35kg of weights is no where near enough weight, even a beginner will need more weight than this within weeks

35kg??? Do you even lift bro?

Not bad, Argos claim the max total weight (user + weights) is 225kg, which is pretty fair for a beginner bench.

No they dont rattle, it is the collars job to kept the plates tight on the bar. The bar in an inch, so 25.4mm, you dont want to be that tight it is hard to get on and off. Also a spinlock bar you want a bit more of a gap. But as I said a good collar or spin lock tightens ups. For some exercise a bit of rotation of the weights can be good.

do the 28mm ones not rattle a bit on a standard bar?
saw they do a 31mm size a while back which seemed decent but then youd be locked into an odd system
(do you not find 6ft too small on rack btw?)


what kit you get basically depends on what budget you set

Can someone please post a place to buy a bench and weights if separate including the main exercise bars for a similar price or a bit more expensive but better quality?

This is not a good set guys. poor bar, vinyl weights, and not enough weight or capacity to get you anywhere near reasonably strong unless you are elderly or perhaps female. I dread to think of the amount of poor quality equipment taking up room in people's homes because they didn't do enough research in lifting before they bought the gear.

Long term lifters in most cases will have better knowledge then a lot of qualified fitness professionals.

Trainers will read a few text books, train for a year or two, take an exam, and that's it.

Whereas a seasoned lifter will have tried every diet, every exercise, every rep range, read a number of texts, had numerous conversations with multiple people involved with fitness, watched a bunch of videos on YouTube or whatever and sifted out the **** to find out what works.

Problem with trainers is they get their qualification and the **** ones don't explore the science of the sport any further.

They think that earing the "balanced diet", Bro splits, and machine cardio and instructed classes will make anyone into a fitness machine. And if it doesn't well they just blame the client for not trying hard enough while still taking their money.

Most trainers will also have been involved with sports and fit and healthy through their childhood and adolescence so it's not been hard for them. They don't understand the immense challenge it is for a working adult with responsibilities and poor levels of fitness to get themselves into good shape.

So basically, **** certificates. You'll get the best advice from people who've really made a big change in their lifestyle and are passionate about the sport.

And they won't want to take your money.

People saying just add more weight, that's an additional cost that affects the value of the deal. If you are buying this knowing you are going to have further expense then you might as well just get a better bench press for half the price. Plus, as has been said if the bar joins in the middle that will be a big weak point and I doubt you would be able to get much more weight on it.

Whatever your goals, you will benefit from overloading in different rep ranges - most people (even beginners) will quickly get to 35kg bench press in a strength rep range. Might take longer to get to that in a hypertrophy or volume range but I still don't think it's a great deal.

Another vote for 'second hand' - there's not a massive amount to go wrong, especially with the weights.
(Quite likely a bar may be bent; quite likely that won't be a big issue either.)

Bench looks ok, but doesn't to be particularly good value for money.

No that's definitely Syntholled. I can tell by the pixels.


Shouldn't that show a guy curling a baby elephant?

or synthol

Personal trainers are notoriously awful.

It's great to see so many qualified personal trainers have come together to offer their advice here.

Guaranteed clothes hanger within 3 months.

Johnny Bravo here bench press 90k and there's no chance on earth I'd bench press that on this bench without it collapsing.

lol 3 years ago picked this from argos for 99£:smile: fake. rrp

Ah so confused.. So is it worth it?

I'm seriously shocked that they make these - what a terrible design choice!

Wow the amount of stupid comments here.

What's stopping you getting a couple 25Kg York cast iron plates from Amazon and some cheap 10Kg plates off Argos in addition to the weights that come with the set? You are not stuck to 35Kg!

If you plan on doing this I suggest you also get a York Beefy barbell (similar to an olympic one but you can fit standard plates on it), as the one that comes with this set is rubbish.

​yeah. anyone who wants big calves just be fat for 20 years.

I dont this exact one but the more expensive Body Max equivalent. The design is excellent for home workout safety. Put the catchers up for squats then down for benches. You do need a 6ft barbell. And would be a little tight in between for bench is you are big. I am 5 10 and it is fine, but if you were broad and want to do quite wide BP then you will struggle to fit even on widest setting.

Not a lifting snob, I even still have a Ezy bar and Tri bar I bought from Argos in the early 90s and they are still going strong, but the words "2 piece bar that screws together" , should have you running for the hills :smiley:

The cheapo straight bar I also bought at the time (since given to a friends lad) was still a solid piece of steel that took some silly weights before I upgraded.........


From Argos

Hi there, I can confirm that the barbell included with this can only take the weights that are included, it is not recommended you add any additional weight. Thanks for using Argos Q&A.

This will be a hollow bar, so will weigh 1-2 kg, a solid 1" diameter bar weighs about 1.2kg per foot.
As people have said it depends what you are aiming to do but all I am saying is that the so called price drop gives a false impression of value. I am not trying to be overly critical but I would steer clear of this setup.

The bar is very poor quality, those springs collars are useless, also with the 35kg provided in the plates provided gives a very limited option on dual dumbell weight ( i.e 5kg, 10kg or 15kg). The dumbells are very poor I wouldn't fancy a 15kg dumb bell excercise with those collars. Even on barbell the weights options are poor, with a 5kg minimum weight increase.

