Beginner's guide to inline skating wheels

You might have worn out your first set of wheels or you want to know more about how to choose the right replacement wheels for your inline skates. Understanding the basics around inline skate wheel specifications will help you make the right choice.

Durometer, wheel hardness of inline skate wheels

Wheel hardness (durometer): expressed in A value such as 80A or 86A. The higher the A number is the harder the wheel. For example, a wheel that has an 88A durometer is harder than a wheel with 80A durometer. Wheels with a hardness below 80A are only intended for indoor use such as indoor inline hockey. All wheels with a hardness higher than 80A are hard enough for outside use. Wheels with a hardness between 80-86A are suited for all outdoor uses such as freeride, fitness, speed, race, freestyle, aggressive. Wheels with a hardness between 86A-90A are very hard and are usually used in aggressive inline skating and in some other special occasions. In general, the harder your wheel the less quickly it is going to wear off. The softer your wheel is the more grip and shock absorption you will get.

However, wheel quality and construction also play a role in these factors. It is often the case that a more expensive wheel is more durable and comfortable (because it absorbs shocks better) and has more grip and is faster than a cheap wheel, regardless of which durometer both have. Therefore, it is best to compare durometers only within one brand.

• Inline skate wheels usually have a hardness between 70-95A.
• The higher the A value, the harder the wheel. A 75A wheel will be softer than an 85A wheel.
• Wheels with a hardness below 80A are meant for indoor use only (they are too soft for outside) and wheels with a hardness above 80A are meant for outside use (and inside use is no problem).
• The harder the wheel the slower it will wear out.
• The softer the wheel, the more shock absorption and grip you will have.
• Be careful when comparing durometers of two wheels of a different brand.

Wheel sizes

Wheel size: expressed in mm such as 80mm or 110mm. When looking for wheels for your inline skates it is best to take the maximum wheel size which your frame fits. For example, if your frame says maximum 80mm wheel size you should look for 80mm wheels. Wheels between 56-72mm are usually used in aggressive inline skating. Wheels between 72-80mm are usually used in freestyle slalom inline skating and inline hockey. Wheels between 80-90mm are usually used in freeride and fitness. Wheels between 90-125mm are usually used in fitness, speed, race, power blading and freeride. In general, the bigger your wheels are the more speed you will be able to develop. The smaller your wheels are the more maneuverable and agile you will be. Every frame has a maximum wheel size it can fit so never get wheels above that maximum or they will not roll. You can put smaller wheels than the maximum wheel size your frame supports but that is usually not recommended because you are standing higher than necessary; in fact you are combining two disadvantages instead of two advantages. For example, if your frame fits a maximum wheel size of 110mm all inline skate wheels that are 110mm or smaller will fit on your skates.

• The bigger the wheel, the faster you go.
• The bigger the wheel, the slower you can accelerate.
• The bigger the wheel, the longer the frame becomes if you take the same number of wheels. The longer the frame is, the faster you are, because your stroke becomes more stable. On the other hand, you become less manoeuvrable.
• Always try to take the maximum wheel size that fits your frame. Otherwise you will combine two disadvantages instead of two advantages.

Three 110 mm wheels or four 80 mm wheels?

The question we get asked most often is whether we recommend three 110mm wheels or four 80mm wheels.

First of all, let us reassure you. The differences between three 110mm wheels and four 80mm wheels are subtle. In fact, you should first skate for a month with one set-up and then a month with the other set-up to know which of the two set-ups you like the most. 😊

The main differences are:

• With three 110 mm wheels you'll be faster.
• Four 80 mm wheels will allow you to accelerate faster.
• Three 110 mm wheels are generally more expensive than four 80 mm wheels, although you need fewer wheels and bearings. This is because one 110 mm wheel is more expensive than one 80 mm wheel and because a 110 mm frame needs to be stronger than an 80 mm frame.
• With three 110 mm wheels, you have less trouble with small bumps in the road. (Just as a large bicycle wheel is less affected by a kerb than the small wheel on a folding bike).
• With four 80 mm wheels you are a bit more stable because the wheelbase is a bit longer and because you are a bit lower to the ground. For tricks and slidings, four 80 mm wheels are therefore slightly more convenient. Despite the longer wheelbase, four 80 mm wheels are therefore generally considered to be more manoeuvrable than three 110 mm wheels.
• Three wheels stick out further from under the inline skates because the total wheel length is longer, even if the wheelbase is shorter. Therefore you have to be more careful that in criss cross tricks the front wheel of one skate does not hit the back wheel of the other skate.
  That's the second reason why four wheels are more popular for tricks and slidings.
  Compare the FR1 three-wheel frame with the the FR1 four-wheel frame. Although the three-wheel frame has a short wheelbase (the distance between the outermost axles) of 230 mm and the four-wheel frame has a wheelbase of 243 mm, the total length (the distance from the back of the rear wheel to the front of the front wheel) of the wheels on the three-wheel frame is 340 mm and on the four-wheel frame only 323 mm.
• With four 80 mm wheels you often have the possibility to rocker them (put them in 'banana'), either by playing with the wheel diameter or by having the possibility built into the frame. With a rockered wheel-set-up you are super manoeuvrable. Rockered wheel set-up is harder to obtain with three wheels.
• And most importantly: these are subtle differences. As a beginner, don't worry too much about them.

