Ohiyo!
Every so often a piece of equipment comes out that the Treadmill Sensei is unable to borrow locally. I’d been hearing about the new budget treadmill from BodyCraft, the TR1120 treadmill, here at the DOJO for a few months and was very intrigued by it. BodyCraft is a manufacturer known for producing some high quality fitness equipment that was also very durable — their strength equipment in particular is top rated in its price range. So, I knew I had to find one to check out. Coming up empty handed with local retailers I did the next best thing, I ordered the BodyCraft TR1120 on Amazon. The treadmill arrived about 2 weeks later and I tore in to it like a kid on Christmas morning.
The very first thing is how easy the Bodycraft TR1120 treadmill was to assemble. BodyCraft has so much experience in building the much more complicated gyms that the instructions were a breeze to follow. I’d say the TR1120 will take 15-20 minutes for most people to put together. Very easy and hassle free…no holes drilled at weird angles.
2008 Best Buy Award Winner.
One together, I did my warm-up “hop test” where I jump up and down on a treadmill to see how the console shakes. I was surprised to see the under $1000 TR1120 treadmill remain perfectly motionless during the test. A quick run at 6 MPH confirmed the stability of the unit and lack of the “shakies” you see in most comparably priced unders.
The best way to describe the BodyCraft TR1120 treadmill is stripped down. The unit itself is of a quality more often priced at $1499, but a lot of the bells and whistles have been removed to make the TR1120 available at an incredibly attractive price of just under $1000. And, to tell the truth, if you’re looking for quality over quantity you won’t miss any of it.
One thing that has always impressed (and confused) the Treadmill Sensei is the ability of fitness manufacturers to come up with some of the most outrageous names for various parts of their equipment. In today’s example, the BodyCraft TR1120 Treadmill, BodyCraft has a shock absorption system they pitch as “8 Kinetic Energy Dampers.” I have to say that I have absolutely no idea what that means…but I do believe it came out of an X-Men comic book from the 1980s. While I may not know what “8 kinetic energy dampers” are (aside from a way to stop the Juggernaut), I do know they give the TR1120 treadmill a surprisingly good amount of shock absorption which feels pretty darn good on my old Tennis injured knee. Whatever advanced alien technology they scrounged up to create their “Energy Dampers” gives the BodyCraft TR1120 a comfortable feeling only found in much higher priced treadmills — a perfect amount of absorption without too much recoil to make joint impact even worse.
Something a lot of shady fitness sales people (and the fine people at Icon Fitness) will tell you is that the bigger the horsepower number on a treadmill the better. It’s a complete falsehood. Horsepower rating is a fairly arbitrary number (and most treadmill motors won’t even have it labeled on the inside). What matters is the size of the motor (bigger is better), the number of RPMs (the lower the better) and how many AMPs the machine pulls under capacity. While the BodyCraft TR1120 treadmill is listed as having a 1.75 horsepower motor, it is actually very large for its rating and runs very cool at low RPMs. Most other manufacturers would have uprated the TR1120 motor to 2.25 or even 2.5 horsepower. What all this tech-talk means to you, my loyal reader, is a treadmill motor that will last for many years with little to no trouble at all.
With incredibly solid components, a frame far too sturdy for a treadmill under $1000 and great warranties, BodyCraft has raised the bar on the level of quality for budget treadmills. If I had to nitpick I’d wish the deck size was just a little longer to accomodate taller runners. However, with high quality components. BodyCraft has instead produced one of the best machines for walkers or joggers under about $1500…in the BodyCraft TR1120 Treadmill the standard has been set for treadmills under $1000.
For being a best buy treadmill under $1000, the Treadmill Sensei gives the BodyCraft TR1120 Treadmill 4.5 out of 5 golden buddahs.
BodyCraft expands its reputation of quality and durability with the TR1120 Treadmill coming in at 4.5 gold buddahs out of 5.
Find out more about this spectacular treadmill.
BodyCraft TR1120 Treadmill Specifications
Motor: 1.75 hp
Display: LED
Readouts: speed, time, distance, calories, incline, pulse
Programs: 8
Heart Rate Monitor: Yes
Heart Rate Control: No
Max Speed: 10MPH
Max Incline: 10%
Deck Cushioning: 8 Kinetic Energy Dampers
Running Area: 18″ x 52″
Folding: Yes
Max User Weight: 275lbs
Unit Weight: 165lbs
Price: Under $1000
-The Treadmill Sensei
http://www.treadmillsensei.com
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