American Barbell Football Swiss Bar
Six grips — four neutral, two angled — on a fully welded 42 lb frame with 16 inches of loadable sleeve.
Specs
| Weight | 42 lb |
|---|---|
| Design | Fully welded Swiss multi-grip bar |
| Handles | 4 neutral grip, 2 angled grip, knurled |
| Handle diameter | 1.25 in |
| Sleeve diameter | 1.91 in |
| Loadable sleeve length | 16 in |
| Distance between collars | 52 in |
| Rackable | On most standard power racks |
These figures are copied from American Barbell’s own published specs and were last checked on 2026-08-31. Manufacturers revise products without notice, and variants differ. Confirm anything your decision depends on with American Barbell before you buy.
Choose this one if
- Flat barbell benching aggravates your shoulders
- You want six grip options rather than the usual two or four
- You want a Swiss bar with 16 inches of plate space
The detail
Six grips is more than most Swiss bars offer. Four neutral positions cover narrow to wide pressing; two angled positions sit between neutral and pronated, which is where a lot of people's shoulders actually want to be. Most multi-grip bars give you three widths and call it done.
The case for any Swiss bar is the same: a straight bar locks your forearms into a fixed rotation at the bottom of a press, and for many people that is where the impingement lives. Palms facing each other usually removes it outright.
Sixteen inches of loadable sleeve is the practical differentiator. The Bells of Steel Arch Nemesis and Omni Bar both give 13.94 inches; the Fringe multi-grip 17.5. If you press heavy on a Swiss bar, plate space is what runs out first.
Fully welded rather than bolted means nothing works loose. On a bar with six handle junctions, that is worth having.
Fifty-two inches between collars is the rack-fit number, and American Barbell states it explicitly — most manufacturers give overall length and leave you to guess. Fifty-two inches is standard sleeve-to-sleeve spacing, so it will sit in J-cups set for a normal bar.
At 1.25 inches the handles are thinner than the 32 mm frames on the Bells of Steel bars — closer to a barbell in the hand, which favours grip over wrist comfort. Which you want is personal.
At 42 lb it is three pounds under a standard bar; write it down.
Note the 1.91-inch sleeve diameter is a strongman size, so standard collars may not fit.