Everything About Skateboarding Bearings and Wheels

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Everything About Skateboarding Bearings and
Wheels You Should Know
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Skateboard Wheels
Introduction
If you use a skateboard then its important to
know about its bearings and wheels. Every
skateboard wheel has two bearings and if you want
your skateboard wheels to roll smoothly then good
quality bearings is a must. The space between the
bearings can be filled with the help of a spacer
and the small metal cylinder prevents the
bearings from moving to the center of the wheels
when it comes to tightening the axle nut and
getting damaged. The spacers are useful to make
sure that the bearings are parallel with each
other. For soft quality wheels, spacers are
advisable. If you purchase the skateboard
bearings from a reputed shop online or from a
local shop then you will not find it challenging
to get the size you need.
Skateboard Bearing
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Role of bearings in a wheel
There is an outer ring and a small inner ring in
the bearings and just between these rings there
are small steel balls. This helps the wheels to
turn. On each side of the rings there are covers
known as shields and it helps the bearings to
remain clean. They are located inside the ball
cage and it keeps the balls in its place. You
can also choose to skate with ball bearings
without shields, which are open or semi-open. If
you do skate with open or semi-open bearings,
they will indeed be more susceptible to
contamination, but they will be somewhat faster.
Many skaters enjoy the slightly louder sound of a
skateboard with open bearings.
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Role of ABEC 3 bearings
It is said that if the ABEC rating of the
bearings is legendary, then it will be fast as
well as better. Here ABEC stands for Annual
Bearing Engineers Committee and this standard is
decided for understanding how fine the rolling
elements will be.
High ABEC rating means low tolerance for any
types of errors during the manufacturing process.
Rating will help to decide the quality of
bearings in the skateboard, but it is also a fact
that RPMs have been achieved even when skating
is low so the role of the rating is not required
to get a bearing. ABEC 7 or 9 bearings have the
potential to reach 20,000 to 30000 RPM and for a
54mm wheel, it will correspond to a speed of over
200 kilometers per hour. This is the reason why
some manufacturers renounce ABEC ratings, though
it can still guide you to get that first
impression of the bearing quality. When it comes
to speed and relevance of skating, ABEC rating is
futile to some extent because the impact of
skateboarding on the bearings is very different
than industrial use traditionally.
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• This is why one should buy only skate tested
  bearings as they are more resistant and are
  designed to meet the skateboarding goals. So,
  when it comes to performing landing tricks or
  other tricks of turning, the bearings will do a
  good job. The exciting and new developments keep
  taking place in bearings. These days you can get
  the skateboard bearings that are made of titanium
  or extra hard balls made of the tempered ceramic.
  The special technologies are used for increasing
  the lifespan of the bearings and they are quite
  expensive as well.a

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Cleaning the skateboard bearings
The wheels of electric skateboards need to be
kept in good condition if you want to have a wow
experience during skateboarding. The bearings
should be well maintained. There are some simple
rules that you can follow and keep your
skateboard in good condition.

• Water is not good for bearings as the bearings
  will rust and therefore, make sure the bearings
  should not come in contact with the water. Never
  skate in rain. It is good for the deck as well
  else you may even get injured on wet ramps or
  concrete surface. The dust should not settle on
  the bearings. It can spoil the bearings. So wipe
  the bearings every day.
• When you oil your bearings, make sure the
  bearings are thoroughly cleaned. For ball bearing
  maintenance, it might seem a tedious task, but if
  you want to extend the life of bearings then
  taking care of it is necessary.

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Cleaning process

• You just need a lubricant and a container for
  cleaning along with a cleaning solution. Remove
  the rubber cover and shields from the bearings
  carefully. You can do this with the help of a
  safety pin. Now slide the bolts to the bottom of
  the container lid which includes wing nut and the
  spacers. The bearing balls should face upwards
  and the cage they sit is located downwards. Take
  some cleaning solution and fill the container
  with it. Reseal the lid now. Now, shake the
  container and let the bearings be soaked in it so
  all the grime can be removed. Now, remove the
  bearings from the bolt in a careful manner and
  let it dry. Once dried, take two drops of
  lubricant and put the shield back. Its all set
  now.