Review

REP Fitness Stainless Steel Black Diamond Power Bar vs Cerakote Double Black Diamond Power Bar

I’ve been using the REP Fitness Stainless Steel Black Diamond Power Bar for a few months, and this has become my favorite bar to use among the ones that I own, and that purely comes down to the knurling. It’s provided me with just the right amount of bite when doing pushing exercises like the bench press, and it grips very well when it’s sitting on me, like during a barbell squat. However, there are times that I feel like I want more, and that’s during pulling exercises like barbell rows and deadlifts. That’s where the REP Fitness Double Black Diamond Power Bar comes into play.

In terms of specs, these two bars are identical. The only difference is the knurling. Whereas the Black Diamond has what REP calls “Deep Volcano / Aggressive,” the Double Black Diamond has “Deep Mountain / Very Aggressive.” When I made my original purchase, I went with the Black Diamond because I was worried that the Double Black Diamond would be too much. That’s because of the Giant Fitness Northland Open Trap Bar that I own. That thing has the most aggressive knurling I’ve ever felt, and every couple of workouts with it, it’ll rip a chunk of callus off, which just slows my entire workout split down because I can barely grip after that. I didn’t want to deal with that here and went with the Black Diamond.

But after owning this, I do find myself thinking that maybe I want a little bit more. This particular Black Diamond is the stainless steel option, which is going to give us the most tactile response in terms of feeling the knurling. It is just bare metal with nothing on it, so we really get to understand the knurling. And because of that, I almost exclusively only buy stainless steel bars. I only own one barbell that’s not stainless steel, and that is the bar that I bought for visitors to use when they come to my gym so they don’t mess up the good stuff.

But for my purchase of the Double Black Diamond, again I was worried that it may be too aggressive, and that could potentially be the case if I bought the stainless steel version. So I made the decision to go with the Cerakote option because Cerakote is an additive process. This is a coating that’s applied to the metal and physically adds a layer of thickness to it. In terms of the knurling, Cerakote can fill in the knurling a bit, making it less aggressive than it would be without it. So if we were to look at the knurling in terms of a scale of aggressiveness between the Black Diamond and Double Black Diamond bars, you’d have Cerakote Black Diamond as the least aggressive, then Stainless Steel Black Diamond, then Cerakote Double Black Diamond, and finally Stainless Steel Double Black Diamond as the most aggressive.

In person, I would say that’s accurate, at least with my two samples. The Cerakote Double Black Diamond is a bump up from the Stainless Steel Black Diamond in terms of knurling aggressiveness. It’s nothing crazy, and upon first impressions, I would say that I wouldn’t mind switching to it for everyday use. I actually think that I like it more than the stainless steel Black Diamond. I can already tell that it’s not crazy over-the-top aggressive and doesn’t just rip your skin off all the time. But again, that’s just first impressions. I’ll have to report back in the future.

That being said, I do want to share that my Double Black Diamond is the worst condition bar that I’ve ever received. There’s a list of things wrong with it. First, during shipping, for some reason the person packaging this bar didn’t feel the need to reinforce one of the ends of the shipping tube and just taped it up. This, of course, allowed the bar to move, and one of the ends ended up slightly damaged. From there, we move on to the black Duracoat sleeves, which have the most terrible, inconsistent coating I’ve ever seen, possibly on any product. It’s super spotty and looks awful. The red Cerakote is better, but not that great. In person, I can see that certain areas of the Cerakote are glossier than others. So again, it’s inconsistent. This bar looks so bad, and I’m sure this isn’t representative of all of them, but it has certainly deterred me from buying another Cerakote or Duracoat bar from REP. From now on, I’ll probably just stick to their stainless steel bars.

So to sum things up, if you want an opinion on the Black Diamond line of bars from REP, the single Black Diamond in stainless steel is a good all-around bar, no doubt about it. But for my personal taste, even as someone who doesn’t like super aggressive knurling that tears your hands up, I think the Double Black Diamond in Cerakote is better. In my short time with it, I already like it more for everyday use, and again, I don’t think it’s overly aggressive. So the logical next question would be, how aggressive is the Stainless Steel Double Black Diamond bar? Is it really that bad? Personally, just from my experience with my two bars, I’m willing to bet it’s not, but unfortunately, I don’t think I’m willing to fund another $400 bar when I already have some good options here.


