The Evolpow P3A Tank all in one power rack has a lot of good ideas but the execution doesn’t quite stick the landing. Based upon what I saw after using it for a month, this power rack needs quite a bit of work before I would feel comfortable with giving it my seal of approval. It does have potential and with changes in some key areas, I can see this being a great starter power rack for a home gym.
Evolpow P3A Tank Overview
The Evolpow P3A Tank is a 2×3, 14 gauge steel all in one power rack/functional trainer combo, similar to several others that are currently on the market. It’s got several features that would make it attractive to first time home gym buyers including:
- Integrated plate storage
- 360 degree Landmine attachment
- Integrated plate loaded pulley system with 20 height level choices
- Seated cable row station with integrated foot plate
- Dip handles
- Multi grip pull up bar
What I Like About This Power Rack
I really like the color scheme and overall aesthetics of the P3A Tank. The company sent me a unit in black and white and aside from some minor blemishes suffered during the shipping process, the rack looks good when you first see it upon entering the room. The white pops against the black crossmembers and posts and if you’re not a fan of black for your home gym, you also have the option to get the unit in blue with black accents. Although the rack is only 83.8 total inches in height, I really like that the multi grip pull up bar is elevated above the crossmembers for a better range of motion on pullups. The rack feels surprisingly spacious, despite a relatively small footprint at 40.2 inches of inside diameter.
From an organizational standpoint, I like the placement of the plate storage on the sides of the rear posts, rather than on the back of the rear posts as some other power racks in this price range sometimes do. This goes a long way towards keeping the plates from falling off of the rack whenever you return the barbell to the J hooks after completing a set.
I also really like the safety bars. This may seem like an insignificant item, but keeping in mind that home gym owners often train alone, having safety bars that are sturdy and durable is an important safety feature that could quite literally save your life in certain circumstances.
Best of all, the assembly instructions were reasonably clear and easy to follow and with the exception of minor tweak, I found them to be extremely user friendly.
Here’s Where I Think This Rack Could Be Improved
Good intentions notwithstanding, in my opinion, the P3A Tank needs a lot of fine tuning before being placed on the market. From a user friendliness standpoint, I think the pull up handles are too slick, making it likely to be tough to hold on to them, especially once palms get sweaty during summer exercise sessions. The rack itself is too short for me to use comfortably and I think that there really needs to be a 93 – 95 inch tall option for home gym owners with higher ceilings. The storage hooks aren’t large enough, and there needs to be an additional center hook to store the pulldown attachment. The storage options for the pulldown attachment currently have it perched precariously atop the storage hooks or on one of side hooks which causes it to interfere with the cable pathway of the pulley system.
Speaking of the pulley system, I would really prefer to see the cable run alongside the posts of the power rack rather than behind the front posts. As it currently stands, the cable prevents using the J Hooks anywhere but on the rear posts, which coupled with the rack being on the short side, makes any sort of overhead pressing problematic for anyone taller than five feet six inches.
Quality Control Is Key
The front posts on the P3A I tested, don’t seem to be the same dimensions as the rear posts, as the J Hooks which fit easily on the rear posts, got stuck on the front posts and the safety bar on the left post especially, didn’t slide smoothly through causing friction that I’m afraid might lead to rust and corrosion.
Safety Concerns
Despite the side placement of the weight storage horns, once the bolts that attach the plate storage horns to the posts got loose, the plates began to slide and frequently fell on the floor every time I racked a barbell. Another area of concern is the 360 degree landmine attachment. There really needs to be some sort of locking bracket to keep the landmine from becoming a trip hazard as no matter which way I set it down, it ended up being in the way. It would be very easy to trip over it when walking out a squat or even just walking by which isn’t a desirable prospect if you’ve got weights in your hands.
Final Thoughts
It may seem like the P3A Tank is a lost cause, but I believe that the majority of the issues stem from poor quality control at the factory. I think that a simple recalibration and refocusing of intent at the factory level, would see most of the issues that I encountered corrected as soon as the next run of units off the assembly line.