Dual-bearing wheels: two bearings, a longer axle, and the trucks that take them

A dual-bearing wheel has two bearings, one pressed into each side, where most fingerboard wheels have one. The pair needs a longer axle, so the wheel only fits trucks built for it. FlatFace and Dynamic say standard Blackriver and Dynamic trucks are cut for single-bearing wheels, and both truck brands sell separate dual-bearing editions. The makers say the design rolls smoother and ends bearing slip. Those are claims, not measurements.

A single-bearing wheel holds one bearing in its bore, and something has to keep it there. Plenty are sold with a bearing lock for that job, like Piro's P3 wheels, which list a "locked single bearing design". FlatFace says two bearings per wheel remove "the need for bearing lock".

A dual-bearing wheel is built like a skateboard wheel instead. FlatFace's original 2009 description of the G7.1, still printed on its listing, puts it plainly: material inside the wheel separates the two bearings, so once they're pressed in they can't come out in use, and nothing is needed on the outside to hold them.

What the makers say that gets you:

• No bearing slip. FlatFace says its dual design has "no possibility of the bearing-slip problem".
• A steadier wheel on the axle. Yellowood says two bearings have "more contact in the axle", with "less wobbles and no jamming".

The truck decides first. What the truck makers' own listings say:

• Blackriver BRTs, Dual Bearing Edition. A 32mm hanger on a 34mm axle pin, for 33.3 to 34mm boards, and not for standard wheels.
• Dynamic Trucks, Dual Bearing Edition. 28, 31, 34 and 36mm, $56 a set on Dynamic's site, or $58 for the Special Edition. Dynamic's FAQ says no dual-bearing wheel fits its standard trucks.
• Blistered Trucks, Dual Bearing Edition. 34mm and up, $40 at FlatFace. Blistered also makes a single-bearing edition.
• YTrucks. Yellowood designs its Ywheels Dual to fit them, and Cartwheels says its V4R Dual is made for YTrucks and trucks with axles as long.
• Caramel C3, C4 and C5. Caramel lists its 34mm and 35mm sizes as taking both single- and dual-bearing wheels.

FlatFace's wheel listings add Fire Trucks at 32 or 34mm, Tech Deck, Dump Trucks and Bollie Trucks; that list is FlatFace's, not those brands'. And the listings don't all agree: Caramel says its Industry duals "fit perfectly on all fingerboard trucks", while Dynamic and FlatFace say a dual-bearing wheel won't go on a standard Dynamic or BRT. Go by your truck maker's listing.

FlatFace says the design "helps to make for a slightly wider setup due to the position of the wheels on the trucks". The assembled widths makers publish:

• FlatFace G11-D on Blackriver's dual-edition trucks: 32.18mm
• FlatFace G10 on the same trucks: 32.5mm
• Blistered Asymmetrical on the same trucks: 32.7mm
• FlatFace G9, current version, on the same trucks: about 32.8mm
• On Dynamic's 34mm Dual Bearing Edition: 32.5mm with G10s, 33.6mm with G9s

Blistered's advice for its dual trucks follows: G10s for a skinnier fit on a 34mm deck, G9s for a wider fit on a 35 or 36mm deck. For any other pairing, measure it yourself.

• Tightening the lock nut all the way. FlatFace's G11 listing says to back the nut off a quarter turn after tightening it on dual-bearing trucks, and Blistered says the same if a wheel won't spin.
• Forcing them onto standard trucks. Dynamic and FlatFace both say it won't work, and Blackriver sells a separate edition for them.
• Reading the truck width as the setup width. On Dynamic's 34mm dual trucks, FlatFace's own numbers come out at 32.5mm or 33.6mm depending on the wheel.

• Hardness for FlatFace's own duals. The G9 and G10 come in FlatFace's lettered materials, such as D, A and X, with no durometer given. Yellowood, Industry and Blistered do publish one.
• How they hold up. The smoothness and durability claims are the makers'. There's no community thread or long-term report on dual-bearing wheels in hand to attribute here, so treat those as claims until riders post their own.

Start from the truck, then pick the wheel. The makers' own pages:

• Trucks: Dynamic's Dual Bearing Edition, Blackriver's BRTs Dual Bearing Edition, Blistered's dual-bearing trucks at FlatFace and Caramel's C5 trucks.
• Wheels: FlatFace G9, FlatFace G10, FlatFace G11-D, Yellowood's Ywheels Y4 Dual, Cartwheels V4R Dual at FlatFace, Industry x Caramel duals and Blistered's wheel range.

FlatFace's Mike Schneider explains how the G9 differs from the older G7 in his video on YouTube. If you're weighing Dynamic's dual trucks, our look at the 34mm Dual Edition goes through its axle and width numbers.