Wheels Thread

[frtzgn95]

how do I rotate asymmetrical lock in Fulls?

that's my strategy:

frontside toeside wheel <- new wheel
frontside heelside wheel <- new wheel
backside toeside wheel <- new wheel
backside heelside wheel <- new wheel

[radcunt]

Used to be a badge of honor to cone out your huge pink reflex wheels doin' fat slash carves down hills.

[rikki]

Coning the front wheels out by tic tacing was the SHIT.

[goodatmeth]

how do I rotate asymmetrical lock in Fulls?

The same way you rotate all other wheels. No need to flip it inside out. Just choose either clockwise or anticlockwise and stick to it

[rawbertson.]

It comes down to how someone skates.

I just got a set of F4 back from someone who had never rotated them, so the starting 56 mm, now 55 (front heel) 54 and solidly coned (front toe) 52 (back heel) and 51 slightly coned (back toe)

Wow so actually if you just flip the trucks around, and then turn the wheels inside out, you dont need to change the position of the wheels at all and oyu should end up with the most even wear... lol for some reason i flipped the front and back wheels around after flipping my trucks, i dont think that will make a huge difference in the end. but it does seem like back wheels get worn more than front (moar mannys!)

[pops]

Love the dragons after riding them a few times now, they roll over everything much better than F4s. Havent tried nose/tailslides yet but everything else about them rules.

[onkalo]

Saw oj releasing the new ”chubbies” wheels. Thinking about getting them, but i’ve never ridden oj’s. How does the original 99a oj formula compare to 99a f4 urethane? I’ve ridden sml ag formula and dialtone, and they didn’t feel bad, actually liked them, but then got some f4 again and wondered why i’ve even ridden anything else.

So; how’s the slide and speed on oj’s original formula compared to f4 99a, and are they even on par with sml ag formula/dialtone 99a, which are made by creative urethanes, i assume?

Probably will get them anyways

[OhioGuy]

Saw oj releasing the new ”chubbies” wheels. Thinking about getting them, but i’ve never ridden oj’s. How does the original 99a oj formula compare to 99a f4 urethane? I’ve ridden sml ag formula and dialtone, and they didn’t feel bad, actually liked them, but then got some f4 again and wondered why i’ve even ridden anything else.

So; how’s the slide and speed on oj’s original formula compared to f4 99a, and are they even on par with sml ag formula/dialtone 99a, which are made by creative urethanes, i assume?

Probably will get them anyways

I have some OJ Elite in the Hardline shape. I think they slide easier than F4 wheels. Idk, Spitfires seem a little grippier to me and a tad bit slower. But they feel better on rougher ground. I think they have a softer wheel.

[WashingtonNECKTIE]

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Can someone advise me on wheels? Currently in my first bout of wheel madness.

Usually i’ve just been someone who rides classics. I think the last 4 wheels have all been classics/classic shapes. I finally decided to switch it up as my skating has changed, and I wanted to experiment what would be more optimal. before my current wheels I was using 101 Ez edge oj wheels. Really liked those

I tried OJ 101 Elite Hardline (conical shape) for better lock in on grinds. Little did i know, I do not like the way they lock in at all. It’s almost too locked in if that makes sense. I don’t like the square edge for these reasons. I also noticed it’s a lot easier to hang up on 5-0 fakie and other tricks where you’re using heel/toe pressure to back in a ramp. Haven’t tried slappies yet but the square edge has me worried. Doesn’t slide as well.

So i’m thinking I still want to try a wheel that’s wider than a classic shape, but not as wide as a conical full type shape. Any suggestions? I was looking at radials and the regular conicals, but i don’t know much about other brands. Maybe I’m naive that the regular conicals would be that much different but it looks pretty skinny.

I’m a transition skater, smaller stuff, no huge bowls or vert. But lots of tight transition and the occasional flip tricks.

[close]

I would try the Radials. They're wider than the Classics but not too conical-shaped. In my opinion they're a very good all-around wheel.

[close]

Vouching for radial fulls

I'm a big fan of the Elite 101s, love the shape and they feel super fun and wild on the super smooth crete at the newest park in town. The shape did have some quirks that made certain moves harder, as was mentioned.

 I picked up 56mm Radial Fulls 97a and they're my favorite wheel all around (probably will get 54mm next time). I'm terrified of pivot fakie, but they lock-in and out of similar tricks beautifully (hurricanes, nosepicks), whereas I couldn't get these moves consistent on the hardline shape.

They definitely feel pretty bulky though

[close]

What size / width trucks are you both using?

* Mamba 149s (same as me) I see from previous posts.


I put Radial Full 58 and then 54 mm sizes on my 149s and both just felt too wide for the trucks, but they work a lot better on wider trucks, maybe more so just the overall proportions look more normal to me.  That is funny too considering I prefer bigger and wider wheels in general, but it messed with my timing and placement when I would go to lock into any grinds, even the smaller 54 mm width still being 38 mm wide, compared to most others which are around 34 mm wide in the same 54 mm diameter.


