M
MonkeyGrip
Guest
This is my first post at AusBB and, rather than post a question, I thought I'd try to contribute something.
I bought the Powertec Power Rack Package based largely on research done on this site, so I thought I'd return the favour and post a review.
It turned out a little bit lengty, but I hope someone finds it helpful.
Background
My requirements were for a power rack, an adjustable bench, Olympic barbell and dumbbell handles and rubber-coated weight plates. I considered getting a half-rack, but the ability to add pull-down cables, dips and chin-up bars, was more limited and the better looking racks were all too tall for my space.
My two main constraints were a budget of around $1,500 and a pretty tight space for footprint as well as height.
As I’m currently renting and the gym gear will be sharing space with the car in a pretty compact garage. And, while I had no expectation that I would be able to actually work out whilst the car was parked, I wanted to be able to pull the car in and lock the garage over night.
This gave me a hard limit for a depth of 130cm and a height of 213cm.
I used AusBB to do a lot of research and also compared the various packages from the main online sellers (Little Bloke, Gym and Fitness and Gym Direct to name a few). As I’m sure you know, there are a lot of different options out there, of varying quality and cost, but the only power rack that actually fitted my space was the Powertec, sold by Sam’s Fitness.
This isn’t the cheapest rack, especially if paired with the lat pull-down attachment but, as I don’t have room for that right now anyway, I didn’t have to factor that added expense. At least not yet anyway…
But the Powertec has had consistently good reviews and its measurements mean that it could have been custom made for my space. Sam’s Fitness provide a nice diagram of the footprint, and I was able to figure out from this, and confirm with Sam’s Fitness that the depth from the back of the rack to the front uprights is pretty much spot on 1 metre, leaving about 30cm of spare room to share between the car, the rack and the garage door. Cozy!
The height of the rack is actually 213cm, a whole centimetre too tall for my garage, but I had seen online that some people have mounted the front cross-bar, that the chin-up bar attaches to, upside down. I confirmed with Matt again that the height of the uprights would be okay, and they squeeze in at 210cm, giving a whole 2cm of extra height.
Obviously head clearance above this would be somewhat limited, but I figured wide-grip or partial reps whilst at this rental house could become full chin-ups when we move somewhere more spacious.
So, with the decision for the rack made, it was pretty easy to buy into the whole Powertec Power Rack Package offered by Sam’s Fitness.
This includes the Powertec power rack, a choice of either the Powertec Utility Bench or Ironmaster Super Bench, Power Maxx Olympic 1500lbs-rated barbell and 115kg of Power Maxx rubber-coated weight plates.
The reviews of the Ironmaster Super Bench made that the obvious choice for a bench, but I did consider getting weights and bars from other sellers, like Little Bloke Fitness, who have a good looking set. However, the extra costs for shipping from another supplier would have further blown out my already stretched budget.
So, I went with Sam’s package, with the addition of a pair of Olympic dumbbell handles, and extra plates: 2x5kg, 2x2.5 and 4x1.25kg for a total of 135kg.
I got a bit of a discount, bundling all of this together, and the total cost including shipping to Brisbane came to $1,900. A bit more than I had planned but not too bad.
Review:
Powertec Power Rack
This rack gets pretty good reviews online and I think they are well deserved. It’s pretty easy to assemble and, when finished, the rack is rock solid.
You’ll need 19 and 21mm spanners and I put it together by myself pretty comfortably, although the top crossbeams are a bit tricky to handle without assistance. I ended up with bolts, nuts, washers, spanners and end plates in various pockets and balanced a crossbeam on my head in the process, but I’m sure smarter people will come up with better solutions…
Having used the rack for a few weeks now, I would note the following:
Pros:
This rack feels very solid and is rated to 450kgs.
Once constructed there is no noticeable movement in the frame at all. Training alone at home, the main reason I wanted a power rack was for safety. I feel very comfortable using this rack.
The spotter bars are also rated to 450kgs and I’d be confident dropping a loaded bar onto them if needed. The dense rubber surface on these is a nice touch, although it would be nice to have something similar on the J-Hooks too.
