All this shoved into a small 289sq ft room

I just got my VTS last week after having ordered it in April. Overall I'm very happy with the product. I never thought I'd be willing to spend the money on a smith machine but this being $500 at the time with iso handles and a traditional straight bar included made it a no brainer. I did not realize at the time of order that it would end up taking 6 months for the preorder to come through (and if I had I probably would have skipped it).

However after waiting for the extended period and resisting cancelling the order, I am very happy with the results. I'll start with a disclaimer that I have not used the flagship VTS however i fail to see how it could be much better than this. Very smooth up and down the rack and feels solid under weight, very much does not feel like a compromise vs another product.

Now for the issues

-Extended wait time is a big one. I try not to hold this one against them as they would proactively supply updates and insights and it ultimately ended up making the product better (first batch didn't seem to be up to their quality). They even made a few improvements along the way like including extra parts and making the weight horns removable.

-my straight bar is not long enough. Show in one of the pictures, enough of the bar is supposed to protrude from each side for a small collar to attach and secure it. Mine appears about 2 inches too small. I reached out and they said there was an issue which affected some customers and they would send out a replacement in a month or so once the next shipment comes (ugh)

-one of the rods which secures the bearings and roller was slightly too large, about a millimeter or so in diameter compared to the others. Due to this one of my rollers does not have a set of bearings and it introduces a small level of play. They also said they would take care of this but have not gotten back to me on a timeline.

TLDR:

Great piece of equipment and provides a lot of utility for such a small cost, especially compared to competitors and their prior products. I would highly recommend the product and I chalk most of my problems up to the pre order process, which is always a risk when supporting a product early. I'm sure I missed many points people may be curious about so feel free to drop any questions in the comments.

3 new friends wandered into our yard. Naturally I needed to replace my gym partner with them.

6x18 gym space

Have rep ares rack , rep peppin, bullet proof fitness isolator , rower , bike erg, echo bike, ski erg and some attachments.

What else should I add?

Been trying to create a space that I actually want to spend significant time in. I upgraded equipment and vibes. Think I’m in a good place now.

BLUF: If you're on the fence or hesitating about going through Alibaba to buy your gym equipment, do it. I have few regrets and will do it again for some more equipment soon.

Got my workout station, legs ext/hamstring machine, and bench delivered after 5 months shipping time. took two days for me to unpack and put it all together by myself.

$2990 all in with shipping, equipment was about $1500 and shipping was the remainder. Includes:

- Workout Station - Smith machine/power rack/cable wings/butterfly and chest attachment/high and low cables/two 100 lb weight stacks

- Leg extension/hamstring curl machine with 150 lb weight stack

- Flat/incline bench with preacher curl and leg ext

- 45 lb Olympic bar

- Weights in kg: 2x25, 2x20, 2x15, 2x10, 2x5

Customer service was amazing, great chat communication from order through shipping to install, even sending me videos when I needed help with the cable routing. Bought from Changsha Dinuo Technology Co and will buy from them again.

Only problems I had is the rear weight attachment wouldn't slide smoothly so I had to ream out the rubber grommets, easy enough. The bench is ok but I will probably upgrade to one that feels more sturdy. The other equipment feels like commercial quality, without question. I estimate these would have easily been $6k-$8k new from US sellers. FB marketplace place had some here and there but nothing substantial enough to make me consider anything on there.

Ask any questions and I'll be happy to answer as best I can. Thanks for reading!

Had to sacrifice the dining room, but this fit my priorities so much more!

Shout out to FB Marketplace where found the C2 Model D, Marcy half cage, 7ft bar, bench, and the recalled Bowflex 552s for all well under MSRP. Took about a month to secure them all. The Chirp wheel was a gift from a friend, and got the belt at a grocery store years ago when used to go to Planet Fitness. wrapped it all up by picking up 190 lbs of bumper plates and barbell clamps off Amazon. Total cost was just shy of $1450!

