I am very pleased with the Shorty Axle Bar, and it has a good powder coating to absorb chock (not provided). I really like the 5 ft length and the 8 inches of loadable weight is more than enough for me. I purchased a pair of 25 lb Vulcan bounce plates to start with, but will need a couple more plates pretty soon. I performed a couple of overhead drops in my garage and was pleased with the low noise and low bounce. The std spring clips held just fine, although some off the other locks available might dress up the look of the bar better. The only thing I would have liked to have, would have been a couple mark locators for consistent grip and balance. I measured and wrapped two pieces of thin Velcro straps to make it easier to reference my grip position, but tape or a rubber bands would work also. I Vulcan decal sticker option would have been cool for the bar and maybe a decal would help with locating hand position better. One last thing that I like is the 2 in bar is so much more comfortable when doing squats when the bar sets across your shoulders(front) and neck(rear) the larger diameter doesn't dig in like std bars can. I hope this post encourages others to purchase a Vulcan Shorty Bar set as I did and you will be satisfied with the quality. Veterans also get a 5% discount and shipping is included.