Skateboard bearings - Is it time for a new set of balls?

Bearings are typically sold in sets of 8, thats two for each wheel. Bearings are what allows your board to have smooth and quick movement.

Two bearings sit inside each wheel, one for the front side and another for the back. You are going to want to take care when putting the bearings in your wheels; if you happen to damage the shields they may rub the ball bearings. This causes friction and the bearing will wear and not roll well.

Next each wheel is placed on the truck axle, tighten the axle nuts and you're ready to go. Generally I find double shielded bearings are better for street skating. The others are great for skate parks and other fairly clean and debris free places.

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Clean those skateboard bearings!

You should clean your skateboard bearings if your bearings have slowed down, seem mucky, or if they make a gravely, scraping sound when you spin your wheels. To avoid getting to this point, you should clean your bearings fairly often, even when they are just a little dirty, or just haven't been cleaned in a long time. Cleaning your skateboard bearings like this from time to time will increase your bearing's lifespan, and improve your skateboarding experience.

First, you'll want to remove your skateboard bearings. You can clean your bearings without removing them, but you won't get them very clean that way. To clean your skateboard bearings well they will need to be removed from your skateboard wheels. If you are not sure how to do that, it’s quick and easy to figure out. But just check out our other post for info on how to remove bearings.

Next you will also need some rags, towels or paper towels. This will get messy, so if you are going to clean your bearings in the living room of your house, make sure you put down a lot of towels. And, you might not want to wear your favorite white shirt or other important clothes.

Get yourself some lubricant made for ball bearings; DO NOT use WD-40, or any other lubricant like it! WD-40 and other cheaper lubricants leave behind a film that actually collects dirt and dust. When I was young and impetuous I used WD-40 on my very first set of skateboard bearings, and they were garbage in a month. The key here is to clean your bearings with a lubricant made for it, you want the bearings lubed up, but you don't want any sticky film or residue left behind.

Hold the bearing, and using your can of lube, blast them thoroughly. Aim around the edges of the bearing, try to blast into every edge and opening you can find; also be sure to flip the bearings over and clean the other side. You should notice allot of dark and blackish, dirt coming out of the bearing. This means that they were really dirty and needed to be cleaned. So don't spare the lube and just keep blasting away at them. This is why you really want a lot of rags, towels, or news papers, under your work area.

Once the lube starts to look clear of the dirt you've cleaned the bearing enough, pat them with a towel or rag to get the excess lubricant off, and set them aside. They will tend to leak fluid for a bit so you'll want to set them on some more rags or towels. Be sure to get all 8 sets of bearings (two for each wheel).

Once you are done, you can let the bearings bleed and dry out a little if you would like. However, this isn't required! Next pop these fresh and clean bearings right back into your wheels, or into a new set of skateboard wheels, and go skate!

How to remove skateboard bearings

There are several reasons to remove your skateboard bearings; for cleaning or to replace them with some fresh new skateboard bearings. If your bearings don't spin quite as easily as they used to, or if they feel gritty, it might be time to perform some regular skateboard maintenance. Removing your skateboard bearings is fairly easy; however, there are a couple of tricks you should know.

Before beginning read through these instructions and be careful while taking the bearings out, it's easy to accidentally damage your wheels if you aren't careful. The only tools that you'll need are for the removal of your skateboard wheels, any skate tool or set of screw drivers and wrenches will do.

Begin by removing your skateboard's wheels. The easiest way to do this is with a handy skate tool, or a 1/2 inch socket wrench. If your skateboard had some kind of special bearing shields, you will need to remove these too.

Next, place the wheel slightly back on the skateboard trucks axle, just barely. You want to hook the tip of the axle inside the bearings, be sure that you are only letting it touch the bearing and not the wheel.

Now, slowly and gently, pry the wheel at a downward angle. The bearing should pop out of the wheel, but it might not want to right away. So be careful, and take it slow. If you pry on them too hard, you might just damage your bearing. However, if you are planning on replacing your bearings with brand new skateboard bearings, then give it all you got! Generally I recommend being gentle and taking your time, everything should be fine!

Once the bearing pops out, you are done! Repeat with all 8 bearings on your skateboard.