The one area of movement is with the chin-up bars, which have a small amount (<1cm) of play horizontally at the point they are bolted into the crossbeam. This isn’t an issue when chinning, but I thought I should note it.
As mentioned above, the rack is compact, but it’s also big enough internally to comfortably perform squats, deadlifts and bench press although overhead presses will generally need to be done outside and racked on the front uprights.
The adjustment holes for the J-Hooks and spotter bars are well spaced and I can comfortably rack all my lifts at a height that suits me.
The included dip bars are pretty good and can easily be added and removed form the rack, slotting in and out of the adjustment holes. They have a thick diameter, and angle inwards, which allows for a choice of positions. There is some lateral wobble in these between the uprights and the mounting, but this is a non-issue when actually under load. They feel solid and strong, but I don't know the weight rating on them.
I quite like the chin up bars, although these seem to be one of the main complaints that the rack gets. They are coated with rubber, and allow for a range of grips, but are more limited than some racks.
You get a choice of two colour options with this rack: black or yellow. I went with black.
Always bet on black.
Cons:
As mentioned above, the spotter bars come with a dense rubber layer screwed to their upper side. This is nice because it prevents damage to either the spotter bars or your barbell, and it limits noise when racking the bar. However, the J-Hooks are bare metal and not particularly smooth metal at that, so I’ve already got a few scratches on my new barbell.
I’m thinking of taping some duct tape around the J-Hooks or would consider fixing rubber to them somehow if I had any spare.
One of the original J-Hooks I received also had surface rust around the weld on its underside. I don’t think this would have affected its strength, at least early on, but Sam’s Fitness sent a replacement quickly and without hassle.
Likewise, there was one dodgy bolt amongst the hundred or so needed to assemble the rack. The thread had been machined poorly so that the nut couldn’t tighten. Sam’s Fitness quickly sent a replacement for this as well, along with the J-Hook.
The powder coating on the rack seems a little fragile, with some scratches already showing at the location that the spotter bars get mounted and un-mounted. Not a big deal for me, but this brand new rack won’t stay looking pristine for too long.
Conclusion:
I’m really happy with this rack. It's strong, solid and compact. I expect it will last me a long time.
Ironmaster Super Bench
I had my doubts about this bench. Everyone online raves about it, but it looked kind of strange to me.
I wanted a bench that would adjust from flat to incline, and maybe decline, but why on earth would you want a bench that you could add a dip or chin-up bar to?
But I went with the online consensus and ordered the Super Bench and am very glad I did.
The bench came almost entirely assembled, and just needed the legs to be bolted on. When finished, it’s heavy and solid with a very clever design.
Pros:
Very solid. The Super Bench is rated to 450kgs when flat and 270kg on an angle. It feels like it could take twice that.
I’m amazed that something on a swing arm like this has absolutely no wobble from side to side, or in any other direction, yet adjusts to a range of angles more easily than any bench I’ve used before. This is done by using a foot lever, which frees the bench up to rotate to a range of angles from completely flat to 90º.
If I turn this bench sideways it also fits perfectly within the Powertec rack, keeping more floor space free when not in use.
Cons:
The bench is quite high when flat. I’m around 185cm (~6ft1) tall and when using the Super Bench in the flat position, it’s a bit higher than I’m used to, meaning I arch my back a bit more or don’t have my feet flat on the ground like I’m used to.
This seems to be improving with time, so either I’m getting used to the new position, or my flexibility is coming back to me now I’m exercising again and this isn’t really an issue.
Something that’s not a huge problem for me, but more of a minor annoyance is that, in order to use this bench in decline position, you need to buy an additional $80 crunch attachment. It would have been nice if they included something out of the box to enable this.
Some people online have commented that, in incline position, the seat is too low, even at its highest setting. I haven’t found this to be the case, but given that the bench feels a little high to me when it’s flat, maybe I’ve got shorter legs and a longer torso than some.
Conclusion:
I’m a convert. The online reviews are spot on. This is a great bench.
