20 lbs Iron Plates

Hey all, I’ve been lurking for a while, and at the suggestion of TC’s front page article, finally got around to signing up.

Anyway, I have an old bench with a squat rack on the back, got it at a yard sale a couple of years ago. It came with a few Weider 20lbs iron plates, and a bunch of really wide ones that are ceramic or something with plastic on the outside.

I’ve been doing Rippetoe’s starting strength for about a month, and it’s working really well for me. Unfortunately, those ceramic weights are really thick and my deadlift weight is getting high enough that there is simply not enough room on the bar to fit the weight I need, the ceramic weights take up too much space.

So my question is, does anyone know where I can buy some more of those iron 20lbs plates? I don’t want to buy a whole new bench, I just need some thin iron plates, rather than those dumb ceramic dealeos so I can fit more weight on the bar. I looked around ebay, maybe I’m just dumb, but I couldn’t really find what I needed.

Anyway, thanks in advance. T-Nation rocks!
Will

Standard US increments are: 2.5, 5, 10, 25, 35 and 45lbs. Get a pair of 45’s and get to it. You’ll need to keep collecting more as you get stronger. Also, make sure that you have a few pairs of all the small increments so that you can continue progression.

I don’t know where you are, but in my area Play It Again Sports, Dicks Sporting Goods, and even Walmart sell plates from 2.5lb to 45lb. I feel for you however - plates are NOT cheap! Luckly, once you have a set of 2.5’s, 5’s, 10’s, 25’s then you just need to start collecting 45’s…which are conveniently the most expensive!

I got all of my weights at Dicks Sporting Goods, they’re actually not very expensive. There was a sale last time I went, I believe it was 10 cents a pound, but don’t quote me on that.

Thanks for the advice. I live in Southern Illinois, by the way, so we have both Wal-Mart’s and Dicks’ by the dozen. I’ll try to get over there and see what they have.

Oh, and another quick question, at the risk of sounding like a newb: What the hell are bumper plates, and why are they so much more expensive?

bumper plates are plates that can be thrown down (without super loud noise or things breaking). They bounce and are used mainly for Olympic lifts. They are expensive because of all of the above. They are worth the investment in my opinion