Tradesmith and Randy: Did you drill the forks on the Aero 150's to use a 125 wheel? Or did you just use the same axle mounts as the 150?
Thanks.
Lawrence
FasterSkier Forums » Gear
Classic roller skis
(33 posts)-
Posted 1 year ago #
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Dear Lawrence:
At least the last two versions of the Aero shafts have come with axle mount holes for both 150 and 125 wheels. I don't recall if any of the second generation (welded rather than rivited) red shafts had both, but I believe all of the silver shafts do.
The 125 holes are closer to the ground, of course, but also a bit further "inboard" on both ends, which shortens the wheelbase a bit.
One of the "nice" things about aluminum roller skis is that the shafts eventually fatigue and fail, allowing one to move up to the newest model. Right now I'm on one of the older silver shafts, without the double armed speed reducer mount and integral brake mount, and one with. Both of these features are definite improvements.
Randy
Posted 1 year ago # -
Randy, I feel pretty stupid now. I have an old, first generation pair of 150's, with the riveted forks, but I also have a newer pair with the second set of axle holes as you describe. Because I have rotated several pairs of rollerskis over the years, my original 150's are still fine. They date from 1998 or 1999, the first year that Len made them. As you do, I still have the old one-arm speed reducers on them. In fact, I hooked at pole with one the other day, forcing it to the highest resistance setting while I was rolling. Must have looked very comic, as I stutter-stepped forwards and just avoided a face-plant.
I have broken rivets holding the forks on my Terras, but I have never actually had a shaft fail. Must be fun.
I'm definitely going to try the 125 wheel in the rear. This must make skating on the combi 150 much easier.
Thanks,
Lawrence
Posted 1 year ago # -
One of the potential problems with the old one-arm speed reducers is that as the little springs age and get weaker, and the tolerance of the soft aluminum arm on it's mount get sloppy, the arm can uncouple from the speed reducer and flop forward when you dit a rough patch or a bump, where it jams the ground or front wheel, resulting in a spectacular fall. It happened to me twice before I modified the setup to prevent it. The new double-arm is more effective because the pressure on both sides of the bearing makes the bearing run true, decreasing tire wear, and it can't flop forward in the same way.
The wipe outs from this failure were much worse than when I've had shafts fail. I don't recall falling when the shafts fail.
The last shaft failure I had was interesting. The top skin of the shaft pulled up under the binding bail clamp during a classic kick-off, allowing the bail clamp to open like a clam shell and releasing the boot. Where'd my ski go? I was able to pound it back down and double pole home. Those shafts had seem a lot of use, and I was happy to upgrade to the newer speed reducer model, since I almost always use them when classic skiing.
Randy
Posted 1 year ago # -
Randy, I have had the speed reducer lever arms fall off due to vibration! I like your story of peeling back the top of an aluminum shaft! My only serious ongoing problem has been with Aero speed reducers. I think it is the clay soil here in Montreal that creates the problem. When the dirt road on Mt. Royal is even slightly wet, the fine clay penetrates the bearing seals of the speed reducers. I’ve popped off the bearing seals to see this. I’ve always thought that the two-bearing design is flawed, in that water spun off of the wheel is driven into the space between the bearings, where the turbulence therein forces it through the plastic bearing seals. Sometimes, on relatively new speed reducers, I have had to free the bearing using vise-grip pliers. Finally, I resorted to cutting the rivets on the aluminum shaft that holds the bearings, allowing me to change the bearings, replacing them with SK bearings. Or, I simply popped the bearing seals to lubricate them.
The new speed reducers make removing the bearings easier, but I haven’t had to try it yet. I would prefer a speed reducer with one roller bearing, although I can see the wisdom of side-by-side bearings against the curved surface of the wheel. I’ve got to believe that Len Johnson has carefully considered what he has done, and that he knows much better than I do how to engineer a rollerski. But things can always improve, n'est pas?
Lawrence
Posted 1 year ago # -
More on Aero 150’s for classic.
When I bought my first pair of Aero 150’s, I was exclusively a classic skier. I needed them for the dirt road that climbs Mt. Royal here in Montreal. When I first used them, I only had low, classic boots. This did not make them easy to use, but one gets used to being more conscious about being centered over the wheels. Eventually, I bought combi boots, inexpensive Salomons (811, I think). I’m still using the same skis, purchased in 1999, but I recently purchased another pair from a friend who never liked them, preferring the Aero 125’s for skating, and Jenex V2 940SC for his smooth road classic skiing. I bought the new speed reducers, and bought new boots for the NNN bindings already installed. I have always used exclusively SNS bindings.
Well, I just went for my first ski on the new setup, and I was amazed! The new skis are lighter, closer to the ground, and have the bindings installed a little further back. So much easier to ski! Plus, my new combi boots, Rossignol X-9 Pursuit, are way more rigid than anything I have ever used before, so a have almost no lateral wobble now. Further, I find the NNN bindings superior for rollerskis. The pivot pin is more under the toes, rather than in front, as was the case with my SNS system, and the plug design doesn’t allow as much pivot as does the SNS, so the ski stays very close to the boot after push-off. With a good setup like this, I don’t see why anyone could not use these skis for classic. Interestingly, I find the stiff boot more important for rollerski classic skiing than I do for skating – it’s not like on snow, where you really need to push off the inside edge of the ski. But kicking off of a narrow ski like the Aero demands a pretty centered foot.
