Jason Mitchell, Seismic Nationals 2007, Hybrid Slalom.  Photo by Greg Fadell Northern California Downhill Skateboarding Association
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Skateboard Bearing Reviews

 
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Bearing Reviews (4976 Posts)
Bearing Review
Shecklers
On 10/8/2008 Glenn wrote in from United States  (159.153.nnn.nnn)

Why would his signature model bearings need be fast?, his skating is all about jumping off big things (I love the video on youtube where he decides the 'raddest' thing to do with a 12 foot bowl is to try to kickflip off the edge and into the flat bottom), surely they'd be more tuned for toughness. Unless the only difference is the signature of course but i'm not cynical enough to believe it's all just marketing bull$#!+...

 
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6 yr old Oust 7s !
On 9/28/2008 Richy C wrote in from United States  (207.200.nnn.nnn)

My 100 cone clean record was on 6 year old moc 7s , I was lazy and left my practice bearings in ! These things keep on killin it! Happy BDay Carl Leckavich,Thanks for all you do!

 
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oooosheckler!
On 8/19/2008 herbn wrote in from United States  (67.83.nnn.nnn)

why are shecklers any better than any other ninja's? ninja's are good bearings but they're all the same ,it's just about being a fan of one rider or the other.They are available without an "autograph" for less money and i think with a top quality bearing i'd defy anybody to do a blind comparison between sevens and fives,it's a 50/50 chance so it would be hard to do that kind of test unless you had like a 100 boards set up....

 
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forgettin some
On 7/12/2008 jon wrote in from United States  (12.50.nnn.nnn)

yall have some really good advice here (specially about the abec ratings uninportance) but your left some stuff out. i dont know about the fancy bearing like fefner but bones reds(or china bones) are really cheap and effective. they are not the fastest out there but are smooth and good. i started out on rush bombers and when compared to my friends bones reds they averaged about the same. also Ninja bearings are very fast(recommend the shecklers) dont forget that if your bearings are losing speed to clean them. youll find after a while that cleaning them dramatically increases your results. and steve i wish my reds were like yours(plus i dont recommend riding through mud and rain) my board went through one puddle and my reds started wearing down badly. when a bearing rusts there is many things you can do though. i find cleaning them quickly stops almost all damage. or if they are not extremly rusted just riding and spinning them can unpack some of the rust.

 
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this shuld help
On 6/17/2008 speed man wrote in from New Zealand  (210.48.nnn.nnn)

Double Shielded:
NTN Fafnir MRC ND SKF HCH YW
7MM 627-ZZ 37KDD 37FF 77037 R7-2Z 627Z 60027
8MM 608-ZZ 38KDD 38FF 77038 R8-2Z

Double Sealed (neoprene rubber):
NTN Fafnir MRC ND SKF
7MM 627-LL 37PP 37ZZ 99037 R7-2RS
8MM 608-LL 38PP 38ZZ 99038 R8-2RS

 
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Abec 11
On 5/30/2008 Glenn wrote in from United States  (159.153.nnn.nnn)

Abec 11 is a great name for a wheel company though. Every time a kid notices that I or my kids have fast wheels he always asks "what bearings have you got?" or even "what ABEC bearings have you got?", the idea that a wheel might be faster than another seems completely alien. having them just read your wheel can save a lot of explaining...

 
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Bearings ratings
On 5/30/2008 Michael wrote in from United Kingdom  (87.114.nnn.nnn)

bearings are rated, as they are really a commodity in industry. The ratings give an indication they meet certain standards of manufacture. However the uses that skaters put bearing through (lateral loads etc) mean that its best to use whatever bearings YOU find work for your intended purpose. Thats why some bearings are used by racers that dont actaully conform to standard Abec ratings. I dont believe Ousts (hence the moniker 'Moc' 9 etc) or Rockets actually conform to any recognised inductrial Abec rating but are very good for racing purposes. A good indictaion is to run a flat course and turn back at the end and see how much speed you carry through the c'u' turn on the way back. I find big differences in what speed the bearings keep in what is a bug turn.

As a rule of thumb I use pretty much any Abec 5 rated bearing as a standard, and use higher end bearings such as Oust, Rockets, Bones Swiss or Pleasure tools for racing.