The Radials (normal ones that is) are pretty much the middle ground between Classic shapes and any of the wider more bulky wheels, so I can easily ride the 54, 55 or even 56 mm sizes on smaller boards without feeling like they are too wide for the overall setup, be it on 149s or smaller like 144 or 139 widths too.

I would usually have the nicely worn in 56 mm or worn down 58 mm Classics on my usual boards, as well as the Classic Full shaped wheels, but as they are not available take those out of the equation for now, but the 54 mm Classic Full is a really comfortable wheel right from go for me.

For any of the wider profile wheels, I have to round off the edges a bit more with an angle grinder just to make them feel more "normal" for me, also more transition based, so finding something with a locking in effect is actually not at all what I want, even though a wider surface area works well for me.  Unless you have wheels you don't want or don't mind messing up a few, I wouldn't recommend taking a grinder to them, but I know other people who have and they have worked out well, once they got the hang of it.


It comes down to personal preference really, so if you lke the sharper edge, over the rounder edge or vice versa, I would be sticking with certain shapes that go along with that wheel profile, more so than trying to slog through sets of wheels that just don't work for you.

My radial fulls are on AF1 66's, bolted to ~9" Blk Lbl egg

So saying the wheels are bulky is maybe a bit misleading considering the board is most of a tank haha!

Love the shape, probably just need 54s - I think the "footprint" is my favorite part of the radial fulls

(The mindy's are set-up with worn down 54mm Elites)

[Mbrimson88]

Saw oj releasing the new ”chubbies” wheels. Thinking about getting them, but i’ve never ridden oj’s. How does the original 99a oj formula compare to 99a f4 urethane? I’ve ridden sml ag formula and dialtone, and they didn’t feel bad, actually liked them, but then got some f4 again and wondered why i’ve even ridden anything else.

So; how’s the slide and speed on oj’s original formula compared to f4 99a, and are they even on par with sml ag formula/dialtone 99a, which are made by creative urethanes, i assume?

Probably will get them anyways

Had a lot of clearance OJ wheels in the original and elite formula come through my hands back when they were still USA made and they skate just fine, no issues at all for the most part, but they do feel a little more on the softer / more grippy side and they do tend to get flatspots, although that seemed to happen more to some people than others.  People have said they are still the same formula and feel as these older ones for the current "original formula" wheels that are out now, but I haven't tried any to see what they are like.

Sure I will always skate Formula Four wheels over anything else, but the OJs are a nice wheel, feeling decent especially in the bigger wider shapes, which I still have on some boards, so I would not say to anyone not to ride them.


That new shape looks on trend for the wider wheel market, the two main ones being 52 x 36.5 and 54 x 37.5 mm as well as the Milton 56 mm size.  Much like my Radial Full shaped wheels just looking at the profile.



https://ojwheels.com/

[rikki]

I like the OJ Elite formula especially in dusty indoor parks / on plywood. A bit less slippery IMO than F4 while being pretty much just as fast. They're not F4 (nothing is), but they're not bad wheels at all.

[Cthulhu!]

OJ's Elite 99a turned into my favorite wheel for smooth transition parks. Not so much for street stuff. But two setups are allowed when you're old.

[Xen]

The OG OJ urethane is grippy soft and slow; wouldn't touch them again if they were free. Sort of like any generic wheel that comes out of Creative/board brand wheel.

[JugeL]

Just wanted to drop by and tell that man i love Dragons

[Stanley Spadowski]

Just wanted to drop by and tell that man i love Dragons

Did you mean to post this in a Game of Thrones fan page forum?

[JugeL]

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Just wanted to drop by and tell that man i love Dragons

[close]

Did you mean to post this in a Game of Thrones fan page forum?

Oh my bad, no idea how i ended up in skateboard wheel forum

[diplodocus]

Chiming in to say I also enjoy the OJ elite formulas, but in 101a. they’re not icy like bones or spits, but they still slide better than the 99a f4 without being too wild. perfect grip to slip ratio.

[AlumarX]

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Just wanted to drop by and tell that man i love Dragons

[close]

Did you mean to post this in a Game of Thrones fan page forum?

[close]

Oh my bad, no idea how i ended up in skateboard wheel forum

Dragons are too good I feel like I'm wasting them on a small cruiser with risers lol, gonna switch them over

[WashingtonNECKTIE]

Chiming in to say I also enjoy the OJ elite formulas, but in 101a. they’re not icy like bones or spits, but they still slide better than the 99a f4 without being too wild. perfect grip to slip ratio.

Love 101 elites!

I've been switching set-ups around but there's always a deck with 54mm Elites

[camel filters]

So NFG MFG is done right? Anyone know if the guy behind that is planning to do anything else? I really liked the formula they used. Had a set of Loopholes that felt really good.

[Texas_Tone]

So NFG MFG is done right? Anyone know if the guy behind that is planning to do anything else? I really liked the formula they used. Had a set of Loopholes that felt really good.

Unfortunately the wizard is done, I haven’t seen anything else from him or heard anything about him making anything new, it looks like loophole has found a new home over at acid wheel co. I haven’t tried the new formula yet but people seem to like them, I’m pretty bummed as well I like the wizards products when they were good, I guess the bad QC and sets that made it out with bubbles and bad bearing seats prolly led to the demise of NFG

[kimchi]

Went a bit gear crazy on wheels over the past ~6 months or so, various thoughts below. I'm still in the try a bunch of shit and figure out what I like stage.

