Spitfire formula four

[rikki]

Don't get me wrong, I love DLX myself. Surely I jest. I just wish the ubiquitous rearmament in the face of the impending apocalypse (or projection thereof) doesn't rid our tribe of all people of our quality gear.

[back smith]

Don't get me wrong, I love DLX myself. Surely I jest. I just wish the ubiquitous rearmament in the face of the impending apocalypse (or projection thereof) doesn't rid our tribe of all people of our quality gear.

I'll settle for 97a if that gives us a military advantage over our enemies!

[rikki]

Homo sapiens needs to realize the real enemy lies within. Love, empathy, skateboarding (and 93s and new duro 97s) are among effective ways of fighting it.

[Too Frank To Fred]

Praise Gerwer, I have some 58mm 93a on ice.

[BeachChicken]

Military be having formula 4 tank treads.

[swongolianbbq]

I have a decent collection right now

54mm:
93 classics
97 classics
99 classics
97 conical fulls
99 conical fulls
101 conical fulls
93 radials

58mm:
93 radials

60mm:
99 classics

I'm letting somebody borrow the 54mm radials and the 99d CF's right now but I don't think I really like CFs that much and will probably pass them on.

I really wish they would make Classics in 60mm 93d and 97d, I would stockpile them

I didn't get to try the T Funk or Carlyle 60mm 97's, but I don't think I'd like either of them, radials fulls are just too wide and I don't like the sharper edge on CFs that much

Anyways

[BeachChicken]

Respect but I can't imagine micromanaging wheels for spots. Does each set have its own bearings?

[Mbrimson88]

I really wish they would make Classics in 60mm 93d and 97d, I would stockpile them

I didn't get to try the T Funk or Carlyle 60mm 97's, but I don't think I'd like either of them, radials fulls are just too wide and I don't like the sharper edge on CFs that much

Anyways

I have come to the conclusion that I can very easily take a big fat wide wheel and round it down to almost whatever shape I like easily enough, both in the diameter but mainly in the shape and width, as per a set of Radial Full 58 mm wheels I rounded down just recently to fit more comfortably on my 9" popsicle, sort of like a Classic Full shape now.

Sure it is not for everyone and yes it can be fairly easy to mess it up and take too much off, or get carried away and round one side more than the other, but with a little practice and effort, especially trying it on old wheels first, it becomes an easy enough process to make wheels to a shape or size I prefer.

More than anything, a fat Classic or Classic Full shaped wheel just works for me, so a Radial or Radial Full is a good starting point as I don't need to do a whole lot to get them just how I like them.  Bighead shape was what I skated a lot of before they brought out Formula Four and that 56 x 36 or so sized wheel was a very common one for me.

[rawbertson.]

Are new formula 97a available on classics yet that anyone has seen?

I realized if you want to make radial fulls work you just have to skate really fast like t funk and gonogold

[swongolianbbq]

Respect but I can't imagine micromanaging wheels for spots. Does each set have its own bearings?

Nah I was just trying out a bunch of stuff over the last couple years.

Been on 54's for years, had a board with 60's back in Montana, trying that out again and liking it.

I'm gonna get rid of all the CF's and just keep the 93, 97, 99 classics and radials around. Shouldn't have to buy any wheels for a while.

I usually just use one setup at a time, but right now I guess I have a quiver of 2

[fulfillthedream]

was wondering why they haven't made more variations/graphics for the 93s

[swongolianbbq]

was wondering why they haven't made more variations/graphics for the 93s

If they make 93 classics in 60mm I'll buy as many as I can.

Foreal it would dope if they made a full run of 93's and 97's in the classic shape, like 48,50,52,54,56,58,60

[rawbertson.]

i think thats the plan for 97, it will just replace the old ones in the line
my friend just got some more old formulas classics 56mm so looks like where he lives in BC they dont haave classics in new formula 97a yet either, pedro probably only option for most people still

[tom]

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Get those 93s while you can: word on the skreet is one of the key inputs is getting much harder to come by so if you’ve been waffling, maybe grab a set now as it may be a minute until they run them again.
I know they recently re-upped the stock at the warehouse, but it sounds like they may be a wee bit more precious going forward.

[close]

  What would be hard to come by?

[close]

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The secret ingredient is Soylent Green.

Or Lou Strux is going guerilla for Spitfire and we're all being had.

[close]

Like Brimmo, I’m no chemical engineer, so I can’t say precisely which component is going to become rarer, but the word I got is some component in the 93s also has an application in military industrial uses & I was advised to get a set sooner rather than later if I wanted to re-up, as THAT ingredient is getting snatched up buy the larger (gov’t) contracts.
I wouldn’t bet Muska’s farm on this piece of intel, but linking clues & words, it seems to me there may be a chance my sources say sooth that’s the truth.

