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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS);faqs.497




MAINTENANCE

Wheels of any durometer will wear out, given enough mileage.  There's
only so much polyurethane on your wheels, while there's thousands of
miles of asphalt out there (a slightly different story for indoor
skating, but wearage occur nevertheless).  Your wheels are due for
maintenance when your skates are much  slower and not rolling as
smoothly as when new.  The inside edges will wear more quickly, which
you will eventually notice.

There are two things to do to increase the life of your wheels:  rotate
them and flip them.  Rotating your wheels means to switch the positions
of the wheels.  Different positions (like the heel or toe wheels)
receive varying amounts of wear.  By rotating the wheels, you can even
out the wear each wheel receives.

Flipping your wheels means to turn each wheel so that the worn edge now
faces the outside.  This lets you wear down the other portion of the
wheels.

There are several patterns for wheel rotation.  The one you use isn't
crucial.  The main point is to maintain an even wear on your wheels and
to extend the amount of mileage you can get.  Feel free to swap wheels
until you feel you have a good distribution on your skates.

Some rotation patterns:

The front wheel is "1" and the back wheel is either "4" or "5".

For 3-wheel skates:  3->2, 2->1, 1->3

For 4-wheel skates:  4<->2, 3<->1                   OR     4->3 3->2 2-
>1 1->4

For 5-wheel skates:  5->3, 4->2, 3->1, 2->5, 1->4   OR   5->3, 4->5, 3-
>2, 2->4

In addition to rotating and flipping your wheels, you should also wipe
off your skates, rails, wheels and bearings with a damp cloth.  This
keeps the amount of dirt on your skates and wheels to a minimum.


ROCKERING YOUR SKATES

Having skates non-rockered means the axles and wheels are all at the
same height This is the way the skates come when you buy then.  What
many skates allow you  to do is to change the height of some or all of
the axles, to provide a different "blade" to skate on.  Rockered skates
then, have the middle two wheels lower relative to the front and heel
wheels.  This is accomplished by having oval spacers with an offset
axle-hole.  So each spacer can have an up or down position.

Racing skates are also adjustable, but only in the horizontal direction,
allowing for a longer or shorter wheelbase.

Although subject to some disagreement, many skaters find rockering
provides much more maneuverability due to the curved "blade" of the
wheels.  Whether you rocker or not is really up to you.  Many hockey
players prefer to have their skates rockered for sharper turns on the
court, while racers keep their blades flat for more stability at high
speeds (rockers at high speed will produce speed wobble).  Artisitic
skaters may also prefer rockered, while extreme skaters may
stay flat.

Depending on your skates, there are various rockering configurations
possible.  If your skates can adjust the height of only the middle two
wheels, you can have your skates flat or rockered:

Flat : ==frame==

        1 2 3 4


Rockered: ==frame==
           1     4
             2 3

If your skates can adjust the height of all four wheels then you have
the positions of


short even rocker: ==frame==    (wheels closer to boot, for more
control)
                    1      4
                      2  3

tall even rocker:  ==frame==    (taller, for sharper turns)

                    1       4
                      2  3

front-lift rocker: ==frame==    (a little more stable than regular
rocker)
                   1
                      2  3  4

front-lift,      : ==frame==    (tilts skates forward)
rear-down, rocker  1
                      2  3
                            4



Wheels generally run from $4.25 to $8.00, depending on the quality and
size of the wheel.  The three inline wheel manufacturers are Kryptonics,
Inc. and Hyper Inline and Labeda.


[Copyright 1992 by Anthony D. Chen.  All rights Reserved.  License is
hereby granted to republish on electronic or other media for which no
fees are charged (except for the media used), so long as the text of
this copyright notice and license are attached intact to any and all
republished portion or portions.]

========================================================================

                          THE BEARING MAINTENANCE FILE
                          ----------------------------
                              (written May 2, 1992)
                           (last changed Aug 19, 1992)
                         Compiled and edited by Tony Chen

Contents:
* General Info
* Sealed or Shielded?
* Bearing ratings
* How to maintain your bearings
  1st method : If you don't mind taking off the seals.
  2nd method : If you don't want to pry off the seals.


