Slap MessageBoards
Skateboarding => Shoes & Gear => Topic started by: REGS on July 11, 2023, 10:25:30 PM
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Debated putting this in the woodshop thread but feel like it deserves its own discussion.
The recent DLX prebook has about 70% of the boards listed as Made in China. They cost roughly the same as a pre-Covid DLX board while the BBS boards are 30-40% more expensive.
From our rep:
In a bold but completely logical move, Deluxe have set up an Asia based board manufacturer to counter the ongoing board price increases from their primary factory. These boards are significantly cheaper and are set up with Deluxe's custom shapes and molds. For the purists, favorites like the AH Classic Eagles are still made in North America.
How long until every company moves the bulk of operations to Asia?
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If they ramp up the quality I’m ok with it…..BBS has their shit dialed pretty good though. Crail’s Dailan stuff and DWS stuff are pretty good.
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this is a bummer. also seems short sighted with the potential shipping issues getting stuff from china (for us n. america folks). sucks spitfire is likely to be next, they already bailed on sf. is dlx doing poorly? i read elsewhere they sold shop on market st. to atlas
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Are these their pro model / team graphic / PP decks? I know their pre-built complete have been made in China for years.
Habitat / AWS also mentioned they use a combination of BBS and China, shops have the option of ordering directly from China for an additional discount on top of standard distributor / bulk orders.
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Hmm, that is disappointing to hear. For me, I just want all the boards for that brand (or at very least the pro boards) to be made in one place. Whether that's DSM, PS, or BBS or others, I just don't need to be worried about different woodshops from drop to drop, and worse for me is different wood shops in the same drop (BBS and PS the exception ie Quasi). That said, I don't skate DLX boards so I'm probably part of the problem why they needed to cut costs. I'll just stick to supporting DLX through Spitfire, Venture and Thunder and I hope this works out for them financially. NHS is all China (I think) so it must put cost pressure on DLX to match up for sure. I wonder which are the best sellers for DLX brand boards, Real, Krooked, AH? I wonder how There compares in board sales.
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Honestly I don’t care where it’s made as long as it’s a good product. Dwindle/Madness resin7 decks are the best decks I’ve ever ridden, Independent and Ace are two of the best trucks on the market. Yeah it would be cool if they were made here, but USA made doesn’t always equate to the best product. If anything, the high cost of production in the US means cutting corners to compete with overseas competitors, resulting in a lower quality product. Hate to say it, but made in the USA doesn’t carry the clout it did in the 90s. In the end, if I buy an Anti Hero deck, it’s still money going to DLX; and in this case it’s more money than if they were to make their decks in the USA. I’m happy to support DLX over NHS, Dwindle, etc
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Honestly I don’t care where it’s made as long as it’s a good product. Dwindle/Madness resin7 decks are the best decks I’ve ever ridden, Independent and Ace are two of the best trucks on the market. Yeah it would be cool if they were made here, but USA made doesn’t always equate to the best product. If anything, the high cost of production in the US means cutting corners to compete with overseas competitors, resulting in a lower quality product. Hate to say it, but made in the USA doesn’t carry the clout it did in the 90s. In the end, if I buy an Anti Hero deck, it’s still money going to DLX; and in this case it’s more money than if they were to make their decks in the USA. I’m happy to support DLX over NHS, Dwindle, etc
Weren‘t their decks previously made in Mexico (BBS)? I don‘t like dwindle boards very much. They are extremely stiff, which I don’t mind, but then they tend to break fairly quickly.
I don‘t like this move. It is likely they will not get top quality straight away. It took crail around eight years to achieve just acceptable quality after their China move. For us in Europe this probably means it is going to become nearly impossible to get decks from top manufacturers. Besides deluxe almost all decks at German skateshops are already made in China.
I wondered there will be a way of moving board production back to the US, by cutting costs with automation. Besides the sanding of the edges it seems you barely need any workers in the production process of decks. If you could establish a good just in time production model combined with automation, production might become profitable again in the US. It would also be much easier to react to shifts in demand, which would mean you would have to sell much less products in sales.
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Don't take this as a personal jab but I'd like to see screenshots of the pre-book, or at the least hear it confirmed from more shop owners/buyers
My preference has been to skate DLX branded boards(and trucks/wheels) for the past 20 years. It's not an exaggeration to say I've skated a few hundred of their boards in my life; I have at least 10 waiting to be skated in my stack right now. I like BBS/Generator boards. They are what a skateboard should feel like to me. I'll sometimes skate boards from other woodshops and I usually don't like them. If they were to come from a China based BBS shop then I'd be more inclined to give them a chance, but if not then I'll just buy more boards from companies that use BBS
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Such an American thing to keep eagles in North America.
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Such an American thing to keep eagles in North America.
Honestly, the irony in that statement + the logic is hilarious! It's a top selling shape, so staying BBS made makes sense, but the cherry on top of it being an Eagle graphic, no less!
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Dlx is just being nice. Those poor red hatted boys still haven't recovered from losing their Indy iron cross gear. The eagle moving to China would just be too much
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It’s always surprised me that DLX let BBS manufacture every kid and their mother’s boards…..brands like SC and Crail get their stuff made in China partly because the factories can make their huge orders on time. Maybe that’s a part of it too.
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They make way more money off of the clothes than they do for boards anyways. No one can differentiate enough with the shapes to make it a major selling point aside from the actual woodshops themselves.
I have skated 2 AH decks in the last 2 years, but theres also like 10-15 other brands out of BBS that I like just as much / more...
Same cant be said about Spitfire / Thunder
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As long as it is easy enough to differentiate between the BBS and Chinese boards, which I suppose it will be if shops stick to the right pricing, I'll pay more for the Made in Mexico boards. The thought of all the shipping involved- raw materials from the US/ Canada to China and then back to the US for distribution... I don't know.. Hopefully the shaped boards like the Huffer remain BBS only.
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Can we just all agree to start the rumor on here that DLX boards are soggy bullshit now, DLX fell off, etc? Doesn't matter if it's true or not - it's true in skateboarding if it gets said on Slap enough. If this goes well for DLX, every board on the wall will be made in China a year from now. We might not have the power to stop that from happening anyway, but it's worth a shot.
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Besides deluxe almost all decks at German skateshops are already made in China.
Can’t you get Magenta or Pass~Port boards in German shops? What about Polar or Uma?
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Can we just all agree to start the rumor on here that DLX boards are soggy bullshit now, DLX fell off, etc? Doesn't matter if it's true or not - it's true in skateboarding if it gets said on Slap enough. If this goes well for DLX, every board on the wall will be made in China a year from now. We might not have the power to stop that from happening anyway, but it's worth a shot.
