David Dorrell
Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2025
Review of MERACH Stair Stepper, Hands & Feet Synchronized Stair Climber, Stairmaster for Full-Body Workout at Home, Compact Vertical Climber with Extended & Adjustable PedalsAssembled it in about 40 minutes, working slowly and following directions. I would recommend that when attaching the handles do the bottom bolt first and do them one at a time, that way if you are using their tool, you can spin the nut quickly without the upper bolt interfering. The second bolt (the upper one) you have no choice and will have to reset the wrench constantly to miss hitting the lower bolt (doing this on the upper bolt is easier than doing on the lower), but it doesn’t take long. The other suggestion I have is to start both foot screws for both foot plates before tightening them, as I had trouble starting one screw after first tightening the other and had to back it off and start both.The device is a bit loud, giving a thump when the pedal reaches the bottom of its travel path. I plan to get some rubber gym floor mats to absorb some of the noise. It gives quite a workout, you soon get used to the motion because you do need to move the handles to help the pedals to move, so they are really working together. I like that it sits assembled and does not take up a huge amount of space, so I can just jump on and step, where as I had a treadmill in the same location and that required oil under the tread, lowering the tread into position, then raising back up to save space when finished (this stepper takes about the same space as the treadmill raised up). With the extra steps to use, I was not as likely to use the treadmill.The device is very well made, very sturdy, ships well protected (though the box was a bit beat up the device was fine). It seems like it should last for quite a while, maybe someday requiring a cord replacement, though that works on pulleys and should not be under too much stress.Now we’ll see if I am likely to use it more than the old treadmill.