Smith Machines
Smith Machines - Love them or hate them, they're here to stay!
Smith machines would have to be the most divisive piece of gym equipment – the machine mirrors movement when doing similar exercises with free weights. People either love them or hate them! In essence, this weight machine is similar to a power rack or squat rack, because it has uprights and you are lifting weights on a bar.
The big difference is that the lifting bar is fixed, and it runs up and down on guide rails. The Smith machine offers protection and provides a safe alternative to trainers who don’t have a spotter.
Featured Smith Machines
Ironmaster IM2000 Self-Spotting Smith Machine
Compact in size. Tons of features. The Ironmaster IM2000 Self-Spotting Smith Machine is the ultimate gym equipment for your home, studio or commercial gym.
$2,225.00 Ex Tax: $2,022.73
ATX® Smith Cable Rack Weight Stack
Looking for: Cable Crossover, Smith Machine, Half Rack, Multi-Grip Chin Up? Check out the revolutionary ATX® Smith Cable Rack!
$5,975.00 Ex Tax: $5,431.82
ATX® Smith Machine Half Rack 700
There is no other piece of gym equipment that divides opinion like the old Smith Machine. You either love it or hate it. No wonder though, as there are so many theories o...
$2,949.00 Ex Tax: $2,680.91
Is it more dangerous than lifting free weights?
The Smith machine haters will tell you that the fixed plane of movement not only limits muscle growth, it actually leads injury. The logic here is that you're not actually lifting a weight in the traditional sense. You're simply moving it along a guided plane of movement, in fact, one of the injury claims comes from the fact that you are moving along a fixed and unnatural plane.
The most common argument stems from the fact that when you're lifting weights in a cage or a rack, some effort is required in stabilising the barbell.
When using a Smith machine, it is argued that you are not stimulating as many muscle fibers, because there's no need to stabilise the weight. There are studies that document this, but I have been in the game for long enough to realise that for every study that supports this theory there will be others that say that it is not true.
Make up your own mind about the benefits...
I often wonder why these theories are applied to Smith machines and no other type of fixed plane machine, such as a leg press. In all my years selling fitness equipment, I have never heard of someone saying their injuries were the result of a Smith machine. They nearly always stem from using too much weight and/or incorrect form. Often with barbells with or dumbbells – the equipment the so-called experts say is the safest.
There are many reputable trainers that swear by the Smith machine, and they're often seen in the gyms of elite sporting organisations which speak volumes. It's true I wasn't a fan while training in commercial gyms many years ago, however, I had little experience with them back then. After seeing others train, and experiencing them first hand over the last 10 years, I think they're brilliant. They allow you to isolate muscle groups better and you can perform exercises or variations that you can’t perform with a barbell.
All Other Smith Machines
ATX® Smith Cable Rack Lat Option Weight Stack
Upgrade your ATX® Smith Cable Rack with Lat Option Weight Stack. The ATX® Smith Cable Rack Lat Option Weight Stack features a durable, flexible, anti-stretch steel cabl...
$3,995.00 Ex Tax: $3,631.82
Barbarian Lat Option Plate Loaded
Simply bolt the Barbarian Lat Option to your Barbarian Power Rack or Smith Machine to do high & low pulley exercises. In plate loaded & weight stack options.
$330.00 Ex Tax: $300.00
ATX® Smith Cable Rack System Weight Stack
German Design at it's finest. This machine is the undisputed champion in its category.
$9,970.00 Ex Tax: $9,063.64
Barbarian Smith Machine System
Built to last even in the most demanding commercial gyms, the Barbarian Smith Machine System is a piece of very heavy-duty equipment - the rack is rated for 400kgs! The a...
$4,180.00 Ex Tax: $3,800.00
ATX® Smith System Plate Loaded
By far the best quality smith machine system at this price point by a country mile. German design gives you a very smooth smith at a very affordable price.
$1,875.00 Ex Tax: $1,704.55
ATX® Smith Machine Half Rack 600
Finally a quality smith machine with a compact footprint at an affordable price. The ATX® Smith Machine Half Rack showcases German engineering at its finest with its com...
$1,199.00 Ex Tax: $1,090.00
ATX® Smith Cable Rack System
Your search for the complete gym unit is over. The ATX® Smith Cable Rack has it all in a relatively compact footprint, built to the highest standards for the European ma...
$7,189.00 Ex Tax: $6,535.45
ATX® Smith Cable Rack Stack Weight
Fully decked out Smith Cable Rack, designed in Germany at an unbeatable price.
$4,449.00 Ex Tax: $4,044.55
ATX® Smith Cable Rack Plate Loaded
Finally, a home gym oriented Smith Cable Rack. Everything you will ever need to train in one spot!
$3,249.00 Ex Tax: $2,953.64
ATX® Smith Cable Rack
Yet another brilliant design from ATX®. A half rack, smith machine and cable crossover all rolled into one compact footprint. With some very impressive load capacities ...
$4,979.00 Ex Tax: $4,526.36
Feel safe and gain confidence using a quality smith machine from Sam's Fitness
If you are still in two minds on the effectiveness of a Smith machine I have some great news for you. All the Smith machines we have for sale have the option to train free weight style with a barbell. So you can get the best of both worlds!
The Smith machines we sell have a secondary safety mechanism, which acts as a stopper to the lifting bar. I strongly recommend that this is utilised. If you tear a muscle or other serious injury, you may not be in a position or condition to actually lock the lifting bar out. This secondary mechanism will add that extra level of safety.
The Barbarian Line and Megatech Smith Machines both come standard with barbell supports. This means you can lock your lifting bar out of the way up top, and set up your barbell just like you were training on a squat rack. Even better, both these gyms have lat tower options available that can be bolted to the back. This will give you a cable pulldown and seated row.
For a bodybuilder or strength trainer looking to build muscle, this is heaven! This will allow you to work for the various muscle groups with multiple exercises in the barbell, Smith machine, and cable formats.
The Ironmaster IM2000 has optional j-hooks and spotter arms that can be purchased separately. While this may seem like an additional expense, this is completely offset by the machine coming standard with a high and low pulley. Plus it also has weight plate storage on the back – not bad for a machine with only a 130cm x 130cm footprint. With the various options available on both the IM2000 and the Super Bench, this is not a smith machine but rather a complete home gym system.
When anyone is considering purchasing gym equipment I always encourage them to do their research. But Smith machines are one piece of equipment where there is a lot of pseudo-sciences. I always acknowledge that free weight training is superior – but for the average punter who struggles to find the time to hit the gym, slips up on their diet, has a couple of beers on the weekend and doesn’t get enough sleep do you really think training on a power cage vs a smith machine is going to make a world of difference?
My advice is to always choose a machine that you like training on as this will increase the likelihood of achieving results. In the case of a smith machine, some weight trainers love variety, so having a Megatech, Barbarian Line or Ironmaster IM2000 Smith machine will give them nearly double the exercises since you can do both Smith and barbell forms. All this variety will have you tearing down the gym door to rip into your training! That is the secret to getting results in the gym.
In regards to the so-called Smith machine injuries, what I do with every exercise is only use a weight that I can handle with textbook form. Plus I vary my grips, foot positions and position under the lifting bar – not to avoid injuries, but try and utilise different muscles. To me, that is just common sense.where is the origin of the smith machine