No, I think their boards are fine….
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All I know is that Dailan makes Crail boards and they’re my favorite, so this could be a potential non-issue as far as quality goes. What really sucks is raising prices for people who still want to skate the BBS wood.
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I’ve made a post about deck thickness and weight a while ago, I seriously have the idea that these China made decks are thicker and heavier than the American made ones. I’m not that good of a skater, but I feel the difference between these thinner/lighter decks and the thicker heavier ones. I like the Anti Hero 8.75 shape that they use on the classic eagle and some other boards… Seems like I’m going to skate the white classic eagle, better safe than sorry.
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much like the rest of the world, china has many factories and so you cannot say they are all comparatively bad..... VX boards are made in china and they are lighter and stronger....you just need to know what woodshop they are from.
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They must be losing money on warranty scams, too. My first (I think) made in Mexico set has a crack in the sidewall and bearing seat, and the warranty dept. requested I provide a verified amateur-style photo of the defect next to a note showing today’s date along with the shop name and purchase date.
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Debated putting this in the woodshop thread but feel like it deserves its own discussion.
The recent DLX prebook has about 70% of the boards listed as Made in China. They cost roughly the same as a pre-Covid DLX board while the BBS boards are 30-40% more expensive.
From our rep:
In a bold but completely logical move, Deluxe have set up an Asia based board manufacturer to counter the ongoing board price increases from their primary factory. These boards are significantly cheaper and are set up with Deluxe's custom shapes and molds. For the purists, favorites like the AH Classic Eagles are still made in North America.
How long until every company moves the bulk of operations to Asia?
Where are you/your shop located? I was just wondering if it’ll be a Europe/Asia thing with the Chinese wood and the Americas get BBS? I don’t know why they’d have 2 different wood shops.
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Sounds like it was already explained. Different price points.
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Could be a way to drive pro board sales. If I was the product manager I would only make pro boards in MX moving forward.
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That’s sort of what Toy Machine was doing with PS….in the first post it noted Eagles would be BBS……I guess they are providing more options. Maybe something else is coming down the chute because there are still tons of other brands making boards through BBS, which would take away from their sales….
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I’ve been happy with the Crail and DSM board I’ve rode recently. I think Deluxe is probably more likely to go for the wood shop Crail uses between those two options. It seems every brand that uses DSM has the exact same “mellow concave/steel kicks” shape so I’m not sure they would be capable of or willing to make all of the shapes deluxe currently offers.
I had a few boards over COVID that were made in China with only a little dimple in the middle of the front truck holes. I ended up with 4 of them and all 4 were warped so hopefully they don’t go with that one.
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I mostly fuck with deluxe true fit and the dream shape in 8.06 so if they can keep the molds consistent that's the main thing for me. I feel like the array of shapes and sizes deluxe offers is one of their best attributes
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Debated putting this in the woodshop thread but feel like it deserves its own discussion.
The recent DLX prebook has about 70% of the boards listed as Made in China. They cost roughly the same as a pre-Covid DLX board while the BBS boards are 30-40% more expensive.
From our rep:
In a bold but completely logical move, Deluxe have set up an Asia based board manufacturer to counter the ongoing board price increases from their primary factory. These boards are significantly cheaper and are set up with Deluxe's custom shapes and molds. For the purists, favorites like the AH Classic Eagles are still made in North America.
How long until every company moves the bulk of operations to Asia?
Where are you located? I haven’t gotten any sort of email from my rep.
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How long u would guess it takes for eagles to be made in China too.
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Debated putting this in the woodshop thread but feel like it deserves its own discussion.
The recent DLX prebook has about 70% of the boards listed as Made in China. They cost roughly the same as a pre-Covid DLX board while the BBS boards are 30-40% more expensive.
From our rep:
In a bold but completely logical move, Deluxe have set up an Asia based board manufacturer to counter the ongoing board price increases from their primary factory. These boards are significantly cheaper and are set up with Deluxe's custom shapes and molds. For the purists, favorites like the AH Classic Eagles are still made in North America.
How long until every company moves the bulk of operations to Asia?
Definitely needed its own thread, but I am curious to hear more.
I have seen quite a few board companies start to have boards from more than one woodshop, mostly something like BBS / PS Stix and then an "unknown" woodshop in China, just to have the two price options, or at least that is what they are saying, which does make sense.
Overall the boards from China are not bad, but they were a different concave and feel to other boards from BBS, from those brands that had both going on.
It will be interesting to see / hear if they are the same concave and everything else, which is what this seems to be, not just a generic press and then your graphic on whatever shapes they cut from those ones.
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All I've been skating most of the year is DSM boards. I brok one in 2 or 3 years. I had 5 BBS decks break on me within a month and a half or 2 months. They did feel lighter and crisp though.
With that being said if i landed bolts everytime, all i would skate would be Gerwer or Cardiel boards. China DSM are great boards but definately feel completely different from bbs decks.
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I’ve honestly liked the Choc boards I’ve been riding better than the BBS boards. BBS boards seem to get soggy and feel waterlogged faster.
Crail boards stay snappy.
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Oh boy. For all the china wood haters out there, plenty of shops us generator wood.
Are you telling people to buy shop decks, or are you implying Generator is Chinese wood?
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Debated putting this in the woodshop thread but feel like it deserves its own discussion.
The recent DLX prebook has about 70% of the boards listed as Made in China. They cost roughly the same as a pre-Covid DLX board while the BBS boards are 30-40% more expensive.
From our rep:
In a bold but completely logical move, Deluxe have set up an Asia based board manufacturer to counter the ongoing board price increases from their primary factory. These boards are significantly cheaper and are set up with Deluxe's custom shapes and molds. For the purists, favorites like the AH Classic Eagles are still made in North America.
How long until every company moves the bulk of operations to Asia?
I am curious to hear more.
What country are you in or continent are you on?
With some brands and distributors, certain countries or continents get different wood, but for DLX it has always been the one standard product for global release.
Guessing things are getting harder, margins getting tighter and all that too.
DLX product here in Australia has definitely gone up a whole lot recently, almost priced some people I know out of buying their boards, but it has always been easy to know what I was getting, when compared to any other brand.
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I was told by a source that worked at Tum Yeto, Watson, and Generator at points in time that BBS apparently was having trouble sourcing glue. Apparently the glue they were using was somehow not cool with regulations (not sure if in US or Mexico) hence people reporting snapping boards and general supply issues during Covid. While this is just what someone told me and is unverified, I wonder if whatever factories in China are using has a higher QC, availability, and compliance.
With that said and shapes aside no one I know that has tried a current Crail or Chinese board has had anything but positive things to say.