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VEVOR Sliding Truck Bed Organizer

As I travel more for work, I’m getting more and more annoyed at having to pull stuff from the inside of my truck bed. After some research, I came across a category of products that is essentially a slide platform, which you can load up and pull everything out when needed. There are quite a few options out there, but the one that I landed on is the VEVOR Sliding Truck Bed Organizer. This organizer comes in various sizes, and to figure out which you should buy, you just measure the space between your wheel wells. I own a 2024 Nissan Frontier with a 5’ bed and purchased the 58”x41” option. If you’re in the same boat in terms of fitment, front to back it’s almost exact with only millimeters to spare. Side to side, you’ll have a few inches, but nothing too crazy.

In terms of installation, I have to be honest and say that on paper and looking at the directions, it’s a very straightforward install, and it really is. It’s just tedious. The first step is to install the side rails. This is very straightforward. Just tighten a few bolts. But this is where I ran into my first problem. One of the side brackets was completely bent, so that side rail doesn’t sit properly. I’ve contacted VEVOR and hopefully I can get a new one.

Next, we bring the entire organizer into the bed for a dry fitting. Again, if you have a 2024 Nissan Frontier with a 5’ bed, you should be good to go. Now, because this is a universal product and not made for any particular vehicle, you might run into some issues installing it. There are pre-drilled slots in the mounting bracket for you to use as a template for drilling locations, but that might not work for your truck. You might have to drill some new holes, and that might be a pain because this is some decently thick steel. Again, if you have a similar truck as me, you’ll have no problems with drilling location, but the Frontier’s bed has high and low ridges. Unfortunately, all the pre-drilled slots fall in the low spots. So this part of the install could be better, but it’ll work just fine.

Once you get all your holes drilled, this is where you get to the fun part, as in the most annoying part of the install for me, and that’s installing the riv nuts. Because I don’t have a riv nut gun, I had to do it the manual way that the instructions show you, and it’s just tedious and takes a long time. No doubt, the riv nut installation in the truck bed took the longest amount of time for me. But once you get those in, the install is basically done. You just have to put everything back.

On a side note, you may have noticed that I have a bed mat and decided to install the organizer on top of it. I did this because the mat is easier to clean than the sprayed-on bedliner. It’s also grippier for when I put things on the empty space along the sides of the organizer.

Okay, so with all of that out of the way, how do I feel about this product? Let’s consider that I didn’t get a bent bracket and everything is functionally perfect. I would say that this product is pretty awesome. Obviously, I haven’t used any of the other options on the market, so I don’t have a good frame of reference, but I would say that this product completely changes my use of the truck bed in such a good way. Accessing things that are stored at the back of the bed is so much easier. It really takes close to no effort at all. I just have to strategically place what I need along the edges of the organizer so that I can easily access it.

After using this for a bit, I can only think of a few minor complaints. First is with the sliding mechanism, as it does require some force to move it. I don’t want to say that it’s heavy, because it’s not like I’m struggling at all to move it. It’s more so that pulling the organizer out is an active thing. It’s not going to just easily slide out for you with no force. But again, I’ve never tried any others, so maybe they’re all like that.

The second complaint would be with the surface of the top deck. It’s slightly textured, but that really doesn’t do anything for grip. I can definitely see stuff sliding around on this surface, so I’ll have to look for some sort of rubber mat to put on top of it to prevent that.

Lastly, I personally feel that the side rails and general tie-down system are not all that strong. Clearly, the brackets can bend, but beyond that, it all flexes and moves a bit. The tie-down rings are plastic that fasten to plastic blocks. I’m pretty sure that if you try to use ratchet straps on them and crank down, the plastic threads would just rip apart. This is definitely something that you want to use bungee straps with, just to prevent putting too much force on the tie-downs and to stop lighter-weight items from sliding back and forth. For more secure tying down, I would use the truck’s OEM locations.

