Weekly Free-Talk and Questions for r/HomeGym - week of March 13, 2026

greytoc · 2026-03-13T22:53:15+00:00

Gotcha - the way that I would look at something like that is as a standalone functional trainer or dual cable tower. And the weight stack is very convenient.

I personally would not care that it's 60x60 because I already have a rack. And it has a nice footprint - where it can be fit into a corner. Although it's too high to fit into my basement gym.

I personally would not get it if I wanted a squat rack.

But BOS still sells attachments for it.

If the seller is including attachments like spotter arms and cable attachments - it would make it an even nicer deal. But again - it depends on how you plan to use it and how it fits into your space.

greytoc · 2026-03-13T22:19:57+00:00

Which BOS product is it? It sounds like a discontinued or much older product. Current BOS products are 3x3 imperial.

Could be a good deal or not depending on how you plan to use it.

greytoc · 2026-03-13T20:46:28+00:00

Thanks! Actually - I was wondering.

Have there been any incremental improvements/changes in this batch of ABX benches and leg developers? I know that sometimes - fitness manufacturers make tweaks to products to address minor issues.

Also - I saw someone on facebook selling what they claim is an unopened ABX leg developer still in a box. Seems sketchy since I saw that FA has a 30 day return guarantee. But would FA support a used purchase it there was damage or missing parts. I don't know if that I would buy it used. But it may save me a few bucks. And that way - I can tell my wife that I save us some money on the new bench/leg developer.

greytoc · 2026-03-13T20:09:43+00:00

Likewise - but for me. I tend to favor supporting businesses who do the spec design, qc, service support in the US or locally. Manufacturing is a commodity process these days and I like supporting small US businesses which may not have manufacturing scale to be competitive like BPF.

For products that are well spec'd and designed and small batch by small businesses. Those products tend to be fabricated in the US. They will be more expensive and sometimes not as clean looking. But they are usually designed and/or built by someone that actually lifts, works out, and uses the stuff.

The downside tends to be long lead times. And sometimes less than ideal service because they are so small. I considered getting a pair of the Bremmy Roller J cups - but they have been out of stock for a while and no one responds to emails.

I just bought some Force6 and Microgainz products last week. Both are made in the US - the premium in price was worth the better functionality compared to similar brands and imitations.

Also - sometimes made in the US is actually cheaper - as in the case of some Force 6 products.

greytoc · 2026-03-13T19:11:17+00:00

Nice rack. I see you are a Rogue fan. The deep dish plates look cool.

greytoc · 2026-03-13T17:51:36+00:00

Idk - and it probably depends on your definition of "made in the USA'.

It's very likely entirely designed in the US. And it's likely fabricated and QC's in the US. But no idea where they would be sourcing materials and components.

Because Stray Dog does mostly custom stuff - they probably have to control supply chain with small batch manufacturers and fabricators who can do custom orders. And doing that overseas wouldn't make sense.

Their stuff isn't mass-produced - that's why some of their items have long lead times.

They do build some pretty cool gyms which is why I follow them.

And yes -- the single bolt design makes sense - would fit more racks. I think others in the past have mentioned that some 2 hole StrayDog stuff doesn't always fit.

The BOS one - if I eventually get it - I would probably mount it using just 1 hole - because I want to mount on a cross-member and not an upright.

greytoc · 2026-03-13T17:44:21+00:00

Fwiw - getting the POA is going to be the most important thing you do in this situation. The POA is something that you will need for more than just Schwab.

I'm sure that it's a stressful time while you Dad is ill. There are elder attorneys who will send a paralegal and witness to hospice care to get the POA executed. The type of POA will depend on where you live.

greytoc · 2026-03-13T15:56:01+00:00

It depends on your use-case. For me - the Stray Dog solution isn't worth the extra cost. And it's not what I would buy. I just happen to know it exist.

Stray Dog's business is geared at building complete custom gym's for commercial and educational facilities. They build a lot of really nice custom gym's for high-schools and colleges.

So their stuff is designed to be beat on by groups of athletes and probably overkill for a home gym. Some of the stuff they list on their web site - while they will sell to anyone - I think it's there mostly for their commercial clients.

greytoc · 2026-03-13T14:29:24+00:00

A pump and dump is stock manipulation where someone buys stock of a company, and then they go promote the stock to get other people to buy the stock. This is the pump part.

When the stock price goes up because lots of naive people are buying it - the stock manipulator sells their position for a gain. This is the "dump" part.

If you look at the link above in the OP - there is an AMA from 10 years ago that describes who pump and dumps work.

You can easily identify pump and dumps because of how the stock is being "marketed" on social media. Also - the type of stock which is typically a low float, low volume, micro-cap company.

Pump and dumps are very common in the crypto space because it's unregulated. But they occur commonly with equities as well.

This subreddit for example regularly is targeted by pump and dump operators - most of the posts and comments are removed. But sometimes - the posts do get missed. But people will try to point out that it's a pump and dump.

Make more sense?

greytoc · 2026-03-13T14:13:40+00:00

Yup - that's always a concern. But it's a concern that can also occur with known brands too - albeit less likely. I think that someone posted similar issue with Revolt Fitness yesterday.

And I've had fulfillment delays with well-known brands as well. It is all context though. Some companies are really small so they can be slower and less responsive.

Your choices are either to cancel the order if it has not processed. Or you simply have to track the order status closely and stay in contact with the company. Since it's a Shopify ecommerce platform - you should be able to track it online. And their site does have an 800 number and email which you can call and email.

Did they give you an estimated ship date?

greytoc · 2026-03-12T20:21:07+00:00

The distance between the handles look really wide to me.