I believe Abec 11 (wheels) are really a play on the skit in Spinal Tap where the amplifier is 'louder' as it was marked up to 11 on a scale which should be 1 through 10.

 
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bearings
On 5/29/2008 caddy wrote in from United States  (206.135.nnn.nnn)

let me have it....
hammer me but.....
is there rally a abec 1 through 7 rating?

 
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Fadell..............
On 5/24/2008 Pauliwog wrote in from United States  (65.122.nnn.nnn)

...............is the Devil! Fast, too. -P

 
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"Lucky" Bearings
On 5/24/2008 Paul Howard wrote in from United States  (65.122.nnn.nnn)

Lucky Bearings suck, plain and simple. I have had several friends in the town where I live have them disintigrate as you described whilst longboarding, streetskating, parkskating, etc. I have also heard of others on this forum in the past with the same problem.

Personnally I like Oust 7's, Rock'n Rons, Khiro(whatchamacallems?),Bones Swiss(with the new labrynth seal), Pleasure Tools. I'm sure there's more out there that are good as well.

I also prefer bearings that have a good sealed structure or a labrynth sheild. In other words, hold the bearing up to a light or the sky(not the sun however) and if you can see light peek through the inner circumference of the seal/shield and the inner "hub" of the bearing, then you will be getting a LOT more dirt/dust in your bearings and they obviously will have a shorter life.

Good Luck - P

 
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Khiro Bearings!!!!!!
On 4/16/2008 HELL FADELL wrote in from United States  (199.227.nnn.nnn)

I road KHIRO ceramics at the Beast of the East last weekend....

FAST AS HELL!!!

Nuff said.............

 
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ABEC 11
On 3/12/2008 Rob in VA wrote in from United States  (138.162.nnn.nnn)

Hippy, ABEC 11 is a company that makes wheels. They make some of the best wheels available today in my opinion. Rob

 
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about ceramics..
On 3/7/2008 Liam Fourie wrote in from United Kingdom  (135.196.nnn.nnn)

I have heard from reliable sources that you get ceramic ball bearings that are a grey colour and apparently these balls are a better quality and less likely to shatter.. can anyone back this up?

 
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Ousted!
On 3/6/2008 Chris Yandall wrote in from United States  (66.91.nnn.nnn)

Carl is a genius!

I'm head over heals with MOC 7's for the boardwalk. These bearings are simply tolerance loves and lubed to roll perfection. awesome stuff!

 
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10mm Bearings
On 2/25/2008 Liam Fourie wrote in from United Kingdom  (135.196.nnn.nnn)

You will be able to get bearings to fit a 10mm axle from Landyachts as they are ONE of the only companies that sell these trucks..

 
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there is nuch such thing as abec 11
On 2/21/2008 hippy wrote in from Australia  (124.184.nnn.nnn)

thers nuch such thing as abec 11s

 
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ceramics
On 2/16/2008 James wrote in from United States  (76.221.nnn.nnn)

the bones ceramics cost 100 dollars and i tried them out, because my friend has them and they ride really nice, and now i want some ceramics, I have some rocknron's rockets and they ride real nice and their nuclear missiles (ceramic) cost 85 dollars should i take the chance and get some nuclear missiles or be safe and get the bones?

 
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reflex 10mm bearings
On 2/10/2008 doug wrote in from United States  (204.38.nnn.nnn)

hey, i got a set of reflex 10mm bearings, with 10x10mm spacers and a set of 8mm top hats that came with; they're all brand-new. i was wondering if anybody know how much these retail(ed) for and if anyone could give me a link to them

thanks!

 
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10mm bearings
On 2/9/2008 herbn wrote in from United States  (67.83.nnn.nnn)

what company is still doing 10mm bearings for skateboards?

 
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not so "lucky"
On 1/25/2008 MP / Speedo wrote in from United States  (71.49.nnn.nnn)

I've had those before at some point.
You might want to try a set of Bones, Oust, Ninjas, RocknRons or something like that.