Again, those are minor complaints that would not deter me from purchasing this product again. It works great and will make my use of the bed much easier.


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HVO Leg Curl / Extension Machine

I was recently contacted by the company HVO, which makes various fitness equipment, with the hopes of me possibly reviewing their products. After some discussion, we settled on the leg curl/extension machine because it is something that I would actually use as someone who enjoys leg day.

Again, this product was sent to me by HVO for free. But I explained to them that this is going to be an unbiased review with me expressing my own personal opinions.

First, in terms of packaging, everything arrived in one cardboard box. All the parts are bubble wrapped, and mine was largely unscathed, with only one part that had some noticeable scratches.

Installation of this machine is relatively straightforward, as most of it is already pre-assembled, and everything is put together with only a few bolts. The bolts are also well labeled, so you can get the entire thing put together relatively quickly.

As far as the machine itself, it’s relatively compact and is a good bit smaller than a single horse stall mat. This is partly why I wanted this machine. It doesn’t take up too much space, and I felt that it was worth giving up that space in my single-car garage gym.

In terms of use, I’ve only put a few workouts in on this machine, but I would say that overall my experience has been good. I do want to point out that you can use this machine sitting up or lying down, depending on how you set up the pads. I personally only use this machine sitting up to save some extra space. The only reason to make the pads lie down is to do lying leg curls, but with the 24-position sundial, you can basically achieve the same thing sitting up. Lying vs sitting will hit slightly different muscle groups, and you can look that up for yourself, but for my uses, it’s close enough, and I’d rather save the floor space.

Speaking of adjustments, this machine does offer a few different options. The back pad goes back and forth, up and down. The Seat pad’s angle can be adjusted. The thigh roller goes up and down. And you have two sundials to adjust your leg positions. With the larger sundial, I really appreciate that they added position numbers because I do adjust this multiple times a workout to change between leg curls and extensions. There are no position numbers on the smaller sundial, but this isn’t a problem for me because I keep it in the same spot for everything, so it never gets adjusted. I can see this as being annoying if you constantly have to adjust it. Overall, there’s a lot of adjustability with this machine that I think most people are going to be able to make it work for them.

As far as the pads, I really have no complaints here. They are both 2 inches thick and offer adequate stiffness, but are not uncomfortable.

Now, let’s talk about actually using this machine. Personally, I only wanted this machine for doing seated leg curls and extensions, so I have the most experience with that. For these exercises, I think this machine does a great job once you get your proper positions dialed in. I haven’t used a similar machine since I worked out at a commercial gym years ago, so I don’t have a good frame of reference, but I’m so surprised that I can get such a pump and burn from just one 45lbs plate. It can get pretty difficult when doing a lot of reps. That being said, I think this machine would be beneficial for those who don’t own a lot of plates because most people would not need it with these exercises.

In terms of versatility, you technically can do quite a few different exercises with this machine. But some of the more practical options are highlighted by HVO, and I think that this machine is viable for those exercises. For example, you can position the leg roller to sit above your thighs and do calf raises. The machine is actually really functional for this. Then for those who like split squats, again, the leg roller can easily be positioned to give you a place to rest your foot. I really wish that I got this machine sooner because I spent hundreds of dollars on a pair of Rouge leg rollers that attach to a rack. I much prefer to use this HVO leg roller because it’s already there, and there’s really no setup time.

