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| Bearing Reviews (4976 Posts)
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germans
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On 10/19/2000 cold-fish
wrote in from
(196.2.nnn.nnn)
where do you get these german bearings?
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snitzel's bearings
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On 10/19/2000 shnitzel
wrote in from
(216.66.nnn.nnn)
My absolute bearing of choice would be the germans you can buy for dirt cheap. i stick them on my street luge and run them up to about 70 mph. when i take them out there's grease oozing out the sides. these bearings will run forever without maintenance if you treat them nice. then after a year on my streetluge they graduate to skateboard.
at the barrett junction race we were fortunate enough to run some swiss bones! they spun like crazy and seemed to run pretty quick. but after the day was done i went to clean them like the manual reccomends and yuck! full of dirt and grit! nice bearings but they sure wont live long that way.
so here is my next venture. i like germans and i've heard from a few sources that at the wheel rpm's we're running bearing friction = abec rating is pretty much neglegable. steel quality is important. so i'm going to try pulling the inner race out of a set of germans, clean all the grease out and oil them. i'll bet there as fast as anything! i'll keep you posted on that.
last word. a good stock german will run pretty quick and last forever without a second look!
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Shnitzels bearings?
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On 10/19/2000 Herbn
wrote in from
(216.107.nnn.nnn)
i've been pondering,what is your bearing of choice? if any.
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seized bearings
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On 10/18/2000
k2000
wrote in from
(208.30.nnn.nnn)
yo tropicalian the silicone spray probably didn't displace all the water in the bearings and letting them sit they started to oxidize (rust)
remove the shields, spray'em with wd40 and then blow out all the wd40 with compressed air before regreasing them
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china reds
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On 10/18/2000
tropicalian
wrote in from
(150.131.nnn.nnn)
So for a few days last week it was rainy here in Montana and the only riding I could get in was between rain storms, so the pavement was therefore pretty wet. After each hard ride on my board I would spray some silicon in them and let it soak in.
Then this last weekend I decided to take all the bearings out and soak them in some white lithium grease. All the bearings spun relatively smooth before I put them in, but when I took them out a day later three bearings were completely froze up :T
Anyone experienced something like this before? Should I not use lithium grease on them?
thanks guys for the help
*Jay
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speed demon
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On 10/17/2000 shnitzel
wrote in from
(24.65.nnn.nnn)
i had bad luck with the speed demons as well. toasted in four 1.5 mile runs on my luge (55 m/h approx.)
never bought them again....
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Speed demon
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On 10/12/2000 Herbn
wrote in from
(216.107.nnn.nnn)
Just had one go bad,actually i just realized it,two rides ago i thought i heard a jingly sound coming from a front wheel.Checked it out,it wasn't flopping around,so i continued. Today i spun the wheels and one slowed pretty quickly,not seized,but sluggish,the inner race spun around the axle ,i got the bearings out,popped out a sheild expecting the plastic retainer to be mangled ,nothing,trifloned it,blew it out with compressed air still no improvement,so i tossed it,and opened a new set (only used the one)problem solved,see how easy it is.
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teflon lube
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On 10/12/2000
hugh r
wrote in from
(205.216.nnn.nnn)
One of my favorite lubes of all time has teflon in it. Rem-oil gun lube. This can give you the thin teflon coating on the bearings without the mfg problems... HR
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teflon
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On 10/11/2000 roger
wrote in from
(198.206.nnn.nnn)
Mike, Yes teflon bearing (bushings) are used in some applications but not when high load forces are present (such as with skateboards) Problem with teflon is that it is very soft and deforms easily. Ball bearings and/or raceways, made primarily from teflon would mangle into a mess before you could get past your driveway.
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Teflon coated bearings
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On 10/11/2000
Mike G
wrote in from
(64.7.nnn.nnn)
Anyone thought of using teflon coated bearings? It would be ultra smooth, last longer than ceramics. Just an idea.....
--mike
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Abs
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On 10/11/2000 Herbn
wrote in from
(216.107.nnn.nnn)
Re: aom back on 9/27 i posted about these,they're actually an entirely different series of bearings,smaller balls,and pretty light,kind of midway between minimizers and regular bearings, being about as strong as a regular bearing because there's more balls(huh,huh he said "balls" again)i thought of adapting these along time ago, and actually did it back in march.I'll have to check the reflexs out though they are ABEC 5 and factory oiled mine only came greased.