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It’s confirmed through our rep pretty much everything OP said. The only difference being our rep said they will be made “over seas” so exactly what OP said.
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
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It’s only international shops that are getting the cheaper option of china made decks since the shipping cost to get them from mexico is so high.
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
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Not to turn this into a bike thread but I will gladly buy a USA made frame (S&M bmx), forks, bars etc over Taiwan. I have two so I'm probably a good for life.
I'm not American btw.
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are the misregistered eagles china made now?
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are the misregistered eagles china made now?
I gather from what they said, all boards in USA are still BBS made. Only boards in other parts of the world will be from China and even then it is some, but I don't know any details as to what, other than the usual eagles will stay all BBS for us here in AU.
Guessing it is Europe, Asia, AU and similar places that will get the mixed drops, as said USA still all BBS boards, for now.
Also I don't even know if those shorter molds will still be called or have graphics with "Misregistered eagles" as they had done the tapes graphic and then another one on the shorter shapes - curbs graphic or something I can't recall right this minute, so I am guessing you will have to check the certain graphics in each catalog for the shorter shapes.
Already I have seen some different graphics listed as the different shapes, so I am not sure if that is a shop error, or they are doing certain graphics on both tru fit / shorter boards as well as regular boards.
Something to watch and check anyway.
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
The argument against China made products goes beyond just the quality of the products. There is a reason to move production to china, it is because it is cheaper. Why is it cheaper? You pay much less money for the workers and there are less regulations about labor in general and protecting the environment. It is pretty fucked up. You exploit these conditions to make a cheap product ant then you take that product and sell it to people in western countries, who don‘t have to suffer the consequences of those working conditions.
Another argument is that it is worse for C02 emissions. Essentially they have to ship North American maple to China and then they ship the boards back to American distributions. That‘s much worse for CO2 emissions than a production that is done entirely in North America.
Another reason for BBS partial move to China might be, that they will have rely less on BBS for their orders. This will make them more flexible and give them more power negotiating prices and conditions for orders from BBS. If BBS wants to raise prices or put pressure on DLX they could just get more boards from their Chinese factory. It this was the reason there might be hope for DLX boards by BBS, yet.
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In Germany the prices for dlx boards have steadily increased over the last couple of years and the latest dlx drop was priced at 85€. Many people just couldn't justify paying those prices anymore. A shop board while also getting pricier is at 50€.
If dlx is not able to offer boards from bbs for a price which customers are willing to pay, looking for a cheaper wood shop is the only way I guess.
Everything is getting more expensive and wages are not keeping up.
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
The argument against China made products goes beyond just the quality of the products. There is a reason to move production to china, it is because it is cheaper. Why is it cheaper? You pay much less money for the workers and there are less regulations about labor in general and protecting the environment. It is pretty fucked up. You exploit these conditions to make a cheap product ant then you take that product and sell it to people in western countries, who don‘t have to suffer the consequences of those working conditions.
Another argument is that it is worse for C02 emissions. Essentially they have to ship North American maple to China and then they ship the boards back to American distributions. That‘s much worse for CO2 emissions than a production that is done entirely in North America.
Another reason for BBS partial move to China might be, that they will have rely less on BBS for their orders. This will make them more flexible and give them more power negotiating prices and conditions for orders from BBS. If BBS wants to raise prices or put pressure on DLX they could just get more boards from their Chinese factory. It this was the reason there might be hope for DLX boards by BBS, yet.
I don't disagree that there are externalities, but in skateboarding the worry always seems to be in terms of quality.
Also, there's not necessarily any reason to believe emissions are lower. Boards from Mexico are often shipped on truck or air freight, which has higher emissions but is a shorter distance.
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My guess is that the DSM woodshops have way too much spare capacity since Dwindle shuttered Enjoi, Blind and Almost (probably on the cusp), and offered US brands very attractive rates and MOQs to poach orders from Generator. Plus they can ship direct from China to overseas distributors helping to lower the landed costs to distributors and shops.
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I wouldn’t be surprised if making boards more accessible skaters coming from lower income brackets.
Deck prices skyrocketing adds a barrier to entry for new skaters.
When Dwindle started having boards produced in China back in ‘02, they were able to charge $35 per deck when everyone else was charging $50.
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Max Schaaf of Real
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
The argument against China made products goes beyond just the quality of the products. There is a reason to move production to china, it is because it is cheaper. Why is it cheaper? You pay much less money for the workers and there are less regulations about labor in general and protecting the environment. It is pretty fucked up. You exploit these conditions to make a cheap product ant then you take that product and sell it to people in western countries, who don‘t have to suffer the consequences of those working conditions.
Another argument is that it is worse for C02 emissions. Essentially they have to ship North American maple to China and then they ship the boards back to American distributions. That‘s much worse for CO2 emissions than a production that is done entirely in North America.
Another reason for BBS partial move to China might be, that they will have rely less on BBS for their orders. This will make them more flexible and give them more power negotiating prices and conditions for orders from BBS. If BBS wants to raise prices or put pressure on DLX they could just get more boards from their Chinese factory. It this was the reason there might be hope for DLX boards by BBS, yet.
I don't disagree that there are externalities, but in skateboarding the worry always seems to be in terms of quality.
Also, there's not necessarily any reason to believe emissions are lower. Boards from Mexico are often shipped on truck or air freight, which has higher emissions but is a shorter distance.
I looked up emissions of goods transported on cargo ships vs emission of transportation by truck. You are correct. Trucks cause about 20 times more CO2 emissions per ton than large cargo ships do. Still the CO2 footprint of a Chinese deck has to be way higher. You still have to get all the wood to a port first and from Chine ports to the factory in China and back. Additionally for a Chinese produced deck you have more than 12 000 miles on cargo ships (take wood from USA/Canada to China and transport finished decks back to US).
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
The argument against China made products goes beyond just the quality of the products. There is a reason to move production to china, it is because it is cheaper. Why is it cheaper? You pay much less money for the workers and there are less regulations about labor in general and protecting the environment. It is pretty fucked up. You exploit these conditions to make a cheap product ant then you take that product and sell it to people in western countries, who don‘t have to suffer the consequences of those working conditions.
Another argument is that it is worse for C02 emissions. Essentially they have to ship North American maple to China and then they ship the boards back to American distributions. That‘s much worse for CO2 emissions than a production that is done entirely in North America.
Another reason for BBS partial move to China might be, that they will have rely less on BBS for their orders. This will make them more flexible and give them more power negotiating prices and conditions for orders from BBS. If BBS wants to raise prices or put pressure on DLX they could just get more boards from their Chinese factory. It this was the reason there might be hope for DLX boards by BBS, yet.