As a footnote, I prefer the SNS binding on snow, because it seems less likely to trap snow beneath the boot under conditions during which this can occur. I’ve been out with friends using the NNN system who had to quit because of this problem, while the SNS is pretty much unaffected by loose new snow under the boot sole.
Lawrence (Does this make me a Jenex fanboy?)
Posted 1 year ago # -
Sorry I've gone so long w/o a reply. The security on this blog was kicking some of us out for awhile.
Boy, this has been a very informative thread, thanks much. Lawrence, I really appreciated the testimony about the NNN RS set up. I too have been an SNS purist. I'll be looking for a NNN combi/skate boot @ the next ski swap -:)
One comment, heat is the reason there are 2 bearings on the speed reducer for pneumatic wheels. A ton of friction loss is being created by those & having only 1 bearing there would probably lead to increased tire failure. Those bearings are turning 5-7x faster than the wheel.
I too have fatigued an alu. RS shaft. But I've also removed the forks from a damaged shaft & bolted them on a sawn down old wood ski shaft - works great.
Cheers!
Posted 1 year ago # -
I purchased a pair of V2 Terra Skis in 1998. Great for off-road skiing, but not as great as the Aero 150's I purchased in 1999. I continued to use the Terras on a flat bike path near my home, as they are great, slow classic skis. Over the years I replaced forks, but the shafts and wheels held up. When the skis were discontinued, I bought an extra set of wheels, forks, etc. I just gave the original skis to someone, and asked Len Johnson at Jenex if he could make new shafts for me (same shafts as 900 series, I think), and he sent me the shafts in the picture below. Beautiful new Terras!
Then, I took an old pair of combi boots, but the neoprene away, trimmed off the plastic cuffs, and made myself a summer rollerski boot (photo link below). Nice to have something cooler!
I use the Aero's for skating and for tricky stuff, but I love these old heavyweights!
http://img194.imageshack.us/img194/146/newterraskis.jpg
http://img18.imageshack.us/img18/4403/bootssummer.jpgPosted 1 year ago # -
Hey Lawrence, what are the dimensions of the tires on those Terra skis?
After reading the Fasterskier review of the Maplus Twin classic roller ski, I bought a pair of the wheels to stick on something to try. They are huge- 73x55mm & have an unique shape. I'm wondering if they would work for off-road classic?
Posted 1 year ago # -
Hi Tradesmith,
The Terra wheels are 100mm x 50mm. They are also kinetic damped, and are very slow. It was fortunate that I bought some extra wheels when Len stopped making them, apparently because they were too costly to make. First they are solid rubber, second, they must be drilled-out to lighten them, and Len said the drilling burned out expensive drill bits. Kristina Smigun said that Terras were her favorite ski.
I bought them for off-road, as they were the first ski expressly made for rough roads, then, when the Aeros came along, I bought 150's, which are far better for dirt and bad roads. But the Terras remain my everyday classic rollerskis. Great for double-poling. I have a flat, dirt bikepath a block from my home, so I use the Terras for that, and save the 150's for climbing Mt. Royal (I still do mostly classic on the 150s. I just prefer it). Since I run and swim some days a week, these 2 new pairs of skis will last me 10 years (the last pairs (same thing, I just retired after about 12 years -- that's pretty good, I think).
Posted 1 year ago # -
Thanks Lawrence. I envy the terrain you have access to off road. Helps to have variety. Randy is right about Len producing some innovative products but they often need some maturing before purchase. You were wise to jump on these.
We have some great paved off-street paths but this time of year they are covered w/ wet big-leaf maple leaves - really slick & sometimes pretty frustrating.
I'll play around w/ the Twin wheel some but they may require some kind of dropped fork to get adequate clearance for off-road use. My current plan is to use them in back of a classic RS w/ a 100m wheel in front. It may take a few weeks but I'll get back w/ a report when done.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Without reading the whole thread, it depends on how tall you are and where you rollerski. I'm tall with longer legs and so the Marwe combis with the wirewheel extension are the obvious choice. Their 40mm-wide wheels are a sufficient base and the speed is very moderate and workable on rolling terrain. Plus, for downhills the wheels have speed limitation (much like the early VW buses). The V2 900K series is shorter, but second in line, and it has speed reducers, which allows a wider range of terrain. The thing I've found is that every year I have to re-set my brain to deal with (moderate) downhills on the Marwe's, and once that's done things get a lot easier.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Good info Highstream. I've never been on something like the wirewheel extensions but have used long shaft calssic RS. They help even w/ my short legs.
I have a foot alignment problem so I've never been able to get 40mm wide wheels to wear very evenly. So far, the crowned 40mm wide wheel used in back on the V2 940 seems to be wearing evenly but it is also harder & faster. We've got some 55mm wide old SwedeSki RS that I put newbies on. Given how wide & soft they are, it is surprising how fast & even wearing they have been. But then we rarely have a skier over 140 lbs on them.
Posted 1 year ago #
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