Author Topic: Very informative article about wheels...  (Read 6882 times)

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Schismatic

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Very informative article about wheels...
« on: September 27, 2011, 06:19:17 PM »
Thank goodness I have some 99a SF Classics, there are tons of "linoleum skateparks" popping up around my area. Depending on how often I skate these linoleum parks, like maybe anually, my wheels can last "several decades." Thank you mayaskates, where would I be without you?

The sad part is that though I didn't learn anything at all from this article, except that "Mr-ED" is *special*, there is actually a little bit of decent info for people who don't know much about wheels, just have to be able to discern the facts from the bullshit.


http://www.mayaskates.com/how_to_choose_the_right_skateboard_wheels.aspx

« Last Edit: September 27, 2011, 06:21:51 PM by Schismatic »

Ripped Laces

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #1 on: September 28, 2011, 08:54:31 AM »
That was actually super informative. I read the whole thing start to finish because I've been having trouble deciding whether I want to switch from Autobahn to either Spitfire Street Burners or Bones STF wheels. I've never tried Bones but when I had some Spitfire Cardiel wheels (non street burners), they burned out within 2 weeks and I don't even attempt Blunt slides and I hardly do lipslides. Bones seem appealing because of their no flat spot guarantee but I've also heard stories of people bombing some hills, going to make a turn and end up eating massive amounts of shit from the wheels sliding out beneath them. Idk, my friend has Street Burners and makes them look amazing. He does some of the best backside powerslides when we're bombing hills and I haven't seen them show signs of flattening out.

Schismatic

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #2 on: September 28, 2011, 10:01:41 AM »
That was actually super informative. I read the whole thing start to finish because I've been having trouble deciding whether I want to switch from Autobahn to either Spitfire Street Burners or Bones STF wheels. I've never tried Bones but when I had some Spitfire Cardiel wheels (non street burners), they burned out within 2 weeks and I don't even attempt Blunt slides and I hardly do lipslides. Bones seem appealing because of their no flat spot guarantee but I've also heard stories of people bombing some hills, going to make a turn and end up eating massive amounts of shit from the wheels sliding out beneath them. Idk, my friend has Street Burners and makes them look amazing. He does some of the best backside powerslides when we're bombing hills and I haven't seen them show signs of flattening out.

Yeah, there's some good stuff there for sure, just mixed in with complete bullshit so you gotta bear in mind that you can't take it all as fact. Almost sounds like someone with a limited knowledge of the subject poached a great article and added his own nonsensical opinions.

I like to talk about skateboarding stuff so sorry for the upcoming wall of text, but I'll put the key points in bold in case you don't want to read it all. So, here's my $0.02 about wheels:

Bones are supposedly really good but I don't like them. I personally dislike the feel of STF. I've heard great things about how they last a long time and are hard to flatspot, but they feel weird to me when riding them. Granted I haven't owned any, but I've ridden around on several set-ups with STF's, and they didn't feel like what I'm used to good wheels feeling like if that makes sense. I also don't see slippery as being a good thing, but it's a good way to cheat at some street tricks.

Spitfires are awesome, but stick with white. I've never had major problems with Spitfire original formula but I noticed a long time ago that the colored ones seem to flatspot more, and the article even brought up some reasons why that might happen. I do a lot of stuff that can cause flatspots (blunt slide variations, lipslides on ledges, tailslides, reverts on cement tranny, powerslides, etc.) and the best I've had were spitfire classics, 99a. They're not too hard, don't feel too soft, they slide, and I have never flatspotted them, even when doing long powerslides on the rough street in front of my house. I'm currently riding 56mm F1 Street Cuts and they're rad. I got a tiny flat spot that went away almost immediately. Regardless of the tricks I did, I got this flat spot by popping out of a quarter into a manual and landed a little sideways essentially doing a short powerslide on my back wheels, the wheel under my heel was getting wheel bite and sliding sideways under all of my weight. Its hard to describe but in this case I think pretty much any wheel would flat spot. I only noticed it because I looked for it, couldn't hear it when I rolled and after a couple hours it rode out and isn't noticeable anymore. I would recommend F1 Park Burners to anyone, even if you primarily skate street, but if you like a hard wheel and like to do "street reverts" to finish rotations, then the Street Burners might work better.

Landshark are surprisingly good. I have a friend who swears by and rides nothing but Landshark. They don't feel too much different than Spitfires, and he says after 3 sets he has never had a flatspot. I have been riding Spitfires forever and have no reason to switch, but I would definitely give these a try. Besides, Bill Danforth rides for them, that alone is reason to buy them. :p

Also heard great things about Satori on another thread. Have heard good things about the new OJ's as well.