I'm still pretty new to skating at ~2 years in-- couple years more than that longboarding, and I've been snowboarding near 20 years now. I mostly carve simple transition lines in local bowls and cruise sidewalks around the neighborhood. No curbs or rails, wheels stay on the ground. Working on sorting out rocket ollies and sad quasi-slides.

I've only had these wheels on Indy Stage XIs on a couple boards, a 8.25" and a roughly 8.75". Mostly using Bronson G3s, but I have a set of Bones Swiss on dedicated transition wheels.

If matters I'm 6', 210 lbs, size 10.5-11 shoe.

• OJ Elite Mini Combos 58mm 101a - First set of wheels I bought on this list, local shop guy set me up with these when I said I was mostly interested in carving bowls. I like them, fast, predictable. They feel little sticky sliding but again I don't really now how to slide. They feel a little slick on graffiti'd over concrete transition, but I maybe that'd just what that surface feels like. I think I'd prefer a bigger F4 wheel, but I still like these after having tried a bunch of other wheels. They are awful outside of the skate park, though.
• PP Dragons 54mm 93A - Bought into the hype but not really digging these for my style. Still have some interest in the formula, but I don't like the shape. I feel oddly wobbly pushing and landing on these wheels, I think the contact patch is narrow for my tastes. The formula is fun for sidewalk cruising, but I HATE the way they feel on smooth concrete transition. I may grab a 60-ish mm set for longboards or cruiser setups, but not feeling them on popsicle decks. Maybe if I was more focused on street.
• Bones X-Formula V6 56mm 97A - These are the wheels I skate the most, especially when I feel too lazy to swap out wheels. They work pretty decent on sidewalks and pretty decent at the park, but don't excel in either setting. I prefer the feel of Formula Four on cleaner hard surfaces, but X-formula is a lot more pleasant rolling sidewalks and crust.
• Spitfire F4 Classics 54mm 99A - Got these barely used. The whole "PP / Bones wheels feel plastic-y" made sense to me after I rode these. Can't fully articulate why, but so far F4 just feel the best to me-- I skate better because I have more feedback on what's happening underfoot. They're ok on decent pavement, but still feel bit sketch on crust to me. As someone still getting the hang of sliding, I'm making the most progress on these... they seem to slide most easily and predictably. I got the sense I didn't like the shape but was getting good vibes on the formula, so I grabbed...
• Spitfire F4 Conical Fulls 54mm 99A - Also nabbed these barely used. These are probably my favorite wheel I own right now. Really digging this shape. I thought I liked bigger wheels (56+ mm), but I think I just like wider wheels. I've made a lot of progress ollieing on these-- feels like it's because I'm lower to the ground than my 56-58 mm wheels, but the wheel and the contact pact on these is wider than the Dragons or the Spitfire Classic shape. I still don't like them cruising the neighborhood, but they're more manageable than the classics and a lot of fun at the skate park.
• Spitfire Sapphires 56A 90A - I picked these up on a lark after liking the F4s, they're a bust. I was hoping for a non-cruiser shaped wheel could skate more quietly around my house after dark without pissing off my neighbors, but they feel / sound pretty hard because of the 101A core-- noticeably harder than the Bones X97s IMO. Roll speed doesn't seem the best and are stickier than Dragons or X-formula in slides. I don't really get the target audience except maybe those who think colored clear wheels are cool?

Knowing what i know now from trying a bunch of stuff, I'd settle on two sets of wheels:

• A comfy all-around X-formula Wheel in a 54 mm for cruising around the neighborhood, probably still in the V6. Probably the X97, maybe the X99.
  
• A more performance F4 wheel in a 56 mm for the skate park, maybe a Radial shape? I'm intrigued by 101, but 99 feels pretty darn good to me. Conical Full in a 56 feels too aggressively wide but who knows.
  

[Nymphicus hollandicus]

Went a bit gear crazy on wheels over the past ~6 months or so, various thoughts below. I'm still in the try a bunch of shit and figure out what I like stage.

I'm still pretty new to skating at ~2 years in-- couple years more than that longboarding, and I've been snowboarding near 20 years now. I mostly carve simple transition lines in local bowls and cruise sidewalks around the neighborhood. No curbs or rails, wheels stay on the ground. Working on sorting out rocket ollies and sad quasi-slides.

I've only had these wheels on Indy Stage XIs on a couple boards, a 8.25" and a roughly 8.75". Mostly using Bronson G3s, but I have a set of Bones Swiss on dedicated transition wheels.

If matters I'm 6', 210 lbs, size 10.5-11 shoe.

