For home gym.

[Timhortons]

Would you guys go with this?

http://www.treadmillfactory.ca/?goto...rod&id_prod=65

or this?

http://www.ironmaster.com/store/IM20...RED-pr-87.html

The price difference after shipping will be around 400-500. I curently have the Super bench.

[RIPT]

The Powerteck stuff looks decent from the ads.All you really need are a power cage, adjustable bench, B.B., D.B. s and plates tough.......

[Timhortons]

As of now I have the Following:

powerblocks
Ironman Superbench (adjustable)
EZ Curl
Pull Up Rack
Bout 300 lbs of weights.

[RIPT]

[quote=RIPT;862016What did you pick?Can you give us a review?

[Timhortons]

[quote=RIPT;871908][quote=RIPT;862016What did you pick?Can you give us a review?[/quote]

Went with the Powertec. So far no complaints. Sturdy Power Rack that gets the job. Up here in the GTA price is fair at $899 new, although found one craigslist for $700 with about 300 and change in lbs, and 7' bb.

Tubing dimensions: about 2 3/8” square – most sites advertise it as 2.5” and it should accept 2.5” attachments. No, it is not the 3” some heavy-duty units have, but it is adequate. The more reasonably priced heavier units typically do not have a lat attachment (or have a poor one).

Spotters: I definitely wanted spotters. The units that use sliding cross beams, while faster, are limited in what attachments you can add.

Pull-up bar: The pull-up bars are ergonomically correct, not just a straight bar.

Powder coating: The powder coat is quite thin and one careless moment with a plate went right through it. The surface has just a slight roughness – maybe this is intentional, but it feels like when you are spray painting a surface and have not quite gotten full coverage. The thin coat is my one beef with the unit. Of course, any rack is going to get nicks and scratches, so who knows how important this will be in the long-run.

Pegs: The lip on the bar catches is quite aggressive (about 3/4" deep), so you have to press or lift the bar a bit to remove it.

Dip bars: These looked funky to me at first, but now I consider them sheer genius. They are angled inward when mounted as directed on the sides, so the width varies from 27 inches at the rack to 18 inches (center to center) at the end of he bars. This range seems adequate for my uses, but if you want to go wider, you just need to switch them around and they will then angle outward to a maximum width of 36 inches. I do not find the angle so aggressive that it significantly affects dip technique.

Width: The width is adequate for me at 45 inches inside dimension. Folks wanting to do sumo stance lifts in the rack might find it too narrow (same applies to most standard-sized power racks, though).

Height: Like most home racks, it is just a bit too low for me (6’ tall) to perform a standing military press inside the rack without a slight squat or wide stance. Shorter folks may be able to pull it off. I am currently doing seated presses with dumbbells, so right now the issue is academic. If there were a need, I imagine I could get enough height by bolting 4x4s to the bottom.

A couple of construction considerations:

Difficulty: Putting the rack together was easy, though another set of hands is helpful with the very top pieces. All bolts, nuts, and washers are the same size, adding to the ease of construction. Make sure you have a 17mm (¾” worked, too) socket and wrench for construction.

Numbering: The spotter holes are numbered on all four uprights. I decided that these might be distracting while lifting and opted to construct the unit with them on the outside. I now find this inconvenient and will eventually flip them around.

Nuts and bolts: The construction diagrams show the nuts on the inside. As these protrude further than the bolt heads, I decided to run the bolts from the inside, placing the nuts out of my way on the outside. This probably doesn’t look as clean from outside, but is safer, IMHO.


Final assessment: Though a thicker powder coat would be nice, this is a very good unit. After looking at the other available options, I still consider this the best balance of cost and functionality.

[RIPT]

The powercage would be a good addition to what you've got as it allows you to do squats, overhead/bench presses in safety and you're able to rack and unrack anything.You can use it for chins too......

[Timhortons]

Thanks bro. Finally back at it after a long hiatus. Gonna check ebay and craiglists if not gonna dig into my wallet and grab it from online.

[Enigma]

what size blocks did you get?

[Timhortons]

set of 90.

[RIPT]

Originally Posted by Timhortons

set of 90.

What happens when you outgrow the weight?I currently use the above for concentration curls........

[Master Of Chokes]

Originally Posted by RIPT

What happens when you outgrow the weight?I currently use the above for concentration curls........

as for the blocks..upgrade to the 130lb big block add on kit...

get the powertec rack... craigslist has lots of racks so you can save a ton of cash that way.. be patient and one you really like will come up..

[Enigma]

sweet

[pumpjunkie]

Powertech looks half decent I know its most likely not an option but when buying this sort of equipment I try it before I buy it. Some stuff I found appeared to be ok until I tried it and the movements were so awkward to me. Never the less. Have a look at Hammerstrength if your willing to spend the $$$.

[Robot]

The blocks will break. Get a rack.

[Master Of Chokes]

Originally Posted by Robot

The blocks will break. Get a rack.

not true... blocks last a long long time... cant drop them like pros or hex DBs... but they are a good product...

[Blackcat]

Originally Posted by Robot

The blocks will break. Get a rack.

Had my 130lb set for years bought it use and they still work great. However treat my equipment like I want to use it for many years to come.

[RIPT]

The paint isn't as important as the functionality.I'm still waiting on my double double too.......