Have you seen the new Dumbbell Bumpers from Rogue? What do you think about them?
These colorful rubber discs are designed specifically for use with Rogue’s DB-10 and DB-15 Dumbbell Handles. They are offered in six different increments ranging from 10 to 55 pounds (the same as regular bumper plates) but they are only 9″ in diameter. In addition to being compact and just bad ass looking, they appear to be far more cost-effective than buying pairs of Rogue Change Plates; which is what many have been doing.
Personally I think these are a great idea. Swapping out single discs is easier than dealing with stack after stack of 5- and 10-lb change plates. Also these eliminate all the noise that comes with stacking change plates on any bar. Finally, if you are using plates larger than 230 mm in diameter on your dumbbell handles, these discs will make your dumbbells feel more like real, fixed dumbbells by offering a more centralized distribution of weight.
Cost?
Rogue’s dumbbell bumpers truly are less expensive than the rubber change plates, and by a lot too. To give you an idea, a pair of 10-pound bumpers will set you back $50, but it costs $81 to buy a pair of 10-pound rubber change plates. That’s a big difference, and it only gets better as you move up in weight. Take a pair of 25-lb dumbbell bumpers; they’ll cost you $125, but it would cost you $204 to buy that in change plates. Or 45’s at $185 a pair; they would cost $366 in change plates. Huge difference.
Rubber change plates vs dumbbell bumpers. Plates are better for lighter, accurate dumbbells. Dumbbell bumpers allow you to really load up your dumbbell handles for less money.
Of course it would be negligent of me not to point out that rubber change plates aren’t the only plates you can stick on your dumbbell handles. There are still steel change plates, of course, which will cost you about half of what these rubber bumpers will cost per pound. So while steel is definitely cheaper, it’s not as quiet, accurate, bad ass, or quick and easy to really load up as single bumpers.
I should also point out that whether you are using rubber change plates, steel plates, or these new dumbbell bumpers, having access to enough weight to make a pair of heavy dumbbells is going to be expensive. A decent set of dumbbell bumpers is definitely less costly than owning a set of fixed dumbbells like you’d see in a gym (even if you use cheap iron hex units), but still no small investment by any means.
Sizing
As I mentioned, all of these dumbbell bumpers are 9″ in diameter. The thickness of each bumper is as follows: 10-lb plates are 45 mm”; 15-lb plates are 75 mm; 25-pound plates are 120 mm; and the 35-55-lb plates are 150 mm. The three largest plates have cut-out inserts to allow the disc to slide over the dumbbell collars for a secure fit and also to allow for your clamps to fully engage the end of the sleeve.
Since these do have 50 mm inserts, you could use these with your Rogue EZ Curl Bar as well (or any Olympic bar for that matter.) The colors adhere to the standard IWF scheme, save for the 10’s and 15’s which are black, and the inserts themselves are chrome.
Your Turn
I for one am kind of anxious to try these out, but what do you think? Neat idea? Will they take off? Are they worth the money? Would you buy these? Do they make you wish that you owned dumbbell handles? Comment below.
I saw these for the first time at the Rogue pavilion at the CrossFit games in Madison. I had to do a double-take at first. “Man, those are some oddly shaped bumper plates.”
The only shortcoming is that when they are paired up on a dumbbell, they are pretty big jumps in weight, and you’ll have to get some 5 lb plates to fill in the gaps.
They would make for a great way to do deficit deadlifts…
that is true. 10-pounds per jump. I wonder how well the 5-pound plate fits alongside the largest bumpers, like does the collar still make good contact with the sleeve.
The only problem I have is that I purchased the DB-10s, thinking the DB-15s would be too long and might get in the way when it came time to do certain exercises. Now these dumbbell bumpers come out, and I can only put a single 10lb or single 15lb on each side, limiting me to, at most, 40lb on a single DB-10 with these bumpers.
They’re cool, but it’s a little frustrating for me knowing I can’t really use anything heavier than 15lb bumpers on a side safely with a collar.