Power Maxx Rubber-Coated Olympic Weight Plates
I wanted rubber-coated weight plates to limit noise when I’m bashing around in the garage and my family is sleeping. Likewise I didn’t want to smash up the concrete garage floor of the rental house or the weights themselves.
Other than that, I figured a weight is a weight. As long as it’s pretty much as heavy as it says it is, what more could you want?
As I mentioned earlier, I looked at some other options online, but went with the Power Maxx weights from Sam’s Fitness because, when bundled with the other items I wanted, it worked out the most economical.
Along with the weights that came in the package (2x2.5, 2x5, 2x10, and 4x20kg), I added 4x1.25, 2x2.5 and 2x5kg plates, bringing a total of 135kg and allowing me to use dumbbells from 5kg to 25kg with increments of 2.5kg.
Pros:
These weight plates are easy to grab and move, with plates 5kg and heavier having three handles as part of their design. This means they can easily be picked up, loaded and unloaded or even used on their own for exercises.
The plates also have an interlocking design that allows them to fit more compactly on the bar and helps to make the loaded bar feel tight and solid.
These weights look pretty good. If that’s something you care about.
Cons:
These things smell.
I had heard that rubber-coated plates can be a bit smelly, and maybe these aren’t any worse than others, but it takes some getting used to. After a few weeks the majority of the smell has dissipated, but the garage still has a pretty noticeable rubber smell. After a warm day, ventilation when working out is a must!
The weights were also quite oily when they arrived. I wiped each of them down with paper towel, which came away with a grimy black residue. Maybe I should scrub them with soapy water or something, but I’m still getting black stuff on my hands each time after use.
The main complaint I have with these weights, though, is the quality of their construction.
Two of the plates had small splits at the rubber seam that goes around the circumference of the plate. Another plate had two long cracks around its edge.
I let Sam’s Fitness know straight away, and sent a couple of photographs to illustrate the problem. They sent me replacement plates very quickly and without fuss.
Since then, I’ve noticed that a number of the plates (each of the four 20kg plates, two of the 10kg and three of the 5kg plates) have loose centres. That is, the visible metal that the barbell sleeve slides inside.
This looseness is not too noticeable on the 20kg or 5kg plates, but on the 10kg plates, it is much more distinct. The centres shift a few mm each way, and makes the plate feel a bit loose when loading it on the bar.
This doesn’t really affect the weight’s utility as a heavy lump that I lift up and down but, of all the rubber-coated plates I’ve used in the past, I’ve never noticed this kind of issue before.
To be honest, neither the cracked/split rubber or the loose central cores of the plates affect my training right now, but if the cracking got worse, or the centre becomes more wobbly (I assume it won’t get less wobbly over time), this could become a problem.
Sam’s Fitness were very fast to send out replacement weights for the two split and one cracked plate, and have told me that they have taken a note that some of my plates have the issue with the central core, in case it gets worse and warrants a replacement.
With these issues combined, I have to question the quality of Power Maxx weights.
If anybody else has similar experience with this brand or any other, I’d be keen to hear it.
Conclusion:
As it stands now, I’d find it hard to recommend these plates.
Power Maxx 1500lb Copper Bushing Olympic Barbell Bar
This is the standard bar that comes packaged with the above gear. I don’t know too much about bushings, bearings or the kinds of materials that make one bar better than another, but a 1500lb load limit sounded tough, so I figured it would be more than enough for my meager needs.
Pros:
It turns out the 1500lb weight rating is related to the thickness of the bar. Apparently this one is slightly thicker than average, which is fine by me, but not particularly noticeable.
Cons:
This bar has some pretty rough knurling. It is pointy and has a sharp chrome finish. My delicate office-worker hands are quickly getting accustomed to it, but it’s certainly a bit uncomfortable at first.
The main issue with this bar, however, is the sleeves.
One of the sleeves gets a couple of rotations if I spin it as hard as I can, but the other typically can’t do a full rotation without significant assistance past a sticking point. I’m not doing any dynamic Olympic-type lifts right now, so I don’t need a low-friction, smoothly spinning sleeve, but this one is definitely not right.
