PowerBlock Pro 100 EXP 40, TPR review

The TPR forty-pound Pro 100 EXP is the smallest current package in this expandable family with a cushioned grip. Its main appeal is a specific combination: a relatively modest supplied weight range, a softer contact surface, and the option of buying heavier compatible stages later. It should not be chosen simply because the product family has one hundred in its name.

Start with the forty-pound contents

PowerBlock sells the TPR / 40 LBS selection as a pair. Stage 1 is the forty-pound-per-hand starting system, and each handle carries two removable 2.5-pound micro weights. The exact owner's manual describes a five-pound empty handle, 7.5 pounds with one micro weight, and ten pounds with both installed. That gives useful light settings without requiring the outer plate stack.

The rest of the ladder is not uniformly spaced at 2.5 pounds. The published plate sequence includes 15, 17.5, 20, 25, 27.5, 30, 35, 37.5 and 40. Twelve and a half pounds is not an established setting, and ten to fifteen is a five-pound gap. Check a list of the loads you really use before deciding that the range and the micro-weight feature cover every need.

Why choose TPR rather than knurling?

The current product page describes TPR as more cushioned and less abrasive than its knurled metal alternative. That can matter to someone who already knows they prefer a softer handle, or who dislikes the feel of metal knurling during repeated gripping. Check the shape, diameter and room around the hand alongside that surface preference.

The page's numeric grip specification accompanies its knurled stainless steel description. Exact TPR diameter and grip length remain unconfirmed. If grip dimensions are essential, obtain confirmation for the supplied TPR handle. Choosing a softer surface and choosing a suitable diameter are related but separate decisions.

Two kinds of adjustment need two kinds of time

The main plate selection uses a tethered magnetic pin. To change the micro weights, remove the handle and operate its Auto Lock lever, keeping the handle oriented as the manual instructs so the weights do not fall out. Close the lock before lifting. A routine alternating between main plate settings may require less fiddling than one repeatedly changing the internal handle weight.

The Pro 50 is a useful alternative when you want a TPR grip and a finer complete ladder up to fifty pounds, while accepting that it is not expandable. The forty-pound knurled Pro 100 EXP changes the supplied grip surface while retaining this stage capacity. Neither comparison needs an assumed price to reveal the tradeoff.

Expansion is possible, but not supplied

Stage 2 takes the Pro 100 EXP from forty to sixty pounds per hand. Stage 3 reaches eighty, and Stage 4 reaches one hundred. These are sequential, model-specific purchases. The manual expressly says the Pro 100 EXP expansion kits do not work with other PowerBlock dumbbells. Keep that boundary in mind if a used kit or a different Pro generation becomes available.

If you already require more than forty pounds, the sixty-pound TPR package supplies the first expansion now. Buying the smaller pair only to immediately replace its capacity limit with another order adds a procurement step. If forty is enough today, buying later stages only when required is the practical reason to consider this starting package.

Placement and care before the first session

Give each nest a level, adequately supported location with room to reach the selector and lift the handle straight out. Do not assign the fully expanded hundred-pound dimensions to this smaller package. The manual warns against twisting the handle during removal, dropping the dumbbells or striking them together. Inspect the pin, its magnetic contacts, tether and hardware before use.

This configuration fits a buyer who consciously prefers TPR, needs no more than forty pounds now, and values later expansion more than a uniformly fine weight ladder. It is less suitable when exact 12.5-pound selection or confirmed grip dimensions are essential. Identify it as the residential Pro 100 EXP when checking a listing; the Commercial Pro 100 has a separate configuration and recall history.