In the end, I don't want to ride Bones because they feel like plastic coated in chalk powder. I think that white Spitfire Park Burners are the best all around wheels on the market with Landshark coming in 2nd. Both last a long time, have a great feel when you ride them, and both companies will replace wheels that flat spot within a reasonable amount of time so if you get a big spot after 2 weeks, just send them in (always keep spare sets around for while you're waiting for replacements). Don't be afraid to go bigger. 52mm is a pretty standard size for street skating, but you get more riding surface with 54-56 and wide is good. If you can get ahold of Satori's they're probably worth a shot. Don't mess around with wheels made by board companies, like Plan B or Enjoi wheels, and stay away from colored urethane, especially multi-colored.

If I was in your position right now I would buy a set of 55mm Landshark HXC Side Cuts. If you can't find them at your local shop then you can  get mail order direct from the company. Go to landsharkwheels.com/

Good luck.

sleepypancakes

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #3 on: September 28, 2011, 02:08:09 PM »
Broadcast wheels are really really good

buttpirate

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #4 on: October 02, 2011, 05:37:33 AM »
not a bad link, have never read too much regarding wheel ratings. I was searching these forums recently for wheel recommendations, and everyone basically says go bones stf. good to hear a contrary opinion. 

am personally a big fan of rictas, they last a decent amount of time, tend not to flatspot, and work out easy again if they do. have used their core wheels regularly, with no issues of them ever falling out (have heard this from a lot of people).

I've just set up a new bunch of autobahn abx dual durometer 50's, curious to see how they feel when I go for a roll tomorrow. these wheels are really thin, gonna try a bunch of powerslides and ledge lipslides to see how they hold up.

 

Turtle Boy

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #5 on: October 02, 2011, 05:51:25 AM »
Does anyone have some info about who actually manufactures wheels?

I wouldn't  be surprised by the fact that most of the companies would be made in the same factories, with just some different formulas of polyurethane

sixpackoftablets

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #6 on: October 02, 2011, 06:38:36 AM »
yes I would love a wheel manufacturer thread, to go with all the woodshop discussion threads that are out there.

Powell makes their own.
NHS used to, maybe still does.
THese guys make wheels for a bunch of companies: http://www.creativeurethanes.com/urethaneskateboardwheels.html

sixpackoftablets

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #7 on: October 02, 2011, 06:46:23 AM »
PS the OP's link has some interesting lines.

"Some companies make some obnoxiously hard wheels with super ultra hard outer core and an even harder (or metal) inner-core and the result is something that is almost unrideable in anything other than high gloss marble. This is not funny."

Tim_Smith

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #8 on: October 02, 2011, 02:31:46 PM »
I've been lurking for a long time and decided to finally make an account. Thought my post might help someone who's looking to buy some wheels.

I guess I should also say I prefer, at least for when I skate transition, a big wheel 60mm-62mm something wide too. Tall and skinny looks weird and the big wheels ride over pool coping a lot easier. Also it's nice to have a bigger wheel because the more surface area it seems the faster and gripper it is but that might just be in my head.

I've got some Oj wheels right now, they're my 3rd set. I've had the Oj concentrates white color, the Creature bloodsuckers collab green/black color, and now I've got the Duane Peters 62mm (about 37-38mm wide) 99a bright orange color. As far as Oj's go, being colored wheels hasn't made a difference in whether or not they flatspot. Actually all three wheels I've had didn't ever flatspot and I skate transition everyday and like to do lots of reverts and powerslides (concrete parks and wooden ramps). The DP's I have right now are soft enough to grip to everything and yet hard enough to revert easily (sometimes really soft wheels become too grippy for reverting). They feel really good and feel the way I think wheels should.

Before the Oj dp wheels that I have now I had some 58mm Bones SPF. They were good wheels, after a full day of lipslides they did flatspot but it went away after a day of skating. They definitely felt like plastic though. They weren't as grippy as I would've liked so I'll probably not buy them again unless Oj's become harder to find. Also this is trivial but I dislike the bones rat graphic and bones spf's don't come in many different colors or good graphics, sounds stupid but whatever I want something that's going to look good and skate well too.

For when I skate street or at least try to, I've got some 53mm Spitfire classics. Honestly they don't feel that great, too hard and I'm afraid to powerslide with them cause they easily flatspot. But they're small and light so when I get the urge to skate a ledge or do a couple kf's they work.