• OJ Elite Mini Combos 58mm 101a - First set of wheels I bought on this list, local shop guy set me up with these when I said I was mostly interested in carving bowls. I like them, fast, predictable. They feel little sticky sliding but again I don't really now how to slide. They feel a little slick on graffiti'd over concrete transition, but I maybe that'd just what that surface feels like. I think I'd prefer a bigger F4 wheel, but I still like these after having tried a bunch of other wheels. They are awful outside of the skate park, though.
• PP Dragons 54mm 93A - Bought into the hype but not really digging these for my style. Still have some interest in the formula, but I don't like the shape. I feel oddly wobbly pushing and landing on these wheels, I think the contact patch is narrow for my tastes. The formula is fun for sidewalk cruising, but I HATE the way they feel on smooth concrete transition. I may grab a 60-ish mm set for longboards or cruiser setups, but not feeling them on popsicle decks. Maybe if I was more focused on street.
• Bones X-Formula V6 56mm 97A - These are the wheels I skate the most, especially when I feel too lazy to swap out wheels. They work pretty decent on sidewalks and pretty decent at the park, but don't excel in either setting. I prefer the feel of Formula Four on cleaner hard surfaces, but X-formula is a lot more pleasant rolling sidewalks and crust.
• Spitfire F4 Classics 54mm 99A - Got these barely used. The whole "PP / Bones wheels feel plastic-y" made sense to me after I rode these. Can't fully articulate why, but so far F4 just feel the best to me-- I skate better because I have more feedback on what's happening underfoot. They're ok on decent pavement, but still feel bit sketch on crust to me. As someone still getting the hang of sliding, I'm making the most progress on these... they seem to slide most easily and predictably. I got the sense I didn't like the shape but was getting good vibes on the formula, so I grabbed...
• Spitfire F4 Conical Fulls 54mm 99A - Also nabbed these barely used. These are probably my favorite wheel I own right now. Really digging this shape. I thought I liked bigger wheels (56+ mm), but I think I just like wider wheels. I've made a lot of progress ollieing on these-- feels like it's because I'm lower to the ground than my 56-58 mm wheels, but the wheel and the contact pact on these is wider than the Dragons or the Spitfire Classic shape. I still don't like them cruising the neighborhood, but they're more manageable than the classics and a lot of fun at the skate park.
• Spitfire Sapphires 56A 90A - I picked these up on a lark after liking the F4s, they're a bust. I was hoping for a non-cruiser shaped wheel could skate more quietly around my house after dark without pissing off my neighbors, but they feel / sound pretty hard because of the 101A core-- noticeably harder than the Bones X97s IMO. Roll speed doesn't seem the best and are stickier than Dragons or X-formula in slides. I don't really get the target audience except maybe those who think colored clear wheels are cool?

Knowing what i know now from trying a bunch of stuff, I'd settle on two sets of wheels:

• A comfy all-around X-formula Wheel in a 54 mm for cruising around the neighborhood, probably still in the V6. Probably the X97, maybe the X99.
  
• A more performance F4 wheel in a 56 mm for the skate park, maybe a Radial shape? I'm intrigued by 101, but 99 feels pretty darn good to me. Conical Full in a 56 feels too aggressively wide but who knows.
  

I enjoyed reading through your wheel assessments, you have a solid process of elimination that seems to be working! May I ask what shape of 54mm Dragon wheels you had? Do you know if they were the narrower V1 or wider V4 shape? PS I do have bad wheel madness at the moment and look forward trying out Dragons (one day) so I'm curious as to how a narrower V1 shape in 54mm would cope with crusty terrain. I'm currently on Spitfire 97a 53mm and like them a lot for general riding around the local streets here in the UK.
Also, I hear you about feeling more comfortable and progressing on smaller wheels, I love how 56mm roll in a straight line but when trying to do anything with the board then my 53mm's certainly feel better/more secure.
Cheers

[AlumarX]

Dragons are pretty cozy, but for real rattly ground I'd want shock pads. So they didn't work in my cruiser, but they're going on my bigger street setup, which might also work for tranny in a pinch.

[Xen]

Dragons are pretty cozy, but for real rattly ground I'd want shock pads. So they didn't work in my cruiser, but they're going on my bigger street setup, which might also work for tranny in a pinch.

I ran dragons and indy shock pads for a bit, talk about cush.

More recently, ran AF1 lows with the 1/16th pads (they're not hard hard, but not super soft like shocks, middle ground) and the x99s, that was super smooth too.

[kimchi]

Expand Quote

Went a bit gear crazy on wheels over the past ~6 months or so, various thoughts below. I'm still in the try a bunch of shit and figure out what I like stage.

I'm still pretty new to skating at ~2 years in-- couple years more than that longboarding, and I've been snowboarding near 20 years now. I mostly carve simple transition lines in local bowls and cruise sidewalks around the neighborhood. No curbs or rails, wheels stay on the ground. Working on sorting out rocket ollies and sad quasi-slides.

I've only had these wheels on Indy Stage XIs on a couple boards, a 8.25" and a roughly 8.75". Mostly using Bronson G3s, but I have a set of Bones Swiss on dedicated transition wheels.

If matters I'm 6', 210 lbs, size 10.5-11 shoe.

