Power Rack decision

I want to purchase a power rack.
I think I’ve narrowed my decision to:

  • C-8510 powerrack from New York barbell: $350, free shipping
  • Parabody rack: $500, store is down the street from me
  • EliteFitness Standard Power Rack: $600 plus $165 shipping

C-8510 is least expensive, (marked down from $600 if that means anything). Is this a quality product?

  • Parabody I have demo’ed and can live with.
  • EliteFitness has closer spaces holes, is more expensive and takes 4-6 weeks to ship - I expect it is good quality (true?) Is it worth the wait?

Any feedback would be appreciated. I’m tempted to go with the NYBarbell rack, all things being equal due to price. Are they a reliable company? How quickly do they ship things? is the rack any good?

Elite. I’d wait 6 months if I had to… it’ll be worth it.

is that what you use?

I don’t have one myself, but I have used somebody elses. It blew every other rack I’ve used away.

I swear I felt stronger just standing inside of it… I think just knowing it came from Dave Tate did it for me… corny, but no bullshit.

Besides that, with all the free information they give out – If they carry it, I’ll buy it from them.

I have a power rack from NY barbell. Nothing fancy but it does the job. The only thing negative I can say is that I wish it had a little more depth(distance between front and back). Other than that I can’t complain. If you want to spend the extra money I’m sure you will get a better product but unless your pushing 800lb I don’t think it really makes a difference.

I’ve bought many things from both New York Barbell and Elite. I like New York for little things like a preacher bench, calf raise, cheap mats, cheap plates, etc… But the quality of their racks and heavy duty equipment isn’t great. If you squat under 400 and never really plan on going above, then a TDS/New York one is fine. But if you plan on putting up anymore weight you better go with Elite. Also, the prices at elite are a little cheaper then what you posted. It is 500 for the rack now, and 235 for shipping.

Also, the shipping and turnover time for New York is about a week depending on if that’s all you’re ordering.

This has been a paid advertisement for elitefts.com by Dave Tate… joking.

Get the elite, you won’t regret it. It’s the best rack I’ve seen. You can also add on some nice accessories.

Remember, equipment doesn’t spoil. In a year or two you won’t notice the difference in money in your pocket.

The Elite Fitness ‘build your own’ Rack has some options I’m not sure whether to get.
Is it worth getting:
-Extra set of J hooks?
-extra set of spot pins?
-Band Pegs?
-Dip attachment?

Also, any comments on lat/row cable:
separate machine vs attachment to rack?

I would purchase from Elite as you can be sure that you will be buying the best quality equipment.

However I got my rack from www.westside-barbell.com and it is top quality.
If you speak to Doris Simmons she will be able to help you with any specific designs you may have in mind.

I would get the dip attachment.

I’d say that depends on what you want dude… Do you use bands? Get the pegs. You like dips? Get the attachment.

I don’t know if extra J-hooks or pins are necessary… I might grab the extra pins if they weren’t too much extra.

I have a new york barbell power rack. I believe it is the same one you mention except I bought mine around 1995. I think it is good, not great, quality. I’ve trained up to about 650 pounds and it does the job and I’m very satisfied with it. A main factor to consider when buying a power rack is the guage of steel the manufacturer uses. I don’t know what the new york barbell rack is, but I am sure it is not 11 guage steel (which is what I believe the highest quality racks are made of). The guage is the thickness of the steel. Make sure you know that before you buy. I’m not sure how the “guage of steel” system works, whether say 8 is thicker than 11 etc. Also, power racks that are welded together are stronger than those that have screws, but they are a hell of a lot more expensive to ship (all one piece). If the rack you want has screws, look for thick screws. One article I read suggested screws of 1/2 inches thick, but even my new york barbell rack doesn’t meet that. But my rack does have a capacity of 1000 lbs. I didn’t have any probs with the customer service, etc.

I’ve used Beni’s power rack at his facility in Birmingham Uk.

I can vouch for it’s quality… As can DrSTU who got stapled to bottom once… hehe…

Stubob…

I ordered the EliteFitness Squat Rack and got the flat bench to go with it.

I called EliteFTS to clear up some questions I had and Jim Wendler answered. We had a good chat - I was at the Boston Force Training seminar in January. He also helped me figure out what configuration would work best for me.
Now its “4-6 weeks” until my rack and bench arrive!!!

If the pictures are accurate, the EliteFitness and Westside racks look like the same thing (different color).