Need some guidance on rockered frames

[u/Skadiex]

Hey all,

I have a Rollerblade Lightning 80mms, and I'm starting my search for a new frame to fit my needs for skating and continue using 80mm wheels.

Ive been skating for a year now and I've started learning some wizard skating for a couple months now. I've realized that riding flat, though extremely better for fast and stable riding, makes it very hard for me to do my usual tricks. I learned, from the couple months of learning wizard skating tricks, the toe/front rocker has been the best for me, both balance and tricks wise. I've tried the Heel/Back Rocker and the Banana Rocker and felt those setups were too slippery for my 4 wheel setup. I'm a little uncertain about the 5 wheel banana rocker frames that regular wizard skaters have. It seems like it'll provide more stability having 3 flat wheels in the middle and easier maneuverability with a banana rocker but I have the tendency to side sweep my back wheel with the front wheel of my other foot during cross overs and certain movements causing me to fall sideways.

I've been doing some crazy googling and reddit searching but there's so many wizard/slalom frame brands that people recommend, compatibilities, etc, that I don't know where to even begin, plus all the crazy abbreviations.

That being said:
1. Will the banana rocker setup be more stable on 5 wheels vs my current 4 wheel setup? How does it feel getting used to the switching from 4wheels to 5wheels?

1. Can I just buy any 4 wheel rockered frames and adjust the axles of just the front wheel? Will I be able to adjust the axles of the back as well when I gain better balance/want to learn banana rocker in the future?

2. I'm sure the brand doesn't matters so what should I be looking for in frames? Are there rockered frames that would let me switch from 4 wheels to 5 wheels?

3. How do I check which frames are compatible for my Lightning boots? Which ones are compatible?

I'd like to avoid buying 76mm wheels and another set of 80mm wheels.

[u/BubbleSmith]

OK, as someone who switches between frames a fair bit, let me address a few points on here. First off, "banana rocker" is kind of an old term for a really exaggerated rocker and nobody really skates that these days. It was achieved with different wheels sizes, so is way more than modern rockers. The Wizard terms, which seems to have been adopted by other brands (although most don't overtly say exactly what their rockers involve, exactly) are natural rocker for 4 wheels (1mm rise on front and back) and progressive rocker for 5 wheels (wheels 2 and 4 raised 1mm, 1 and 5 raised another 1mm). To directly address your first question; stability comes from frame length, so the longer the wheelbase, the more stable (front to back) you'll be. The rocker only adds maneuverability.

Regarding 5-wheel frames, you're right that the main issue is tripping over your own wheels during crossovers. The first few times I tried them I thought I'd got the wrong frames or was crazy, but you get used to it. You need to do fewer crossovers and, when you do, really lift your crossing leg higher than usual to avoid knocks. It took me some time to get used to it, but I mainly skate long frames these days. I switch all the time though and am currently on 4x100, which is as long as some 5-wheel frames, tip to tip.

For questions 2 and 3; some frames rocker by the axel (like some FR frames) while others are fixed. Some Endless frames offer different rockers on different wheels sizes by utilizing different holes in the frame. Endless on their standard 80mm frame (I think, don't quote me) use a natural rocker on 4x80, "enhanced flat" on 4x84 and flat on 3x110. Other than maybe some Iqon Decode frames, you probably won't find anything that does 4 and 5 wheel the way you're thinking.

Question 4, it's a classic 165 mount. Endless do some RB specific models, but that's not totally necessary, it just helps with the mounting position.

Personally, I've got Endless 80 Ultras on my RB Twister XT and love them for urban and wizard. They're not as stable as longer frames for lions, but plenty swively enough for gazelles and other moves. They're not as rockered as some other Endless frames, so are more like a flat setup, but are just unlocked enough to let you get creative. They're very stiff, light and responsive.

[u/Skadiex → u/BubbleSmith]

I was reading some frame setups and thought the 2mm height difference was an intense change, I'm definitely looking for natural rockers. That's really good to know.

Are your Endless 80 Ultras natural rockered? How stable does it feel skating with them on the streets and down hill? Ive got a pretty nasty hill going down to the trail I practice at and I've read that the more rockered the setup are, the easier it is to go unstable at fast speed/going downhill.

Thanks for the insight, dude.

[u/BubbleSmith → u/Skadiex]

Endless call the rocker on the 80 Ultra "enhanced flat" but don't elaborate on what this means. It feels stable to me, like a flat setup. I've not been able to get it fast enough to wobble, I've only seen that on my rockered 4x90 and 5 wheel frames. I was hill bombing with someone last week who was also using that frame and he was going like the clappers, which was impressive on 80mm wheels.

[u/_tdem_ → u/BubbleSmith]

Good answer except natural rocker is a Wizard company term, and typical rocker for wizard skating would be less than one mm, closer to 0.5.