I don't disagree that there are externalities, but in skateboarding the worry always seems to be in terms of quality.
Also, there's not necessarily any reason to believe emissions are lower. Boards from Mexico are often shipped on truck or air freight, which has higher emissions but is a shorter distance.
I looked up emissions of goods transported on cargo ships vs emission of transportation by truck. You are correct. Trucks cause about 20 times more CO2 emissions per ton than large cargo ships do. Still the CO2 footprint of a Chinese deck has to be way higher. You still have to get all the wood to a port first and from Chine ports to the factory in China and back. Additionally for a Chinese produced deck you have more than 12 000 miles on cargo ships (take wood from USA/Canada to China and transport finished decks back to US).
Would they really transport wood? Guitars made in Asia tend to use basswood instead of maple and poplar that MIA guitars tend to be made of. Wouldn’t woodshops in China just source whatever wood is available domestically?
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
The argument against China made products goes beyond just the quality of the products. There is a reason to move production to china, it is because it is cheaper. Why is it cheaper? You pay much less money for the workers and there are less regulations about labor in general and protecting the environment. It is pretty fucked up. You exploit these conditions to make a cheap product ant then you take that product and sell it to people in western countries, who don‘t have to suffer the consequences of those working conditions.
Another argument is that it is worse for C02 emissions. Essentially they have to ship North American maple to China and then they ship the boards back to American distributions. That‘s much worse for CO2 emissions than a production that is done entirely in North America.
Another reason for BBS partial move to China might be, that they will have rely less on BBS for their orders. This will make them more flexible and give them more power negotiating prices and conditions for orders from BBS. If BBS wants to raise prices or put pressure on DLX they could just get more boards from their Chinese factory. It this was the reason there might be hope for DLX boards by BBS, yet.
I don't disagree that there are externalities, but in skateboarding the worry always seems to be in terms of quality.
Also, there's not necessarily any reason to believe emissions are lower. Boards from Mexico are often shipped on truck or air freight, which has higher emissions but is a shorter distance.
I looked up emissions of goods transported on cargo ships vs emission of transportation by truck. You are correct. Trucks cause about 20 times more CO2 emissions per ton than large cargo ships do. Still the CO2 footprint of a Chinese deck has to be way higher. You still have to get all the wood to a port first and from Chine ports to the factory in China and back. Additionally for a Chinese produced deck you have more than 12 000 miles on cargo ships (take wood from USA/Canada to China and transport finished decks back to US).
DSM makes price point decks from other woods, but their high quality stuff is always Canadian maple. There’s no way that DLX is going to be selling top shelf decks made from anything less.
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
The argument against China made products goes beyond just the quality of the products. There is a reason to move production to china, it is because it is cheaper. Why is it cheaper? You pay much less money for the workers and there are less regulations about labor in general and protecting the environment. It is pretty fucked up. You exploit these conditions to make a cheap product ant then you take that product and sell it to people in western countries, who don‘t have to suffer the consequences of those working conditions.
Another argument is that it is worse for C02 emissions. Essentially they have to ship North American maple to China and then they ship the boards back to American distributions. That‘s much worse for CO2 emissions than a production that is done entirely in North America.
Another reason for BBS partial move to China might be, that they will have rely less on BBS for their orders. This will make them more flexible and give them more power negotiating prices and conditions for orders from BBS. If BBS wants to raise prices or put pressure on DLX they could just get more boards from their Chinese factory. It this was the reason there might be hope for DLX boards by BBS, yet.
I don't disagree that there are externalities, but in skateboarding the worry always seems to be in terms of quality.
Also, there's not necessarily any reason to believe emissions are lower. Boards from Mexico are often shipped on truck or air freight, which has higher emissions but is a shorter distance.
I looked up emissions of goods transported on cargo ships vs emission of transportation by truck. You are correct. Trucks cause about 20 times more CO2 emissions per ton than large cargo ships do. Still the CO2 footprint of a Chinese deck has to be way higher. You still have to get all the wood to a port first and from Chine ports to the factory in China and back. Additionally for a Chinese produced deck you have more than 12 000 miles on cargo ships (take wood from USA/Canada to China and transport finished decks back to US).
They can also grow and farm trees. China is an insanely massive country with climates suitable for a large number of hardwoods.
I mean, a lot of times food at a Farmer's Market can have a higher carbon footprint than things sold in large retailers. Its not always intuitive at first. Like, we don't know what type of power plants power factories in Mexico or China. We don't know how the glue is made in either place and what environmental externalities that has. Without knowing these and other facts its naive at best to try to make a claim about sustainability. Just because Mexico is closer to the United States doesn't really mean anything about carbon footprint, the quality of goods, or labor practices in factories. Mexico also produces an insane amount of low quality knock off pharmaceuticals of questionable purity whereas many Chinese supplement companies have large operations to test for quality and purity, for example.
I was told by a former Clutch employee that sometimes their presses would slightly malfunction and they would pile weights on top to press decks or people would stand on top to add weight. Apparently the glue being used is banned in the United States as well. Could be bullshit, but I know an individual that spent time working at Ermico and things didn't seem rosy there either.
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
The argument against China made products goes beyond just the quality of the products. There is a reason to move production to china, it is because it is cheaper. Why is it cheaper? You pay much less money for the workers and there are less regulations about labor in general and protecting the environment. It is pretty fucked up. You exploit these conditions to make a cheap product ant then you take that product and sell it to people in western countries, who don‘t have to suffer the consequences of those working conditions.
Another argument is that it is worse for C02 emissions. Essentially they have to ship North American maple to China and then they ship the boards back to American distributions. That‘s much worse for CO2 emissions than a production that is done entirely in North America.
Another reason for BBS partial move to China might be, that they will have rely less on BBS for their orders. This will make them more flexible and give them more power negotiating prices and conditions for orders from BBS. If BBS wants to raise prices or put pressure on DLX they could just get more boards from their Chinese factory. It this was the reason there might be hope for DLX boards by BBS, yet.
I don't disagree that there are externalities, but in skateboarding the worry always seems to be in terms of quality.
Also, there's not necessarily any reason to believe emissions are lower. Boards from Mexico are often shipped on truck or air freight, which has higher emissions but is a shorter distance.
I looked up emissions of goods transported on cargo ships vs emission of transportation by truck. You are correct. Trucks cause about 20 times more CO2 emissions per ton than large cargo ships do. Still the CO2 footprint of a Chinese deck has to be way higher. You still have to get all the wood to a port first and from Chine ports to the factory in China and back. Additionally for a Chinese produced deck you have more than 12 000 miles on cargo ships (take wood from USA/Canada to China and transport finished decks back to US).
