Weider XRS 20 Olympic Workout Bench with Independent Squat Rack and Preacher Pad

Although there are a few flaws (just personal opinion, of course), I found this a fantastic bench and rack set for the price. The bench itself is just great, sleek and sturdy. The flexibility of the leg portion is awesome in that you can use it for leg extensions, hamstring curls, wrist curls, and bicep curls, and at just the right angle (and after weighing down the leg portion) you can even use it for declined glute lifts. The rack is sturdy, has awesome weight plate holders that I reeeeeally value, and has safety arms to keep the barbell from falling on your chest in an emergency. The flaws (again, just personal opinion): The rack is much bigger than I anticipated. I even measured the space in advance using the measurements provided, but the rack ended up being way larger. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, mind you, but just wasn't quite what I was expecting. The lips holding the barbell are also much taller than expected. One of the reasons I chose this product was so that I could double the rack as a squat rack--bench press from the front and squat rack from the back. There's just no way that's going to happen. The shape and height of the barbell holder make it awkward to lift it from the back, and the stand is large and awkwardly angled so that you're essentially having to squat while straddling the bottom bar. This wasn't designed as a squat rack, so I can't really complain, but it was certainly a hope I had. Another flaw is the size of the bench seat. It's suuuuuper small and narrow. The bench itself is really nice, but the seat is horribly awkward and uncomfortable. If it were just a bit longer, that'd be fine. As it is, I'm body-up against the post for the preacher curl--eek! And you can't exactly sit farther back because it's not designed to allow that. If I could sit farther back, it'd be terrific. Minor flaw that's again just a personal preference. One reason I chose this was because the bench could be declined as well as inclined. I really wanted to decline the bench for crunches and back lifts. Sadly, the decline of the bench isn't really a thing. There's one notch below straight, but it's half an inch difference from straight. Disappointing. Another flaw is that the safety guards for the barbell aren't adjustable in height. Well, the guard itself is, but the brackets that hold it aren't, and they're pretty wide apart, so I can either have the guard positioned so low that it's flush with my pecs or so high that I'm not able to do a full extension of the press without lowering onto the guard. If the brackets were adjustable, that would be great. I need a spot right in between the two lowest ones so there's room for my chest but still room to lower it fully. The last flaw is the weight holder for the leg extensions. It's waaaaay too big to actually hold weights. Even the clamp is too big. I'm not sure what sort of weights they were expecting to go on there, but the plates certainly aren't the standard 1 or 1.5". And it's especially strange that the plate holders on the rack are the right size while the holder on the leg extension is double the size. Strange. The flaws listed are just personal expectations and body type issues, not criticisms of the bench and rack itself. It's a fantastic bench and rack. I wanted to mention some of the flaws I came across in case these might be issues for others. Even with the flaws, I do love it and am happy with the purchase. It will get a LOT of use!

September 2020 I decided it was time to slow down the aging process. At time of purchase I was 66 and about 15 lbs heavier than I would of liked. I back pack so staying as lean as possible has been important for years now. The problem was I was turning into a weak old fart The revues for this equipment seemed pretty good so I pulled the trigger. Other than just one manufacturing issue. The holes for the squat rack right upright were slightly off center. So the upright was slightly off the vertical. I ended up opening the holes but couldn't get the bolts tight enough to keep it vertical. Vertical is important when hanging over a 100lbs or more to do squats. Anyway I got it vertical then drilled and inserted a couple of heavy duty stainless screws to keep it that way. Its been almost a year and although I'm up to squatting 141lbs and 1/4 squatting 180lbs its fine. Anyway thats my only nitpick and who knows I might be the only one with this complaint. So took on star off for sturdiness. No issues at all with the press bench. Nice equipment I'm glad I pulled the trigger. So anyway here is the result of my work. 151lbs down to 136. Blood pressure 110/75 resting heart rate 60BPM. Much better body definition to where its been noticed. Thumbs up!! A side note. Altered my eating habits...Total Cholesterol from 322 to 213. LDL 241 to 140 and triglycerides 179 to 144. My health care professional said she wont be putting me on medication for the above anytime soon. Fine by me as I'm not ready to join the old fart club "meds" anytime soon. I can recommend this equipment. 300 smackers well spent in my opinion. If I can do it so can you. Just commit.