• OJ Elite Mini Combos 58mm 101a - First set of wheels I bought on this list, local shop guy set me up with these when I said I was mostly interested in carving bowls. I like them, fast, predictable. They feel little sticky sliding but again I don't really now how to slide. They feel a little slick on graffiti'd over concrete transition, but I maybe that'd just what that surface feels like. I think I'd prefer a bigger F4 wheel, but I still like these after having tried a bunch of other wheels. They are awful outside of the skate park, though.
• PP Dragons 54mm 93A - Bought into the hype but not really digging these for my style. Still have some interest in the formula, but I don't like the shape. I feel oddly wobbly pushing and landing on these wheels, I think the contact patch is narrow for my tastes. The formula is fun for sidewalk cruising, but I HATE the way they feel on smooth concrete transition. I may grab a 60-ish mm set for longboards or cruiser setups, but not feeling them on popsicle decks. Maybe if I was more focused on street.
• Bones X-Formula V6 56mm 97A - These are the wheels I skate the most, especially when I feel too lazy to swap out wheels. They work pretty decent on sidewalks and pretty decent at the park, but don't excel in either setting. I prefer the feel of Formula Four on cleaner hard surfaces, but X-formula is a lot more pleasant rolling sidewalks and crust.
• Spitfire F4 Classics 54mm 99A - Got these barely used. The whole "PP / Bones wheels feel plastic-y" made sense to me after I rode these. Can't fully articulate why, but so far F4 just feel the best to me-- I skate better because I have more feedback on what's happening underfoot. They're ok on decent pavement, but still feel bit sketch on crust to me. As someone still getting the hang of sliding, I'm making the most progress on these... they seem to slide most easily and predictably. I got the sense I didn't like the shape but was getting good vibes on the formula, so I grabbed...
• Spitfire F4 Conical Fulls 54mm 99A - Also nabbed these barely used. These are probably my favorite wheel I own right now. Really digging this shape. I thought I liked bigger wheels (56+ mm), but I think I just like wider wheels. I've made a lot of progress ollieing on these-- feels like it's because I'm lower to the ground than my 56-58 mm wheels, but the wheel and the contact pact on these is wider than the Dragons or the Spitfire Classic shape. I still don't like them cruising the neighborhood, but they're more manageable than the classics and a lot of fun at the skate park.
• Spitfire Sapphires 56A 90A - I picked these up on a lark after liking the F4s, they're a bust. I was hoping for a non-cruiser shaped wheel could skate more quietly around my house after dark without pissing off my neighbors, but they feel / sound pretty hard because of the 101A core-- noticeably harder than the Bones X97s IMO. Roll speed doesn't seem the best and are stickier than Dragons or X-formula in slides. I don't really get the target audience except maybe those who think colored clear wheels are cool?

Knowing what i know now from trying a bunch of stuff, I'd settle on two sets of wheels:

• A comfy all-around X-formula Wheel in a 54 mm for cruising around the neighborhood, probably still in the V6. Probably the X97, maybe the X99.
  
• A more performance F4 wheel in a 56 mm for the skate park, maybe a Radial shape? I'm intrigued by 101, but 99 feels pretty darn good to me. Conical Full in a 56 feels too aggressively wide but who knows.
  

[close]

I enjoyed reading through your wheel assessments, you have a solid process of elimination that seems to be working! May I ask what shape of 54mm Dragon wheels you had? Do you know if they were the narrower V1 or wider V4 shape? PS I do have bad wheel madness at the moment and look forward trying out Dragons (one day) so I'm curious as to how a narrower V1 shape in 54mm would cope with crusty terrain. I'm currently on Spitfire 97a 53mm and like them a lot for general riding around the local streets here in the UK.
Also, I hear you about feeling more comfortable and progressing on smaller wheels, I love how 56mm roll in a straight line but when trying to do anything with the board then my 53mm's certainly feel better/more secure.
Cheers

I just measured in the basement, the Dragons I have are 54 x 34, so I guess I got the V4s. I actually didn't realize they were available in multiple shapes lol. I just went into a shop and asked if they had Dragons.

Knowing what I know now, I think I just like Spitfire shapes better. I didn't realize until looking at specs how much wider their riding contact patches are across the board basically.

[diplodocus]

So people who run OJ mini combos, do you run the round edge on the inside of the trucks or the outside? I’m intrigued by them, but would want to run the round edge inside. What would having a conical cut on the outside do in terms of performance?

[intendedreceivers]

Expand Quote

Went a bit gear crazy on wheels over the past ~6 months or so, various thoughts below. I'm still in the try a bunch of shit and figure out what I like stage.

I'm still pretty new to skating at ~2 years in-- couple years more than that longboarding, and I've been snowboarding near 20 years now. I mostly carve simple transition lines in local bowls and cruise sidewalks around the neighborhood. No curbs or rails, wheels stay on the ground. Working on sorting out rocket ollies and sad quasi-slides.

I've only had these wheels on Indy Stage XIs on a couple boards, a 8.25" and a roughly 8.75". Mostly using Bronson G3s, but I have a set of Bones Swiss on dedicated transition wheels.

If matters I'm 6', 210 lbs, size 10.5-11 shoe.

