TITAN Economy bumper plates vs Rogue Color KG training plates
This is a comparison between the TITAN economy bumper plates and the Rogue Color KG training plates including pros, cons, and alternatives. It was published first under which titan plates to get. Follow the links for more details.
Overview and review of the Rogue Color KG training plates
The Rogue color KG training plates will set you back about $960 dollars or $6.85 dollars per kg. These plates are especially good to use for weightlifters who are serious about competing. This overview has originally been published in the article "Which rogue plates to buy" which you can find on this blog.
Overview of the Rogue Color KG training plates
The
Rogue color KG training plates come in full color just like the
competition plates and are specialized in Olympic weightlifting. These plates can be used in training and still life up to the IWF standards, You can choose from 10kg, 15kg, 20kg, and 25kg plates. These plates come with a 450mm diameter and collar opening of 50.4mm. They score 86 on the durometer which means they a little more bounce than the top range plates from Rogue. They also have been designed to be thinner and fit more weight onto the
bar. The weight tolerance on each of these is around 15 grams per plate.
Weight / Color / Diameter / Thickness / Price per pair
25kg / Red / 450mm / 2.50'' / $345
20kg / Blue / 450mm / 2.125'' / $285
15kg / Yellow / 450mm / 1.75'' / $220
10kg / Green / 450mm / 1.25'' / $152.50
Available sets
90kg, 2x 10-15-20kg $615
110kg, 2x 10-20-25kg $755
120kg, 2x 15-20-25kg $825
140kg, 2x 10-15-20-25kg $960
These are the right plates when you want to get the real competition
feel
going for your Olympic lifters in your gym while still saving some money compared to
competition plates.
Pros of the Rogue color training plates
These plates are great for training purposes and cost less than actual
competition plates. You will fit more of these onto a regular
bar compared to normal
bumper plates. The color coding will set your gym apart and make it easy for athletes and coaches to identify the weight on the
bar.
Cons of the Rogue color training plates
The color coding is not ideal in gyms where the plates will be used on and off a platform. They will quickly take on lose color and dirt will be easily visible. The higher bounce rate compared to higher end Rogue products makes it more likely for them to break. This also means that they are a bit more dangerous to train with for beginners as they are usually not used to bouncing weights.
Alternatives to the Rogue color training plates
Alternatives to the KG color plates are:
If your clients or yourself prefer to train in lbs rather than KG but like the color coding and a bit more bounce, than the LBS version of the
Color training plates are an option for you.
If you want top-notch training plates which match the rest of your gym and are more durable, you can opt for the
Black training plates from Rogue. These have less bounce and a couple of extra features on the plate which make them more beginner friendly.
If you want to save money and do not need to max out the weight that can be put on the
bar, the
bumper plates are a time tested solution for any gym. Not fancy, but they do the job and you save some $$$ per kilo.
Overview of the TITAN Economy bumper plates
This is an overview of the TITAN Economy bumper plates including pros, cons, and alternatives. It was published first under which titan plates to get. Follow the links for more details.
Related articles
Overview of the Titan economy plates
Price $44.99 - $474.99
The
economy bumper plates from TITAN are the ideal weight plates to start your home gym. They are cheap and cheerful and therefore can be bought en masse or on a small budget to start a home gym. These plates are available from 10lb to 100lb with the same diameter and varying thickness. They will fit a standard Olympic barbell and most plate trees and storage solutions for plates. They are also available for purchase in a 230lband 260 lb set. The full specifications are:
Low Bounce Rate
Stainless-Steel Insert
Extremely durable
Olympic barbell size
Quieter than steel plates
Sold in pairs of 10, 15, 25, 35, 45-pounds
Diameter: 450mm / 17.75-in.
Width: 1 – 5.25-in.
Collar Opening: 50 mm
Color: Black
Material: Rubber with steel insert
10-POUNDS:
Width: 1-in.
15-POUNDS:
Width: 1.25-in.
25-POUNDS:
Width: 1.78-in.
35-POUNDS:
Width: 2.75-in.
45-POUNDS:
Width: 3.5-in.
100-POUNDS:
Width: 5.25-in.
If you want to start your home gym on a budget, this is where to look. You can not beat Titan on Price in many categories and this is one of them. If you are looking for plates to continuously from overhead, these might not be the ones.
