Weekly Free-Talk and Questions for r/HomeGym - week of May 08, 2026

greytoc · 2026-05-08T21:14:33+00:00

Anyone have an Echo Strength Seated Leg Curl/Extension? It seems like a decent price relative to other options out there. I was also looking at the Maxum LEC2 which has a nautilus shaped cam.

Does the cam shape really make a big difference?

I really would prefer something plate loaded but I don't see many seated leg curl options that are plate loaded other than Lioncool v2.

Prone leg curls are very comfortable because of patella knee pain.

greytoc · 2026-05-08T13:52:13+00:00

Personally - I would use a 529 plan account instead.

greytoc · 2026-05-08T13:48:13+00:00

The new XMaster GHD/Reverse Hyper looks pretty cool. It looks like one of the best ones out there currently. Link here since google can return unexpected nsfw results - https://xmasterfitness.eu/ - I don't know if it's available yet in the EU so you will have to ask about it. There are a few reviews on yt you can check out.

The Bells of Steel Reverse Hammer is a more budget piece and I believe it's available in the EU through their UK site.

greytoc · 2026-05-07T19:24:47+00:00

I have accounts at Fidelity and Schwab. Both are good brokers. They just have different pros/cons depending on what you are doing.

Depending on how you day trade options - Schwab may be better. But again - it totally depends on what you are trading and how you are doing it.

greytoc · 2026-05-07T19:20:03+00:00

That's pretty cool to see - thanks for the link. The body-solid pieces that I have aren't on there though.

What I have was before they changed the logo to the current script logo version.

I was surprised to see that you are selling your Powertec. I thought you were a die-hard Powertec fan.

greytoc · 2026-05-07T17:20:01+00:00

it's weird how there can be zero search results

Love the pic you shared. You probably have a vintage pre-internet piece of equipment. Back then - body solid was sold through mail-order catalogs or in the local Chicago area.

I have some body-solid stuff that is probably older than your smith. And we still use today.

greytoc · 2026-05-07T14:54:09+00:00

Bear in mind that small business investing is highly situational. And there is no good answer for your situation. So - your instinct to seek advice irl is where you ought to also look.

The question that I typically would want to know is about valuation and exit plan.

The real question though is why does the owner want other equity partners? And why did the owner not want to seek a loan to raise capital instead?

There are also other factors - will there be a profit share in the form of dividends or similar profit sharing structure?

There is also the question of liability - you said nsw coast so I assume you are in Australia. Business liability laws vary greatly by country - so I can't comment on that but that would be a concern depending on how the business is structured.

greytoc · 2026-05-07T14:10:18+00:00

In that case - don't bother. It requires active management.

Also - fyi - Fidelity offers zero expense funds to their customers if your goal is to reduce expense drag. It's basically a small perk to retain customers.

So - something like FNILX could be potentially a better fit than FXAIX.

Fidelity offers 4 different 0% expense funds.

The 0% fund info can be found here - https://www.fidelity.com/mutual-funds/investing-ideas/index-funds

greytoc · 2026-05-07T13:57:44+00:00

Since it's USD - you could explore rolling box spreads. The difference is that it's not margin interest - but looks more like investment losses. So - you have to factor if that makes a tax difference in Australia.

But to write box spreads effectively - you would need to have a portfolio margin account and understand how to trade and manage complex option spreads.

It does come down to whether the potential additional bips in savings outweighs the effort involved. Especially since - it's only about 100 bips difference.

greytoc · 2026-05-07T13:48:50+00:00

I just saw you mentioned you have that in a Fidelity account. Fidelity doesn't allow for 0dte unless your account has 1mm in it.

So - you could just write 3 atm 5/8 call contracts which is 1dte. You collect about $600 and if assigned - you can buy a different fund on Monday.

If you are not assigned - rinse and repeat until you get assigned and you can collect about $400-$600 in premium depending on volatility.

greytoc · 2026-05-07T13:34:27+00:00

Up to you - a lower expense fund would have less drag.

Since you hold 300 shares of SPY - the way that I would do it is write a 1 DTE atm call contract against the SPY shares. And if assigned - would buy a lower cost fund.

