Bowflex: Home Gyms, Dumbbells, Recall Check, and Where to Buy
Bowflex is a home fitness brand best known for its power rod home gym, the bending-rod cable machine that late-night infomercials sold as a full-body workout without a gym membership. The first model, the 2000X, arrived in 1986. Today the name also covers SelectTech adjustable dumbbells, treadmills, bikes, and the Max Trainer. After a 2024 bankruptcy and a sale to Johnson Health Tech, buyers want to know three things: who stands behind the warranty, which products are safe to buy, and where to buy Bowflex gear today.
Who Owns Bowflex Now, and Is It Still in Business?
Yes, it’s still in business, under new ownership. BowFlex, Inc. (the company called Nautilus, Inc. until it renamed itself in November 2023) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 2024 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey. Chapter 11 is the part of U.S. bankruptcy law that lets a business keep operating while it restructures or sells itself to pay creditors.
No rival bidder topped the opening offer. The court approved the sale in April 2024, and Johnson Health Tech, the Taiwan-based parent of Matrix Fitness, bought the BowFlex, Schwinn Fitness, and JRNY brands for $37.5 million. The bowflex.com footer now reads Johnson Health Tech Trading, Inc. The cause was a post-pandemic collapse in demand for home workout machines, the slump that also squeezed Peloton Interactive.
For owners, the JRNY app still runs, replacement parts and power rods are still sold, and new purchases carry the new owner’s warranty. The buyer took on only a limited list of the old company’s liabilities, so confirm coverage on pre-sale gear with support.
Check Your SelectTech Dumbbells First: The 2025 Recall
On June 5, 2025, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a recall of about 3.8 million SelectTech 552 (5 to 52.5 lb) and 1090 (10 to 90 lb) adjustable dumbbells. The weight plates can dislodge from the handle during use. According to the CPSC notice, Nautilus received 337 reports of plates coming loose, 111 of them with injuries such as concussions and broken toes.
- Who’s covered: units sold from as early as 2004 through May 2025, by both the old and new owners, at stores including Dick’s Sporting Goods, Best Buy, and Amazon.
- How to check: the model and serial number sit on a sticker under the molded plastic tray. Compare it with the serial ranges in the CPSC notice.
- What you get: pre-sale buyers get a prorated voucher plus a one-year JRNY membership; buyers from the new owner get a voucher refund or a replacement. Contact [email protected] or 800-209-3539.
The dumbbells sold now carry a new name, Results Series SelectTech, in the same 552 and 1090 weight ranges. The company describes them as new and improved versions. A secondhand pair of the old design is recalled product, not a bargain.
How Power Rod Resistance Really Works
A power rod is a bendable nylon composite rod that resists being pulled into an arc, replacing the stack of weight plates on a cable machine. Cables run over a pulley system to a cap on each rod, and you hook more rods to raise the load. The original machine grew out of a patent from Tessema Shifferaw, an Ethiopian engineering student, and that patent has long since expired.
The number that governs a rod machine purchase is the per-side load, and that’s where shoppers misread the box. The flagship’s “210 lb” is the total of every rod on the machine. Bowflex lists the actual range as 5 to 105 lb per side, in 5 lb steps, so a two-handed chest press tops out near 210 lb but a one-arm row stops at 105. Rod upgrades raise the machine total to 310 or 410 lb.
The resistance curve is the other thing to understand. A rod feels light at the start of a rep and heavier as it bends, while a free weight stays constant through the range of motion. Joint-sensitive lifters often like that. Explosive lifters usually don’t. Bowflex’s own product page also says rod resistance “will normally degrade over time and after extensive usage,” which is why worn rods are a standard replacement part.
The 2026 Bowflex Lineup at a Glance
Bowflex.com currently sorts its catalog into strength machines, SelectTech weights, treadmills, Max Trainers, and bikes. Here’s what’s listed as of October 2026.
| Category | Current models | Key spec | Fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home gyms | Xtreme 2 SE, Revolution | 210 lb power rods; 220 lb SpiraFlex | Full-body strength in one station |
| Adjustable dumbbells | Results Series 552 and 1090 | 5 to 52.5 lb or 10 to 90 lb per hand | Small rooms, apartments |
| Max Trainer | M6, Max Total 16 | 16 or 20 resistance levels | Short HIIT cardio |
| Treadmills | T6, T9, T16 | No subscription required | Walking and running |
| Bikes | C6, VeloCore 22 | VeloCore adds a lean mode | Indoor cycling classes |
Bowflex Xtreme 2 SE Home Gym
The flagship covers more than 70 exercises through a lat tower, a leg extension system, and an ab crunch harness. The seat and backrest act as a bench for presses, and a curl station handles arm work, so no separate weight bench is needed. Per bowflex.com, it measures 53 by 49 inches assembled, needs a workout area of 112 by 150 inches, and carries a 300 lb maximum user weight. The warranty runs 7 years on the machine and 5 years on the power rods. The entry-level Bowflex PR1000 has been listed by retailers like Walmart but doesn’t appear on the brand’s own home gym page.
