Sportsroyals Power Tower Review — A Lot of Work on a Small Budget

Sportsroyals is a giant on the market for Calisthenics and gym equipment and the Sportsroyals Power Tower is no exception. You’ll find him standing in many a professional gym and the Sportsroyals Power Tower is also a welcome permanent resident in many home gyms. It packs a lot of functionality into a comparatively small volume and can turn any corner of a room, even your bedroom, into a veritable gym. But what’s so special about these Power Towers? In our Sportsroyals Power Tower review, we’ll examine what Sportsroyals is offering in terms of quality and functionality and conclude whether or not it is worth the buy.

10/09/2024 05:59 pm GMT

About Sportsroyals

Sportsroyals is a combination of sports (the industry) and “royals” which in the sports industry means something like becoming a benchmark for other manufacturers to follow. With over 20 years of production and R&D experience, Sportsroyals is known to be a mainstay choice of Calisthenics equipment for professional gyms and as home gym equipment throughout the Western world. What is unique about Sportsroyals is that they try to maximize functionality in a single product while remaining as minimalist as possible. 

That being said, Sportsroyals is not the largest manufacturer in the industry. Quite far from it. Their design philosophy revolves around replacing the entire gym into as few, affordable products as possible that will last. Quality over quantity.

Assembling the Sportsroyal Power Tower

Why buy something in the dark, when you can let us buy it first and tell you about it? We took the plunge and after 8 days our Sportsroyals Power Tower arrived at its first destination (full disclosure: they only ship within the contiguous U.S. so we had to have it shipped from that address to us. In total we waited four weeks for this). For your reference, the specific Sportsroyals Power Tower we got is the “Sportsroyals Multi-Function Pull Up Station”. This Power Tower is an enhanced and upgraded version of the previous Sportsroyals Power Tower, the “Sportsroyals Power Tower Dip.” 

Assembly is reasonably straightforward and if you can follow an IKEA instruction leaflet, you can assemble this one too. It’s all nuts and bolts with washers between them. Of course, all the components are considerably heavier and more durable than a collection of lacquered Swedish chipboards.

The Sportsroyals Power Tower Reviewed

Just like in our Calisthenics Programs reviews, we’ll be dividing the Sportsroyals Power Tower Review into 5 parts. First, we’ll go over the basic stats of this particular Power Tower like its weight and dimensions and name the various implements. Then we’ll look at the quality and construction of the Sportsroyals Power Tower by examining the fit and finish. Tied into this will be the comfort while using the Power Tower and the utility you get out of it. Together, this will give you a breakdown overview of what you can expect from your Sportsroyals Power Tower.

The Basic Stats

These are the specifications for the “Sportsroyals Multi-Function Pull Up Station”, which is an improvement over the “Sportsroyals Power Tower Dip”. You can still expect similar performance from both Power Towers.

Sportsroyals Power Tower
Dimensions
Length	41.2″
Width	14.4″
Height	Variable
Weight	~62lbs
Material
Tubular Steel	14-gauge / 1.5 mm
Synthetic	Rests and Grips
Capacity
Manufacturer	440lbs / 200 kg
Tested Strength*	546lbs / 248 kg
Adjustable Elements
Height	70.07” to 92.7” in 6 increments
Backrest	2.4” to 7.1” in 7 increments
Push-Up Grips	30°, 60°, 90°
Functionality
Pull-Up Bar	Yes
Wide Grips	Yes
Push-Up Bars	Yes
Knee Raise Station	Yes
Dip Station	Yes
* our own tests, we assume no responsibility for you exceeding the manufacturer’s specifications

Quality of the Fit & Finish

The Sportsroyals Power Tower is made with a dual triangular base, which is the strongest possible construction method outside of producing an otherwise useless solid steel block. This is also a superior and more stable design than an H-frame design, like the previous Sportsroyals Power Tower Dip. Their choice of high-grade tubular steel results in a maximum listed capacity of 440 pounds which is obviously enough for anyone who can make physical use of the Power Tower, but also allows for explosive Calisthenics to be practiced safely. The entire frame has a scratch-resistant coating which showed no deficiencies upon close inspection.

The nuts and bolts are of a higher tensile strength than the tubular steel components so should not prove to be a weak point anywhere. These are of zinc galvanized steel and should stand the test of time as well as the rest of the frame will.

After assembly (and assuming you did it properly), there is no movement from any of the components that aren’t supposed to be moved. The bolts with wide washers really do a good job at tensioning down all the components nice and snug. Lateral movement in the readily adjustable parts, like the backrest and push-up bars was very minimal and better expressed in terms of millimeters than nth of inches. The retention pins for these are again of a higher gauge than the frame itself and held in place under gravity so that no accidental unlocking can occur. The backrest is held in place with a locknut (knobbed) which is of a considerably higher gauge than the frame.

