Crumb Bumper Plates Vs. Regular

Ready to start up your own home gym? When choosing weight plates, you have some options: steel, regular rubber bumper plates, or crumb rubber bumper plates. The best type of weight plate for you depends on the type of lifting you will be doing: Olympic lifting, powerlifting, or weightlifting. 

Steel plates

Steel plates are perfect for powerlifting, barbell training, and general strength training and do not require bumper plates for exercises such as deadlifts and squats. Steel plates are less expensive than their counterparts but are noisier, especially for an exercise like a deadlift where you drop the bar to the ground. In general, cast-iron steel plates are great for anything that isn’t Olympic lifting.  

What are bumper plates?

Contrary to the cast-iron steel plate, bumper plates (or “bumpers”) are made entirely out of dense rubber with only a metal ring in the middle to insert the bar. Or, they have a steel core with a rubber protective coating. In Olympic lifting, athletes have to drop the weights on the floor so carefully lowering and lifting the steel plates wasn’t an option anymore. Thus, bumper plates were born. The rubber not only protects the floor from damage each time a weight is dropped, it is also safer for the bar, the weights, and the athletes themselves. You will often spot bumper plates by their bright colors.

Crumb bumper plates

Crumb bumper plates are made out of softer rubber compared to regular bumper plates. This means crumb plates are even more durable than regular bumpers and offer an amazing bounce.

If we had to pick just one, we recommend purchasing a set of regular bumper plates for a beginner home gym as these are super durable and versatile!