Thread: good leg curl machine...

Hi all, I'm new here to the board. Just had a question about leg curl machines, as I'm thinking of getting one for the home. I tried one at the Sears, a Weider (free-weight) bench press with leg attachment, and I noticed something that I'd forgotten about the free-weight machines -- the resistance on the leg curl tapers off drastically somewhere after your leg is at 90 degrees, but before it's contracted all the way (owing to the gravity vector being close to parallel to your lower leg, instead of perpendicular to it). So that portion of the movement of your hamstring doesn't really get worked. I also looked at some weight stack leg curl/extension machines on the net, which wouldn't have this problem, but they generally run for over $1000. Weider has some cheaper all-in-one home gyms with weight stacks (around $300), but they are standing leg curl only, and I hope to be able to do both legs together, in order to save time.

So, my question is, do you guys know of any alternatives? A weight stack machine that doesn't cost too much, which allows you to lie down, or a freeweight machine that somehow doesn't have this problem? Or maybe some trick to get around this problem, if you do use a freeweight machine? Some way to rig the machine?

Thanks for your time! Already learned a lot on this topic (hamstrings), just by lurking around previously.

edit: one thing I'd like to avoid as a solution is to go back and do a lot of partial reps with a higher weight at the top of the motion, to compensate for the lower resistance that the movement normally has at this part of the motion, on a free-weight machine. I've done that before, and am hoping for something tidier and less time-consuming if possible..

I have this one at home, it's not bad: http://www.fitnessfactory.com/Fitnes...tion&linkid=14

also, you can do SLDL (straight legged deadlifts)