambered bar doesn’t beat me up but can be awkward to hold especially if I’m tight in my shoulders. I will say that a buffalo bar beats me up much much less than our texas power bar so that’s some food for thought as well.[/quote]
I’d probably buy the spider bar over the cambered bar for the fact that it seems like the ultimate rehab bar that allows one to work around multiple injuries.
OK so no one has any experience with the cambered squat bar or the spider bar?
Let me ask this since opinions come easy… If you were going to buy one of those two bars which one would you get?[/quote]
well , I see the purchase of a SS bar in my future due to a similar issue with my elbows . not sure if thats what a spider bar is though . Im pretty sure it’s squatting that jacks my elbows .
OK so no one has any experience with the cambered squat bar or the spider bar?
Let me ask this since opinions come easy… If you were going to buy one of those two bars which one would you get?[/quote]
well , I see the purchase of a SS bar in my future due to a similar issue with my elbows . not sure if thats what a spider bar is though . Im pretty sure it’s squatting that jacks my elbows .[/quote]
Spider bar is a SS bar combined into the rackable cambered bar.
OK so no one has any experience with the cambered squat bar or the spider bar?
Let me ask this since opinions come easy… If you were going to buy one of those two bars which one would you get?[/quote]
well , I see the purchase of a SS bar in my future due to a similar issue with my elbows . not sure if thats what a spider bar is though . Im pretty sure it’s squatting that jacks my elbows .[/quote]
Spider bar is a SS bar combined into the rackable cambered bar.[/quote]
thanks .
I checked out the EFS bars , and a couple on other sites , and theres something I dont understand …what is meant by “rackable” ?..and are all SS bars meant for use in a traditional power rack ?..or is monolift required ?
Not all cambered bars are rackable in a normal squat rack, some only work well in a monolift. All SS bars are rackable, at least the ones that EFS has.
[quote]tom63 wrote:
I have an SSB, cambered bar, and yoke bar. I use them for the same reason that the OP is asking baout.[/quote]
Cool, ok so Tom and anyone else who has one or used one… Does the EFS Cambered squat bar have knurling in the middle like a squat bar or is the whole thing powder coated in that black stuff that the Yoke bar is coated in?
Reason I ask is some pics seem to show some sort of knurling while others just look smooth.
Think I may just go with the cambered bar so I can do dumb shit like JM presses & skull crushers with it. lol
[quote]tom63 wrote:
I have an SSB, cambered bar, and yoke bar. I use them for the same reason that the OP is asking baout.[/quote]
Cool, ok so Tom and anyone else who has one or used one… Does the EFS Cambered squat bar have knurling in the middle like a squat bar or is the whole thing powder coated in that black stuff that the Yoke bar is coated in?
Reason I ask is some pics seem to show some sort of knurling while others just look smooth.
Think I may just go with the cambered bar so I can do dumb shit like JM presses & skull crushers with it. lol [/quote]
Mine wasn’t knurled. I put some tape on it and that worked well .
cambered bar never gave me much relief on my shoulders, you could look into the front squat harness for hands off front squats, and i love SSB and assuming spider is just as useful
Thanks for the replies fellas… I chatted with Matt at EFS about both of these bars. I had some concerns about the cambered bar not having knurling on it so I wasn’t sure that I’d spend a lot of time fighting to keep it from sliding off my back. Sure I could use shit tons of chalk and if I didn’t have a torn Labrum it probably wouldn’t be an issue. Matt also mentioned that the spider bar does NOT push you forward like the Yoke bar does so this is perfect.
I ordered the Spider bar. I figured that the handles would be a great addition in that the bar will more or less stay on by itself like the yoke bar and I can hold the bar like a regular one if I want to also. It seems to be a win / win. Not sure the bar is worth and extra $129 over a regular one but that’s the price for a unique item I guess.
[quote]StrengthDawg wrote:
I ordered the Spider bar. I figured that the handles would be a great addition in that the bar will more or less stay on by itself like the yoke bar and I can hold the bar like a regular one if I want to also. It seems to be a win / win. Not sure the bar is worth and extra $129 over a regular one but that’s the price for a unique item I guess.
Reviews will be forthcoming…[/quote]
Ok So I got my Spider Bar in the other day and on Friday I did Squats with it. Like everything I have bought from EFS it’s built SOLID. I think the bar weighs in at 65# or so. Also like everything I buy from EFS it makes me feel like a weak lil bitch when using this stuff… bar feels great on the shoulders. The bar does not pitch you forward like my Yoke bar does. It just sits on the shoulders maybe a tad bit higher than I would have had it if it did not have the handles. Speaking of handles. They are the same handles that are on the yoke bar. I found mine to be a bit long for the Yoke bar so I cut them to make shorter ones. Since they interchange I now have a short set and long. Kinda cool.
I have to say that I am VERY please with the Spider bar. The feel is great and The weight is put directly into the hips and legs. There is very little upper back stress BUT if you get loose the bar will sway back and forth. Keeping the back tight kind of eliminated this for me but I can already tell a definate back weakness that I haven’t felt with a straight bar NOR the Yoke bar. I can also tell that I have a quad weakness too. This bar fucking Owned my candy ass… Not that I’m bragging but here’s some of my recent numbers to give you an idea of how much this bar kicked my ass.
Straight bar to a parallel box - 505 x 3
Yoke bar to same box - 490 x 1, bomber on rep 2
SPIDER BAR - Worked up to 335 x 5… 5th rep was a Grinder!
Yeah, got fucking owned by 3 plates…this was on Friday. I’m limping around sore as hell still. LOVE this bar so far.
I would say that if you have jacked up shoulders this bar should be on your “GET” list. The Yoke bar is great but the limiting factor is your back strength. I remember Louis once wrote that the Yoke bar should be called the deadlift bar as it really helps your pull. The Spider bar keeps the weight in the legs and hips. I have no doubt that by adding these two bars into the mix will definately help bring my straight bar squat up.
Glad to get a review on this. If you get a chance to try out a cambered bar I’d be interested to see how you feel it differs from the spider bar because how you described the spider bar working is pretty much how cambered bars feel so that’s really the big thing I want to know. Interesting to hear that it doesn’t pitch you forward like the yoke even though I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised since it doesn’t seem as though there is a camber down low on the actual bar like there is on the yoke (2" camber forward on yoke).