It's kind of been happening for a while. I first heard about it a few months ago and it was already old news then. The navy gets first dibs on the chemical/compound. Who the hell even knows how it all works since I thought the wheels were made in Mexico anyways, but it is what it is. They're planning to make more, but with whatever that specific chemical is being more scarce, you can bet the wheels will more scarce

[Mbrimson88]

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Get those 93s while you can: word on the skreet is one of the key inputs is getting much harder to come by so if you’ve been waffling, maybe grab a set now as it may be a minute until they run them again.
I know they recently re-upped the stock at the warehouse, but it sounds like they may be a wee bit more precious going forward.

[close]

  What would be hard to come by?

[close]

Expand Quote

The secret ingredient is Soylent Green.

Or Lou Strux is going guerilla for Spitfire and we're all being had.

[close]

Like Brimmo, I’m no chemical engineer, so I can’t say precisely which component is going to become rarer, but the word I got is some component in the 93s also has an application in military industrial uses & I was advised to get a set sooner rather than later if I wanted to re-up, as THAT ingredient is getting snatched up buy the larger (gov’t) contracts.
I wouldn’t bet Muska’s farm on this piece of intel, but linking clues & words, it seems to me there may be a chance my sources say sooth that’s the truth.

[close]

It's kind of been happening for a while. I first heard about it a few months ago and it was already old news then. The navy gets first dibs on the chemical/compound. Who the hell even knows how it all works since I thought the wheels were made in Mexico anyways, but it is what it is. They're planning to make more, but with whatever that specific chemical is being more scarce, you can bet the wheels will more scarce

That would make sense why a couple of the pre book catalog wheel listings seem to have not come out yet, or maybe at all, with shortages going on.

Not going to go into details of what I had seen, but I think people have mentioned all options on here in the past anyway.

[rawbertson.]

so maybe those old formula 97s will come back after all 

[rawbertson.]

Is there anyone else who thinks the new 97a is the best wheel they have ever rode in their life? I seriously wouldn’t fuck with anything else. It’s soooo slippery in all the right ways and so smooth on street. It is insanely fast and doesn’t sound like a dragon wheel. It is literally everything I want. It somehow grips perfectly the way I want on a quarter pipe too. I am getting more into riding them as my main now and just so happy with them.

[nurkdurk]

Is there anyone else who thinks the new 97a is the best wheel they have ever rode in their life? I seriously wouldn’t fuck with anything else. It’s soooo slippery in all the right ways and so smooth on street. It is insanely fast and doesn’t sound like a dragon wheel. It is literally everything I want. It somehow grips perfectly the way I want on a quarter pipe too. I am getting more into riding them as my main now and just so happy with them.

I have the 57 delfinos on my pool setup and I fucking love them. It's faster than f4 99 and old 97 at my crusty local, doesn't slip out if I'm slow on a f/s rock, but slides when I want. It's fast enough on new buttery parks that I don't feel the need to swap.
Sound is better than the old 97 too I feel like, but I haven't skated them in the same session to confirm.

I hope this supply chain stuff gets sorted, I want them in classics for my street setup.

[rikki]

Is there anyone else who thinks the new 97a is the best wheel they have ever rode in their life? I seriously wouldn’t fuck with anything else. It’s soooo slippery in all the right ways and so smooth on street. It is insanely fast and doesn’t sound like a dragon wheel. It is literally everything I want. It somehow grips perfectly the way I want on a quarter pipe too. I am getting more into riding them as my main now and just so happy with them.

I don't know if they're THE best wheel ever, but they really are among the best. An amazing wheel. No complaints whatsoever so far. I've yet to try them in smooth concrete bowls, but I'm fairly positive they won't disappoint.

[scab]

Best is of course subjective, but I think they're pretty clearly the best wheels I have personally ever skated. They combine all my favorite individual aspects of the old 97s, the 93s, and the 99s but somehow don't have any of the drawbacks. Except availability, they are really freaking hard to get here in the EU. 

[moonordie]

Best is of course subjective, but I think they're pretty clearly the best wheels I have personally ever skated. They combine all my favorite individual aspects of the old 97s, the 93s, and the 99s but somehow don't have any of the drawbacks. Except availability, they are really freaking hard to get here in the EU.

These ones?
https://supersklep.cz/i351985-kolecka-spitfire-f4-97d-pedro-turbo-radials-natural-multi

[Too Frank To Fred]

The new 97s are indeed amazing but mine wore out quick and were noticeably slower on smooth concrete. I’m sticking to 99s and 93s when I need a soft slider

[scab]

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Best is of course subjective, but I think they're pretty clearly the best wheels I have personally ever skated. They combine all my favorite individual aspects of the old 97s, the 93s, and the 99s but somehow don't have any of the drawbacks. Except availability, they are really freaking hard to get here in the EU.

