Need advices on rollerblades

[Paranoia08]

Hi Bros,


I'm rather new to rollerblades and will like to get advices from you guys.
When I went asking around, people recommended me K2.

Please advice me on;

1) What are the recommended brands to get?
2) Where can I find shops carrying these brands? (Went into so many shops, but don't see any K2 around)
3) How to choose blades? (eg. Wheels, Size/Fittings, etc...)

Your help is greatly appreciated.
Thank you so much!!! :lovegrin:

 

[zcf]

I don't much about K2, but I know Salomon is good, but at a price. I would say just go and try one you like rather than based on brand. The wheel must be smooth running though.

You can try those shops at east coast park, they usually have the widest range of in line skate. And usually they will guide you through the fitting, different kind usages etc.

Bigger wheel size and more wheel (5 rather than 4) are usually faster. Usually need to be quite tightly fit to reduce excess rubbing. The smoother the ball bearing, the better also.

 

[aryanto]

I have K2, bought some 8 yrs ago and still working and I am quite abusive. One bearing probably wear off already as it produces some sound, but I dont really care, as I am not doing competitive stuff.
If you are buying make sure you like to boot, and it is comfortable for you. If it is painful, check with shopkeeper to adjust, could be adjustment (not wear properly), but if it is still painful, dont buy. If you like, come back another day and try again when your leg is not painful. If still painful, then confirm the boot is not suitable.
Dont buy too loose, definitely dont buy if it is tight (your feet will expand a bit during exercise but not much la).
Ladies rollerblade is different from men, so make sure you get the right one, the shape a bit different, but only when you are fussy lah.
Another thing to notice is what kind of skater are you?
Aggressive? Get full-armour and those small white colour wheels (these are really tough wheels).
Speedskater? This is shoe, not boot, and 4/5 wheels on long frame.
Recreational? This is the normal one, bigger wheel than aggressive, definitely not white colour. The boot can be armored or soft, but I like soft boot more as it is not that painful. The cheaper supermarket ones are armored boot (plasticky) and the padding is very thin.
Dont buy by look, test it. Good luck.
If you want to read more, check this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roller_skating#Inline_skating

 

[Paranoia08]

Thanks for those wonderful information.

By the way, I'm just recreation skater.
Not going for competitive stuffs. =D

So what other brands are recommended other than K2?
What kind of shops sell them?
I don't see a single one at any of the sport outlets like sportlink, royal sporting house and world of sports.

Went to Stadium at Ngee Ann City, but the brand is "Scorpion", something like that.

Also, for brands like K2 or something of that range, what is a reasonable price range for average/recreational skater like me?

 

[dirtdynamics]

I'm rather new to rollerblades and will like to get advices from you guys.
When I went asking around, people recommended me K2.

Please advice me on;

1) What are the recommended brands to get?
There are many and depends on your budget and what you want them for
(street, leisure, spped, agressive)
brands are K2, Roces, Bauer, Landway, Rollerblades, USD, Solomon,

2) Where can I find shops carrying these brands? (Went into so many shops, but don't see any K2 around)
Parkway has one shop, east coast has one and peninsula plaza ALSO HAVE....

3) How to choose blades? (eg. Wheels, Size/Fittings, etc...)
Choose by what you want them for (see answer 1)
Choose boot size, try them with the socks you will proably be wearin them with...
Make sure you stand up and skate a bit with them on to get a proper fit.
The boot fit is very very important !!!!!!!

Btw sent you a PM
Cheers

 

[tribal.snake]

k2 and rollerblade are common & popular brands among many others.
peninsula, east coast and katong region has quite a few shops.
i believe some are having 50% off.

k2 is available at skateline, think they are the sole distributors.

comfort, size and bootfit.
different makes and models have different cuts and feels
get the wrong fit and u screw ur blading experience plus ur feet will complain no end
fit comes first, design second.

 

[Paranoia08]

I'm rather new to rollerblades and will like to get advices from you guys.
When I went asking around, people recommended me K2.

Please advice me on;

1) What are the recommended brands to get?
There are many and depends on your budget and what you want them for
(street, leisure, spped, agressive)
brands are K2, Roces, Bauer, Landway, Rollerblades, USD, Solomon,

2) Where can I find shops carrying these brands? (Went into so many shops, but don't see any K2 around)
Parkway has one shop, east coast has one and peninsula plaza ALSO HAVE....