They can also grow and farm trees. China is an insanely massive country with climates suitable for a large number of hardwoods.
I mean, a lot of times food at a Farmer's Market can have a higher carbon footprint than things sold in large retailers. Its not always intuitive at first. Like, we don't know what type of power plants power factories in Mexico or China. We don't know how the glue is made in either place and what environmental externalities that has. Without knowing these and other facts its naive at best to try to make a claim about sustainability. Just because Mexico is closer to the United States doesn't really mean anything about carbon footprint, the quality of goods, or labor practices in factories. Mexico also produces an insane amount of low quality knock off pharmaceuticals of questionable purity whereas many Chinese supplement companies have large operations to test for quality and purity, for example.
I was told by a former Clutch employee that sometimes their presses would slightly malfunction and they would pile weights on top to press decks or people would stand on top to add weight. Apparently the glue being used is banned in the United States as well. Could be bullshit, but I know an individual that spent time working at Ermico and things didn't seem rosy there either.
Why are you trying so hard to defend Chinese manufacturing? Your arguments are anecdotal at best. They do import wood. DSM tells us with a video on their website. „…We go to great lengths to import all our maple from the Great Lakes region in southern Canada“ (Mullen, 1:20). https://youtu.be/TbkLpl_jnuo
Also if you look on most Chinese produced decks they will have a „Canadian maple“ sticker on them.
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^ Dude you believe that Canadian maple sticker?
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Does Canadian maple have to mean from Canada or is it just a term for that species of tree?
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Does Canadian maple have to mean from Canada or is it just a term for that species of tree?
a quick google give this info: https://treecanada.ca/resources/canadas-arboreal-emblems/maple/
"There are more than 100 different species of maple around the world, 10 of which are native to Canada: sugar, black, silver, bigleaf, red, mountain, striped, Douglas, vine, and Manitoba."
And then there's the whole "Hard Rock Maple / Rock Hard Maple is actually Burch" situation.
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
The argument against China made products goes beyond just the quality of the products. There is a reason to move production to china, it is because it is cheaper. Why is it cheaper? You pay much less money for the workers and there are less regulations about labor in general and protecting the environment. It is pretty fucked up. You exploit these conditions to make a cheap product ant then you take that product and sell it to people in western countries, who don‘t have to suffer the consequences of those working conditions.
Another argument is that it is worse for C02 emissions. Essentially they have to ship North American maple to China and then they ship the boards back to American distributions. That‘s much worse for CO2 emissions than a production that is done entirely in North America.
Another reason for BBS partial move to China might be, that they will have rely less on BBS for their orders. This will make them more flexible and give them more power negotiating prices and conditions for orders from BBS. If BBS wants to raise prices or put pressure on DLX they could just get more boards from their Chinese factory. It this was the reason there might be hope for DLX boards by BBS, yet.
I don't disagree that there are externalities, but in skateboarding the worry always seems to be in terms of quality.
Also, there's not necessarily any reason to believe emissions are lower. Boards from Mexico are often shipped on truck or air freight, which has higher emissions but is a shorter distance.
I looked up emissions of goods transported on cargo ships vs emission of transportation by truck. You are correct. Trucks cause about 20 times more CO2 emissions per ton than large cargo ships do. Still the CO2 footprint of a Chinese deck has to be way higher. You still have to get all the wood to a port first and from Chine ports to the factory in China and back. Additionally for a Chinese produced deck you have more than 12 000 miles on cargo ships (take wood from USA/Canada to China and transport finished decks back to US).
They can also grow and farm trees. China is an insanely massive country with climates suitable for a large number of hardwoods.
I mean, a lot of times food at a Farmer's Market can have a higher carbon footprint than things sold in large retailers. Its not always intuitive at first. Like, we don't know what type of power plants power factories in Mexico or China. We don't know how the glue is made in either place and what environmental externalities that has. Without knowing these and other facts its naive at best to try to make a claim about sustainability. Just because Mexico is closer to the United States doesn't really mean anything about carbon footprint, the quality of goods, or labor practices in factories. Mexico also produces an insane amount of low quality knock off pharmaceuticals of questionable purity whereas many Chinese supplement companies have large operations to test for quality and purity, for example.
I was told by a former Clutch employee that sometimes their presses would slightly malfunction and they would pile weights on top to press decks or people would stand on top to add weight. Apparently the glue being used is banned in the United States as well. Could be bullshit, but I know an individual that spent time working at Ermico and things didn't seem rosy there either.
Why are you trying so hard to defend Chinese manufacturing? Your arguments are anecdotal at best. They do import wood. DSM tells us with a video on their website. „…We go to great lengths to import all our maple from the Great Lakes region in southern Canada“ (Mullen, 1:20). https://youtu.be/TbkLpl_jnuo
Also if you look on most Chinese produced decks they will have a „Canadian maple“ sticker on them.
Canadian Maple in some cases is a term for a variety of wood- it doesn't have to be grown there. Pretty well known in woodworking just like African Mahogany doesn't have to be grown in Africa. I just bought some last week that is from Central America.
I'm not necessarily trying to defend China, Slap is just xenophobic against China often without any information and talk out of their asses.
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this thread has been very informative, thanks ya’ll.
i do not really like bbs boards, and during the pandemic they were worse (felt off/half-baked/mushy).
i’d much prefer a pgi/dsm deck. i don’t need/like steep kicks, but dailan boards are very consistent, and long lasting.
my strong preference is to buy as locally as possible, generally for jobs/working conditions, but also environmental concerns. interesting to read well informed ideas that the environmental concerns are not always assuaged by local manufacturing.
the xenophobia is true and real. the qc concerns are largely ironed out.
manufacturing in china, to me, still represents a large degree of prioritizing corporation’s profits, at the expense of local jobs, and possibly/probably being exploitative of a workforce elsewhere.
milwaukee makes a decent work glove, or, i should say, milwaukee has a decent work glove, for sale at home depot, that was possibly made by slave labor in china. fits well, lasts, and isn’t terribly expensive. still bad.
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^ Dude you believe that Canadian maple sticker?
I believe this more than I believe the opposite. Theoretically, you could sue them for false advertisement if it wasn‘t true. Also Companies like DSM/dwindle explicitly state, that they import all of their wood from Canada.
Global shipping of goods has become pretty cheap and efficient as many large western companies rely upon it for their supply chains.
https://jacobin.com/2021/06/logistics-industry-capitalism-unions
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
The argument against China made products goes beyond just the quality of the products. There is a reason to move production to china, it is because it is cheaper. Why is it cheaper? You pay much less money for the workers and there are less regulations about labor in general and protecting the environment. It is pretty fucked up. You exploit these conditions to make a cheap product ant then you take that product and sell it to people in western countries, who don‘t have to suffer the consequences of those working conditions.