Again, overall I would say that this is a good machine, but not all is perfect. There are a few minor things that I think can be updated. First, there are two little square tubes that are used as storage locations for the thigh rollers and back pad. What I don’t like is that it’s just metal-on-metal contact. Over time, this black paint is going to get destroyed and I think these areas are going to be prone to rusting. I say this because my machine already shows signs of rust internally. This is something exclusive to this particular product, but really any gym equipment that’s imported can show signs of rust because it’s sitting in a container for potentially months, going over the ocean, then sit some more in a warehouse for who knows how long when it hits the US. So I’m not necessarily knocking HVO for this, I’m just saying that if this area gets scratched up, it too may start to develop some rust. My next complaint is with the selector pin for the smaller sundial. For some reason, when some weight is added and the machine is in use, this pin constantly makes a popping noise. It’s something that I’ve personally gotten used to, but is an annoyance nevertheless. Lastly, the handles that are attached to the back pad of my machine are angled weirdly. This is because the circular couplings that they attach to are welded unevenly. This is one of those fit and finish things that separates products. Aside from looking weird, I also don’t like how these handles are just held in place by a small bolt that loosens very easily under use. From my experience, it’s basically impossible to tighten these handles down and not have them wiggle out of place over time. This should definitely be addressed. But luckily for me, I never use this machine lying down, so I never have to worry about this.

And that’s the HVO leg curl/extension in a nutshell. For under $400, I think that this is a good buy. It offers a good amount of versatility for those who want a multipurpose machine and but is also very good at what it’s primarily designed to do, and that’s leg curl and extensions.



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Spud Inc Pillow Belt Squat Belt vs Titan Fitness Multi-Use Hip Belt

If you’ve been keeping up with my channel, you’d know that I recently added the Titan Fitness Squat Max MD belt squat machine to my home gym. If you’d like to learn more about this machine, I’ve made a dedicated blog for it HERE. However, in that blog, I mentioned how I didn’t like the belt that the Squat Max came with.

First of all, it’s not all that comfortable. Even though it’s made from a relatively soft textile (when considering other belt squat belts) and there seems to be a decent amount of foam in it, when put under loads of over 200 lbs, you can start to feel it dig in around the back and hips.

Second, I don’t like the multiloop adjustment system that this belt utilizes. I personally use the loops that are closest in so that I can get as deep of a squat as possible, so the rest just dangle and get in the way. This wouldn’t be as big of a problem for someone taller who needs to use the other loops, but most people are going to have to deal with some excess. I also don’t like that these loops are textile. I much prefer metal attachment rings because they don’t get damaged as easily. My Titan belt started to fray after the very first use and this is partly because of the carabiner that Titan sends for use with this belt. It’s not the best and a little sharp so it can actually damage the belt. Brian Hennessy, the inventor of the Squat Max saw my original video and actually sent a replacement carabiner that he sells on his website, and for sure, it’s of much higher quality and the fit and finish are much better. There are no sharp edges, so hopefully this will prevent any more damage.

However, my biggest problem with the loops is that they flex and sag a bit under heavy loads. Of course, the entire belt does because it’s all textile, but the loops just add to the problem. When I mess around on the Squat Max with no weights loaded, I can hit way below parallel without bottoming out and hitting the stopper. But anytime that I have more than four 45lbs plates loaded, I have to really watch my form and hike the belt up a bit to actively try and not bottom out. This is annoying because I’m not able to get the full range of motion, and it’s just a minor distraction every time I hit the stopper and feel a little bump.

All of this has led me to search for a different belt squat belt, and if you’ve done the same, I’m sure that you’ve seen the same repetitive recommendation for the Spud Inc Pillow Belt Squat Belt, which is kind of universally touted as the most comfortable belt squat belt. Because of all of these recommendations, I really wanted to pick the Pillow belt up but was hesitant because if you didn’t know, this belt is essentially designed after the original belt that Brian Hennessy developed for the original Squat Max before Titan started producing it. And that’s the same case for the Titan belt that I already owned and hated. So in my mind, I was thinking that both the Titan belt and the Pillow belt would have the same problems. So let’s consider the complaints that I previously stated.

In terms of comfort, the Pillow belt is light years more comfortable than the Titan belt. The material itself is softer, plusher, and more flexible. The design of this belt’s padding is very effective in keeping the exercise comfortable for as long as possible and much more manageable than Titan’s belt. I don’t think we’ll ever really get a belt that will provide 100% comfort when belt squatting hundreds of pounds, but for right now, this is the closest that we probably have.

