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REP fitness color bumper plates vs HI-temp bumper plates

Written by Pascal Landshoeft | May 31, 2021 4:00:00 PM

REP fitness color bumper plates vs HI-temp bumper plates

This is a comparison between the REP fitness color bumper plates and the REP fitness Hi-temp bumper plates. Follow the links for more details.

Overview and review of the REP fitness Hi-Temp bumper plates

This is an overview of the REP fitness Hi-temp bumper plates including pros, cons, and alternatives. The original was published under which plates to buy from rep fitness. Follow the links for more details.

 

Hi-Temp Bumper plates $25

 
If you are feeling eco-friendly the Hi Temp bumper plates are the way to go for you. HI-temp bumpers are made from recycled material under very high temperature and are there also very durable. They are available from REP fitness in the following sizes:
 
  • 5lb
  • 10lb
  • 15lb
  • 25lb
  • 35lb
  • 45lb
 
Good, budget-friendly option.
 

Pros of the REP Hi-Temp Bumper plates

 
The pros os the Hi-Temp bumper plates are:
 
  • Price
  • Durability
  • Can be used outdoors
  • Don't stain easily
 
These are the ideal plates for someone who decides to do a lot of work with their plates outdoors. If you need to outfit a gym that is in a base camp or at a movie set in the middle of nowhere, then these are great. They also do not get stained as easily as colored plates which is a bonus in a dirty environment.
 

Cons of the REP Hi-Temp Bumper plates

 
Cons of the REP HI-Temp plates are:
 
  • High bounce
  • Sleeve space
  • Hard to pick up
  • Inconsistencies in color
 
The lifting mechanics of these plates are more or less identical to regular bumper plates. This means that they are not great when you lift a lot of weight in the range of 200kg plus on a regular basis and they also don't do great for oly lifts. Lacking a metal core they spin more than competition plates on an oly lift and take up more sleeve space for the same weight.
 
These plates also lack an extra lip to be easier to be picked up from the ground. A MInor inconvenience, but still...
 
I think the biggest con of HI Temp bumper plates is that you are dealing with reheated and melted tires. While this is great for saving money and I guess the environment, even though I question whether reheating old rubber to form it into weight plates is really that eco-friendly, it is a nightmare for quality control. While these plates are black in general, they are way more likely to have different shades of black compared to newly produced black bumper plates. But I guess that is not really high on your priority list if you are already considering the cheapest plates in town, which is cool.
 

Alternatives to the REP Hi-Temp Bumper plates

 
Alternatives to the REP HI-Temp bumper plates are:
 
 
The REP black bumper plates are basically the same thing, except they are not recycled and therefore easier to quality control. This means that you are more likely to get a consistent black color without any shading. The downside is that they are more expensive and also do not give you the warm feeling of buying something that has been recycled.
 
The REP competition bumper plates are the right choice if you have a generous budget and you are serious about your Olympic lifting. This is the best that REP has to offer in terms of precision and stability during an oly lift for plates. The downside is the price which starts at $129 for the cheapest plates instead of $25 for the HI Temp bumpers.
 
The Rogue HI temp plates are Rogue's cheap line of plates for the budget-conscious buyer. Of course, budget-conscious and Rogue Fitness do not really go well together in the same sentence, but if you were to get a good rack and barbell from Rogue, but want to save a little on bumpers, then these are a good option to throw in your cart. They are the closest match on the Rogue plate lineup compared to the REP Hi-Temp bumper plates.
 
TITAN is the cost leader in this business, so if you want to get together a whole gym with the lowest possible cost you can also get their bumpers into your cart and build an entire gym from that. The downside is that they seem to have more issues with quality control than REP fitness and Rogue fitness.
 

Conclusion for the REP Hi-Temp Bumper plates

 
The Hi Temp bumpers from REP are a good option to save some cost and make you feel better about yourself as long as you don't mind that they won't be in one continuous shape of black.
 

Overview and review of the REP fitness color bumper plates

This is an overview of the REP fitness color bumper plates including pros, cons, and alternatives. The original was published under which plates to buy from rep fitness. Follow the links for more details.

