Compact rack upgrade

[Gherald]

A few months ago someone was bragging on Facebook about their walk-in closet.... so naturally I suggested walk in closets are for lightweights and that I much prefer my "squat-in" closet -- snapping this THIS PHOTO to show it off.

That was for show, those pins a rung lower than what I squat at and that's over 300lbs while my current best is 250. Rack and bench cost me about $100 off craigslist, okay for starters. I've since added a pair of 6' x 4' x 3/8" rubber mats underneath, which are solid and let me comfortably squat barefoot or sockfoot.

But the lack of good safeties is holding me back too much, those bottom pins are hard to rack a missed rep on. It's too sketch, as I go up in weight I need to be safer and this is now holding me back and turning potential sets of 5 into mere triples.

I've started shopping for a solid upgrade, and this SML-2 would fit and looks pretty badass by itself:


I'm leaning towards getting it in their Half-Rack configuration. Customer service says I can request a Fat/Skinny bar like pictured above on the SML-2, rather than just the skinny bar.

So..



That's an investment. Any thoughts on pulling this trigger?

Wonder what my lady friends will think about it in the bedroom >,>

[Girtron]

I just bought the flat foot ML rack from Rogue. I got it last week, and it is considerably more heavy duty than I was expecting. I also have a friend who got the half rack, and he says he likes it very much. I suspect if you pull the trigger, you will be happy you did.

[Gherald]

Did some more reading here and I see Rip recommends this rack built to his specs from Brown Bros. welding.

That's solid and at $945 plus shiping, about the same cost. Not as pretty as Rogue's ML's, not as adjustable, and no accessories to efficiently store plates.... but solid.

It's 90" front and back, while my closet only clears 80". So the Rogue's SML-2 / HR-2 is a sweeter fit.

And has a certain aesthetic appeal.. which can be important for something that's literally next to your bed.

My alarm clock will be inside this rack in the back. First 7 a.m. order of business? 10 reps with the bar. Second order of business? A cup of oatmeal and two cups of milk into a microwavable bowl with a mug handle. Then a pre-workout. Then first warm-up with plates.

Every day, with this alternating upper/lower program.

(Yes, that's me trying to convince myself this'll be worth $1,200 ; )

[Adam Skillin]

Get him to make a smaller one if you need. It's not like he has them all made up in a storeroom. It's more useful than you think, because the C-Channel allows the pins to be inserted at an angle. And you can do dips inside if you have 2 barbells.

[Nate]

It's 90" front and back, while my closet only clears 80". So the Rogue's SML-2 / HR-2 is a sweeter fit.

What do you mean by only clears 80"? Your SML-2 picture shows 92"??

It looks awesome though.

Get him to make a smaller one if you need.

This is a good idea.

[Gherald]

On the half rack configuration the front is 92" just like the SML-2, the back is 72".

I saw the angled pins but they didn't seem like a big deal to me. I see more appeal to the close Westside spacing between holes for a perfect fit.

Rogue does have a Matador solution for dips but it wasn't really on my radar at this point, hmm.

[Girtron]

I seriously considered Brown Bros, but it was going to run about the same as my rogue did with the flat bench which I would have had to still buy. I live in the middle of nowhere so these things must be considered. In the end, what I bought works better for my current setup. It came out to 1,306.46... It was worth it. The spotters make a big difference when you train alone.

[hollismb]

You're going to love it. I have an S1 and S2 squat rack with spotter arms, and they're very stable/sturdy. I got the single/skinny pull-up bar instead of the skinny/fat one though, and am happy with that choice, since you can't really use the fat one if it's on top anyway. I might convert mine to a half rack at some point, if only for all the plate storage. I have the flat bench and the matador as well. They're both great.

[Tennisgolfboll]

I would not get a half rack. What if something goes really wrong when you squat and the safeties do not catch the bar?
But you should get what you feel is best for your cash.

[Adam Skillin]

I would not get a half rack. What if something goes really wrong when you squat and the safeties do not catch the bar?
But you should get what you feel is best for your cash.

Well, the Rogue safeties are pretty substantially overbuilt. If it's a question of value for your money though, you can buy the full rack I have for $300 shipped, and you're covered until you break a 700 lb squat.