Shermworks Halfers (microloading plates) Review

[Jetigen]

Shermworks Halfers (microloading plates) Review

Recently I purchased a set of 0.5 lbs microloading plates from Sherman after reading about this new possible product in "Opinions, muicroloading plate" thread.

Let me first touch on what they are about:

The idea behind 0.5 lbs increment is that you increase the weight on the bar by half a pound on each sleeve or one pound in total . So, the weight can go up on the bar in this sequence:

1lbs –> 2lbs –> 3 lbs –> 4 lbs.

The next step you just use two traditional 2.5 lbs plates to get 5lbs increase on the bar.

After that you can just use microloading plates again: 1lbs –> 2lbs –> 3 lbs –> 4 lbs.


Now the review:

The plates arrived neatly packed in a small postal carton that fits in a standard mailbox. Sherman included a sharpie marker as I requested unmarked plates.

[Jetigen]

The set consists of 8 plates. I found them to be pleasant to hold in hands as they are smooth without rough edges. The plates are definitely not made of scrap metal as some suggested in the discussion thread linked above. I don't find them to be ugly at all. They are just squares. That's all to it.

[Jetigen]

Here are the Halfers next to Ivanko and Hampton traditional 2.5 lbs plates:

[Jetigen]

Halfer plates are square 3.5” by 3.5” and about 3/16” thick.

[Jetigen]

All Halfer plates weighed 0.480 lbs on my scale except for one plate that weighed 0.490 lbs. That gives the average weight of 0.48125 lbs. Deviation from the stated weight is - 3.75%.

[Jetigen]

Overall I am happy with my purchase. Here are few pictures of the Halfer microloading plates on the bar:

[rlundregan]

Nice! I was lucky enough to find a bunch of washers that are about a half pound each (according to my food scale, they are actually more like 9oz each). I found them at my local PIAS--the guys at the register looked at me like I had two heads. I ended up getting 8 washers for $2.

[Cpl.Girthington]

If I got some I would paint them to look like the old 5.25" floppy discs, totally what they look like to me in those pictures. And I ain't even a computer geek.

[817boy]

how much did the 8 plates cost you w/ shipping? Might be interested.

[Jetigen]

Paid $35 with shipping included. The weight is same on each plate with the exception of one plate that slightly heavier.

[Andrew_WOT]

Any advantage over traditional round fractional plates like ones from IronWoody or Rogue?
http://www.ironwoodyfitness.com/equi...al-plates.html

[trimble006]

Any advantage over traditional round fractional plates like ones from IronWoody or Rogue?
http://www.ironwoodyfitness.com/equi...al-plates.html

Price, and possibly the fact that each plate is half a pound seem to be the only advantages.

I think after seeing them reviewed that I might be more inclined to go the 2 inch washer route to be honest. Put a bit of paint on them for aesthetics and possibly bring them up to weight too. But really, micro-plates, micro-care.

Keep them on the market though Sherm. There's obviously a market for them and people will always buy them. Just invent an infomercial ab product if you need proof. (Not implying halfers are on the same level)

[Andrew_WOT]

Yep, IronWoody are $15 more but IMHO they worth it over hand scribbled square cuts.

Price, and possibly the fact that each plate is half a pound seem to be the only advantages.

I think after seeing them reviewed that I might be more inclined to go the 2 inch washer route to be honest. Put a bit of paint on them for aesthetics and possibly bring them up to weight too.

Keep them on the market though Sherm. There's obviously a market for them and people will always buy them. Just invent an infomercial ab product if you need proof. (Not implying halfers are on the same level)

[jgood602]

CFF has complete sets for like $39

[qwan456]

Yep, IronWoody are $15 more but IMHO they worth it over hand scribbled square cuts.

FWIW, the IW pricing doesn't include shipping which is about ~$9, so it is almost $25 more.

CFF does have a set for $49 shipped though: http://www.christiansfitnessfactory....ght-Plates-Set

The main difference is that the HalFers is 8 x 0.5lb plates vs pairs of .25/.5/.75/1lb. If Sherm sells a set of HalFers with that same weight configuration, it might be than the $35 shipped that Jetigen paid, so it may be worth considering then.

