Choosing the Right Skateboard

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CHOOSING THE RIGHT SKATEBOARD
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Posted in Lifestyle, Skateboarding on 23rd May 2016
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To ensure you learn tricks easier, ride more fluidly and land lines you
need the best possible skateboard to suit you and your abilities. To
help you find the perfect skateboard for you, we’ve put together this
handy guide.
The Skateboard Size Chart
It’s important that your skateboard is the right size so that you can
control it properly.
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The size chart below shows approximate sizes, but it should give you
an idea of the size of deck you need. If you’re looking to buy a smaller
skateboard for a child, you can find all of our children’s skateboards
here. Bear in mind that as you progress as a skateboarder, a certain
width of deck might start to take your preference. Typically, a ramp/vert
ramp rider would choose a wider deck for stability. A street/light park
use rider would choose a thinner width of deck in favour of
manoeuvrability
Skateboard Size
Approx. Age
Approx. Height
Full Size
13 years and older
5’3” and taller
9 to 12 years
4’5” to 5’2”
6 to 8 years
3’5” to 4’4”
(Decks 7.5” or higher)
Mid Size
(Deck width 7.5”)
Mini
(Deck width 7”)
Micro
5 years and
younger
3’4” and shorter
(Deck width 6.5”-6.75”)
Complete Decks
When you’re buying a skateboard you can either buy a ‘complete
skateboard’ where all the parts have already been assembled for you,
or a ‘custom skateboard’ where you are able to choose all the
individual components yourself based on your preferences.
If you’re a novice skater, then a pre-assembled skateboard could be a
good option for you. They’re often also perfect for traditionalists who
have been riding with the same set-up forever.
Custom Skateboards
Many skaters enjoy building their own custom set-ups so they can
tweak elements to suit their style. If you’re an experienced skater, the
process of building a skateboard will only take 10-15 minutes.
However, if you’re a relative novice, it could be a minefield (although
we can build it for you if you like).
If you’re building from scratch, you’ll need to know about all the
component parts that make-up a skateboard…
Deck: A deck is the board or footplate that you ride on. It’s usually
made out of 7 or 9 ply laminated maple sheets, but other options are
also available.
These often come with cool colours, graphics and styles to suit your
taste. We have over 600 in our online store. You can take a look here.
Grip Tape: This is a sandpaper like material that sits on top of the
deck. It’s completely anti-slip, allowing you to grip to the top of the
board as you ride. It’s usually black, but colours can vary and we have
stylish graphics, patterns and bright colours. Ours are available here.
It’s essential you keep your grip tape clean for it to function as
designed. You can change your grip tape when it starts to wear to
ensure maximum grip.
Wheels: Wheels are usually made of Polyurethane (PU) and each
skateboard needs 4. They’re known as ‘rubber wheels’ and they come
in a variety of sizes. The width of the wheel, or the ‘contact area’ as it’s
also known, is generally 32mm. This does differ but is unlikely to affect
compatibility with your board. Instead it’s down to personal preference.
Cruiser style wheels are wider than standard skateboard wheels and
offer more grip due to the larger contact area. These are often found
on Penny and other plastic deck skateboards. These wheels are good
for cruising, commuting or use in bowl riding set-ups. If you’re looking
for a larger diameter wheel then you should use high trucks or riser
pads (we’ll discuss these later) as they provide you with better wheel
clearance and stop ‘wheel bite’ where the deck rubs on the wheels.
The diameter of wheels is measured in mm. Smaller wheels are
slower, while larger wheels are faster. For most standard skateboard
set-ups, a 50mm-55mm wheel will be fine.
Large wheels will have a greater top speed, but they’ll also take longer
to accelerate. Smaller wheels will accelerate quicker but also have a
lower top speed.
In terms of durability, each wheel is given a number between 70a and
100a. The higher the number, the harder the wheel. The grade of the
wheel is known as the durometer.
If you’re unsure whether you require a hard or a soft wheel, then we
recommend a mid to hard wheel in the 90s as these are more forgiving
when performing tricks.
There’s also a B scale which measures 20 points lower than the A
scale, so an 80b is the equivalent of a 100a. Wheels using this scale
are extremely hard, allowing for an increased hardness rating.
