Best wheels for sliding
Even as collectively began to dabble in new directions in sliding, we found inside ourselves want of your new and unique wheel. Our existing lineup of freeride wheels (the Durian, Stimulus, and Devoid of fat) maintained a conservative balance of traction and driftability that's designed for downhill freeriding. The present emphasis is around the power to grip and hold a line through corners at speed. The slide aspect of these wheels is dependant on shaving off speed (in the pragmatic fashion) as well as to begin exploring progressive freeriding.
The Balut may be the result of our need to investigate opposite end of the grip-slip spectrum: a freestyle slide wheel which allows for longer drifts and quicker, more numerous rotations with minimal speed loss. It is a first step in a new direction for us, and we’re excited to determine where it will take us.
Baluts will probably be available worldwide on Thursday, February 2nd at $54 per set (MSRP).
Specs
Diameter: 72.5 mm
Contact patch: 35 mm
Width: 44 mm
Durometers: 80a, 83a, 86a
Weight: 4.7 oz (per wheel)
Bearing seat: centerset
Design
The Baluts are centerset and symmetrical, allowing for maximum flexibility when rotating and flipping to promote even wear on all four wheels. Simply by using a larger spoked core and removing a lot of urethane between the bearing seat and outer edge of the core, we had been able to lessen the overall wheel weight for increased agility in slides and freestyle tricks alike.
The core utilized in the Balut is comparatively wide as compared to the wheel. Along with a stiff and rounded lip profile, the core provides a lot of rigid support for your contact patch and facilitates smooth slides using a predictable release and hookup.
Urethane
Inside the development process, we quickly pointed out that early protos of this shape lent themselves to unreasonably long standup slides and so demanded a urethane that can withstand the inevitable abuse and was appropriate for this kind of (narrow) shape. The design was dialed several months ago, but we’ve been holding off about the release to locate this magic thane. And therefore the Euphorethane formula was created, offering exceptional durability and flatspot resistance while still retaining an easy, predictable drift and reliable (albeit nominal) speed control.
Wheel Rotation
Good rotation habits can help smooth out wear patterns and dramatically extend the life of your wheels. Remember, though, that wheel rotation will get a bit confusing, especially since wear patterns often change from rider to rider.
The simplest suggestion to keep in mind would be to swap your most worn wheel with your least worn wheel, swap another two wheels, and flip when appropriate.
Beyond that basic principle, here are some suggestions and info tidbits that we’ve found useful in our sideways smile sessions:
Uphill wheels (on your heelside rail for heelside/frontside slides and also on your toeside rail for toeside/backside slides) have a tendency to cone (faster wear internally lip), while downhill wheels tend to reverse cone (faster wear on the outside lip).
On the board with a centered stance (snowboard style) the majority of the rider’s weight is usually within the front truck, so expect leading wheels to wear faster than the rear wheels. On the board having a rear stance (e.g. ridden with all the back foot mostly on the kicktail) there is certainly usually much more weight put on the back truck, therefore the rear wheels have a tendency to wear faster compared to the front wheels.
Over a directional setup (ridden mostly in one orientation) we generally recommend rotating your wheels diagonally (front left with rear right, front right with rear left). On a symmetrical setup (ridden equally in both orientations) we generally rotate wheels on the same hanger (front left with front right, rear still having rear right).
A symmetrical centerset shape also enables you to flip each wheel to counteract coning. Whenever you rotate your wheels, verify if any of your wheels are starting to cone and flip them as needed. Be sure to think about the wheels’ new positions on the board along with your personal riding habits (should you choose more heelside slides than toesides, you could expect your heelside wheels to cone and your toeside wheels to reverse cone).
