SMITH MACHINE

FREE-SPOTTER

RANGE OF MOTION

Limited to up and down motion along the vertical rails. One dimensional movement.

No limitations. The bar is free to travel in any direction. Three dimensional movement.

START AND STOP

Safety latch points every four to eight inches.

Start and end lift anywhere.

LEFT/RIGHT BALANCE

One arm can do more lifting than the other because the bar is locked to the rails, and will move up regardless of which arm is pushing.

Each arm must do an equal amount of lifting to keep the bar level.

DUMBBELL CAPABILITY

None.

Dumbbell self spotting capability for olympic or standard plate dumbbells.

POWER RACK

FREE-SPOTTER

RANGE OF MOTION

No limitations except for the lower limit controlled by the safety pins.

No limitations

START AND STOP

The bar can be rested either on the J-hooks or the safety pins. A lift can only start and stop at these points.

A lift can be started and stopped at any point in the lift.

UNRACKING AND RACKING

Required at the beginning and end of a lift set.

Not required.

DUMBBELL CAPABILITY

None.

Dumbbell self spotting capability for olympic or standard plate dumbbells.

* There is one Free-Spotter limitation that the smith machine and the power rack do not have. The smith machine and the power rack are self contained, but the Free-Spotter must have an external means to hang the ropes. This could be from ceiling beams and joists, and it could be installed on a power rack (very common).