GENERAL INFO

Inline skates all use 608 bearings.  The number means that the bearings
are from the 600 series, with a 8mm inner diameter (the width of the
hole i.e., internal bore).  The "6" appears to be for the 6mm difference
between the inner and outer radii (from the outside edge to the edge of
the hole).

608 bearings are also the standard size for skateboard bearings.  Quad
skates use either type 608 (8mm internal bore) or type 627 (7mm internal
bore).  The 608s for quads are the outdoor bearings. If your  bearings
have letters following the "608" (like "S", "Z", or even "ZZ" or "SS")
it is the manufacturer's way of denoting sealed or perhaps double
shielded bearings.  To make sure what they mean you should probably
check with the manufacturer, since it varies from company to company.

Bearings for in-lines generally come grease filled.  Some bearings like
GMNs are sold either greased or oiled (but usually greased).


SEALED OR SHIELDED?

There are basically two types of bearings.  Most likely you will have
SHIELDED bearings, which most stock skates come with.  Shields will make
it hard for dirt and grime to get in, but they certainly aren't dust or
water tight.

There are also SEALED bearings, which have a teflon or rubber lip seal
that actually touches the brace, and come packed with a fairly heavy
grease.  Rollerblade sells sealed bearings under the name Max Trainers.
You may find other brands as well.  The advantage is that they should
last a long time without any maintenance at all.  The trade-off is that
these bearings generally cost more and you also encounter a much higher
rolling resistance.  Slower bearings are not necessarily bad, since many
people like the added resistance for a better workout.


BEARING RATINGS

Bearings are rated on the ABEC (the Annular Bearing Engineering Council)
scale.NMBs are rated ABEC-1, GMNs are ABEC-3, and Powell Swiss and
Fafnir are ABEC-5.  Buying bearings rated any higher than ABEC-5 will
probably not do any good since they aren't be meant for use in in-lines.
The higher precision will be lost to contaminating dust and dirt anyway.
(If it's speed you want cutting down wind-resistance and improving your
technique is probably a better way.)

Really precise bearings are only used in high speed (read: rotational)
applications, as in machinery.  The next higher grade up from in-line
bearings are in machines which are rotating at speeds of at least
10,000 rpm which is around 80+ mph.  You probably won't want to go that
fast on your skates 8-)  At 50,000 rpm you would be traveling 400+ mph.
So which happens first?  the wheels melting, or the skin ripping off the
skater?  Gives new meaning to shredding 8-)


WHEN TO CLEAN AND RE-LUBRICATE YOUR BEARINGS

Exposure to dirt and water are the main reason that your bearings slow
down.  Bad bearings will be the ones which don't let your wheels spin
for a respectable amount of time.  If you hear or feel the vibrations
of metal rubbing on metal, chances are, your bearings are in need of
some maintenance.

If some of the balls or bearing surfaces have become roughened, there's
basically nothing you can do.  They won't get any better, but they may
last a long time anyway.  You can always replace your bearings a few
at a time.

Take care of your bearings by cleaning and preping them as needed.
Assuming normal usage, they should last through several sets of wheels,
depending on how much skating you do.


REPLACING YOUR BEARINGS

You can replace your bearings if (1) any of your bearings have somehow
stopped spinning well, despite all the cleaning you do or (2) you want
to change to different types of bearings (racing or sealed or whatever).


HOW TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR BEARINGS

1. Remove your wheels from the skates, and push the bearings out with a
   spare bushing (the plastic/metal part that goes between the bearings)
   or one of the several types of bearing tools available on the market.


2. If you have Powell Swiss (Bones) bearings, simply pry off the
   removable plastic cap on each bearing.  If you have NMBs, GMNs
   (Germans), other shielded bearings, or sealed bearings, carefully
   puncture or pry off the shield (or seal) on one side. (Some people
   tell you to never pry off a seal, some say it's okay.  It's really up
   to you.  Whatever you do, lubrication always helps)

   When removing the covers of entire sets of bearings at once, be
   careful to only take off one cover per bearing.  Otherwise you'll be
   left with a shieldless/sealless bearing (which won't last long
   against outdoor conditions).

