Fray Fitness Plate Loaded Leg Extension and Curl Combo Machine Review
Introduction
I decided to review the Fray Fitness plate loaded leg extension and leg curl machine as I haven’t seen any reviews of this specific product, and after owning about 6 different leg extension and curl combo machines in my home gym over the years, I wanted to give this one a try.
As of today, I have been using this machine at least twice a week for the last 6 months. I’ve previously owned a Powertec bench attachment, a dedicated Promaxima prone plate loaded combo, a Bolt Fitness bench attachment, a Titan Fitness Leg Extension and Curl Machine V2, this Fray Fitness version, and now a Nautilus Instinct Dual Selectorized version.
The common theme across almost any leg extension and curl machines is that it becomes really difficult if not impossible, to find a good footprint, resistance profile, options for user adjustability/comfort/ergonomics, range of motion, ability to load heavy, and affordable price all together or at the same time. Certainly, almost every single one of the plate loaded options on the market today, oriented for home gyms, generally falls short in at least one or two categories.
Who Is Fray Fitness
Now for those unfamiliar with Fray Fitness as a company I would say they are similar to Titan Fitness, in offering import products at some of the lowest cost around and then therefore generally achieving a good price for value. Also like Titan they always offer “sales” which I have always found moderately annoying that you pay “extra” unless you get it on “sale” which is really just showcasing their bottom line price – just like Kohls, where my wife loves to get “deals”.
This is the second product of Fray’s that I have owned along with a plate loaded ISO ROW machine, a clone of the hammer strength commercial version we all know and love. Both my Fray machines have been fine, although both products required me to reach out to their customer service for missing or damaged part replacements, but the service was extremely helpful and prompt in providing a solution and shipping me the needed items.
In both orders, my overall experience with Fray was just fine. Although compared to companies like REP, Rogue, Titan, Bells of Steel, and others, I did note that Fray’s packaging and was not the greatest comparatively, which I think contributed to the missing parts.
Price, Dimensions, Weight, Capacity, Design
When I ordered this back in October 2023, it cost $528 shipped to my door including a $100 S&H in that total, although if you live local to them in Memphis TN, you can pickup the items without the added shipping for any orders which is definitely a nice plus if you are nearby. REP fitness also does something very similar if you live near their California or Pennsylvania warehouse locations.
The dimensions for this leg extension and curl machine can be found on their website with additional technical information, and I would direct all questions to Fray’s customer service rather than me reciting it verbatim here. But quickly I will mention the footprint is 44" wide x 49" deep x 38.5" tall and if seat is in back most position it extends the depth to 57".
The listing on the website doesn’t provide the weight of the machine or the weight capacity but simply based on similar import versions and my own unofficial real-world testing, the fully assembled weight is around 80-90LBS and the weight capacity is about just as many plates as you can put on the weight horn, which is about 3 or 4 45LB plates depending on thickness, which is plenty for the majority of gym owners.
In regard to the design of this leg extension and curl, it is not unique and pretty much another import version of the same design floating around other internet retailers like Amazon and Walmart. Although I would say it is probably hard to be innovative within the boundaries of price and footprint and a tried-and-true plate loaded functionality of all of these machines.
Fit and Finish
The build quality of this machine is definitely on the budget end and there was a lot of slop and play in the tolerances of the hinge/rotational and connecting pieces which required a quick trip to the hardware and a small order from McMaster Carr, and online hardware supplier, to find some cheap hardware to improve some of these mechanical deficiencies to my liking. I purchased some 1inch washer shims to fill the gap between the rotational shaft and the frame/shaft mounts, improving the side-to-side play. I also purchased and a longer spring pin or dowel, since mine kept working its way out after a few weeks of repeated use.
To this day, there still also a lot of play in the seat, for which I jury-rigged an old rubber lever arm bumper to prop the seat up into a more ergonomic and biomechanically friendly angle or positions instead of being just flat. There is similar play in the back pad, which I definitely consider to be outside the range of simply engineering or manufacturing tolerances for desired movement. While using the machine the bearings and some of the pivot points or rotational parts creak although it doesn’t impact the smoothness of the machine. The frame powder coat was also chipped in multiple areas upon arrival despite being in new condition – again a product of the lackluster shipment packaging.
Functionality / Resistance Hack
Fit and finish aside, thankfully the machine is functionally adequate, as I would sincerely hope for a machine at this price point. However, in order to take this machine or any of the other comparable plate loaded-other-manufacturer equivalents to the next level, you need to use the 35LB plate hack.
I do want to give credit to Home Gym Hacks and Reviews Youtube Channel for providing where I first saw this solution to fix the resistance profile of this and really any leg extension and curl since all plate loaded options have this same predicament due to the design. The hack is incredibly simple, just put a 25 or 35 pound plate on the weight peg or stopper to the weight arm, bringing it the arm up and out instead of vertical, and now you are good to go and use it as originally desired.
