Buying Guide- Best Inline Skates For Men
If you are looking for speed skates to skate on a smooth surface with speeding being your goal, the best inline skates for men are what can fulfill that.
But then the question arises, how to choose the best product out of all the speed skates available in the market. Well, there are certainly some key pointers that you should look into while choosing an inline skate for you. So, let us get started.
Purpose of Skating
At first, you need to know why you are choosing to be in this sport. If you know the answer, then your work is half done. Then you need to ask yourself now if your skating goal meets your choice of skates. If yes, don’t think otherwise, just go for it.
You can choose fitness inline skates or recreational skates depending on your skating goals. Urban skates are high on trend while many skaters are also choosing cross-training skates.
Just a tip for you, the inline skates have the wheels in a linear form and can produce a lot of speed. So they are even used in speed skating in form of aggressive skates or urban skates.
Some are also invested in professional sports like hockey. Skates for them are quite different as they often choose inline hockey skates.
Professional or Beginner
This is something that you will have prior knowledge of and will be a vital determinant of your choice. Almost all inline skates can suit a beginner and they feel comfortable beginning their journey with these skates due to their structure. The main concern arises with the choice for professionals.
Although the products are quite informative about whom should it be perfect for but there can be a big difference in the skill level between professionals with intermediate skills & advanced skills.
If you skate regularly and have full confidence in your skills then you are at the advanced level, if not then you are still an intermediate skater. Therefore, choose your skates wisely.
Wheel Specification
Another vital determinant for your choice of skate is your skate wheels. They can be of varied shapes and sizes but what will suit you the best would be based on your purpose of skating. Usually, inline skates are fitted with a wheel having a size between 70-75mm and a hardness rating of around 80A.
However, the size and hardness can actually vary depending upon your choice. The skaters who choose fitness skate prefer larger wheels over smaller wheels for speeding purposes.
Also, it is good to have ABEC-rated sg5 bearings installed.
Boot Type
The recreational skaters have the choice of having skates based on the boot type. There are soft boots that are made with plastic lining and are the most preferred ones when it comes to inline skates.
Some of them even come with a “boot-only” model for you to do custom add-ons to the product. Also, you have a choice of molding your skate with heat and making it comfortable to fit you properly.
You will be surprised to know that there are even frames with 3 wheels are available in the market which replaces the traditional 4-wheelers.
Closure system
The main 2 components that will actually keep you tightened to the shoe while you skate are the buckle and the laces. With the advancement in technology some products also come with knobs which on turning tighten the skates.
Your skate should have a closure system even if you are getting a skate just for recreational skating.
Liners
They are also known as inner boots as they give an interior lining to your feet inside the skating shoe. The fitness skates have them pre-installed but the skates for recreational skating often have these missing.
You should choose skates with comfortable liners installed or else you might have to separately purchase them from the market to make yourself comfortable while skating.
Price
This is one of the main factors associated with your choice. Your budget will directly influence every other factor as the best inline skates for men come at the best cost and the more budget you have the better skate you will be able to possess.
However, this certainly does not mean that the low-budget skates are not good. If you can find a product that fits your checklist at a low budget it can be a very good choice to start with.
Brakes
It is actually something that depends on the brand you choose as not all products come with brakes installed. Although most of the inline skates have this feature pre-installed there are some exceptions too.
The brake pads tend to wear out with constant use so some of the brands are trying to come up with some new braking system. So, you need to consider this also while buying your skate.
Some skaters also choose to have skates without brakes so that they can practice T-stop and get controls like a pro.
Choice of Brand
This is perhaps the least important factor to most of the inline skaters but to some, this is a very big thing as they tend to choose skates based upon some top brands only.
If you also fall into that category, my suggestion to you will be to consider all the other factors too along with this so that you can actually buy the best out of all the products available in the market. Obviously, the brand label plays a vital role but not more than your pocket size and skating comfort.
Conclusion
Let me begin by telling you that not all brands provide the best quality product as per your purpose of skating. In this article, we have conveyed information based on our experts’ opinions about specific key features of different Inline skates that match your purpose of skating.
Lastly, don’t forget to use protective gear before riding. Now go and rock the road.