Beginner needs help buying equioment

Hi, I have been doing off and on weights for the past two years and I am looking to get serious.  I want to do free weights at my house, and I need to buy a bench and a rack(I have bars and weights).  I have some questions.
 
1)What are the benefits of a power rack vs. Workbench rack system?
2)What are some good benches?
3)What would be a good system under 500 dollars(including bench and rack)?
I want to get quality stuff, but I am on a limited budget.
Thanks.
 

http://www.ironcompany.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=2232
Good workbench, in your price range.
I personally prefer workbenches for the home mainly because of the space issues most of us have- Including me.
The power rack can be safer, since you can't really miss the low catches- With a workbench, it's possible to do so, even though they are quite wide- So long as you pay attention and don't lift more weight than you should be, you shouldn't have a problem though.
Workbenches in general are cheaper setups too- No need to buy a seperate bench.

Is this a good cage/company? http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Squat-Power-Weight-Rack-FREE-SHIPPING_W0QQitemZ7245431524QQihZ015QQcategoryZ15281QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I think I am ok space wise, and this and a nice Ironmaster super bench would come out to about 510 shipped.

Would that be a good combo? Are there other comparable benches/cages?
 
Thanks

Looks like a good combo to me- Nice price on the rack, too.

Does anyone know how good the Body-Solid bench is?http://www.fitnessfactory.com/Item.aspx?ItemID=498
 

Never used one, but it looks well built and claims over a thousand pound capacity.

If you can get something along the lines of what CPL suggested, I think that would be great.
 
It can do a similar job to a power rack, but takes up much less room. As it's within budget, I too would reccommend you having a look at this.
 
 

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ORIGINAL: MonkeysAteMe

Hi, I have been doing off and on weights for the past two years and I am looking to get serious.  I want to do free weights at my house, and I need to buy a bench and a rack(I have bars and weights).  I have some questions.

1)What are the benefits of a power rack vs. Workbench rack system?
2)What are some good benches?
3)What would be a good system under 500 dollars(including bench and rack)?
I want to get quality stuff, but I am on a limited budget.
Thanks.

Hi,
Its quite a common question that beginners have :)
1. Workbench, as cpl underlined, saves up a lot of space. thats the reason why people go in for workbenches...
Good benches are very much on the lines of what cpl said.....
As far as budget goes, you can screen through Google and choose the best option....
 
 

CC Sports and Fitness.