Another argument is that it is worse for C02 emissions. Essentially they have to ship North American maple to China and then they ship the boards back to American distributions. That‘s much worse for CO2 emissions than a production that is done entirely in North America.
Another reason for BBS partial move to China might be, that they will have rely less on BBS for their orders. This will make them more flexible and give them more power negotiating prices and conditions for orders from BBS. If BBS wants to raise prices or put pressure on DLX they could just get more boards from their Chinese factory. It this was the reason there might be hope for DLX boards by BBS, yet.
I don't disagree that there are externalities, but in skateboarding the worry always seems to be in terms of quality.
Also, there's not necessarily any reason to believe emissions are lower. Boards from Mexico are often shipped on truck or air freight, which has higher emissions but is a shorter distance.
I looked up emissions of goods transported on cargo ships vs emission of transportation by truck. You are correct. Trucks cause about 20 times more CO2 emissions per ton than large cargo ships do. Still the CO2 footprint of a Chinese deck has to be way higher. You still have to get all the wood to a port first and from Chine ports to the factory in China and back. Additionally for a Chinese produced deck you have more than 12 000 miles on cargo ships (take wood from USA/Canada to China and transport finished decks back to US).
They can also grow and farm trees. China is an insanely massive country with climates suitable for a large number of hardwoods.
I mean, a lot of times food at a Farmer's Market can have a higher carbon footprint than things sold in large retailers. Its not always intuitive at first. Like, we don't know what type of power plants power factories in Mexico or China. We don't know how the glue is made in either place and what environmental externalities that has. Without knowing these and other facts its naive at best to try to make a claim about sustainability. Just because Mexico is closer to the United States doesn't really mean anything about carbon footprint, the quality of goods, or labor practices in factories. Mexico also produces an insane amount of low quality knock off pharmaceuticals of questionable purity whereas many Chinese supplement companies have large operations to test for quality and purity, for example.
I was told by a former Clutch employee that sometimes their presses would slightly malfunction and they would pile weights on top to press decks or people would stand on top to add weight. Apparently the glue being used is banned in the United States as well. Could be bullshit, but I know an individual that spent time working at Ermico and things didn't seem rosy there either.
Why are you trying so hard to defend Chinese manufacturing?
That's what you took from his post?
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Sucks that things aren’t made closer to home anymore but companies for decades have been placing the tech and infrastructure in foreign countries, nothing new as money talks and shit walks.
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^ Dude you believe that Canadian maple sticker?
I believe this more than I believe the opposite. Theoretically, you could sue them for false advertisement if it wasn‘t true. Also Companies like DSM/dwindle explicitly state, that they import all of their wood from Canada.
Global shipping of goods has become pretty cheap and efficient as many large western companies rely upon it for their supply chains.
https://jacobin.com/2021/06/logistics-industry-capitalism-unions
Good luck proving in court that it is not true. I never trust any sticker on a skateboard since half of the DLX dimension stickers are more theory than reality.
Skateboarding is so low dollar compared to many industries I wonder if a massive amount of Maple is imported and used for carpentry/construction.
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Good luck proving in court that it is not true. I never trust any sticker on a skateboard since half of the DLX dimension stickers are more theory than reality.
I buy a lot of DLX boards and have never had one labelled incorrectly. Just my experience but it felt necessary to mention it.
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I’m curious how long it takes them to get up to speed and the QC dialed in China. I’m assuming it’s not easy getting everything set up.
The opposite- Chinese manufacturing is really quick and easy to scale up and QC varies by how much you want to pay of course.
Most expensive bike frames are made in China or Taiwan and no other countries can compete with the consistency and QC at scale as well as the cost of constantly altering molds or creating supply. There are a few companies that have been around a long time that are made elsewhere. Quality has evolved a ton in the past decade as well.
These Chinese factories are making an insane amount of boards. Lots of more generic graphics and shapes for large companies have been made there for a while and lots of non US market decks are as well. You might not like Crail or DSM, but they make a very large number of skateboards sold. It's likely their factories are larger and probably most flexible than BBS. Just look at BBS generics they're almost all the same molds where many companies made in China have their own unique shapes even for generic/team decks.
Agreed with all of this. It was always so funny in the bike industry to wait eight months to get a production frame from Waterford/Gunnar (RIP), only for the dropouts to be out of alignment and to find bubbles in the TIG weld (and for Richard Schwinn to tell me it's not his problem). Meanwhile, someone like QBP is shipping thousands of flawless and functionally identical frames from Maxway in Taiwan direct to dealers.
I don't know if you follow Hambini but it's amusing when he scans frames and checks for alignment and dimensional issues and the cheap no name brands are better than Cervelo.
And to the other poster you can buy USA that's your prerogative and I can't comment on BMX bikes but most road bikes and many road bikes are better when they're coming from a large overseas factory. Merida makes the majority of carbon frames and has better QC and production than Trek, which was USA made last I checked.
Even for design there is much easier access to high powered computing necessary for FEA and engineering modeling abroad.
Skateboards are just glue and wood pressed together. It's technically not that hard to do. It is likely harder to control curing, the force of presses, and invest resources into new materials or methods.
I just hope the shapes don't dramatically change. I'm sure it was a pain for DLX to invest in all the new Truefit molds from BBS.
The argument against China made products goes beyond just the quality of the products. There is a reason to move production to china, it is because it is cheaper. Why is it cheaper? You pay much less money for the workers and there are less regulations about labor in general and protecting the environment. It is pretty fucked up. You exploit these conditions to make a cheap product ant then you take that product and sell it to people in western countries, who don‘t have to suffer the consequences of those working conditions.
Another argument is that it is worse for C02 emissions. Essentially they have to ship North American maple to China and then they ship the boards back to American distributions. That‘s much worse for CO2 emissions than a production that is done entirely in North America.
Another reason for BBS partial move to China might be, that they will have rely less on BBS for their orders. This will make them more flexible and give them more power negotiating prices and conditions for orders from BBS. If BBS wants to raise prices or put pressure on DLX they could just get more boards from their Chinese factory. It this was the reason there might be hope for DLX boards by BBS, yet.
I don't disagree that there are externalities, but in skateboarding the worry always seems to be in terms of quality.
Also, there's not necessarily any reason to believe emissions are lower. Boards from Mexico are often shipped on truck or air freight, which has higher emissions but is a shorter distance.
