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“Wow, I feel as if I could dance with this longboard”
“They really look like hipsters with those cruiser”
“It seems like it would be fun to cruise around on a nice day or something”
Yes, longboarding is awesome according to skaters around the world and today we will give you review about how to choose best longboard decks. Nowadays, people seem to care more about longboarding and become crazy about this kind of sport. Compared to skateboarding, longboarding is more challenging in performing cool tricks, still, the more challenging it is, the more people attempt to acquire. While skateboarding mainly focuses on competitive trick-based activity, longboarding is completely different, it’s about speed and freedom.
Millions of people including children, teenagers and even adult are now having their own riders for many different purposes. Along with this, hundreds of longboard brands are doing the best to provide the most outstanding products that impress their customers.
Are you still weighed the pros and cons of picking yourself the best longboard decks ? Then lucky for you, this series will certainly meet your need. It’s clearly not all about your passion and techniques that maximize your amount of fun on your go around longboarding but a great rider will. Understand that, we’re here to present you the most detailed guide to choose you a longboard that includes perfect components:
In addition, we also provide some suggestions which might be useful for you to make a wise choice for choosing the best longboard decks.
First of series is how to purchase the best longboard decks, take a look at our buy guide
Remember, always ask yourself “What style of riding do you want to use longboard for?” There are numerous kinds of shape, size, stiffness and design, you have to know what riding style you’ll go with. No worry, you’ll get the perfect rider for every style. There are 3 main riding styles that we give you specific guidance for:
Cruising/ Carving – Beginners
Freeriding/ Sliding – Intermediate
Downhill/ Racing – Advanced
In case that you don’t know where to start, Cruising & Carving longboard is the type that almost everyone is fond of.
If you need a rider with a view to traveling to class, work, library or just going around the street for joy, a cruiser would be a great transport that makes it easier for you to weave through heavy traffic or small alleys. There are the 3 most suitable types of cruiser:Â
The lower platform provides more stability at high speed and enables to ride with easeÂ
Traditional design: Shorter in length, more flexible when riding through crowds and cruising on rough pavementsÂ
The great top-mounted design gives a lot of control in turning and sliding.
  1. Choosing the right deck length
Short deck (28”- 32”) Fit small riders, easy to carryÂ
Mid-sized deck (32”- 42”) Suit for nearly everyoneÂ
Long deck (42”- 46”) Heavier, provides more stability and relaxing rides
   2. Choosing the right deck flex
Flex seems to be an interesting factor which is considered to be “impact absorbents”, it is able to reduce bad influences on ankles and knees when riding on rough paths. Furthermore, it would be more fun wandering around with a flexible board.Â
With a low center of gravity, it provides extreme balance riding with little flex. It also reduces the chance of getting ankle damage when skating on uneven and rough surfaces. Especially, after a long time of using, the board gains the flex itself as well.Â
Stiff decks really do well in high speed. Compatible for downhill or racing rides.Â
   3. Choosing Kicktails or not
Decks with kicktail: It comes down to a matter of preference when choosing a deck with or without a kicktail. Basically, a kicktail makes it convenient to do tricks, quick turns, or down curbs. If you are cool with tricks and enjoy speed, you go for it.Â
Decks without kicktail: Contrast to Kicktail boards, no kicktail maximize the efficient wheelbase and help beginners feel more stable in motion.Â
You can check out the selection of Arbor, Sector 9, Loaded… to find the coolest campus cruisers which can give you intriguing rides. We would give you 3 suggestions:Â
Believe me, this board is awesome. You will think about buying a whole set of it after trying this board. Earned 2012 Skateboard of the year, it turned out to be an extremely durable, trustworthy board.
Â
After defining what you want to buy, let’s get on working on it. There are 2 ways you can buy Sector 9 Rhythm Deck which is Eco boardÂ
From my point of view, this deck is exceptional. Recognized as the best performing sustainable skateboard, it will not let you down.
Freeriding is a style very well defined by riding lots of hills and sliding your board, you can do the stand slides, 180 switch slides by slashing some driveways, drifting around the corners. In another way of saying, it is the combination of downhill and freestyle when you do the tricks going downhill. You can maximize your creativity in this longboarding style.
We would highly recommend the board that is 38 – 42” in length, 8- 10.5” in width. The wheelbase is also an important component, which will perfectly match with 20- 30” in length. A lot of people especially more recently are riding boards that are similar to normal skateboard but a little bit longer and wider to put foot on it. This is really an ideal board to blend your style.
The first and foremost feature for a good freeride deck is stiffness. Freeriding includes many tricks, turns, slides at speed so you’re going to need something more stable. The most suitable materials may be fiberglass and maple because it makes the board stiffer and lighter. Â
with a lowered foot platform that sits below the height of the trucks, there is a lower center of gravity, which provides a stable, easy-to-push, and drifty ride.Â
Great deck with very little flex, which is tailored for freeriding.Â
Freeriding is all about styles and creativity. So a board with a kicktail would be more interesting.Â
Five Mile Black Sheep Downhill/Freeride Longboard Deck w/ Grip TapeÂ
10″ x 39″Â
Five Mile Lady Liberty Downhill/Freeride Longboard Deck w/ Grip TapeÂ
9.75″ x 37.5″Â
Five Mile Warhorse Downhill/Freeride Longboard Deck w/ Grip TapeÂ
9.75″ x 38″Â
Considered to be the best style of longboarding, downhill riding requires a lot of rider’s experience and desire to acquire to high speed. By the time going downhill, the pace is extremely fast and furious. So the stiff construction and aggressive concave are the crucial features.Â
The ideal length for a downhill deck is between 38” and 44” with the wheelbase 25”- 30” long.Â
   2. Choosing deck style
Drop – through (especially for beginners):
Provided you have never tried on a downhill board, you will be surprise with the stability drop- though deck offers. It is designed to lock your feet to the board. Great directional board!Â
Top mount:Â
Advantages to this design include increased grip and ease of turning; disadvantages include a high center of gravity, which could contribute to a lack of stability.Â
When it comes down to downhill riding, speed is preferred to tricks. Therefore, kicktail seems to be disregarded or unnecessary in this style of riding.Â
1. Arbor Vugenhausen Grip Tape Topsheet Longboard DeckÂ
37-InchÂ
2. Sector 9 Dojo Downhill Division Longboard Skateboard With Grip TapeÂ
9.75″ x 34.75″Â
3. Sector 9 Bomber Downhill Division Longboard Skateboard Deck With Grip TapeÂ
9.75″ x 37″Â
Choosing the best longboard decks is the first step to build your perfectly complete longboard, thus, pick wisely. Follow our guide above and choose for yourself the flawless board. Also, remember to follow user and maintenance guides to increase deck durability. And now read more about how to choose the best longboard trucks.Â
Welcome to the longboardaz, we are thankful to you for visiting our site, which is a website driven by Tom Jordan to provide you every kind of longboard that you can easily get by just clicking on the mentioned links.
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