Edit: ok, after I decided to do the math properly on a calculator (instead from my head), it shouldn't be cheaper than what Jetigen had paid even, so forget that last point. It just a matter if one feel that it is worth spending that extra ~$15

[Stasher1]

I think after seeing them reviewed that I might be more inclined to go the 2 inch washer route to be honest. Put a bit of paint on them for aesthetics and possibly bring them up to weight too. But really, micro-plates, micro-care.

I feel the same way. I can buy 2" washer locally for dirt cheap, and can weld them together to create any weight I might want or need.

There's obviously a market for them, but the aesthetics definitely need work. Even knocking the corners off to make them octagonal would be a huge improvement.

[GarageIron]

I could use these right now. I thought about the Rogue/IW plates but wouldn't use all of them. The day I need 1/4 plates is the day my watch affects my lifts.

I've seen 39lb Cap plates and 46lb York plates, 43lb power bars and 21kg oly bars. Let's keep things in perspective here. These little plates on your big 1RM day are far less important than an extra cheeseburger or how much sleep you got last night when compared to your regular 2.5lb plates. This goes for the 1/2'er (Halfer?) also.

For a guy stuck at a 220lb bench or a 395 dead (pick your sticking point) these are a good mental and physical increment. Anyone with a 220 Bench will be happy to hit 1lbs jumps up to 2 plates. How do you order these? Just contact Sherman?

[trimble006]

There's obviously a market for them, but the aesthetics definitely need work. Even knocking the corners off to make them octagonal would be a huge improvement.

Agreed. Square isn't terrible(read:it is), but the paint is scratched up to begin with and you can see writing underneath the paint. It's nowhere near a finished product for the price... Similarly, a washer is nowhere near a finished product, but no-ones going to think twice about the price.

[jormone]

$30 for round fractionals in Toronto http://fitnessavenue.ca/item.php?id=614

[Accutron]

$30 for round fractionals in Toronto http://fitnessavenue.ca/item.php?id=614

Thanks, I may order those...shipping is 10$ to Ontario and they look nice. I wonder what the quality is like other than the stock photo????

I like Sherms too though, its good to support people on the forum.

The Rogue ones are my first choice but they are too expensive at $99 shipped to Canada.

[sherman]

Sherm here. I'm testing the waters right now. Three sets total have been sold, one of which to the OP. It's not a product on my website right now. If anyone is interested in buying a set, e-mail or PM me.

My niche is 1/2 pound olympic plates. I'm not trying to compete with the .6 something washers or the 1/4 to 1 lb doughnuts. The halFER is just a simple way to add a pound at a time to the bar.

I notice a lot of price comparisons. If you are looking for the cheapest of the three types, you might save few bucks. I notice the doughnuts are being sold with big discounts which puts them right around the $35.00 halFER price. The washers are no bargain unless you've got a great source. In small quantities they go for $3 to $4 each, and are not easy to find locally.

As far as appearance goes, beauty is in the eye of the lifter. I like the hard core saying, "weight is weight". They're easy to paint if you don't like black.

[Accutron]

Sherm here. I'm testing the waters right now. Three sets total have been sold, one of which to the OP. It's not a product on my website right now. If anyone is interested in buying a set, e-mail or PM me.

My niche is 1/2 pound olympic plates. I'm not trying to compete with the .6 something washers or the 1/4 to 1 lb doughnuts. The halFER is just a simple way to add a pound at a time to the bar.

I notice a lot of price comparisons. If you are looking for the cheapest of the three types, you might save few bucks. I notice the doughnuts are being sold with big discounts which puts them right around the $35.00 halFER price. The washers are no bargain unless you've got a great source. In small quantities they go for $3 to $4 each, and are not easy to find locally.

As far as appearance goes, beauty is in the eye of the lifter. I like the hard core saying, "weight is weight". They're easy to paint if you don't like black.

I think your product is really nice, I too prefer the 1lb pair increments. I hope you do well with them.