Yeah the DB-10’s are very limiting. Options are always good, but the 15’s a much more versatile product – even before these bumpers.
Live and learn! Maybe I can find someone on Facebook Marketplace to do a little trade, hah.
I also noticed these on the RF new gear page. Look really cool and seem like a good option to save space and $$ over a whole dumbbell set. Getting a full set of DBs from Rogue (5-125#) would cost about $3900 without shipping cost.
I’m gonna keep an eye on these and see how the initial reviews turn out.
Yeah I have fixed dumbbells. Very convenient, but it has cost a fortune over the years to put together, and the amount of space it requires is ridiculous when in a garage gym. I think these bumpers are neat.
I initially thought these were amazing but the site says they are “NOT” to be dropped from overhead. Kinda takes the point away for me. I don’t like throwing weights but a controlled drop of a heavy dumbbell snatch would be nice.
You are currently dropping some other kind of dumbbell from an overhead position? What kind of dumbbell?
I’m currently not dropping my dumbbell (pricey vo3 urethane one I got pretty cheap used) higher than knee level but I’m just saying it’d be nice to be able to drop from overhead or shoulder height at least. Maybe you can? I don’t know.
I have a feeling that if you could somehow manage to drop them evenly each and every time, you’d probably get away with it for years. They are real bumpers after all, and the handle is a real bar as well. I think it’s just unreasonable to expect dumbbells to fall on both sides evenly each and every time though, even when controlled, and that’s why that disclaimer is there. I mean, accidentally drop a loaded handle from 6′ high on its end and its probably game over right then and there no matter what kind of weights you have on the handles.
Also to be fair, even fixed dumbbells shouldn’t be dropped from that high. Certainly not uncontrolled free falls. I toss big bells when I dumbbell press and it’s only from 18″ high yet they bounce around erratically. I can’t even imagine what happens when a dumbbell hits a rubber floor from 6′. haha something or someone gonna get broken.
Yeah, haha true story. It’d be quite the liability dropped from overhead. I’m interested in them I guess. Maybe I’ll pick up some 45’s and see how they work for me. They seem like they can handle some abuse anyways.
Your title sums them up well. And weird.
I see the benefits of having dumbbell bars with changeable weights vs a fixed set. The one thing I would be concerned about would be preparing for a movement. When I shoulder press or chest press (flat, incline, decline) I rest the dumbbells right above my knee and sort of kick them up into position. Do the ends of these bars dig into your legs? wouldn’t be bad for lightweight but I would think around 80+ it would start to really hurt.
Maybe there is something I am missing…
That’s always been an issue with any loadable handles. It just is. The Olympic variants are better because the sleeve is 2″ in diameter versus 1″, but still a problem.
I’m assuming that there would be room with the heavier weights to rest the actual bumper on your knee before you kick them up, avoiding the actual bar poking out.
Awesome articles jburgeson. Keep up the great reviews. I love reading all of them when they come out.
You might be able to lay the lip of the bumper on your thighs, but all the bumpers are the same 9″ diameter regardless of weight (leaving about 3½ of surface area around the sleeve), and you will always need collars.
I don’t think these bumpers do much to change that particular con of owning of dumbbell handles – the whole ‘kicking off the thighs for presses’ thing.
Also thank you very much, Jay. It’s much appreciated.
I’ve just been using basic steel plates to load my DB-15’s. I only really use 10’s, 5’s, and 2.5’s regularly but I have pairs of 25’s for dumbbell shoulder press, bench press, and rows. The added radial inch isn’t all that cumbersome. The only odd part is kneeing them into position. Either rest the plate or the bar sleeve on your knee is awkward.
Do you know of this type of dumbbell? I cannot quite make out the manufacturer’s name in the linked pic below. It looks pretty cool, but I’ve never seen it in a gym, and I cannot locate it through Google.
https://www.girlswithmuscle.com/1359779/
https://jbells.com/collections/jbells