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2025-06-30 12:54:20
I bought this machine in 2016. It was my very first piece of home gym equipment.It has been disassembled and moved several times, but is still going strong!
Frank
2024-12-19 15:16:24
I was torn whether to give this 5 stars or 4 stars, because the finished product is definitely a 5, but the shipping and assembly was not that great – it was okay – but not great. The product came reasonably quickly, but there were some deep scratches on the pieces – and the paint is not the best quality; some of it flakes off while assembling it. However, a machine like this is gonna get scratched up with use, so not that big of deal. Most of the assembly was easy, but getting the “plate carriage†assemblies and bar together was a pain. There is only a tiny diagram to follow, so it is easy to put it all together slightly wrong – I had to take it apart and do it over. The good thing about this is that the first time I assembled it, it was stiff when rotating the hooks to catch or release the pegs on the frame, so the second time, I used gun-oil on the where the bar and carriage connect – perfect fix – smooth as can be now. The two little spring pins are bigger than the holes, so I couldn’t get them in – but they are not necessary, in fact it works better without them as they would significantly restrict wrist movement.I looked at some other brands that were around the same price range, even tested a Marcy smith machine, there is no comparison. The Valor is MUCH better. It is well designed (but unfortunately made in China). I have had no problems using it – and I love it. The bearings are a little noisy compared to a gym quality Smith Machine, but I got use to it. I am very happy with it.
Steve O'Connell
2024-11-27 11:28:22
Great well made product. Watch the assembly video which is mainly good. Note in addition to the tools they list, you will need an adjustable pipe jawed wrench, a pair of needle nose pliers, and a serious hammer. Also, oddly, the M14 headed screws came with M13 sized nuts. Took me a few seconds to figure out why the nuts were spinning freely inside my box wrench. Finally, consider using a drill to install the bolts - even with a decent ratchet wrench it was a lot of work. Else a couple of things if you are working solo:1. The guy in the video oddly suggests you might want to put the heavy, 6 foot long chrome guide bars into the frame pieces before finishing the assembly of the frame. Do not do this. It makes the frame much heavier and harder to work with, and there is no point to it. Install the bars after the frame is complete.2. When you attach the two cross members to the first side of the frame, leave them slightly loose. It will make it easier to mate the other end to the other frame piece.3. The guy in the video also suggests you lay the frame down and unseat the bars at the bottom to install the sliding bits. There is no reason to do this. Keep the frame upright, lift each bar with one hand, and install the sliding bits as needed. You can employ the safety catches on the knurled bar to keep it up and out of the way as you slide on the lower springs and safety stops.4. The Olympic sleeves that go on the ends of the knurled bar are held in place by small set screws. I originally thought the set screws were only to keep the sleeves from sliding, but it turns out that they tension the sleeves onto the bar. So you need to really, really screw them down hard, which is not something I usually do when working with such small screws.5. The 14 round pegs attached to either side of the frame spin freely when you are trying to screw them into place. Use the pipe jawed wrench to hold them as needed. Cover them with a cloth if you don't want to scratch them.6. The two bull nosed pegs you need to hammer home on either side of the knurled bar carriage to limit the rotation of the safety catches are a gigantic pain in the butt to install, and my only quibble with the entire unit. It would not be hard to design something much easier to install. Grab the middle of the peg with your needle nosed pliers, position it as best you can, and hammer away like crazy. They are difficult to get seated and take a lot of force to drive home.Else again love the product thus far.
Dean
2024-11-14 11:39:06
Sturdy construction. Great value for the cost. I didn't time myself on assembly, but after unpacking and sorting it was rather straightforward. The only difficult part with assembly was the two split cotter pins that prevent the barbell from spinning. I had to use a thin-nose pair of vise grips to pinch it closed and then hammer into place. it took several attempts (The Instructions did not give any clear way of getting these in. I am mechanically inclined so I was able to figure it out). This machine is very smooth and versatile for many exercises. I use it for squatting, lunges, heavy shoulder shrugs, incline and flat bench work, upright rows. having the plate racks are nice for storage and also to weigh down and stabilize the machine
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