   Once you have the cover off, you should be able to see the ball
   bearings inside, held in place by a brace.  You won't need the old
   metal covers anymore.  In Bones bearings the cap is ALSO the brace,
   so you won't see a brace.  Bones users should obviously keep the
   plastic cap when reassembling their bearings.

   You don't want to take the ball bearings out since they aren't meant
   to be removed and replaced.


3. Soak the bearings in paint thinner, naphtha, Simple Green*, or any
   other handy solvent.  In any case, the choice of solvent isn't
   crucial so long as you can get all the dirt and old grease cleaned
   out.

   Avoid low-flash point solvents like gasoline, xylene, lacquer
   thinner, etc. which are dangerously flammable.  Also wear latex/chem
   lab gloves if possible.  Solvents are no fun to ingest or absorb
   through your skin.  An alternative is to use a pair of tongs or
   tweezers to handle your bearings.

   How long you soak depends on how dirty and dried out your bearings
   have gotten.  Previously maintained bearings won't need to soak very
   long.  Bearings that have gone dry and have lots of grit in them may
   need to soak overnight, or even several days.

   If necessary use a brush or swirl your bearings around in your
   container to make sure everything breaks loose.  Small coffee cans,
   peanut jars, or even the little black film canisters you get with new
   film, all make decent containers.  You don't really need large
   amounts of solvent.  Just enough to immerse your bearings.  You also
   don't need to refill with clean solvent with each bearing, unless the
   solvent you were using has gotten really dirty.  The essential thing
   is that the dirt and grease is broken up.  Step 4 will remove most of
   the gunk.

   WD-40 is generally not recommended as a solvent since it leaves a
   sticky, dust attracting film on the bearings.

   *Simple Green.  Just soak the parts in pure Simple Green and rinse
   with water.  Thoroughly dry everything off and lubricate immediately.
   Simple Green is water soluble, so take care to dry it well, since it
   can cause rust otherwise.

   Parts come out much cleaner and much faster than with other solvents.
   You should stay cleaner and there are no nasty fumes to inhale.
   Simple Green should be available in most grocery or hardware stores.


4. Now rinse out your bearings with hot, soapy water to make sure you
   clear out all the solvent.  You now have some clean bearings.

   Clean, unlubricated bearings appear to have the lowest amount of
   unloaded friction, but don't expect them to last very long if you
   skate on them.   After a fairly short time, the surface of the balls
   will start to flake   and roughen and they won't spin very well.


5. Use a hair dryer or just air/sun dry to make sure that all traces of
   water are gone.  Using a hair dryer or basking in the sun also preps
   the bearing nicely by heating the metal somewhat.


6. Now lubricate with your favorite lubricant.  You can use Tri-flow or
   one of the specialty lubricants distributed for bearings.  Bones
   bearings come with their own Speed Cream.

   You can use grease or oil as you prefer.  Oiled bearings have
   slightly less resistance, but need to be maintained more often (as
   often as once a week).  It is very helpful to have a little
   hypodermic style oiler with a long needle to let you put the oil
   right where you want it.

   Grease works well because after a while most of it gets shoved out of
   contact with the balls and only a little bit smears onto the
   workings.  However, newly greased (or heavy oil) bearings, will take
   a while to expel any extra grease and move the rest out of the way.

   For oiling, light oil, like sewing machine oil, or 5W-20 motor oil is
   a good choice.  Household oils (3-in-one, etc) may gum up after a
   while and the teflon-based lubricants have little particles of teflon
   that are only in the way.

   Some people recommend that you use a 50-50 mixture of lighter fluid
   and baby oil to lubricate your bearings.  This mix should result in
   not having to clean them out as often, only lubricate more often.

   Let the bearings sit for an hour, and wipe them off.


7. Put one bearing back into the  wheel, with the open face towards the
   inside of the wheel.  Insert the bushing and then put on the second
   bearing (with the open face towards the inside again).  It is pretty
   hard for contaminants to get into the bearings from the inside.


2ND METHOD (for keeping the shields on):

   First do Step 1 (from 1st Method).

