Best FID BENCH for petite women

[lightweight53]

I would greatly appreciate some help in choosing an FID bench for a small area in my home. I am 5'4, weigh 125 lbs. and doubt i'll be using more than 100 lbs. Already have neoprene dumbells and definitely want a removable leg extension/curl attachment. Don't want racks or Preacher attachment. I prefer a short length, a height under 20" and a ladder back adjustment because i have VERY delicate fingers.
I have searched online and found several possibilities: IRON MASTER @$279+$115 leg attachment. Love that it ships pre-assembled and is only 44" long. BODY CRAFT F602 @$400+$100 leg attachment...F320 is a little less. BODY SOLID GFID31 @$310+$100 leg attachment. Thought i could find the whole package for under $300...maybe not!

[LimitStrength]

I would greatly appreciate some help in choosing an FID bench for a small area in my home. I am 5'4, weigh 125 lbs. and doubt i'll be using more than 100 lbs. Already have neoprene dumbells and definitely want a removable leg extension/curl attachment. Don't want racks or Preacher attachment. I prefer a short length, a height under 20" and a ladder back adjustment because i have VERY delicate fingers.
I have searched online and found several possibilities: IRON MASTER @$279+$115 leg attachment. Love that it ships pre-assembled and is only 44" long. BODY CRAFT F602 @$400+$100 leg attachment...F320 is a little less. BODY SOLID GFID31 @$310+$100 leg attachment. Thought i could find the whole package for under $300...maybe not!

I've heard nothing but good reviews about the IronMaster benches, also has a ton of optional attachments you can buy for it in the future. A lot of people on these forums have the IronMaster bench, so that's what I would buy personally.

[KBKB]

I would greatly appreciate some help in choosing an FID bench for a small area in my home. I am 5'4, weigh 125 lbs. and doubt i'll be using more than 100 lbs. Already have neoprene dumbells and definitely want a removable leg extension/curl attachment. Don't want racks or Preacher attachment. I prefer a short length, a height under 20" and a ladder back adjustment because i have VERY delicate fingers.
I have searched online and found several possibilities: IRON MASTER @$279+$115 leg attachment. Love that it ships pre-assembled and is only 44" long. BODY CRAFT F602 @$400+$100 leg attachment...F320 is a little less. BODY SOLID GFID31 @$310+$100 leg attachment. Thought i could find the whole package for under $300...maybe not!

I have the Ironmaster bench. As I recall, there was some minor assembly required - I think the feet needed to be attached. It was very easy to do. There was protective plastic covering the back pad; you could just rip it off as best you can, but I removed the pad, completely removed the plastic, and then reassembled. That was easy to do too, but as I said, you could just rip the plastic away. It's likely that some of it would remain between the pad and the attachment point for the rest of the bench.

At 20" in height, you'll probably find the bench to be too tall when in the flat position, but should work okay if you find something to put your feet on.

If you have to move the bench frequently, you should purchase one or two wheel kits. Each kit is a foot with two wheels on it. I'm currently using only one wheel kit, but having two makes it even easier to move.

If you get the leg attachment, you should purchase the roller covers too. The covers are easy to put on so long as you do it prior to putting the foam rollers on the leg attachment. (The rollers have a hole in the middle and will compress so long as the hole is empty.)

[lightweight53]

Thanks for your input.

[lightweight53]

I have the Ironmaster bench. As I recall, there was some minor assembly required - I think the feet needed to be attached. It was very easy to do. There was protective plastic covering the back pad; you could just rip it off as best you can, but I removed the pad, completely removed the plastic, and then reassembled. That was easy to do too, but as I said, you could just rip the plastic away. It's likely that some of it would remain between the pad and the attachment point for the rest of the bench.

At 20" in height, you'll probably find the bench to be too tall when in the flat position, but should work okay if you find something to put your feet on.

If you have to move the bench frequently, you should purchase one or two wheel kits. Each kit is a foot with two wheels on it. I'm currently using only one wheel kit, but having two makes it even easier to move.

