How do you know when your wheels are toast?

[ChuckRamone]

I've always ridden the same wheels pretty hard but today, after some lurkers at the park asked to try my board, one of them told me my bearings and wheels were shot. I knew my bearings were pretty bad but I was wondering how he came to the conclusion my wheels were shot. Given this dude was kinda homeless-looking and smoking something maybe I shouldn't take it super seriously but you could tell he skated at some point in his life by the way he rode a board.

[johnes]

Maybe your set up just felt slow, old wheels sometimes start to feel soft and sluggish after a while to me. The only thing that makes me change wheels is usually just when I feel the impulse to buy new wheels.

[Glue Reed]

Sounds to me like those same people who say things like "your board has no pop", "your bushings are dead" and "I can't skate boards from this woodshop".  Made up things to make it look like if it weren't for those wheels, i'd be killing it right now. 

I'd say as long as they're not flat spotted and completely bowed you're ok.

Maybe your set up just felt slow, old wheels sometimes start to feel soft and sluggish after a while to me. The only thing that makes me change wheels is usually just when I feel the impulse to buy new wheels.

[The Woodsman]

I only replace wheels when I get serious flat spots, they wear down to a very small size, or they get so used the insides don't hold he berings tightly anymore.

[Tracer]

When they turn shit brown and go beyond 48mm. 2 sets a year roughly, I know sponsored dudes that set up wheels with every new deck

[Coconut Lotion]

The only thing that makes me change wheels is usually just when I feel the impulse to buy new wheels.

[zippy z]

Probably every other month is the longest I go between sets. Normally I ride a set for two boards. So that's about 6 weeks per set. I normally get a new board after 3 weeks. Florida has a lot of nasty blacktop that gets all over your wheels and turns them a gross color orange and they look like shit.

[Noble Experiment]

Besides getting bad flat spots, I'll change em when they start feeling all laggy and sluggish, which is usually when they've already shrunk down in size quite a bit already. When it takes you ten pushes to get down the sidewalk when it only used to take you five, that's a good sign that it's time. Sometimes its only after a few months, other times its half a year or more, it depends on the wheels. I don't have a car and use my board to skate everywhere I need to go though, and I'm constantly out and about, so I tend to go through wheels faster than most people.

[Heather Chandler]

What would Vince do?

[Chavo]

When they're coned. I heard about these new wheels called Blurrs that you can flip over.

[fookya]

I'll usually change them when I pick up my board one day and think to myself  "fuck, these wheels look small as hell."

[the canadian suit]

I'll usually change them when I pick up my board one day and think to myself  "fuck, these wheels look small as hell."

I never know when to change em, this is my usual reasoning. Or, whenever Prize Fighter gets a new shipment I usually know it's about that time.

[Allen.]

I'll rotate my wheels every time I swap out a board, back left to front right and vice versa. To me it seems like there's a point of no return, once wheels start wearing down, they start doing it bad, I feel like. So once I notice that the wheels are off, in terms of sizing... wheels in the back or front being way different sizes, then it's time. Or once they don't have any shape and are completely squared off.

[ogcoors]

I usually ride wheels until one chunks out or flatspots. It's all personal preference. I wouldn't put too much thought into it. Don't be that guy that buys a whole new complete every month though. A real man only has to change a board out for a season or so. Those wheels and trucks should last a while!

[CINCINNATI]

I've had the same bones for like 3 years. spf conical shaped ones. started as 60s, now probably 55s? i guess i don't skate too hard

[bumpnrun]

When they're coned. I heard about these new wheels called Blurrs that you can flip over.

Blurr swirls.

Will change out wheels when they flat spot, start getting small, or feel sluggish.

[iwishilivedinfinla]

once... maaaaaybe twice a year?

[fulfillthedream]

every 3-4 months

[yatallfreak]

If your wheels looks like this then theyre toast

[oldgoodburger]

Rimz

[ChuckRamone]

in the small wheels days of the 90s, some extreme people had like a quarter-inch of urethane around their bearings, and that was their "wheel." kinda crazy to think people actually skated like that compared to some people's wheel standards today.