Bowflex vs Crossbow

I recently had the opportunity to help put together and use both a Weider Crossbow and a Bowflex Power Pro. The Crossbow is appealing in that it costs about half as much as the Bowflex. Overall, however, I found the Bowflex to be the superior machine and worth the extra money.

Details:

The Bowflex was much easier to put together. Granted, this is a one time event, but it took my friend and I a good portion of the afternoon to put together the Crossbow (I've heard three hours is about average for one person). Whereas the Bowflex (put together at a different friend's house) had fewer small parts and only took us about a half hour to assemble.

After getting everything put together, we unanimously decided the Bowflex was the best machine. Both were certainly usable, but the Bowflex gave the smoothest workout, and it has a real feeling of durability to it (I have heard the Crossbow doesn't hold up as well over time, though neither of my buddies have had their machines long enough to tell yet).

Both Bowflex and Crossbow are lightweight and you can fold them for easy storage.

Both Bowflex and Crossbow can give you a solid workout, but overall I think the Bowflex made me work a little harder. The Crossbow comes standard with 240 pounds of resistance versus the Bowflex's 210 pounds, but in general I was able to lift a higher weight on the Crossbow on the same exercises so I think they're comparable. The range of motion is a little smoother on the Bowflex, especially at higher weights. One advantage of the Crossbow, however, is that you don't need to stand up to change weights.

The Bowflex came with the better accessory package (fitness routines on tape, poster, and diet book). They really lay everything out for you, and it's up to you if you can stick with the program. The Crossbow came free with the lat tower and leg piece that you have to buy as upgrades with the Bowflex. Overall, this made the machine a little clunkier, though, and honestly you can do everything you need to exercise legs and lats without all the attachments. They're just extra toys that you don't really need.

It's true that you to pay more for the Bowflex, but when you're talking about something that's going to last 10 years or more, it's not a bad deal. I know several people who have owned their Bowflex for years and never had any problems, whereas two of the three Crossbow owners I know have had to get things fixed on their machines. Crossbow has a good warranty, but their customer service department can be a real hassle. It's better all around if you just don't have to deal with the warranty stuff.

I'm glad I had the opportunity to use both Bowflex and Crossbow before buying. This Christmas, I plan to get a Bowflex for the family.

J. Thomas, Phoenix AZ

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