New Year’s Resolution

Every year, about 39% of Americans set a New Year’s Resolution, and health is one of the top priorities for 2022. That was my resolution for 2021 when I tested several treadmills and exercise equipment to find the right one for our home. Local gyms were still on COVID-19 pandemic lockdown at the time. A stationary exercise bike I bought was never used, and a couple treadmills made me realize that you truly DO get what you paid for!

My brother and I had tested a treadmill for use with a standing desk (it was actually quite nice), but ultimately, I wanted one with a motorized incline/decline without spending over $1,000. That search led me to the Famistar Folding Treadmill (Model: T600) back in November 2020.

Right off the bat, you should be aware that this treadmill does NOT compare to what you would find at the gym where those machines cost more than $1000. What it DOES have going for it is its build quality. It is by far, far better than the $300 treadmill I had initially tried in terms of exuding confidence as a safer equipment, more professional look, and extra amenities.

Setup

The Famistar treadmill was VERY easy to put together (instructions were good enough to follow). Screw on a few bolts at the bottom front to hold the vertical posts in place, secure the dashboard with more bolts, and finally, screw on two plastic covers where the springs can be found at the bottom.

Heart rate sensor worked right out of the box and appeared accurate — it matched my Garmin’s and Powr Labs’ chest strap readings.

Material

With metal parts throughout (and accented with some plastic), the treadmill looked and felt sturdy. It was HEAVY at an estimated 130 lbs due in large part to the incline/decline motor. There were skateboard-type wheels at the back to allow the treadmill to be moved without scratching the floor. At the front-right, there was a hole to put droplets of silicone oil into to help lower the friction exerted onto the running belt. This helps ensure the belt lasts longer.

It supposedly can accommodate up to a 300 lbs person.

The dashboard was fully plastic and gave it a visually larger footprint than I would like, but it also provided additional storage space to hold water bottles, keys, and other small items.

I really liked the shock absorbing running surface and the 17″ width of the running belt. The latter gave me more confidence with running without falling off the treadmill by the side. The cheaper ones I had tried were all about 1″ narrower. An inch apparently makes a huge difference! (That’s what she said!)

An inch of extra width made a huge difference! (That’s what she said!)

The motor, at the lowest setting was VERY quiet. You can also feel its power when set to its maximum speed of 16 km/h (9.9 mph)

Use

• The treadmill itself can be folded and unfolded with the assistance of hydraulics, making it require far less strength to put away
  • I did not like that you cannot lock the unfolding mechanism
    • One can activate it by simply pushing it, and slowly, the running belt comes down
    • For an adult, that’s not a problem. But if you have a toddler who happens to be in that area, the treadmill coming down (although very slowly) could potentially be fatal for the baby
    • I remedied this by using a bungie cord to hold the running belt portion up so that even if the hydraulic mechanism was activated, the treadmill would not come down
      • Blue bungee (23″): In some cases, I was able to unlock the hydraulic still
      • Orange bungee (12″): Consistently prevented accidental unfolding. Because the bungee is VERY tight at this length, it also made it more difficult to secure with

• Speed and incline can be adjusted through both the control panel and where the pulse rate sensors are located
• It shows the values in metric units
  • In other words, you will see km/h instead of mph. I found no way to change that. Speeds go up to 16 km/h (9.9 mph)
• Incline goes up to 15% grade
• There are Programs that vary speed and incline levels to confuse muscle memory and provide a better workout

Caster Wheel & Hydraulic

• There is a red magnet that attaches to the control unit
  • You should clip it to yourself so if you fell, it would INSTANTLY shut off the machine.
• Instruction manual includes 1 silicone lubricant bottle
  • It states that for better performance and longevity, you should squeeze some drops of lubricant through the hole found at the front-right, and it then distributes the droplets to the center of the running belt
  • You should let the belt run for a few seconds so the oil would get distributed more evenly
  • The first treadmill I had did not come with any lubricants, and so this shows that the company seems to care about the quality of its equipment
• Belt starts after a 3 second count down when the Start button is pressed.

What I Did Not Like

• You cannot change the display to imperial units (mph/miles)
• Hydraulic function to help fold/unfold the treadmill has no locking feature to stop a child from accidentally having the running belt portion come down and result in something fatal
  • Workaround: Use a 12″ – 23″ bungee cord to secure running board in place
• Shipping box came damaged, pointing to potentially inadequate packing to keep the content damage-free
• It’s very heavy

Final Thoughts

The Famistar T600 Folding Treadmill takes up a decently small amount of space and is VERY easy to fold/unfold. It felt sturdy and safe and was wide enough that I could still focus on watching a movie while running. The quiet motor and automatic incline/decline worked well, and for its cost worked better than expected. The combination of a sturdy build, wider running belt, effortless folding/unfolding, and quiet motor made this the treadmill I decided to keep for our home and had been in use by the family for over a year now.

Where To Buy

• Famistar T600 Folding Treadmill 3.5HP with Auto Incline

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