One thing I've always wanted for my space-constrained homegym is a leg press. But even the most compact leg presses occupy a lot of space lengthwise and width-wide. I had my eye on the Force USA 45 degree leg press/hack squat combo machine, because it has so much capacity for me to grow into. So I picked one up and modified it so it can be placed up against the wall.
The primary issue is the barbell that attaches to the carriage (the part that moves up and down). This barbell extends about 45 cm (18 inch) beyond the left and right sides of the machine, taking up stationary space as well as dynamic space when the carriage is in motion. Eliminating that barbell would reduce the width requirement from the bare minimum of 162 cm to 80 cm, assuming the weight storage pegs are also removed.
But of course, the barbell is how the leg press is loaded, with 34 cm on each end for Olympic-spec plates. It also provides some structural stability for the hack squat shoulder pads, where they attach to the carriage. However, dangling underneath the carriage is a much-smaller space for loading plates, with 20 cm on left/right for plates.
As an aside, this is a fairly substantial machine that arrived on a pallet, taking a few hours to assemble. The build quality is exemplary, and everything about it evinces durability and stability.
My approach was to remove the original barbell, loading only the under-carriage bar. To retain structure, I cut 1"x2" rectangular steel tube to the width of the carriage (59 cm), capped the ends, and drilled holes to reuse the same bolts as the original barbell. The reason for 1"x2" is because the backrest for the hack squat requires clearance; the stock barbell solved this by bending around that area, whereas 1x2 just barely clears the backrest, and that's good enough for me.
Later, I added a pair of wooden mounts where a conventional barbell can be rested. This is not my proudest woodworking achievement, but it's certainly the most unconventional. Each mount is made from three layers of reclaimed 2x6 lumber (from a bed frame) glued together, then a 3.5-inch diameter hole bored through axially, then sanded, stained in cherry, and finished with Polycrylic clear coat for durability. I'll explain the point of these mounts in a different post.
The result of all this is a leg press that needs only about 1 meter by 2.4 meter (39" by 96") of floor space, and that's including weight storage pegs on the side away from the wall, plus space to swing the safety stopper bars in/out of place. And everything can be reverted back to the factory configuration.
The caveat is that I'm consigned to the 40 cm total barbell space under the carriage. To maximally load this machine, I would need to invest in thin iron plates, which apparently only are made to precise values, and are thus expensive. Examples: Rogue calibrated KG plates, and Hansu Power calibrated plates, both of which are 22.5 mm wide for 20 kg plates. Sixteen such plates would make 320 kg (700 lbs), and I'd be thrilled if I could get there one day. The tradeoff is reasonable to me, minimizing floor space today in exchange for requiring expensive plates in the future, until I upsize my space.
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Oh man I adore those thin comp plates. I have several in smaller denominations to fit onto my pairs of Olympic dumbbell handles. Have been eyeing up some 20's and 25's. The real dream.
In the UK, you can get thin plates from places like Mirafit and StrengthShop. They're fairly spenny but thankfully not astronomically so.
Hope you can get a stack of decent weight soon. Loving the setup.
The pricing on those Mirafit calibrated plates looks amazing: a pair of 20 kg for just £200 (~$254). That's highly comparable to the calibrated plates I linked above.
Wait, what the ***? They can ship using UPS to America for £15??? How is that possible? And a single pair would be within the $800 import duty exclusion in the USA?
If the USD/GBP exchange rate moves a bit in my favor, I might have to consider these haha
Oh wow, wouldn't have thought you could import them for so little. I'd recommend getting in touch with their customer support ahead of time if you do decide to pull the trigger, just to make sure.
Duly noted.
To be certain, is Mirafit well regarded in the UK? For example, do used Mirafit plates command a price similar to the list price?
They're okay, they use some OEM parts and slap their own name on them but generally are well regarded.