   If your bearings are permanently sealed (or you don't want to remove
   the seals) you can still soak in solvent (see step 3) for several
   hours or as long as you feel necessary.  Enough solvent should soak
   through to remove some of the grease.

   Then you can lubricate the seams and/or press some in with your
   fingers.  Enough oil should seep through to lubricate your bearings
   (see step 6).

========================================================================


From: [e-mail] (Phil Earnhardt)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Date: 8 Mar 92 04:03:01 GMT

First off, note that there are 3 types of brakes available for the Rollerblade
"square" brakes (used on current Rollerblade high-end skates -- Lightning,
Aeroblade, Racerblade, etc.):

    o Black Brakes. What used to come on the skates by default; what
      dealers stock as replacement brakes by default. Marking and squeaky.
    o TRS Brakes. They gray guys. About twice as expensive. Marking.
      Somewhat squeaky, but less than the black ones.
    o Polyurethane Brakes. These appeared near the end of the summer of
      1991. They come in bright blue, pink, green. Priced near the price
      of the TRS Brakes. No squeako at all (sometimes, they hum -- it's
      kind of nice). No marking at all. By my metric, they last longer
      than the Black guys but not quite as long as the TRS Brakes. The
      braking action is a bit grabby; some may view this as a problem.

WRT brake life, I'm sure you'll get some subjective opinions. However, I have
never observed the Poly brakes crumbling and coming off in chunks. Remember,
the wheels are just polyurethane, too -- do you see them come off in chunks?
It might be possible to lose chunks of polyurethane on extremely rough roads;
I'd recommend avoiding such surfaces.

=END OF PART 2==================================================================
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From: [e-mail] (Tony Chen)
Subject: rec.skate Frequently Asked Questions (Part 3 of 7)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Followup-To: rec.skate
Sender: [e-mail] (Tony Chen)
Supersedes: <[e-mail]>
Reply-To: [e-mail] (Tony Chen)
Organization: University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
References: <[e-mail]>
Date: Sun, 6 Dec 1992 21:23:44 GMT
Approved: [e-mail]
Expires: Tue, 5 Jan 1993 06:00:00 GMT
Lines: 542

Posted-By: auto-faq 1.23
Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part3


REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 3:  (ROLLER)HOCKEY (draft)

Contents:
- general hockey FAQ
- info on sticks

================================================================================

                        Inline Hockey FAQ File
                        """"""""""""""""""""""

This file reflects the observations of our small group's trial-and-error
approach to organizing and playing hockey on inline skates, as well as
advice from other rec.skate and rec.sport.hockey readers.  We've done a
lot of experimenting with gear, play, etc. and it is hoped that our
experiences will be helpful to others getting involved in this fun and
fast-paced sport.

Tony Chen, our besieged FAQ administrator here on rec.skate, has been good
enough to take responsibility for posting this FAQ along with the other,
less colloquial ones, being a more responsible person than myself.  So you
are invited to Email him with praise.  If, however, you have comments or
additions to the hockey FAQ, Email them to me at [e-mail].

                                                    Thomas Darling (RW)


GEAR """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
_________
Sticks //  Many of our players use standard street hockey sticks, with
______//  wooden shafts and plastic blades.  These seem to survive the
surface with minimal wear.  However, those more experienced players
(former ice hockey players all) prefer wooden ice hockey sticks, with taped
blades, for superior puck control.  These obviously wear down a lot
faster than on ice, being scraped across concrete and leant on for power
turns.  Once the blade is taped, a razor is used to trim off the bottom 1cm
or so to prevent fraying.

Perhaps the benefits of wooden ice hockey sticks are predominantly
psychological, based on the familiarity factor.  But to those of us who
use them, they "feel" better and therefore give us better results.

If you decide to use a plastic-bladed street hockey stick, you should
make sure to get one long enough for you to use when on your skates;
most street hockey sticks are designed to be used on foot.  There are many
schools of thought on determining stick length, which like anything else,
eventually comes down to matters of personal preference and style of play.
But as a rule of thumb for beginners, try to get a stick that comes up to
somewhere between your chin and nose.  You can always cut it later if you
wish.