[Jetigen]

Additionally I am planning to buy a set of traditional fractional plates (1/4; 1/2; 3/4; 1 lbs) for on-the-bar weight calibration.

Sherman's Halfers I'll be using exlusively for micro weight increases. I find them to be much more convenient and logical for that purpose.

[Skidmarx]

I can buy 2" washer locally for dirt cheap.

Just curious...where ? Hardware store? I need to get some for a DIY project.

[morebarbell]

Just curious...where ? Hardware store? I need to get some for a DIY project.

My local True Value Hardware has them for less than $2 each... don't recall the exact price.

Here's a box of 75 galvanized for $50 shipped: http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-Galvanized...item460c3f5575 You can sometimes find washers on eBay for much cheaper though. A lot of the eBay sales are surplus liquidations. I bought a box of 50 yellow zinc extra thick washers for $10 to use as Olympic plate adapters. They fit Ivanko plates perfectly.

[Stasher1]

My local True Value Hardware has them for less than $2 each... don't recall the exact price.

Here's a box of 75 galvanized for $50 shipped: http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-Galvanized...item460c3f5575 You can sometimes find washers on eBay for much cheaper though. A lot of the eBay sales are surplus liquidations. I bought a box of 50 yellow zinc extra thick washers for $10 to use as Olympic plate adapters. They fit Ivanko plates perfectly.

Yup. Even at Grainger's inflated prices, you're still only looking at ~$3 each if you buy them in packs of eight.

[jgood602]

I like the 1/2 pound idea but cant see justifying the price. I also know how much harder it is for a single guy to compete with the mass producted items. Good luck and I like the square look.

[OutKlast]

Just an FYI for people looking for smaller increments, Pendlay sells 1lb change plates (Accurate to +/- 1%) for $5/ea. Although shipping will probably double your cost. Also you'll need a high quality bar. Those are meant to fit TIGHT on an Pendlay olympic bar.

http://www.pendlay.com/Pendlay-Black...ir_p_1021.html

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of the whole micro-loading scene partly because the bars/plates you use even when within or much better than advertised weights will still probably have a several pound difference. I'm more a fan of using bands/chain to help a person train through a plateau on a lift. Consider someone benching 225lbs, with a +/- 2% tolerance on the plates you can have 88.2lbs on the left and 91.8lbs on the right, a L/R difference of 3.6lbs. Cheaper plates can easily push 5% +/- differential. That's why I find the micro plates kind of silly. You could be lifting 2-11lbs +/- of what you think you are (@ 225lbs) and that could change based on what plates you grab. Just one mans opinion though.

[Jetigen]

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of the whole micro-loading scene partly because the bars/plates you use even when within or much better than advertised weights will still probably have a several pound difference. I'm more a fan of using bands/chain to help a person train through a plateau on a lift. Consider someone benching 225lbs, with a +/- 2% tolerance on the plates you can have 88.2lbs on the left and 91.8lbs on the right, a L/R difference of 3.6lbs. Cheaper plates can easily push 5% +/- differential. That's why I find the micro plates kind of silly. You could be lifting 2-11lbs +/- of what you think you are (@ 225lbs) and that could change based on what plates you grab. Just one mans opinion though.

That's why I am gonna weigh each plate and mark its exact weight on it. Not planning to sit with a calculator when loading plates on the bar; but exact numbers will give me on-the-fly ballpark number of how much is on each bar sleeve. Then I can use traditional fractional plates to compensate for the differences between sleeves. After that Sherman's plates will come to play for controlled even progression.

I got the idea of weighing my plates and calibrating them on the bar after watching Rippetoe's video on dumbbells. He put on his dumbbells their exact weight in his gym. So, they don't go in nominal 5 lbs increases, but rather in uneven jumps. This way you get true picture of what weight you are working with.

[irongrandpa]

Just curious...where ? Hardware store? I need to get some for a DIY project.

I got some from Fastenal, they were about $3 each. They only had up to 1 1/2 " in the store , but got the 2" from their warehouse. I was able to get them 2 days later.