Barbell Plates Archives - www.oldtimestrongman.com

John Gibson Barbell Plates

Posted on Tuesday, September 19th, 2017 by John Wood

Ever hear of John Gibson Barbell plates? Not many people have. Johnnny Gibson was a barber from Tucson, Arizona who got shot through the lung fighting in the Battle of The Bulge in WWII. As he convalesced in England, he had the good fortune of making the acquaintance of the great William Pullum who introduced him to lifting. His interest and a life-long career in physical training grew from there.

Back in the states, Gibson placed very high in many local AAU lifting meets in the southwest and west coast. He was the 148-pound Arizona champion for eight years running and at the 1955 Southwest United States AAU Weightlifting championships, he set a record that he had been pursuing for over 15 years: a clean and jerk of 250 pounds — pretty good for a light weight. Gibson also did a little bodybuilding, winning Mr. Arizona in 1950 and Mr. Tucson in 1951. At any rate, eventually, he founded “Gibson Gym Equipment Co.” which manufactured and sold gymnastic supplies and sporting goods, among them weight sets, where this plate came from.

H-ERO Barbell Plates

Posted on Tuesday, June 10th, 2014 by John Wood

H-ERO Barbell Plates

Some of the all-time rarest barbell plates are the H-ERO brand, made in Crystal Lake, Illinois in the 1950’s and 60’s. The number of hardcore vintage iron collectors who have even seen one of these plates is small. We’re incredibly lucky to have several H-ERO plates in our gym.

Weird Barbell Plates

Posted on Saturday, August 17th, 2013 by John Wood

I’ve been around the strength biz a long time, and every time I figured I’ve “seen it all,” something crazy comes along and blows everything away.
Case in point: here’s a weird set of barbell plates, 45 lbs, yet in the approximate diameter of a 25 lb. plate as you can see in the lower right pic for comparison.

As you might expect, these unusual plates are quite a bit thicker than normal At first I thought they were simply two 25 lb. plates welded together, but that is not the case, they are, in fact, cast that way as is the “45” on the front, They have no other markings other than what is shown. I’ve never — and I do mean never — seen anything like these plates in any of the books, magazines, catalogs or price lists that I’ve come across.

Dallas Cooper of Akron, Ohio

Posted on Saturday, June 22nd, 2013 by John Wood

When someone offers Dallas Cooper of Akron, Ohio a bet, he bites. Above he is practicing with only” 200 pounds. Cooper, who was 46 at the time of this shot, had been lifting since he was 15 years old, and his best was 350 pounds. Cooper has won countless bets with this ability ~ and, surprisingly, has never broken a tooth.

Cal Gibson Barbell Plates

Posted on Wednesday, June 19th, 2013 by John Wood

In all my years, I’ve never seen anything like these barbell plates. No idea who “Cal Gibson” was, and never found any trace of him in any old magazines. And 50 lbs? Not common at all. I do, however, dig his style; that thunderbolt design looks SHARP!