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A folding reformer listing is a wall of claims, and about six of them matter. Here is how to read one.
Springs or cords
A studio reformer uses steel springs. A spring pulls evenly through the whole stroke: the resistance at the start of a leg press is close to the resistance at the end. A bungee cord pulls harder the further it is stretched, so the stroke is light at the start and heavy at the end, the way a band is. Both work. The spring feel is the one people mean when they say a machine feels like class.
The AeroPilates range is cords: three on the 287, four on the 379 and 701, with Stamina counting 11 combinations from four. The import frames (Dpiolrcag, WINDFOOT, PAETA) mix four steel springs with five cords, and VEVOR and LeisureKing are springs only. LeisureKing is the one that publishes a tension range, 18.5 to 234 lb across its five springs.
Solid oak folding reformer with five springs, box and jump board
LeisureKing oak foldable reformer with box and jump board
LeisureKing LKRP-WOBEFLD
The one that looks like the studio machine: solid oak with mortise-and-tenon joints, aluminium rails, five springs (three red, one green, one yellow) with a stated tension range of 18.5 to 234 lb, a sitting box and a jump board. It folds to a 26 by 15 inch footprint and ships in two boxes, 80 percent assembled.
- Resistance
- 5 springs, 18.5 to 234 lb (listing)
- Length
- 91.2 × 24 × 25.6 in set up (listing)
- Folded
- 26 × 15 in footprint (listing)
- Weight
- 143 lb; ships in two boxes (listing)
- Weight limit
- 440 lb claimed (listing)
- In the box
- Reformer, sitting box, jump board
- Colours
- Beige, grey
- Warranty
- Not stated
Suits: Someone who wants an oak reformer with a tension figure on the springs and the box and jump board included, and has two people to carry 143 lb.
Weigh: A 91 inch frame and 143 lb; the two boxes weigh 120 and 79 lb. Stock sits in single digits. No website; figures from the listing.
What folded means
Every frame on the page folds. Folded, an AeroPilates stands 42 to 47 inches long and 17 to 20 inches deep. The import frames quote a footprint, 1.4 to 2 square feet, which is the floor it covers standing on end; it is still as tall as the frame is long. Folded is a reformer that leaves the middle of the room, not one that goes in a cupboard.
Set up, they are 75 to 92 inches long. Measure the floor with the footbar end against a wall and a yard of clearance at the carriage end for the straps.
The weight you will carry
The AeroPilates 287 is 56 lb and the 379 is 68. The import spring frames are 65 to 109 lb, and the LeisureKing is 143 lb in two boxes of 120 and 79. Anything over 70 lb is two people on stairs, and it is worth knowing before the courier rings.
Three-cord folding reformer, the entry model
AeroPilates Reformer 287 with cardio rebounder
AeroPilates (Stamina) 55-4287
Stamina's entry reformer: a steel frame with three bungee cords, a vinyl carriage on a 17.5 inch platform, a three-position headrest, six non-skid feet and the cardio rebounder. It folds in half on wheels and weighs 56 lb, the lightest reformer on the page.
- Resistance
- 3 bungee cords
- Length
- 85.25 × 17.5 × 9 in set up
- Folded
- Folds in half on wheels
- Weight
- 56 lb
- Weight limit
- 300 lb
- In the box
- Reformer, cardio rebounder, DVD
- Colours
- Grey
- Warranty
- Stamina
Suits: A first reformer for someone who has outgrown a board and wants the carriage, the footbar and the straps without a hundred-pound frame.
Weigh: Three cords is light resistance; it is where the AeroPilates range starts, and taller or stronger users move up to the 379 or 701. A 300 lb limit and an 85 inch length.
The limits that are written down
Load limits run from 250 lb (Dpiolrcag) to a claimed 500 (PAETA). Treat the low ones as honest and the high ones as marketing. The figure fewer people check is the stated user height: the Dpiolrcag listing says 4 ft to 5 ft 9 in, the PAETA PR06 says to 5 ft 9 in. A 75 inch frame is short for a tall user’s leg press and the listing is telling you so.
Compact folding frame with four steel springs and five cords
Dpiolrcag foldable reformer, springs and cords
Dpiolrcag Foldable Pilates Reformer, 250 lb
The import frame people buy instead of a board when they want springs: four 22 lb steel springs plus five cords from 15 to 27 lb, a footbar with four angles, a pulley with three heights, eight wheels, and a fold to under two square feet. It arrives 90 percent assembled.
- Resistance
- 4 springs at 22 lb plus 5 cords of 15 to 27 lb (listing)
- Length
- 74.6 × 15 × 19.6 in set up (listing)
- Folded
- About 1.8 sq ft footprint (listing)
- Weight
- 70 lb (listing)
- Weight limit
- 250 lb; users 4 ft to 5 ft 9 in (listing)
- Footbar and pulley
- 4 angles; 3 heights
- Warranty
- 1 year (listing)
Suits: Spring resistance in a flat, for someone under 5 ft 9 in and 250 lb, which is what the listing sizes it for.
Weigh: The limits are the point: 250 lb and a stated user height of 4 ft to 5 ft 9 in, on a 75 inch frame. Seventy pounds. No website; figures from the listing.
Pre-assembled is a percentage
“90 percent pre-assembled” means the carriage, rails and frame arrive built and you fit the footbar, the shoulder rests, the pulley risers and the springs. Five to ten minutes on the WINDFOOT, by its listing. The LeisureKing is 80 percent and two boxes. Keep the spring hooks and the carriage stops in mind: a spring that is not seated is the one failure that puts a carriage into the end of the frame with you on it.
The frames that are a board with a footbar
Some listings under the reformer searches are a plastic board with a footbar bolted to one end and a cord in the track. They are boards, and they are on the boards page. The tell is the length: a reformer is 75 inches or longer and weighs over 50 lb. A 42 inch frame at 10 lb is a board whatever the title says.
What to buy
If you want the purple one and it has to be a reformer, the AeroPilates 379. If you want springs for the least money, the VEVOR. If you want the studio look with a tension figure on the springs, and two people to carry it, the LeisureKing. The reformers page has the eight side by side.
Four-cord folding reformer with a cardio rebounder, purple frame
AeroPilates Reformer Plus 379, purple
AeroPilates (Stamina) 55-4379
The purple one that is a real reformer: a steel frame with four bungee cords, a padded carriage with head and neck pillow and foam shoulder pads, a footbar, straps, and Stamina's cardio rebounder, the trampoline that bolts on where the footbar goes. Stamina counts 11 resistance combinations from the four cords, the pulley risers adjust the rope height, and it folds on integrated wheels with two DVDs and a wall chart in the box.
- Resistance
- 4 bungee cords, 11 combinations (Stamina)
- Length
- 86 × 21 × 26 in set up
- Folded
- Folds on integrated wheels
- Weight
- 68 lb
- Weight limit
- Not stated on the listing
- In the box
- Reformer, cardio rebounder, 2 DVDs, wall chart
- Colours
- Purple
- Warranty
- Stamina
Suits: The person who wanted the purple board and the reformer class, in one piece of furniture that folds.
Weigh: Sixty-eight pounds and 86 inches long set up. Cords, not springs, so the pull climbs through the stroke. Stamina publishes the specs on its own site, which is more than any other brand on the reformers page can say.