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64 of 74 found the following review helpful:
 Bowflex SelectTech Stand will give you a hell of a fight. BRING ICE. Sep 02, 2010
By wEt pAinT 976
Be prepared for the most annoying, frustrating, complicated hour+ of your life. More complex then the solar system, this stand will arrive in pieces. Accompanied with instructions that not even God herself could understand. The only thing that kept me from reaching astronomical anger levels was the fact I received the stand for FREE. I have been in workout/diet mode since July, and finally decided to invest in some weights. I had remembered those tempting Bowflex infomercial's, and decided to YouTube some Bowflex dumbbell videos. Well, after about 30min of watching, I felt I really wanted a pair for my living room.
I visited the Bowflex website and decided on the 1090 model dumbbells.
As I was about to go to checkout I noticed at the top of the website a "one day only" promotion the site was having.
With the purchase of the 1090 model (ONLY) you could get the Bowflex SelectTech stand FREE, + FREE SHIPPING AND HANDLING within the USA with the promotional code at checkout.
Needless to say I was very happy. I was planning on getting the stand anyway, so getting it free was great. And getting it all shipped to me free was even better. I pulled the trigger, my order went through.
From the time I placed my order, to the time everything arrived was about a week and a half. Bowflex uses FedEx so you can track it daily and know exactly when to expect the delivery.
Ok, so.. The dumbbells obviously come out ready to use. (BEAUTIFUL DUMBBELLS BY THE WAY).
However, the stand comes completely disassembled. Let me save you a whole lot of frustration.
Take the time to unwrap every piece and lay it on the floor. Even the screws.
NOTE: THERE IS 4 DIFFERENT SIZE SCREWS.
At first glance your eye will tell you there are only 2 size screws. This is because who ever packaged these screws didn't care to make it easy on the buyer by separating the screws. Take the time to put the screws in size order. And separate them.
Screw size from largest to smallest:
========== 8 screws this size.
======== 4 screws this size.
====== 4 screws this size.
== 4 screws this size.
Ok for Step 1 and 2 on the assembly steps you will be using the 8 longest screws (along with 1 washer for EACH SIDE of the screw). I was confused by this at first, because the longest screws seemed to be to BIG for these steps (Steps 1 and 2).
Little did I know that you have to really really REALLY turn the screws tight.
NOTE: After you assemble Step 1 and 2 do not tighten the screws tight yet. Just get them on there by tightening the screws as tight as you can with just your fingers right now. Everything is going to feel very wobbly at this point.. I know, confusing, but you don't fully tighten them all until you complete step 3.
For step 3 you will be using the 4 second-to-last smallest screws. Meaning there will still be 4 screws left that are bigger then the ones you will be using for this step.
Once you have assembled step 3, NOW TIGHTEN EVERY SCREW YOU HAVE USED.
This took me at least 40min+.
I know, your thinking - but you only used 12 screws so far!
Like I said, The screws will all feel to BIG. You are going to have to hand tighten all 12 screws with a allen key and vise grip until each screw it TIGHT and no screw wobbles.
This is going to hurt your hand after about 20min. I suggest putting on some good music and expecting to hurt yourself.
Ok now that you have tightened those 12 screws. You feel incredible.
Not so fast...
Now you have to beat the next level. And if your hands didn't start to hurt yet, they will now.
Step 4 and 5 you will be using the last 4 long screws you have left (LEAVING ONLY THE VERY LITTLE SCREWS LEFT).
This step is for the dumbbell platforms.
Get them on first.
Meaning put all 4 screws in and then start tightening each one.
This took me about 20min.
Remember each screw must be tight. If you can wobble the screw, or move it in any way, you haven't tightened it enough.
Ok, now you have gotten to the last level. This is the King Koopa of the assembly.
Step 6 you are installing the towel bar.
Say sorry to your knuckles. Your fingers are also going to get a beating.
You will be using the last 4 sets of screws for this step. The smallest screws.
NOTE: I thought I had lost 4 washers. I spent 10min like a terd looking on the floor, and under the couch for 4 missing washers. Then realized that I had used 2 washers for each screw in this step (Step 6) when I only was supposed to use 1 washer for each screw. Step 6 is the only step you will be using 1 washer per screw. All other steps use 2 washers per screw.
After 20min+ of tightening the 4 screws in step 6 (until nothing moved), I went to the bathroom and ran freezing cold water and left my hands in there for 3-4min.. I'm not kidding my hands were beat up bad.
