Spitfire formula four

[franquietits]

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This might seem like an obvious question, but would any of you say that 101a's slide better than 99a's in the street? What are your experiences?

I probably just have a technique problem, but I could never really hold a power slide well with my f4 99a's, so I'm wondering if I just need a harder wheel.

[close]

Absolutely. I unlocked backside power slides on 101 radial slims (I can FS power sliding duro wheel). But after I had them dialed, it wasn't too hard to take them to 99s. Hills are the best place to learn them.

Freak yeah, ty. I've never cared for power slides much, but now I want em. gotta have em.

[venture5.8]

Has anybody else has an increased issue with f4s chunking out quick? I have a set I just put on last week chunk out on the riding surface. The last set I had for 9 months never even lost a chunk that big the whole time having them. I just skating where I usually skate so it's not like I went to a new rough spot or anything

[Frank and Fred]

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This might seem like an obvious question, but would any of you say that 101a's slide better than 99a's in the street? What are your experiences?

I probably just have a technique problem, but I could never really hold a power slide well with my f4 99a's, so I'm wondering if I just need a harder wheel.

[close]

Absolutely. I unlocked backside power slides on 101 radial slims (I can FS power sliding duro wheel). But after I had them dialed, it wasn't too hard to take them to 99s. Hills are the best place to learn them.

[close]

Freak yeah, ty. I've never cared for power slides much, but now I want em. gotta have em.

Bloody typos.... meant to say Frontside power slides are easy enough on any durometer wheel. But it took 101s to get a feel for backside. Once you know how it feels it is easier to take it to 99s.

[Sizzle]

Hey guys,

Want to switch from 99a to 101a but a lot of my spots have bad cracks in the roll-up, large enough that getting pitched is a concern. Will the small loss of rebound significantly affect my ability to ride them out with good weight distribution? Obviously it will be more jarring but will I actually get stuck on things my 99as can handle?

[Sedition]

Hey guys,

Want to switch from 99a to 101a but a lot of my spots have bad cracks in the roll-up, large enough that getting pitched is a concern. Will the small loss of rebound significantly affect my ability to ride them out with good weight distribution? Obviously it will be more jarring but will I actually get stuck on things my 99as can handle?

Imho, 101a is only good at smooth, park type settings. They shake your fillings out at the slightest sign of crust. Stick to 99.

[IpathCats]

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Hey guys,

Want to switch from 99a to 101a but a lot of my spots have bad cracks in the roll-up, large enough that getting pitched is a concern. Will the small loss of rebound significantly affect my ability to ride them out with good weight distribution? Obviously it will be more jarring but will I actually get stuck on things my 99as can handle?

[close]

Imho, 101a is only good at smooth, park type settings. They shake your fillings out at the slightest sign of crust. Stick to 99.

I pretty much agree with this. You can make 101 work in the streets if the spots are decent, but if you're worried about shitty ground at all i would just stick with 99 @Sizzle

I Had a little fling with 101s recently and when the ground suited them they were sick, but overall they're just not as good in as many situations.

The vast majority of pros ride the 99s from what i've seen, if that means anything.

[Ok]

I’ll offer a very slight counter/addendum: 101s initially seem unrideable on anything other than perfect concrete, but in my experience they break in really nicely. The shape of the wheel seems to matter more with the 101s, for me: my 52 conical fulls are great wherever, my 51 classics are much slower on choppy ground.
I currently prefer 101s, but I skate small wheels, and seek out smooth (ish, northwest outdoor non skate specific) parking lots for flatground. So big grain of salt so to speak

[IpathCats]

I’ll offer a very slight counter/addendum: 101s initially seem unrideable on anything other than perfect concrete, but in my experience they break in really nicely. The shape of the wheel seems to matter more with the 101s, for me: my 52 conical fulls are great wherever, my 51 classics are much slower on choppy ground.
I currently prefer 101s, but I skate small wheels, and seek out smooth (ish, northwest outdoor non skate specific) parking lots for flatground. So big grain of salt so to speak

I would agree with this sentiment. They def got more manageable as they broke in. I had mine on when i went to MTL for the glory challenge. Street skating was doable, but kinda rough at certain spots, i think i wouldve preferred 99s overall. but man that vans park felt sooooooooo good on the 101s i will say that.

[Sedition]

...The shape of the wheel seems to matter more with the 101s, for me: my 52 conical fulls are great wherever, my 51 classics are much slower on choppy ground.
I currently prefer 101s, but I skate small wheels, and seek out smooth (ish, northwest outdoor non skate specific) parking lots for flatground. So big grain of salt so to speak

I'll add some more (obvious) nuance; With 101a, the size of both the wheel, and the contact patch, are more substantive factors. On something a bit more crusty, a 53mm 101a Full Connie is going to ride much "smoother" than a 101a 51mm Classic. Sure, this is also true for 99a/97a/etc., but it plays out a bit differently with 101a, IMHO.