I bought this Bench to get me over the Covid gym closure crisis. The actual bench and rack were fairly easy to assemble. Some parts seem a little flimsy but to this day, the bench and rack has stood up to everything I put them through. 330lbs was the most that was re-racked and it held up surprisingly well. The rack did sway back but it was to be expected since it is not heavy duty rack. Same goes for setting it up for squats. No problems with lift off or re-racking the bar. You just can't slam it down because it will sway. The safety bars for solo benching are solid and actually do work if you are lifting heavy on your own. The leg and curl attachments are a nice bonus. More so the curl attachment. Very smooth and the actual bar works well. Overall, I really like this set and have since quit my gym.

Easy to assemble, seems to be sturdy, and an excellent value for what I paid. Really happy with this squat rack/bench combo. I like that I can move the bench aside to use the rack - that was one of the reasons I chose this over other combos that had the bench attached. I also like that the bench has a leg developer built in.

I just recently started doing leg exercises and the rolling pads pop off - doesn't secure properly. Removal of the curling pad could have been engineered better - one has to unscrew the pad to remove, and screw in to install; a simple pin would have worked. My product was damaged during delivery and I was told that a replacement part was on the way, but I have yet to receive.

There is nothing disappointing about this piece of exercise equipment. It offers a bench for flies, presses, leg extensions and hamstring curls, an associated squat station, preacher curl configuration and more. Overall, it is a solid piece of equipment at a reasonable price that promises years of uninterrupted service. I do wish that there were alternative variations on the curl bar that would provide both close and wide grips.

Great Item, Great Purchase, Great Value, Great Sword, I used no Instructions to build it, wife was like "WHY?" I simply said: "Cause MERICA. Enough Said! Sandwich Now Woman!" Needless to say, I build it, it was easy, its sturdy, and I can keep an eye on it from the couch... and Im still hungry... T___T

I would like to say at the outset this bench and independent squat rack has meet the majority of my needs. It is well built, and a value BUT it has several design flaws. Flaws that are obvious but nonetheless overlooked by the vendor. I would like to give this unit a “5”, however, the design flaws do impact the utility of the unit and I am giving it a “3”. Please don’t let the “3” dissuade you – do go ahead and purchase it and should you be so inclined you can include several easy improvements to turn the “3” into a “5”. First and most importantly the unit is NOT properly designed for incline bench presses - THE SEAT, UNLIKE THE BACK REST, IS PERMANENTLY BOLTED TO THE BENCH WITH NO ABILITY TO RAISE THE SEAT TO SUPPORT YOUR WEIGHT DURING THE EXECUTION OF THE INCLINE BENCH PRESS (BAD). THE SOLUTION: The attached photos illustrate a temporary solution, I’m having the permanent solution made up to size (15 inches high by 11 inches wide) and upholstered. “If" I knew this I would not have purchased this unit. Alternatively I would have purchased the squat rack and bench separately but with a bench where the seat as well as the back rest were adjustable - such benches are amply available. Currently doing incline bench presses require me to first plant my feet on the floor and then push back with my feet/legs during the movement to stop me from back sliding down - bad. Next flaw. When you assemble this bench you will need a set of vice grips, an impact driver and a ratchet set (preferably). And not just the wrench and Philips recommended by the vendor. The vertical struts of the squat rack require four metal screws for each of the struts (as well as a bolt). The metal screws can not be screwed all the way in by hand with a Philips such that the struts of the squat rack are screwed down and in contact with the base of the squat rack. Thus the squat rack will have a bit of a wobble. You will need an impact driver to securely bring the struts of the squat rack down and onto the base. Additionally, and more importantly, the preacher bench component of the unit is constructed such that it is the palms of your hand that swivels on the handles that support the weight while performing the exercise – kind of tough on the hands. The handles should have been made such that the handles swivel. Just what were they thinking. I use cotton gloves that reduces the friction on the palms of the your hand - makes me wonder who is designing this unit. Now as described above there is a solution to performing the incline bench press without planting your feet on the floor and pushing back with your feet to prevent yourself from sliding down the bench while executing the movement. It bears repeating: Take a ½ inch sheet of plywood that is sized to 15 inches in height by 11 inches in width and use this as an inclined adjustable seat (see photos). It should be obvious where to place this once you have it in your hands and are looking down on the bench – really. This has worked quite well for me – try it. Excepting these issues I have found this unit to work for me. See photos and remember “Not all that is bad is not good."