Todd <[e-mail]> offers these additional suggestions:

"I work closely with some friends [who] own a Hockey store out here in
the San Jose/San Francisco area; we have used several different types of
sticks on the street surfaces.  One of the best sticks to use on any
street surface is the KOHO 2200 Ultimate, with a poly-tech blade on the
end of a wooden hockey stick.  It does not wear thin as quick as a mylec
stick... Easton makes an aluminum street hockey stick...it is a good
stick, but not better than regular hockey aluminum versions... The last
stick to try is the Bauer Street Hockey stick: all wood with a poly-tech
blade on the end, just for street hockey use."

"Mylec blades, you can go through 1-2 a month if playing 3-4 times a week.
I've gone that route too."

And this from Michael Quinn <[e-mail]>:"For a stick, I
used an old ice hockey stick with a plastic replacement
blade.  Incidentally, I was up in Boston last week and saw a neat looking
rubber brake that screws onto the shaft of a hockey stick near the blade.
I didn't get a chance to try one out though.  They sell them at Sports
Etc. on Massachusetts Avenue in Arlington."

Comments from anyone who has tried this stick-mounted brake would be
appreciated.
________
Pucks //  Sun Hockey makes a nifty three-wheeled puck called the "Hot
_____//  Puck."  The puck is hard rubber, and the "wheels" are three teflon
balls that protrude through the top and bottom.  Advantages: It appears to
be regulation size and weight, and it feels great against the stick.  It's
an extremely cool design.  Disadvantage: It doesn't work.  Even on the most
ideal surface (we tried it on a tennis court-type deck), it bounces,
flips, and ends up rolling on its edge more than on the "wheels."  I really
wish they'd come up with a better functioning design, because the feel and
idea are sound.

Since the Sun puck doesn't happen, we use Mylec street hockey balls.  They
come in three different colours, coded for different temperatures.  The
orange one works best so far; minimal bounce, but a bit light.  Be
aware that the temperature type of the puck is important; we've heard
of a warm-weather ball that shattered when used in cold weather.

Also be aware that there are cheaper balls out there, and some of them
suuuuuuck.  We've even encountered one that was unevenly weighted and
textured.  Not good.  Since the Mylec balls are only a couple of dollars,
there's no reason not to get the real thing.

Nobody's completely happy with this compromise, but it's the best option
we've seen so far for outside play.

As for inside play, Marc <[e-mail]> adds:

"When we play outside, we usually use an orange Mylec, but it bounces too
much for inside play so there we use a Viceroy, which also weighs about
twice as much.  They are made in Canada, and I don't know where you might
get them other than a good well stocked hockey shop.  We all tend to use
the Viceroy in tournaments."
__________
Padding //  Checking is a bit less frequent in the inline game, which
_______//  is good, because the summer heat makes heavy padding out of the
question.  Hardshell knee pads are a necessity, because everyone
occasionally collides with the boards or the ground.  Elbow pads are also
highly recommended.

Those nifty wristguards are probably a good idea for skating and training,
but for all practical purposes it is impossible to hold a hockey stick with
them.  This is OK, because you can use the stick to break your fall in many
circumstances, and you can't build up huge speeds in a small rink anyway.

Opinions vary on hand protection.  Some players prefer ice hockey gloves.
They provide superb protection against sticks, decent padding for when you
get crunched, and enough finger coverage to make hand passes safe.  On the
other hand, they tend to be very hot.  Many of us opt instead for
weightlifting gloves, the fingerless mesh kind with leather palms.  These
allow your hands to stay cool, yet prevent the loss of skin when you're
knocked sprawling.  They allow good stick control.  Just don't go grabbing
the puck with 'em, lest your fingers be rolled over/chopped off.

(Note: Weightlifting gloves are difficult to dramatically throw down.  So
if you get into a violent confrontation, you may incur a few bruises while
trying frantically to peel them off.  If you play this way, be careful.)

