CAP Strength Roman Chair

I have been dreaming of owning one of these for many years but didn't have the space and finally do so I have one. First let me say this thing is built like a tank, yes it moves a little after assembled that seems to be an intentional part of the design but it feels like it could hold a horse. They provide you everything you need tools included but I would suggest using a ratchet and socket then use one the hollow pipes they provide to slide over the Allen Wrench (to save your hands and give you more purchase on the bolt head), be careful not to over torque it though. The only thing I would really change about this would be thicker padding on the plates your hips rest on (while the padding for your legs is more than ample), it's adequate but I'm one of those people who always thinks the more padding the better and I'm usually right more padding is more comfortable, doubling the padding thickness would be most appreciated if anyone at the company reads these things. You can always just put a nice pillow on top for extra comfort. I mean it's only your Yoo-Hoo or Ho-Ho that you're putting all of your weight and force onto as you do every rep until failure, so ya... I think more padding would've been considerate. Other than that wow! I love this piece of equipment. I even discovered that I can do Reverse Hyperextensions by simply removing the padded bars. Pull the pin out and slide off the padded bar assembly then carefully put your hips on the padded plates while holding the handles lean forward then raise and lower your legs and voilá you're doing a reverse hyperextension or the French Mistake I'm not sure. This piece of equipment is a real game changer for people with bad backs and injuries. Don't forget to develop your TVA Transverse Abdominus, that will see you into old age with a better outcome even if your just doing stomach vacuums three to seven days a week, but there are other exercises that help develop your TVA too, research and learn about them if you haven't already, worth it. I would highly recommend this machine if you have the space to keep it and use it as often as your body tells you it's okay to.

When the box arrived I was a little worried hearing things shifting around inside and the sound of metal clanking. Those worries were not soothed when I opened the box and saw how everything was either just thrown in, or shifted so much during transport. But when I started removing items and laying them out, I was surprised to find there was not a scratch or blemish on any of the metal parts. The foam ankle pads were not squished or creased, either. The only quality issue I found was a missed length of stitching on one of the pads. And the safety stickers were crooked - but that's one of my personal foibles and probably won't matter much to anyone else. Assembly instructions are not the greatest - images and numbered parts. The vacuum sealed card of bolts, nuts, and washers is not the easiest thing to work out of, so I wrote the part numbers on sticky notes, stuck them on the workbench, and put the parts beside them. Assembly was easy, took about 30 minutes. NOTE: The nuts are nylon locknuts, so they'll begin feeling tight almost immediately. Keep tightening. When putting on the ankle pads, if they seem too short and are loose on the rod, use a tool to hammer in the plastic endcaps. They go on tight and your hand may not get them seated all the way. Wear work gloves - that tiny hex wrench will dig in to your palm. I didn't have any problem with wobbliness, as some other reviewers have mentioned - all four feet were steady and level on the floor. When I climbed on board it held steady, and remained so for a handful of exercises. I had to adjust the length to the next-to-first setting to match my height. NOTE: I'm 5'6", 130 pounds - I imagine the experience may be different for taller and heavier folks. Overall I am satisfied with this equipment for home gym use, and for a person around my size. Quality seems good. Fit and finish is good. I can comfortably do a number of exercises with this machine. Price is reasonable. I'd give it 5 stars if the front pads were beefier, the ankle pads were covered in vinyl.

Assembly was straight forward. Stability - I’m 6’4” 245lbs, not a lightweight. This thing does work for the two basic GHD exercises I like to do - sit-ups and hip extensions. It’s not clanging around or anything when I’m doing my workouts, but I’m also not doing anything in a major rush. The roller pads should be thicker and wider, and the steel used could be lower gauge, but again this does the job. I do wish that the padding was better all around, but it’s a ridiculously affordable piece of equipment and an easy quick add to my home gym. I am glad I opted out of the much more expensive top of the line $800 GHD machine and got this from CAP. I can save up for an expensive piece of equipment while I continue to strengthen myself.

For this price range (80 ish) you won’t find a better item like it. I have a garage filled with used commercial gym equipment to give you an idea and have been involved in the gym industry for over 30 years, hence why I refer to it as the gym industry and not the f word because I’m an old “Gym” goer and never went to a “Fitness Center”. No disrespect meant to the negative reviewers however I strongly disagree with the issues mentioned. If the piece “slides apart” then you have not assembled it correctly as there are pre-drilled holes on one side of the cross member so this cross member could easily fit with the “wrong side up” and therefore no holes to “lock” the spring/threaded hand tightened bolt into. There would be simply no chance for the equipment to “slide apart”, the hand tightened screw/spring pin/bolt engages well into the holes drilled in the cross member (the piece(s) that allow the apparatus to be lengthened or shortened). The bolt holes all line up perfectly throughout the entire unit. I am 5’10”, 230, and it is sturdy. For a non-commercial inexpensive piece of gym equipment, this is more than a fair value. Sure the pads, particularly the rollers, could be better but that is exactly what you get in this price range and although they are wimpy, they do the job. This is remarkable to purchase at 80 bucks and free shipping.

