[Gumby]

My old wheels were on abec 5 bearings. I have replaced them with identical sized wheels (72 72 80 80) and the new wheels have abec 9 bearings. But after putting in the new, clean wheels, there is a LOT of resistance to turning. Did I do something wrong?

In the meantime, I've gone back to my old ones.

[Wykydtron]

Bearings broken in maybe? Over tightening them maybe? Try using some proper bearing lubricant.

[Leopold Stotch]

What "grip" rating are your wheels?

[Gumby]

They're purple/clear Labeda Millenium wheels... not sure about the grip rating. Durometer rating: 76a.

[maxx]

they're very soft. you should have bought 84 or more

76 is for indoor hockey yo

[Gumby]

they're very soft. you should have bought 84 or more

76 is for indoor hockey yo
These are my skates for rollerhockey indoors. :)

[mickz]

Did you buy brand name or generic bearings? And 76A's you can use outdoor... I've had the stock ones on my skates ever since I bought them about 5-6 years ago. I used to rollerblade to/from school before I had a car and they're still in decent shape.

[Gumby]

Did you buy brand name or generic bearings? And 76A's you can use outdoor... I've had the stock ones on my skates ever since I bought them about 5-6 years ago. I used to rollerblade to/from school before I had a car and they're still in decent shape.
Hmm they're probably generic abec-9s. :(

I got them for free with my wheel purchase at http://www.hockeywheels.com/

Worse case scenario - I guess I'll take my abec 5 bearings from the old wheels and use them with my new wheels. Bit of a hassle though, having to pop the bearings out.

[mickz]

The generic bearings are most likely your culprit. Even though it has a higher ABEC rating than your old bearings, your ABEC 5's were probably made with a higher quality material which will allow it to roll smoother.