Another option is to use a cheap pair of Nylon hockey gloves.  They're
still a bit warm, but considerably lighter than leather gloves and you're
less apt to be concerned about beating them up.
_________________
Eye Protection //  It's always been too hot to wear my helmet.  Ray-Bans
______________//  look cool, and are better than nothing.  Use one of those
goofy ShadeStraps so they don't go flying when you get cross-checked from
behind.
______________
Goalie Gear //  A good mask is essential, regardless of puck type.  Either
___________//  a cage-type ice hockey mask or an inexpensive Mylec mask
will do.  An ice hockey stick is highly recommended, since they tend to be
larger than their street hockey counterparts.  Any variety of blocker will
suffice.  If you're playing with a ball of some kind rather than a puck,
we've found that using a baseball glove for a catcher will give good
results.

In regards to leg pads, the cheapest Mylec ones appear to work the best.
Since they're made of hard plastic, a goalie can slide on his knees in
them, which improves effectiveness.

Marc [[e-mail]], a Texas hockey veteran, adds:
"When I goalie I usually wear a cage helmet (since I wear glasses), elbow
pads, a blocker on the right hand and a catcher's mitt in the left, a
catcher's chest protector on my chest and belly (with my Dead Wings jersey
over that), a cup and the Mylec leg pads, along with the skates.  I
usually wear a t-shirt under the chest pad, also.  I've suited up like
that twice a week all summer down here and have lost about 10 pounds.
Most other goalies in the Metroplex use either a large softball mitt or a
regular goalie's mitt, but I had the catcher's mitt to begin with and
find that I am used to it and can't use a regular glove very well."

SKATES """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
__________________
Choice of Skate //  ...depends on playing style and the ever-important ice-
_______________//  hockey familiarity factor.  As an ice-hockey player, I
use Bauer XS/5's with the brake removed.  They're all laces, no buckles,
and are nice and light.  They've got good bearings (hence decent speed)
and strong frames.

The most popular skate among our skaters is the Rollerblade Zetra 303.
It's a little heavy and clunky, but has an extremely durable boot, which is
good if you like to plant yourself in front of the goalie and get your
ankles whacked at a lot.

I also might recommend the Gretzky Ultra Wings.  They're all buckles and
kind of heavy, but durable enough to stand up to hockey abuse.

The bottom line, really, is that you can make do with what you've got.  One
of our best players uses el cheapo skates (Phantoms?), yet still manages to
come up with the breakaways and finesse plays.
____________
Rockering //  None of us rocker our frames.  I know that every book in
_________//  the world says that you should rocker them for hockey, but
the difference in turning ability (especially at high speeds) is
negligible.  All that appeared to be seriously affected were speed,
traction and stability, none for the better.
_________
Wheels //  So far, we haven't experimented greatly with different wheels.
______//  I've used both hard and soft, and liked the hard ones better,
since they last longer and feel better on grinding stops and turns.
Rollerblade makes a "Hockey Wheel" with better perimeter width (to reflect
the need for stopping/turning over straightaway speed), but since they're
hubless and generally cheap-looking, nobody has picked any up yet.  Any
comments on these wheels would be welcome.

We've heard that "Turbo Core" type wheels (with spokes instead of solid
hubs) don't stand up to the stresses of hockey well.  Those skaters I know
who use such wheels have reported no problems, but the net.consensus on
this is that "spoke" breakage does happen, so it bears repeating here.

TECHNIQUES """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
____________________
Stick Turns/Stops //  Many of us ice-hockey players are aggrivated by
_________________//  the limited turning and stopping ability of inline
skates.  A typical drag stop (rear foot 90 degrees against leading foot)
works in most circumstances.  But another good technique is the stick
stop.

In this stop, the skater begins a tight turn towards his stick side.  For
this example, we'll use a right-handed skater.  Right foot forward, he
makes a tight turn, putting his stick blade down (to the right) in the
process.  He leans against the stick, grinding his left foot outwards,
until coming to a stop.  With practice, one can even hang onto the puck
while executing this stop.

Sometimes, when going very fast, I find that I must crouch low to keep
pressure on the outer foot -- often to such a degree that the boot, instead
of the wheels, makes contact with the ground.  This gets good results, but
is not recommended for less durable boots.