The setting pads for your quads are firm and the covering seems to be a good quality. I also like the grips on the handle that you would use to assist yourself up and the foam rollers are OK. They could be of better quality. And the size of the apparatus is adequate. Those are my Likes. My dislikes about CAPS Strength Roman chair; The bulkheads do not match up to the Allen wrenches which are provided. I happen to have a full set of Allen wrenches and was able to find one that did fit seat properly with the exception of one bolt that the slot was not completely formed. So that presented a problem as I was doing the last steps of assembly. The powder coating or paint appears of low quality as shown n the crossmember pic. The J bar which hooks up to the quad pads support and the footing at the bottom. That connection to the footing is not a “glove like fit.” As shown in the picture this makes mounting the Roman chair unstable. The same can be said for the rear crossbar which is used to brace yourself with the soles of your shoes/feet. That moves a lot as you can see and hear in the video. The other Strength Roman chair which cost less has a a better feel of stability. I’m disappointed with this purchase.

Once I got around to assembling the product, I noticed parts were missing and the foot support part included was not the correct part as shown in the pictures. I contacted support and did get a response after some time. About a month and a few days later they sent a part but it was the wrong part again. I even specified the missing part number according to their manual. I contacted again and a few later they said they would send me the correct part. After requesting updates and getting a minimal response that they don’t have the part and then no response for weeks I contacted Amazon support. Amazon issued me a refund after I disassembled and packaged up the equipment for UPS pickup. Waste of time and money to repackage it. Also this equipment was pretty weak and not stable. There was a noticeable sag on the supporting bar. This would’ve probably broke within a year. If your a bodybuilder or a crossfitter do not buy nor do business with CAP. Cheap products and no support. You get what you pay for and it ended up costing me time and money. Buyer beware. :/ After I sent back the equipment I finally got a response from their support with a tracking number. I’m sure it’s the wrong part again but I will never know as I will toss it in the trash if it’s delivered as I emailed them to revoke the shipment.

If you're thinking about getting a Roman Chair type product - and plan to actually use it at least fairly often - but don't have the type bank account that allows you the best of everything (or sometimes even the mediocre things), you really can't go wrong with this CAP product. Now before you start reading all the crazy bad reviews, keep in mind that it was said in one review and I'll say it again here: You MUST assemble it properly (and the instructions aren't really any help) AND you must use the equipment properly. This bears saying again - YOU MUST ASSEMBLE THE UNIT PROPERLY and USE THE EQUIPMENT PROPERLY. Done the correct way, assembly and your workout, this is a very good piece of workout equipment. It doesn't wobble - as some have suggested - and it will fit almost anyone of normal or average size. Anyone less than 5 foot tall is going to have a hard time getting themselves to the PROPER workout position, even at the shortest setting. Proper position is the pelvic padding hitting at or just below the pelvic bone. Some prefer it to hit closer to the upper thigh area, which is fine but NOT the only accepted 'proper' body area. Anything above the pelvic bone and you won't get the optimal use from the machine (and around the stomach area can actually injure, or at least hurt). Some have suggested that the weight capacity of the unit is no where near what they claim. Well that is going to depend. Again, when properly assembled and used, I have no doubts that folks well into the 200's will have no problems at all. 300 pounds? Well IDK about 300, but I'm 6' 1" and 175lbs and my son is 6' 4" and 225 and we both use it many times and have never had an issue with stability nor had issues with parts coming loose, giving way or flat out breaking. Can you buy better? Of course. The Roman Chair they have at the gym is twice or more what this one is .... literally. It's got to be twice or so the weight and takes up a LOT more room. Oh, and I asked the owner of the gym - it sells for $800. Hmmm... Get the quality and sturdiness of an $800 GYM quality unit for under $100???? Yeah, I don't think so. Most times you get what you pay for. But in this case, doing the comparison with others on the market (including professional equipment) I feel you're getting way more than you're paying for with this one.

Works well as a budget piece of equipment. Only reason not 5star is because the tools included to assemble tightly to take all wobble out of the equipment wont do it. At minimum to assemble a 3/8 drive ratchet with an 11/16 socket is needed to get the bolts tight enough to take wobble out. Reason is because the holes for the bolts are over sized and to make it stable you really have to tighten the bolts enough to pinch the tube. My son and I both have used this im 215lbs and its stable