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.

 

 

The pros of the TITAN bumper plates are:

 

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. 

 

 

The cons of the TITAN bumper plates are:

 

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 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. 

 

 

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.