The only possible weak point (and there always has to be a weakest point in any design) we found is this backrest locknut. It has a different protective coat than the frame so there will be a discrepancy in hardness between the two. Over the course of repeated screwing and unscrewing many, many times, either the bolt or the frame’s coating will scratch and wear out; exposing it to possible corrosion. We suspect it’s going to be the frame’s scratch-resistant coating. This is an easily remedied problem though. Don’t make a habit of adjusting the backrest, don’t tension down the bolt more than hand tight and inspect the frame for damage every time you do.

The grips and rests are all synthetic. They feel firm and looked flawless upon arrival. They are of course non-structural and due to their nature; these will wear out first. In our experience, this type of synthetic grip should last multiple years of intense use before showing signs of becoming brittle.  

Comfort & Utility

Comfort will come from an ergonomic design which can be adjusted to fit your physique as best as possible, combined with quality fittings with enough give but also sufficient stiffness. The Sportsroyals Power Tower has many subtle features which improve on the comfort of use. The grips have just enough give to them so the steel won’t dig into your fingers while doing dips or pull-ups. The slight inward slant to the arm rests provides for a more natural lower-arm rest with your elbows bent than a perfectly square design. The backrest gave us ample of cushion to brace against for our knee raises too. All the padding is on the stiffer side of things but comfortable enough for a daily routine for sure.

What can you do with the Sportsroyals Power Tower then? All the usual you expect from a Power Tower and either version will give you the following common functionality:

• Pull-Ups
• Chin-Ups
• Dips
• Leg-raises
• Knee-raises
• Push-Ups

Our Experience with the Sportsroyal Power Tower

We, of course have experience with both the older and the new model Sportsroyal Power Tower. We like both of them and we enjoy using them for our Calisthenics. They are great, sturdy products that are made to last. Like Free-Standing Pull-Up Bars , you can’t expect the same kind of motionless stability as you can with a Wall-Mounted Pull-Up Bar . But you do get a lot more versatility out of a single Power Tower than any standalone fixed machine. And, the new version Sportsroyal Power Tower has made some substantial improvements on an already very stable framework. The triangular base design here works great.

Every advantage has its disadvantage of course, or rather it’s always a give and take. Where the old Sportsroyals Power Tower Dip had an open base, the 2021 upgraded Sportsroyals Multi-Function Pull Up Station has a horizontal crossbar connecting both legs which you have to step over. This is a tripping potential, of course. We didn’t find any problems with it, but if it’s of a concern to you, then the previous model Sportsroyal Power Tower is still an excellent machine and quite stable enough if not on par with the newer model. The cost difference is too low not to take your personal preference there into a higher account.

The fittings were comfortable to grip or lean against and we took particular care to use the same position repeatedly. Leg raises, for instances, when done repeatedly can really give you good idea at how well the arm cushions actually cushion. If you notice arm sores where you were clearly wrenching your bones against the steel frame, the cushions didn’t do their job well enough. The Sportsroyals Power Towers (both of them) held well here and offer sufficient support at least up to the heaviest participant who tested it (he is just shy of 200lbs at the time of testing). So even for big dudes, the Sportsroyals Power Towers offers enough comfort.

What does the Sportsroyal Power Tower Cost?

You’ll pay 200 dollars for a Sportsroyals Power Tower, that’s the old version. The 2021 updated Sportsroyals Power Towers is 220 dollars. We find this difference in price so little that it really comes down to individual preference. If you’re going to pay 200 dollars for your home gym equipment, you want something that’s quality and durable and putting down the extra 20 isn’t going to make a big difference. Your main concern is whether you need that little extra stability from the newer 220.- Sportsroyals Power Tower or if you’d like to keep the floor frame open.

Conclusions Sportsroyal Power Tower: Worth it or Not?

After many satisfactory workouts, where both the frame and the fitting (the PU backrest and armrest included) stood up to the test of time and repeated use, we settled on one word that would perfectly describe the Sportsroyal Power Tower: draft horse. Alright, that’s two words but it means one thing. This is an all-around decent, well-constructed and lasting design that will carry your weight innumerable times over without letting you down. It will do so comfortably, both for the frame as well as your hands, arms and back.

We believe the Sportsroyal Power Tower would be well situated in a semi-dedicated room as part of your home gym equipment. It could easily replace 80% if not all of your Calisthenics equipment needs in one affordable package.