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Reinventing the Spacer
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On 10/11/2000
Bob
wrote in from
(192.73.nnn.nnn)
Just saw this ad in Thrasher last night, and found this product on the website.
http://www.reflexbearings.com/abs.html
Interesting idea -- too bad it was invented in the mid 1970s-- its called a SPACER!!!!!!
This system looks like it probably limits skaters to using Reflex bearings. Not a bad gimmick. I'm sure lots of kids will fall for it.
Bob (angry old man)
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NTN
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On 10/9/2000
Chris Chaput
wrote in from
(63.168.nnn.nnn)
Kent, I will gladly pick up a set of NTN's and try them out. Now that I am a Gold Medal winning inline downhill skater, I gotta try what the vets are running ;) This weekend at Barrett Junction I was running a mixed bunch of rusted old bearings (no-name Abec 3's to Swiss) that I had cleaned out and lubed. The key to success was the aerodynamics provided by my Landingham helmet and kevlar leathers and speedsuit. My first ever downhill skate run was the qualifier (I took no practice runs) and I qualified 2nd, 8 seconds behind Scott Peer. I overbraked in the hairpins because in streetluge, buttboard and standup you had to throw on the brakes hard to make the turn. With other riders on the course however I took a few more risks and I nailed three consecutive 1st place runs and the Gold. When everyone is running the same gear I may have a better idea of how much effect bearings have on speed.
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NTN
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On 10/5/2000
kent
wrote in from
(63.226.nnn.nnn)
Chris-
I think we have a different engineering methodology behind our terms. Rather than sideways pressure, it should have been noted as "twist torque" from the center 608 ring to the outer. Since a skateboard wheel has a much longer axel system, torque is less of as issue. Also, skateboard are (supposed) to be ridden with all 4 wheels on the ground which limits this action as well.
Hey, I saw your website and it's great.
Also, I noticed that your using Ninja Mini's. Well, kinda back to my point. I'd guarantee you a faster roll with NTNs.
kent
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dirt intake
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On 10/3/2000
Ryan M
wrote in from
(165.236.nnn.nnn)
I was swapping some china bones reds into a pair of slimeballs the other night, and noticed that they were still squeaky clean inside aside from a bit of speed cream residue, even after more than 8 weeks of rough riding. There seems to be less of a gap between the inner race and the outer shield, so less crap gets sucked into the bearing, compared to my generic abec 5s. You can just wipe em off, instead of worrying about packing dirt and tar into that little gap. I'd say I used them about the same amount of hours as the generics, but they're so much smoother now and don't suck up dirt and gutter crap like the generics seem to do right after I clean them. I guess that's the real difference between a skate bearing made by powell and generic bearings that probably would end up in some vaccuum cleaner if it wasn't for us idiots with wooden planks on wheels.
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generic abec 3's
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On 10/3/2000
k2000
wrote in from
(208.30.nnn.nnn)
i took apart a relatively new set (maybe an hour of riding) of generic abec 3's last night
i was surprised to see virtually no grease or oil in 3 of them, and probably not enough in the others
they spun much better as single sheilded bearings
does anyone out there PREFER single shielded bearings (i do)?
if you do prefer single shielded, do you use grease or oil?
k
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SWISS
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On 10/2/2000 DOOBIE
wrote in from
(204.52.nnn.nnn)
Swiss arent 400 bucks, they are $40.
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china reds
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On 10/2/2000
Oliver Bonaccorso
wrote in from
(210.8.nnn.nnn)
Has anyone found anything faster than these????????
For the price (22dollars australian,12dollars american)
These bearings are durable, low maintenance, FAST (wheel spins for 75 seconds if u really want to sk8 with that set up)and allows all the speed u need. Does anyone really think it's worth buying $400 dollar swiss bearings?
i don't think so....
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"Inline" bearings
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On 9/29/2000
Chris Chaput
wrote in from
(63.168.nnn.nnn)
I disagree with Kent about the sideways force on an inline skater's wheels. The frames (blades) on a inline skate are constantly leaning so that the forces being exserted are directed downward, not sideways. You are standing on top of the frames, even in a turn or push. If inline wheels are mounted on a skateboard, the sideways thrust would tend to be more pronounced except that the wheels are tall, narrow and radiused which means that they tend to "bend over" in a turn and lose speed and traction so that the amount of sideways force on the bearing is again diminished. Tall grippy wheels with big hubs tend to put the most sideways force on a bearing because they (the wheels) go fast, hold a line with traction in a hard turn and transfer most of the force due to the increased leverage of an inflexible hub.
