Will a record weight harm the motor in a direct drive turntable?

I thought the subject was record weights, not platters, and the assumption in considering what limits to place on record weights is that the platter bearing is in good functional condition according to the design parameters of the maker of the TT, whatever those may be. Of course no one would argue that the latter is of primary importance from the get-go. But most of us are not going to be replacing the OEM bearing with a custom made aftermarket one, unless the OEM bearing is found to be defective due to wear. The main way we have of detecting bearing wear is bearing noise. If there is audible noise which one may perceive as a kind of rumble, of course the bearing has to be serviced.  I guess you are saying that the bearing of a vintage TT is per se worn to the extent that it is suboptimal, just on the basis of its long term of service, whether one perceives "rumble" or not.  For the Denon DP80, and probably for the DP59L, Denon in their sales literature and owners manual stipulated that the bearing would "never" need service.  I think they actually used the word "never".  But I also think they did not contemplate a 40-50 year lifespan for their products. Let's also keep in mind that we are talking about a bearing that turns at the very slow rate of 33 rpm, most of the time; this is not the engine of a Formula 1 car.

Since I have a very lightweight table (Rega P8), a record weight is out of the question. A clamp isn't, and I wanted a very light one of those. I found a product, the Molekula, whcih is made by the same company that makes my platter mat, Hexmat (I have the Eclipse which is excellent) that pushes down on the spindle and eliminates much of the effect of record warpage. I only use it on warped records. You can buy it directly from the company in Hungary and it is also sold on Music Direct (mats only it seems). I remember buying one of them direct and it was easy.

It looks like they recently came out with a record mat/clamp combo that looks interesting....

I disagree with the majority of end users relying on a record clamp for the sole purpose of trying to flatten their records. I understand the reasoning being it’s a relatively low cost bandaid that takes up little room. 

I purchased a record flattener specifically for it’s intended purpose.

I’ve found through my comparing many clamps/weights/mats through the years on my VPI Classic 3 SE Sig. (I understand this is tt design dependant) that a weight and mat is preferable to a clamp. Why, because it more directly couples the lp, and ultimately the cartridge/tonearm to the bearing. I’ve had great success with the OL weight and their initial mat. The goal, IMO, is to isolate the lp as much as possible from the bearing.

VPI are one of a few who are informing on the accuracy of the machining of the Critical Interface Parts that are Sacrificial within the Bearing Housing.

The Classic 3 SE Sig Model owner has the knowledge direct from the Manufacturer that there is a need to put measures in place for an annual Bearing Service, where new lubrication is a basic step to occur. The Good news is there is guidance available in other locations to show how to achieve the VPI direction for the service. The are also today other non VPI suggestions to be found to improve on the Bearing Coefficient of Friction to create a reduced drag when it is rotating.   

The Classic 3 SE Sig Model owner has the knowledge direct from the Manufacturer that to be able to check the condition of the Bearing for signs of Wear, the TT has been supplied with a dimension tolerance for machining of the Sacrificial Parts at the critical interfaces that results with the following as the Supplied TT's Tolerance:

 Platter run-out - +/- .001 inch in 39” circumference as measured on the table 

Such information is a very handy guide to help the TT owner keep track on how the TT is holding out as a True Axis of rotation over time.