I looked up emissions of goods transported on cargo ships vs emission of transportation by truck. You are correct. Trucks cause about 20 times more CO2 emissions per ton than large cargo ships do. Still the CO2 footprint of a Chinese deck has to be way higher. You still have to get all the wood to a port first and from Chine ports to the factory in China and back. Additionally for a Chinese produced deck you have more than 12 000 miles on cargo ships (take wood from USA/Canada to China and transport finished decks back to US).
They can also grow and farm trees. China is an insanely massive country with climates suitable for a large number of hardwoods.
I mean, a lot of times food at a Farmer's Market can have a higher carbon footprint than things sold in large retailers. Its not always intuitive at first. Like, we don't know what type of power plants power factories in Mexico or China. We don't know how the glue is made in either place and what environmental externalities that has. Without knowing these and other facts its naive at best to try to make a claim about sustainability. Just because Mexico is closer to the United States doesn't really mean anything about carbon footprint, the quality of goods, or labor practices in factories. Mexico also produces an insane amount of low quality knock off pharmaceuticals of questionable purity whereas many Chinese supplement companies have large operations to test for quality and purity, for example.
I was told by a former Clutch employee that sometimes their presses would slightly malfunction and they would pile weights on top to press decks or people would stand on top to add weight. Apparently the glue being used is banned in the United States as well. Could be bullshit, but I know an individual that spent time working at Ermico and things didn't seem rosy there either.
Why are you trying so hard to defend Chinese manufacturing?
That's what you took from his post?
Yes
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Good luck proving in court that it is not true. I never trust any sticker on a skateboard since half of the DLX dimension stickers are more theory than reality.
I buy a lot of DLX boards and have never had one labelled incorrectly. Just my experience but it felt necessary to mention it.
It is well known that the blue Eagle, one of their best selling boards, does not measure as the sticker says. The 8.25 does not measure the same either nor does the 8.125. This is covered ad nauseum on Slap.
Labeled Dims:
Blue Eagle: 8.5, 14.25, 31.9
Grey Eagle: 8.25, 14.38, 32
Black Eagle: 8.125, 14.25, 31.8
Real Dims:
Blue Eagle: 8.38, 14.2, 31.8
Grey Eagle: 8.32, 14.38, 31.9
Black Eagle: 8.2, 14.28, 32
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Good luck proving in court that it is not true. I never trust any sticker on a skateboard since half of the DLX dimension stickers are more theory than reality.
I buy a lot of DLX boards and have never had one labelled incorrectly. Just my experience but it felt necessary to mention it.
It is well known that the blue Eagle, one of their best selling boards, does not measure as the sticker says. The 8.25 does not measure the same either nor does the 8.125. This is covered ad nauseum on Slap.
Labeled Dims:
Blue Eagle: 8.5, 14.25, 31.9
Grey Eagle: 8.25, 14.38, 32
Black Eagle: 8.125, 14.25, 31.8
Real Dims:
Blue Eagle: 8.38, 14.2, 31.8
Grey Eagle: 8.32, 14.38, 31.9
Black Eagle: 8.2, 14.28, 32
The real life dims on the black eagle sound perfect. I have the hardest time finding them though.
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Good luck proving in court that it is not true. I never trust any sticker on a skateboard since half of the DLX dimension stickers are more theory than reality.
I buy a lot of DLX boards and have never had one labelled incorrectly. Just my experience but it felt necessary to mention it.
It is well known that the blue Eagle, one of their best selling boards, does not measure as the sticker says. The 8.25 does not measure the same either nor does the 8.125. This is covered ad nauseum on Slap.
Labeled Dims:
Blue Eagle: 8.5, 14.25, 31.9
Grey Eagle: 8.25, 14.38, 32
Black Eagle: 8.125, 14.25, 31.8
Real Dims:
Blue Eagle: 8.38, 14.2, 31.8
Grey Eagle: 8.32, 14.38, 31.9
Black Eagle: 8.2, 14.28, 32
Are you really saying you can measure the difference between 14.25" WB and 14.2" and if so what does this look like when you skate...?I don't know man... I like to nerd out on measurements as much as the next PAL but I don't buy it. I measure all my DLX boards and they've all be on point. For some of you, I'm sure some have been mislableled but I think saying over half are mislabelled is something you don't really know for sure.
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The one thing I remember was Mason Silva mentioned that the weird sizes ie. 8.18 is actually an 8.25 or 8.125 or something. ie. they purposely pick a weird number.
The other thing I was thinking was that maybe moving the factory to china would line up better with shipping things world wide as I'm sure the number of skateboard buyers has changed and grown vs. being mostly north America based.
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I had an 8.25" Real Kwalks deck which was wider than an 8.5" deck. I get that measuring a deck is tricky and there's no one agreed upon way to determine width, but there was basically no main part of this deck which measured less than 8.45" across.
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Good luck proving in court that it is not true. I never trust any sticker on a skateboard since half of the DLX dimension stickers are more theory than reality.
I buy a lot of DLX boards and have never had one labelled incorrectly. Just my experience but it felt necessary to mention it.
It is well known that the blue Eagle, one of their best selling boards, does not measure as the sticker says. The 8.25 does not measure the same either nor does the 8.125. This is covered ad nauseum on Slap.
Labeled Dims:
Blue Eagle: 8.5, 14.25, 31.9
Grey Eagle: 8.25, 14.38, 32
Black Eagle: 8.125, 14.25, 31.8
Real Dims:
Blue Eagle: 8.38, 14.2, 31.8
Grey Eagle: 8.32, 14.38, 31.9
Black Eagle: 8.2, 14.28, 32
Are you really saying you can measure the difference between 14.25" WB and 14.2" and if so what does this look like when you skate...?I don't know man... I like to nerd out on measurements as much as the next PAL but I don't buy it. I measure all my DLX boards and they've all be on point. For some of you, I'm sure some have been mislableled but I think saying over half are mislabelled is something you don't really know for sure.
I can measure it with a tape measure. I do a lot of woodworking on the side and have all sorts of measuring devices that report down to 1/64". Also, if you just take a blue eagle and line up the holes with another 14.25 deck you can see they don't line up or that the rails don't line up. You don't even have to actually measure any of these to see the difference. It is extensively discussed and documented on this website in a thread about DLX shapes.
I said nothing about impact on skating. Just some quick examples from memory about how none of their boards measure what the stickers say and that stickers are not some legally binding document.
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You can measure the difference between 14.2 and 14.25" with a tape measure?