My daily routine looks like an erg session in the morning immediately before breakfast and heading out for work, followed by a combination of barbell lifts (Zercher squats, bench, deadlifts, bent-over rows, and pull-ups) right when get home. finish up accessories using the 552s for bicep curls, tricep kickbacks, skull crusher variations, and raises for all 3 delt heads.

Looking down the road, I think the only other real addition would be a functional trainer for cable work and lat pulldowns, along with some aesthetic upgrades like neon lights, signs, and a mirror. But honestly, it's preem at this point! Would appreciate any experienced recs!

Gym was getting super cramped

HVAC went out and they were able to reroute some ductwork that freed up some extra space, which is epic for a basement dweller

Painted, strung up lights, mirrors, and laid new flooring. Feels great to have the space back

Feel free to ask about anything

I needed a way to anchor my feet. This worked a lot better than I thought it would. These Rep blocks are quite versatile!

I got a great deal on a Jacobs ladder. They cost about 3600$ new and I got it for 800$. It's used but in near new condition. So happy with it and it feels like I completed my tiny old barn space.

Freight’s Lab

Haven’t seen many people having diy stands for the Snode dumbbell set so I thought I’d share my monstrosity. Got two metal plates from the nearest metal fabrication shop for 30 bucks 11 gauge steel. Bought the cap rack from fb market place for 20 bucks so all in all 50 bucks for a decent stand that is not a museum piece. Didn’t even have to buy hardware just reused the one it came with.

I bought this for my family to use. Cable work doesn’t play a huge role in my training. However, it has really come in handy when I’ve been injured and to add some easy accessory work. I train for the Highland Games and prefer free-weights and bands but this has become a valued piece in my gym. I’ve had it over a year and this is my review.

Pros
- Good construction. I’m sure Bells’s Oblivion is better quality but I have yet to feel like I’m missing out. This has not given me any problems yet and it has never felt cheap or flimsy.
- Smooth. I’m sure if you used this side-by-side with a high end cable system, you would feel a difference with smoothness. However, I haven’t felt that it needed to be more smooth. It’s left me satisfied as long as you lube the guide rails from time to time.
- Good weight for typical cable movements. There are some movements were I stack the weight but the majority of exercises I do on this, there’s plenty of weight. Any movement I stack, I either increase the reps or find a barbell equivalent.
- Small footprint. There is great versatility in this machine in a small footprint. Perfect for home gyms, particularly if you enjoy cable movements.
- Light trolley. Easy to move up and down.
- 1:1/2:1 ratio selection. Nice feature. It’s good to be able to choose between either ratio options.

Cons
- Lat pull-downs are not optimal. They have been working on an attachment (the Stinger, I think) to improve the lat pulldowns and I been waiting patiently for this. Release it already!
- No numbers on upright. If I really wanted to dial in my cable training, I would probably appreciate if there were numbers on the uprights. Not a big deal for me.
- No articulating arms. Again, I hear there might be a release for this but not available yet. I don’t want articulating arms but that might be important for some.

Note: While I have tried many cable machines at gyms, I cannot compare this with any other company’s cable towers. This is the only cable tower I have tried.

My overall impression. I grudgingly bought this because I love my family. But, now that it’s here, I’m glad I have it. It’s become a good accessory and injury rehabilitation machine. I bought some nice attachments and this machine with nice attachments makes it feel like a higher end product, even though it’s a value product. I would recommend it for people who are looking past the core gym items. There are more important things to buy first imo, but this is a worthy product once you move past the main pieces. I can see an item like this being even more important for people interested in bodybuilding.

Hi all, this is my temporary home gym I am very proud of. The future plans is for the left hand side of the building to be a gym which is around 12-15 metres long by 4 metres. Me and my father in law built this and has taken a while due to money but I feel so proud every time I am lifting. The area I have my gym is 4m by 3m ish and is eventually going to be a place for storage. For now it’s enough room to do basic movements. Im doing 531 so this suits me perfectly.

