Wheels for smooth concrete?

[Beleafer 14]

League I will be playing in uses ice rinks with the ice melted revealing smooth concrete. What type of wheel should I be using? I am 5'9", 150-160lbs. Would 78a cut it?

[Thepandamancan 0]

Depending on your skating ability and how clean the surface is, yes it should be good enough. I weigh slightly more than you (in the 170 range) and am using 72 or 74s.

I play on an outdoor rink that gets really dusty and dirty. A lot of guys use these wheels (link below) and love it. I used to also, but wanted more grip.

http://www.inlinewarehouse.com/Labeda_Shooter_Multi_Surface_Hockey_Wheels_/descpage-LSAPW8.html

If you want more grip, the lowest I'd go is 76. My wheels are wearing down a bit quicker than I'd like.

[BucksAway 16]

take a look at the wheels from Tron, i have the Green ones ( there top wheels ) and they are fantastic on smooth concrete, grip is amazing although they wear quickly but that's the same as any wheel for me.
A few friends have the purple wheels and they say that are very good for the price

[teamlabeda 1]

Your best bet would be soft or medium Grippers by Labeda. They grip and wear great at an affordable price point and would out perform Tron's top end wheels.

[BucksAway 16]

Your best bet would be soft or medium Grippers by Labeda. They grip and wear great at an affordable price point and would out perform Tron's top end wheels.

The grip from both the Labeda and Tron wheels where very similar in my experience. No matter if I use Addictions, Grippers, Hot Shot, Hornet all the wheels wear the same on smooth concrete, i am a very aggressive skater so i burn through wheels like no tomorrow. You can't make predictions like that without knowing the facts either.

[NorthStar 0]

Like already mention in this thread. Labeda shooters 83a, I have personally used them, on smooth concrete there good. I'm going to pick up some Labega grippers yellow 80a, next to try them out, I have head good things about them.

[henryb 4]

Agreed, I have tried many many different wheels on smooth concrete and best that I have come across are the Yellow Grippers. I have not had much success with any dual pour wheels (on concrete), tried various hardnesses of: Addictions, Variants, Hornets, Splits, etc. The dual pour wheels are really only for sport court. You need a single pour wheel for concrete, like the Gripper. Another good option is the Revision Multi-Surface. I have not tried anything from Tron.

[teamlabeda 1]

The grip from both the Labeda and Tron wheels where very similar in my experience. No matter if I use Addictions, Grippers, Hot Shot, Hornet all the wheels wear the same on smooth concrete, i am a very aggressive skater so i burn through wheels like no tomorrow. You can't make predictions like that without knowing the facts either.

Cant make predictions without knowing facts? What facts??

[BucksAway 16]

if you can't figure it out for yourself I am not going to continue to comment

[wetwilly17 6]

BucksAway,

i had the worst experience with tron wheels. i ordered some of their wheels (i don't remember which ones, but they were green). they came with bearings and spacers preassembled in the wheels. i never imagined any product could be so poor:

1) the wheel shape was warped and completely uneven, when i spun the wheels, you see how out of round they were

2) the spacer bores were too small to fit on my axles and had to be thrown away

3) whoever pressed the bearings into the wheels, mashed in the dust shields on half the bearings and ruined them (wouldn't spin)

4) no grip at all and the wheels just felt unstable (probably due to the warped shape of the wheels)

with that said, i have always loved labeeda wheels. i highly recommend the gripper series as they are the best bang for buck that i have found from playing roller for 15 years

[BucksAway 16]

at least you are speaking from your experience!!
I haven't noticed any warping or the wheels been uneven and me and my family have ordered over 16 wheels. From the Australian store we got 8 purple and 8 green and they also sent a set of bearings which seemed fine although I never used them but family member said they where good for the price.
16 green from the US store and i never got bearings or spacers which was odd but not that bigger deal as I already own decent sets of bearings. Grip and wear is good especially on smooth concrete, when i used grippers that start chipping after a few weeks, havnt got tat far along with the Tron wheels yet but will see what happens

[darmin 2]

Over the last 2 years I have used a variety of different wheels on smooth concrete. I am a little heavier then you but similar height and not a hard skater. The only other variable is temperature, it doesn't get below 30deg Celsius often where i live and its even hotter in the rink.

Labeeda Addictions - Chunked after a couple of games

Rink Rat splits - Chunked after one game

Tron - Clear Green 74a - Nice wear no junk but beerings didn't seem to fit right (though many others use these due to price point)

Labeeda Grippers, White, Yellow ( No real difference on wear but white had more grip)

Labeeda Shooters Green - Nice Grip, No wear issues at all and a good price

Rink Rat Splits 78a - Similar to the White and Yellow Grippers but you can see some cracking/splitting

Due to wheel cost where i live (Rink Rat Splits 78a $12 per wheel) I emailed both rink rat and labeeda for advice feedback when the top of the end wheels chunked. They both said to go with a single poor and to use a 78a or above if its not too dusty.

On a Personal note I prefer solid colour single poor wheels, just seem to be less issues with them

[Beleafer 14]

Would the stock wheels from the Inhaler AC5s work? Hi-Lo HL1 76A?

[Beleafer 14]

So just found out the rinks I will be playing out of are smooth concrete, but they are unpolished so not very slippery. Would this change anything?

[darmin 2]

Depends on what they call smoth concrete.

The wheels on the AC5 would be a good starting point to get a level on how it treats the wheels.

I would recomend using what ever wheels you have around the 76a - 78a and see how it treats them.

Personally if it was me and I was going to a similar rink that I haven't skated on before i would have a set of labeeda Shooters on and only change if I didn't have enough grip.

[Kohjor80 0]

I've been running the Variant Plus for a bit now. they seem great for me on a slick smooth concrete.

[wehojp84 5]

Hello All,

I am 5'9" 175lbs playing on outdoor (some dust from time to time) really smooth and sealed concrete. Skating on Axiom T9's and I have had good grip in the past with 74 76 76 74 setup with labeda grippers but wanted to try out some Variant wheels. What do you recommend? I was looking at doing all 74a variant plus, or their axis 74a indoor on the ends with their axis multi surface 78a in the middle. Or all wheels the axis 78a multi surface. The axis line is about $5.00 and the Variant plus is about $12.00/wheel. I'm looking for the best bang for my buck (I'm willing to spend the $$ on variant plus if they have really good durability vs. the cheaper ones). Any feedback would be much appreciated! Thanks

[wickedslappah 6]

I use 84A Red Star Rocket wheels on a smooth concrete surface. You will sacrifice some grip/traction but if you are a good skater it will work. The loss of grip/traction will allow you to skate to faster speeds due to less friction between the wheels and playing surface.

The Red Star Rocket is a higher end outdoor wheel. If you are looking to increase your speed I would give them a shot.