 
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Shattered bearings
On 1/16/2008 John wrote in from United States  (69.226.nnn.nnn)

I had a set of Lucky 7s for about 2 months. The other day i was out rideing my board in a nearby shopping center/ gas station. they worked fine the whole time i was skating but when my friend came by my board didn't seem to want to roll. we went back to his house to see what the problem was and when i removed a wheel, the inner bearing came appart into about a bazillion pieces. I can't figure out why it happened. can anyone help?

 
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Nature Boy Ninja 7's are now available
On 1/16/2008 Ninja wrote in from United States  (69.223.nnn.nnn)

Nature boy has joined the ranks of Ninja riders with their own signature bearings. These are Ninja 7's which are the fastest non-ceramic bearing ever !!! Ride em', race em', just get them. You will not be sorry.

 
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ceramics at speed
On 1/10/2008 fitz wrote in from Australia  (220.236.nnn.nnn)

I'm able to get more speed out of ceramics by being able to use less lube without fear of bearing blowout. Wash the factory packed lube out and adding just a tiny drop of thin oil is enough to hold back surface rust on the races.
Manufacturers drench bearings in the crap to acheive better shelf life in packaging. You'll find most of it spins out onto your nice new wheels on the first few rides (break in period) and they actually get quicker.
Ceramic balls have a far smaller heat expansion co-efficient compared to steel. If steel balls get to hot with friction (from lack of lube) they can seize.
Less lube means less drag.
I'm testing a 10mm axle set of ceramic bearings with stainless races at the moment.
History shows most stainless race bearings are slightly softer than high carbon (harder) ones but the difference isn't noticeable at speed. The stainless races may wear out quicker though. Time will tell.

 
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i concur ,,again
On 1/8/2008 herbn wrote in from United States  (67.83.nnn.nnn)

i think aero is the most most important difference,well rider to rider weight is obviously up there,but for riding with other people of about equal weight, aero is it with clothing/helmet at the top of my aero factors,ride height may be up there too.Leathers and aero helmet is good for about a 1 mph advantage on a mile long 40+ hill,not impressive,you wouldn't notice solo ,BUT that's about a 120 foot leadat the bottom,that's HUGE,you just watch the leathers ride off into the distance.

 
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David's question
On 1/8/2008 JBH wrote in from United States  (165.134.nnn.nnn)

David, I own a set of Ron's ceramic Nuclear Missiles, as well as a set of the steel Missiles (or Missles, as I think it was spelled on the package).

I got them because, like you, I wanted to believe the claim that they were better for high speed than other bearings.

A few months ago, I did some downhill speedboarding on a legitimate 40 to 45 mph hill. It drops steeply for about 100 yards, then goes over a series of small ups and downs. The whole run is about a mile long. I've skated it several times before and only once have I ever made it over it without pushing. Every other time, I ended up running out of speed somewhere short of the top.

Anyway, the last time I skated there, I used the same wheels for several consecutive runs (I think they were either white Speed Vents or Pink BigZigs) and swapped bearings after every one or two runs. I tucked every run about the same and took virtually the same line every time. I didn't compare top speeds or elapsed times, but I did compare how far I went up the "runout."

Here's what I discovered: There was NO noticeable difference between any of the bearings I tried. The Nuclear Missiles (brand new) went about as far as the steel Missles (<6 months old and cleaned ultrasonically and relubed), which went about as far as the Oust MOC 9's (also recently cleaned and relubed).

I also skated each run with at least one other person beside me, and I noticed no significant difference in acceleration, i.e. how fast they got up to speed.

So to answer your question based on MY experience, I'd say there's no demonstrable difference between any clean, decent-quality bearings.

As MANY people besides me have said many times before, your bearings matter less than you think, and less than other things like how aero you can get or the line you take. So get a set of bearings you can afford, and work on your tuck and your general skills on the board, like footbraking, sliding and drafting.

For what it's worth, I also own a set of the Nitro Racer X ceramics and a set of RocknRon's ceramic Rockets that are at least three years old, plus several sets of Pleasure Tools green-sealed ABEC 7's. I like them all, and I use them all. I just don't worry much any more which ones I use, as long as they're even reasonably clean. I have not done the same run-by-run comparison of those on a DH board, but if I did, I suspect the result would be virtually the same.

So there's my answer for you. Take it however you want.

 
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