After taking a little brake to get the feeling back in my hands, I finished up step 7, attaching the straps to the platforms. Which was easy and took about 15sec per strap.
And finally, the final step... Using the caster wheels? Or foot pegs?
I have heard some people say to go with the foot pegs. Because they are going to leave it in 1 spot so why put wheels on.
However I went with the caster wheels. Only because I own the 1090 model, and if I wanted to move the equipment for any reason I would need to take off the dumbbells, and move all 3 pieces by hand.
With the caster wheels its easy to just roll them around. Like if you need to clean your home and need to move them for a min or something.
Plus, all 4 wheels lock.
Either way the stand comes with both options, and are easy to install/uninstall. Only takes about 4min. (NO PAIN) lol
So there you have it. Assembly complete.
Let me tell you, my hands are telling me to leave 1 star on this review, and throw the thing into a river.
But once you place your Bowflex dumbbells on this stand.. WOW.. This is suchhhhhhhhhhhhh a beautiful piece of equipment..
I mean, it even looks great in my living room. No need to put it away when I have company. I get complements on the dumbbells and stand all the time.
Not to mention I get a GREATTT workout every day.
Sure assembling the stand almost broke your hands, but its the closest thing a male will ever feel to giving birth. The pain and suffering was WELL WORTH it. This stand is just as nice as the dumbbells, they complement each other perfectly.
So in the end I'm giving this stand 5 stars only because once its completely assembled (properly) you will LOVE this thing. Its beautiful!
Like I said, I got mine for free, but I would buy this stand in a second.
Hope this review helps you with your purchase!
18 of 20 found the following review helpful:
 Make this purchase...you will be pleased Oct 22, 2006
By Kevin B. Johnson
This is a must if you don't have something to sit your dumbells on. It is very sturdy and has either roller wheels or stationary feet you can easily install. It really is quality construction and I am glad that I have it.
I would have given it 5 stars...but the instructions on how to assemble it are brutal. It won't take a rocket scientist to do it, but it will take a little figuring out (common sense) to know how to do a couple of things like attaching the straps to the base of the dumbell platform.
Be on the lookout for sales on this item. I ordered the 552 dumbells and the stand came with it free. I bought them through Amazon.com.
7 of 7 found the following review helpful:
A Workout Before my Workout... Jun 10, 2008
By J. Emde
Once you get this stand together, it's great--looks good and is the perfect height for the 552 SelectTechs.
But boy, is it a pain to put together! The included allen wrench and hex wrenches are very cheap and make it difficult to put any serious torque on the screws. And yes, some of the holes were drilled just a little bit off-center, so it takes some muscle to tighten them. I busted my knuckles a few times, but got a great workout before I had a chance to use the dumbbells.
5 of 5 found the following review helpful:
No problem at all... Mar 08, 2006
By Y. Coop
In the past few weeks I have assembled two Rowing Machines and the Bowflex 5.1 Bench and the instructions for this product are no better, no worse than any other instructions I've viewed recently. In fact, I thought putting the stand together was pretty self-explanatory even without the instructions. I assembled the stand in a little over an hour with a few quick glances at the instruction book because I HATE reading instructions. It did take a little muscle to tighten the screws and bolts, but then, that is why I wanted the Dumbbell Set in the first place. That being said, I think it's a great product, well made and sturdy. I have to admit after reading the other reviews I was put off at the thought of having to struggle to put another piece of equiptment together, but, it was really a breeze! The bench is also an excellent product too.
4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
Durable stand - instructions need improvement Jan 20, 2006
By Christopher Nowicki
I received this stand and like another reviewer, had some difficulty with the installation. The instructions are brief and the exploded diagram is not clearly marked or numbered. Many of the screws are 2.75 inches, but four of them are only 2.5 inches - make sure when you install, that you put the correct ones where they belong! Once you have some of the pieces together, you get an idea of how the assembly will go. The parts themselves all seem like a very durable steel. The build quality seems good and once installed, this makes an excellent companion for the dumbbells. The stand weighs about 55 pounds without the dumbells and stays rigid when the dumbells are installed. You may use the plastic wheels for a moving stand or choose adjusable stationary casters. The plastic wheels feel cheap and have a locking mechanism which will break if you are not careful.
Overall, this appears to be a solid product which is a great place to keep your Selecttech 552 dumbbells. If you can accept the cheap wheels, poor instructions, and the expense ($135+), this is a very good stand.
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