XMark Lat Pulldown and Low Row Cable Machine XM-7618

Aside from a few small hiccups, this was a great purchase!

The machine comes into two boxes which may be delivered on different days (mine did), so don’t let that freak you out. The bolts, nuts, and other small parts are contained in plastic glued to one piece of cardboard so you can easily identify each part and should make assembly that much easier. Mine had come apart somewhere in the process and there were loose parts all over the bottom of the box. Fortunately, all parts were accounted for and aside from losing a little time, this did not turn into a issue.

Speaking of assembly. It is not too bad. Like another reviewer has stated, do pay attention to feeding the cable through the pulleys at each step, or you’ll have to start again. I caught myself doing that after reading that same advice. The instructions could have made that clearer, but overall it is very intuitive. Most pieces will fit only one way. Except for the low row footpad. Unless I have done something wrong as it seems there is only one way for it to go on, I may have got one made backwards, as the treads are on the wrong side. This is not that big of deal to me and I’ll update if I figure it out. And the Xmark comes with, that’s right, COMES WITH!!!! a pair of olympic adapters. How cool is that?

I have not had the chance to really test this baby yet but have performed pulldowns, low rows, tricep pushdowns, cable curls all with a weight corresponding to my 12 rep tolerances. I really like it so far. I’m at 5’11” and also agree that those who are taller might have some ROM issues. Low rows are not going to be perfect (they are gonna be LOW) and I am debating on building a plywood platform (like what my power cage sits on) to raise it up some. But would that mean knocking the path out of proper alignment for the low row? Not sure yet as the low rows performed on this machine seem to target the back acceptably. Will update if I do.

I am really happy with this purchase and feel that this is exactly what I needed to add some much needed versatility to my home gym. And a big thank you to the previous reviewers and to those who answered my questions. They were instrumental in my decision to buy the Xmark. Y’all ROCK!!!

I’ve had this machine now for over two months. I’ll keep it short and simple with just the meat and potatoes of this thing. The vertical post does shift back and forth, as well as the seat post. The gauge of the tubing is not heavy enough to just crank the bolts down. If you crank the bolts down, the square tubing will just deform. I threw wood shims under the seat post.

To remedy the large post shifting back and fourth, I simply put more slack in the cable, so when the weight stack hits bottom it’s not putting any tension on the pulleys. You cannot do standing overhead tricep work without cutting a slot in front of the top pulley. As another reviewer said, the low pulley is really low. Rows feel odd, but it’s not a deal breaker for doing them. Lying bicep curls will put the fear of god into you as the chain rides on your crotch. The only other thing that’s annoying is the weight sled will stick to the rubber bumpers on the bottom when it sits overnight.

Spray the bumpers with WD40 and it doesn’t stick anymore, but you’ll have to respray it. The sled by itself weighs about 20lbs, so if you’re weak, one handed tricep/bicep work may be a struggle. Having a 10lb or more difference on one side of the sled will put extra drag on the sled. I.E. 25lbs on one post vs 10+2.5 on both will feel like two different weights.

Now that you know all the little odds and ends that reviewers never write… The machine really is great for the price. Is there better? Of course, but they’re twice the price. I use it almost everyday and I’ve never walked away from it in frustration. It works and works great. The two bars it comes with are surprisingly nice.