Again, writing to Sam’s Fitness, they were pretty responsive, suggesting that I load the bar up with some plates and see if this helped.
It didn’t.
However, Sam says that bushings can take some time to wear in and, as the issue isn’t affecting my lifts right now, I’m happy to keep using the bar and see what happens.
If the issue is still there in a few months when I start hitting my stride and wanting to perform snatches, power cleans, etc., I’ll be getting back in touch with Sam’s Fitness to get the issue resolved.
Conclusion:
Combined with the issues with the weight plates, above, I couldn’t really recommend the Power Maxx range of products.
Power Maxx Olympic Dumbbell Bars
Without access to a full set of fixed dumbbells, I figured I’d be able to make use of my Olympic plates together with some dumbbell handles to do accessory exercises.
These handles are also made by Power Maxx (although there is no branding anywhere to be seen).
Pros:
They are what they are, as advertised, and there’s nothing much more to them than that.
Cons:
The one complaint I have with these bars is that the diameter of the sleeves is slightly smaller than the barbell, so the weights don’t fit quite as tightly. You get a bit of rattling when lifting, but nothing too terrible.
A complaint I have that isn’t related to these dumbbells in particular is the use of spring collars. I hate these things, but they’re all I have right now.
I’m looking to get some lock jaws or similar, because I find the spring collars a pain to put on and off, particularly if I’m trying to strip weight off after each set and my grip is fatigued.
Conclusion:
Fixed dumbbells would be nice, but if you don’t have the cash or room, these should do the job.
Service
Sam’s Fitness have a good reputation for customer service on this board and with good reason.
The staff at Sam’s Fitness have been responsive from the first day when I asked for measurements of the rack. They gave a reasonable discount for bundling the gear together (although they don't give AusBB members special discounts). They then shipped the order very quickly and were very fast to responde to emails and send replacements for the faulty parts.
I would definitely recommend buying either Powertec or Ironmaster gear from Sam’s Fitness, but couldn’t advise buying Power Maxx equipment, based on my personal experience with those products.
Let me know if you have any questions. I'd be happy to answer.
I bought the Powertec Power Rack Package based largely on research done on this site, so I thought I'd return the favour and post a review.
It turned out a little bit lengty, but I hope someone finds it helpful.
Background
My requirements were for a power rack, an adjustable bench, Olympic barbell and dumbbell handles and rubber-coated weight plates. I considered getting a half-rack, but the ability to add pull-down cables, dips and chin-up bars, was more limited and the better looking racks were all too tall for my space.
My two main constraints were a budget of around $1,500 and a pretty tight space for footprint as well as height.
As I’m currently renting and the gym gear will be sharing space with the car in a pretty compact garage. And, while I had no expectation that I would be able to actually work out whilst the car was parked, I wanted to be able to pull the car in and lock the garage over night.
This gave me a hard limit for a depth of 130cm and a height of 213cm.
I used AusBB to do a lot of research and also compared the various packages from the main online sellers (Little Bloke, Gym and Fitness and Gym Direct to name a few). As I’m sure you know, there are a lot of different options out there, of varying quality and cost, but the only power rack that actually fitted my space was the Powertec, sold by Sam’s Fitness.
This isn’t the cheapest rack, especially if paired with the lat pull-down attachment but, as I don’t have room for that right now anyway, I didn’t have to factor that added expense. At least not yet anyway…
But the Powertec has had consistently good reviews and its measurements mean that it could have been custom made for my space. Sam’s Fitness provide a nice diagram of the footprint, and I was able to figure out from this, and confirm with Sam’s Fitness that the depth from the back of the rack to the front uprights is pretty much spot on 1 metre, leaving about 30cm of spare room to share between the car, the rack and the garage door. Cozy!
The height of the rack is actually 213cm, a whole centimetre too tall for my garage, but I had seen online that some people have mounted the front cross-bar, that the chin-up bar attaches to, upside down. I confirmed with Matt again that the height of the uprights would be okay, and they squeeze in at 210cm, giving a whole 2cm of extra height.
