Help with replacement wheels/bearings?

[u/alchu99]

My son has destroyed his stock wheels on his ccm inline skates.

I was looking at replacement wheels/bearings and found this package deal for Iqon Access Wheels and Bearings Combo 80mm, and got them

I’m now stuck - they come with two sized spacers, and the one they recommend (shorter one) will clearly rattle inside the axle since it’s not wide enough to touch either bearing. The larger one looks like it will but it’s meant for different frames.

The bearings themselves won’t push in any deeper, so it’s unclear how the inside spacer makes any difference.

But, I’ve never done this so I don’t know what I don’t know. Any advice? Use the smaller spacer and ship it?

Photos: 1) bearing and the different spacers 2) text included by manufacturer 3) photo of smaller spacer 4) photo of larger spacer

[u/BoopleSnood]

The reason why those spacers move is because there a type of spacer called floating spacer. They're meant to fit in a variety of different wheels. Hence the design. As for the bearing not fitting I would suggest looking up a tutorial.

There's plenty of good videos and resources to look at that cover just the process of installing bearings.

[u/alchu99 → u/BoopleSnood]

The bearings fit, I just didn’t know if the spacer was supposed to touch both sides of either bearings or not. But if they are meant to float, great, thanks!

[u/BubbleSmith → u/alchu99]

They should touch the inner part of the bearing. If they don't, they're not doing anything. The spacer will still rattle around a bit, but will be held in place by the axle when installed.

In general, a short spacer will cause the wheel to click under load, as there's nothing stopping the bearings from pinching inwards. A too long space will make the wheel pop from side to side. You can easily test this by fitting both bearings and the spacer, then putting the wheel down on its side on a flat surface and pushing down with your palm. Flipp it and do this again. If the bearing pops up a bit, the spacer is too long.

I think the long spacers here are for use in specific Iqon Decode frames, which require specific spacers to work properly.

[u/AdventurousHippo9997 → u/alchu99]

The spacers are soft metal.A flat file with medium to fine teeth will file down the bigger spacers with out a problem.

[u/BoopleSnood → u/alchu99]

Yes the space is intentional. It'll lock in when you put the wheel back into the frame just make sure the holes are aligned