3) How to choose blades? (eg. Wheels, Size/Fittings, etc...)
Choose by what you want them for (see answer 1)
Choose boot size, try them with the socks you will proably be wearin them with...
Make sure you stand up and skate a bit with them on to get a proper fit.
The boot fit is very very important !!!!!!!

Btw sent you a PM
Cheers

Thanks alot for your information.
I don't quite understand what's the different between street and leisure.
I'm using it for leisure only, but can I skate on the streets as well?

 

[Paranoia08]

k2 and rollerblade are common & popular brands among many others.
peninsula, east coast and katong region has quite a few shops.
i believe some are having 50% off.

k2 is available at skateline, think they are the sole distributors.

comfort, size and bootfit.
different makes and models have different cuts and feels
get the wrong fit and u screw ur blading experience plus ur feet will complain no end
fit comes first, design second.

Thanks alot of helping.
Skateline is located at? East Coast? Sorry for the poor knowledge. :embrass:
Which shopping mall or place have more skates?
Any idea where's having discount at the moment?

 

[ddwmk2002]

Not sure about other brand. Between K2 and Rollerblade, K2 is certainly more comfortable. Mid range K2 come with 2 smaller front wheel which make it easier to maneuver and adopt a slightly forward leaning posture. This is good for beginner as you want to control your fall forward where you are most protected from your knee/elbow/palm pad.

It will be diffcult for some to find a pair of perfect fit skate because some of us have sizes in between, say, 7 and 71/2. Getting a pair of internal sole will solve the problem.

Better to buy from skate shop in east coast or other park. You can also visit some of skateline outlet. Do a search in their website for the address. Think there is one in Bukit Timah. Skateline are offering 50% off on some selected Rollerblade model. Not sure whether offer is still on...

Do note, the bigger the wheel, the more difficult it is to maneuver but the faster the speed. So it's up to you to decide which size to start off with and what you want to do later. Freestyle? or Speed skating. 82-84mm will be enough for a start else go straight for 90mm wheel.

Lastly, water and sand are blade worst enemy. Avoid skating on wet and sandy ground if possible. Else clean and oil bearing immediately after session. A set of ceramic bearing will solve this problem but it will cost you almost $500...:bsmilie:

Regarding backpack... Nevermind you worried about that later. :bsmilie::bsmilie:

 

[soeypixels]

you can try here .. very ulu place

Go Sports Skating Specialist
6C Margaret Drive #01-58/62 Singapore 142006
Tel : 6475-3922
Fax : 6479-1756

i bought the cheapest pair like $120 for leisure blading. Abec5
very comfy for me .. i am not pro so brand not tat impt to me.
they have expensive one range to >600$

 

[tribal.snake]

try www.skateline.com.sg

 

[aryanto]

Not sure about other brand. Between K2 and Rollerblade, K2 is certainly more comfortable. Mid range K2 come with 2 smaller front wheel which make it easier to maneuver and adopt a slightly forward leaning posture. This is good for beginner as you want to control your fall forward where you are most protected from your knee/elbow/palm pad.

Eh, are you suggesting to get a K2 Velocity? I have an old model 2 front small, 2 back slightly bigger and you can customise more by modifying the position of the hex plasticy bit. It gives you +- 1 mm adjustment, which is a lot already.
Not going to suggest this for newbies who just learn to blade.

By the way, DO NOT BUY highest ABEC (for bearing) rating they are suggesting you if you are just learning. Higher abec = smoother = faster = you will fall more.

Get an ABEC 5 max. I suggest ABEC 3 would be sufficient.
After some trashing, ABEC 5 will probably become ABEC 4. I think my ABEC 5 is now probably ABEC 2.5 if there is such thing hahaha.

 

[viewwing]

personnel perference is Rollerblade... yes the brand is roller blade...

There's a shop along at Woodgrove in woodlands. selling high end blades are pretty good prices and the guy selling is very helpful and patient. He's a qualified trainer too... might wanna take alook there.

its next to a beancurd store... and there's a loy kee chicken rice store there :thumbsup:

 

[chromodynamics]

Yes, the guy at the shop at The Woodgrove is indeed very friendly and sells his stuff at pretty good prices (btw, his name is Kingsley). K2's fitness skates are good, but if you intend to do slaloming and other tricks, it is better if you tell the person selling you the skates so that s/he can advise you on more suitable brands/models.