In terms of the loop adjustment system. It is what it is. If you want the Pillow belt, this is what you have to deal with. Personally, I’m probably going to cut off all the excess loops because I’m likely the only one who’s going to be using this belt. I do want to mention that Spud Inc also makes a belt that not only has an adjustable belt system, but that belt also has metal attachment rings. This would essentially resolve all the complaints that I have with the multiloop system. I actually ordered the Kaiju Adjustable Belt from Spud Inc at the same time as the Pillow belt, but ultimately am deciding to return it because, without even opening the adjustable belt, I can already tell that it’s much stiffer than the Pillow belt. I guess at this point in life, I’d rather choose comfort over ultimate adjustability.

Again, I want to remind you that my biggest complaint with the Titan belt is that it doesn’t allow me to hit parallel. The Pillow belt is actually about 2 inches shorter than the Titan belt and this means that the loops are 2 inches closer to the body. I was barely bottoming out when using the Titan belt, so I just happened to be tall enough to use the Pillow belt and not bottom out. This, of course, will not be the case for everyone. It just depends on your weight, what size belt you buy, and probably most importantly, how long your inseam is. Unfortunately, the size of the Pillow belt that you buy is largely dependent on your weight. So if you’re heavy and short, you’re going to have to buy a larger belt, and in that case, you’re most likely going to bottom out no matter what. At that point, you’d either have to deal with it or build a platform to get some extra clearance.

And that’s going to be it. I think for now, the Pillow belt may not be perfect and check all the boxes off my list, but it’s as good as I’m going to find. I think if Spud Inc ever puts the adjustable belt adjustment system on the Pillow belt, then we might really have perfection, so I really hope that that’s something that they’d consider.


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Xero Shoes Forza Trainer

At this point, I’ve tried about 4 different pairs of shoes from Xero Shoes and the Forza Trainers might be the best weightlifting shoes that I own.

Full disclaimer, I’ve only owned these shoes for about 2 months, so I can’t necessarily speak on the long-term durability of the shoes. But I have used them for a decent number of workouts and can give you a pretty thorough opinion. I do want to preface that I mainly lift weights and focus on powerlifting movements like the squat, bench press, deadlift, and some accessory lifts. So, you’ll be getting an opinion from the perspective of the average gym-goer, not a crossfitter or someone who does Olympic lifting.

Let’s start with the design of the Forza Trainer. This particular colorway is with the morel upper with gum soles. It’s an interesting color that looks kind of like a mixture of brown and grey. Very unique and definitely looks like the color of the mushrooms that it’s named after.

The entire Forza Trainer’s upper is comprised of a few different mesh materials that offer different degrees of ventilation. This means that this is going to be an extremely breathable shoe, so I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it for cold or wet weather. The upper also features some reinforcement around the toe box, but I think the biggest appeal of this silhouette is the strap system that it offers. At the forefoot is a strap that cinches down as you tighten the shoe laces. There is also a larger strap that tightens the top of the foot and heel together. These two straps really help to lock your feet into the shoes and there’s realistically no escaping from it under normal use.

Moving down, we get a zero-drop sole that’s very minimal in both material and design. Xero markets their shoes as offering a barefoot experience and this is very much so with the Forza Trainier. The very thin sole lets you stand barely above the ground and allows you to feel the surfaces that you’re on in a sense. The general design of the sole itself is also very minimal. It’s basically just a strip of rubber with some small lines cut into it. There’s no real missing chunks or pronounced lugs. When standing on this sole, it feels very uniform and this is good for weightlifting because it means that the user maximizes the forces that they are exerting while pushing and directly transfers it into the ground. There’s also no excess cushioning that can mess with balance or contribute to an unstable lifting surface. This sole is what makes it the perfect all-around trainer for me. I own dedicated lifting shoes that have rock-hard soles that may technically be better for lifting, but I save those for maximum effort days because they just aren’t as comfortable to wear all the time. The Forza Trainer gives me a good balance between comfort and performance, and it’s exactly what I want in an everyday training shoe.


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