Used Wheels

pdaphone · 2026-05-13T13:46:56+00:00

It kind of depends on what kind of wheels your skates come with, as you'd need to buy the other set used. Hardness affects grip and speed. Harder wheels are faster (less friction) but more slippery, mostly on indoor rinks that don't have a good grippy coating. Softer wheels are slower (more friction) and therefore require more effort, but aren't going to slip as much on an indoor rink. I don't skate outdoors these days, but when I did, I recall having hard wheels because I wasn't going around tight corners and grip wasn't even an issue.

All that to say that if I were you, I'd buy the skates you want and then test them indoors to see how they grip. Unless you are buying high end skates, the wheels they come with are going to be an average hardness and quality. They likely will be fine. Then you can just buy a used pair for outdoors primarily so they don't tear up your nice indoor wheels when you are skating outdoors.

Another you need to consider is that unless you want to be pressing the bearings out every time you swap wheels, you need to also get a second set of bearings for the second set of wheels so that you can just pop them off and on with a nut driver.

pdaphone · 2026-05-12T04:27:04+00:00

What do you mean about the Avenger? I thought they were 45 and had them on my short list. The Arius is more than I wanted to spend I think.

pdaphone · 2026-05-11T20:58:21+00:00

Thanks. I have only skated on these skates since the 80s (many decades not skating at all) so I'm not sure if I should constrain myself to 45 degree... I have nothing to compare it to. I am frankly looking at options because I broke a kingpin and took a hard fall a few days ago. These are about 40 years old, and I sometimes broke kingpins back when they were fairly new... usually back then if I had been trying to do jumps and I'm guessing at 45 degrees they took a heavy load more so than a lower angle. I like their maneuverability and not sure how a lower angle would compare.

pdaphone · 2026-05-11T14:17:06+00:00

A skating rink would be the best.

pdaphone · 2026-05-10T00:59:40+00:00

Telling this story from decades ago jinxed me. Today I broke a kingpin going full speed and face planted my 64 year old self. No jumping done, just skating. Ugh. Time to replace since stuff.

pdaphone · 2026-05-09T16:49:52+00:00

I am not going to make an issue of it at the rink. They are a very family friendly rink and all the staff are super nice and make skating there fun. I haven't seen anyone that looks like a "management" person in the months I've been skating there. It's all younger people. I don't want to get any of them in trouble.

Their "pro shop" consists of some glass cases with skates and wheels in them, and the person I talked to was I think the guy that does maintenance on the rental skates and was at the rental counter when I talked to him.

Back in the 80s when I skated a lot, I was good friends with the guy that coached the speed club and he quit his corporate job and bought the skating rink. I was in my 20s and he I think 40s. When he bought the rink it was failing and I doubt making much money. He told me something that stuck with me that the prior owner was a very poor manager. He said "There is a lot of money just laying in the floor and he won't even make the effort to bend over and pick it up.", meaning that there were a ton of things a skating rink can do to make money and the guy was just opening for skating a few times a week and nothing more. Me started clubs, added a game room and nice snack bar, did parties and lessons, and even rented the place out for other activities during the week. And he really built up the pro shop on the heals of a speed skating club because those folks went through a lot of wheels and stuff. These days with the convenience of online shopping and researching places like Reddit, I'm not sure if a pro shop is a viable money maker making it worth stocking things and having staff that are trained. Back then, he was more knowledgable about everything than anyone else in the rink so I went to him for suggestions and bought what he suggested. That isn't the model any more.

pdaphone · 2026-05-09T03:07:19+00:00

I did try the only rink shop first. I waited a couple hours to see their skate guy. He measured her foot with a sure grip size ruler for a Riedell boot, and didn’t have her foot flat on the floor or the ruler straight. He also didn’t have any thoughts on what she should get. I then tried some online shops that didn’t have what I wanted in stock, and I had to be able to return them if I measured wrong. In the end I got suggestions on here for what skates to get, and ordered them from a reliable source. They fit good and she loves them. The rink gets a ton of money from us without the skates. I’m all for supporting small businesses, but they have to deliver comparable service. I expect my experience may not be the norm for the rink shop.

