Rink Rat Hotshot Wheels

[Chadd 916]

Posted for product review.

[hehatemefrisbee 0]

Product: 2004 Rink Rat Hot Shot wheels.

Intro: I go to buy the Hot Shot before many other people. It is only hitting most stores now. I have had mine for roughly 2 months, of 2-3 times a week skating. It should be noted that this years Hot Shot is almost half the price of last years.

Grip: The grip on this wheel has stayed strong throught the first few months of use. Initially it was quite difficult to skate on because it was so grippy. The Hot Shot is a dual pour wheel, that does things backwards in comparison to most other companies, with the harder stuff on the outside, softer stuff in the middle.

10/10 - Still as grippy as day one, playing on dirty floors 2-3 times a week over two months.

Speed: My biggest issue with last years wheel was that it didnt seem to be too fast, almost as though the wheel gave way too much. Well, it seems as the problem has been fixed, as I feel much faster on this wheel than I ever have. The core of the wheel seems much stiffer than ever before.

10/10

Durability: Again, another issue with last year's wheel was durability. I had my wheels warrantied twice last year, in a matter of 3 months. Thus far I havent noticed even the slightest "crack" in the wheel at all. Last year they seemed to have a problem with the urethane coming lose from the hub, again, so far I have seen nothing on my, or anyone elses wheels to suggest this is a problem again.

10/10

Looks: Probably the least important aspect to me, but some people take notice of how the wheel looks. The graphics closely resemble the Labeda Dynasty, and the Hyper Trinity. Simple, yet eye catching. I have seen better graphics on other brands however.

8/10

Intangibles: The price of this wheel influences my review. Last year's Hot Shot would set you back around $100. This year the highest I have seen for them is $65, and that is a very high price compared to Epuck's price of $54 for 8 (tax/shipping not included). I dont understand how they did it, but Rink Rat greatly improved on a pretty solid design, at almost half the cost. Whatever they are doing, I hope they keep it up.

10/10

Overall rating: 10/10. The only rating i gave them less than a 10 was an 8 for looks, which arent very important to me. I havent had the chance to try the Hornets, but to me, this is by far the best wheel I have ever tried. Labeda and Hyper dont come close to this.

[dgaronzik 1]

2004 Rink Rat Hot Shot Wheels (72/80, 76A)

background - 5'8 180, Roller Only

Intro: The past year has seen an incredible increase in the attention given to the roller hockey wheel. Hyper introduced its 2004 Trinity wheel, adapting its world-renowned Race urethane on its top end roller wheel. A new company named Factory has started to get attention over the past several months with its innovative designs. And for the past year, Rink Rat has created a stirring with its own innovative design. For people looking for the best performance in a wheel, now is your time to be able to pick and choose.

Grip: The grip on this wheel has remained the best of any wheel I’ve used. I have had these wheels for over 2 months now and all these wheels take is a little cleaning to get them back to their original grip. Around corners, the Hot Shots maintain their grip and allow you to cut as you please without worrying about your feet slipping out from underneath you. An important part of initial acceleration is grip as well. The Rink Rats have incredible starting ability. 9.5/10

Speed: Prior to skating on the Hot Shots, the fastest wheel I had ever skated on was the 2004 Hyper Trinity. However, the very first time I stepped on the rink with the Hot Shots, I knew they were faster. I could feel the extra speed beneath my feet even just rolling across the rink to my bench. These wheels have incredible straight-line speed and they enabled me to use more of my speed in every game situation. Starting, cutting, whatever, you are going to be moving faster then you have before. 10/10

Durability: Again, these wheels shine here. I have used these wheels for 2 months and they still look brand new when I clean them. They haven’t started to wear down at all. I have never had a wheel last this long, much less last this long and not been worn down. The fact that these wheels cost $7 a piece means nothing when you consider that you could be paying $5 a wheel every month. 10/10

Overall rating: 10/10. I had heard about Rink Rat a long time before I actually tried them. One of the things holding me back was the $10 price tag on both wheel lines. For 2004, they were able to lower the price of the Hot Shot wheel to $7 and that opened the door for me to try them. Rink Rat has truly made me a believer and now I would not hesitate to try out the $10 Hornets.

UPDATE - 6/3/04 - Well after 2 whole seasons and nearly 4.5 months, my rink rats are starting to show signs of death. Last night before my playoff games I decided Id check my wheels and despite them showing no signs of wearing down like typical wheels do, they were showing signs of cracking/splitting/whatever you call it. I flipped them so the inside edges were now on the outside and no problem for my games.

