Is there a way to test the durometer of wheels?
I saw someone skating in Off-Ice Skates from this site: http://off-iceskates.com/
The wheels on the site say they can be used indoors + outdoors, but they seem to wear down immediately for some and not at all for others. (regardless of surface; everyone I've heard about these from skated outdoors.) There is also no stamp on their wheels which show their hardness, nor is is listed anywhere in the product's description.
Is there any kind of test you can do for wheels to find what number their durometer would be? I know you can test relative hardness of objects just by scraping them against each other and seeing what scratches what, but I don't know what number a, say, brick, would be given.
Alternatively, does anyone know what the durometer of those Off-Ice wheels are?
Comments
Yes you can buy a durometer tool just add pressure to measured wheel. Indicator will move to a value (shore value).
From The Netherlands
They're probably just generic cheap soft outdoor wheels. If you had a durometer you could test the exact hardness of them. For some reason it even when the manufacturer says for example that it's an 88A wheel, there's usually some variation on what the hardness actually is.
It is possible to feel a soft wheel vs a hard wheel, especially if you have one you know is either soft or hard to compare it with. But of course a durometer is the best way.
I would never recommend those skates for training though, much more modern stuff exists now like the Roll-Line Linea frames and even the Snow White (much older but workable) frames. Roll-Line also makes higher quality wheels for inline artistic, but you could also use some wheels from hockey or slalom disciplines as well.
Yeah I like slalom wheels for using in rain, they are available in lower hardiness.
From The Netherlands
Thanks to you both! I knew you could use a durometer but I didn't know if there was a cheaper way, because the only ones I can find are hundreds of dollars... unless anyone knows of more affordable ones.
And I'm not interested in these wheels for myself - I used quads - it's just perplexing to see so many people around me using them and having no idea what they are. Plus my current wheels are 80 years old (really well kept!) and I have no idea what their hardness is, I only know they're indoor wheels, so if there was a more affordable way to find those out too it would've been cool. Thanks for the comments :)
To be honest hardiness doesn't say all.
I have cheap whees (made in China) and wheels (made in your country) in same shore value.
I have more grip and less wear with wheels made in USA.
From The Netherlands
Yeah it's definitely true the hardness doesn't tell it all. The hub and type of compound also can make a difference on roll and grip.
Bought this a few years ago for either $40 or $50 USD. It's a Chinese made durometer. As near as I could figure, it actually reads off by about 2. In order to test that out for sure though, I'd have to buy a calibration block which would run me $200 USD. Ain't happening. For what it's worth, durometers of the wheels I've tested (a whole LOT of them!), many manufacturers don't have good control over their urethane pours. Vanilla's Backspin wheels, for instance, have varied between batches of the same wheel. Their blue Deluxe Lites are supposed to be 93a and the ones I roll duro at 91 which can be accounted for by that off-by-2 problem I mentioned on my meter. But... the newer batches of the same wheel model measure only 85! Moxi wheels claim 78a and measure in at 84. In my measurements of 107 different sets of wheels, I've found the brand that measures closest to what they spec their wheels to be is Juice.
Yup current price is like 13 usd....🤗
From The Netherlands
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@PRFunky Don't get lulled into a false sense of security with your durometer. Without a calibration block and a test stand, you don't really know if you're "off by 2."
There's also a lot more to testing than just grabbing a wheel and jabbing the depresser into it. That will get you a ballpark value at best. And production tolerances will factor into what you're holding as will the age of the wheel and other factors.
An as @Quickstep mentioned, the durometer reading is only part of the story on how they perform. The actual compound chemistry is far more important. And no one has mentioned, suspension setup plays a large role as well.