[Sizzle]

Don’t want to @ everybody but thanks for the advice. Yeah, definitely sticking with the 99s, I’ve been doing some nostalgia-goggle induced pining for the bones stfs that I started out on but didn’t want to go full Bones guy.

[thanksgiving]

Has anybody else has an increased issue with f4s chunking out quick? I have a set I just put on last week chunk out on the riding surface. The last set I had for 9 months never even lost a chunk that big the whole time having them. I just skating where I usually skate so it's not like I went to a new rough spot or anything

are they colored?

[Creachteach]

WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[Sedition]

WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

Counterfeits?

[IpathCats]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

[Sedition]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

[close]

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

Oh, I •do• have a vague memory of that. To OP, I wouldn’t be too concerned about an improper listing (e.g. “radials”). Those kind of goofs happen all the time—the graphic/shape is the far more interesting aspect.

[venture5.8]

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Has anybody else has an increased issue with f4s chunking out quick? I have a set I just put on last week chunk out on the riding surface. The last set I had for 9 months never even lost a chunk that big the whole time having them. I just skating where I usually skate so it's not like I went to a new rough spot or anything

[close]

are they colored?

I've had 4 sets in the last year and 2 of them I had to warranty because they lost a big chunk of the riding surface in 2 weeks or less. The first set I returned was plain but the second was a color wheel

[Painted Baby]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

[close]

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

Over 5 years ago, I had a set of 60mm F4 Classics that had this graphic on them. Dunno if it was specific to the bigger wheels but I when I ordered I expected them to be OG Classic shape as that was the way it was in the Classics lineup. We all hopefully speak Spitfire here but, for the record, I was talking about three different wheels lines just now. Shit does get confusing.

The wheels that CreachTeach posted are almost certainly counterfeit. Number one wheel in skateboarding, number one most counterfeited wheel too.

[Creachteach]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

[close]

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

[close]

Over 5 years ago, I had a set of 60mm F4 Classics that had this graphic on them. Dunno if it was specific to the bigger wheels but I when I ordered I expected them to be OG Classic shape as that was the way it was in the Classics lineup. We all hopefully speak Spitfire here but, for the record, I was talking about three different wheels lines just now. Shit does get confusing.

The wheels that CreachTeach posted are almost certainly counterfeit. Number one wheel in skateboarding, number one most counterfeited wheel too.

They ought to be legit at that price. If you click the picture, you can see that it’s a screenshot from large European skate shop. I would imagine that they’d only deal directly with DLX.
If I had a skateshop, I’d be very suspicious of anyone else selling me Spitfires.

[Painted Baby]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

[close]

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

[close]

Over 5 years ago, I had a set of 60mm F4 Classics that had this graphic on them. Dunno if it was specific to the bigger wheels but I when I ordered I expected them to be OG Classic shape as that was the way it was in the Classics lineup. We all hopefully speak Spitfire here but, for the record, I was talking about three different wheels lines just now. Shit does get confusing.

The wheels that CreachTeach posted are almost certainly counterfeit. Number one wheel in skateboarding, number one most counterfeited wheel too.

[close]

They ought to be legit at that price. If you click the picture, you can see that it’s a screenshot from large European skate shop. I would imagine that they’d only deal directly with DLX.
If I had a skateshop, I’d be very suspicious of anyone else selling me Spitfires.

Yeah fair enough Titus is pretty well known. Perhaps they just have the wrong product shot up on that listing?

[Creachteach]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

[close]

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

[close]

Over 5 years ago, I had a set of 60mm F4 Classics that had this graphic on them. Dunno if it was specific to the bigger wheels but I when I ordered I expected them to be OG Classic shape as that was the way it was in the Classics lineup. We all hopefully speak Spitfire here but, for the record, I was talking about three different wheels lines just now. Shit does get confusing.

The wheels that CreachTeach posted are almost certainly counterfeit. Number one wheel in skateboarding, number one most counterfeited wheel too.

[close]

They ought to be legit at that price. If you click the picture, you can see that it’s a screenshot from large European skate shop. I would imagine that they’d only deal directly with DLX.
If I had a skateshop, I’d be very suspicious of anyone else selling me Spitfires.

[close]

Yeah fair enough Titus is pretty well known. Perhaps they just have the wrong product shot up on that listing?

Yeah, you see it too. It boggles my tiny brain. Either they bought aliexpress wheels, or they’re new old stock. (NOS is very big in guitar and electronics) Or they’re simply a custom order colorway.

A Danish skateshop still has Green/black swirled F4s, and CPH open ltd edition wheels. I know the Green/black is several years old. What’s the shelf life of these things?

