Skip to content
Matsfit
Menu

DOCUMENTED BUYING GUIDE

Core Home Fitness vs Bowflex SelectTech 552

Two dial-style adjustable dumbbell systems compared by range, settings and adjustment, using only what we could document. Where a figure is unverified, we say so.

Read the Core guide

Explore the equipment and guides

Choose the question that matches your next decision. Each guide links to the evidence and explains what remains unverified.

Compare the pairsExpansion, adjustment and the exact model.How we documentSources, editorial judgments and limitations.Plan the complete setupConnect the equipment choice with the room and your needs.

The short answer

Core Home Fitness documents 5–50 lb per hand in ten 5 lb settings, selected by twisting the handle while the dumbbell is fully docked. The Bowflex SelectTech 552 is described by the reviews we checked as 5–52.5 lb per dumbbell in 15 settings, using a dial at each end. The difference to weigh is the number and size of the steps between the endpoints. Neither range is documented to expand in the sources we reviewed.

This is an editorial reading of the documents, not a measured result.

Weight range and settings

  • Core Home Fitness 5–50 lb: 5 through 50 lb per hand in 5 lb steps (ten settings). An official expansion above 50 lb has not been documented in the sources reviewed. Source checked: manufacturer manual.
  • Bowflex SelectTech 552: 5–52.5 lb per dumbbell in 15 settings: 5 to 25 lb in 2.5 lb steps, 30 to 50 lb in 5 lb steps, then 52.5 lb. Source: third-party reviews and a Bowflex product page for a related model. The 5–52.5 lb range is confirmed by an owner's manual copy on the Internet Archive (edition undated); the 15 settings and step sizes are not verified against it.

Look between the endpoints. Count the settings you would use in each chart instead of comparing headline maximums.

How the weight is changed

For Core, the manual requires the dumbbell to be fully docked for adjustment, and selection is made by twisting the handle. Review sources describe the SelectTech 552 as using a dial at each end, set to the same number on both ends, with the number aligned to an arrow on the nameplate. Matsfit has not timed or compared the two routines, so which feels easier is your preference, not a measured result.

Size and storage

Core lists 14.5 × 7.9 × 7.5 in per dumbbell at full size. That is a manufacturer figure, not a Matsfit measurement. Bowflex sources disagree: one review gives 16.9 × 8.3 × 9 in for the SelectTech 552, while a Bowflex page for a related Results Series model gives 17.4 × 8.3 × 8.1 in. Neither describes a complete footprint with cradles or trays. See adjustable dumbbells for a small space.

What is included

The manufacturer lists two dumbbells and two cradles for Core; the elevated stand is separate. The exact supplied items for any Bowflex offer must be confirmed with the seller. Use the buying checklist before ordering.

What neither source settles

Durability, noise, handle feel, hand clearance, adjustment time and the accuracy of each setting are not measured. A Bowflex page notes that individual settings may vary from stated values. No current price or stock claim is made here.

A simple way to decide

  1. Write the settings you expect to use in the next year.
  2. Count how many each chart provides in that range.
  3. If you may need more than about 50 lb, check whether an expansion path is documented. For Core it is not, in the sources reviewed; see expansion kits.
  4. Confirm the exact model and supplied items.

Frequently asked questions

What weight ranges do Core Home Fitness and the Bowflex SelectTech 552 cover?

Core documents 5–50 lb per hand in 5 lb steps. The reviews we checked describe the SelectTech 552 as 5–52.5 lb in 15 settings.

Which has smaller steps between settings?

According to the sources reviewed, the SelectTech 552 uses 2.5 lb steps from 5 to 25 lb, while Core uses 5 lb steps throughout. The Bowflex figures are not verified against the owner's manual.

Can either be expanded above its maximum?

An expansion above Core's 50 lb maximum has not been documented in the sources reviewed, and we did not find an expansion described for the SelectTech 552.

Has Matsfit tested them?

No. This guide is documentary. The Bowflex figures come from third-party reviews and a manufacturer page for a related model.

Evidence and limits

Reviewed on October 1, 2026. We have not physically tested these products. Core facts come from manufacturer documentation. Bowflex facts come from third-party reviews and a manufacturer page for a related model; the current official SelectTech 552 owner's manual PDF could not be read, so we checked an undated owner's manual copy on the Internet Archive, which confirms the 5–52.5 lb range and the dial at each end. Other Bowflex figures remain unverified.

Sources and further reading