Pros of the TITAN bumper Plates
The pros of the TITAN bumper plates are:
- Low price
- Outdoor / Indoor use
- Available up to 100 pounds
- Lower injury risk
One of the biggest pros for the entire TITAN fitness brand is its low price compared to competitors like Eleiko or Rogue. Especially on comparable plates, the Titan versions come out at almost half of the purchase price of a like for like comparison. This is especially good if you want to equip a home gym on a very low budget and want some variety in your training. With TITAN your wallet will remain intact. Commercial gyms will appreciate that you can get quite a bit of tonnage for a low price with TITAN.
Bumper plates themselves are practical as you can use them indoors and outdoors. They are a lot more forgiving in the heat or in damp places compared to Iron plates. If you need to build your gym in an outhouse or in a basement with unfinished walls, bumper plates are probably the better bet. In addition, you can also take them outside for a workout and leave them there without feeling too guilty about it.
Another bonus is that TITAN also offers a 100lb bumper version of their plates. This is unusual as most other vendors offer this size as an Iron plate. If you lift very heavy you can use these to make it a little easier on the wrists when you bring the weight back down to the ground. Get one pair of the big bumpers on and then stack iron plates to the desired heavy load. This is a little more forgiving on your body and the floor in the long run. Apart from this, I see little use in heavy bumper plates as they take up too much space on the sleeve.
Bumper plates are also less risky to handle then Iron plates. When you get your fingers between two iron plates or knock your shin/toe against them, you are usually hurt. Bumper plates give in a little more and therefore are good for beginners or when you have teenagers training in your gym.
Cons of the TITAN economy Plates
The cons of the TITAN bumper plates are:
- Quality issues
- Sleeve space
- Olympic training
- Black
You get what you pay for and while you save quite a bit of money on the TITAN bumpers they are also more likely to break. In a commercial gym that might not be as bad, as you constantly have to renew equipment anyway, but in a home gym you might not want to have to buy your plates twice over the time of 3 years. Especially the rims where the barbells are inserted are more likely to deform than with other brands. If you do not intend to drop these, you might as well consider iron plates, which are cheaper per pound and get more weight on the barbell.
Bumper plates also take up more sleeve space compared to Iron plates for the same amount of weight. If you mainly train the bench press, deadlift, and squat with 400lb or more, consider getting iron plates instead of bumper plates. When you get to 400lbs it gets tight on the sleeves when you bumper plates only.
These bumper plates are not ideal for Olympic weightlifting. They will do, but suffer more when dropped from overhead. This is based on the core of the plate. The core of bumper plates is made of rubber with a thin metal inlay where the barbell is inserted.
Olympic plates have a metal core with rubber around it. This makes the bumper plates more likely to come apart when dropped repeatedly from overhead. Still, it will take some time until you have broken them. So if you don't go through 100 overhear lifts a week or more, I would still say you can get these plates for our once a week Oly session.
The last disadvantage is that these plates are plain black. If you want some color in your life you can get the
colored bumper plates from TITAN instead. Especially in a home gym scenario I always recommend this as it is just more fun than having everything in black. But I guess that is more a question of taste than anything else.
Alternatives to the TITAN economy Bumper plates
Alternatives to the TITAN bumper plates are:
the
elite bumper plates from TITAN are the right choice if you put in a lot of Holy lifts per week. They are built robustly and take the beating from the drops. They cost considerably more than the
economy bumper plates, but they will also take a bigger beating. The only difference to real competition
Olympic weightlifting plates is that they are not colored. Compared to similar options from Eleiko and Rogue you save considerably.
If you want a bit more color in your life you can get the
color economy plates from TITAN. They only cost slightly more, have the same specs than the black ones, but come in the official color denominations for the different weights of the plates. This would be my personal choice from TITAN if I was building a gym on a budget.
Cast Iron plates are a good option for anyone with limited space and budget. They are not great to look at and also a bit more awkward to handle. In return, you get the clanging and banging of metal and the maximum amount of weight you could possibly put on your barbell.
Conclusion for the TITAN bumper plates
The
TITAN Economy bumper plates are a great option for anyone who wants to build a home gym on a budget. Especially if you train only three times a week and do not abuse your equipment a lot, these plates are great. In a commercial setting, these plates are great for general training where things will get knocked up anyway. If you want plates that you can drag the mud, use in the rain or extreme heat without feeling guilty., get these. If you want to impress, hold a competition, or beat the crap out of your plates, go upmarket.