thanks for the responses.. hear is my "theory" lol.. i have always used hammer strength.. have quite a few pieces in my home gym.. i am beginning to believe my cousin (was strength coach at syracuse for a while) that hammer strength is great but may not help in evening out side to side imbalances.. he was here not long ago and explained to me that "when was the last time you failed on a hammer machine without both sides failing at the same time..".. kinda rang true.. i have always done iso lateral movements and dumbell work to work on imbalances.. they , after all these years, are still there.. not bad.. not many can tell at all.. but they bugged me..
the issue i have with hammer chest machines is the low starting point.. i have made blocks of wood to use to raise the handles but they still kill my shoulders starting out.. i now have to have wife pull them forward to get them started.. so i think i will be selling them.. the flex pieces are a steal and with the adjustable starting points will help me and my shoulders.. i figure if the imbalances are there at 43 then i am not getting rid of them now lol...
speaking of golds.. i saw tom prince once max out that flex piece back in the late 90's (chest press) .. he had it stacked lol.. i remember him saying it was the best piece in the gym.. should have listened lol..