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Skateboard Bearing Reviews

 
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Bearing Reviews (4976 Posts)
Bearing Review
taking out bearings
On 5/11/2000 Mike wrote in from (64.7.nnn.nnn)

thanx for the advise. WHat i was doing was pulling out the bearing with the end of the axel but i slipped the wheel on to far and i didnt turn it. well it works the way u said it thanx.

 
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taking out bearings
On 5/11/2000 mark wrote in from (159.142.nnn.nnn)

take the wheel off then stick it back on the truck, but only so the axel goes in about 1 centimeter, or just the depth of 1 bearing. then use the axel to pull the bearing out by pulling the wheel up and to the side, then flip the wheel over to pull out the other bearing.
How are you doing it now? It sounds a bit unusual that you will be ruining the bearings?

Getting the shields off is another story and a bit more of a delicate procedure.
Mark

 
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taking out bearings
On 5/10/2000 Mike wrote in from (64.7.nnn.nnn)

OK. Whats the deal. I try to take out bearings out of my shortboard wheels and i always mess up a couple of the bearings which sucks which ment i had to go and buy a whole new set. someone please tell me how to take bearings out properly!

Thanx
Mike

 
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FKD's
On 5/8/2000 Phil wrote in from (205.188.nnn.nnn)

i love my FKD's they kik ass i just go ones with the gold shields and i broke them in, in one day. they are about 30 bucks and are much better that swiss ceramix which can chip on break so if u have ne Questions email me.

phil

 
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fkd's
On 5/8/2000 gilbert wrote in from (216.124.nnn.nnn)

The fkds i got were the best out of all of my friends. They
have eather china bones(those are also nice) swiss bones(those
are the best ones along with mine) black panthers(those are
pretty good. But for the time being my fkds are the best out
of about 15 longboarders. And most of my friends want to buy
them. So in my opinon fkds work the best.


Cleaning methods.

when i clean my bearings i use just regular motor oil and
let them sit in a jar for a day or two.and you can put your
spacers and washers in there too. But use the clear stuff
not black old stuff. then i take just a can of compressed
air and clean out the middle of my wheels. after i dry my
bearings with a rag i spray them with lubricant, put them
in my wheels and ride off. theres a cleaning tip from me.

 
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MAGNUMs
On 5/7/2000 quicky wrote in from (205.179.nnn.nnn)

I bought them at a local surf/skate shop called Pacific Wave, but I've seen them elsewhere.

 
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where do you buy them at?
On 5/6/2000 questioner wrote in from (64.20.nnn.nnn)

where did you get those bearings at?

 
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Magnum ABEC 3s
On 5/3/2000 quicky wrote in from (205.179.nnn.nnn)

I just bought a set of magnum bearings. You've probably seen them, they come in the shotgun shell and are shielded on one side. They cost ten bucks and are worth it. I like em' alot but I added a few drops of speed cream before use. Do you guys like these bearings? Are they gonna come apart on me? Good quality? I haven't rided them enough to really give a full review.

 
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Bearing cleaner
On 5/2/2000 herbn wrote in from (207.198.nnn.nnn)

I'm pretty shurr ant is fn wit ya,either that or my board is longer than da bus he takes to school.

 
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black widows and independent bfs
On 5/1/2000 benny wrote in from (205.188.nnn.nnn)

are black widows and independent bfs bearings any good?

 
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CLEANING QUESTIONS
On 5/1/2000 ANT wrote in from (198.189.nnn.nnn)

Thanks for the help fellas,

I need help again....

Well, this is how i clean my bearings....

i just unscrew the tires off the trucks and clean off all the dirt and grease from the bearings and tires....

i have some harry balls, so im having problems opening them up....its sealed...so all i do is clean them...and then

screwing them back on and adding the sewing machine oil to it....is that cool? or should i find away to open up my bearings...

beacuse i dont know what is side them....i think if filled with grease...but im not sure.....so what should i do....i dont think

im suppose to open them up?

help out guys...bearings are expensive....

thanks

ANT

 
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Sewing Machine Oil
On 5/1/2000 Pre-School Rider wrote in from (209.198.nnn.nnn)

ANT,I've posted this before(Dig into the Archives here),but go to a Sewing shop that sells sewing machines,and get the oil for sewing machine bearings.Why? Because sewing machines use open-faced and shielded precision bearings that are THE SAME as on your board,and the oil there is pretty cheap.

 
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WD-40
On 4/30/2000 Scott wrote in from (216.126.nnn.nnn)

WD-40 would not be my first choice of lubricant for a bearing. Actually I would use as a lubricant at all. WD-40 is mainly a degreaser. if you have something that is sticking because of grease build-up, then you would want to use WD. But it isn't something that should be used alone as a lubricant. Use some machine oil, Speed Cream, etc. Something that will actually work as a lubricant. If you use WD-40 your bearings as a stand-alone lube your bearings will eventually weld themselves together. I'm not knocking WD-40, but my Shop Teacher in Junior High said, "The right tool for the right job," and WD-40 is not the right tool for lubing bearings.

