A Smith Machine provides the ideal way to train safely on your own and the Body Solid Powerline Smith Machine represents the ‘entry point’ for such equipment, suitable for the home or garage-based gym.
A Smith machine – for those unfamiliar with the term – is basically like a freeweight on runners. By twisting the bar a few degrees it can be ‘locked’ into the rack at any point in the movement, thus making it safe to use without a spotter. The second you get into trouble you simply twist the bar a few degrees and the rack takes the weight.
At $399 the Body Solid Powerline Smith Machine is one of the cheapest on the market. However – in line with Body Solid’s reputation for supplying good kit – just because it’s cheap it doesn’t mean it’s nasty.
Quite the opposite in fact – it is constructed of heavy duty steel and is good for many years of hard use. Something like this could last a lifetime in a typical home gym.
Sure, if you have $1900 to spare then take a look at the Body Solid Pro Club Counter Balanced Smith Machine but the Powerline offers a decent machine at a good price.
Let’s be straight though – this is an ‘entry level’ machine and as such it’s not going to be up to the really heavy weights needed by a professional bodybuilder or powerlifter, for which you are going to have to pay significant money (such as the Pro Club I mentioned above). I’m just telling it like it is!
Anyway, here’s the spec for the Body Solid Powerline Smith Machine:
- heavy duty steel construction with heavy gauge reinforcement plates and hardware,
- 14 Lockout Points spaced 41/2″ apart for user safety,
- Heavy Duty Adjustable Safeties,
- Heavy Gauge Diamond Plate Foot Plate,
- Patented Super-Glide Nylon Bushings for frictionless movement,
- Standard plates (Weights and Olympic Adapters sold separately),
- 80″H x 45″L x 76″W,
- 1 Year In Home Warranty,
- Shipping included in price.
With an appropriate bench and weights it could be used for a whole range of exercises and is of particular use for bench pressing and shoulder pressing exercises. It’s quite compact too, which is useful for those with limited space.
I would consider this ideal for someone who wishes to train alone at home. You simply cannot train safely on your own without the correct equipment and it is not worth risking an injury. Smith machines are the ideal answer and I recommend checking out the Body Solid Powerline Smith Machine if you are looking for a cost-effective solution.