• OJ Elite Mini Combos 58mm 101a - First set of wheels I bought on this list, local shop guy set me up with these when I said I was mostly interested in carving bowls. I like them, fast, predictable. They feel little sticky sliding but again I don't really now how to slide. They feel a little slick on graffiti'd over concrete transition, but I maybe that'd just what that surface feels like. I think I'd prefer a bigger F4 wheel, but I still like these after having tried a bunch of other wheels. They are awful outside of the skate park, though.
• PP Dragons 54mm 93A - Bought into the hype but not really digging these for my style. Still have some interest in the formula, but I don't like the shape. I feel oddly wobbly pushing and landing on these wheels, I think the contact patch is narrow for my tastes. The formula is fun for sidewalk cruising, but I HATE the way they feel on smooth concrete transition. I may grab a 60-ish mm set for longboards or cruiser setups, but not feeling them on popsicle decks. Maybe if I was more focused on street.
• Bones X-Formula V6 56mm 97A - These are the wheels I skate the most, especially when I feel too lazy to swap out wheels. They work pretty decent on sidewalks and pretty decent at the park, but don't excel in either setting. I prefer the feel of Formula Four on cleaner hard surfaces, but X-formula is a lot more pleasant rolling sidewalks and crust.
• Spitfire F4 Classics 54mm 99A - Got these barely used. The whole "PP / Bones wheels feel plastic-y" made sense to me after I rode these. Can't fully articulate why, but so far F4 just feel the best to me-- I skate better because I have more feedback on what's happening underfoot. They're ok on decent pavement, but still feel bit sketch on crust to me. As someone still getting the hang of sliding, I'm making the most progress on these... they seem to slide most easily and predictably. I got the sense I didn't like the shape but was getting good vibes on the formula, so I grabbed...
• Spitfire F4 Conical Fulls 54mm 99A - Also nabbed these barely used. These are probably my favorite wheel I own right now. Really digging this shape. I thought I liked bigger wheels (56+ mm), but I think I just like wider wheels. I've made a lot of progress ollieing on these-- feels like it's because I'm lower to the ground than my 56-58 mm wheels, but the wheel and the contact pact on these is wider than the Dragons or the Spitfire Classic shape. I still don't like them cruising the neighborhood, but they're more manageable than the classics and a lot of fun at the skate park.
• Spitfire Sapphires 56A 90A - I picked these up on a lark after liking the F4s, they're a bust. I was hoping for a non-cruiser shaped wheel could skate more quietly around my house after dark without pissing off my neighbors, but they feel / sound pretty hard because of the 101A core-- noticeably harder than the Bones X97s IMO. Roll speed doesn't seem the best and are stickier than Dragons or X-formula in slides. I don't really get the target audience except maybe those who think colored clear wheels are cool?

Knowing what i know now from trying a bunch of stuff, I'd settle on two sets of wheels:

• A comfy all-around X-formula Wheel in a 54 mm for cruising around the neighborhood, probably still in the V6. Probably the X97, maybe the X99.
  
• A more performance F4 wheel in a 56 mm for the skate park, maybe a Radial shape? I'm intrigued by 101, but 99 feels pretty darn good to me. Conical Full in a 56 feels too aggressively wide but who knows.
  

[close]

I enjoyed reading through your wheel assessments, you have a solid process of elimination that seems to be working! May I ask what shape of 54mm Dragon wheels you had? Do you know if they were the narrower V1 or wider V4 shape? PS I do have bad wheel madness at the moment and look forward trying out Dragons (one day) so I'm curious as to how a narrower V1 shape in 54mm would cope with crusty terrain. I'm currently on Spitfire 97a 53mm and like them a lot for general riding around the local streets here in the UK.
Also, I hear you about feeling more comfortable and progressing on smaller wheels, I love how 56mm roll in a straight line but when trying to do anything with the board then my 53mm's certainly feel better/more secure.
Cheers

Lucky you. They just added what looks like a 53mm V6 shape (their widest and, in my opinion, best)

[Nymphicus hollandicus]

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Dragons are pretty cozy, but for real rattly ground I'd want shock pads. So they didn't work in my cruiser, but they're going on my bigger street setup, which might also work for tranny in a pinch.

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I ran dragons and indy shock pads for a bit, talk about cush.

More recently, ran AF1 lows with the 1/16th pads (they're not hard hard, but not super soft like shocks, middle ground) and the x99s, that was super smooth too.

Nice one both of you for the heads-up, I went through a phase of trying out riser pads a while back and could also recommend Pig Wheels clear soft 1/8" pads. I found them good for rough ground regardless of which wheel I ran including a couple of sets of 101a Pigs and OJs. Ultimately I ditched them as I was finding my whole set-up getting a bit too high for me when trying to do tricks (running Venture Highs).

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Went a bit gear crazy on wheels over the past ~6 months or so, various thoughts below. I'm still in the try a bunch of shit and figure out what I like stage.

I'm still pretty new to skating at ~2 years in-- couple years more than that longboarding, and I've been snowboarding near 20 years now. I mostly carve simple transition lines in local bowls and cruise sidewalks around the neighborhood. No curbs or rails, wheels stay on the ground. Working on sorting out rocket ollies and sad quasi-slides.

I've only had these wheels on Indy Stage XIs on a couple boards, a 8.25" and a roughly 8.75". Mostly using Bronson G3s, but I have a set of Bones Swiss on dedicated transition wheels.

