Bowflex assembly
Do not pay Bowflex $169 to assemble this. Pay attention to the warranty instead.
A Max Trainer goes together in about ninety minutes with the tools that come in the box. The number that should worry you is a different one: the labor warranty is ninety days.
The assembly is genuinely easy. The warranty genuinely is not.
Let us get the assembly out of the way honestly. A reviewer at Garage Gym Reviews assembled a Max Trainer M6 on her own in about an hour and a half, using the tools Bowflex supplied rather than her own, and said it was simpler than other ellipticals she had built. Other testers put it at one to two hours. Bowflex will do it for you for roughly $169, which one reviewer noted is more than other brands charge for the same service. If you can build flat-pack furniture, you can build this.
Now the part nobody puts on the product page. The Max Trainer M6 carries two years on the frame, two years on parts, and NINETY DAYS ON LABOR. Two years on a frame is short where most competitors offer a lifetime. Ninety days on labor is short against an industry standard of one year.
And Bowflex sit at 1.9 out of 5 on Trustpilot, where a recurring complaint is machines that stopped working within a few months and a customer service team that was hard to reach. One M9 owner had a fault in the resistance system straight from the factory, and ended up applying the fix himself after getting hold of Bowflex on Facebook Messenger.
What things actually take
Owner and tester reported.
| Model | Time | People |
|---|---|---|
| Max Trainer M6A tester did it alone, with the included tools. | ~1.5 hours | 1 |
| Max Trainer M8Two boxes: the top and the bottom. | 1 to 2 hours | 1 to 2 |
| Max Trainer M9"About an hour for a handy person." | ~1 hour | 1 |
| Bowflex in-home assemblyAnd about $169. | 30 to 60 minutes | 1 pro |
| Getting it back OUT of the roomAssembled, it is bulky. Reviewers warn about this specifically. | harder than getting it in | 2 |
Bowflex recommend two people for safety. One is usually enough, and one is what most owners use.
What is actually worth knowing
Ninety days on labor
This is the number. Not two years on the frame, not the JRNY subscription: ninety days on labor. If the resistance system develops a fault in month five, Bowflex may send you the part, and the hands that fit it are yours to find and yours to pay for. Most brands give you a year. Bowflex give you a season.
It is easier to get in than out
Reviewers note that although the footprint is small, the assembled machine is bulky, and you may struggle to get it out of a room once it is together. If it is going upstairs or into a finished basement, think about the day you move house, not just the day it arrives.
Factory faults happen, and you may be the one fixing them
An M9 owner discovered a fault in the resistance system that had come from the factory, was not aware of it until he was using the machine, and ended up carrying out the repair himself with instructions from Bowflex. Bowflex support responded helpfully over Facebook Messenger and got him the fix. Worth knowing which channel works if you need them.
Check it works before the ninety days runs out
Practical advice, and it follows directly from the warranty. Use the machine properly and hard in the first weeks, not the first months. If something is wrong with it, that is when you want to know.
Before it arrives
Two boxes, the top and the bottom of the machine, and most people can carry them in. Assembled, the M6 is 148 pounds.
Decide the room properly. It is a compact machine but a bulky object, and it does not want to come back out through a tight door.
Keep the packaging for a bit if you can. Bowflex offer a six week satisfaction guarantee on direct purchases, and it works better if the machine can go back in its box.
When to actually call somebody
Not to assemble a new one. It is ninety minutes and the tools are in the box, and anybody charging you a lot for it is charging you for ninety minutes.
Call somebody when it breaks after the ninety day labor warranty has run out, which owner reviews suggest is a real scenario. Call somebody to move one, because assembled it is awkward and heavy and does not like doorways. And call somebody if you bought one secondhand, which people do, and it came with no manual and no tools.
That is the honest list. It is shorter than a directory would like it to be, and it is the true one.
What an installer does
- Assembles a used or manual-less machine, or one you would simply rather not build.
- Moves an assembled Max Trainer between rooms, floors or houses without wrecking a doorframe.
- Diagnoses and repairs faults after the ninety day labor warranty has expired, when Bowflex will send a part but not a person.
- Fits parts that Bowflex have shipped you and expected you to fit yourself.
- Checks the resistance system and the console actually work before leaving.
Get it built by someone who has built one before.
Tell us your ZIP and what you bought. Installers near you will quote you directly, and you deal with them, not with us.
Questions people ask
Should I pay Bowflex $169 for in-home assembly?
Probably not. A reviewer built a Max Trainer M6 alone in about ninety minutes using the tools Bowflex put in the box, and called it easier than other ellipticals. If you have ever assembled flat-pack furniture, you can do this one.
What is the Bowflex warranty?
On a Max Trainer M6: two years on the frame, two years on parts, and ninety days on labor. Two years on a frame is short when many competitors offer a lifetime, and ninety days on labor is short against an industry norm of one year. It is the single most important thing to understand before buying.
How long does a Bowflex Max Trainer take to assemble?
About an hour to an hour and a half, alone, with the tools supplied. Bowflex recommend two people for safety, and their own installers take thirty to sixty minutes.
My Bowflex has stopped working. Can an installer fix it?
Often, yes, and this is the main reason people call. Once the ninety day labor warranty has passed, Bowflex may send a part but not somebody to fit it. Owners report doing that themselves; if you would rather not, that is a job an installer does.
Can I move an assembled Max Trainer?
With difficulty. It has a small footprint but it is a bulky object, and reviewers specifically warn that getting it out of a room is harder than getting it in. It weighs about 148 pounds assembled.
Installers.org is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Bowflex or Nautilus, Inc. Bowflex is a trademark of its owner, referred to here only to describe the assembly, repair and relocation services that independent installers on this directory provide.