The ATX Leg Press/Hack Squat is the product of years of refinement and development. It is a major leap forward from the previous ATX-BPR-780 model. The ATX-BPR-780 was highly regarded, which will give you an indication on how good this machine is.
ATX® Leg Press/Hack Squat 4in1 Combo Key Features
The Leg Press
Additional real estate – the footprint has been extended to 66 cm x 49 cm (vs 50 cm x 37 cm on the previous version).
Unobstructed – previous model featured a support bracket right in the middle of the footplate, which wasn’t ideal if you wanted to do some single leg press.
Grips – an extra pair of hand grips have been added to this model, which sit right next to the footplate.
Pull-pin – allows you to switch between leg presses and hack squats in seconds.
Depth for days – no need to become creative with weird contraptions in order to get the full range of motion. You can bring the carriage pretty much all the way down to the base footplate.
Toe Press
There are now two options to train calves. One seated in the leg press position – toe presses. Or standing on the hack squat station.
Traditionally when you perform a toe press on a 45 degree leg press you just use the base of the footplate. This does the trick, but sometimes the footplate is angled for optimal leg press position. So you might not get the best range of motion.
The ATX-BPR-790 has a dedicated calf block. It has been angled and positioned specifically for toe raises.
The Hack Squat
Angled pads – people make up all sorts of excuses not to do squats. The angled pads will make doing squats just about as comfortable as you can make it.
Grips – provide additional support and help you stay tight during the movement.
Full range of motion – the leg press seat folds down, allowing you to bring the carriage all the way down.
More real estate – the bottom footplate has also been widened to 65/71 cm. Giving ample room to position your legs.
The Resistance Advantage
I feel like it was important to properly explain how you can increase or decrease the load using the resistance bands.
First of all, the carriage itself weights 68 kgs and at the 45-degree angle it gives you an approximate resistance of 34 kgs.
While it may not be a problem to lift this weight for most of the hardcore bodybuilders, it may be a problem for some beginners and those who are going through rehab.
ATX® have added a few rollers & mounting points so that you could both increase or decrease the weight load or change the resistance curve.
Safety Locking Systems
This machine is rated for 700 kgs, so adding a few safety stoppers was a great idea.
There are two safety systems in this machine. One of them being the adjustment pin at the bottom, you can set it at the desired height to prevent the carriage for slamming all the way down.
The second being safety arms for starting/stopping the movement. If you feel like you are failing the rep, or went a bit deeper than originally planned, you can pull them in and rest the carriage on the locking teeth.
Smooth and Rigid
The base weight of this machine is 265 kgs, thanks to 3 mm, 5 mm, 8 mm thick steel sheets and tubes used in the construction of this machine.
68 kgs of this weight went directly into the carriage. Most of the carriage weight comes from the 5 mm thick steel tubing. It may seem a tad excessive, but if you are designed a machine which can handle +700kgs, you need to take precautionary measures.
The guiderails themselves overwent a big overhaul. ATX® have ditched the thick steel tube guiderails and went with 40 mm thick solid steel guiderails. They are coated in hard wearing chrome for a smoother movement.
One of the biggest improvements in this version were the rollers, more specifically the bearings. The carriage has a total of 8 dual (pressure) bearing rollers, which are tightly fitted around the guiderails so there is no room for the carriage to move, other than upwards/downwards.
The rollers rotate on needle style bearings. The old nylon roller/ball bearing combination on the old model was very smooth. This is set up is even smoother.
It also has the advantage of being quiet. Personally it is no big deal, but sometimes leg presses or smith machines that have linear bearings that run directly on guide rails can be noisy. The carriage on this machine glides up and down quietly even under heavy load.
Precision Engineering
I do feel like the we haven’t talked enough about the ATX® state of the art factory, which is filled with CNC, Laser Cutting & Robot-Welding machines.
Each piece is custom made to fit the equipment. Take the supporting bracket for the safety locking system as an example. The pieces are first cut using the Laser cutting machines, so they are precise as they can be.
Then they are welded together using the robot welding machines, which leads to the perfect welds. Not only that the welds themselves are on all the sides of the bracket. And not just welded on one side, to save time and money.
With the result being an overengineered piece of equipment with astounding structural integrity.
How To Increase & Decrease the Resistance?
How to increase it:
Use the resistance band pegs which are sitting at the bottom of the frame, right next to your leg press seat. They have been welded to the frame, so you don’t have to worry about them going missing (in case you are running a commercial gym, or have kids.)
Attach the resistance band to the first peg, then go under the following one and hook it up on the weight horns of the sled.
They come with nylon sleeves, which roll on to the welded-on band pegs. This not only helps the resistance band move more freely but also extends its longevity as it is not getting stuck and torn apart by metal pieces.
The pegs also feature stoppers which keep both the nylon sleeves and the resistance band in place.
How to decrease it:
If you have ever tried doing hack squats, you know that they can be taxing on your knees. Having a high starting load definitely does not help you or make this exercise more comfortable.
ATX have a solution to this problem. Simply pull the pin out the resistance band adjustment system in the back and thread the resistance band through.
Put it over the top rollers and hook it up to the carriage.
You can increase/decrease the resistance and the force curve using the handle with the pull pin in the back of the machine.
Obviously, you can use this system for all four exercises – leg presses, hack squats, seated calf presses, standing calf raises.
Is it difficult to assemble?
A lot of people believe that the equipment is difficult to assemble as it involves a lot of small parts. But it is nothing like your Ikea drawers! Even though the equipment is being shipped as flat packed, a lot of pieces are already pre-assembled.
It took me around 4 hours to get this leg press up and running, that is with the right tools, a bit of knowledge and two left hands.
I would recommend asking a mate to help you out, as some pieces are quite heavy and may be tricky to bolt on.
What’s Included? ATX® Leg Press/Hack Squat 4in1 Combo (ATX-BPR-790)
Please note the pictures may feature optional attachments or items which are not included with the unit, this is to show the possible configurations/use of the unit.
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