Having purchased good rollerblades, you need to stick to the required maintenance practices. The proper care for the inline skates maintains their appealing look, safety level and prolongs their lifespan.
Read below for the crucial steps on how to maintain inline skates.
Tips on How To Maintain Inline Skates
Physical Inspection
The initial step is to do a thorough physical checkup on the parts of the inline skate[Parts of An Inline Skate]. That means unlacing the boots, taking out any removable liners or insole.
Doing so makes it easy to spot any area that has malfunctioned. You can then decide whether it needs repair or replacement before carrying out a cleaning exercise.
Spin the Wheels
Spinning the wheels by hand is a simple yet vital step in inline skates maintenance. As you rollerblade, the wheels gather foreign objects such as grime and human hair.
Those kinds of particles hinder the smooth rolling of the wheels. Ideally, try to spin the wheels before and after skating. You can tell whether there is an object preventing it from rotating smoothly.
Remove the Wheels
At times you may encounter stubborn foreign objects. If so, remove the wheels to give you easy cleaning time. An Allen wrench makes it trouble-free to remove the wheels.
Keep the bolts, axles, and other tiny parts safely. Take a moisturized lint-free cloth and wipe each wheel carefully. Remove any stuck human hair or thread from the axle in case there is. But water must not sip into the bearings.
Interchange Wheels
Usually, inline skates wheels do not wear at the same rate. The front and the back wheels wear off at a higher rate than the middle wheels.
At the same time, your skating style counts too. That’s why you can find wheels worn out to a higher degree on one side than the other.
So depending on the irregularity, switch wheels accordingly. For instance, you can swap the first wheel with the third and the second with the last wheel. At the same time, consider switching the wheels on the right to the left side skates.
But while doing so, remember the first and the last wheels on both sides experience the highest degree of impact. Sometimes purchasing a brand new pair is unavoidable.
Check on the Ball Bearings
The ball bearings are essential to the smooth-rolling of skates. When during skating the shoes produce irregular sounds punctuated with rough rides, then the most likely problem is the bearings.
In cleaning the bearings you need a lint-free piece of cloth with a dash of light oil. The oil trace help to lift off dust and any other tiny foreign particles. After skating in the rain[Can You Ride Inline Skate in Rain], drying out the bearings is mandatory.
Consult the skate’s manual to know the type of bearings that it has. The options include serviceable or non-serviceable bearings. If it’s the serviceable type, detach the bearings, spacers and perform a thorough cleaning.
Do not let any traces of water get into the bearings. Instead, you can use a solvent to clean off dirt and previous lubricant. After that, reassemble and apply a drop of oil on each side of the ball bearings. Fit it back onto the wheels.
However, you don’t have to disassemble the bearings every cleaning routine. But when scratch-like noise persists after oiling, dust penetrates, or previously you had ridden through water, then disassembling is necessary.
Check the Brakes
Take a closer look at the type of brake[How do Inline Skates Brake? Types of Inline Skate Brakes] your skate has. Ensure that it maintains a secure attachment to the skate. Further, look at the wear line to determine whether it’s time to replace the pads or not.
Ideally, when the wear approaches the line, swap with a new one. Don’t let it reach the brake screw. Also, ensure the skate pads sit low enough to allow for easy braking.
Take a Look at Laces and Buckles
Your fastening system contributes significantly to the safety of inline skates. Hence during maintenance, check on the laces and buckles for signs of wearing out and reliability.
If you find out any weak or missing part, replace immediately. Fortunately, the price of laces or buckles is less compared to the cost of inline skates.
Clean removable Liners and Insoles
Grits and pebbles sometimes find their way into the boot liners and insoles. Though tiny but during skating, they cause quiet discomfort to the feet. Therefore clean the insoles and shake off grit from the liners. Also, ensure no dirt or soil remain in the boot bed.
Considering that the feet sweat, the boot liners, and the insole may develop an unpleasant smell. In that case, hand washing them is necessary. After that, air-dry the liners to get rid of the bacteria causing the bad smell.
Wipe the Boot
Accumulation of dust masks the sleek look of boost and reduces their lifespan. So wipe clean the skates using a damp, lint-free cloth. You can use a piece of toothbrush to remove debris hidden in crevices.
Assemble the Inline Skates
After cleaning the necessary parts and ensuring that they are dry, assemble the skates[How to Assemble Inline Skates]. Mount back the wheels and adjust the bolts correctly.
The wheels should rotate freely yet register very minimal play. You can use a drop of glue on the bolt to rivet it into position. However, make sure the glue does not drip into the bearings.
Conclusion
Every skater should strive to master the steps on how to maintain inline skates. Besides improving the lifespan of rollerblades, it improves their look and minimizes unnecessary accidents while skating.