Before you purchase anything, check out Ironmaster.com. I purchased their Quick-Lock Dumbbell set with rack (up to 75lbs each) as well as their Super Bench and many of the attachments and add-on kit for the dumbbells.
I am highly satisfied with their products. The dumbbells are high-quality and very durable. They also feel and look like the fixed dumbbells you find in most gyms and they don’t restrict you from performing certain movements like the PowerBlock or Bow-tech selectorized dumbbells. They are also made of solid metal, so they can be dropped and won’t break.
Their Super Bench is one of the best benches I have ever used. It’s very strong and can go from flat, decline or incline positions quickly and easily. It’s also more affordable than many other benches available (and it comes with a removable seat for performing seated military presses and other exercises).
With the Ironmaster Quick-Lock Dumbbells with rack and Super Bench, you would have a pretty sweet home set up for [u]$600[/u].
You could then build a home gym as money and space permits by adding a power rack, barbell, weights, etc.
I’ve built my home gym during the past 3.5 years to include the following:
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Body Solid Power Rack with lat/row attachment - great thing to have - $399 (from Play It Again Sports - one of the best investments ever!)
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Various bars for the lat/row attachment (triceps rope, straight bar, lat bar, v-bar, etc.) - ~$60 (some were new and some were used but practically brand new from Play It Again Sports)
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Ironmaster Super Bench - $822 (as part of the package listed below that included the quick-lock dumbbells to 75lbs and rack, Super Bench and all attachments)
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Ironmaster Quick-Lock Dumbbells with rack
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Ironmaster attachments (preacher curl, leg extension/leg curl, ab attachment and dip bar)
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Ironmaster add-on dumbbell kit (goes up to 120lbs per dumbbell) - $180
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Texas Power Bar - $225
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300lbs Olympic barbell set - $119 + a few additional 35lbs plates I had purchased a few years before. I purchased the 300lb set at Play it Again Sports
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Weight Tree - $25 (Play It Again Sports)
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EZ Curl Bar - $22 (Play It Again Sports)
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OOOF Med Balls - ~$45 (4lbs, 6lbs, 9lbs)
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Elite FTS Dragging Sled - $130 (when I bought it in 2001 from Elite and it came with two straps!)
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Jump Rope from Champs Sports - $5.99
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Elite FTS Blast Straps - $55
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40lb Xvest - $169 (buy this from Renegade Training. You can get it even cheaper now!)
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16kg and 24kg Kbells from Dragondoor - ~$190 for both back in 2001. I now recommend buying the Iron Woody kbells from Renegade Training.
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Josh Henkin sandbags - $~140 for the small and medium bags (I then made my own sandbags)
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Iron Woody sandbags (60lbs and 80lbs) - $200 (buy them from Renegade Training when they have specials)
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Iron Woody mini bands - ~$16 (get them from Renegade Training)
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Hex Dumbbells (5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30lbs) - From Play It Again Sports (some new, some used)
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Two and three-board presses from Elite FTS (you can make these if you have the tools)
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Foam Roller - $18 (Elite FTS)
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Additional little things at home including other Jump Stretch bands (light and average band) from Elite FTS, push-up bars, etc.
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Two, 4x6’ 1/2" thick rubber mats from a FEED store - $75
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Flat bench - $60 (From Play It Again Sports - I bought this at the same time I bought my rack and barbell set. I had a very basic set up. But it worked great for nearly two years until I could add more to it).
I think that I have a pretty sweet set up. It’s taken a few years to build, but I have everything I need. The only things on my wish list are the Elite Glute-Ham Bench and the new “Econo” Prowler from Elite FTS.
I’ll take some new pictures soon, as the one above doesn’t show the lat/row attachment on my power rack (I added it last year but originally purchased the power rack in July 2004) as well as all the other things I’ve added in the last year or two.
I started out with only the Body Solid Power Rack (no lat/row attachment), flat bench, 300lbs Olympic barbell set, weight tree, EZ curl bar, black rubber mats and a few things I already had before that such as my kbells, Elite dragging sled, jump rope and med balls. I originally spent less than $600 to start my home gym. I think I’m still under $3,000 total for everything I have.
