Picking Your First Downhill Board
What you should know about boards:
When it comes to skateboarding, there are multiple different types of boards and each of them do different things. There are also different types of trucks and different types of wheels which also do different things. A downhill setup is great for getting some speed and drifting around!
When buying a board, you can either purchase complete, meaning it comes with every component that you need, already built.
This is generally a gaurenteed OK option but it is not catered to your exact wants, if you have the time to build something yourself, I recomend that. If you do go with buying a complete, most people opt to buy bushings specific to themselves.
Or you can purchase all the separate components.
This takes a little more work and can cost a little more. But your enjoyment will likley be greatly increased.
-
Ok, here’s how to pick out a setup for downhill.
Components and things to understand:
- Deck: The piece of wood under your feet. It comes in different shapes and sizes for a different feel.
- If you are taller than 5'0 and shorter than 6'5 you will need a deck with a wheelbase in between 20 and 27 inches. This corelates with your height and how quickly you want to get ok and get good. Shorter wheelbases will be easier to make sure your form is correct, but longer wheelbases will be more forgiving of bad form and will get you doing the basics quicker.
- Decks should not have any flex at all.
- Trucks: These are the T-Shaped metal things under your board that control your turn and stability.
- Truck width should match the deck width, after you choose a deck- trucks that match that deck are the main thing you should be looking for, on a cruiser that means finding a truck that is about 2.5-3.5 inches narrower than the deck. Going more in depth;
- Reverse kingpin trucks (RKP) are what you will need to downhill, and they will likley require new bushings based on your weight.
- Wheels: Wheels come in various shapes, sizes and hardnesses (durometer).
-
- 60mm to 70mm is the size you should be looking for.
- Wheels that are very slidey will be a requirement.
-
- Bearings: These are the metal things inside your wheels that allow them to turn.
-
- Make sure they are from a reputable brand, and you’ll be good to go, for sliding you will need bearings with spacers, either built in or detatched, I suggest going with built in.
-
- Griptape: This is the sandpaper-like material on top of your deck that keeps your feet from slipping off. The underside has an adhesive to make it stick to the board.
-
- Buy any griptape with "40 grit" or lower grit. The lower the grit the more grip it has.
-
- Hardware: These are the metal screws that hold your trucks to your board.
-
- The average size screws for a basic downhill are 1 1/4". If you think your deck might be thicker go with 1 1/2".
-
