Bowflex SelectTech Adjustable Bench Series 5.1

Customer Reviews

Solid construction--Easy to assemble

2008-01-02
I bought the Bowflex 5.1 Bench as a Christmas gift for my fiance. Now, as a rule, exercise/fitness/diet related gifts are off limits for holidays and birthdays--but it was on his list. He did all the research and felt that this was his best option. I like the fact that all of the edges are rounded and that makes for fewer, or at least less painful, stubbed toes and I like that the welded joints are ground smooth; fewer opportunities for snagged clothing. The bench pads are comfortable and I think they'll hold up for years.

Assembly was easy, though I would suggest to Bowflex that they shorten the long arm on the enclosed allen wrench so that you can get a full swing when tightening bolts.

It does take up more room than I anticipated. We have a small home and even though I took measurements, the foot print seems larger than I anticipated. That and I forgot to allow space on either side of the Bench for arm swing, so dumbbells come precariously close to the wall.

Overall, a great product and a good value.

Great bench!

2007-12-24
The bench works great. An issue that I've experienced though is that the plastic stoppers on the adjustment bar fall off whenever you change the bench's incline setting. The bench is also a little taller than other benches I've used before. I am 6' tall and have an inseam of 33". I usually like to lay a couple of inches lower than what I do on this bench. But, it's just my preference.

Overall, very good bench

2007-11-25
This is a solid, sturdy and versatile bench that so far has been worth the money spent. The number of adjustable positions makes it a better fit for me than the 3.1. The only complaint that I have is that it takes up a lot of room. It would be nice if it could fold up against the wall to conserve space.

Bowflex 5.1 bench

2007-11-13
Just received this within 3 days of ordering it, which included the weekend. I expected to see it in about a week so I was surprised that it was delivered so quickly. The box was in terrible shape and my first instinct was that there would be parts missing. But after I opened the box and did an inventory, all necessary parts were there. It took me about 30 minutes to assemble after reading the instructions and grabbing my tool box. The only thing I needed was a 1/2 " socket and a large screwdriver to spread a bar that needed a little coaxing to insert a bolt. Other than that, it was a breeze. The overall quality is excellent. Very sturdy and easy to incline or decline the backrest. I did a series of crunches first and it was effective in use and very stable. Great deal and prompt shipping. Can't ask for much more. Hope this helps.

Wobblefest & injury waiting to happen...

2007-10-14
I would hope that this is specific to the bench I received, but I wouldn't know as Bowflex has yet to respond to my email (over 1 week ago) telling them about it and asking for how to fix.

Anyway, I assembled the bench and found it to be a total wobblefest - not in terms of the legs which I assembled, but the upper bench frame itself, which comes pre-assembled. I figured the factory must not have tightened it properly, so I tried to do it..only to find that the screws used are a slip type that do not allow any tightening...so they just keep spinning with no effect on stability/tightness.

This thing is an injury waiting to happen - no one in their right mind would use any kind of weight on this bench or else risk ligament injury due to a sudden shift while using it.

I have had many benches, all have been solid, this is by far and away the worst bench I have ever seen. I will post a video review shortly to 'show' how bad it is if Bowflex keeps refusing to even reply to my request for a way to fix or have it replaced.

good

2008-07-18
Versatile and very sturdy. I would reccommend a mat to go underneath if you plan on using it on carpet to save wear and tear. I only wonder how long the cover on it will last because it seems medium tickness but great so far.

Sturdy and well built for the price

2008-06-28
This bench is well built for the price, but could have been a bit better. The wheels, as stated in other reviews, are largely useless as you have to have it almost perpendicular to the floor to use them. The bench does not wobble even when I use my Selecttech 1090 dumbells (I am 200lbs plus the 180lb for the dumbells). Using the decline bench is great for your chest and is something you may not even be able to do at your gym.

Love this exercise bench!

2008-05-28
I absolutely love this exercise bench. It was very easy to assemble, with all the tools needed included in the package. Because it's easy to change the seating angles on this bench, I don't have to spend a lot of time fiddling with adjusting pins. Paired with the bowflex selecttech dumbbells, I've been able to cut down my workout time drastically (which is quite important due to my busy schedule). My one gripe (shared by a number of other reviewers) is that you have to practically raise the bench vertically in order to make use of the wheels in order to move the bench. I try to store my bench in my walk in closet, so transporting it in/out does take some effort. But overall, I'm thoroughly pleased with this product.

Nice bench.

2008-04-16
This bench is really sharp looking. It goes from 90 degrees to a decline of 17 degrees, just like advertised. Some benches I researched had handles that prevented the decline or just didn't decline as advertised. So I was very pleased that this bench does indeed work as it's supposed to. Another feature I like is the removable leg hold-down brace for added decline position support. Assembly is required, and wasn't that bad. The directions were fairly good, and one person was all that was needed. I agree with other reviewers about the wheels; you have to raise the bench up quite a bit to make them useful. Other than that, I really don't have anything bad to say about this product.

Everything I thought it was

2008-04-13
It has great appeal to it and matches my Selecttech weights. Like others have addressed, it has a gap between the seat part and the adjustable back part which I wasn't really expecting but you need it to allot for the 90 degree position of the adjustable back part. For those like me who were concerned about the decline position on the bench being nothing useful, I was quite happy with the degree of decline on it that could be used for decline crunches or decline bench. I just might have to sell my Selecttech dumb bell set for the heavier, newer model Nautilus has designed. After a certain time, you'll be wanting to do the same.