If matters I'm 6', 210 lbs, size 10.5-11 shoe.

• OJ Elite Mini Combos 58mm 101a - First set of wheels I bought on this list, local shop guy set me up with these when I said I was mostly interested in carving bowls. I like them, fast, predictable. They feel little sticky sliding but again I don't really now how to slide. They feel a little slick on graffiti'd over concrete transition, but I maybe that'd just what that surface feels like. I think I'd prefer a bigger F4 wheel, but I still like these after having tried a bunch of other wheels. They are awful outside of the skate park, though.
• PP Dragons 54mm 93A - Bought into the hype but not really digging these for my style. Still have some interest in the formula, but I don't like the shape. I feel oddly wobbly pushing and landing on these wheels, I think the contact patch is narrow for my tastes. The formula is fun for sidewalk cruising, but I HATE the way they feel on smooth concrete transition. I may grab a 60-ish mm set for longboards or cruiser setups, but not feeling them on popsicle decks. Maybe if I was more focused on street.
• Bones X-Formula V6 56mm 97A - These are the wheels I skate the most, especially when I feel too lazy to swap out wheels. They work pretty decent on sidewalks and pretty decent at the park, but don't excel in either setting. I prefer the feel of Formula Four on cleaner hard surfaces, but X-formula is a lot more pleasant rolling sidewalks and crust.
• Spitfire F4 Classics 54mm 99A - Got these barely used. The whole "PP / Bones wheels feel plastic-y" made sense to me after I rode these. Can't fully articulate why, but so far F4 just feel the best to me-- I skate better because I have more feedback on what's happening underfoot. They're ok on decent pavement, but still feel bit sketch on crust to me. As someone still getting the hang of sliding, I'm making the most progress on these... they seem to slide most easily and predictably. I got the sense I didn't like the shape but was getting good vibes on the formula, so I grabbed...
• Spitfire F4 Conical Fulls 54mm 99A - Also nabbed these barely used. These are probably my favorite wheel I own right now. Really digging this shape. I thought I liked bigger wheels (56+ mm), but I think I just like wider wheels. I've made a lot of progress ollieing on these-- feels like it's because I'm lower to the ground than my 56-58 mm wheels, but the wheel and the contact pact on these is wider than the Dragons or the Spitfire Classic shape. I still don't like them cruising the neighborhood, but they're more manageable than the classics and a lot of fun at the skate park.
• Spitfire Sapphires 56A 90A - I picked these up on a lark after liking the F4s, they're a bust. I was hoping for a non-cruiser shaped wheel could skate more quietly around my house after dark without pissing off my neighbors, but they feel / sound pretty hard because of the 101A core-- noticeably harder than the Bones X97s IMO. Roll speed doesn't seem the best and are stickier than Dragons or X-formula in slides. I don't really get the target audience except maybe those who think colored clear wheels are cool?

Knowing what i know now from trying a bunch of stuff, I'd settle on two sets of wheels:

• A comfy all-around X-formula Wheel in a 54 mm for cruising around the neighborhood, probably still in the V6. Probably the X97, maybe the X99.
  
• A more performance F4 wheel in a 56 mm for the skate park, maybe a Radial shape? I'm intrigued by 101, but 99 feels pretty darn good to me. Conical Full in a 56 feels too aggressively wide but who knows.
  

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I enjoyed reading through your wheel assessments, you have a solid process of elimination that seems to be working! May I ask what shape of 54mm Dragon wheels you had? Do you know if they were the narrower V1 or wider V4 shape? PS I do have bad wheel madness at the moment and look forward trying out Dragons (one day) so I'm curious as to how a narrower V1 shape in 54mm would cope with crusty terrain. I'm currently on Spitfire 97a 53mm and like them a lot for general riding around the local streets here in the UK.
Also, I hear you about feeling more comfortable and progressing on smaller wheels, I love how 56mm roll in a straight line but when trying to do anything with the board then my 53mm's certainly feel better/more secure.
Cheers

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I just measured in the basement, the Dragons I have are 54 x 34, so I guess I got the V4s. I actually didn't realize they were available in multiple shapes lol. I just went into a shop and asked if they had Dragons.

Knowing what I know now, I think I just like Spitfire shapes better. I didn't realize until looking at specs how much wider their riding contact patches are across the board basically.

Thanks for the reply, I do also like Spitfires shapes and my current favourite is the classic 53mm - they feel nimble but have a bit of chunk to them. With that being said I'm really up for trying out Dragons (probably the next wheels I'd go for) as my knees aren't feeling great and hope they might just take the edge of some of the ground I like to cover in my local area.
I've noticed you've moved around in sizes (54-56-58 etc.), have you considered sticking to just one size like 56mm in future (and working within their limitations) or do you still enjoy experiencing the change in height? I find personally its quite a big jump from 54 to 56 and I'm considering just sticking to 53mm when I change wheels next in the hope of maintaining any kind of consistency in my skating!

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Went a bit gear crazy on wheels over the past ~6 months or so, various thoughts below. I'm still in the try a bunch of shit and figure out what I like stage.

