Weight plates that are off weight

[Isaac Carrillo]

I was wondering on some plates since some may weigh more than 45 could some drilling in the plate so I can make it as even as possible close to 45lb work, and if it weighs less weld a washer or something to the plate to make it weight more?

I bought 4 pairs of weight plates and some weigh 46lbs and the other 43lbs

[LarryLohkamp]

No problem drilling holes to reduce weight. Many small holes are better than big one, both for accuracy and structure. Welding cast iron is not straight forward. You could soft solder plates if you can get a big enough torch, but it would probably be easier to bolt steel plates on to bring it over 45#, then drill to target. The over weight plates could be loaded onto a lathe and trimmed if you have the machinery. My lathe is just a little too small.

On the other hand, why bother? If you tell your buddy that you lifted 405 and it was really off by a little, it is still impressive. I doubt it would even make a difference if you were training for competition.

[Isaac Carrillo]

No problem drilling holes to reduce weight. Many small holes are better than big one, both for accuracy and structure. Welding cast iron is not straight forward. You could soft solder plates if you can get a big enough torch, but it would probably be easier to bolt steel plates on to bring it over 45#, then drill to target. The over weight plates could be loaded onto a lathe and trimmed if you have the machinery. My lathe is just a little too small.

On the other hand, why bother? If you tell your buddy that you lifted 405 and it was really off by a little, it is still impressive. I doubt it would even make a difference if you were training for competition.

But say one plate is more by one pound on one side wouldn't that throw the lift off balance?

[Jeff Illingworth]

It may not be a big deal. Most people are probably doing this unless they're lifting with really good equipment. If it bothers you, weigh them, label them, load them as evenly as possible, and then use some fractional plates or something to make up the difference on the light side.

Or kill someone who's got money, like Louie Miller. Tie them to the weights that are incorrectly labeled and throw them in the river. Take their money and buy calibrated plates. Problem solved.

[BenM]

But say one plate is more by one pound on one side wouldn't that throw the lift off balance?

Not necessarily. I have misloaded the bar by 2.5kgs on one side, even for benching and haven't noticed til after my set. I've seen plenty of other misloads in other people's logs too. It happens. If you're really worried about it, calibrate your plates, or label them and adjust as needed, or better yet just offload them and buy comp spec plates. But this forum is full of strong people who train with weights that aren't calibrated exactly, it's simply no big deal unless you're competing at a reasonable level and need to be sure.

[wsmoran]

But say one plate is more by one pound on one side wouldn't that throw the lift off balance?

The heavier you are lifting, the less you'll notice.