SelectTech Adjustable Dumbbells
One pair of adjustable dumbbells turns a dial on each end to pick up plates from a cradle, replacing a full rack of fixed weights. The design keeps its spot among the best adjustable dumbbells for home workouts because changing loads between sets takes seconds. The weak point is plastic: drop a loaded dumbbell and the selector can crack or jam, so controlled reps matter.
Max Trainer, Treadmills, and Bikes
The Max Trainer is a stepper and elliptical hybrid, and Bowflex says it can maximize calorie burn in as little as 14 minutes of high-intensity intervals. The T-series treadmills are marketed as working without a subscription. The bike lineup is down to the C6, which Bowflex pitches on fitness app flexibility, and the VeloCore 22, which tilts side to side to mimic riding outdoors. A separate elliptical line no longer appears on the US site.
Where to Buy Bowflex in 2026
Buy direct for the full catalog and clearance, Amazon for fast shipping, and a showroom if you want to sit on a machine first.
| Channel | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Bowflex.com | Every model, clearance units, Bread Pay financing | Gen 1 versus new versions with different specs |
| Amazon | Fast Prime shipping on dumbbells and gyms | Third-party sellers with old or recalled stock |
| Johnson Fitness & Wellness, Dick’s, Best Buy | Trying equipment before you buy | Limited floor models |
| Used market | Lowest price on rod gyms | Recalled dumbbells, tired rods |
The official Bowflex website runs frequent sales. As of October 2026, the flagship listed at $999 against a regular $1,299, with a first-generation version marked as clearance. Gen 1 and the new model list different frame dimensions, so check which one you’re buying. Financing goes through Bread Pay, with a $200 minimum purchase.
Amazon stocks the dumbbells, the flagship rod machine, and select treadmill and bike models. Look at the seller name before you check out. A listing shipped by a third party can carry older inventory, and for SelectTech dumbbells that could mean a recalled serial range.
Johnson Fitness & Wellness, the new owner’s own chain of showrooms, is the easiest place to try Bowflex next to NordicTrack-style alternatives before buying. For a lower-tech classic from the same infomercial era, the Total Gym uses your body weight instead of rods.
Buying a Used Bowflex Machine or Weights
Secondhand rod gyms are everywhere, because they often outlast the owner’s motivation. Run these checks before cash changes hands:
- Read the serial sticker on any SelectTech dumbbells and match it against the CPSC recall list. Recalled units can still be returned for a voucher.
- Hang a known load on each rod. Composite rods lose resistance with heavy use and can feel lighter than their printed rating, which quietly caps your progress.
- Inspect every cable and pulley for fraying or flat spots. Cables are cheap to replace, but a frayed one can snap mid-rep.
- Get the model number and confirm parts availability. Older machines may not be JRNY compatible, and warranty coverage generally stays with the original buyer.
Can You Build Muscle With Bowflex Equipment?
Yes, for most beginner and intermediate lifters. Rod and cable resistance gives a real strength training stimulus, and you can keep adding load by buying rod upgrades or dialing up the dumbbells. That’s progressive overload, the same principle behind any weight lifting plan.
The ceiling shows up at the top end. If you squat or press well above the per-side limits on a compound lift, a rod machine will hold you back. For general fitness, fat loss, and moderate strength goals, the system delivers. For competitive lifting or bodybuilding, free weight barbells and plates, or a program like P90X paired with heavier gear, will take you further.
Do You Need a JRNY Membership?
No. Every machine works for manual workouts without a subscription. JRNY, the brand’s digital fitness platform on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store, adds adaptive workouts that increase the load as your conditioning improves, instructor-led classes on compatible screens, and progress tracking. A mobile-only plan drops the machine integration. If you train from your own routine, skip it, or try the free year included with some recall refunds before deciding.
Like the ThighMaster and the Flex Shot, the brand still means something decades after its ads first aired, and it earned its spot among the best infomercials of all time. If you’re curious whether as-seen-on-TV products actually work, this is one case where the product outlived the pitch. The format that sold it is explained in our guide to what an infomercial is.
Start by measuring your floor space against the workout area on the spec sheet, then decide between a rod gym and a pair of dumbbells. Next, compare the sale price on the official site with Amazon and your nearest showroom. If you buy a used Bowflex, check the dumbbell serial numbers against the recall and test every rod before you pay.