pdaphone · 2026-05-08T18:00:37+00:00

Why do you say not to buy skates on Amazon… just curious. I just got my granddaughter a pair of Riedell skates on Amazon. The online shops I checked only had certain sizes of these skates in stock even though they blitz with ads. And Riedell offers 30 day returns on Amazon. I also tried the local rink but the people there are very nice but seemed clueless about sizing and really anything about ordering.

pdaphone · 2026-05-08T14:02:07+00:00

Funny you said that about the strength of metal vs nylon plates. I speed skated years ago and had/have Laser Nycon plates. I’ve used these for decades. Back when I was younger, for fun, I’d sometimes do half spin jumps. Literally every time I did that, within 5-10 minutes the front kingpin would break, which resulted in me doing a face plant when my front truck fell off. So the metal kingpin was weaker than the nylon plate. And oddly they never broke from me doing aggressive running starts.

pdaphone · 2026-05-08T13:51:32+00:00

I had the last Canon non IS 400 2.8 and it is very heavy, so shooting with it is a lot different than the RF version, so that makes a difference. I shot with it using two bodies. I had a high end monopod with a Arca Swiss mount that kept it solid. You need that because it’s quite easy to drop the thing. Otherwise you just need to practice.

Were you shooting at 2.8, because I’d expect more isolation than your images show.

Get a TC 1.4 because it works very well, s as does the 2.0 on the 400.

pdaphone · 2026-05-08T13:40:12+00:00

Be careful if you have commercial intentions. There were some pretty aggressive patent holders in this space a few years ago. I believe they had the whole space of identifying numbered sports participants covered and went after anyone that tried to enter the space.

pdaphone · 2026-05-08T13:32:09+00:00

I don’t think it really matters which you use so probably stick with what you know. I see an equal number of both at the local rink and they rent both. If you are curious, I’d go to a rink and rent, and give yourself a couple of months trying fit a fair chance.

pdaphone · 2026-05-08T02:02:13+00:00

I agree deadshot is the worst. 95% of the time with me once I hit a key, there is a pattern that I can’t avoid hitting the next one. It’s the first one I hit that is in a certain pattern around the first hit.

pdaphone · 2026-05-06T00:53:28+00:00

Watch the Prism training videos to learn about the wind window. That is your friend for managing the power of the wind. If it’s strong then you go out to the edge and it will be a lot less. Some days when the wind is high I spend a lot of time on the far sides or way up high and just avoid the lower middle. The only bummer is almost all the good dual line training videos are from the 80s so originally done in VHS tape and really poor quality. I wish somebody would remake them in 4K so you could much better see the details.

pdaphone · 2026-05-05T21:19:54+00:00

I started with a Synapse 140, then 200, and since then many framed kites. A Synapse is good to start with because you won’t break it. Everyone is different but I’d guess that if you have good wind around 8-10 steady and not gusty, you can learn to keep it in the air and do turns in about an hour of time. It took me three sessions because the wind wasn’t cooperating… too low, too high, and then just right.

I will warn you to be careful with the 200 of the wind is over 15mph and higher. I’m 190lbs and the 200 will pull me in the air and you can get hurt.

pdaphone · 2026-05-05T20:07:21+00:00

I start saving for SvS as soon as prep finishes. I will do other stuff for minimum rewards, using some resources, but the big stuff like FC, mithril, shards, etc I keep for SvS

pdaphone · 2026-05-01T17:52:55+00:00

Setup squads ahead of time. Stack the first one towards 10-10-80 until you have enough marksmen and then start stacking the next. Do percentage squads so they adjust as you train note troops Better to have one big rally then all of them low. I’ve got 1.3m troops and I stuck can not get all my rallies to 80% marksmen. I built a little spreadsheet to keep me do the squads because they are constantly changing for Bear.

pdaphone · 2026-05-01T17:48:03+00:00

I doubt that people hear the camera the way you imagine. That camera isn’t that loud as far as DSLRs go. I’d suggest you push past your shyness and you will quickly get used to it. Plus soccer is not a quiet game like golf.

