Marcy MWM-988 Multifunction Steel Home Gym 150lb Weight Stack Machine

I hesitated only a little before giving this equipment 5 stars. The slight hesitation was because of the limited range of motion for the butterfly and a slightly crooked bar for the quad raises, but in the end, I decided it wasn’t enough to take a full star away. I’ll structure the review with the full order lifecycle: Reviews: Reviews and questions/answers on Amazon are quite comprehensive and helpful. You need to read multiple reviews in order to set your expectations. In the end, I decided to take a chance. And I was glad I did. Ordering: Uh, click “Add to Cart.” Delivery: 0 stars to Amazon for a disastrous delivery, despite this being touted as a Prime-eligible product (which mysteriously disappeared from the product page… sometimes). From the day I placed the order to the day the item was delivered in its entirety was 11 days. The item comes in 3 boxes – 1 for the components and 2 for the weights. I got the components one day before the weights. I placed the order so that even in the worst case, I would be able to assemble it over the Memorial Day weekend. Instead, I had to wait for another weekend thereafter. To this day, I can’t tell if the equipment is Prime eligible or not. This experience was stressful enough for me to discontinue my Prime membership. Packaging: Sturdy packaging. No damage to anything in the boxes. Equipment Quality: The quality is acceptable. The stacked weights are made of concrete with a vinyl coating. At this time, I don’t have any reason to believe that they will somehow stop being heavy or will break down with use. So, I’ll let this one pass. Suffice it to say that had I not read in other reviews and question/answers that the weights were vinyl, I would have been disappointed. You kind of expect weights to be made of cast iron. The framing members appear to be of acceptable quality. Fasteners, pulleys, and cables appear to be well-built. When everything is put together, the equipment is smooth and noiseless. The padded bar over which you do quad raises is crooked on one side. Assembly: It took me a little over 4 hours to put this thing together. I had a brief period of about a half hour where I had some help. But I don’t think it affected the overall time for assembly. I would rate myself as mechanically inclined, and I used power tools unabashedly, especially when it came to the fasteners. That speeded up the time of assembly. Instructions are adequate, albeit at times cryptic. There is not one word of written instructions – it is entirely schematic. The good thing is you don’t need anything translated. You have to use your imagination at times, especially when it comes to putting together the suspended pulleys in the back of the seat. During the assembly, pay special attention to where it says to fully tighten the fasteners. If you overlook that, it will be hard to go back – you might have to take apart some of the assembly in order to go back and tighten. The number of fasteners provided is exactly what you need to put the equipment together. Kudos to the inventory folks at Impex for the tight control. On the flip side, if you lose one washer, you will be short by one washer. There are no extras. Not one. For me the toughest part of the assembly was sliding the padded butterfly sleeve all the way up the arm. Ironically the second toughest part was installing the weight stack cover, which in my opinion, is optional and purely an esthetic piece (some might say for safety, but I’d argue). Exercising: I’m 5’ 9” and in relatively OK condition. The operation is pretty much like any gym equipment I’ve used at various vacation resorts over the years. It is smooth and noiseless. I bought an additional straight bar for bicep curls, but I feel as if I could have done without it. I also bought a single D-handle cable attachment, which I have yet to use. Overall, the curl bar that comes with the equipment is adequate for everything. One irritating thing is that it’s impossible to tell the plate number where you’re inserting the weight selector pin, because of the parallax between the weight cover and the holes. You have to either sit down level with the hole, or you have to count the holes top to bottom before inserting the pin. Or you can do what I did, and paste the plate numbers directly on the plate (I had to print out the numbers and tape them to each plate). I also had to copy the plate-to-weight chart from the manual and paste it on the weight stack cover. Otherwise, it’s not intuitive to remember the plate number and the resistance it offers for different exercises. I was pleasantly surprised to note that the bench press weight rating is actually more conservative than I had expected. For example, pressing 135 lbs on this equipment feels a lot harder than pressing 135 lbs on a bar. Why? One, because maybe the resistance is more than 135. Or two, because you’re starting the move by pushing the press arm up, as opposed to letting it come down on you, as with a standard bar. My 21-year old son could barely go up to 200 on this (he presses 225 on a bar). In other words, the 200 lb max appears to be plenty for me. If you’re currently pressing 225, you’ll be happy with what this equipment offers at the 200 lb “rating.” For all other exercises, the top resistance is 150 lb. The constant resistance of the stacked weight system is obvious in everything you do. I use the machine for bicep curls (mostly over the preacher station), tricep curls, lat pulldowns, butterfly, quad raises, hamstring raises, and the occasional bench press. The constant resistance is quite evident for quad/hammy raises as well as tricep curls. You can’t cheat here – there are no free or partial-weight movements, as there are with free weights, especially for those moves. The initial resistance in bicep curls is another thing you can’t easily achieve with dumbbells. The equipment is worth the expense, the assembly, and the extra space it occupies in my basement, just for these 4 exercises. As for the lat pulldowns, it has completely replaced the equivalent exercise I used to do with dumbbells, and it has saved me around 3 minutes in the morning (an eternity, considering that I need to leave home at 6 in the morning). For the bench press, I still stick with dumbbell press. For the butterfly, the equipment gives what you can never achieve with dumbbells – resistance at the end of the fly move (when you’re pulling your arms close together). However, the movement starts too late, i.e., your arms can’t get back far enough. But I compensate for that by putting an additional seat back (from another piece of equipment) over the equipment’s seat back, thereby pushing me further up and letting my arms start from further back. I wish that the seat back was adjustable, as I’ve seen in professional gym equipment, but it’s wishful thinking at this price range. So, I still end up doing dumbbell flies because of that initial resistance. The resistance with the pin in the first hole is too high for me for any kind of ligament warm-up. The weight selector pin dangles awkwardly, and potentially harmfully (to the equipment) when not engaged to at least some weight. So, I still have to use my light dumbbells and the Weider resistance-bar equipment for that. I wish I could have gotten rid of the resistance equipment. I have no intention of using the equipment for squats, though one can, based on what I’ve seen on product videos. I might start using it for front deltoid raises after my shoulder heals. But other than that, I don’t see myself using it for anything more than I currently use it for. Conclusion: In summary, I’m very happy with the purchase. This is a great addition to the free weights and other equipment I already have. The product is priced pretty aggressively for everything it offers. In my opinion, if you’re looking for a stacked weight system to supplement what you already have, you simply can’t go wrong with Marcy’s MWM 988. For making it your only weight equipment, you need to make sure that you’ll be comfortable doing squats and calf raises on this, as well as lateral deltoid raises, none of which this equipment natively supports.

