Gear Tag help

Gear Tag Placement Guide

Where a tag goes on each machine, how to attach it so it stays, and how many tags a machine needs. Look up your machine below, or read the rules that apply to all of them.

| The rules How many tags? Not listed

Your machine

Tap a card for the surfaces to avoid on that machine and extra tips.

Avoid on this machine

Console/display (plastic, wiped constantly)Motor hood at front (gets hot, often vented)Side handrails (chrome, high hand contact)Belt/deck (moving)Rear base near power cord (too low)

Placement tips

  • Motor hoods on commercial treadmills (Life Fitness, Precor, Matrix) can get warm during long use - keep the tag on the upright, not the motor housing.
  • Plastic shrouds over uprights work if they're smooth and rigid; skip them if they flex when you push.
  • Check the inner side of the upright for manufacturer labels - match that zone on the outward-facing side.

Avoid on this machine

Moving arm handles (swing back and forth)Pedal covers (stepped on)Flywheel cover at front (vented, warm)Rear stabilizer bar (floor level)

Placement tips

  • Ellipticals have many moving parts. Before applying, push every arm and check that nothing swings close enough to contact the tag.
  • Some models (Precor) have wide plastic shrouds over the center column - OK if rigid, skip if it's a removable maintenance panel.
  • Place where the mast is widest if it tapers.

Avoid on this machine

Handlebars (chrome, rubber-wrapped)Seat post (adjustable, sweaty)Console/displayFlywheel cover (warm, vented)Base feet

Placement tips

  • Bikes with belt-drive covers (like Keiser M3i) often have clip-on plastic panels for service access - skip those.
  • Recumbent bikes are different: use the side of the seat support frame or the console post, facing outward toward the gym floor.

Avoid on this machine

Flywheel cover (warm, sweated on)Handlebars (dripping sweat, aggressive cleaning)Adjustment knobsWater bottle holder areaResistance knob housing

Placement tips

  • Spin bikes are the wettest machines in the gym. Place the tag where sweat doesn't drip (not directly below handlebars) and where cleaning spray runs off, not where it pools.
  • Some spin bikes have narrow frame tubes (under 2.5" wide) - test fit before committing. If the tag overhangs the edge, try the next wider section.

Avoid on this machine

Monorail/seat track (abrasion from moving seat)Handle and chain areaPM5 performance monitor arm (thin, vibrates)Rear legs (floor level)

Placement tips

  • Concept2 rowers separate into two pieces for storage. If the gym stores rowers upright, the tag on the front leg may contact the floor - place it a few inches up from the bottom edge.
  • Aluminum surfaces (some Concept2 models) bond well.
  • The PM5 monitor arm is too thin and vibrates during use.

Avoid on this machine

Moving stairs (revolving models)Step pedals (stepper models)HandrailsConsole areaBase at floor level

Placement tips

  • Revolving-stair StairMasters (Gauntlet, SM series) have a mix of steel and plastic panels on the mast. Tap the surface - steel sounds metallic, plastic sounds hollow. Choose steel.
  • Avoid snap-fit maintenance panels that technicians remove for service.
  • The chain-drive mechanism generates significant vibration; place on a rigid structural section, not a thin resonating panel.

Avoid on this machine

Pulleys and cable guidesWeight stack columns/shroudsCrossbar at top (too high)Cable adjustment handlesBase frame at floor level

Placement tips

  • Place adjacent to instructional placards on the uprights, not over them.
  • Rigid permanently-attached shroud panels work; pop-off service access panels do not.
  • Each side with its own weight stack is its own station and gets its own tag. One shared stack, one tag. See One tag or several?

Avoid on this machine

Thigh pad (upholstery, adjustable)Overhead pulley bar (chrome, sweaty)Weight stack shroud (vented, vibrates)Seat padAdjustable arm components

Placement tips

  • Weight stack shrouds take a beating from slamming weights - vibration and impact transmit through thin plastic.
  • Steel frame members are safer.
  • Place the tag on the outer face visible from the gym floor, not the inner face the user stares at while pulling.

Avoid on this machine

Cable pulleys and guidesWeight stack shroudsCable adjustment columnsAccessory storage hooks

Placement tips

  • One shared weight stack means one tag. A stack on each side means a tag on each side, since either can fail on its own. See One tag or several?
  • Some functional trainers (Freemotion, Life Fitness) have swiveling arms - make sure the tag isn't in the swing path.
  • Avoid placing where the tag faces inward and gets obscured by the user's body.

Avoid on this machine

Barbell and guide tracks (slides constantly)J-hooks and safety catches (repositioned)Weight plate storage posts (plates bang)Top crossbar (too high)Rear posts (not visible)

Placement tips

  • Guide rails are sometimes chrome-plated for smooth barbell travel - those sections won't hold a tag. Place on the powder-coated structural section of the post.
  • Weight plates on the barbell can swing and contact the uprights; offset the tag slightly from the barbell's travel path or use the perpendicular face.