Obviously head clearance above this would be somewhat limited, but I figured wide-grip or partial reps whilst at this rental house could become full chin-ups when we move somewhere more spacious.
So, with the decision for the rack made, it was pretty easy to buy into the whole Powertec Power Rack Package offered by Sam’s Fitness.
This includes the Powertec power rack, a choice of either the Powertec Utility Bench or Ironmaster Super Bench, Power Maxx Olympic 1500lbs-rated barbell and 115kg of Power Maxx rubber-coated weight plates.
The reviews of the Ironmaster Super Bench made that the obvious choice for a bench, but I did consider getting weights and bars from other sellers, like Little Bloke Fitness, who have a good looking set. However, the extra costs for shipping from another supplier would have further blown out my already stretched budget.
So, I went with Sam’s package, with the addition of a pair of Olympic dumbbell handles, and extra plates: 2x5kg, 2x2.5 and 4x1.25kg for a total of 135kg.
I got a bit of a discount, bundling all of this together, and the total cost including shipping to Brisbane came to $1,900. A bit more than I had planned but not too bad.
Review:
Powertec Power Rack
This rack gets pretty good reviews online and I think they are well deserved. It’s pretty easy to assemble and, when finished, the rack is rock solid.
You’ll need 19 and 21mm spanners and I put it together by myself pretty comfortably, although the top crossbeams are a bit tricky to handle without assistance. I ended up with bolts, nuts, washers, spanners and end plates in various pockets and balanced a crossbeam on my head in the process, but I’m sure smarter people will come up with better solutions…
Having used the rack for a few weeks now, I would note the following:
Pros:
This rack feels very solid and is rated to 450kgs.
Once constructed there is no noticeable movement in the frame at all. Training alone at home, the main reason I wanted a power rack was for safety. I feel very comfortable using this rack.
The spotter bars are also rated to 450kgs and I’d be confident dropping a loaded bar onto them if needed. The dense rubber surface on these is a nice touch, although it would be nice to have something similar on the J-Hooks too.
The one area of movement is with the chin-up bars, which have a small amount (<1cm) of play horizontally at the point they are bolted into the crossbeam. This isn’t an issue when chinning, but I thought I should note it.
As mentioned above, the rack is compact, but it’s also big enough internally to comfortably perform squats, deadlifts and bench press although overhead presses will generally need to be done outside and racked on the front uprights.
The adjustment holes for the J-Hooks and spotter bars are well spaced and I can comfortably rack all my lifts at a height that suits me.
The included dip bars are pretty good and can easily be added and removed form the rack, slotting in and out of the adjustment holes. They have a thick diameter, and angle inwards, which allows for a choice of positions. There is some lateral wobble in these between the uprights and the mounting, but this is a non-issue when actually under load. They feel solid and strong, but I don't know the weight rating on them.
I quite like the chin up bars, although these seem to be one of the main complaints that the rack gets. They are coated with rubber, and allow for a range of grips, but are more limited than some racks.
You get a choice of two colour options with this rack: black or yellow. I went with black.
Always bet on black.
Cons:
As mentioned above, the spotter bars come with a dense rubber layer screwed to their upper side. This is nice because it prevents damage to either the spotter bars or your barbell, and it limits noise when racking the bar. However, the J-Hooks are bare metal and not particularly smooth metal at that, so I’ve already got a few scratches on my new barbell.
I’m thinking of taping some duct tape around the J-Hooks or would consider fixing rubber to them somehow if I had any spare.
One of the original J-Hooks I received also had surface rust around the weld on its underside. I don’t think this would have affected its strength, at least early on, but Sam’s Fitness sent a replacement quickly and without hassle.
Likewise, there was one dodgy bolt amongst the hundred or so needed to assemble the rack. The thread had been machined poorly so that the nut couldn’t tighten. Sam’s Fitness quickly sent a replacement for this as well, along with the J-Hook.
The powder coating on the rack seems a little fragile, with some scratches already showing at the location that the spotter bars get mounted and un-mounted. Not a big deal for me, but this brand new rack won’t stay looking pristine for too long.