Now, because of physics, you have moved the lever arm perpendicular to gravity and therefore created a more even resistance curve, rather than prior which would have essentially no resistance at the bottom of the movement. This hack works for both leg extensions and leg curls in order to provide a similarly even resistance curve.
Once you have this “correct” resistance profile you can get a really good pump and workout for both leg extensions and leg curls so the functionality is about as good as it gets for a plate loaded option once you configure it as such.
In my setup, I actually ended up bolting my 35LB plate to this post with some spare 1inch bolts from previous power rack installations and configurations.
A final functionality disclaimer - I have only been using this 35LB plate hack method since day 1 so my review and the context of my experience with the functionality and resistance of this plate loaded machine is only based on utilizing this 25 or 35LB weight plate hack to improve the machine strength curve.
Alternate Options
As far as alternate options go, they are plentiful, although a few consistently pop up as the go-to’s in the cheap/functional/and space efficient matrix.
Titan Fitness’ leg extension and curl machine, which coincidentally enough, I actually sold to buy this machine, was and is overpriced in my personal opinion and is still listed at $650 even when it’s on sale. I sold my V2 version with the grippy vinyl because while the fit and finish on that machine was miles better than this one, the leg curl knee brace positioning and padding was extremely uncomfortable and downright painful for me to use due to the location of the pad resting across my small but meaty thighs rather than right above your knees like most commercial leg curl options I have used in the past.
Every other import brand – like GMWD and Syedee, which I always see sold at Amazon and Walmart, are the same as this but I picked the Fray one specifically due to center leg roller ergonomics and position, to avoid the same problem I encountered with the Titan. Although the downside of the center post means you have to remove the leg roller when getting in and out each time – although despite my other complaints, I find this is really not a bother at all.
Then there are the bench attachment options like Bolt Fitness which served me well for quite some time or power rack attached versions like Titan and other options I have seen pop up recently, although the rack attached options can only do standing leg curls and still have this resistance curve dilemma. Both the bench and rack attached options are typically more of an afterthought and I would really only consider those if space is main concern to you.
Gronk Fitness is the new seemingly better quality and engineering brand I am interested in. It is about the same price as the Titan version but seems step up in design and functionality than some of these alternative options.
Then you have unique, multipurpose options like the Bulletproof Fitness Isolator which is another great engineering and space saving option, but I think falls short in the resistance curve category until you can find a creative solution to make on. The initial price is also nearly $1000 with shipping so like I said almost every single one of these options seems to be a pick some features or price or space saving options but not all combined in this $500 or so price range.
The only consideration that would be a significant step above any of these machines is the jump to a selectorized version. But without getting to test some of the newer “budget” offerings – like SFE fitness, Bolt Fitness, and the upcoming Titan and Bells of Steel versions, I can’t confidently say they are worth the proportional price jump. Into the $1500-2000 price range.
Honestly after years of the leg extension curl merry-go-round of machine, what I finally opted to do was to stalk marketplace everyday for months on end searching for a deal and finally bought a used commercial version for around $1000. Something that is in between the two new machine price ranges I mentioned and I figured that worst case if I hate it, a used commercial machine will still hold it’s resale value.
Overall Rating and Comments
Functionality: 8 (with hack)
Feature/Design: 5
Fit/Finish: 4
Value: 7
Overall: 6
Overall, the machine is a decent in the context all the prior mentioned pros, cons, and other options, although I don’t know that it distinguishes itself enough from any of those other manufacturers to really be a top pick of the lot.
The fit and finish of my machine is really what is lacking. My seat does fully line up parallel to the knee brace or leg extension curl pad. The seat angle adjustments themselves aren’t great and would be subpar unless I had found my alternative DIY option to prop the seat up, but some people may not be as picky as me there. The wiggle of the seat and backs pads is annoying but not a deal breaker for me since it functions just fine and at the end of the day I can deal with all the other quirks as long as my legs get a good workout. Overall, it’s easy to use and You do get a good workout, and I still get a crazy pump for both leg extensions and curls, and its relatively quick to switch between movements.
The padding seems pretty durable and is definitely more comfortable padding than the Titan Leg extension and curl that I had.
At $525 I do think it is overpriced and if I were to be in the market for this type of machine again, I would opt for literally any amazon equivalent brand as long as it has an ergonomically correct leg curl brace location, since it was probably made in the same place as this one and is a couple hundred dollars cheaper.
At the end of the day if you want a noticeable upgrade, I really would suggest people looking to spend $500-1000 to find a selectorized used commercial version. The only downside to these entry level selectorized versions is the current price gap since is easily $1000-1500 increase and difference between the two types of options. Let me know if in the future you would want me to review one of these entry level selectorized versions and which one.
If you have any specific questions on this leg extension and curl machine, please comment down below and I will be happy to answer or at least try. I appreciate you reading this review of the Fray Fitness Plate Loaded Leg Extension/Leg Curl. Stay tuned for next time, thanks.
Michael – The Jungle Gym Reviews