I'm still pretty new to skating at ~2 years in-- couple years more than that longboarding, and I've been snowboarding near 20 years now. I mostly carve simple transition lines in local bowls and cruise sidewalks around the neighborhood. No curbs or rails, wheels stay on the ground. Working on sorting out rocket ollies and sad quasi-slides.

I've only had these wheels on Indy Stage XIs on a couple boards, a 8.25" and a roughly 8.75". Mostly using Bronson G3s, but I have a set of Bones Swiss on dedicated transition wheels.

If matters I'm 6', 210 lbs, size 10.5-11 shoe.

• OJ Elite Mini Combos 58mm 101a - First set of wheels I bought on this list, local shop guy set me up with these when I said I was mostly interested in carving bowls. I like them, fast, predictable. They feel little sticky sliding but again I don't really now how to slide. They feel a little slick on graffiti'd over concrete transition, but I maybe that'd just what that surface feels like. I think I'd prefer a bigger F4 wheel, but I still like these after having tried a bunch of other wheels. They are awful outside of the skate park, though.
• PP Dragons 54mm 93A - Bought into the hype but not really digging these for my style. Still have some interest in the formula, but I don't like the shape. I feel oddly wobbly pushing and landing on these wheels, I think the contact patch is narrow for my tastes. The formula is fun for sidewalk cruising, but I HATE the way they feel on smooth concrete transition. I may grab a 60-ish mm set for longboards or cruiser setups, but not feeling them on popsicle decks. Maybe if I was more focused on street.
• Bones X-Formula V6 56mm 97A - These are the wheels I skate the most, especially when I feel too lazy to swap out wheels. They work pretty decent on sidewalks and pretty decent at the park, but don't excel in either setting. I prefer the feel of Formula Four on cleaner hard surfaces, but X-formula is a lot more pleasant rolling sidewalks and crust.
• Spitfire F4 Classics 54mm 99A - Got these barely used. The whole "PP / Bones wheels feel plastic-y" made sense to me after I rode these. Can't fully articulate why, but so far F4 just feel the best to me-- I skate better because I have more feedback on what's happening underfoot. They're ok on decent pavement, but still feel bit sketch on crust to me. As someone still getting the hang of sliding, I'm making the most progress on these... they seem to slide most easily and predictably. I got the sense I didn't like the shape but was getting good vibes on the formula, so I grabbed...
• Spitfire F4 Conical Fulls 54mm 99A - Also nabbed these barely used. These are probably my favorite wheel I own right now. Really digging this shape. I thought I liked bigger wheels (56+ mm), but I think I just like wider wheels. I've made a lot of progress ollieing on these-- feels like it's because I'm lower to the ground than my 56-58 mm wheels, but the wheel and the contact pact on these is wider than the Dragons or the Spitfire Classic shape. I still don't like them cruising the neighborhood, but they're more manageable than the classics and a lot of fun at the skate park.
• Spitfire Sapphires 56A 90A - I picked these up on a lark after liking the F4s, they're a bust. I was hoping for a non-cruiser shaped wheel could skate more quietly around my house after dark without pissing off my neighbors, but they feel / sound pretty hard because of the 101A core-- noticeably harder than the Bones X97s IMO. Roll speed doesn't seem the best and are stickier than Dragons or X-formula in slides. I don't really get the target audience except maybe those who think colored clear wheels are cool?

Knowing what i know now from trying a bunch of stuff, I'd settle on two sets of wheels:

• A comfy all-around X-formula Wheel in a 54 mm for cruising around the neighborhood, probably still in the V6. Probably the X97, maybe the X99.
  
• A more performance F4 wheel in a 56 mm for the skate park, maybe a Radial shape? I'm intrigued by 101, but 99 feels pretty darn good to me. Conical Full in a 56 feels too aggressively wide but who knows.
  

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I enjoyed reading through your wheel assessments, you have a solid process of elimination that seems to be working! May I ask what shape of 54mm Dragon wheels you had? Do you know if they were the narrower V1 or wider V4 shape? PS I do have bad wheel madness at the moment and look forward trying out Dragons (one day) so I'm curious as to how a narrower V1 shape in 54mm would cope with crusty terrain. I'm currently on Spitfire 97a 53mm and like them a lot for general riding around the local streets here in the UK.
Also, I hear you about feeling more comfortable and progressing on smaller wheels, I love how 56mm roll in a straight line but when trying to do anything with the board then my 53mm's certainly feel better/more secure.
Cheers

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Lucky you. They just added what looks like a 53mm V6 shape (their widest and, in my opinion, best)

Cheers for that, that's an interesting new shape/addition at 33mm wide. I have also spotted that a few 53mm V4 shape 34mm wide Dragons are available online from some shops in the UK which could be great too. If I do go for it and get some as my next wheels I'll upload an update for sure!
All the best

[rocklobster]

Gave the x99 a quick push around on a friends board today, so quiet and they handled the roughest part of the park with minimal slow down. Couldn't tell if they felt gummy and I was ghost popping or his Thunder were too loose for my liking, no slides too, but I must say I'm impressed.

How do the x97 compare to the x99? Aside from feeling softer, in theory.