Skate dilemna...

[Salt City Newbie]

I first bought some inline skates in '88 and was on the old plastic boot for MANY years. I have been off of them for 7-9 years but want to get back into inline for fitness and possibly racing/marathons. I found a deal on some Tour 890 5x80 skates and ordered them a week ago (haven't arrived yet), but as I read forums such as this I see that the recommend is that folks should buy 4 wheel set ups and bigger wheels. I am now looking and questioning if I should send back the Tour skates and get some Rad 90's (which I know you are fond of) or some RB Lightning (90 or 100 mm). Please tell me what to do...spend an extra 100 bucks for the Rads or Lightning or learn and grow with the tours??? Thanks!!

[IW Staff]

You can learn and grow with the Tours, but I personally prefer the Radical 90 style with 4 large wheels.

Just a personal preference though and I'm sure you can have fun on either. You'll start seeing more 4 wheelers with large wheels than the 5-wheel styles moving forward I think.


Thanks for the post !

Stan @ IW

[chaosdsm]

The Tour's should have standard 165mm frame mounts which means that in the future, you could try a different wheel setup just by changing frames. Some of the Rollerblade skates don't use standard mount spacings, for example my Rollerblade Lightning 10's use a 190mm mount where the industry standard for 4x100mm is 195mm.

Probably a little late, but personaly, I'd probably stick with the Tour 890's. You can always pickup 5x84, 5x88, 4x90, 5x90, 4x100, 3x100/1x84, or 3x100/1x90 frames later on.

There is a lot of discussion out there on 5x84mm Vs. 4x90mm Vs. 5x90mm Vs. 4x100mm frames.

On one hand you have Chad Hedrick who owns several world records using 5x84mm skates. On the other hand a majority of the skates winning in the 2006 World Inline Championships are 4x100 skates, not to mention some records are being shattered (some by minutes) using Bont's new 3 point Vaypor 4x100mm skates. But as far as the Vaypor's go, that's the result of some amazing technology mixed with & ultra light skates, frames, & wheels. I personaly can't wait till I get mine broken in & get used to them, they feel about a pound per skate lighter than my Rollerblade Lightning 10's!

I think the choice of setup is more dependent upon your build & skating style. If you're a short light weight skater, a 5x90mm setup may be way to long for you & if you're a tall & heavy skater, a 4 wheel setup may be too short & too weak to handle the weight. Road Vs Track skating can make a difference too, a longer frame & wheel base is more suited to road skating as the longer wheel base makes for a smoother ride, whereas a shorter frame is more suited to track skating due to frequent turns & need for rapid aceleration.

Best thing to do if at all possible is see if someone in your area offers skate rental & try similar skates with different frame setups. Then you can put new frames on your current skates or get new skates with the frame setup you like best. That's how I originaly decided to make the switch from 4x80 to 4x100. I rented several different pairs of skates for a day each & decided I liked the 4x100 best. Of course now I've moved up to 4x110mm skates... but that's another story!

[GhostRider]

The size of frame is really dependent on the skater size, power stride, goals, etc.. its not a silver bullet equation. Im a 200lb skater and I use the RB 10 4x100s with good success, however, Im a power skater with good precision that does a lot of mileage.

IMHO, the 4x100s require good precision to be used effectively otherwise you end up being a flopping fish out of water. A gradual move up might be good such as the RB 4x90 or K2 4x90 rigs. The fitness rigs are reasonably priced and the 90mm wheels if used properly will give better speed and roll over the smaller 80+mm rigs and yet retain good maneuverability. That would be my personal recommendation especially if your a smaller framed person and around 150lbs or so. If you find you can handle the 4x90 rigs well then maybe the 4x100s might be an option at a later date but at least this way your not taking such a flying leap upwards. Good luck.

[wobblyone]

If at all possible try on a pair of skates at a local skate shop!

Skates vary a lot! for example many of the low cuff models like the Rad don't have the ankle support that the old hard shells did. Sizes vary depending on manufacturer and model.

The local shops don't have a lot skates in stock these days but hunting around I found a pair of K2 EXO 6.1's a half size smaller than my shoe size.

With the laces, buckle, and power strap tight there was enough ankle support and NO pressure points that hurt. I don't like short frames with high/low setups but at least I found a boot style that should be skateable for me.