Far better looking about for a 2nd hand cast iron weights set. With spin lock ideally if staying with 1" diameter with some 0.5, 1 kg, plates.

It was a good shout who ever mentioned ebay for something like this:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MIRAFIT-Adjustable-Squat-Rack-Dip-Stand-Barbell-Weight-Gym-Bench-Power-Lifting-/331717188972?hash=item4d3be29d6c:g:gTAAAOSwv-NWVYR0

this is best for 14-16 yr olds, most teenagers start off 50kg +

35kg is fine depending on your goals. Don't forget diet is important and set /rep range. Not everyone wants to get bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger. So no need to up the weight or buy more plates. Depends what people's goals are.
Not everyone wants to look like an erection in a vest.

35kg is fine depending on your goals. Don't forget diet is important and set /rep range. Not everyone wants to get bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger. So no need to up the weight or buy more plates. Depends what people's goals are.
Not everyone wants to look like an erection in a vest.

Weight is weight and you can always add more, BUT as been said before this bar ,bells, bench etc is poor quality, and also as said you can spend the same wiser , a good solid bench, a good solid bar and a few plates will get you started......then just add stuff as funds permit..........

or photoshop

Guys it's been mentioned already. Vinyl sucks, the bar could be better. For the price you can so allot better.
The one in aldi's which i posted, is far superior to this. But as some of members of hotukdeals have a attitude problem towards me, they have rated this better. To many keyboard warriors, and wanabees.
For anyone starting out. I would recommend going to a gym. Get your technique correct first of all, then consider getting a bench. But by the time you gained the technique, you would be better off going for a better bench than this.

Thanks, never thought of that .............. Apart from the fact you don't want to put much more on a hollow barbell with poor collars.

This one is much better, 50KG weights and only £69.99, folds flat, plus £5 voucher and 10% cashback in store from quidco.Everlast folding weights bench

35kg of weights is no where near enough weight, even a beginner will need more weight than this within weeks

Why do you need all this equipment just to do curls?

A lot of ill considered comments by those who are regular weight trainers and have perhaps forgotten what it is like to start lifting, especially if you're skinny and light. Also, depending on what you're doing it for 35KG may be fine, sometimes people want to make a weights session more cardio based. Just because you can bench 150KG, doesn't mean that's what everyone's end goal is.

Alternative for similar price?

You can get those exact racks for £60-80 on eBay with different branding, I've got one for my home gym. Got a rack, 7ft bar, 140kg of plates and a dip bar for under £300. All new and excellent quality! Within touching distance of that 100kg bench press now!

My first press was 50kg and that's from someone who was a fat nerd in school and never ever did any sports or exercise.

So yeah, you might soon outgrow the weights.

Still, good price for a bench if it's well made. But it does say Mens Health on it so that's something you'd have to live with. I couldn't!

​an olympic bar is 20kg so cant see this bar being more than 10kg. total on bench is maybe 45kg. pefect for home use. i used to warm up at gym with 100kg for 25 reps on the flat bench but dont bother going heavy now as it wastes your joints.. now do intense workouts with light weights so this is spot on.. wont catch me buying this tho as i like the chitter chatter with my buddies at the gym :smiley:

Buy more weights? That's the point. The bar is poor. You would need to replace very quickly. Also you wont get much weight on the bar using vinyl discs. It all depends what you aim is. 35kg is just not a lot of weight. So better looking elsewhere IMO.

You can get a better bench and 50kg weight set separately on the site for the same price

just buy more weight and it onto the bench if it can go up to 225. thickos

35kg??? Do you even lift bro?

As a general rule of thumb *all* fitness equipment from Argos is rubbish, except maybe metal weights and kettle bells that you can't really go wrong with - for the basics the bench is fine but the rrp is ridiculous and the deal price is probably about what it's worth IMO

the weight is decent, just do more reps

Not a good deal in my opinion, the pre offer price is way to high, The bench looks ok, but the barbell, dumbbells and vinyl weights look poor. Not a fan of vinyl weights bulky, and easily get to the point where you cant get more on the bar. You might even struggle to get all the plates they give you on that barbell. 35kg is on a lot at all. it really wont last long, then again benching/squating at home can be dangerous. My advice is spend money on a decent bench, then buy some plates off gum tree, maybe treat yourself to a new bar. Little resale value in this stuff, and so many people buy and don't use so bargains to be had.

In terms of benches go for something like this, http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bodymax-CF415-Squat-Spotter-Catchers/dp/B000WU26HI/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1459673058&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=body+cf415

This bench, a 6 ft barbell and try Stronglifts with good form will transform any true beginner. Of course you do need space in the house for this setup.

You will probably buy a new bar anyway the reviews say it has a join in the middle and so is not very robust.

Fake rrp

So that's effectively a 42kg bench press.

Just to help out any complete beginners.....
I can bench 42.5kg after a few months of the gym a couple of times a week (Yes, I was super weak :stuck_out_tongue: ) so for pretty much any guy I can't imagine this lasting longer for you than it would me. As most are stronger than me to begin with, it would last less time of course.

Nevertheless it is a good deal.

It'll be about 7kg.

Not bad for the price, but the RRP is a joke

Not bad, Argos claim the max total weight (user + weights) is 225kg, which is pretty fair for a beginner bench.