Wheel profile on inline skate wheels or radius

Wheel profile: also known as radius the wheel profile is how round or flat the wheel surface that touches the ground is. For example, a wheel with a flat profile will have a bigger surface area touching the ground than a bullet profile. A flat profile is usually only used in aggressive inline skating. It provides a lot of stability but the worst maneuverability and speed. Urban or round profile is used in freeride, fitness, inline hockey, freestyle and most inline skating activities. This is the normal round profile which most wheels have and gives a good balance of speed and stability. Finally, elliptical and bullet profiles are the sharpest wheel profiles that exist. The wheel will have a bullet like profile so that only a very small part of the wheel touches the ground when you inline skate. They are usually used in speed and race inline skating because they are very fast, but in fitness skates too. In general, the smaller the surface area touching the ground is when you skate is the faster you will go. The bigger the surface area touching the ground when you skate the more stable you will be.

• Flat wheel profiles have the highest wheel surface touch the ground during skating. They are very stable but less maneuverable and fast.
• Urban and round wheel profiles are the most popular choice. They are used in all disciplines of inline skating.
• Bullet or elliptical wheel profiles touch the ground the least and are very fast and agile but less stable.

LED, glowing and sparkling inline skate wheels

Wheel specials: the most common are LED, glow and sparkling wheels. LED wheels have a magnetic spacer in the middle that works like a dynamo, lighting up the LEDs in the wheel. A cool option and very handy in winter when you have to skate a lot in the dark. For the rest these wheels are just like normal wheels. The only difference is that the magnetic resistance needed to produce the light slows you down a bit compared to a non-LED wheel, but it's a very small difference. The faster you skate, the less you feel it. (You won't break your personal speed record on the sprint of course). Only in slalom, where you constantly stop and start, will you notice the resistance without the use of a stopwatch, but even that should not be exaggerated. See what Daria Kuznetsova thinks of it in this video.

Glow wheels are normal wheels that glow in the dark when they catch light during the day. The glow they give is much less than an LED wheel, but still cool. There are also wheels that are both glow in the dark and LED.

Finally, the sparkling wheels have flintstones on the outer surfaces that sparkle when you do slides or make a sharp turn. They give a very cool effect when you do a powerslide.

• LED wheels have a magnetic spacer in the middle that works like a dynamo so that the wheel lights up when it rolls. The rest of the wheel is the same as other wheels. The only difference is that you will experience a little more resistance when rolling, but the difference is small!
• Glow in the dark wheels are identical to other wheels. The only difference is that if they soak up light during the day they will glow in the dark. (By phosphorescence.)
• Sparkling wheels are identical to other wheels. The only difference is that they have flintstones on the outer surface which will give off sparkles when sliding.

Price of inline skate wheels

Wheel price: bigger wheels cost more than smaller wheels. For example, the same quality 80mm wheel will cost less than the same quality 110mm wheel.

In general when buying inline skate wheels from reputable inline skate brands the wheel price will be a good indication of the wheel quality.

Quality of inline skate wheels

Wheel quality: not all wheels are created equal. For example, an 80mm wheel with 84A hardness that costs 4 € will most probably be of lesser quality than an 80mm 84A wheel that costs 8 €. The wheel quality plays a role in how quickly your wheels will wear out, how much grip you have, how much speed you can develop, how well they absorb shock and just the whole feel of your ride. Paying more for a wheel is definitely worth it in the long run. In the beginning it might seem expensive but if you intend to skate a lot better quality wheels will last you much longer and make your skating time a lot more enjoyable.

• Better quality wheels make a difference in your inline skate experience.
• Better quality wheels usually last longer.
• If you look at the price per kilometre ridden, expensive inline skating wheels are often cheaper than 'cheap' wheels.

Questions?

Do you still have a question? That's possible, because this article only deals with the basics of inline skating wheels. There are some issues that we have deliberately left out or barely touched on. But feel free to email us at info@slidingtiger.eu.