It’s no secret that I really like this cheap home gym cable pulley system I bought from Amazon Japan. Of all the equipment in my home gym, even though it’s not my most frequently used equipment, it is my favorite.
But there’s always been something about the design of this product that has confused me. What is the point in the bulb, the metal cup and the washer on the cable? They don’t need to stop anything from sliding down the cable into the pulley system. In fact, as I recently found out, they’re more of a hazard than a benefit.
THE PROBLEM
After years of use, all three of these parts have come loose. When using the pulley up high, this isn’t an issue, but when using the pulley down low, these parts fall into the pulley. This causes the bulb to push up against the pulley, preventing smooth movements, but can even result in the washer getting caught in pulley. Good luck getting that out!
I was fortunate enough to notice this risk before it happened, so when it did actually happen and the washer part slid inside the pulley, I was able to quickly resolve the issue without it getting stuck or causing any damage. But I’m sure there have been lots of people who have not been as lucky as I was.
So I did what any Dad would do – slathered on a lot of adhesive and hoped it all stuck together. And it did work. For one workout.
When I checked these parts before the start of my next workout, the washer had come loose again, and of these three parts, this is the worst one to come loose.
Which brought me back to my initial thoughts about these three parts – you don’t actually need them. As long as you have a cable that you can attach hooks to on either end, you can still use the rest of this cable pulley system. In fact, this is the ideal way to use it, because now the parts won’t get caught!
And that’s when I took another move straight out of the Dad book – buy something cheap from Amazon to solve my problems and in theory, make it better.
THE SOLUTION
I bought this cable. Well, I actually bought two because it was cheaper to buy them in a set of two. Notice how it’s the exact same cable as the one I was using with two metal rings on the ends for hooks, minus the bulb, metal cup and washer. Let’s try using it and see how it compares.
TEST: HIGH SETTING
I've set up the cable system with the new cable, and I've gone ahead and gone for the high setting. This is the setting I use the most. It's the setting you'll probably use the most, too. Once we do this one, we’ll then test it with the low setting, which had the most issues with the old cable.
With a high setting, I don't predict many differences without those three parts here, but let's see how it goes.
VERDICT
As expected, when doing the exercises, there was no difference between this cable and the old cable, which had the three parts here. However, there was one difference when setting up this cable. Without a weight on this end here, if you let it go, it will likely go through the pulley system and fall out the other side. When it does, it won't cause any damage because it's a small part. It’s actually designed to pass through the pulley system, so there's no need for being concerned. It's just something to keep in mind when setting up, something additional you'll have to do compared to the old cable.
TEST: LOW SETTING
Okay, let's get this set up for the low pulley setting and test it out.
VERDICT
That was so much better with that new cable without those three parts here at the bottom banging into the pulley, and especially without that washer that could slip into the pulley and get caught. The actions were much smoother. I felt much more in control, like it was a much more effective workout.
There was one concern, and it's nothing new to this cable. It was with the old cable as well,
and that's because of the design of this product. With the low setting here, our one pulley connected to the weight is a moving fulcrum, which is causing a pendulum to occur. Yes, there's a lot of physics involved in weight lifting. What that does is, as I'm lifting the weight, it changes how the forces act on the weights and my body as well.
While I'm moving, It's fine. I can move with the weights, with that pendulum, and it doesn't cause any issues. But it does mean that I can't do peak contraction at the top of the movement, which is a very good bodybuilding technique for even more enhanced muscle growth.
If I was going to fix that issue, I would buy another pulley and I would somehow secure that pulley to the ground maybe, or to the wall somewhere in front of that weight. That way, my fulcrum is now stable and not moving so I can move and control that weight more freely, and like I said, do that peak contraction for better muscle growth. Apart from that, though, this is a fantastic new cable which addresses those old issues I had with the other cable.
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