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NTN again
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On 9/29/2000
kent
wrote in from
(63.226.nnn.nnn)
Opps, don't check this board often. Back to NTN.
Roger, about the sideway force. I would argue that there is more sideways force on my inline skates because the wheel are taller and skinnier.
As for other bearings I've tried...Twincams, Bones Swiss, Ninja Mini's, Ninja Ceramics, Black Hole....
k2000, that's great you keep the money in the family, but that's kinda ignorant. Many skateboard companies are simply provate labelling other's product. So, when you're buying Powell, you can bet they didn't manufacture them, but somebody else did in accordance to their specs.
The NTN's are kinda "loose"...so I asked their tech why that is. Here's the response..... I quote:
The amount of "play" you are feeling in the bearing is factory pre-set. Each
one of the moving parts in that bearing have been machined to a precision
tolerance of 4/10,000,000ths of an inch!!!!!!! This is the most precise item
you will ever purchase in your life.
We methodically calculated this clearance so that you - the skater, can do
any number of disciplines on this one bearing such as - roller hockey,
aggressive skating, skateboarding speedskating etc.
This clearance - when combined with the extra deep raceways that we have
also built into this bearing allows you to do two things better than on any
other bearings:
a) You will corner much tighter - because the balls will not slip out of the
raceways and,
b) any particles of dirt that make their way into the bearing will be
"expelled" much easier from the bearing - because of the extra spaces
between the balls and the raceways.
So relax, and enjoy them.....you have nothing to worry about.
It should be noted that the NTN don't have shields. They have one raceway to be used on the outside bearing and they offer an inner rubber shield if you want it.
kent
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Speed Demons or Lucky Bearings
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On 9/28/2000 La Salle
wrote in from
(63.195.nnn.nnn)
Which one can be unshield? i found some at this skate shop, but i dont know which is can be un shielded....for easy cleaning...what do you guys recommmend?
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P.S.
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On 9/28/2000 Herbn
wrote in from
(208.192.nnn.nnn)
I forgot to elaberate,I don't know which "standard"spacing they use,for those of you not aware,some factions of shortboarders are going a little smaller with wheels again(yuk) Alien is one of those ,they have 49mm wheels,so hopefully they didn't go with a narrower spacing too, in the questionable quest for minimalism.
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Not really
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On 9/28/2000 Herbn
wrote in from
(208.192.nnn.nnn)
ABS,Two flanged sleeves (t nut kind of,but no threads)slide into bearings that have a 10mm bore,instead of the usual 8mm,the flanged sleeves overlap/interlock with a spacer that goes between the bearings,a tiny ammount of play is designed into the system,when used with Alien Workshop wheels you just tighten the axle nuts all the way.Well it is kind of like the rollerblade setup only bigger bearings,three parts instead of one,and no threads,other than that it's just the same:)
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Z-speed
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On 9/27/2000
Kaylee
wrote in from
(158.252.nnn.nnn)
I use these in my shortboard. I've ridden better but I've also ridden worse. They are smooth and fast, but mine sound a bit crunchy and I haven't been near sand since I put them in a couple months ago. By the way, don't bother ordering the GMN 608BRS (rubber shields on both sides), they said I got the last set. I would say the Z-speeds are better than Pigs, Bollocks, and Black Panthers, but not as good as Swiss or GMN's. Those are all the brands I have experience with. But to be honest, I have a set of really fast and smooth bearings that spin forever and have no crunchy sound that includes a couple of bearings of each brands I mentioned above. It seems that out of any given set of bearings you buy, two or three last forever and spin real well. The rest get chewed up and die, regardless of the name on them. That's what I've found anyway.
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Z-speed bearings?
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On 9/27/2000
Ryan M
wrote in from
(165.236.nnn.nnn)
anybody out there tried these? Z-products Abec-3 Z-speed? I checked out their site, www.zprod.com, and had my eye on the 608ZZRs with speed lube...ZZR=rubber shield on one side, right? and speed lube=greased? The price seems right at least. Thanks!
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