Tools needed
* Allen key - to get the correct size, take one of your skates into a hardware store and ask one of the employees to help you find the right size. You can also just buy a set of Allen keys; they are very useful to have for other projects, such as bicycle repair.
* Jewelers screw driver or similar tool to pop out the clip holding the cover on the bearing.
Rotate the wheels
* Take off the 1st and 3rd wheels from one skate and re-install them such that the wheel that was in the 1st position is in the 3rd position & vice versa. When putting them on reverse the direction of the wheels such that what was originally the left side is now facing the right.
* Repeat this with the 2nd and 4th wheels.
* Repeat this for the other skate.
If your wheels bind or turn slowly, the screws may be too tight; the screws should be a tad more than snug. The other problem may be that the spacer has deformed; this is a significant problem with plastic spacer and can happen with aluminum spacers. Replacing the offending spacer is the only solution. I strongly recommend using aluminum spacers.
After many miles (or if you skate in wet or dirty areas, just a few miles), your bearings will get dirty. This will make it more difficult to skate. One way to check the condition of your bearings is to hold a skate in one hand and spin the wheels with the other. The longer your wheels spin, the better shape your bearings are in.
When your bearings are in bad shape, you can either replace them or clean them. To replace them, the old rule of "you get what you pay for" is a good rule of thumb. You will find bearings with ABEC ratings - the higher the number, the better precision on the manufacturing; there are also swiss bearings which are very nice. If you replace your bearings, it is a good time to rotate your wheels. If you are cleaning the bearings, this is a good opportunity to replace the plastic spacers between the bearings with aluminum spacers.
To Clean Your Bearings
1. remove wheel assemblies
2. remove bearings
3. remove caps off of the bearings
4. rinse the heavy dirt off of wheels and bearings with water
5. rinse bearings with isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol while spinning to knock off grime
*** You may want to wear gloves and work in a ventilated area as some consider alcohol to be toxic
6. rinse with water or alcohol again.
7. You may want to put the wheels and bearings in the dishwasher for a couple of hot rinse cycles (if your wife / mother will let you).
8. Final rinse with 91% isopropyl alcohol (you may have to go to a drugstore for this).
9. Dry with hair dryer as the alcohol is not pure; it does have water in it, which will rust the bearings.
10. Add one or two drops of skate bearing oil to each bearing and spin until evenly distributed.
11. Reassemble
I have used this process on my bearings and greatly extended their lifespan.
Wet Bearings
If your bearings become wet, you must dry them before they rust & you must re-oil. If you have time, clean your bearings with the process described above. If you are in a hurry, rinse with isopropyl, dry with a hair dryer, and apply one or two drops oil. Spin to spread the oil & verify quality of cleaning/oiling.
* Allen key - to get the correct size, take one of your skates into a hardware store and ask one of the employees to help you find the right size. You can also just buy a set of Allen keys; they are very useful to have for other projects, such as bicycle repair.
* Jewelers screw driver or similar tool to pop out the clip holding the cover on the bearing.
Rotate the wheels
* Take off the 1st and 3rd wheels from one skate and re-install them such that the wheel that was in the 1st position is in the 3rd position & vice versa. When putting them on reverse the direction of the wheels such that what was originally the left side is now facing the right.
* Repeat this with the 2nd and 4th wheels.
* Repeat this for the other skate.
If your wheels bind or turn slowly, the screws may be too tight; the screws should be a tad more than snug. The other problem may be that the spacer has deformed; this is a significant problem with plastic spacer and can happen with aluminum spacers. Replacing the offending spacer is the only solution. I strongly recommend using aluminum spacers.
After many miles (or if you skate in wet or dirty areas, just a few miles), your bearings will get dirty. This will make it more difficult to skate. One way to check the condition of your bearings is to hold a skate in one hand and spin the wheels with the other. The longer your wheels spin, the better shape your bearings are in.
When your bearings are in bad shape, you can either replace them or clean them. To replace them, the old rule of "you get what you pay for" is a good rule of thumb. You will find bearings with ABEC ratings - the higher the number, the better precision on the manufacturing; there are also swiss bearings which are very nice. If you replace your bearings, it is a good time to rotate your wheels. If you are cleaning the bearings, this is a good opportunity to replace the plastic spacers between the bearings with aluminum spacers.
To Clean Your Bearings
1. remove wheel assemblies
2. remove bearings
3. remove caps off of the bearings
4. rinse the heavy dirt off of wheels and bearings with water
5. rinse bearings with isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol while spinning to knock off grime
*** You may want to wear gloves and work in a ventilated area as some consider alcohol to be toxic
6. rinse with water or alcohol again.
7. You may want to put the wheels and bearings in the dishwasher for a couple of hot rinse cycles (if your wife / mother will let you).
8. Final rinse with 91% isopropyl alcohol (you may have to go to a drugstore for this).
9. Dry with hair dryer as the alcohol is not pure; it does have water in it, which will rust the bearings.
10. Add one or two drops of skate bearing oil to each bearing and spin until evenly distributed.
11. Reassemble
I have used this process on my bearings and greatly extended their lifespan.
Wet Bearings
If your bearings become wet, you must dry them before they rust & you must re-oil. If you have time, clean your bearings with the process described above. If you are in a hurry, rinse with isopropyl, dry with a hair dryer, and apply one or two drops oil. Spin to spread the oil & verify quality of cleaning/oiling.
Wheel on the right has 36 miles on them. The wheel on the left has many, many miles
on it and was originally the same size as the wheel on the right. You can see the
beveling that occurs from usage.
High speed oil is available from athletic supply stores, skate shops, and on line. Do not use
motor oil; it is much too think and will slow down your bearings...this means it will be very
hard to skate. I've heard some people use 3-in-1; this might work if it is thin enough not to
bog down the bearings.
The spacer on top is threaded and can be tricky to install. I use the type on the
bottom; this is aluminum. The axle slides right though. The middle spacer is the
plastic one that comes stock in the rollerblades; these deform and put pressure on
the bearings. Get rid of them as soon as possible.
Rollerblades require periodic maintenance. I typically wait until the wheels have visible wear or the bearings get dirty enough to slow down the wheels.
The wheels will last longer and be more comfortable to skate if you rotate them more often, because they wear more evenly.
Here is a great case that I found at Home Depot. I keep it stocked with oil, spacers,
spare bearings, breaks, screws, and wheels. Both sets of wheels are ready to go,
complete with oiled bearings and aluminum spacers.
Here is a bearing with the protective cap removed. Each one of those steel balls
must be very clean with a tiny coating of oil to spin freely; too much oil will slow
down the bearing. Some bearings have covers that seal both sides; however some
bearings only have a complete seal on one side. It is important to face open side to
the inside of the wheel to keep dirt out.
Here you see the wheel partially assembled; the bearing is pressed into one side and the
aluminum spacer is installed. These bearings have one side without a complete seal. The
bearing that installed has that exposed side of the bearing facing up (to the inside of the
wheel). The next step is to slide the other bearing onto the spacer such that the side without
the complete seal is facing down (to the inside of the wheel). The screw and threaded axle
(shown) will hold the wheel onto the frame of the skate.
Here is one example of a tool made for working on rollerblades.
Note the shiny metal inserts in the wheel mounting rail; these replace the plastic ones link
the one sitting next to the skate. I was having a hard time tightening my wheels without
binding when I found these silly plastic bushings. Fortunately the skate shop near
Piedmont Park had these metal bushings.
Rollerblade Maintenance