Plates left on the floor get kicked, tripped over and loaded in the wrong order. A plate tree stands them on pegs by size, next to the rack, where the next set's load is a reach away. Choosing one is mostly a matter of matching the pegs to the plates you own, and then deciding how much you want the tree to do.
Bore first
Every plate has a centre hole, and the pegs on a tree are sized to it. Standard plates have a 25mm to 29mm bore and go on the standard trees, which list 25mm spokes. Olympic plates have a 50mm bore and go on the Olympic trees. The Olympic Weight Plates Tree With Bar Holder 304 lists 49mm spokes, which is still an Olympic fitment. A standard plate will rattle loose on an Olympic peg and an Olympic plate will not fit a standard one, so check the bore before anything else.
Five spokes or six with a bar holder
The five-spoke trees are the compact option. The Standard Gym Weight Plates Storage Rack Tree sits on a 63cm by 45cm footprint and stands 87cm tall, and the Olympic version is 73cm by 54cm and 82cm tall. Five pegs separate plates by size and keep them off the floor, and that is the whole job.
The six-spoke trees add a sixth peg and a built-in holder for the barbell, so the bar stands up beside the plates instead of lying along a wall. The Standard 303 and the Olympic 304 both stand 115cm tall, with support brackets reinforcing the steel-tube frame, in a dark-grey powder coat. Both need assembly.
Bumper plates want bays, not pegs
Bumper plates are wide, and lifting a 20kg or 25kg bumper onto a peg at chest height gets old. The Olympic Bumper Plate Rack is an open-compartment floor rack, 130cm long, 50cm wide and 40cm tall, rated to 350kg. Plates stand upright in the bays and roll in and out at floor level without being lifted over anything.
Footprint and position
A tree wants to stand where the plates come off the bar, which is beside the rack, not across the room. Measure the floor space there before choosing. The footprints run from 63cm by 45cm on the compact standard tree to 130cm by 50cm on the bumper rack, and a loaded tree is not something you move later.
What to check on the product page
- Spoke size against your plate bore. Standard is 25mm to 29mm, Olympic is 50mm.
- Number of spokes and whether a bar holder is built in.
- Assembled footprint and height.
- Assembly. The plate trees need it, and plates and bars are never included.
The RooFitness plate storage compared
| Product | Fits | Spokes or bays | Assembled size | Bar holder |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard plate tree | 25mm standard | 5 spokes | 63 × 45 × 87cm | No |
| Olympic plate tree | 50mm Olympic | 5 spokes | 73 × 54 × 82cm | No |
| Standard plate tree 303 | 25mm standard | 6 spokes | 65 × 61 × 115cm | Yes |
| Olympic plate tree 304 | 49mm Olympic | 6 spokes | 72 × 61 × 115cm | Yes |
| Olympic Bumper Plate Rack | Olympic bumpers | Open bays, 350kg | 130 × 50 × 40cm | No |
Related
All plate trees · Weight plates · Power racks and cages · Kettlebell racks
