How to choose skateboard deck

You are a skater. You should be able to choose your own skateboard deck yourself, because it is your “work tool” in the skatepark and street. But not every beginner, and sometimes even a more or less experienced rider, knows about all aspects of choosing a skateboard. In this article we will try to fully disclose for you the answer to the question “How to choose a deck for a skateboard?”.

Parameters influencing the choice of skateboard

Most beginners choose their first decks based solely on brand and pattern. This is not quite the right decision when you approach such a responsible business. If you buy a board that doesn’t suit you, it won’t be comfortable to ride.

There are several main factors that will influence your choice of board. We’ll arrange them in descending order of importance:

• Riding style;
• foot size;
• Age and height;
• Sensations from the shape of the board (for those who buy not the first skateboard);
• Purchase budget.

Skateboard Deck Specifications

In turn, skate decks have a set of characteristics that need to be linked to the parameters of a particular rider, that is, you, and make the final purchase decision. These characteristics include:

• Width of the deck;
• Length of the deck;
• Concave depth;
• The shape of the nose and tail;
• The size of the kicktail or the amount of bend at the ends of the board;
• Brand;
• The number of veneer layers (now all polls make 7, so there is no need to choose);
• Technologies used.

Now let’s figure out together how, depending on your parameters and preferences, to choose the right board according to the above characteristics.

Skateboard deck recommendations

Let’s make a reservation right away that the entire text of the article below cannot be used as a rule. These are just guidelines to follow when purchasing a deck for the first time. Then you can choose and buy them based solely on your personal feelings, which is right. But while you have not yet gained enough experience, then take note of our recommendations

1.Choice of width

The selection of this parameter directly correlates with the size of your feet, age and height.

The standard board width is 8 inches, the so-called “figure eight”. Just a couple of years ago, this size was the most popular size for riders of all skill levels and riding styles. But now skateboarding has taken over the fashion for wide boards, so most who calmly skate on eight inch decks choose boards from 8.25 to 8.5. But this is all an exception to the rule.

An eight inch board is ideal for a rider with a 43 RU net foot. Why this proportion? If you translate 8 inches to centimeters, you get about 20. 43 shoe size is about 28 centimeters in the insole, which means 4 cm of your foot will hang from the front and rear edges of the skateboard, which is considered the norm for many riders.

If you have a large foot size, then you should choose something wider. Today, you can freely find boards in a dimensional grid up to 8.5. Anything wider will already be from the category of cruisers, and it is not so easy to buy.

Also, we must not forget about the riding style. After all, if you prefer to roll in radii (ramp, mini-ramp, bowls, halfpipes, spine transfers, and so on), then even with a small foot size, you’d better take the board wider. This is necessary to feel as confident as possible when driving at high speeds, as well as after landing from departures. If you are a street shooter and like to drive in GOS, then you should choose a smaller size. Such a board will be easier to click, as it is simply lighter, and it will also be able to turn faster on flip tricks.

As a result, we get the following picture. If you like to skate street, your foot size 43-44 (the most common shoe size for men), then your ideal is 8 inches. And there is no need to chase fashion. You can always try wider, but buying the first board by size is reasonable.

And if I’m a girl, then how should I be?

Today, a lot of girls ride skateboards. Of course, their foot size is several times smaller than a “man’s paw”, but deck makers are not simpletons. Therefore, in the line of almost every skateboard brand there are boards less than 8 inches – 7.9, 7.8, 7.7 and so on. Here the girls should draw an analogy from the male size and calculate the most optimal for themselves

2.Choice of board length

The length of the board always depends on its width: the wider the deck, the longer it is. But this proportion always changes from brand to brand. Historically (in general, this is generally a feature of brands), for example, skateboards from Zero will be shorter than the average “eight”. In turn, Sk8mafia will be slightly longer than the same reference sample. Therefore, this choice is best left exclusively at the subjective level. When you first buy, just ignore it, and then you can find the “gold” format.

But don’t forget about children’s skateboards. This is where the characteristics of the rider’s age and height come into effect. Children are often small in stature and the standard 32 ” board length for 8.0 width will be uncomfortable. It will be difficult for a small child to study on such a board. Therefore, many skateboard brands make special shortened versions for children. It is better if you buy your child just such. And as soon as he grows up, you can change to an adult kit.

3. Concave depth

Concave is the amount of depression in the middle of the board relative to its edges, measured across the width of the deck. In the skateboard market, there are several “settled” concave parameters:

• Low;
• Mid;
• High.

Today, many manufacturers do not indicate the size of the concave on their skateboards at all and it can only be determined by personal feelings. For beginners, we recommend looking towards the mid concave. After testing several boards, it will be possible to understand whether you need a large “boat” bend, or vice versa, you will choose a flatter board. It is believed that it is easier to flip at high concave. But all these are subjective impressions of individual riders, so you should try the average and already understand in which direction to move, if necessary.

4. Nose and tail shape

In this article, we are looking at standard street boards, where both sides of the deck have a kicktail and the board has no clear direction – a kind of “twin tip” of the skateboarding world.

With the shape of the nose and tail, each manufacturer plays differently. Someone makes the nose slightly larger in area, someone makes the tail a little more square, and so on. There are a lot of variations, and again it is impossible to recommend something that suits you. Only personal feelings. Here we want to say that if the tail and nous decks are identical or, on the contrary, are seriously different, this does not mean that the board is defective and cannot be so. Maybe even how.

Advice to a beginner – take something more average, in this case it is identical nous and tail. It will be easier to understand and understand what shape you will need in the future.

5. Size of the kicktail

This parameter is already for professionals. Moreover, its overall size on the assembled skateboard can always be adjusted due to the height of the suspensions and the use of shock or riser pads (plastic pads for suspensions).

Beginner – take something of average characteristics and do not bother yourself with unnecessary choice parameters.

In general, the size of the kicktail affects the total distance from the end of the board to the ground. In turn, this distance affects how much the board can be lifted up. Those who like to make menewals take a great height of the kicktail. For them, the distance of maneuvering on the balance due to the size of the kicktail increases, which gives more opportunities for skateboarding. Also, if you want to try to learn how to do higher ollies, then you can also try a board with an increased kicktail. But remember that it will take much more effort to click on it than on the standard one.

6. Brand

This parameter affects both the quality of the skateboard and its cost. Initially, it is worth starting from your budget, which you have for a skateboard. If you can spend 3000 rubles on a deck, then you shouldn’t be looking at something more expensive than this amount. For a beginner, any branded deck will be very good. The main thing is not to buy components from unverified sellers, from hands, from incomprehensible people or in stores such as Sportmaster. All this equipment is not suitable for normal skateboarding.

7. Availability of technology

Now you can find skateboards that are simply packed with various technologies. Almost like snowboarding boards. Among the most common:

• The presence of a carbon layer;
• Lightweight construction due to the use of lighter veneer;
• The presence of a special plastic layer on the front side of the deck, where the drawing is located;
• The presence of special inserts at the bolt attachment point to get rid of microcracks.

Ignore their presence if you buy a deck for the first time. Firstly, they increase the purchase price, and secondly, their effectiveness has no clear justification, since most professional riders still choose ordinary wooden skateboards from year to year.

Summing up, we can say that when choosing a deck for the first time, you should be guided by average parameters and fit into your purchase budget. You will come to a more informed choice when you try a lot of different skateboards. But you need to start with something in between in order to understand which direction to move in the future.

If you still doubt the correctness of your choice and are afraid to make a purchase, then you can always write to us or come to our store, and we will help you make a choice based on your wishes. It will be absolutely free for you!