Viking AR Fluid Rower Rowing Machine – Ash Wood

Bought mine directly from the Fitness Superstore late last year. Was delivered in one long box for the two rails & a very large box for the rest. The instructions are very good & once everything is unpacked then checked you spend a couple of hours putting together. You get the required tools & a syphon pump to fill the tank.I use a pair of cycling mitts to reduce blisters. The action is very smooth throughout the stroke & the sloshing sound akin to real rowing. These rowers feel & look well-made. Mine lives in my lounge, the space needed isn't that much when hinged upright. The ergometer is easy to read & fairly simple - it connects via USB to a Windows-based machine, (Windows 10 for me, no Mac software available). First Degree Fitness are missing a trick: no Bluetooth or phone-based apps which is a pity.Because the rower is made from American ash, it looks more like a piece of furniture rather than gym equipment so is very suitable for home use. I used to use a fan-based rower in my local gym & would spend 20 minutes at a time on one. Other users would come ago during my session - they would prefer pounding their spines on the treadmills but rowing is very good whole body exercise plus you are sitting so is one of the best forms of low impact exercise.Unlike WaterRowers, the resistance can be varied, otherwise, the machines are pretty similar. To do it, you have to stop rowing & lean forward to turn the control on the tank. You also set the resistance manually on the ergometer so is best set before starting then repeating a session with the new resistance.

Today I received my Viking 2 AR. Bag of mixed feelings. When it comes to wood, its finish, etc. I would give 5*. Assembly instruction, same here 5*, everything clear. Product well packed, however package with rails was open on the top, not sure why. Still, as no damage to the product, so no issue here.Nice tank, in general on first glance everything seems to be good, if not very high quality. As the product arrives partially pre-assembled, unfortunately some fasteners are scratched, and as they were painted black, you can see some silver... some of bolts were fastened using wrong tools and I am unsure why... Impeller fabrication - just some tack welds, no proper welding. Also, unsure if made of stainless steel, as chrome/nickel plated. Bearings in rollers - SKB, common, SKF aren't that much more expensive :). In short - for this kind of money I would expect better.My first serious complaint - bungee cord. In manual it says to not cut tie wrap before attaching bungee cord to the hook. I did this and a result bungee got very tight under the tie and it was virtually impossible to cut the tie! I have found some small scissors and cut the tie but now the bungee cord is slightly damaged in this place. Unsure if I accidentally touched the cord with my scissors or the tie was so tight that it damaged the cord.However my biggest complaint is this: "The product must be returned to your place of purchase in original packaging with transportation, insurance and associated charges paid for by you and risk of loss or damage assumed by you". So in case of warranty claim I have to keep for 3 years massive box for tank assembly, for 5 box for rails, and what else? Not my fault that product is faulty but i have to keep original box and pay the cost of return parcel. I need to think about it because I seem to love the product, the look, the design, wood and its finish, decent quality - but seriously - I am not going to keep a huge box for 3 years in case the tank leaks.3* because I have had product for a few hours only, so cannot comment on the rower longevity. Will come back in a year time to re-review :)