I purchased this home gym because I can''t always find time to go to the gym. The Caribou will let me do all the exercises I normally do while I''m there with out the travel time to and from and playing the waiting game for a machine. I''ll start off by saying that the CPKG-CCO, with weight stack and 300 lb Olympic weight set, is a solid piece of equipment. Comes with and will handle more than enough weight to push me and my family to our limits. It takes some time to put together, but goes up easily with two people. The directions are clear and simple to follow. Just listen when the directions say not to tighten the bolts until instructed to do so and you''ll be good to go. The problems come in to play when you look at the manufacturing. For the price, I would expect better attention to detail. First, the Smith and weight stack rods are not smooth. They need to be polished and lubricated with a dry lube. Other wise the action is jerky or worse yet, the weights stick in the middle of a lift. Next is the pec-dec. There are a few problems with this area. The cable for the pec-dec is too long and allows too much play in the fly arms. The seat for the pec-dec attaches to the seat bracket about 3/4 of an inch too low. This causes the seat to rub on the mounting bracket when the seat is raised and lowered in and out of use. I''ve had my gym for two days and the mounting bracket is already starting to tear the seat cushion. The pec-dec seat is in the way almost any time the lower lat is used. This makes the cable cross over useless since it attaches to the lower lat. Yukon fitness told me that they will send me a pin so I can remove the pec-dec seat when it''s not in use. The horseshoe mount''s right side is lower then the left side. This is the mount that holds the fly arms. The right fly arm on my gym is sitting lower then the left, so I checked the horseshoe mount with a level. The left and back sides are level and it''s mounted square, but the right side slopes towards the front of the machine. On to the cable cross over. The only real problem here, besides the pec-dec seat getting in the way, is it came with five 3 1/2" pulleys when it was supposed to come with two 3 1/2" and three 4 1/2" pulleys. This makes for extra slack in the cable cross over''s cables. Yukon Fitness told me to go ahead and use it this way. Now the FID Bench. The seat is mounted to a bracket by three bolts, two on the back and one on the front. The bolt on the front is mounted in a bad location. When the seat is lowered to the flt position, the bolt head rest on an adjustment bar and causes the seat to wobble when in use. I had to cut a section out of the adjustment bar so the bolt head would clear and allow the seat to rest in a stable location. The leg lift accommodates standard weights and does not come with an Olympic sleeve even though the rest of the gym uses Olympic weights. Last, the straight bar and the lat pull down bar don''t have any adhesive holding the rubber grips tight. The grips tend to work loose or come off while you''re trying to work out. In short, If you''re willing to put some extra time and money in to this machine to fix all of the little flaws, when you''re done you will have a great home gym that should last forever
There''re 2 major and 2 minor defects with this machine.
Major defects:
1) Right behind the pulley for the lat pull-down, there''s a hole that the cable must pass through in order for the entire cable system to work. This rectangular hole is simply too small! I had to spent about 2 hours using a metal file to enlarge the hole, it''s not only time consuming but stressful for your fingers/hand.
2) About 35% of the holes on the weight stack are very difficult for the pin to completely insert in, because several of the holes on the center metal rod (which holds the weight plates as they are lifted) do not line up properly with the ones on the weight stack.
Minor defects:
1) The holes on the weight stack are facing toward the rear of the machine, in other word, you can''t place the machine close to a wall otherwise you can''t pull/push the pin. In addition, it''s hard to you know exactly how many pounds of weight stack you''re lifting, because there''s no number on each weight plate and the pin can only be inserted from the rear.
2) The included lat bar and short straight bar are as poor as it gets. The lat bar is narrower than usual and its rubber hand grip slides off very easily. Both bars are made with hollow metal rods that are more like thin plumbing pipes.
Since the whole Caribou III is very heavy and came in many long boxes, it''s not something that can be easily returned, so please be prepare for these defects before you order. Although I have to say that nothing in its price range can do as much as the Caribou gym.
Buy Caribou III Package with Cable Crossover Attachment Now
I''m with Plunc, this home gym works very well. It has 14 gauge square tubular steel construction which seems to be the perfect compromise between weight and structural integrity and if assembled properly every feature works perfectly. The one reviewer who spent hours with a file widening a cable pass through hole really must have assembled his improperly (unless something really strange happened at the factory when his was being manufactured). Mine went together easily, but did require a few hours to fully assemble.The Smith machine works well if the uprights are lubricated, but the best solution for attaining fluid motion while using it is to buy the linear bearing system from Yucon they make it work just like the Smith machines at the gym.
The pec deck seat should be removed when using the cable crossover attachment which is easily done by pulling one quick release pin.
The included bars are made of hollow chromed steel and their plastic handles don''t instill confidence. I immediately replaced them with chromed solid steel bars with knurled grip surfaces for about $100 online. It was a small price to pay to perfect the gym. For $1,600 delivered this thing can''t be beat.
Read Best Reviews of Caribou III Package with Cable Crossover Attachment Here
The rack and smith machine work great. The lat bar is too narrow and the handles fall off very easy. The crossover cables rub on the butterfly seat bench and the butterfly cables are poorly set up and have to constantly be adjusted to work without making noise. It seems like this product was great in its intention, but it doesn''t seem like anybody tested it before selling the product. I definitely would recommend a different home gym or save your money and don''t get the crossover or butterfly station.Want Caribou III Package with Cable Crossover Attachment Discount?
I have owned this home gym for four years now and love it. I''ve read some of the other reviews here and just wanted to set the record straight.1. The seat needs to be removed when using the pec-dec. Simple, pull out the pin. Take it off.
2. If any cables are too long, or too short, adjust them. Slip in a link of chain or take one out. Simple.
3. I''ve owned several benches and this is the most solid bench I''ve owned. It does need to be properly assembled.
4. The leg lift accommodates standard weights, but for a small fee you can purchase an Olympic sleeve, or just use use the Olympic weghts the way it is. Simple.
5. All the holes are the right size and line up perfectly if the machine is set up and adjusted properly.
The key is to follow the instructions and use a little common sense and you will have a very nice heavy duty machine that will do most any exercise.
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