Alright, I'm thinking about buying some bumper plates for the Oly's and especially the deadlifts. As I lift out in my garage when the weight clings the floor it makes me cringe in fear it might break. So I have two basic questions. 1.As long as the regular plate doesn't hit the ground it won't be damaged/damage the bar right? To clarify further if I put on a 45lb bumperplate and a 25lb regular plate the 25 and/or the bar wouldn't be at any risk of damage would they? 2.I was wondering if you could point me in the direction of a good place to purchase bumper plates online.
1. Plates - no damage. Bar - depends on the bar (decent ones that you can drop from overhead will cost at least $400 new) 2. werksan is pretty popular
I wouldn't drop it from overhead onto a hard surface, eventually it could snap. If you are sticking with that bar, just re-rack it at the front and lower it a bit more before you drop it.
If money is a real issue you could always pick up a pair of wheels complete with tyres and get some holes drilled to fit the bar. Bear in mind that any bumper plates will reduce your ROM, so you might want to consider a raised platform. p.s. Plus it looks hardcore
Another option, where I train we have some rubber floor mats, I'm not sure if I'd ever be comfortable dropping the weights after an oly lift, but after deadlifts it's fine.
