BUYING A SKATEBOARD GUIDE

BUYING A SKATEBOARD AND WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
DECK SIZE
The only thing you need to worry about for buying a deck is the size. Everyone has a different preference on size. It doesn’t matter how big your feet are, or how heavy you are. If you’re just starting out, a deck that is 7.75 – 8.12 would be a good first deck size. That way you aren’t starting out with a huge board. You could even go up to 8.25 if you’re feeling like getting a bigger deck. If you are wanting to get a board specifically for cruising around, then it would be best to get a bigger deck size like 8.5 – 9.0
SHOP DECKS HERE
 
WHEELS
For wheels, there are 2 things that matter. The sizing and the durometer of the wheel.
The durometer of the wheel is how hard/soft the wheel is. A softer wheel is better if you are just wanting to cruise around and not do tricks. Anything 87A and under is very soft and shouldn’t be used if you want to street skate. If you’re wanting to specifically just cruise around, then softer is better. Anything 90A and above would be a harder wheel. The most common duro’s for street/park riding are 97A, 99A, and 101A. The harder the wheel, the less smooth it will feel. If you mainly just skate a park, get 97A-99A. If you’re really into street then 101A is what you want.
The sizing of the wheel matters for what type of skating you do as well. Bigger wheels are better for cruising. 65mm+ is what you want if you just want a cruiser board. For bowl riding 55mm – 60mm is the sizing you would want. Then for street/park 50mm – 54mm.
You can skate anything with any type of wheel. This is just what works best for each specific type of skating. You could use 52mm 101A wheels for bowl if you wanted to.
SHOP WHEELS HERE
GRIPTAPE
Griptape is pretty simple. Any grip will work on your deck. If your getting a wider deck like 9-10 inches, then you will want to get wider grip tape, but other then that there isn't any specific things you need to know about grip. 
SHOP GRIPTAPE HERE
HARDWARE
The average hardware size you will want is 7/8 inches - 1 inch hardware. But if you are using riser pads you probably will want hardware that is 1.25 inches - 1.5 inches, depending on how thick your riser pads are. Typically you won't need riser pads unless you have big wheels (56mm+). Riser pads help your board be higher off the ground so you don't wheel bite (when your board and wheels hit each other when turning). If you don't have riser pads, then hardware 7/8 inches - 1 inch in length is what you want.
SHOP HARDWARE HERE
BEARINGS
All skateboard bearings will fit your wheel, the only thing you will need to keep in mind is the quality of the bearing. The lower the price is of the bearing, the lower the quality will be of the bearing probably. You just need to take care of your bearings if you want them to last. That means try not going through water or else they will rust, or going through dirt. If you do there is ways to clean them. Either buy speed cream which you apply a small amount to each bearing, or you can put them in a bottle with rubbing alcohol and shake them around. If they still don't spin, then they are probably broken. If you are wanting to go as fast as possible if your mainly skating to just get around, then you will want to get higher quality bearings like Bones Swiss's. If your more into street skating and being rough with your board, then your best bet are bearings like the regular Red's Bearings. There is more of a chance of breaking bearings if rough with your board.
SHOP BEARINGS HERE
TRUCKS
For choosing the right trucks, you just need to make sure they fit the size of board you ride. All truck companies have their own sizing, it’s weird. Here are size charts for the trucks we carry:
SHOP TRUCKS HERE
×