 
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Cleaning with WD-40-----is it bad?
On 4/29/2000 ANT wrote in from (209.254.nnn.nnn)

hey, i ve sprayed my "harry 5 ball abec bearings" with "WD-40" is that bad? im trying to find a cleaning method that works...but my bearings seems like they need grease not WD-40...but it works....so it is bad...help out guys!

 
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bearing tests
On 4/29/2000 DT wrote in from (152.169.nnn.nnn)

you have to keep in mind other variables, such as the oil you use if you clean them.

 
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Swiss Bones
On 4/29/2000 Vic wrote in from (205.188.nnn.nnn)

Hey Herb, I hit 43mph on Sibbald with Swiss Bones bearings and 76mm Turbos on my Concave pintail with RI trucks. Also just tried that hill in Upper Saddle River with the S turn, very nice. I would love to test some bearings with you in the near future, I'll stop by and chat sometime.

 
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bearings test (the scientific way)
On 4/29/2000 Ali wrote in from (212.48.nnn.nnn)

Okay, here's the setup you need.
First off, you need a complete setup that you're gonna use with the different bearings. You also need some dead weight, a couple of bricks for instance, because if you're gonna be on the board yourself, you'll give it a load that's slightly different for each set of bearings. You need a steelyard (I hope this is the right translation, my dictionairy said so, anyway it's a thing to measure weight that uses a hook on a spring, it's usually used on markets) and last but not least (and not easy to get) you need one of those "walking machines", the thing with the conveyor belt you use in a gym.
Now put the board on the belt, and attach the steelyard to it's nose, thus keeping the board in its place when you switch on the belt. Put the dead weight on the board and make sure you can put it on the exact same spot every time you run a test.
When you switch on the belt, the board will be transported of it, but the steelyard will hold it in its place. The drag, caused by the wheels and bearings, is the force measured by the steelyard. When you change the bearings, leaving the rest of the setup exactly the same, you can compare the bearings, the ones with the least drag being the fastest.
Also, you can measure how the bearings respond to the switching on of the belt, that way you can get a response-curve.

The only problem is, that this is all just a theory. I don't know whether this will work, I don't know if the differences are big enough to be measurable, I don't know if the belt can be switched up to speeds high enough. But I think the basic idea is correct.
Anybody out there wanna try it?

Good luck!
Ali.

 
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Bearing test
On 4/29/2000 hugh r wrote in from (205.216.nnn.nnn)

Herbn, you need to move to So. Cal... because I would be pleased to test bearings with you... out here! HR

 
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Speedemons
On 4/29/2000 Herbn wrote in from (207.198.nnn.nnn)

I've given these the thumbs up,some people disagree.There shouldn't be any major price difference,so if you're tough on bearings stay with the chinas if you just downhill and wanna try something different try the speedemons and make up your own mind,I'd love to hear some precise facts on bearing speed. I ride solo to much to do these tests,any body up for North Jersey hill bombing bearing tests?

 
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speed demons
On 4/28/2000 bernie wrote in from (152.163.nnn.nnn)

are speed demons better then china bones - ilove china bones and have 5 sets - 1 set of swissies - and 1 set of fkd bearings. chinas are almost as good as swiss and beat FKDs. will speed demons give this kind of performance for cheap?

 
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Ceramics
On 4/27/2000 Herbn wrote in from (207.198.nnn.nnn)

Using my trusty gram scale (usually reserved for weighing trucks)I weighed a set of swiss and a set of ceramic swiss,the ceramics weigh 16 grams less,this may not seem like a lot but everything is the same exept the balls so the 16 gram weight loss is entirely from the balls thats got to be about half the weight of a primary rotating component that takes energy to accellerate and maintain speed,that makes them fast in adition to the polishing and the hardness of the material.

 
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Ceranic Ballz
On 4/27/2000 lugedemon3 wrote in from (151.188.nnn.nnn)

people are misled when they here the word "ceamic", the ceramic material used in bearings is not the same as the plates your grandma has, the ceramic used is only surpassed by diamonds believe it or not. They are so expensive because it is a week's process just to polish/shave down one set worth of ceramic balls, diamond fragments and dust is used during the process(on tools and machinery used to produce ballz).

 
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Ceramics
On 4/26/2000 Lindsay wrote in from (202.37.nnn.nnn)

Thanks, yeah thats what I figured. I know a couple of
freestylers who avoid certain high grade bearings, saying
something about how fragility (is that a word?)

 
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Ceramic Bearings
On 4/26/2000 Pre-School Rider wrote in from (209.198.nnn.nnn)

Lindsay,this may be more info than you want,but there isn't a simpler way to explain the "why" of ceramic bearings...Being made of ceramic,the surface of each bearing ball can made much smoother than even polished metal bearings.That smoothness,which can only be seen with microscopes,means less rolling friction,but at a slight cost in durability(ceramic can chip or crack,whereas metal dents on impact.Ollie with care),and a BIG cost to the buyer.If you race,it might be worth it,as speed is what wins...

 
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Ceramics
On 4/26/2000 Lindsay wrote in from (202.37.nnn.nnn)

Thanks Jonas, I guess you dont want to go doing any big
drop-offs etc. on ceramics aye..

 
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