Wheel hardness

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Pete Pachota

Member
Okay, I have practically no experience when it comes to diffrent wheels so Im relying on you, guys. Basically, I need some feedback on how the hardness of the urethane compound affects the riding. I think it's obvious that softer wheels are more grippy but a bit slower while the hard ones are faster but less grippy. For your information: Yaks are 78A, low profiles are 85A, and there are even some speed skating wheels that are 90A and harder. So yeah, I just want to hear about how do those wheels perform when it comes to grip and speed and some possible issues with them that have to do with the urethane being soft/hard... umm yeah.
 
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jakob-b

Member
well harder wheels means less softness and when theres less softness there no grip.

and the softer it is the slower it is
 
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Pete Pachota

Member
Well, that's what Ive just said. I just want some PRACTICAL experiences, mainly if the soft wheels like yaks seem to be slow, especially in comparsion with the harder wheels, and if harder wheels do really have some grip issues. Id also like to hear someone who rode some really hard ones, someone said that 'they all suck', but I don't know. I think some Hyper Somethings in Australia were also available with 90A hard urethane, so did anyone ride them?
 
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jeff26

Member
my low profiles arent as grippy as my old ones which where 78A. But as far as other aspects of riding.. switching between 78A and 85A didnt change much. I felt it but i got used to it. i love them. i can do everything i could with the other ones. i think they slip out a little bit better on metal but its not a huge deal. In a bowl the felt a bit slippery too. They are deffinatly faster (bumping up the size also helped). i dont think ill switch back to the old hardness. plus harder wheels last longer too. the grip issue isnt a huuge deal. id rather have faster wheels with a little less grip.
 
Madis

Madis

Super Geek
Staff member
My practical experience is this:

old wheels with rock-solid urethane are mega-slow and very noisy - it feels you are riding over every single rock on the asphalt separately.

Softer wheels have a lot less noise.

But to all wheels, it really depends about
- the urethane shape on the core
- the lot of the urethane (if there's a lot of 78A like on 110mm YAK, then it's really soft)
- AND the urethane hardness.
All together. There are some diffirent harmonies between some things so we just can't say if a harder wheel is faster or not.

What could i say is that brand new low profiles stay fresh a little longer time, since the urethane is harder. Staying fresh means that the wheel still has the fresh tip line in the middle of the wheel.
- The less the wheel touches the ground, the less friction it has, the faster it goes.
That means fast wheels have sharp middle tips, but eventually every wheel gets worn out so that's why wheels will be slower at the time you're changing them to new ones.
 
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Eric Magray

Steel Member
i love low pros, the hardness is soft enough for good shock absorbsion yet hard enough for good speed and not wear down super quick, i think theyre the perfect wheels, even a little bit harder would probably be good.

is that what your looking for? like our preferences or something like that?
 
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yakscoot125

Member
idk i think that you lose a lot of grip with the 85a low-profile wheels.
ex: the run way to my ramp in the driveway is the street so i have to turn about 70 degrees to jump the ramps. every time i turn with a low pro in the back i slip out
 
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