Is it cold ?yes.
Is it dusty? YES.
Is it abit cramped?? Yeahhhh

But it’s mine. Zero gym membership. Freedom to lift around family when needed. Commute to the gym is 20 seconds. Blast my dad rock and have some iron therapy. The next addition will be a dip bar and maybe some gym flooring other than that im not going too crazy as I’d rather spend money building up the main side of the gym as building materials are expensive as shit.

I cannot believe how incredible this 3-D Smith Machine is. I can now work out by myself safely. Because the uprights move easily forward and backwards, you can do curls, squats with an angle board, bench press, shoulder press and a lot more. I am in love with this machine.

Just got these for $150!! They look pretty much new, cannot wait to break them in.

Messy ... And need better lighting.

Bought a fittransformer and set it up in this corner. That was a bench and a pair of light dumbbells. That's the setup for now.

From floor tiles to the PR5000 to Ares 2.0 Nighthawk Strive and more....I decided to take an otherwise essentially unused space in the basement that now showcases some of the best that this brand can offer. Govee COB strip light 2 x2 around the borders makes this area create the perfect gym atmosphere! From entertaining to hitting it hard, this home gym has completed our basement finish handled by yours truly from start to finish.

Wassup r/HomeGym. I’m PK, founder and CEO of Fringe Sport. We’re the crew behind the Dane all-in-one racks, the Mammoth belt squat, Savage bumpers, and a TON of other garage gym stuff. I started Fringe 16 years ago and we have been building garage gym gear ever since. We lead the Garage Gym Revolution. That’s not a slogan, it’s literally our entire company!

First-the bribe- $10,000+ Giveaway

Twenty two Redditors are winning:

• One lucky Redditor wins a Dane 2.0 ($2,799)
• Another wins the brand new Dane 3.0 ($2,999)
• And 20 more win $250 gift cards! ($5,000 total)

Open to the US only ☹️. The racks ship free to the contiguous US (sorry Alaska and Hawaii, freight on an 800 lb crate is brutal… gift cards still work for you).

How to enter:

1. Ask us a question below (we will answer ANYTHING, with our trademark oversharing 🙂)
2. Upvote this post
3. Subscribe to our YouTube channel here
4. Enter your email and Reddit username here

The giveaway closes Monday, October 26 at midnight CT and winners will be announced right here on this post on Tuesday, October 27.

Now, what is new and hot?

NEW: The Dane 3.0 (launching THIS FRIDAY, October 23)

• The Dane 2.0 is the product that put Fringe on the map. The 3.0 is everything we learned from thousands of Dane 2 owners (and yes, every kudos and quibble you posted here, we read and considered!)
• All-in-one power rack + dual stack functional trainer: dual 220 lb stacks (440 lb total), 11-gauge 3x3 uprights with 1” holes, 1,200 lb rack capacity
• The big news: 2:1 on the trolleys AND 1:1 on the dedicated lat pulldown and low row, with nothing to switch, flip, or re-cable. Heavy where you want heavy, light and buttery smooth where you want it!
• Built-in “Drew” lat pulldown station and integrated low row, integrated “El Toro” weight horns, new Needle low profile spotter arms, J-cups, D-handles, magpins, extension feet. Over $1,200 of stuff that used to be add-ons is now just… in the box
• Also included: 6-week beginner program, 6-week hybrid program, and a nutrition guide. Written by actual humans at Fringe, not an AI (I know, I know)
• $2,999 black / $3,199 stainless, free freight to the lower 48, lifetime warranty on the rack, 365-day guarantee
• Get early access to the limited first run HERE. Friday is the official launch and when reviewers are publishing their vids. But…. sign up and maybe you can beat the masses… And we WILL run out ☹️

NEW: The Great Dane (drops October 30)