If you get the leg attachment, you should purchase the roller covers too. The covers are easy to put on so long as you do it prior to putting the foam rollers on the leg attachment. (The rollers have a hole in the middle and will compress so long as the hole is empty.)

KBKB,
Thank you for all the info! Do you have the leg attachment? If so, how long is the entire bench with it on? Is the length 44" without the attachment? I want to make sure i have enough space.

[darkfact]

At 20" in height, you'll probably find the bench to be too tall when in the flat position

I just want to emphasize this. I also own this bench and never thought about bench height until I used it, at 6' tall I find this bench way too tall for me, I prefer benches that are around 17" in height. I used the bench for a very short time before I had to upgrade again just so I could bench comfortably. I do still own it, it makes an excellent ab bench with the leg attachment and that's all I use it for now unfortunately. I'm guessing bench width isn't an issue for you but that was my other problem with it, it has a 10" wide pad and my back is pretty wide so I now stick to pads that are 12" wide. Again, just a comfort issue, the bench is very nice from a quality and design standpoint as long as the dimensions will work for you. Just make sure you're ok with a bench that's going to be 20-21" tall before you get it.

[morebarbell]

I also have the IM bench and it's a nice bench but I agree that the height will likely be an issue. I use it but it's really too tall for me. I'm 5' 9"... maybe 1/2 inch taller than that. Your feet might not touch the floor at 5' 4". Here's a video of Lee Priest using the bench. He's the same height as you.

[rlundregan]

It's really tough to find good quality benches that have good quality attachments. The attachments also tend to not be very good, particularly the leg extension/curl. THe issue is that the attachment isn't usually adjustable, so if your body isn't exactly the size that the attachment was made for, you could potentially end up with some knee issues. Ironmaster attachments seem to be very good for the most part--I don't have any experience with their leg extension, so I'll let someone else speak to that.

Having said that, are you really married to the idea of doing leg extensions/curls, or would you be open to considering other exercises for legs? There are lots of exercises that you could do with dumbbells that would cover all the bases.

THe Bodycraft f320 might be a better choice for you if you are dead set on having attachments. It is still 18 inches high in the flat position, but that is better than 20! THat bench and the Ironmaster seem to be among the most highly regarded in their class. You could always put a couple of plates on the floor for your feet if need be.

There are also used commercial benches that pop up on Craigslist. THis is obviously more hit or miss, and they do not come with any sort of attachments. You may not have a need for something that will hold you and 1000 lbs of weight, but the one I have is 17 inches high, and that is what I love most about it--I'm not aware of other well-made "home use" benches that are that low. I just thought I would mention that. I found my bench on Craigslist for $175.

Edit: I just read the review on the Body Solid GFI21 which states that it is 17 inches high. I have an older version of that bench which is a little higher, but otherwise I really love that bench. THe downside is that it is only Flat/Incline, and it does not accept attachments.

[KBKB]

KBKB,
Thank you for all the info! Do you have the leg attachment? If so, how long is the entire bench with it on? Is the length 44" without the attachment? I want to make sure i have enough space.

There are two different "leg" attachments. I have both. The first is a crunch/sit-up attachment which is also very useful for decline presses. I didn't measure the total length with that one, but I can if you're interested.

The second one is the leg extension / curl attachment. With this attachment in place, the total length is 68".

I measured the bench alone. It is 44" long.

The bench can be tipped up to stand on its end when not in use. This is particularly easy to do if you have the wheel kit on one end. When you're done with the bench, you just lift one end to roll it out of the way and tip it up on end when you reach the spot where you want to store it.

Bench height is important for those of us who focus on flat bench press. We want to be able to place our feet on the floor to get additional leg drive. This also helps us get the necessary arch in our backs which usually results in a stronger lift. When my 5'7" tall wife uses the bench for bench press, she simply puts her feet up on the end of the bench. She doesn't press a lot of weight, but she doesn't really care what her numbers are either.