All in all, 4.5 months is over 2 times the amount of time I have gotten out of any other wheel I have ever tried. Usually wheels last me about 4-6 weeks playing 2-3 games a week.

[Hogs 25 0]

2004 Rink Rat Hot Shot Wheels

Intro: I have not used other top end wheels like the Dynasty or Unity. The price of the higher end wheels always made me shy away. In the past I used the orginal white Grippers, Gripper lites, and old Wicked Stickys.

Grip: The first time I skated the Hot Shots I was amazed. The grip on my old wheels was gone long before I quit using them so it took some time to get used to the grip. Stopping is where the Hot Shots excel. I was used to have a good bit of slide when stopping but not with these wheels. You really have to push these wheels hard to get them to slide out when taking a sharp turn. It also feels like I get the max out of every stride which makes them feel even faster. 10/10

Speed: This was actually the first thing I noticed about the Hot Shots. From the first time I hit the floor for warm up I could tell in the roll that they were faster and smoother than other wheels I had skated. The Hot Shots carry your speed through a turn nicely and accelerate like no other. 10/10

Durability: This is another area the Hot Shots shine. I have been skating on this set of wheels for about 3 months and they show no real signs of wear. I am pretty light and not hard on wheels, but these things grip now like the did the first skate. 10/10

Overall rating: 10/10. I was reluctant to try these wheels as I had never heard of Rink Rat before. Their Rep. was on some of the boards giving his opinion of the wheels but not giving much to back it up. After reading about of tech. behind these wheels it raised my interest. I can say now that it was a great choice to try these wheels. When it comes time for new wheels I will most likely get another set of Hot Shots.

[Hoffer 0]

Rink Rat Hot Shot wheel

Player: 5’5 138 Pounds

Grip: The grip in these wheels are amazing for the price. You can stop on a dime and the wheels aren’t the kind where the grip is great but the wheels are broke after a month. When you are using the traditional “C†Stop I could stop on a dime with these wheels while playing on many different surfaces from Skate Court to Ice Court.

9/10

Speed: While using these wheels it was easy to pick speed up on them. They still hold grip and are not so soft that the speed you get on the wheels decrease. Another thing I liked about these wheels is when crossing over all the speed I could pick up compared to other wheels I used in past.

10/10

Durability: This is where this wheel becomes edgy. I have had my Rink Rats for a long time and they have had a few cracks in them here and there but have had no problems with chunking or anything. The only problem is I have had two friends with them that they have rippers up and fell into pieces very quickly

6/10

Conclusion: I would give this wheel a 8/10 I myself have had no problems with it it gives great grip and great speed which few middle class wheels out on the market at the moment have. I my self would probably go for a set of green Dynasty’s.

[kovalchuk71 212]

Rink Rat Hot Shot Hockey Wheels

Other Wheels used- Rink Rat Hornets, Hyper Trinity, Labeda Dynasty, Labeda Milleniums, Labeda Grip Lite, Factory Z-rated, and a ton of others

Background- 5' 8" 147 Lbs. Finesse Skater/Hard on wheels

When I got these wheels I was eager to see how they would preform compared to my Dynasties.

Grip- WOW. These wheels have great grip. I can stop on a dime, but I do notice some slight sliding once in a while. Turns are tight and I feel like im on ice. I used an all 80mm 76A setup. They have decent rebound, but nothing compared to the Hornets. But all in all they will keep you in all those tight games. 9/10 (because of slight slipping issues)

Speed- Another Wow. I feel so much faster on these compared to my Dynasties. The speed is great wether your turning, or coming off of a startup. Straightline speed in great too. Theyre like the energizer bunny they keep going and going! The Hornets seem a bit faster, but these are right under them. 9/10

Durability- Probably the best durable wheels i have used. I have had a lot of cracking on my hornets and these just seem to not give up. 4 months in and they have absolutley NO cracks. Its unbelieveable because I am usually super hard on my wheels and they give up after about 3 months. There is wear, but no where compared to any other wheels ive used for this long. 10/10

Intageables- These wheels can be bought at about 6.99 a pop which is a steal for how they preform. If your looking for great wheels that will outdo any wheel out there, go for them and you will not be sorry. These are the best preforming, most durable wheels out there. What more could you ask for???????

9/10