Avoid on this machine

J-hooks and safety pins (removable)Pull-up bar at top (chrome, sweaty, too high)The rows of adjustment holesRear uprights (not visible)Base anchors, numbered hole markers

Placement tips

  • Squat rack uprights are covered in holes for J-hook positioning. The tag needs a section without holes - typically near the bottom of the upright below the first hole, or on the side face perpendicular to the holes.
  • Powder-coated racks work well; galvanized steel (common in CrossFit gyms) has a rougher surface and needs extra pressure.
  • In CrossFit gyms, place on the side face perpendicular to the barbell's path (barbells get bumped into front-facing surfaces).
  • A rack with several bays gets a tag per bay if two people can lift at once. One usable bay, one tag. See One tag or several?

Avoid on this machine

Seat pad and back pad (upholstery)Adjustment mechanism (pins, levers)Wheels/transport handlesBase feet

Placement tips

  • On adjustable benches, make sure the tag isn't on a section that moves when the angle changes.
  • Tags near the base get scraped when the bench is tilted and rolled for moving.
  • Some benches have very narrow frame tubing (under 2" wide) - if the tag wraps around the edge it'll peel; use the wider leg section or foot-end plate instead.
  • Place on the side facing outward into the gym, not toward the mirror.

Avoid on this machine

Individual dumbbells (rubber/urethane surface, dropped constantly)Rubber cradle inserts on rackTop horizontal rail (items dragged across it)Very bottom tier

Placement tips

  • Each rack should get its own tag (reporting "broken dumbbell at rack near the window" is more useful than "somewhere").
  • Wall-mounted racks with no side panel: use the wall surface immediately adjacent to the rack (clean with alcohol first).
  • Place the tag on a section not in the direct path of dumbbells being racked aggressively.

Avoid on this machine

Individual kettlebells (cast iron, too small, dropped)Shelf surface (weight placed directly on it)Very bottom of rack

Placement tips

  • Smaller than dumbbell racks, may not have large flat surfaces.
  • If the rack is just a shelf without side panels, use the wall behind or beside it.
  • In CrossFit gyms where kettlebells sit on the floor, tag the nearest fixed structure instead.

Avoid on this machine

Sled/carriage (moves on rails)Weight plate loading postsSeat and back padSafety stopsRail surfaces (lubricated)

Placement tips

  • Don't place anywhere near the guide rails - lubricant migrates and undermines adhesive.
  • The structural frame vibrates under heavy loads; pick a thick structural section, not a thin cosmetic panel.
  • On 45-degree leg press machines, the sweet spot is the lower side frame section near the seat.

Avoid on this machine

Weight stack and shroud (vibrates every rep, often vented)Seat/back padAdjustable leg padCam/pivot mechanismAnkle roller pad

Placement tips

  • Selectorized machines have weight stacks that slam with every rep. Steel frame sections absorb the vibration; thin plastic shrouds may shake the tag loose over time.
  • Place adjacent to (not over) instructional decals on the frame.
  • Same placement strategy works for both curl and extension machines.

Avoid on this machine

Pressing arms/handles (move every rep)Weight plate horns (plates slide on/off)Weight stack shroud (vented, vibrates)Seat/back padAdjustment pins

Placement tips

  • On plate-loaded machines, check that a loaded 45-lb plate can't contact the tag when racked.
  • Hammer Strength-style load-bearing posts (thick steel, separate from the moving arm) are ideal.
  • On selectorized models (Life Fitness, Cybex, Precor), place below or beside the instructional placard.

Avoid on this machine

Moving arms/handlesWeight plate hornsWeight stack shroudSeat/back padAdjustment pins

Placement tips

  • Shoulder press machines are often positioned with the seat facing outward, meaning the frame column faces away from the main walkway.
  • Walk around the machine and find the face most visible from the primary approach direction - it may be the side face of the column rather than the front.

Avoid on this machine

Pull-up bar (chrome, sweaty hands)Dip handles (same)Back/arm pad (if present)Top crossbar (too high)Base/feet

Placement tips

  • Pull-up bars are a sweat drip zone. Place the tag slightly off-center from directly below the grip area, or on the perpendicular face of the post.
  • On large rigs (CrossFit-style pull-up rigs), one tag per bay or section is sufficient - you don't need every post. See One tag or several?
  • Freestanding stations sometimes have a counterweight at the base, but it's too low.

