IvankoLight Commercial-Duty Olympic EZ-Curl Bar (OBZ-30B)

The packaging was just bad, the cardboard is stiff but not very durable and the ends of the package were wrapped endlessly with tape. IVANKO listen copy Rogue and Eleiko and use screws to keep the plastic caps at the end, and use a better quality of cardboard that wont break down. Anyhow, to remove the barbell I had to run the cardboard under hot water to finally remove it because the plastic holding pieces were bent in place and the collars were constricted by the cardboard. Regardless, the barbell was unscathed in the shipping process and I doubt it would be damaged unless someone was extremely careless with it.On to the barbell. It is great for the price of $130-$150, personally I think this is probably $20 overpriced for what it should be being a Chinese made barbell and all. The barbell is well made and the collars have adequate spin. The finish is well made and the knurling is perfectly aggressive. My only disappointment is the logo in the collars is somewhat bent outward and not flat like Eleiko or Rogue barbells. I assume this was an issue in production and not shipping but who knows it is such a minor cosmetic gripe. Overall, if your into strict curling or curls in general it is a great bar and feels great. If you are super serious into strict curling I may recommend going on to a higher quality IVANKO bar or Eleiko barbell as it will most likely last many years longer, but you can't go wrong with this barbell if you are just looking for a general curl bar.Pictures will be added later.

I was wary of buying a curl bar online without trying it out first. Some curl bars are angled wrong and hurt your wrists, this one is angled perfectly. The knurling is aggressive. I don't have soft hands, and this thing hurts my hands. Not bad enough to stop using it, just bad enough to be really annoying. The E-coat is not my favorite, I just started using it today and I've already scratched through the coating. BUT, it is a good cheap bar for a home gym. Bearings are good. One last thing, the bar ends are not true. If you set the bar ends on the rack and rotate the middle of the bar, the bar ends twist. This shouldn't happen with any bar. But, because it has good bearings, I can't tell, while I'm using it. If it didn't have good bearings this would be a major problem.If you need a good, cheap bar, I would recommend it. I will likely upgrade in the future but this should last me a good couple years.

So, I did my research before buying this bar. Just under $150 shipped to me. Yes, made in China but stated by Ivanko as made to their specifications. They say it's a slightly stripped down version of their better bars??? Their stainless curl bar sells for about $650. I'm guessing they sell many of these bars (OBZ-30B) at $150 and it's probably because of what it costs to produce in China, labor costs, etc..... I'm thinking the average guy like me doesn't want to spend $650 on a quality bar where there are plenty of them out there for under $100. Can't find a PSI tensile strength rating for it but I'll assume it's comparable to their US made bars. Weighs in at exactly 30lbs on my scale. Beautiful workmanship. Nice knurling. Thick 30mm bar. Brass bushings that let the spindles free spin (I was impressed). I'm 6' 2" 240lbs and that's exactly why I bought this bar over a standard 48" length one. This bar is 60" and it lets me not only do curls comfortably but shoulder raises too. Plenty of real estate on the bar to spread your arms and grip for whatever you want to do. Packaging was nice. It came in a thick cardboard tube with the Ivanko name stenciled all over it. (it shipped from Ivanko). It arrived in perfect condition. Working out with a nice piece of equipment makes me feel good inside and that translates to a better workout in my humble opinion. Yes, it's a very nice bar and worth every cent I paid for it and it rates excellent on every review I've seen. I concur.Phil

This bar is so sweet that I can't even find the words to explain it. Imagine being a Greek God on Mt. Oympus banging out some serious iron.. this is what you would be using. Image it, sweet @$$ Greek Goddesses all around you watching as you lift the weight of the world, and all that weight hanging off the worlds most amazing bar.. again, thats this bar. If you buy any other bar, your either crazy or plain tasteless. Like cool dude you got yourself a Leiko, cool story... just not nearly as cool as repping out endless sets with this Ivanko. Oh you think youre cool with your Rogue curl bar?! Keep dreaming. Only real heavyweights use Ivanko.But no for real, all joking aside, its a pretty decent bar for the price. If youre like me and starting your basement or garage gym and youre looking for an all around decent bar that wont break bank like the top of the lines I mentioned above, this one is a steal. Hope you got a laugh and a little bit of honest insight with this comment.

As expected the Ivanko competition curl bar lived up to my expectations. The knurling is just right, not to smooth, not too sharp. The sleeves rotate nicely giving a smooth experience when doing multiple repetitions. The only complaint is about the packaging the bar was delivered in. The tube was not designed for a curl bar but rather a straight bar. I had to dismantle the tube literally inch by inch to get the bar free. Had I wanted to return the bar there was no option of reusing the original packaging material.

Great value!! Arrived before estimated delivery date; packaging was super sturdy; bar is very comfortable; good knurling, nice spin on sleeves; heavy duty. This is a great piece of equipment for any home gym.

GOOD CHINESE QUALTY AT A CHEAP PRICE. PACKAGING REMOVAL WAS AN ORDEAL, THE THICK CARDBOARD CYLINDER WAS A DOUBLE EDGE WEAPON, IT GOT STUCK AROUND THE BUSHINGS LIKE GLUED, IT TOOK ME ANHOUR AND SEVERAL TOOLS INCLUDING A SERRATED BREAD KNIFE, SO I ENDED UP SCRATCHING THE BAR BUTIT WAS THAT OR CALLING THE FIREFIGHTERS...LUCKY THAT IT WASN'T A $700 + IVANKO EZ BAR...GO FIGURE !!!

Quality piece of equipment. Bearings work perfect. Weight of bar and knurled grip placement fantastic. Very pleased. The excalibur of curl bars.