The softest wheels are great for rough surfaces where grip is needed
to travel over cracks and pebbles. Anything given a rating of 101+ is a
pro wheel with the least grip. These are ineffective on slick and rough
surfaces.
Some brands also offer wheels made out of their own specialised
polyurethane. This is used to suit a specific surface. However, if this is
the case, we’re always sure to label it in the product description and/or
product title.
You can find our great range of wheels here.
Trucks: These are an integral part of your skateboard and they’re
likely to be the most lasting part. A pair of trucks (most trucks offered
on our site come in pairs but please check the product description
carefully) are an essential part of a skateboard.
The width of the truck should correspond with the width of your deck,
with the tip of each axle level with the edge of the deck. This will mean
that the wheels are within a quarter of an inch of the edge of your
deck. This will help keep the skateboard stable and will prevent over
and under turning. This size guide should help you find the perfect
trucks for your deck:
Trucks consist of a mounting plate, bushings, a kingpin, axels and a
hanger. When assembled, it should look like this:
We’ll now explain each part in detail:
Base Plate: This is a flat plate. It mounts the trucks to thedeck and
usually comes with holes that will correspond to holes on the deck
itself.
Truck bolts are then fitted through these holes to secure the truck in
place, although these are not included with the trucks. Part of the job
of the base plate is also to help evenly distribute the pressures of
skating on the underside of the deck.
Risers and shock pads: It’s always worth owning risers, you will need
2 for one skateboard. You can find them here. They’re plastic plates
which sandwich between the deck and base plate. They’re used to
raise the deck to prevent ‘wheel bite’, where the wheel touches the
deck.
These are usually only used for boards with large wheels (56mm+)
where extra clearance is needed. Trucks are now also available in ‘Hi’
versions which already provide extra clearance. These remove the
need for risers and are great for bowl riding. ‘Low’ trucks are also
available. These are preferred by technical or street skaters and help
for performing ollies and flip tricks.
Shock pads are fitted in the same manner but are made of rubber to
absorb the impact from landings and skating over rough surfaces.
Hanger: This is the large ‘T’ shaped part of the truck. It holds the axles
and forms the main body of the truck assembly. They’re usually, but
not always, made of aluminium alloy. Regardless of the material used,
most brands and models are a similar weight. Lightweight and titanium
axles are also available, however these are often costly.
This is the part of the truck that will have the most surface contact and
is used in many tricks, such as grinds and stalls. As such, it has to be
durable enough to rub against rails and curbs.
Bushings: These polyurethane cylinders sit between the deck plate
and the hanger. Also known as ‘cushions’, they support the truck as
the board turns during steering.
The bushings will affect the way the board feels and they’re available
in varying degrees of hardness. Softer bushings increase turning
response and feel looser. As a result, they’re preferred by lighter riders
for cruising and carving. Harder bushings complement street and
technical styles, giving a firmer and more stable ride for heavier riders.
Most skateboards have bushings with medium hardness.
You might want to try different bushings to sample different set-ups for
your skateboard, they’re easy to replace and are widely available.
Kingpin: This is a central bolt that holds the truck together. It feeds
through the entire hanger and into the base plate. You can tighten or
loosen the kingpin and this will affect the responsiveness of the trucks
to suit your riding style.
You can see our great range of trucks here.
Bearings: Skateboard bearings are used to mount the wheels to the
axle, and they’re all the same size.
The majority of bearings have an ABEC rating, which stands for
Annular Bearing Engineers Committee. This is commonly mistaken for
scale to rate how fast and strong a bearing is. Wrong. Watch this video
to find out more about one of the most important parts of your
skateboard.
Note, some individual companies also use their own rating systems.
You can find all of our bearings here.
Bolts: Bolts keep your trucks mounted to the skateboard, and they can
be fitted using these skateboard multi tools.
Bolts come in a variety of different sizes, lengths, colours and brands.
People use different coloured bolts to help identify the nose and the tail
of the skateboard, or just to customise their board.
You can find all of our bolts here.
Armed with all this information, you’re ready to find a skateboard that’s
perfect for you. Just let us know if you need any help.
Image Source: https://unsplash.com/@joshbyers
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