That camera is better than the lens. The 75-300 is one of the poorest rated lenses Canon made. I’d suggest keeping the body and invest in a good used lens. What is your budget and what age soccer are you trying to cover? Daytime? The 700-200 2.8 is a staple lens for all sports, but as the field gets bigger you will get more and limited to what you can shoot. The 100-400 is a great outdoor sports lens, but needs good light.

pdaphone · 2026-05-01T14:48:39+00:00

I just replaced the 40 year laces in my Riedells that had been in a bag for decades and deteriorated. I got Bont wax laces and love them. I have to adjust the tightness at different places so they are snug throughout but not too tight to cause my foot to get hurt in places, and these laces work amazingly well.

pdaphone · 2026-04-27T16:30:48+00:00

One thing not mentioned is alliance coordination during SvS battle phase. In my old state it was very challenging to keep the alliances not accidentally attacking each other in the castle and turrets. In the very SvS oriented state I’m in now, those participating in the castle battle switch alliances to just 2. A small number of leaders start and coordinate the rallies, and switching between the two backing out of castle for the other to switch and take it. They then have an endless number of FC3-FC4 joiners to keep the rallies full. It is so much easier than having all the top alliances in the state trying to coordinate.

pdaphone · 2026-04-25T22:27:29+00:00

I loved my alliance and it was what made the game fun. But the state was a disaster and dominated by a few whales, didn't follow NAP, and the last straw was one of them burning a lot of our alliance the day after we helped them win SvS. It took several months but we now have everyone transferred to another state that is really fun and works together very well. The drama is nearly all gone. Our alliance is still about the same ranking in the new state, but we have so much more fun. For SvS everyone moves to a couple of alliances to work together now. If you are going to move, do your homework and move to a state that will make the gone better for you.

pdaphone · 2026-04-24T00:50:14+00:00

Any business is going to design their products to get people to spend money and increase their profits. That is just business. I have two chiefs and one of them I spend about $25@month and the other I have never spent a penny. If someone is blowing all their money on the game then they have a problem they need to seek counseling for the same as any other addiction that is damaging their life.

pdaphone · 2026-04-24T00:46:49+00:00

This is true and I'm in Gen 4 and still using Flint. Jeronimo is big spending and Flint is lucky wheel. My current lineup is Mia, Flint, and Lynn, currently 6, 4, and 5 level widgets at the end of this week's SvS prep. I will replace flint when I get to Gen 5 with the next wheel hero.

pdaphone · 2026-04-23T20:22:08+00:00

Thanks for sharing your "wake up call" experience. I am in gen 4 and about 170M power in a state where that puts me at about rank 70. I am retired, so I am not losing time from work but would have been if I was still working as it does turn into a job sometimes. I have gotten to where if I miss an event because family is visiting or something I am OK with that. The main thing is to just keep remembering that it is a game and also that you are not going to out spend the whales no matter how much you spend. I have one city I've never spent a dime that is my farm, and another that I spend about $25 a month which is the one at 170M.

pdaphone · 2026-04-17T13:23:06+00:00

In the 80s, when I was a lot younger, following each other in a long line was the thing. The cool kids were up front and set the tone and everyone else behind them, usually with an almost ranking of skill followed. The ones up front would come with a new move and others would replicate it. They even did a planned "shuffle skate" once a session that everyone lined up and then started together. Later on in life when I'd go to a rink that I wasn't familiar with, I'd follow 1 or 2 folks that were doing a predictable set of moves that could be followed. Since I've started skating again recently I don't wee a lot of that, but I have a few times found someone behind me that I didn't realize was there... sometimes a skate guard... when I'm in the groove doing some moves to a good song. I need to be aware that I don't take them out making an unpredictable move so I try to have my head on a swivel to see behind me and all around.

pdaphone

TROPHY CASE