 

[ddwmk2002]

Eh, are you suggesting to get a K2 Velocity? I have an old model 2 front small, 2 back slightly bigger and you can customise more by modifying the position of the hex plasticy bit. It gives you +- 1 mm adjustment, which is a lot already.
Not going to suggest this for newbies who just learn to blade.

By the way, DO NOT BUY highest ABEC (for bearing) rating they are suggesting you if you are just learning. Higher abec = smoother = faster = you will fall more.

Get an ABEC 5 max. I suggest ABEC 3 would be sufficient.
After some trashing, ABEC 5 will probably become ABEC 4. I think my ABEC 5 is now probably ABEC 2.5 if there is such thing hahaha.

Time taken from a newbie to know how to skate (basing on basic skill of balancing, braking, turning, up and down slope handling) is pretty short for some. If you buy the smallest wheel and slowest bearing, it will be out dated by your skill within a month if one practice frequently. Try to get something in the mid range that way the skate will last longer.

Try cleaning you bearing maybe it will upgrade back to ABEC 6?? :bsmilie:

 

[aryanto]

Time taken from a newbie to know how to skate (basing on basic skill of balancing, braking, turning, up and down slope handling) is pretty short for some. If you buy the smallest wheel and slowest bearing, it will be out dated by your skill within a month if one practice frequently. Try to get something in the mid range that way the skate will last longer.

Try cleaning you bearing maybe it will upgrade back to ABEC 6?? :bsmilie:

I am not a noob. I have rollerbladed for.. oh god.. about 15 years already (thanks for reminding me how old I am ). there is this thing with wear and tear and no amount of cleaning can bring it back to the state when it has not been used (is there such thing as virgin bearings? )

I started off with a $50 supermarket brand. 15 years ago that is quite expensive, may be now should equate about $75 to $100 un-brand-ed pairs.
Then I migrated to my current old faithful despite now a bit creaky K2 velocity. it is no longer glide as it used to, it is very very scruffy-looking but I still like it.
It has lasted me 3 knee pads, and my current pair of knee pad is Harbinger (yep the white plastic, used by extreme/aggresive skaters, even though I am not). It is very protective and the padding is so great, saves my multiple-injured kneed any more punishment and suffering.

Probably for a starter, just go buy $50-60 pair from supermarket and use 2 layer of socks. Learn to skate until you are good, can brake properly and can glide (preferably with 1 leg - the other one up, no need the superman stance, the flamingo stance is good enough) and then you can take your leisure time to shop with more confidence moving to a better pair.

 

[Paranoia08]

Oh god..
I stay so near to Woodgrove and never notice there's a shop selling skates there.

Btw, I bought this pair of skate.
http://www.rollerblade.com/products/products.php?id=2&target=195#

And my gf's is
http://www.rollerblade.it/products/products.php?id=6&target=196

Still haven't starting skating with it though.
But in future if I wanna upgrade? Can I?

 

[Vulpix0r]

Is there any places in the west I can learn how to blade by qualified instructors? The last time I check most beginner classes mostly kids, and I'm like 24... So very paiseh...

 

[ddwmk2002]

I am not a noob. I have rollerbladed for.. oh god.. about 15 years already (thanks for reminding me how old I am ). there is this thing with wear and tear and no amount of cleaning can bring it back to the state when it has not been used (is there such thing as virgin bearings? )

Sorri for reminding you of ur age... BTW i am not young too... A classmate of mine was already a grandfather few yrs back. Feeling better now?? :bsmilie: Hey! did i say you are a newbie? :bsmilie::bsmilie:

Don't need an expensive skate if just doing casual skating, as long as comfortable and smooth is good enough. Also, there are no such thing as unbreakable brearing. Even with careful maint, it can only last longer. Actually, seasoned skate are much better then new skate... Just like Levi jean. :bsmilie:

For beginner taking lesson with skating school which provide skate and gear, you don't even need to buy anything up front until you learn all the basic move. After that, ask yourself what interest you. Freestyle/extreme? Speed and long distance skating or simply casual? Buy the skate base on your interest.

 

[ddwmk2002]

Is there any places in the west I can learn how to blade by qualified instructors? The last time I check most beginner classes mostly kids, and I'm like 24... So very paiseh...

There was elderly man in my son's beginner class. He is definitely above 60. Everytime he fell, i feel like clapping... Not to mock but to support and encourage him to go on. Sadly, i only seen him once... Hope he didn't give up...