This site may contain links to affiliate websites, and we receive an affiliate commission for any purchases made by you on the affiliate website using such links. Read Our Disclosures
The Valor Athletics BD-6 Safety Rack allows you to perform heavy squats, presses and a range of other compound exercises, without the need for a spotter.
But how does this compare to some of the best power racks from XMark or Body Solid?
In our review, we’ll look at how the BD-6 rack can support up to 650 lbs, what exercises it can be used for, and a summary of the customer feedback.
Design features
Whether you are replacing your current squat rack or looking to expand your current home gym, it’s important to find a design that holds enough weight to support many years of future strength gains.
The Valor Athletics BD-6 Safety Rack comes with a recommended bar weight of 500 lb, resting on either the safety bars or main racking points.
A unique feature to this particular rack is the design of the spotter stands, which can be adjusted through 5 different positions for up to an 8-inch adjustment in height.
The main rack provides 5 solid steel bar support positions, set between 32 and 61 inches off the ground. These are ideal for a range of user heights and exercise options, including squats, bench press, and overhead press.
The angle of the frame and racking pins also makes it safer to return the bar to a resting position.
With its 650 lb rating on the pins and supports, the Valor Athletics BD-6 can support a large amount of weight plates on each end of the bar.
To prevent having to buy a separate weight plate tree, 4 weight plate storage pegs have been added to the sides of the frame. These allow you to organise the weight plates in terms of their sizes if required, at the same time as keeping everything within easy reach during your workout.
Valor Athletics BD-6 – Features Summary
- Tools included for assembly
- Barbell and Olympic plates sold separately
- Can be used as a solo squat rack or in conjunction with a utility bench (not included) for incline, flat bench exercises as well as military press
- Adjustable spotter stands are perfect for both squats and bench press
- Solid steel bar pegs offer a variety of bar locations
- 650 lb limit on the supports
Exercise options
A large amount of open space has been created between the frame by positioning the base support bar towards the back, leaving plenty of room for you to position your weights bench.
Although there’s already a range of exercises you can perform using the rack and barbell on their own, adding a weights bench allows you to also work your chest.
The following list is made up of all compound free weight movements that are possible with the Valor Athletics BD-6 rack. This is when combined with a 7ft barbell and Olympic weight plate set (not included).
These are some of the exercises you should be including in your workouts if you want to see the greatest strength and size gains.
- Front squats
- Back squats
- Overhead press
- Upright row
- Bench press
- Deadlift
- Shrugs
- Barbell rows
Customer reviews
Despite having a number of customer reviews available on Amazon, it was actually difficult to find any negative points about the Valor Athletics BD-6 rack.
All of the reviews we could find were either 4 or 5 star rated, with customers finding that the rack was stable and strong enough to support every exercise they wanted to perform.
Purchased this squat rack for my new home gym setup and I could not be happier with the purchase.
It doesn’t take up as much room as a box style power rack, but it definitely has all the advantages. – Nirro Olat, Amazon Verified Purchase
Purchased this squat rack for my new home gym setup and I could not be happier with the purchase.Pros:
- Being able to store plates on each side is a huge bonus
- Works well with resistance bands
- Straightforward assembly
- Very reasonably priced for the strength and features
- Plenty of space for a weights bench between the uprights
- Works great for a bench rack and squat rack
Cons:
- If you are taller than 6’2″ you may need to be careful when racking the bar at the top position, due to the height of the backstop
Review Overview
Overall Review Rating
5 / 5
If you are looking to buy a squat rack that also provides an element of safety with the spotters, it's difficult to find similar designs for less than $600.
The Valor Athletics BD-6 Safety Rack isn't a huge jump up in price compared to the earlier BD-4 rack, but still has the added benefits of weight plate storage pegs, and a 200 lb increase in the weight it can support.
Often available at a discounted price of just over $300 and with such a high average review rating, this is an excellent addition to any home gym.
Product dimensions: 64" (H) x 44" (W) x 53" (D) Weight limit: 650 lb Warranty length: 5 years
USA Home Gym gives in-depth insights into gym equipment, supplements, and fitness training methods. The motivation behind USA Home Gym is to provide you with information that goes beyond what you can find in any user manual, customer review, or other online review sites.
We go to great lengths to ensure that our reviews are completely comprehensive, usually covering everything from the design features to the warranty coverage and exercise options. This is all to help guide you towards the home gym equipment that’s best suited to your goals and budget, whilst also being the highest quality option in your chosen price range.