[00s4boy]

Just thought i'd throw in my 2 cents.

I own the ironmasters 120 kit with the bench and attachments crunch/situp, preacher curl, leg extension/curl, dip, pullup. I love the bench for it's versatility but it does have it's downfalls. I'm 5'11.5 and on flat press's I don't feel I have enough foot plant due to the height of the bench(but genetically a decent amount of my height is spine), but I don't mind it on skull crusher's.

The situp/crunch attachment I love endlessly it just feels solid good allows for great situps and crunch's I couldn't ask for better, it's also good for decline press's but once you get up in weight it can be difficult I've done 130/140(65/70 per) on decline press's but I don't have the spotter stand so it starts as a weird weighted sit up getting the weight off the floor into a clean/lean back to get into decline press position, I really only feel comfortable at 120 pounds(60 per).

The preacher curl attachment is ok, grabbing/placing the bar is a little awkward and with my weight/curl weight I have to brace the bench with my feet in front of me to prevent it from rocking(mind you I am 245 and I'm usually doing full extension preachers at 70-80 pounds with the ironmasters ez-curl bar)

The leg extension is ok except you can only go to 100 pounds with ironmaster's plates, and I believe capacity is 200 with olympic plates. I currently only have ironmaster plates and I end up doing 100lb single leg extensions so I've kinda maxed out that aspect of it. As for leg curls I am not impressed I would much prefer my torso at a decline for leg curls I find my leg's and back end up binding up with my torso flat and it becomes very uncomfortable and now I rarely do leg curls on it.

As for dips I haven't got my strength to a point where I can effectively dip my body weight(as i said though I am 245) it feels decently solid for dips when I gave it a try slight wobble but again body weight.

Pullup pretty much same as dips for comparison but again wobble could be due to my weight.

Lastly I have noticed that the angle lock mechanism has become loose and it can be difficult to tighten it to the exact spot(either stay's loose or gets to tight where you cannot release the lock mechanism) for it to be solid. Which also play's part in dips/pullup's being wobbly. But again a lot of that could be due to my weight.

In my case I do plan on adding a rack with at least pullup attachment(not a huge dip fan) another FID bench with a seated decline not raised like the ironmasters with leg bracing so I can sit down with dumbells on my thighs toss em up to my shoulders brace my legs and lean back to a decline. As well as a dedicated leg curl/extension so I can do both leg extensions past 200 pounds, and have my torso at a decline for leg curls.

So past Ironmasters Texas Strength systems I am looking into to fulfill the rest of my home gym needs.

[KBKB]

The bench can be tipped up to stand on its end when not in use. This is particularly easy to do if you have the wheel kit on one end. When you're done with the bench, you just lift one end to roll it out of the way and tip it up on end when you reach the spot where you want to store it.

Here's a photo of the Super Bench tipped up on end, giving it a smaller footprint when not in use. The Ironmaster Spotting Stand is behind it and the kettlebells that I use most frequently are off to the left. A pair of three pound Indian Clubs are behind the kettlebells.

Only one end of the Super Bench has a wheel kit. I had wheels on both ends for a while, but I had to take a set off when I got the cable tower because the Super Bench wheels interfere with the cable tower's wheels, preventing the two from being attached together.

[lightweight53]

Wow...all these guys are way out of my league!! I'll be doing dumbbells and leg extensions/curls, probably using no more than 100 lbs total. I'm over 50, 5'4" and weigh 125. I want to stay lean, strong and feminine. I'll try to find a dealer so i can actually see how these different fid benches fit my body. I like the Iron Master because it looks solid and has a smaller footprint...my space is limited.
Thanks to everyone. I never thought i would receive so much great advice...photos and video.

[rlundregan]

I'll try to find a dealer so i can actually see how these different fid benches fit my body.

This is the best thing you can possibly do to find your bench--it doesn't matter how well the bench is made if it doesn't fit you well.