Roller wheels

Summer is around the corner! It’s another great time to get your roller skate wheels rolling. Roller skating also known as quad skating involves skating with quad skates – a skate with four wheels, one at each angle of the skate. Quad skates are suitable for artistic or recreation skating because they have a constant speed, and are easy to steer. They are also used for indoor and outdoor activities. If you are looking for a perfect recreation sport to engage with your friends, family, or colleague, roller skating is an ideal choice. The adventure, excitement and ecstasies you’ll experience are mind-blowing.

As you anticipate the coming skating season, you have to double-check that you have everything in place for a trouble-free ride. First, you have to inspect your quad wheels to know if they are still in perfect shape or need changing. If you are opting for a change in the type of skating that you do (indoor to outdoor and vice versa), you have to change your wheels. And if you are new to the game, you need to buy a squad skate.

The most important part of a roller skate or quad skate is the wheel; without it there is no skating. Hence, the fun and thrill of roller skating depend on it. So, whether you are buying a new skate or replacing your faulty roller skate wheels, picking the best wheel for your roller skate is essential.

Guidelines for buying Quad skating wheels

Many people get confused when it gets to pick the wheel that is suitable for their roller skate. For this reason, we have compiled a list of compulsory features to look out for when buying a new skate or replacement wheels.

1. Bearings

Wheel Bearings are the reason why your wheels roll. They determine how long and fast your wheel can roll out, and the overall performance of the wheel. When examining the bearing for skates, tolerance rating and material of the bearing are the two key features to check.

Most bearings are made from either steel or ceramic. Steel bearings are more common than ceramic bearings, but ceramic bearings are more durable. Not all steels are good for making bearings. The recommended steels for bearings are Titanium, Swiss, and Chrome steel.

The tolerance rate of a bearing determines the efficiency of the quad wheel. Most brands use the ABEC standard to measure the tolerance level of the bearing, while a few others use DIN and ISO standards. In the ABEC standard, higher rating numbers represent better wheel efficiency. While in DIN and ISO standards, lower rating numbers represent higher wheel efficiency. However, note that not all good bearings for skates have rating numbers.

2. Durometer

The hardness of a skate wheel is the next key factor to assess when buying a quad roller skate wheel. Durometer rating is used in measuring the hardness of a wheel. It also determines the durability, level of shock absorption, and clasp of the quad wheels on surfaces.

The hardness of a wheel is measured on an A-scale graded 1-100, but ranges from 74A to 105A. When assessing the hardness of a wheel, consider the purpose or kind of skating you do as the hardness level of wheels for each of them differs.

Here is a list of the kind of skating and the recommended hardness level for each of them.

• Artistic Skating: this kind of skating uses wheels that range from 97A to 103A. The hardness levels of this type of wheel offer a strong grip that can support tricks and twists when performing.
• Speed Skating: This kind of skating needs wheels that range from 95A to 98A to provide a strong grip when at a high pace.
• Indoor Skating: This kind of skating uses wheels that are less hard than artistic and speed skating, and they range between 92A to 97A. 92A is best suitable for standard surfaces, 97A for softer surfaces, and 95A for slippery surfaces.
• Outdoor Skating: the wheels for outdoor skating activities are softer than wheels for other types of skating. They range from 78A to 85A.
  
  

3. Rebound

The ability of a wheel to bounce is called rebound. When a wheel is thrown on the ground, it bounces off. The higher the bounce, the greater the rebound and the better it rolls. To check the rebound of a wheel by bouncing it alongside another wheel of the same hardness. The one with a greater rebound will bounce higher.

4. Shape

The shape of skate quad wheels determines how fast the wheel can go, and how well it can steer. Narrow wheels are easier to maneuver than wide wheels, but wide wheels offer more grasp and firmness. Hence, narrow wheels are recommended for artistic purposes while wide wheels are recommended for speed skating. Also, the edges of a wheel is either rounded or squared. Rounded edges have better speed than squared edges.

5. Size

The size of a quad skate wheel is a measure of its diameter and width. The several skating types have wheel sizes that are ideal for each of them. Artistic, indoor, and outdoor skates use small-size wheels because they offer a high level of support and are easy to maneuver. While speed skates use big-size wheels because they are speedier and more Flexible. The ideal size for small wheels ranges between 55mm to 70mm and 30mm to 42mm in diameter and width respectively.

Small wheels are recommended for newbies as they are easy to control, and they offer a steadier speed. With small wheels, newbies will not have to bother about crashing to the ground and sustaining many injuries often.

Purchasing your roller skate wheels for outdoor, indoor, artistic and, speed skating

Whether you are buying a new quad skate or replacing your artistic, speed, indoor, or outdoor wheel for quad skates from a walk-in skate accessory shop or an online skate store, you now know the key features to assess. The guidelines listed above are the same as the guidelines for purchasing road wheels for roller skates.

The price for quad skate or roller skate wheels as it is popularly called ranges between $6 to $70 and above depending on the brand, size, and quality. When buying online ensure to check for the qualities listed above before placing your order. Also, ensure that the stores offer shipping services to your location before making payment.