Figured out a plate loading hack at the local dump last month

I was dropping off some old furniture at the transfer station near Clifton when I saw a pile of scrap steel bars in the metal bin. They were about 18 inches long, maybe an inch thick, with holes drilled at both ends. I grabbed four of them for free and brought them home. I drilled a hole through the center of each one and threaded them onto my barbell between my weight plates. They add about 5 pounds each and they lock the plates in place so nothing slides around. Cost me zero dollars and maybe twenty minutes of work with a hand drill. Has anyone else found good scrap metal that they turned into gym gear? I'm thinking about going back for those shorter rods.

2 comments

2 Comments

park.adam6d ago

Found some rusty dumbbell handles in a scrap pile behind a garage once.

victorcoleman6d ago

Hell yeah, three of my best finds were a pair of rusty 45lb plates someone left next to a dumpster. Took some elbow grease and a wire brush but they cleaned up perfect.