I love this machine. Small, compact, and could easily be a good stand alone unit and only home gym. Personally, I use it in addition to a free weight bench. My space for more equipment is limited, so when my parents bought the MWM-990 and after assembling it for them and seeing in person how little space it took, and then testing it, I knew I had to have one. I searched and this one came up but was listed for half what my parents paid for their 990, so I ordered this one. Having assembled the 990, and now the 988, and then using both, I can tell you they are the same. Any differences between them would have to be pointed out to me because I didn't notice any other than color. If anything, my 988 is smoother in operation. I know I got lucky on price, but if you are finding this one cheaper than the 990, or just like the color of this one better, get this one. It's the same machine. You aren't missing anything from the 990 by getting this one. Assembly was easy. Took me a little under 3 hours, by myself, both timse. I don't understand any review stating it takes all day, or is difficult, etc. Instructions are blow out style pictures and easy to follow. Listed hardware on each step don't always match what they picture (listed will say 4 washers, but photo clearly shows 8, etc) but it's irrelevant. Follow the pictures. It all works out in the end. Package arrived kind of abused, but materials are strong inside and no damage occurred. Packaged well and can withstand a "rough" delivery. I'm 6'3" with a tall torso for my height, and have no problems using the machine. I've seen some reviews saying it's too small for 6' and above. I disagree. Just because the pull down bar comes with a long chain doesn't mean you need to use the entire length. I use half the length of the chain and can get full movement on pull downs. Hope this helps someone out there. In my opinion, the only better machines out there are the much bigger machines (which I would of bought if I had the space). The 988/990 are the best bang for the size, being the best bang for the buck is a bonus.

Received the Marcy MWM-988 Multifunction Steel Home Gym 150lb Weight Stack Machine on 2-3-2026. It did take us two days to assemble. It came in one big box 284 lbs. The assembly process was surprisingly straightforward. The instruction book and the video were somewhat clear it made putting it together ok. I the nuts, bolts and other small parts were labeled. It’s much easier to assemble with two people. We felt it was sturdy and well-designed. The materials seemed of good quality, contributing to the parts fitting without much effort. Will keep you informed if any problems.

The seller went above and beyond. I definitely recommend if you want 100 % quality