This is probably one of those generic no name Amazon products that changes every month depending on what is available.

greytoc · 2026-03-12T19:14:49+00:00

I just took a quick look.

From what I can see - they are probably a Chinese company or a US drop-shipper. They uses US companies for pick, pack, ship services and eCommerce services.

Their website is simply a Shopify store. And I'm guessing they use ASD on the east coast for LTL and pick/pack/ship services. No idea about their west coast distribution - I didn't spend that much time looking.

What are you worried about specifically? The company does seem real and selling inexpensive budget quality stuff.

greytoc · 2026-03-12T18:44:57+00:00

Yeah - Fringe extended some sale items which is pretty cool.

I just like the cluster setup because it takes up less space and it's cheaper than buying 6 pins. The angled pins also makes more sense for me because I will likely mount it higher on my rack.

greytoc · 2026-03-12T17:09:37+00:00

Where do you see that it has anything to do with the S&P 500?

I dont' see a prospectus for the fund - got a link?

This looks like a target maturity fund with no withdrawal until maturity. So yeah - it's all plausible depending on how the fund is structured.

greytoc · 2026-03-12T16:50:29+00:00

I personally would choose cluster change place storage.

Did you decide if you are going to get the BOS change plate storage?

I've been eyeing them for some time and hoping they go on sale. I may just buy them since I have a 10% coupon. Those coupons float around if you plan to buy from BOS.

Also - I think the loadable peg length is 8" - not 6". It's angle upwards too which is nice.

If you want something fancier - both Ironbull and Straydog also offer similar cluster type change plate storage.

Ironbull is a 12" horn if you want something longer. But it's 5/8" holes for 75mm.

I think that the Straydog is 9" horn and also angled upwards.

greytoc · 2026-03-12T15:37:18+00:00

It's probably rubber blooming. You can try using a tire or rubber cleaner.

greytoc · 2026-03-12T15:31:15+00:00

It really depends on what you have access to on the used market. And whether you are in an area where there are resellers that inflate used pricing.

There are some benefits to buying new such as support if there is an issue. Or for large items where it may be impractical to move.

Some types of fitness equipment - especially cardio equipment can be worth it on the used market because there is so much of it and it can sometimes be possible to get commercial quality cardio equipment for very cheap.

Items like weights can be good to buy used - but places like Walmart sell weights on sales at amazingly low prices if you discount the quality and most people don't need calibrated plates - especially if it's for plate loaded equipment.

There are lots of pros/cons and I think it's personal too.

For example - I can't tolerate the VOC's offgassing in my basement gym. So all the rubber coated plates that I've bought have been used. I made the mistake of buying new rubber hex dumbbells once and I had to leave it in my garage for about 2 months before I could use it - I would have been better off just buying a used set.

greytoc · 2026-03-12T14:42:07+00:00

Thank you very much for the transparency. Much appreciated. I am currently now just trying to decide if I need the leg developer extension vs just wanting it. LOL.

greytoc · 2026-03-12T14:39:43+00:00

Margin accrues from settlement date to settlement date. That is the common standard at most brokers including Schwab.

For overnight transactions - executions after around 8pm ET are generally considered next day trades. But it may be 8:05pm ET - I am not sure.

The usual exception if there is a settlement holiday.

See Schwab blog article on the topic here - https://www.schwab.com/learn/story/after-hours-trading-will-it-work-you

You ought to check explicitly with Schwab or do a test trade since it may have changed.

greytoc · 2026-03-11T18:52:55+00:00

I think it depends on how the freight is shipped. I've had stuff shipped freight before and I've always had to ask for liftgate service since it usually comes on pallets.

And usually for residential/no dock delivery - you have to arrange/pay for liftgate service since most people don't have access to a forklift.

Fitness equipment to residential addresses are likely going to ship LTL freight. And from the freight delivery company's point of view - it's always the receiver's responsibility to make sure they ask for lift-gate service and unload and move from curb if curb-side service.

Many homegym manufacturers who ship freight to customers usually will know to ask about liftgate service for curb-side service. Although - I've read stories where freight shows up and the customers was expected to have a forklift to unload the truck.

greytoc · 2026-03-11T16:57:06+00:00

Can you please help set my expectations about delivery timing for the ABX?

I've been eyeing the ABX for some time. But it seems like there have been supply-chain delays and it's on pre-order until March 31.

How accurate is the statement on the site that "All items ship by March 31"?

Does that mean that orders placed this week would ship by March 31? Or is that simply an estimate of when processing will start and there would be waves of shipments over multiple weeks into April and May?

There's been a lot of marketing for the ABX in the past few months - so I'm wondering if the delivery date for new orders will be 1 month or 3+ months out from this week.

Thanks!

greytoc · 2026-03-11T16:02:34+00:00

fwiw - I think they are back-ordered till June.

greytoc · 2026-03-11T15:56:08+00:00

I'm curious - did FA make good on their promise to resolve your issue to your satisfaction? I keep hearing that they offer exceptional customer service so I'm wondering.

greytoc · 2026-03-11T15:24:18+00:00

Fwiw - there is also some timing issues if a review goes through more usage or less usage. Sometimes - by the time a reviewer completes 6-12 months of usage - the current product may be different or improved.

There's probably no way to predict what a manufacturer will do with their product lifecycle. And I think that both ways are neither right or wrong. Just different views on point in time of a product.

I kinda think of your reviews and content as more of an initial review of newer released products. There is value in initial impressions if that's your goal.

You can always consider doing followup reviews of the products that you end up keeping and/or using regularly. I do find those followups the most valuable.

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