I know two people that both skate the Spitfire parkburners and love them. No flatspots and one of them skated them for at least a year. He went to streetburners and they flatspotted two days later, he was bummed to say the least.

Ripped Laces

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #9 on: October 02, 2011, 06:05:46 PM »
I'm more than likely going to switch from Autobahn to Spitfire Classics, unless Autobahn wants to sponsor my reviews. Hahaha, jk but would be dope nonetheless.

Although now I'm very curious to know how well the LandShark wheels work? I'm always down to support the underground brands in skateboarding so I'd be down to try em out. Speaking of Underground brands, I just set up a Hard Times Co Deck and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. Shape is similar to a Girl/Chocolate deck but will probably last longer.

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #10 on: October 02, 2011, 06:20:48 PM »
@Ripped -where did you get your Hardtimes deck. I can't find them anywhere.

Ripped Laces

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #11 on: October 02, 2011, 07:04:52 PM »
@Ripped -where did you get your Hardtimes deck. I can't find them anywhere.
I got it at the shop I work at, 2nd Nature in NY. We don't have our online store up yet but will in the near future. We do allow phone orders. If you want to buy one, message me and we'll sort something out so I can ship it directly to you.

Eschaton

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #12 on: October 03, 2011, 08:44:39 AM »
I've rode the spitfire classics damn near my whole time I've skated, with a few random exception. I've never had a problem with flat spots or any bullshit like that. I did have the street burners once and they were mad hard. I was slip slidin all over the place, felt like some ice at times, good if you want your wheels to have that give but I found it just making me bust my ass all the time. It was also a bitch to get the bearing out the them. I guess a little softer wouldn't be a bad thing cause I definitely noticed a difference from the hard ass street burners back to the good ole' classic spits. I'll get park burners next.

Ripped Laces

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #13 on: October 03, 2011, 10:52:23 AM »
I've rode the spitfire classics damn near my whole time I've skated, with a few random exception. I've never had a problem with flat spots or any bullshit like that. I did have the street burners once and they were mad hard. I was slip slidin all over the place, felt like some ice at times, good if you want your wheels to have that give but I found it just making me bust my ass all the time. It was also a bitch to get the bearing out the them. I guess a little softer wouldn't be a bad thing cause I definitely noticed a difference from the hard ass street burners back to the good ole' classic spits. I'll get park burners next.
Thanks Eschaton, I'll probably get the Spitfire Classics then. Have DLX send you a check for selling their product. 

Eschaton

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #14 on: October 03, 2011, 10:55:18 AM »
Funny thing is, I don't even like DLX boards at all, only Real I ever had snapped on the first day and I never went back.

Ripped Laces

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #15 on: October 03, 2011, 09:28:28 PM »
Funny thing is, I don't even like DLX boards at all, only Real I ever had snapped on the first day and I never went back.
Same thing happened with me and Krooked. The thing is that I really want one based on graphics but I just can't spend my money on it because I'm scared of it snapping on the first day again.

Omamori

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #16 on: October 03, 2011, 10:22:46 PM »
It looks like I bought the perfect wheels for my needs.

BlackEye77

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #17 on: October 05, 2011, 07:17:44 AM »
yes I would love a wheel manufacturer thread, to go with all the woodshop discussion threads that are out there.

Powell makes their own.
NHS used to, maybe still does.
THese guys make wheels for a bunch of companies: http://www.creativeurethanes.com/urethaneskateboardwheels.html

Spitfire has their own factory right in San Francisco. Them and Bones are 2 that I know have their own factories and pretty sure that neither of them manufacture for any other brands. I don't know about NHS anymore either. They moved all of their board manufacturimg to China and I noticed a huge difference in how the boards feel. Not bad for Chinese made, but no longer have the unique feel that NHS boards used to have. OJ's are still good so maybe they're still being made in Santa Cruz.

I've had nothing but Spitfires since the mid 90's so the only feedback I have on other wheels is coming from riding around on other people's set-ups, not from actually owning a pair.

If I can get my hands on a free set I'd love to try Landshark but for now I'll only put my $ into what I know I love, Spitfires.

To the guy who said that SF Classics are hard, I'm wondering what you usually ride because at 99 they are a little on the softer side compared to a lot of wheels, and definitely won't flatspot like a 100-101. Also, the Spitire softies might work well for you, they have 95d Bigheads that look sick, just a bit soft for my taste.