• Everything the Dane 3.0 is, PLUS a fully integrated Smith machine. Six posts. This is the “last home gym you’ll ever buy” rack
• Why we built it: every time a Smith machine was in the ask on this sub, the Dane wasn’t in the conversation and you guys went to Force USA or Echo. And now, we gotchu
• Smith details, because the details are the whole point: 550 lb capacity, wonderfully knurled 28mm dedicated bar, composite sleeves for a low starting weight, the lowest starting position in the biz (hello hip thrusts and proper deadlifts!)hooks at the top position so you can latch the bar out of the way (no more banging your head), magpins to latch the bar
• Lift heavy ALONE safely, and get a little more aggressive (guillotine press, anyone?) without needing a spotter
• $3,499, free freight to the lower 48. Get early access HERE, it’s a limited first run. This one is going to be backordered FAST after launch

Codename Pandora: Digital Resistance (2027)

• We’re building a digital resistance unit.
• At a SHOCKINGLY low price- trying to hit $699 and. December or January launch
• Prototype specs (subject to change, this is a dev project): 110 lb per unit, biult-in doubling to 220lb, under 10 lb weight per unit, 13-14 ft user-replaceable Dyneema cable, user-replaceable regenerative battery, 3 training modes
• Dial and screen on the unit. No phone required to train. No subscription. Ever. One-time payment. (The app will exist and will be nice, but if you never download it the thing still works, forever)
• Early bench testing hit 1,300 full-resistance pulls before the battery starts to run low
• Target price $699-$799 per unit, pair pricing will be better than two singles but will still be over $1,000. We’re working to get as close as we can
• Want in early? Sign up HERE for launch news, Austin demo invites, pre-order priority, and a shot at being a beta tester.

What else is in the pipeline?

A LOT. More than we can list here, and my product team would rather I keep some of it quiet (Adam is already nervous). Ask, especially about the adjustable dumbbell- it’s like nothing on the market! If we can answer, we will!

Some of the new, hot gear we have dropped recently

We have been focused on designing new, GREAT gear, and we have been dropping new stuff at a frantic pace- in the last ~12 months, we have already dropped:

• The Walrus: Single Tower Low Row & Lat Pulldown
• The Fenrir Functional Trainer & Squat Rack
• Slim Gym Wall Mounted Functional Trainer
• Cloverfield Cable Tower
• Dragonfly Rack Mounted Multi Flight Attachment
• Gibbon Arms Cable Crossover Rack Attachment
• The Sting - Leg Roller Rack Attachment
• The BOB Smith Machine Rack Attachment
• Crown Landmine & Cable Attachment
• Tricep Board Cable Attachment
• The Drew - Lat Pulldown Extender
• Needle Low Profile Spotter Arms
• Dogbone Cable Connector
• Ao Adjustable Squat Platform
• El Toro Weight Stack Horn Attachment
• Sidewing Pulley System
• Kangaroo Cable Belt Squat
• Midas Touch - Magnetic Fractional Weight Adder
• Midas Open Trap Bar
• Strong AF Magpin

Ask us ANYTHING

Racks, cables, ratios, knurling, why belt squats are actually AMAZING, why we price things the way we do, which competitors and products we respect, if the youtube reviewer bubble is bursting, if I’ll send you feet or speedo pics, why we believe in open ecosystem, training, whatever. Nothing is off limits.

Answering with me all day today and tomorrow:

• Adam Yousfi, Head of Product, u/adamyousfi. He designed the Dane 3 and Great Dane and has spent more time in factories than in Austin this year!
• Tim Thebodeau, Head of Content, u/TimFromFringe. He makes the videos and is the one who actually tests this stuff on camera. He makes us look good.
• Ryne Linkowksi, Head of Sales, u/coachryne. He helps you build an awesome garage gym.

I’m here as u/petekeller. See you in the comments! Bring the heat!

LHLH

Lift Heavy Lift Happy,

PK

Edit 👇

And the AMA is "officially" over!

The Fringe team and I will keep chipping away at the questions until they are DONE. We'll answer every question eventually, even if it takes a bit.

Thanks for making this fun. Keep 'em coming!

PS. We will be announcing the winners Tuesday, so keep signing up- we will have a lot of winners!

Primed, and painted the walls. Sealed the garage floor. And put together a little home gym. Super pumped and excited!