[Sedition]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

[close]

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

[close]

Over 5 years ago, I had a set of 60mm F4 Classics that had this graphic on them. Dunno if it was specific to the bigger wheels but I when I ordered I expected them to be OG Classic shape as that was the way it was in the Classics lineup. We all hopefully speak Spitfire here but, for the record, I was talking about three different wheels lines just now. Shit does get confusing.

The wheels that CreachTeach posted are almost certainly counterfeit. Number one wheel in skateboarding, number one most counterfeited wheel too.

[close]

They ought to be legit at that price. If you click the picture, you can see that it’s a screenshot from large European skate shop. I would imagine that they’d only deal directly with DLX.
If I had a skateshop, I’d be very suspicious of anyone else selling me Spitfires.

Europe often gets “different” stuff than U.S. does.

[Mbrimson88]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

[close]

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

[close]

Over 5 years ago, I had a set of 60mm F4 Classics that had this graphic on them. Dunno if it was specific to the bigger wheels but I when I ordered I expected them to be OG Classic shape as that was the way it was in the Classics lineup. We all hopefully speak Spitfire here but, for the record, I was talking about three different wheels lines just now. Shit does get confusing.

The wheels that CreachTeach posted are almost certainly counterfeit. Number one wheel in skateboarding, number one most counterfeited wheel too.

[close]

They ought to be legit at that price. If you click the picture, you can see that it’s a screenshot from large European skate shop. I would imagine that they’d only deal directly with DLX.
If I had a skateshop, I’d be very suspicious of anyone else selling me Spitfires.

[close]

Yeah fair enough Titus is pretty well known. Perhaps they just have the wrong product shot up on that listing?

[close]

Yeah, you see it too. It boggles my tiny brain. Either they bought aliexpress wheels, or they’re new old stock. (NOS is very big in guitar and electronics) Or they’re simply a custom order colorway.

A Danish skateshop still has Green/black swirled F4s, and CPH open ltd edition wheels. I know the Green/black is several years old. What’s the shelf life of these things?

I still have a lot of these blue 99 and at least one set of red 101 Classic and Classic Full shape wheels with these graphics as I stocked up when I had the chance, so that pic is of a legit set of wheels, but I would say there would be almost zero sets of those wheels still around in skate shops nowdays.





Titus is a very well known and respected skate shop so I doubt they would have fake wheels in stock, so I am going with the theory that they found that graphic from their archives or google and put it on the listing by mistake.  Other shops have often done the same, not taking pics of their own wheels, but just looking up stock pics and using them, as it was way quicker and easier when they are busy and have to put up lots of product.

Radials in the 52, 53, 54 and 56 mm sizes have really only just come out again not too long ago, so more likely just arrived over there, with a similar graphic, but not the same one.  Even I was curious when I saw the new ones with an almost reversed graphic of that old blue one, but I think they have done that as there were a lot of fake wheels out with the old Radial graphic on what looked like more of a Classic shape but still not the same.


Either way, there is still no 100% guarantee that something is not wrong, so as I have done with other shops, sent a message asking about that particular product and if they got the image wrong, etc.  It definitely happens.


Skate Deluxe have some newly listed Radial 53mm wheels too, so I would be going with legit wheel, wrong image.

See this one:


https://www.skatedeluxe.com/en/spitfire-formula-four-radial-wheels-natural-blue-53mm-99a-4-pack_p162863

[Democratic Republic Of Mongo]

Maybe they just used an old picture.

[fulfillthedream]

i remember they used that graphic a lot before they made the classic swirl on formula fours. a lot of websites like tactics and skatewarehouse have em for a while.


on another note i got a set of conical f4's - ive moslty ridden classic but tried classic slims, classic wide. connical full. radial and radial full but always reverted back to the classics.

what benefit do the conicals have versus classics for those who've ridden both?

[art hellman]

what benefit do the conicals have versus classics for those who've ridden both?

can get a larger contact patch w/a smaller wheel

@Mbrimson88 knows all about this, can speak to this more

[backinaction]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

[close]

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

Yep. I only have two sets of the classic '99s.  Both from the first year of F4s, and both with that graphic.   An both just sitting in my box of unused parts.

[IpathCats]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

[close]

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

[close]

Yep. I only have two sets of the classic '99s.  Both from the first year of F4s, and both with that graphic.   An both just sitting in my box of unused parts.

ok cool, was hoping this wasnt some mandela effect thing lol.

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what benefit do the conicals have versus classics for those who've ridden both?

[close]

can get a larger contact patch w/a smaller wheel

@Mbrimson88 knows all about this, can speak to this more

more aggressive lock in on grinds

the tradeoff being that you grind slower from my experiences

[fakiefs180]

i remember they used that graphic a lot before they made the classic swirl on formula fours. a lot of websites like tactics and skatewarehouse have em for a while.


on another note i got a set of conical f4's - ive moslty ridden classic but tried classic slims, classic wide. connical full. radial and radial full but always reverted back to the classics.

what benefit do the conicals have versus classics for those who've ridden both?