[close]

These ones?
https://supersklep.cz/i351985-kolecka-spitfire-f4-97d-pedro-turbo-radials-natural-multi

Yeah, those Pedros, but more specifically any sets from the regular 97A lineup (classics, radial fulls and conical fulls) in the new formula. Those are only marked by a little "improved formula" sticker that almost never shows up in product shots, so it's really hard to tell if it's new or old stock. Just going off prices, the vast majority of 97As that show up in google searches seems to be old stock because they are all 5-10 Euros cheaper than what new sets usually go for.   

Thanks for that link though, I was aware of that shop but somehow thought they were based in Ukraine. Now I see they're in Poland, which is very good to know.

 

[Mbrimson88]

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Best is of course subjective, but I think they're pretty clearly the best wheels I have personally ever skated. They combine all my favorite individual aspects of the old 97s, the 93s, and the 99s but somehow don't have any of the drawbacks. Except availability, they are really freaking hard to get here in the EU.

[close]

These ones?
https://supersklep.cz/i351985-kolecka-spitfire-f4-97d-pedro-turbo-radials-natural-multi

[close]

Yeah, those Pedros, but more specifically any sets from the regular 97A lineup (classics, radial fulls and conical fulls) in the new formula. Those are only marked by a little "improved formula" sticker that almost never shows up in product shots, so it's really hard to tell if it's new or old stock. Just going off prices, the vast majority of 97As that show up in google searches seems to be old stock because they are all 5-10 Euros cheaper than what new sets usually go for.   

Thanks for that link though, I was aware of that shop but somehow thought they were based in Ukraine. Now I see they're in Poland, which is very good to know.

I have to say, it is more than a little frustrating that it is only a simple sticker, which does often come off quite easily, to tell the wheels apart, with the same packaging and everything else too.  I can see it would be a whole lot easier from a business perspective not to change or have to bring out whole new packaging, or change wheel graphics or anything else.

A few others have noted the colour difference too, the newer reformulated wheel seems like it is a little darker / more creamy coloured than the slightly more white natural colour of the old formula, but even that is very hard to go by if shops have had them sitting under the counter lights for a while, or who knows what other lights the product has been under previously.

I have half a dozen sets of both the old and new 97s and if I had no sticker on the packets, I think I would have a hard time telling them apart just looking at them.

Riding them is a whole different story though - the new ones slide, the old ones not really, but who is going to buy a lot of wheels only to try to figure out which ones are which by setting them up?  No one.


* Both formulas work for me for different things too, so I don't mind having some of each, but for other people who really only want the new reformulated 97s, it can be very annoying to try to track down any with so many old ones still on the market.

[roba]

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Best is of course subjective, but I think they're pretty clearly the best wheels I have personally ever skated. They combine all my favorite individual aspects of the old 97s, the 93s, and the 99s but somehow don't have any of the drawbacks. Except availability, they are really freaking hard to get here in the EU.

[close]

These ones?
https://supersklep.cz/i351985-kolecka-spitfire-f4-97d-pedro-turbo-radials-natural-multi

[close]

Yeah, those Pedros, but more specifically any sets from the regular 97A lineup (classics, radial fulls and conical fulls) in the new formula. Those are only marked by a little "improved formula" sticker that almost never shows up in product shots, so it's really hard to tell if it's new or old stock. Just going off prices, the vast majority of 97As that show up in google searches seems to be old stock because they are all 5-10 Euros cheaper than what new sets usually go for.   

Thanks for that link though, I was aware of that shop but somehow thought they were based in Ukraine. Now I see they're in Poland, which is very good to know.

i'm pretty sure it's the oldest skateshop in poland that's still running. they're a little kooky with their e-commerce strategies, since they're the biggest skate shop in poland they price everything like 2 euros cheaper than other smaller shops while being a distributor (but nobody wants their etnies shoes and element boards, maybe it's a revenge tactic) and their physical store is called "underground core skateshop" while selling patagonia, but other than that they do good things for the scene in poland in general.

[scab]

^Thanks to you as well, always good to know more about where I get my stuff. For now I'm set because I just bought a set from the homie @BALARGUE yesterday (Euro and specifically French pals, check out balargueskateshop.com) , but I'll keep this option in mind.

[rawbertson.]

if you just skate really really fast the old 97a is actually amazing grip and slide ratio. for pros should be perfect.
i am a poser though so i like to be able to powerslide going slow  i need cheat codes

[rikki]

The new Pedro Delfino 97s are available only in the new formula, so they're a sure-fire way of getting the new 97s.

[rawbertson.]

so you guys have actually seen new formula 97 in other shapes in real life? i will post an image below ; this seems to suggest other shapes are available, but i have not seen hardly ANY 97s for sale lately. just the Pedros and a few random classics here and there which i am fairly sure are just old stock because its always just 1 straggler size, 1 stock left type thing.

[scab]

^Yeah, I've been riding 54mm 97A conical fulls for the past 3 months. Not really a conical fulls guy, but that was the only set of the new formula I was able to find before I ordered the Pedros yesterday. And I think I'll skate these to death before I set up the new set because I know I like the radial shape better and would never come back to the CFs.