The Linea skate of the Roll Line brand is one of the products belonging to the segment of inline skates designed for the simulation of the most complete and technologically advanced ice skates, if not the first ever. It is actually an ecosystem of products, including frames, wheels, brakes and accessories, all designed and produced in Italy.
General description
The Linea is an extremely interesting project, designed to become the market reference for three-wheeled inline skates intended for the "simulation" of ice skates and artistic inline skating. Roll Line has included in this product all the features required by high-level skaters: rocker adjustment, double brake locking screw, possibility to mount any type of boot (ice and rollers), wide choice of accessories. The result is an extremely complete and performing skate, particularly suitable for mature athletes, able to take full advantage of all its features. Brava Roll Line, we need products of this quality!
Materials and finishing
The Linea skate is made of high-strength aluminum alloy, with a gray anodized finish. The frame is produced starting from an extruded profile, by means of CNC milling, the top for this class of products. The edges that can come into contact with the skaters' hands are rounded, to improve the feeling and safety of the product. The brake block is machined from solid, has a standard M16x1.5 thread, so it can accept any Roll Line brake pad, as well as those of other brands, as long as they are available with European metric threads. The assembly of this component, subjected to significant efforts during use, is based on the use of widely oversized conical head screws: in any case, Roll Line, as always, provides any spare part, so any repairs are always possible (usually, even several years after purchase). The locking of the brake is based on the use of a double screw which, in the face of a small complication in terms of use, offers greater safety to skaters with greater weight and / or thrust capacity. The central wheel-holder axis is particular: the central part is eccentric, so that, by rotating it, the height of the corresponding wheel can be adjusted. There are a total of six possible positions, and they are indexed. The actual position is indicated by the correspondence of a reference point marked on the hexagonal head of the axis with the circular numerical scale marked on the frame, in correspondence with the housing of this head.
Locking takes place, on the opposite side, by means of a low profile nut; between the nut and the frame, Roll Line has decided to interpose a wavy washer, which acts as a spring and an anti-unscrewing system. The other axles, front and rear, are simpler, cylindrical in shape, and the locking system provides a threaded seat obtained in the aluminum structure of the frame. The keys needed to maneuver the axes are supplied. The effect of the adjustment is a modification of the rocker, and also of the sweet spot, as it is easy to deduce by observing the following animation:
The adjustment makes it possible to obtain rockers of 7 ', 8' and 9 ', to simulate the behavior of different ice blades, albeit with some limitations regarding the width of the sweet spot that can be obtained. The guidelines, from this point of view, are provided by the manufacturing company itself:
The rocker adjustment procedure is normally carried out in the initial stages of use of the skate, and more rarely later on. Based on our experience and what the athletes tell us, the most commonly used setting is number 2. The operation is explained in the following video:
Roll Line offers two types of kits for the Linea skate:
- Full kit (combo): complete frames, amber brakes, wheels, spacers, ABEC 7 bearings and tool kit.
- Base kit: complete frames, amber brakes, spacers and tool kit.
The manufacturer offers, for those who want to customize the product by opting for the basic kit, two types of bearings type 608 (for 8 mm axis): the ABEC 7 and the ABEC 9, both of excellent quality, semi-shielded, with non-sliding screens in elastomeric material and cage in plastic material, 7 balls. We have personally tested them in many situations: if they are cleaned properly, they last for years.
Sizes
The Linea shoe is proposed in the following sizes, expressed in mm: 208, 215, 228, 235, 247, 254, 260, 273, 279. The correct size is the largest available that fits inside the profile of the boot sole. used. To select it correctly, you can use the printable templates . We recommend that you follow the instructions carefully, to avoid that an oversized print leads to a wrong choice: if in doubt, it is best to contact us.Wheels and compatibility
In principle, the Linea skate accepts wheels, of standard width, with a diameter between 64 and 76 mm, but with some constraints:
- The wheels with a diameter of 64 mm go on frames of all sizes.
- 68 mm wheels can be used from size 215 up.
- 72 mm wheels can be used from size 235 up.
- 76 mm wheels can be used from size 247 upwards.
- 68 mm wheels can be used from size 215 up.
Roll Line offers a range of wheels for this very interesting frame: the Zero series. The Zero wheels are available in all four of the above diameters and in two different Shore hardnesses: 82A (with white hub) and 86A (with beige hub). The only exception is wheels with a diameter of 64 mm, which are only offered in 82A hardness. The wheels accept any type 608 bearing. It must be said that Roll Line has made large investments in terms of the quality of the wheels produced, both in terms of their geometric precision and in reference to the type of polyurethane elastomer used. The Zero wheels can be considered "high rebound", therefore very efficient and have a well-calibrated profile, which allows to reduce the resistance to the minimum possible, and at the same time to manage the curves efficiently. We can say that it is a professional level product, perfect for medium and high level skaters, even if perfectly usable by everyone.
Of course, any wheel for inline skates from any manufacturer can be used within the indicated limits.
Careful use of the wheels involves a periodic "crossing" operation, to uniform wear and prolong their useful life. Roll Line clearly explains how to operate in this video:
Brake pads and compatibility
The brake pad supplied is the Roll Line Ambra, in the version with stem with metric thread. This is the best brake pad produced by the Roll Line, suitable for any surface, with truly excellent grip and elastic response. The diameter of these pads is 50 mm: to meet the needs of jounger skaters, Roll Line offers, as an accessory, a smaller brake pad, with a diameter of 40 mm, called Baby.Any brake pad from other manufacturers it can be used as long as the thread of the stem is compatible.
Comparison with ice skates
As we said, the type of skates to which the Linea belongs has as its objective the simulation, on rollers, of an ice skate. Roll Line has tried to act on two factors: the possibility of replicating the side profile (rocker) of the most used ice blades and the reduction in weight. It is known, in fact, that the greater performance of an ice skate is due, to a certain extent, to the lower weight of the tool. As far as possible, the operation was successful: the feedback from the athletes is very positive. In particular, in addition to the general quality, the attention to detail with which it is built and the flexibility of the Linea skate are appreciated: in particular, the possibility of adjusting the rockering is a very useful feature for those who are approaching the discipline and have still the need to identify the ideal setup.Maintenance
The Linea skate in itself requires minimal maintenance, consisting in periodic checking of the closing status of the fixing screws of the axles and checking the presence/efficiency of the anti-unscrewing springs, which must be replaced if necessary. Other than that, there are just the normal routine adjustments: brake pad height, wheel crossing, etc. These setup operations are explained by the manufacturer in the following video:Suggested boots
The good news is that the Linea skate is truly compatible with any boot, of any brand, as long as it is within the permitted size range. This is because the configuration of the supports is coplanar, so that even the roller skating boots are compatible. If you want to opt for an ice-type boot (recommended), you must use the power wedge supplied to thicken the space present in correspondence with the front supports. A size chart is available, which refers to Edea, Jackson Ultima and Risport boots.Assembling
The required assembling operations is standard for this type of product: our suggestion, also considering the value of the product and the boots that will be used, is to rely on our laboratory. For those who want to do it themselves, the procedure is illustrated in the following video:The most difficult part consists in tracing the center line of the boot sole, with respect to which each frame must be centered, placing it flush with the edge of the sole. Pay attention to two important things: the alignment must be done with respect to the front edge of the sole (toe), not the rear as in the case of quad skates, and to the fact that there is a right and a left frame! Furthermore, there is no need for any offset with respect to the center line, as is used with quad skates.