Most Bang for Buck! Well Built Machine.
Written: Jan 03 '05
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Smooth comfortable stride, sturdy construction, no adjustment to pedals between users, "bumpless" resistance changes
Cons: Battery operated display
The Bottom Line: Absolutely the most "bang for the buck" out there. Definitely worth a few dollars more (in the below $500 range) to get this model over a cheaper one.
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| denmar310's Full Review: Nordictrack CX 925 Elliptical |
First I want to say I have not experienced any of the negative problems that txcoyote did in his review. You will need to plan some time (about 2 hours) for assembly and review each step carefully before proceeding.
I bought mine at Sears for $499. The local store was sold out so I went to another Sears store about an hour away. I was able to pay for it and get it loaded in the trunk of my Pontiac Bonneville in about 20 minutes. If you don't have a truck, van, SUV or trailer I would recommend paying for delivery. It barely fit in my trunk, which is very large.
My 18 year old son helped me haul it into the basement. This is about the only part where I felt I needed any help. I prefer to block things up rather than have someone hold it up while my hands are under it. I was able to assemble the entire machine with relative ease. A couple of minor exceptions were the wire and attaching the upper workout handles. After unpacking all the pieces except the main unit you can cut off the side of the box and slide the main unit out using leverage to your advantage and working from each end. I used some of the packing cardboard to block up the main frame to attach the feet. A few wood blocks would probably be better.
The wire was blocking the hole for the bolt that attaches the upright. I had to make several attempts to dress it out of the way and try again. However, this was very minor and with a little patience it went together just fine.
Securing the upper workout handles was a bit tricky. The retaining ring that needs to be driven onto the shaft did not want to start using the plastic tool provided. I used an 11/16 deep socket and a hammer to get it started. Once it was started I finished driving it on with the plastic tool so as not to damage the machine.
The hardware was of high quality. The button head screws (not at all rare as txcoyote indicated) started and tightened very well without stripping. I use fasteners like this all the time and have very rarely had a problem. You do not need to attempt to twist the wrench off when tightening. With a little experience you will know when it is tight and when to stop turning. The average person will not have a problem with the allen wrenches provided. I certainly would not be bragging about being a race car engine builder if I couldn't handle this and you don't need to be a mechanic to assemble this machine if you just take a little time to study what you are doing before you do it. Also when attaching the console you do not need to be an electronics technician or computer builder to accomplish this. Just be aware that there is wire there and it does need to be carefully packed into the space in the top of the upright unit and the cable should lay flat in the recessed area provided.
After assembly and leveling the feet I installed the batteries. I got on and started using it, playing with the different settings. It was very smooth and solid. Being on a concrete floor I did not experience any wobbling problems. I was very pleased with the way it worked. The range of resistance is better than most. Transitioning from one resistance level to another is "bumpless", even when changing from the lowest to the highest and vice versa. Some of the other units I tried in this price range needed adjustments between users to avoid things like smashing your knees against parts of the machine. They were not very smooth and felt/appeared cheap.
Bottom line this machine will give you the most "bang for the buck". Anything less expensive is just plain cheap and anything of higher quality costs a lot more.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
denmar310
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Reviews written: 3
Trusted by: 0 members
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