Avoid on this machine

All pads and cushions (upholstery)Foot rollers/ankle locksPivot pointsBase feet

Placement tips

  • These are often the lowest-profile equipment on the floor with limited flat surfaces. If the frame has no good surface above 24", place on the highest flat section available rather than on a pad.
  • Hyper-extension/Roman chair machines: the vertical post where the hip pad attaches is usually the best option.
  • GHD machines have a long flat rail at the base (12–18") - low but viable.
  • Ab crunch machines with weight stacks follow the same rules as other selectorized machines.
No card for “” yet. Use the four-line rule or send us a photo.

Heights are approximate. Every machine differs a little; the rules below decide when the card and the metal disagree.

Same on every machine

Three placement rules and one way to stick it. If your machine has no card, this is enough.

Height off the floor

FLOOR 0" 54" CHEST 30" WAIST Tag zone seen from 3–6 ft away above eye level: missed below the knee: missed
30–54"OFF FLOOR

Waist to chest

Below the knee gets missed. Above eye level gets missed. Someone walking up should spot it from 3–6 feet.

FlatRIGID · STILL

Where the maker put their labels

Serial plate, safety decal: that zone is flat, stable, and out of the wear path. Same kind of surface, nearby. Never over the plate itself.

OutNOT IN

Face the walkway

The side visible from the main floor, not the face the user stares at while working. Walk around it once and check.

1

Wipe

Isopropyl alcohol, 70%+, clean cloth. Damp rag if you must. Not gym spray: silicone and oils kill the bond. Dry 10–15 s.

2

Aim, then press

Peel the full backing. Get position right before contact. Press from the center outward, 2–3 firm passes.

3

Nail the edges

Every edge and corner with a fingernail, ~5 seconds. Edges are where peeling starts.

4

Leave it

Do not reposition after contact. Lifting and re-sticking weakens the bond. Wrong spot? Use a fresh tag.

Never here Rubber or foam gripsChrome-plated barsMoving partsSeat pads & upholsteryWeight plates & stacksAir ventsFloor-level surfacesOver serial platesBelow handlebars (sweat drip)Hammertone / heavy texture Curious why the vinyl and adhesive are built the way they are? See how Gear Tags are made.

One tag or several?

The answer for jungles, multi-bay racks, dual-stack trainers and rigs.

One tag per thing that breaks on its own. Not one per purchase, one per frame, or one per serial number. A four-station cable jungle is one machine on the invoice and four machines to the person who has to fix it.

Check a station · any yes = its own tag
It has its own weight stack, motor, or flywheel.
Two people can use it at the same time.
It can break while the rest keeps working.
Standing at it, you can’t see the tag on the next station.
?

Answer the four questions

A dual-pulley tower sharing one stack is one tag. The same tower with a stack on each side is two.

Name split stations with a shared prefix

Multi-Jungle – Lat Pulldown
Multi-Jungle – Cable Row
Multi-Jungle – Adjustable Pulley
Multi-Jungle – Triceps Pushdown

Before the dash: what your members call the machine. After it: the station. The shared prefix groups them back together in your dashboard, so set the same manufacturer, model, and zone on all of them. Setup will warn you the names look similar; that is expected here, so continue.

Reports land on the stationYou learn which cable frays every eight weeks, not that the jungle “has issues.”
Tracking keys on the recordRepeat-offender and time-to-fix both do. One record for twelve feet of equipment collapses all of it into one line.
Tags cost well under a dollarFour tags on a four-station machine is a rounding error against not knowing which station is failing.
More situations: racks, rigs, attachments, dumbbell racks, cardio screens, shared spaces, frame problems
Rack with several bays: one tag per bay if two people can lift at once. One usable bay, one tag.
Pull-up or dip station on a bigger frame: its own tag when it has its own approach position, otherwise fold it into the frame’s tag.
Attachments (bars, ropes, straps, ankle cuffs): no tag. They move between stations and get lost, not repaired. Members report them on the station they hang from.
Dumbbell, kettlebell, and plate racks: one tag per rack, never per weight. The rack is the asset.
Cardio with an attached screen: one tag. The screen is a part of the machine, not a station.
Shared spaces (locker room, turf, stretch corner): that is what Area Tags are for. Area Tags cover a space; they do not replace a tag on a machine.
A frame problem on a split machine (bent upright, loose bolt): report it on the nearest station and put “frame” in the note.

Equipment not on the list?

The cards are examples. The rule works on anything with a frame.

Four lines

  1. 1Count the tags. Count the spots a member can stand and work, then run the four questions.
  2. 2Find the surface. Largest flat, rigid, non-moving face that isn’t padded, chromed, or at floor level. Same kind of spot the maker used for their labels.
  3. 3Face and height. The side visible from the walkway, 30–54" off the floor.
  4. 4Stick it. Alcohol wipe, press from the center out, nail the edges, leave it.

Still not sure? Send a photo.

One shot of the machine from the walkway is enough. We reply with the spot marked.

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