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4.7 out of 5 stars

Top positive review
16 people found this helpful
Great option for easily adjustable space saving dumbbells, better choice than Bowflex
By Dave on Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2020
I've worked out with weights at the gym for years, never bothered with home gym equipment because they tend to cheaply made, take up space and ultimately are no more convenient than just going to the gym ... and then COVID-19 hit and everything changed. I am at that age (63) where if I go for 1, 2 or maybe 3 months waiting for the gym to open I might never be able to get back to in shape. Dumbbells are a key part of my workout, I need them for bench chest press, seated shoulder press and shoulder shrugs. I use 80, 75 & 70 for chest press, 55, 50 & 45 for shoulder press and 90, 85 & 80, for shrugs. I would need a lot of separate weights which can be expensive and take up a lot of space. The format is key, I am only 5'8" and weight 150lbs, so when I do the 80's on the bench press I need to rest them on thighs/knees and then use my legs to help me get them up, so the typical adjustable where you screw on the weights won't work because the won't comfortably rest on my legs. The only two options being the bowflex and these. The bowflex appear to be very good as the look like a regular dumbbell with a slick way to change weights, however I had the occasion a few years back to try them and wasn't impressed as they didn't seem very solid (too plasticy), they don't really rest flat on your thigh and it is hard to find the set that goes over 55lbs. These seem ideal, as I got the stage 2 and 3 to get up to 90lbs and they will fit flat on you leg. The concern was that look like some rinky dink thing you would see on an infomercial. Plus you put your in this odd looking bear trap cage thing. But while they look rinky dink, they are actually very robust and an intelligent design. Most of the gym stuff that I've gotten only have to be 'good enough' to bridge me over for a few months and not something I would get if I were building a serious home gym, but these are much better than 'good enough' and they are a reasonable alternative to proper dumbbells if space and convenience is an issue. While I prefer the fixed weight dumbbells at the gym, the compromise you make for space savings and flexibility is not too significant and I could see these being part of a serious home gym. They may become a permanent option after COVID for the days I can't drag my butt to the gym. It is still a compromise vs. proper dumbbells but if you are looking for adjustable like these, then you will be impressed. The Bowflex may look pretty, and these not so much, but these are more durable and usable. update 11 June: now that I have been using them for a few months, I am even happier with them than I was before. Their Compact heavy duty weight stand is a must, but at only $69 it is well worth. It holds the weight at the right height to work with, a big plus is that it keeps things lined up so that the plastic pin slides in and out easily.
Top critical review
147 people found this helpful
Good product but had to return
By BlueJay12 on Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2019
I bought these because they were expandable to at least 90 lbs. They are metal, not urethane covered, so they're somewhat shorter when you stack on more weight than the urethane covered pro version. It gives a more manly look for your gym than the other plastic options on the market. The handle is rubber-coated and sized well for comfort. Changing out the 2.5 lb metal tubes was easy and fast. Take the base unit out, flip a switch, tilt, and both metal tubes slide out. Flip the switch back and you're ready to start your next exercise. Some of the people who complain about the time for this swap-out must work for infomercials, you know, the kind of people who can't pour a glass of water without making a wreck of the kitchen. After a few workouts, it took me under 10 seconds to unlock the base unit, flip the switch, tilt out the tubes, flip the switch, and put it back in the weight stack. Having said how great these weights are, I had to return them for a refund. I'm an average size guy, 5'10", with average hands. I use a thin leather strip for grip-assists. The problem is, the dumbbell handle is seated too low on the weights. This leaves very little room between the handle and the tubes for the 2.5 lb weights that are just underneath. When I'm lifting moderate weight, the dumbbells often turn in my hand which causes my knuckles to grind against the two weight tubes. My son also complains about his knuckles grinding against the weight tubes during sets even though he doesn't use any grip-assists. Too much pain to be worth the hundreds spent for this product. Also, I spend about 30 seconds each time I want to grip the dumbbell handles using my grip-assists. There's just very little room between the handle and the weight tubes underneath. I have to wiggle back and forth for 20-30 seconds each time I want to grip my weights before an exercise. I went to a showroom and tried out other Powerblock versions and none of them had this problem this problem of the Powerblock EXP's . The Pro version is more expensive but I ended up buying those because the Powerblock combination of ergonomics, durability, and convenience is superior to anything out there right now.

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