Rackable Skull Crusher Curl Bar

Name: Rackable Skull Crusher Curl Bar
Brand: Bare Steel Equipment
Rating: 4.89 (3 reviews)

Bare Steel Equipment’s Rackable Skull Crusher Curl Bar is a 35 lb specialty EZ bar built to fit inside a standard power rack rather than sit on the floor like most curl bars. Its 51” shaft and 10” loadable sleeves let it be racked and loaded like an Olympic bar, while the medium/grippy knurling and 30mm shaft – thicker than the ~28.5mm typical on rival curl bars – support curls, skull crushers, and close-grip triceps presses. It’s finished in black phosphate with chrome sleeves and a distinctive skull-and-crossbones end cap, and rated for 500 lbs of load.

Buying guide

Best Barbell for Your Home Gym — July 2026

Finish	Black phosphate shaft, chrome sleeves
Weight	35 lb
Diameter	30mm
Knurling	Medium/grippy
Rackable	Yes, fits standard power rack
Manufacturer	Bare Steel Equipment
Shaft length	51"
Sleeve length	10"
Overall length	74"
Bearing bushing	Yes
Weight capacity	500 lb

What is a Barbell?

What a barbell is

The barbell is the center of a strength gym — the bar you squat, press, deadlift, and clean with. A men’s Olympic bar is 20 kg (44 lb) and 7.2 ft long (15 kg / 6.5 ft for women). The specs that matter: knurl (the grip texture — aggressive for pulls, milder for high-rep work), shaft diameter (28–29 mm for barbell lifts), sleeve rotation (bushings are fine for slow lifts; bearings spin fast for the Olympic lifts), tensile strength (~190k+ PSI resists bending), and coating (bare steel grips best but rusts; stainless and Cerakote trade grip for corrosion resistance).

Which one to buy

For general lifting, a multipurpose bar (28–28.5mm shaft, dual knurl marks, no center knurl) does squats, bench, deadlifts, and the occasional clean off one bar — this is the right first barbell for most home gyms. Choose a dedicated power bar (29mm, stiffer, aggressive center-knurl grip) only once you know you’re training squat/bench/deadlift specifically and want the stiffest, grippiest tool for that job. A dedicated Olympic weightlifting bar (needle bearings, more whip) is worth it only if you clean, snatch, or jerk regularly.

Beyond your main bar, specialty bars solve specific problems rather than replacing it: a safety squat bar shifts load off sore shoulders, a trap/hex bar takes stress off a cranky lower back on pulls, and a curl bar’s camber reduces wrist strain on isolation work. Add them once you know which problem you actually have.

How it compares

	Rackable Skull Crusher Curl Bar	Texas Power Bar Original	E-Maxx Bar	Rubber Fixed Pro Curl Barbell Set
GymRadar rating	4.89/5	4.89/5	4.89/5	4.89/5
Price	$189.95	$299.99	$329.00	$1,605.50
Finish	Black phosphate shaft, chrome sleeves
Weight	35 lb	45 lbs (20kg)	8.75-10 lbs (varies slightly by BandBell reseller listing)
Diameter	30mm
Knurling	Medium/grippy
Rackable	Yes, fits standard power rack
Manufacturer	Bare Steel Equipment	Texas Power Bars (Buddy Capps)
Shaft length	51"
Sleeve length	10"
Overall length	74"	86"
Bearing bushing	Yes
Weight capacity	500 lb

4.9/5 · 3 GymRadar reviews

Reviews by source

Expert

4.89/5

3 reviews

Bare Steel Equipment’s Rackable Skull Crusher Curl Bar is a specialty EZ-curl bar built to double as a rack accessory rather than a floor-stored oddity. Functionality is the standout dimension: a 51” shaft with 10” loadable sleeves lets it sit in a standard power rack for curls, skull crushers, and close-grip presses, and its 30mm shaft is noticeably thicker than the ~28.5mm diameter typical of rival curl bars, which reviewers on the retailer’s own site say gives a sturdier grip. GymRadar’s three independent owner reviews back the concept at 4.89/5. Value and independent verification are the weakest dimensions – pricing runs $189.95-$214.95 depending on retailer, and beyond the manufacturer and one retailer’s customer-review widget there is no third-party editorial, video, or community coverage of this specific bar to corroborate durability over time.

+Functionality: 51" shaft with 10" loadable sleeves fits inside a standard power rack, unlike floor-only curl bars (manufacturer)
+Build quality: 30mm shaft diameter is thicker than the ~28.5mm typical of rival curl bars, giving a sturdier grip per a retailer customer review (Strength Warehouse USA customer reviews)
+Versatility: medium/grippy knurling supports curls, skull crushers, and close-grip triceps presses on one bar (manufacturer)
+Value: at $189.95-$214.95 it undercuts some name-brand rackable curl bars per a customer comparing it favorably against "the REP version" (Strength Warehouse USA customer reviews)

−Value: no independent editorial or video review exists to verify the $190-$215 price against comparable rackable curl bars (KB coverage)
−Build quality: one customer reported the black phosphate coating gets slick with sweaty hands and wished for a bare-steel option (Strength Warehouse USA customer reviews)
−Durability: no long-term or stress-test data available -- the only signal is a handful of retailer customer reviews plus GymRadar's 3-review sample (KB coverage; GymRadar)
−Functionality: manufacturer page does not publish tensile strength or knurling PSI, leaving buyers to infer build specifics (manufacturer product page)

$189.95

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