Wheels not Living up to standards

[nayrbs]

Over the past 3 years I have been through more wheels than usual. I recently(2 months ago) bought Labeda Dynasties, Hyper Trinities 2004, and Rink rat wheels. All of these wheels are grinded down as if I skated outside with them. I only skate on sport court surfaces. Actually my wheels lasted longer on Icecourt than sport court. Are companies not making wheels like they used too and this is causing the problem? I had Kuzak Gum's a long time ago and they lasted forever. What has happened?

[sactosaxons]

Couple questions come to mind to narrow down the possible reasons: How often do you play? What level player are you? How tall/heavy are you? What's your normal "care" routine (wheel rotation/bearing cleaning)?

[nayrbs]

I am 5'11 and 175 pounds. I play 3-4 times a week at a very high level. I have always played at this level and have been this height/weight for years now. But I still have this problem with burning up wheels. My theory has come to the point where I think companies make less qualtiy wheels because then they can sell you 5 sets over a year instead of 1 or 2.

[MDE3]

I tend to agree up to a point being the "payer for wheels" in this family. I have seen inconsistancy in some products, but not a continued linear decline necessarily. One set will be great and the next set so so or even poor, and the next set ok again. Maybe the first runs are given a higher qc priority than the later ones(which adds cost to the wheels), so they can establish a name and then......

It may be a s simple as switching subsupliers for the materials or the wheels to cut costs, and then not getting the same quality as the original product due to lower levels of qc at the less expensive supplier.

[Titan55]

Quick question nayrbs...what hardness do you use...73a, 74a, 76a, 78a???

[EzeKeiL]

the way you skate also affects how fast you wear down wheels. I'm not trying to say anything about your skating im just saying it could be a possibility.

My theory on why wheels are wearing down is that it happens and you cant really stop it unless you stop playing hockey all together. Find a wheel you like alot, dont go with the top of the line all the time, and you'll probably find a decent wheel you like thats cheap and you'll be able to buy many of. Just a suggestion...

[nayrbs]

I play in Illinois but I play in St. Louis, Michigan ,Ohio, and Indiana on a regular basis throughout the year.

When I am skating I notice that my wheels have ripples in them, they seem to look like wheels that have been skated on outside but I swear I would never do that. I thought it was just me but other players on my teams experience the same thing. When I was still in high school I only bought wheels twice a year, but now it seems that if I really wanted I could buy wheels every month. Tell me more about the factory wheels. I have heard some "hype" about them, but not too much. What makes them different really?

Nayrbs