The NordicTrack Vault by iFIT comes in two versions. One is the Standalone Vault that does not include any equipment. The other is the Complete Vault that comes with quite a bit of equipment. I am going to compare the Complete NordicTrack Vault to the Standalone Vault to see if it’s worth the extra $1,000, or if you are better off purchasing the equipment separately.
The price for the Standalone Vault is $1,999, while the price of the Complete Vault is $2,999. Compared to similar products like the Mirror or Tonal, that’s not a bad price point. With the Complete Vault, you receive:
- Sets of 5-30lb dumbbells
- 20lb and 30lb kettlebells
- 2 yoga blocks
- 3 small loop bands
- 3 large resistance bands
- Yoga mat
NordicTrack Vault dumbbells
We will start by taking a look at the dumbbells included in the Complete Vault. They range in weight from 5-30 pounds. I was a bit shocked at first because these dumbbells are actually really well made. For some reason I was not expecting them to be as high quality as they are.
The dumbbells have a flat edge to them, which makes them easier to hold and use. Especially for movements like cleans or goblet squats, where you actually hold onto the dumbbell itself rather than the handle. They also have a very good and grippable handle.
The only real problem I found with these dumbbells is that the inside edge tends to get a little rough. If that gets a little more rough over time, it could potentially be bothersome when you are holding it. Otherwise, I found them to be really great.
Since they go up to 30 pounds in weight, it will be enough for nearly everybody. But for those who want to use the dumbbells for a tougher strength workout, you might need to invest in a few additional, heavier weights.
NordicTrack Vault kettlebells
The kettlebells here are not shaped like typical round kettlebells. These are actually pretty flat. That’s not usually great in most cases, but here it’s a smart idea.
Let me explain why a little further. When you have a kettlebell and you are doing movements like a clean, it hits your wrist a lot. This tends to be OK when you have a really heavy kettlebell, as there is a very wide surface area hitting you. The impact is somewhat lessened by the surface area when they are heavier.
As you get into lighter kettlebells, the bell itself becomes smaller. When it hits you, it lands more directly on your wrist. This can actually cause a lot more bruising, pain, and discomfort. With the Vault kettlebells, they have made the edges flat, which allows that surface area to be more broadly displaced onto your wrist. I think this is going to help a lot of people feel better when using the kettlebells for a variety of movements.
There is one thing I don’t like about these kettlebells, though, and that’s the handle. It’s made with stainless steel and is very smooth and slippery. While some people might prefer that slick feeling, for me at least, it made the kettlebell really hard to use.
NordicTrack Vault extras
The large resistance bands were fine and I found them as good as any others. The small loop bands were very, very cheap and I don’t think they were that great. They definitely do the job, but they are very thin and not the highest-quality loop bands out there.
Same with the yoga mat. It seems fine and the texture is OK, but it just does not feel very well-made. There are a lot of other yoga mats that I have liked more. In terms of the yoga blocks, maybe I’m missing something, but they all kind of seem similar to me, and these ones seem just as good as any.
Is the Complete Vault worth the extra $1,000?
Now that I have gone over the quality of the equipment that comes with the Complete Vault, we will find out if it is all worth the additional $1,000. We found alternative, high-quality options for every piece of equipment that comes with the Complete Vault. Some equipment came from rogue.com, other equipment from Amazon. We just wanted to see how much it would all cost if we were to purchase these items separately. That way you can find out if the Complete Vault is good quality, at a good price. Or, if the Standalone Vault is all you need.
It’s also important to note here that currently, it does not cost anything extra to have the Complete Vault shipped over to you. Essentially, you are getting all of this extra equipment shipped to you for free. That is a very important thing to note. Especially when we are talking about kettlebells and dumbbells, because those tend to be pretty expensive to ship.
When we added the dumbbells, kettlebells, and yoga mat to Rogue, we got a price that was over $700, with shipping. Then, from Amazon, we found similar-quality products in terms of their loop bands, resistance bands, and yoga blocks for a little over $70 combined. If you were to buy all of these products separately, it would cost around $799.
So if you were to order the equipment separately, you would save a few hundred dollars. However, right now, a lot of this equipment is really hard to get. Buying a high-quality set of dumbbells or kettlebells is not easy to do. If you go to rogue.com, you will see that a lot of these weights are not in stock. There is also no real telling when this equipment will be back in, since dumbbells are still in high demand.
Connect The Watts’ Take
I don’t think there is a right or wrong answer when it comes to which Vault to purchase. For those who don’t care about the extra few hundred dollars, buying the Complete Vault might be worth it. But for those of you who don’t mind potentially waiting for some equipment and want to save the money, you might want to order the Standalone Vault and equipment separately, especially since some of the equipment is not the highest quality.
When it comes to the Vault dumbbells, I preferred some aspects over others. But overall, I really liked them and thought they were great quality. For the yoga mat and the loop bands, you could definitely find much higher quality versions of those elsewhere. If those pieces of equipment are a big part of your Vault purchase, then you definitely might want to buy them separately.
If you are still deciding between which Vault model to purchase, check out our review of the Complete Vault to find out more information on it. For those of you who have already purchased the Complete Vault but want some pointers on the setup, check out our article on how to quickly organize your NordicTrack Vault.
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