Conclusion:
I’m really happy with this rack. It's strong, solid and compact. I expect it will last me a long time.
Ironmaster Super Bench
I had my doubts about this bench. Everyone online raves about it, but it looked kind of strange to me.
I wanted a bench that would adjust from flat to incline, and maybe decline, but why on earth would you want a bench that you could add a dip or chin-up bar to?
But I went with the online consensus and ordered the Super Bench and am very glad I did.
The bench came almost entirely assembled, and just needed the legs to be bolted on. When finished, it’s heavy and solid with a very clever design.
Pros:
Very solid. The Super Bench is rated to 450kgs when flat and 270kg on an angle. It feels like it could take twice that.
I’m amazed that something on a swing arm like this has absolutely no wobble from side to side, or in any other direction, yet adjusts to a range of angles more easily than any bench I’ve used before. This is done by using a foot lever, which frees the bench up to rotate to a range of angles from completely flat to 90º.
If I turn this bench sideways it also fits perfectly within the Powertec rack, keeping more floor space free when not in use.
Cons:
The bench is quite high when flat. I’m around 185cm (~6ft1) tall and when using the Super Bench in the flat position, it’s a bit higher than I’m used to, meaning I arch my back a bit more or don’t have my feet flat on the ground like I’m used to.
This seems to be improving with time, so either I’m getting used to the new position, or my flexibility is coming back to me now I’m exercising again and this isn’t really an issue.
Something that’s not a huge problem for me, but more of a minor annoyance is that, in order to use this bench in decline position, you need to buy an additional $80 crunch attachment. It would have been nice if they included something out of the box to enable this.
Some people online have commented that, in incline position, the seat is too low, even at its highest setting. I haven’t found this to be the case, but given that the bench feels a little high to me when it’s flat, maybe I’ve got shorter legs and a longer torso than some.
Conclusion:
I’m a convert. The online reviews are spot on. This is a great bench.
Power Maxx Rubber-Coated Olympic Weight Plates
I wanted rubber-coated weight plates to limit noise when I’m bashing around in the garage and my family is sleeping. Likewise I didn’t want to smash up the concrete garage floor of the rental house or the weights themselves.
Other than that, I figured a weight is a weight. As long as it’s pretty much as heavy as it says it is, what more could you want?
As I mentioned earlier, I looked at some other options online, but went with the Power Maxx weights from Sam’s Fitness because, when bundled with the other items I wanted, it worked out the most economical.
Along with the weights that came in the package (2x2.5, 2x5, 2x10, and 4x20kg), I added 4x1.25, 2x2.5 and 2x5kg plates, bringing a total of 135kg and allowing me to use dumbbells from 5kg to 25kg with increments of 2.5kg.
Pros:
These weight plates are easy to grab and move, with plates 5kg and heavier having three handles as part of their design. This means they can easily be picked up, loaded and unloaded or even used on their own for exercises.
The plates also have an interlocking design that allows them to fit more compactly on the bar and helps to make the loaded bar feel tight and solid.
These weights look pretty good. If that’s something you care about.
Cons:
These things smell.
I had heard that rubber-coated plates can be a bit smelly, and maybe these aren’t any worse than others, but it takes some getting used to. After a few weeks the majority of the smell has dissipated, but the garage still has a pretty noticeable rubber smell. After a warm day, ventilation when working out is a must!
The weights were also quite oily when they arrived. I wiped each of them down with paper towel, which came away with a grimy black residue. Maybe I should scrub them with soapy water or something, but I’m still getting black stuff on my hands each time after use.
The main complaint I have with these weights, though, is the quality of their construction.
Two of the plates had small splits at the rubber seam that goes around the circumference of the plate. Another plate had two long cracks around its edge.
I let Sam’s Fitness know straight away, and sent a couple of photographs to illustrate the problem. They sent me replacement plates very quickly and without fuss.
Since then, I’ve noticed that a number of the plates (each of the four 20kg plates, two of the 10kg and three of the 5kg plates) have loose centres. That is, the visible metal that the barbell sleeve slides inside.
