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York Vintage Shipwheel Collars

York Barbell

York Vintage Shipwheel Collars

The York Vintage Shipwheel Collar is Bob Hoffman’s original York Barbell spinlock collar design, produced from before WWII into the late 1940s and named for its distinctive six-spoke, wheel-like handle. It was standard equipment on York Olympic weight sets of the era: a forged-steel collar with a leather-lined bore that grips the barbell sleeve and a rotating “spin” mechanism that cinches down to lock plates in place.

The design has a well-documented weak point – the narrow wheel-spoke nubs used to turn the collar were prone to snapping off under drops and impacts – which is why York redesigned the collar with sturdier wave-style nubs around 1948. No current version is manufactured; every surviving shipwheel collar today is a decades-old used piece, commonly found rusted, seized, or missing one or more nubs, and sourced through the vintage-equipment collector market rather than a retailer.

Fit Standard 1" barbell sleeve (period York bars)
Design Original York "shipwheel" spinlock -- six-spoke wheel handle, forged steel
Lining Leather insert bore
Availability Discontinued -- collector/secondary market only
Production era Pre-WWII to c. 1948 (superseded by York's wave-nub redesign)
Weight per collar ~5 lb (2.3 kg)

What is a Collar?

What barbell collars are

Collars (clips) lock the plates onto a barbell’s sleeves so they can’t slide or rattle off — a safety essential, especially for pressing and Olympic lifts. The common types: cheap spring clips, quick lock-jaw / quick-release collars (the everyday favorite — fast and secure), and competition collars (precision-weighted, 2.5 kg each, for calibrated meets).

What to look for

A secure clamp that won’t creep under drops or high reps, quick on-and-off operation, and a fit for your bar’s sleeve diameter (standard Olympic is 50 mm). For most home gyms, a pair of lock-jaw-style collars is the right balance of speed, grip, and price.

How it compares

York Vintage Shipwheel Collars MIDAS SPRING CLIPS Power Guidance Slim Barbell Collar Rogue Spring Collars
GymRadar rating 3.11/5 3.0/5 3.0/5 3.28/5
Price $12.99 $12.50
Fit Standard 1" barbell sleeve (period York bars)
Design Original York "shipwheel" spinlock -- six-spoke wheel handle, forged steel
Lining Leather insert bore
Availability Discontinued -- collector/secondary market only
Production era Pre-WWII to c. 1948 (superseded by York's wave-nub redesign)
Weight per collar ~5 lb (2.3 kg)

3.1/5 · 3 GymRadar reviews

Reviews by source

Expert 3.11/5 3 reviews

York’s “shipwheel” spinlock collars are a piece of mid-century weightlifting history rather than a current product – Bob Hoffman’s original York design, made from before WWII into the late 1940s, recognizable by the six-spoke wheel handle and named on that resemblance. Build quality is the standout dimension: forged steel construction with a leather-lined bore that protects the barbell’s knurling, and the spin-lock action still cinches down securely once freed of decades of rust. Durability is the weakest dimension – the narrow wheel-spoke nubs were a known failure point under drops and impacts, which is exactly why York redesigned the collar with sturdier wave-style nubs in 1948, and every surviving set today is a used, often seized or nub-damaged, collector find rather than something available new.

  • +Functionality: genuine spin-lock action still works and cinches down securely on the sleeve once freed of rust, per a hands-on farm-find restoration (YouTube: VintageWeightsPGH)
  • +Build quality: forged steel construction with a leather-lined bore that protects the bar's knurling, standard equipment on York Olympic weight sets for over a decade (USAWA)
  • +Build quality: functionally strong when intact, at roughly 5 lb per collar -- the same weight as later York redesigns (Instagram comparison)
  • −Durability: the narrow wheel-spoke nubs are a documented weak point -- 'too weak for drops and hits' -- which is exactly why York's own wave-style redesign replaced them (Instagram comparison)
  • −Durability: decades of storage leave most surviving sets seized with rust and missing nubs; one as-found pair had 1 of 12 nubs already broken (YouTube: VintageWeightsPGH)
  • −Versatility: single-purpose spin-lock collar sized for period 1" York bars -- no adjustability or modern cross-brand fit (USAWA)
  • −Value: no longer manufactured -- sourcing a working set means the used/collector market, where condition and completeness vary wildly (USAWA, YouTube: VintageWeightsPGH)

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