 

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REP color bumper plates $49

 
The REP color bumper plates are a colored option of the REP black bumper plates. What I like about these bumpers is that they are affordable and very close in price to the standard black. If you are torn between black and colored bumpers for the same price I definitely recommend going for the colored ones. Way more fun to train with. The full specifications are:
 
Plate Sets:
 
  • 160 lb - (2)Each 45-25-10
  • 210 lb - (2)Each 45-35-25
  • 230 lb - (2)Each 45-35-25-10
  • 260 lb - (2)Each 45-35-25-15-10
  • 370 lb - (2)Each 55-45-35-25-15-10
 
  • 10 lb - Gray
  • 15 lb - Black (from our regular black plates)
  • 25 lb - Green
  • 35 lb - Yellow
  • 45 lb - Blue
  • 55 lb - Red 
 
A very affordable way to get colored plates into your home gym as other options might break the budget.
 

Pros of the REP color bumper plates

 
Pros of the REP color bumper plates:
 
  • Price
  • Color
  • Very forgiving
  • Can be used outdoors
 
The best thing about the REP-colored bumper plates is the decision of REP to not charge you a lot extra if you prefer color over black. That is great as other vendors go for a different policy on this one or do not even stock anything but black plates. So if you want colored plates on a budget, then these are a good choice.
 
Bumper plates are very forgiving on the lifter, floor, and equipment. They are the least likely to injure someone or cut into the floor and rack you are using. If you have a lot of beginners around or do not know who and how the plates will be used at all times, try stocking more bumpers than iron plates. Iron is great, but it is a lot easier to hurt yourself with these plates.
 
The last bonus of these plates as that they can be used outdoors. They won't deform and if they get dirty they are easy to clean.
 

Cons of the REP color bumper plates

 
The cons of the REP colored bumper plates are:
 
  • Price compared to iron
  • Sleeve space
  • High bounce
  • Stain easier
  • Suboptimal for oly lifts
  • Can be awkward to pick up
 
The main con for bumper plates is that they take up more sleeve space than iron plates. They are usually also a little more expensive than Iron plates per kilogram. With bumper plates, you usually max out the barbell somewhere around 180kg - 220kg depending on the barbell you use and how you stack the plates. If you are a serious powerlifter that regularly works with 200kg or more you need iron plates. But if you are shopping for plates as a powerlifter, you probably are already well aware of that as you did not step into the gym yesterday.
 
These bumper plates have a higher bounce than specific competition plates. If you are only lifting a lot, especially heavy, this can become annoying. Again, if you are an experienced OLy lifter you will know how to handle a bouncing bar, but it would be beneficial if it did a little less of that when you do 100s and 1000s of reps. In that case, get plates with a low bounce that usually cost a little more like the REP sports plates or competition plates.
 
Colored plates pick up blemishes and stains more than simple black plates. If you do not want to have to clean your plates as often to keep them looking nice then black plates are the better choice.
 
As these plates do not have a metal core they tend to spin a little more in an unpredictable way for oly lifts or not at all. That can mess with the dynamic of an oly lift and lead to lower lifts. However, this is minor and only relevant to top athletes.
 
Bumper plates are generally a little more awkward to pick up from the floor than iron plates as you get less grip. Some bumper plates have an added little lip to get grip on which these do not provide. Again minor, but we like to split hairs here.
 

Alternatives to the REP color bumper plates

 
Alternatives to the REP bumper plates are:
 
 
If you want to play it safe, especially for a commercial gym, then you can also get a stack of black bumper plates. Not everyone likes to train with colored plates, even though I think they are the best thing since sliced bread.
 
If you want to take it up a notch you can get the REP competition bumpers instead. They will have a lower bounce and weight tolerance and are therefore more precise instruments than the colored bumpers. They also have a metal core which makes them more centered during oly lifts. The big con is that they can cost up to triple what a single bumper plate costs.
 
Rogue fitness also offers a line of colored bumper plates if you are leaning more towards equipping your gym Rogue themed. These plates are also imported so the patriotism card does not apply as much as with some other products from Rogue. If you want to go for American-made plates you can order the Rogue deep-dish plates.
 
The machined iron plates are high precision iron plates from Rogue with a lower tolerance compared to regular iron plates. This means you pay a little extra so that these plates are being produced with lower fault tolerance to weigh exactly what it states in the plate.
 
The TITAN color bumpers are a low-budget option. Especially if you want to build your entire gym as cheap as possible without ransacking Facebook groups and Craigslist you should pay TITAN a visit.
 

Conclusion for the REP color bumper plates

 
These are a good option to get color in our home or commercial gym at a reasonable price if you want to.
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