This looseness is not too noticeable on the 20kg or 5kg plates, but on the 10kg plates, it is much more distinct. The centres shift a few mm each way, and makes the plate feel a bit loose when loading it on the bar.
This doesn’t really affect the weight’s utility as a heavy lump that I lift up and down but, of all the rubber-coated plates I’ve used in the past, I’ve never noticed this kind of issue before.
To be honest, neither the cracked/split rubber or the loose central cores of the plates affect my training right now, but if the cracking got worse, or the centre becomes more wobbly (I assume it won’t get less wobbly over time), this could become a problem.
Sam’s Fitness were very fast to send out replacement weights for the two split and one cracked plate, and have told me that they have taken a note that some of my plates have the issue with the central core, in case it gets worse and warrants a replacement.
With these issues combined, I have to question the quality of Power Maxx weights.
If anybody else has similar experience with this brand or any other, I’d be keen to hear it.
Conclusion:
As it stands now, I’d find it hard to recommend these plates.
Power Maxx 1500lb Copper Bushing Olympic Barbell Bar
This is the standard bar that comes packaged with the above gear. I don’t know too much about bushings, bearings or the kinds of materials that make one bar better than another, but a 1500lb load limit sounded tough, so I figured it would be more than enough for my meager needs.
Pros:
It turns out the 1500lb weight rating is related to the thickness of the bar. Apparently this one is slightly thicker than average, which is fine by me, but not particularly noticeable.
Cons:
This bar has some pretty rough knurling. It is pointy and has a sharp chrome finish. My delicate office-worker hands are quickly getting accustomed to it, but it’s certainly a bit uncomfortable at first.
The main issue with this bar, however, is the sleeves.
One of the sleeves gets a couple of rotations if I spin it as hard as I can, but the other typically can’t do a full rotation without significant assistance past a sticking point. I’m not doing any dynamic Olympic-type lifts right now, so I don’t need a low-friction, smoothly spinning sleeve, but this one is definitely not right.
Again, writing to Sam’s Fitness, they were pretty responsive, suggesting that I load the bar up with some plates and see if this helped.
It didn’t.
However, Sam says that bushings can take some time to wear in and, as the issue isn’t affecting my lifts right now, I’m happy to keep using the bar and see what happens.
If the issue is still there in a few months when I start hitting my stride and wanting to perform snatches, power cleans, etc., I’ll be getting back in touch with Sam’s Fitness to get the issue resolved.
Conclusion:
Combined with the issues with the weight plates, above, I couldn’t really recommend the Power Maxx range of products.
Power Maxx Olympic Dumbbell Bars
Without access to a full set of fixed dumbbells, I figured I’d be able to make use of my Olympic plates together with some dumbbell handles to do accessory exercises.
These handles are also made by Power Maxx (although there is no branding anywhere to be seen).
Pros:
They are what they are, as advertised, and there’s nothing much more to them than that.
Cons:
The one complaint I have with these bars is that the diameter of the sleeves is slightly smaller than the barbell, so the weights don’t fit quite as tightly. You get a bit of rattling when lifting, but nothing too terrible.
A complaint I have that isn’t related to these dumbbells in particular is the use of spring collars. I hate these things, but they’re all I have right now.
I’m looking to get some lock jaws or similar, because I find the spring collars a pain to put on and off, particularly if I’m trying to strip weight off after each set and my grip is fatigued.
Conclusion:
Fixed dumbbells would be nice, but if you don’t have the cash or room, these should do the job.
Service
Sam’s Fitness have a good reputation for customer service on this board and with good reason.
The staff at Sam’s Fitness have been responsive from the first day when I asked for measurements of the rack. They gave a reasonable discount for bundling the gear together (although they don't give AusBB members special discounts). They then shipped the order very quickly and were very fast to responde to emails and send replacements for the faulty parts.
I would definitely recommend buying either Powertec or Ironmaster gear from Sam’s Fitness, but couldn’t advise buying Power Maxx equipment, based on my personal experience with those products.
Let me know if you have any questions. I'd be happy to answer.