BlackEye77

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #18 on: October 05, 2011, 09:28:27 AM »
Expand Quote
Funny thing is, I don't even like DLX boards at all, only Real I ever had snapped on the first day and I never went back.
[close]
Same thing happened with me and Krooked. The thing is that I really want one based on graphics but I just can't spend my money on it because I'm scared of it snapping on the first day again.

I don't know what happened but can you go back to the situation and actually blame it on the board? New boards don't break as easily, but they can break. Every time I've broken a board first day it's been a situation where pretty much any board would have broken.

Don't give up on DLX. If you have only owned 1 and broke it on the first day then you didn't get a chance to see how good they are. It was probably just bad luck/bad landing because I've had many DLX boards over the years and never had a single problem with any of them. I'd give then another shot, you might be missing out if you refuse to skate DLX. 

BlackEye77

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #19 on: October 05, 2011, 09:30:12 AM »
Expand Quote
Funny thing is, I don't even like DLX boards at all, only Real I ever had snapped on the first day and I never went back.
[close]
Same thing happened with me and Krooked. The thing is that I really want one based on graphics but I just can't spend my money on it because I'm scared of it snapping on the first day again.

And if the 1st day snap happens again, contact DLX. They will be quick to investigate the situation.

Eschaton

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #20 on: October 07, 2011, 11:34:51 AM »
I've used a Krooked since, my friend reminded me the other day, and it was fine. I guess nothing is wrong with DLX wood, but I usually don't like any of their graphics, or the ones I do like are never in my size. I think I'll stick to Roger/Traffic/Toy.

Ripped Laces

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #21 on: October 10, 2011, 09:22:50 PM »
I got Spitfire Street Burners 52mm and they're fucking amazing. They slide on any surface and have great traction.

burm

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #22 on: October 10, 2011, 11:43:52 PM »
Not really related to the article, but a couple days ago I got really bad wheelbite and noticed that a bunch of urethane had melted and stuck to my board. I can't remember seeing this happen before, but it was kind of awesome.
take what small comfort there may be left
seize what you love and damn all the rest

buttpirate

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #23 on: October 11, 2011, 05:24:50 AM »
I've just set up a new bunch of autobahn abx dual durometer 50's, curious to see how they feel when I go for a roll tomorrow. these wheels are really thin, gonna try a bunch of powerslides and ledge lipslides to see how they hold up.
bit lame to quote myself, but for anyone that cares on the update:

the autobahn 101A/97a dual durometer wheels I have are super hard - great for parks and lip/bluntslides, not so good for street.  50mm is too small to get decent speed on rough ground, and the hardness makes it a very bumpy ride on anything outside of a skatepark.  Dual duro to help make the ride smoother does not do shit. On parks it can be a bit slippery (noticeable on tranny and powerslides, the thin wheels make it harder to control), but any flatspots that you get ride out very quickly. put a couple in today doing noseblunts all wrong, and they rode out in under 3 mins. 

Decent enough wheels, but only if you intend to skate smooth concrete.


vegan*shawn

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #24 on: October 11, 2011, 03:58:37 PM »
I normally ride the 55 or 56 mm Spitfire classic, I like to skate street and parks, I ride really loose trucks so this size is perfect. I got a set of the 56mm Chris Miller bones that are pink and I have to say they are the best wheels I have had in years, I had two sets of white bones skate park wheels and hated them, but the color urethane is a million times better, doesn't feel as "chalky" and rides a lot smoother. I really want to try out some of the Landshark wheels, they just came out with some 55mm wheels that are blue or green, I might give them a try if I can find them.
In the past I had some Satori's and they where really good wheels. I wasn't impressed with the new OJ's I had about 3 years ago, they might have fixed the problem by now.  

BlackEye77

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Re: Very informative article about wheels...
« Reply #25 on: October 19, 2011, 02:14:11 PM »
I normally ride the 55 or 56 mm Spitfire classic, I like to skate street and parks, I ride really loose trucks so this size is perfect. I got a set of the 56mm Chris Miller bones that are pink and I have to say they are the best wheels I have had in years, I had two sets of white bones skate park wheels and hated them, but the color urethane is a million times better, doesn't feel as "chalky" and rides a lot smoother. I really want to try out some of the Landshark wheels, they just came out with some 55mm wheels that are blue or green, I might give them a try if I can find them.
In the past I had some Satori's and they where really good wheels. I wasn't impressed with the new OJ's I had about 3 years ago, they might have fixed the problem by now.  

http://store.beercity.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=BCOS&Category_Code=wheels

The starter kit for $39.95 looks tempting (wheels+shirt+banner). If I ever rode anything but Spitfire it would be Landshark.