Should I go with an entry level rack or a higher quality rack

[johnparker323]

I had a few nice looking benches pop up on CL that I am looking to get some feedback on. I would prefer to buy used buy I hardly ever see anything of quality on CL so I was surprised to come across these.

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Any idea what a good price for each of these would be?

[GarageIron]

Images embedded...

[LimitStrength]

If you don't mind splurging, the elite racks such as the collegiate rack of really top of the line. You are paying for the name somewhat, but they are absolute beasts.

That being said you can get some pretty heavy duty nice racks for around 1000 without the accesories. Personally, I have a rogue R3 and as much as I hate crossfit Rogue greats some great stuff.

If you are looking for something that doesn't have to be bolted the new 3x3 rack they make is slightly more expensive but still within your price range.

All the racks you're looking at getting will hold up really well over time. It's just a matter of how much you're willing to pay for what.

From a safety perspective they're all rated about the same in the amount of weight they can hold, with the powetec being the weakest most likely.

Lat pulldown machines take up very little floor space, only really vertical space and I find that the stand alone lat pulldowns / pully systems work better and just more comfortable.

I would take a look at some of the Rogue options or racks around 1k and spend the rest of the money on a decent pully system weights and bar etc.

Best of luck

[johnparker323]

No one has any thoughts on the benches I posted?

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Images embedded by GarageIron in post #32

[817boy]

No one has any thoughts on the benches I posted?

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Images embedded by GarageIron in post #32

How much are they asking for those benches. They look nice but w/o a price we can only tell you how much we would pay and our CL market might be different from yours (for example no nice benches like those ever show up in my CL market)

[dumb.bell]

No one has any thoughts on the benches I posted?

h ttp://images.craigslist.org/3F43I23Ja5I65K85R6d187119d07bf62b1478.jpg
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Images embedded by GarageIron in post #32

They are all nice benches, but my preference in order is the Life Fitness Bench, Icarian, and finally the Cybex. I have used all at one time or the other but it has probably been about 8 years since I've used either the Icarian or the Cybex. I own one of the Life Fitness Benches. I had used it a lot at the Gold's Gym I belonged to years ago and splurged the $800 new price for one. I would say that it is my favorite bench outside of actual rack benches that telescope in and out.

[johnparker323]

I just got done talking to all three and here are the asking prices:

Life Fitness - $225 - Only has two incline positions
Cybex - $200
Icarian - $400

[iportal]

I just got done talking to all three and here are the asking prices:

Life Fitness - $225 - Only has two incline positions
Cybex - $200
Icarian - $400

All three benches look really good value for money to be honest.

[rlundregan]

I just got done talking to all three and here are the asking prices:

Life Fitness - $225 - Only has two incline positions
Cybex - $200
Icarian - $400

I can't speak for the other two, but I own the Cybex, and I love it. It is just the right height for me to plant my feet on the floor and is rock solid at every angle that I use on it.

[johnparker323]

I can't speak for the other two, but I own the Cybex, and I love it. It is just the right height for me to plant my feet on the floor and is rock solid at every angle that I use on it.

Do you happen to have the model number of the Cybex? I am curious if it is a 0-90 as that is the only thing that is keeping me from going to get the Life Fitness (only two incline positions).

[817boy]

Do you happen to have the model number of the Cybex? I am curious if it is a 0-90 as that is the only thing that is keeping me from going to get the Life Fitness (only two incline positions).

I would get the cybex but thats just me.

[DamonB82]

I have the Icarian and I love it, but after all was said and done I paid $500 less than what you can get that one for.

[Mooseman5000]

might as well get higher quality bro, if you've got the dough you know

[TruKnight]

ive been thinking about this too. I dont mind going to the gym but somedays I dont have the time/steam to get there as often as I should, so thinking about making a small home gym with just the essentials, rack, bar, bench, plates and some dbls.

looked at alot of racks this month, but seems like the sorinex dark horse one is the most cost efficient for what you get, cause I really want one that will last and has integrated plate storage instead of having to get a seperate plate stand. thoughts?

[DrForce]

I'm a fan of buying things once and forgetting about it. Do your research and buy the best you can then enjoy for a lifetime.

[forthays]

I just received Powertec Lat pulldown for my rack. It's still in a box. Will be doing a full review on it soon. But from what I've heard it doesn't come with foot support for doing low-rows.

Depending on your budget and available space I'd consider Legend Half Cage #3268 with a Lat option. Here are a couple of pictures of it from their site:

Wow. This would be my ideal rack for my little home gym. I checked their site and and they don't even list the price. I'm sure it's more than I'm willing to spend but it would be nice to know their prices.

[BAVE]

Wow. This would be my ideal rack for my little home gym. I checked their site and and they don't even list the price. I'm sure it's more than I'm willing to spend but it would be nice to know their prices.

Modular half cage, dip, pull up handles, and the three way bench are $5300-5400 plus shipping (likely above $600-700). The bench is a lock in bench and is required for the low row. The dual landmine adds approx $270 so total shipped is around $6k or more.

As nice as the rack system is it is really not all that compact for a 1/2 cage. It's 71" long and width is pretty much the same for all cages and racks because you'll need room for an 84 in bar. Another compact option is a half rack and a smaller (or shorter) lat low row like Pro-Elites #100 with 250 stack. It's only 24x44 so it has a compact footprint for a commercial unit. A loaded up 1/2 cage (dip, etc) and the Pro Elite would only run around $3-3.5k.