I feel you on that, I rode 54 classics for 15 years.

Now I am on 52 Conicals (the Standard Concials). Both in 99a. They feel way more stable and I can still do all my usual flips and other tricks. They lock in better for stalls and grinds (for me). And they handle crust way better as the Classics. I also find the slide more predictable, controllable and smoother as with Classics.

Will try some 54 Concials at some time in the future, but so far I like the Conicals more as Classics.

[Sedition]

i remember they used that graphic a lot before they made the classic swirl on formula fours. a lot of websites like tactics and skatewarehouse have em for a while.


on another note i got a set of conical f4's - ive moslty ridden classic but tried classic slims, classic wide. connical full. radial and radial full but always reverted back to the classics.

what benefit do the conicals have versus classics for those who've ridden both?

Conicals def ride "smoother," esp. when dealing with more crusty spots. They also lock-in better to some grinds. I found Smiths, Feebles, Hurricanes, etc. much easier on Classics. That inside rounded edge doesn't seem to catch, and pop-out as much for me as the sharper edge of Conicals (tablets, OG classics, etc.) often does. Conicals also "bite" a bit more when doing something like pivot to tail on ramp, 5-0 to tail slide, etc. By "bite" I mean that you need a tad more force to switch over from truck to tail (or board), whereas Classics have a much smoother transition between the two. Conicals also grip a bit more (b/c/ of wider contact patch), in all situations. Which is better? That's for you to decide.

[Creachteach]

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WHAT the HELL is this?




Listed as radial, but obvs. classic… but the colorway/graphic is conical.
Which drop is this from?

[close]

Counterfeits?

[close]

Someone please correct me if im wrong, but didn't they used to run this graphic on ALL f4's at first? blue for 99 red for 101? I thought they didnt start doing the swirl graphic on f4 classics for a little while after selling f4s?

[close]

Over 5 years ago, I had a set of 60mm F4 Classics that had this graphic on them. Dunno if it was specific to the bigger wheels but I when I ordered I expected them to be OG Classic shape as that was the way it was in the Classics lineup. We all hopefully speak Spitfire here but, for the record, I was talking about three different wheels lines just now. Shit does get confusing.

The wheels that CreachTeach posted are almost certainly counterfeit. Number one wheel in skateboarding, number one most counterfeited wheel too.

[close]

They ought to be legit at that price. If you click the picture, you can see that it’s a screenshot from large European skate shop. I would imagine that they’d only deal directly with DLX.
If I had a skateshop, I’d be very suspicious of anyone else selling me Spitfires.

[close]

Yeah fair enough Titus is pretty well known. Perhaps they just have the wrong product shot up on that listing?

[close]

Yeah, you see it too. It boggles my tiny brain. Either they bought aliexpress wheels, or they’re new old stock. (NOS is very big in guitar and electronics) Or they’re simply a custom order colorway.

A Danish skateshop still has Green/black swirled F4s, and CPH open ltd edition wheels. I know the Green/black is several years old. What’s the shelf life of these things?

[close]

I still have a lot of these blue 99 and at least one set of red 101 Classic and Classic Full shape wheels with these graphics as I stocked up when I had the chance, so that pic is of a legit set of wheels, but I would say there would be almost zero sets of those wheels still around in skate shops nowdays.





Titus is a very well known and respected skate shop so I doubt they would have fake wheels in stock, so I am going with the theory that they found that graphic from their archives or google and put it on the listing by mistake.  Other shops have often done the same, not taking pics of their own wheels, but just looking up stock pics and using them, as it was way quicker and easier when they are busy and have to put up lots of product.

Radials in the 52, 53, 54 and 56 mm sizes have really only just come out again not too long ago, so more likely just arrived over there, with a similar graphic, but not the same one.  Even I was curious when I saw the new ones with an almost reversed graphic of that old blue one, but I think they have done that as there were a lot of fake wheels out with the old Radial graphic on what looked like more of a Classic shape but still not the same.


Either way, there is still no 100% guarantee that something is not wrong, so as I have done with other shops, sent a message asking about that particular product and if they got the image wrong, etc.  It definitely happens.


Skate Deluxe have some newly listed Radial 53mm wheels too, so I would be going with legit wheel, wrong image.

See this one:


https://www.skatedeluxe.com/en/spitfire-formula-four-radial-wheels-natural-blue-53mm-99a-4-pack_p162863

All of you guys are probably right. It’s probably just a fuckup. But man, did it rub me the wrong way. Yeah, I fuck with Titus. They’re legit.

Maybe they just used an old picture.

My thinking as well, now that I’ve slept on it.