I've been a serious weightlifter for 43 years at this point and can't write a review that would give this "preacher bench" adequate justice - it's that good. I've traditionally been a loyal customer of a more expensive brand of home gym equipment and this one purchase has convinced me I'll be buying Valor products from this point based upon the value, quality and attention to detail reflected in this bench.With respect to particulars, this preacher bench excels in every category. I've purchased 2 other preacher benches in the past, and they both had a bar rest that consisted of a single upright bar that was totally inadequate for the job...Valor wisely chose to incorporate the "field goal post" design used in all quality gym grade preacher benches. This is particularly important because you should be extremely fatigued after you've completed your set of curls, and accidents happen when you have to summon up the energy to stand up, lean over and carefully balance your curling bar on a single upright pole even if it fans out on either side for several inches. Valor has noted previous purchaser's comments about the rubber pads and the current model I received came a heavy duty rubber (rather than cheap foam) coating that covers each of the bar rests...they'll last a lifetime, even if you're dropping a bar with lots of weight on them at the end of a set. All serious weight lifters will be using a curved curling bar with this bench, which makes the "goal post" bar rest a necessity rather than an attractive feature...if you have a preacher bench with a single upright bar rest, a curling bar will balance precariously at best when not in use or between sets, requiring you to take the bar off the machine simply to add quarter pound plates...if you attempt to do so, the opposite end of the bar will flip up, likely hit you and dump all of the plates on the opposite end of the bar before bouncing back up and dumping the plates on the opposite end. However, the "field goal" bar rests allow you to add or remove even heavier plates safely, even if children are in the area.In addition, the armrest is amply and solidly padded, covered in a material that will last for the life of the bench and, perhaps most importantly, welded to the frame at the precise angle needed for curling effectively.I noticed that quite a few other reviews faulted this preacher bench being "wobbly" in one way or another. With all due respect, those comments are incorrect - so long as you adhere to the following instructions whenever you make any height adjustments to any of the components:1) With the adjusting screw out far enough to allow the bars with the holes in it to move smoothly up and down (be careful not to unscrew the knob too far), line the securing end of the adjusting screw up with the hole on the inner bar closest to the hight you've selected. You'll be able to confirm you've done so if you begin tightening the knob and don't feel resistance too soon...if you've lined up the components correctly, you'll be screwing the knob clockwise for some time, verifying that the other end of the bolt is entering the hole in the other bar.2) Provided you're twisting the bolt all the way into the hole, you'll begin to feel it gradually tighten as the end of the bolt enters the hole on the opposite side of the bar you're securing in place. If you've made a mistake and aren't inserting the bolt into the corresponding hole, you'll feel much more resistance earlier on and will only be able to turn the knob about one additional turn before it's too tight to turn any further. Provided you're doing things correctly, however, the knob will gradually tighten as the opposite end of the bolt enters the second hole on the bar you're adjusting. DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN THE BOLT OR YOU'LL STRIP THE THREADS...when you meet firm resistance, stop turning - you're done.If you take the time to make your adjustments correctly, this preacher bench is solid as a rock and you can safety use enough plates for even the most strenuous lifting without feeling ANY wobbling of any kind in any of the components. I've never seen a preacher bench in this class that's more solid and sturdy than this Valor model.Note that it will take an inordinate amount of time to make repeated adjustments to any of the components without exposing your preacher bench to undue wear and tear. While this is a remarkable piece of home gym equipment, it is not designed to be repeatedly adjusted on a daily basis, so find your ideal settings for your particular needs and leave them be. While this is a fantastically rugged and durable piece of equipment, it is not a piece of equipment you'd find in a gym used by hundreds of people day in and day out costing upwards of $5,000 to $10,000. It will allow you to do everything a premium preacher bench you'd find in a good gym (and more, because none of them allow you to adjust as many variables as this Valor product, but professional gym equipment is designed specifically to be abused. For instance, no gym-quality preacher bench would have a plastic gasket, or even a gasket in the first place. Instead, it would have steel notches you'd use to make height adjustments. That doesn't mean a far more expensive piece of gym equipment is superior...because it's not meant to be readjusted several hundred times a week, this Valor preacher bench allows you to make much more precise adjustments than one you'd find in a gym and therefore produce desired results much more quickly.With that caveat, I'd strongly recommend you purchase this Valor preacher bench for a lifetime of heavy lifting...and then pass it on to your child or grandchild, as it's that rugged. If you do have to make constant adjustments (perhaps you plan on working out with a friend), just be careful to take the time to make any adjustments correctly. Even if you weren't careful, you're not going to do irreparable harm to this preacher bench...I'd imagine any of the components subject to wear and tear can be easily replaced by contacting Valor and ordering replacements, and the components in question would be nominally priced compared to your initial investment - you'd probably wind up paying more for shipping than you will for the components in question.I apologize for such a lengthy review, but I wanted to take the time to clear up what I believe to be some of the confusion arising from other comments...you learn quite a bit about gym equipment with nearly half a century worth of weightlifting experience.You simply won't find a better preacher bench in this price range, even if you decide to spend twice as much on a different one. Apparently the engineers and designers are serious weightlifters themselves, as it would have been impossible for them to make this piece of equipment unless they use it themselves after years of trial and error using other preacher benches they weren't completely satisfied with.

