It depends on how good a set you want. A good U.S. made set like an Ivanko or old York the tolerences are tighter and the paint better, etc....
This has its good points and bad:
Good:
The plates feel better on the bar.
The better quality plates don't rust as easily.
The plates are machined and cast better and accurate to weight. That is a little important for injury reduction, and it's always nice to know you have accurate records, etc.....
Many cheap plates can be out of weight by quite a few pounds, although they've gotten better over the years.
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Bad:
Cost- a decent set starts at atleast $ 300 and moves up quickly.
The tighter tolerences can cause problems when swapping out equiptment. Most folks don't know that the actual specfication for high grade equipment isn't 2" but actually 1.97"ish, this causes problems, as a better quality plate won't fit on some equipment.
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Bars:
I would not trust a sporting goods $100-200 set's bar past 400lbs. Always try to find out the test weight on a bar.
Better quality bars have better spin and knurling also.
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If it were my money, I'd check out used gym supplies, Ebay, Craigslist, play it again sports, etc.... and see if you can find a good used York or Ivanko set or plates.
If you need a new set, York, Troy, VTX, Hampton and Ivanko's budget line are all very decent and fall into the $300-500 range.
If you're just playing around with the weights for general fitness, a cheap set isn't bad. If you plan on using them a lot, spend the extra cash, as you'll be happier in the long run, and extra few bucks will be forgotten in a few days.
