It’s COVID time. People are dealing with reduced or nearly eliminated social interaction in different ways. Many of them are trying new things they always wanted to try, but were afraid of judgement. Others just want to learn something new. I’ve learned more guitar and piano in the past few months than I ever had in years of trying to learn. I also just bought a dancing longboard deck. I’m going to make a dance setup and learn that.
Everyone’s trying something new.
As it turns out, a lot of people are searching for longboards right now. According to Google Trends, they’re more popular now than they have been in over a decade in a half. The problem? In the past 5 years, the first result that would give users any useful information (potentially), “places to longboard near me” is on 18th of the list. “longboard sliding” is the 20th spot. Perhaps most importantly, “longboard shop near me” is 21st, and “longboard near me” is 25th. What’s before that?
Oh, guys, we have to have a chat.
Table of Contents
Pick a Good Brand
Listen, the last thing you want is to get a longboard, head out, and break it on the first day. I’ve seen a lot of people sharing their broken decks on Reddit, with that same story, and they’re almost always these cheap brands. You’re not going to know how to ride it, so you are going to be more rough with it. Picking a cheap board off of Amazon isn’t the answer though. Retrospec, Ten Toes, Volador, Rimable, and a few others are bad choices. They’re Amazon longboards. Back in the day, we used to criticize “Walmart skateboards” for their cheap parts and poor construction. Amazon longboards are the modern day equivalent of that.
Can you have fun on one of these? Of course! But you’ll only be able to go so far (literally). Weak decks, poorly constructed or turning trucks, mushy bushings with no rebound, and wheels that are likely just chunks of an almost sticky feeling urethane. Worst of all, they have bearings with no spacers that feel like they were lubed with glue. You’ll spend more energy pushing one of these around than walking place to place at the same speed.
Furthermore, if you don’t spend money on something good, you’ll be less likely to want to invest your time in it. It’ll be something you can toss aside and forget about. Buy something decent, and you can almost force yourself to continue, “Because I spent all that money.” Plus a decent board will make learning easier
What if that’s the only board you can afford? It’s not! First, you can check out a local skate shop. They may sell gently used boards and get you set up with a great setup for less. You can check out Facebook marketplace, ebay, and other marketplaces. You can even check out the r/longboarding subreddit’s Buy/Sell/Trade weekly thread. This often has great deals in it. You can build it in parts as well. Buy a deck this week. Some trucks after the next paycheck. Hardware and bearings. Wheels. Then, put it all together. You don’t need to get a new board overnight if you can’t afford to. Consider it an investment.
But what exactly are you looking for in a new setup?
Brands/Shops
A few reputable brands (in randomized order), follow:
- Moonshine Mfg.
- Pantheon Longboards *
- Zenit *
- Bustin Boards *
- Prism
- Landyachtz *
- Madrid
- DB Longboards
- Sector 9 *
- Rolling Tree
- Rayne
- Three Six Downhill
- Loaded *
- Arbor
- Bonzing
- Hi5ber
What about trucks?
- Paris *
- Caliber *
- Randal
- Arsenal
- New (only new) Bear Grizzly Gen 6 trucks *
- Independent (TKP) *
- Venture (TKP)
- Ace (TKP) *
- Tensor
Wheels?
- Powell Peralta *
- Remember Collective *
- Orangatang *
- Hawgs *
- Sector 9 *
- Venom
- Seismic
- Cloud Ride *
- Blood Orange
- and many more (check out a reputable skate shop)
I put a small * next to ones I can personally vouch for. These suggestions come from the community and reputable skate shops.
Speaking of which, some good places to shop from online (as, let’s face it, your local shop may be closed due to COVID 19):
- Muirskate
- Tactics
- Stoked
- Skate Warehouse
- Daddies
- Sickboards (for the EU folks)
Still, be sure to check out your local shop first. You may be able to arrange a pick up and talk over the phone or through email to plan out a setup.
Places not to shop:
- Amazon
- “Big Box” stores (Walmart, Target, Dicks Sporting Goods, etc)
- Zumiez
I actually bought a board at Zumiez before. My local shop didn’t have a deck I wanted and I wanted to try it out in person. They wouldn’t let me just grab the deck, so I had to get a complete. Furthermore, while I was in there trying out different longboards, I heard a clerk giving poor advice to a new buyer just to get them to make a complete setup with them. I ended up buying the board online later (I really wanted to see if I could find it anywhere else, but it was discontinued and out of stock everywhere). So, I bought from Zumiez. They shipped it poorly and it arrived slightly damaged. They may sell skateboards, but it’s not a skate shop.
What to Look For
If you’re an absolute beginner or looking for a setup to cruise and commute with, the beginner’s guide I made a few months ago can be a big help. I’m working on a more generalized post to help you find good starting setups for various skate disciplines. I will say that you can’t go wrong with 7 plies of maple, carbon fiber or fiberglass layers, or laminated bamboo. But plastic is really only useful for a carry on bag.
A few good options for a general purpose cruiser/commuter, again, in no particular order:
- Landyachtz Drop Cat 38, Switchblade 38 or 40, Drop Hammer or Switch
- Pantheon Nexus/Quest or Trip/Ember/Pranayama
- Zenit AB Maze
- Bustin Boards Sportster
- Loaded Icarus
- Moonshine Country Line
Basically? For stability and learning, you’re looking for something that’s at least 8″ wide, preferably between 9″ and 10″, 150mm-180mm trucks, depending on the deck width, a longer wheelbse, and a double drop. That is, the trucks mount through the board and the platform for the board is lower than the mounting point. This will make pushing, cruising, and learning much easier.
Welcome Aboard!
Longboarding, like many other practices, has its toxic members in the community. There are people who will gatekeep based on just about anything they can think of. Far more are supportive and willing to help, so feel free to reach out. Skating’s a lot of fun, and it’s a green way to get around. My dream is to see longboards largely replace cars in cities, but I think we’re still a ways off from that.
It can be frustrating to learn if you don’t already have pretty good balance. Even if you do, you’ll have to learn to balance on one foot why applying force with the other. It’s going to take time. You may even fall a lot. I did! So don’t be afraid of looking silly (no one cares), of falling (just duck and roll, it’s usually not that bad), and take it slow. Be patient with yourself and don’t push yourself or punish yourself for mistakes. To get good enough to skate around places will take under a month. To get good enough to confidently tackle any hill or do impressive freestyle tricks with a large dancing platform will take years. Be patient, don’t force it, and just have fun.
Congrats on discovering the best way to get around. Have fun with it!
Oh, and before you go: buy a helmet. Seriously. Buy a helmet.