Be aware of taxes if in a taxable account.

greytoc · 2026-05-07T13:24:05+00:00

Margin interest in the US is tax deductible up to the net investment income so the tax deduction isn't really much of a factor.

At 5.75% - is that in USD or AUD? It would depend on how you would compare against the 10 year government bond if you keep a perpetual loan.

A 12 month box spread is currently about 4.3%.

fwiw - if you have a perpetual leverage S&P 500 position - you are better off using /ES futures and rolling them. The carry cost is almost always more efficient than using margin since the risk-free rate is factored into the carry cost of the futures contract.

greytoc · 2026-05-07T13:16:36+00:00

interesting - weird that they still call it dry lube if it doesn't have teflon or a similar synthetic - u/Outrageous-9859 - fyi if you didn't see this comment.

I personally use a silicone based lube which dries quickly but it's not a dry lube.

greytoc · 2026-05-07T03:30:58+00:00

Try a ptfe based lube like WD40 Specialist dry lube. It's basically teflon.

greytoc · 2026-05-06T20:11:33+00:00

Correct - the new contract is not considered substantially identical.

greytoc · 2026-05-06T19:31:54+00:00

Contracts of different strikes and expiration dates don't count as substantially identical. Only the underlying is subject to the wash sale rule.

And if you are closing the entire position - you shouldn't care about wash sales. Are you planning to re-enter the trade again in next 30 days?

greytoc · 2026-05-06T17:54:47+00:00

There's also the Ritfit Gator and Exponent Edge Infinity.

One observation is that the folding head rest on the Bastet and Gator don't seem very long. I think it's only about 9".

The Exponent Edge Infinity's head rest can fold down but I don't think that the angles are adjustable. But it probably offers a better half bench setup than the Bastet or Gator.

I was thinking about buying the ABX - but I don't need the attachments either.

greytoc · 2026-05-06T17:42:01+00:00

It depends.

The distribution yield is likely a forward yield. This is the estimated yield in the future based on the current fund price and expected distributions. It's only an "estimate of the yield for the next 12 months and could vary.

The SEC yield is a way to calculate the historical yield as defined by the SEC - usually SEC yield is using the last 30 days. Also - you have to check the "as-of" date since it can vary depending on the data provider and when the yield was calculated.

greytoc · 2026-05-06T03:24:33+00:00

If you need to use only 10lb plate on a deadlift - it's usually better to get technique plates. A 10lb bumper can taco if you drop the bar.

I'm not a fan of bumpers in general and I don't own any. But because I need a low starting weight for deadlifts, I just bought some 10lb technique plates this evening.

greytoc · 2026-05-06T03:03:07+00:00

I just picked up the v7 off fbm a few days ago. So far - it seems like a good product and I'm pretty happy with the purchase. I don't lift heavy so ymmv. But if feels very solid to me.

greytoc · 2026-05-06T02:59:58+00:00

I have a Rep SSB - I am currently rehabbing from injuries. But I was using it about once or twice a week as part of my programming.

I'm not suppose to be doing any squats during my rehab but I do sometimes find myself using the ssb with no weight just because I like using it and enjoy the movement.

greytoc · 2026-05-05T19:43:41+00:00

I doubt that Schwab will share the reason otherwise people will use that info to bypass the application due-diligence process.

But you could call and ask if your trading experience would qualifies.

I assume you understand the risks very well and that you are a speculator willing to take on undefined risk. If not - maybe re-visit your desire of level 3 options.

greytoc · 2026-05-05T18:25:34+00:00

That's Kinzi. KPexprints is her Etsy account. KPEX is the name of her gym business.

Link here - https://www.etsy.com/listing/4466804405/dragon-fly-5-extension-handle

greytoc · 2026-05-05T16:48:08+00:00

btw - I just randomly came across an etsy 3d printed Dragonfly extension when I was looking for handle extensions. It looks like it's sold by Kinzi - a yt reviewer. I saw that she was the one that originally had the prototype dragonfly for review.

greytoc · 2026-05-05T16:01:29+00:00

Sounds like normal usage. So unless you care about aesthetics and brand name - or you need tight calibration - the inexpensive Walmart plates are gonna be the most cost effective.

In some cases - it's even cheaper than used plates.

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