I really like this! It is my first Valor product and I’m happy with the quality. For the price I was worried about what I might get. I would not say it’s commercial gym quality (no comparison to Cybex, LifeFitness and so on) but plenty good enough for my home gym. I’m someone who does appreciate solid well built equipment though!Easy to put together. Came with a couple minor paint chips but that’s the usual in my experience with big boxes of gym equipment shipped UPS or FedEx. If I was worried about it I would touch it up... but I am not.This piece is pretty heavy and doesn’t move around when using it on my carpet. I’m 230 pounds.The pads are pretty thick. Not commercial gym thick but I believe I should get quite a few years out of it without concerns of rips. The pad is thicker than my Body Solid machines for sure.The supports that hold your barbells are a type of hard rubber. As you can see in my photos after a few weeks of use the knurling has already left marks. The rubber seems of good quality and I don’t have any concern of it chipping or otherwise falling apart. I was hoping for a polymer type material like you see on commercial pieces (nylon or UHMW??)It would be nice if it had height adjustments but I can still get a great workout as is. I’m 6’1” for reference.I’m very happy with my purchase and hope to put on more size in my biceps. The spider curl is a great workout. I would not hesitate to purchase another Valor product.

Well built. Solid. Not pro gym quality but close to it. I am 6 feet tall and about 240lbs with a medium frame. Pads are more than wide enough for me. Pads are very thick yet comfortable.However, I only have about 2 inches of clearance between my hands and the bar holders when racking the bar at the end of each set. This works for me but anyone taller than 6 feet might have a problem getting a full range of motion with curls using this curl bench.So I deducted one star because I wish the pads and bar holders were height adjustable. Other than that one caveat this curl bench is fantastic. The angles for preacher curl side and the spider curl side are perfect.Thus you can build good biceps peak using spider curls and overall mass using preacher curls with this bench. It is worth the price and has a fairly compact footprint. I highly recommend this unit if you have the budget and space for it.

Picked this up to add to my home gym. I prefer spider curls to seated preachers due to some injuries and feeling a better pump, so decided to try this bench out. I was pleasantly surprised at the build quality, this bench could easily be used in a commercial gym in regard to the frame and construction. The padding is very dense and feels very comfortable, it's not at the same level as a commercial gym but it's very acceptable. Arm rest covers are very professionally finished and stitched and what I appreciate the most is that their logo is the same color as the pleather, so it matches my other machines. I routinely do spider curls with 60-100 lbs. with no issues, foam/covers hold up, frame is rock solid. My only wish would have been for the armrests to be adjustable up/down as they are in commercial gyms, but I would not expect to be able to get it this cheap if that were the case so it's only a wish list for me. It's a bit low (I'm 5'9") but this allows the weight to be lifted off the rack, I just bend my knees slightly and hook my feet in front of the bottom frame.Customer service: The fit was perfect, no issues assembling it except one of the bolt receptacles on the arm rest would not accept the bolt no matter how much I tried. I suspect it was deformed. Contacted customer service, they were lightning fast and only asked for pictures, sent me a new arm rest right away. It's refreshing to see customer service like this and I will be buying more equipment from them.

Awesome Christmas present for my son and the timing is perfect with the closure of GYMs due to Covid-19 restrictions.The Adjustable Arm Curl Bench provides for an optimal work out of the bicep muscles.HoMart has been easy to work with and helpful when making a correction on the order which was my error.Very cooperative customer service.

Even though the bench is well built overall, it arrived with a major manufacturing defect, i.e. the metal cylinders that normally receive the curling pad screws were missing. I finally found a way to fix this with some wood, longer screws and plumbing galvanized strapping, but it was quite frustrating.