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i wouldn’t say none of their stickers match the measurements, buuuuuuuut, they have had several (to my failing mind) instances of an image in their own catalog, of a deck with a sticker, and the measurements underneath said image, conflict with what is on the sticker. the one that jumps out was the cardiel hecka tight construction shape.
the navy blue eagle tapers, quite noticeably, something like 1/4” from front to back.
i’m unsure how much of this is a bbs issue, polar has had some of the same issues with wb measurements being off.
crail boards, from china, are very accurate in their measurements, in my experience.
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from my perspective, it doesn’t really ‘matter’. i get too heady with the attempts to skateboard a tape measure, and it rarely works out. the skate industry has always been so shitty, with manufacturing, labeling, qc….dlx used to be kinda hectic and janky, and i loved it more then. now it’s some example of quality, but that was not the case, in my experience, way back when. i bought that shit because it was cool tho.
i’m sure it’s just because i’m so old and tired, but anti-hero and krooked used to have more juice. to me.
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You can measure the difference between 14.2 and 14.25" with a tape measure?
Yup, tape measure with 1/64" or even 1/32" will show and I checked it's 14.18, .07 is 1/16" so any tape measure will capture that. For width I have a set of 12" digital calipers.
But since you seem super hung up on this here is how you know it's not right: go take any other deck that measures 14.25 or 8.5. For width put one on top of the other. For WB line up the holes for one end. Bam- you know it's smaller without measuring. You can repeat for the others!
Or, once again, you can read discussion of this in the DLX shapes thread.
Polar did this for a long time- their decks had a 14.5WB sticker but measured 14.38. Their 8.25 said 14.12 but measured 14.25. With no one enforcing the sticker they can put whatever they want. A few board companies did this during Covid when they temporarily used some birch plies.
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Not hung up just not buying that 1/20" (1.270003mm) measurement means anything at all. And certainly disagree that you can definitively say that half of all DLX stickers are off based on some anecdotal posts on here.
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I never said it meant anything other than that stickers don't mean shit.
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You said, half the stickers are wrong. I am not sure how you can conclude that.
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I’ve never had a DLX board measure dead on the sticker. Either tape set along the concave or straight across, I skated a ton of 8.38 anti hero and real boards that measured 8.475
Sucks they’re moving stuff to china but so long as BBS exists I’ll skate whatever boards they press
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You said, half the stickers are wrong. I am not sure how you can conclude that.
Well, Mr Pedantic, I listed 2 Polar shapes, all but their 8.0 shapes used to be wrong so that's half their shapes and majority of popsicles. They actually corrected it as a brand recently. For DLX I listed 3 well known ones, the 8.28 is wrong per Mason/measuring, the 8.38 is narrower than listed and that's well known, and some of the larger sizes are. Close to half of their popsicles if not more.
Whether it's 10% or 90% the point still stands that a sticker doesn't necessarily mean shit. There's no law that says it has to.
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^the above user calling any other user of this message board pedantic.
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The one thing I remember was Mason Silva mentioned that the weird sizes ie. 8.18 is actually an 8.25 or 8.125 or something. ie. they purposely pick a weird number.
The other thing I was thinking was that maybe moving the factory to china would line up better with shipping things world wide as I'm sure the number of skateboard buyers has changed and grown vs. being mostly north America based.
The problem here is that a smaller country, that would usually buy a DLX shipment 3 or 4 times a year and get everything on one pallet, will not get Spifires from the China shipment, which could be half the order.
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some boards might be as "canadian maple" as some swiss bearings are "swiss"
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as a skateshop employee i can tell you for a fact that the deluxe boards are off. the 8.25 shape (grey eagle) is near identical to the 8.3 alltimers shape, which actually measures just under 8.375, that 8.32 someone said earlier seems right. i measured them in centimeters and converted that to inches and all of the dimensions were identical, slightly different concaves but that might be because of where each board was on the press, when you put the two boards on top of each other you couldn't see the difference. the 8.125 (black eagle) is also a little wider, i think it's the same shape as the pass-port 8.125 because those are also a little wider, but i don't have a dlx 8.125 in stock rn to compare.
lebowski is also right when it comes to the polar boards, some of the covid decks we've had had the old stickers that said 14.12 wb for the 8.25 popsicle, then the newer boards have a sticker that says 8.25 x 14.25, but they're the exact same shape. same goes for the 8.375s. baker 8.5 x 14.5 x 32 og shape boards are longer than what they're listed as, it's almost 32.125. this shit is all over the place and you can rarely trust the stickers, i mean the polar boards are on point now but they weren't for the longest time.
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I find you can't really compare board dims by putting them on top of each otter as you are comparing bottom concave and top concave. probably works with WB though.
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You said, half the stickers are wrong. I am not sure how you can conclude that.
Well, Mr Pedantic,
personal insults over less than 2mm? yikes...
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I find you can't really compare board dims by putting them on top of each otter as you are comparing bottom concave and top concave. probably works with WB though.
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You said, half the stickers are wrong. I am not sure how you can conclude that.
Well, Mr Pedantic,
personal insults over less than 2mm? yikes...
I will say I had a AH 8.12 hung on the wall for a while because it wasn’t my shape. Then it was brought to my attention that the 8.12 (or whatever) actually measured as 8.25. Broke out that measuring tape and sure as shit…
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I find you can't really compare board dims by putting them on top of each otter as you are comparing bottom concave and top concave. probably works with WB though.
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You said, half the stickers are wrong. I am not sure how you can conclude that.
Well, Mr Pedantic,
personal insults over less than 2mm? yikes...
I'm not insulting you, but pointing out that you just want to keep going back and forth on the topic despite multiple people agreeing with me that stickers don't always match reality. Move on dude. This is the last I'm willing to discuss this subject.
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I find you can't really compare board dims by putting them on top of each otter as you are comparing bottom concave and top concave. probably works with WB though.
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You said, half the stickers are wrong. I am not sure how you can conclude that.
Well, Mr Pedantic,
personal insults over less than 2mm? yikes...
I'm not insulting you, but pointing out that you just want to keep going back and forth on the topic despite multiple people agreeing with me that stickers don't always match reality. Move on dude. This is the last I'm willing to discuss this subject.
Sure you were. I don't doubt it happens. but to say half of Dlx decks are mislabeled seems unlikely to me. and to say you can measure the difference between 1/20" of wheelbase also seems unlikely. I'm OK being wrong but I think these claims are a little outlandish. Carry on.
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All I know is that Dailan makes Crail boards and they’re my favorite, so this could be a potential non-issue as far as quality goes. What really sucks is raising prices for people who still want to skate the BBS wood.
Dailan has really stepped up their game. I don't know if you were around in 04-09ish, but Crail boards were absolutely terrible back then, super soggy and broke in three days bad. Their boards are great in my opinion now. I have 8.5 chocolate G057 and have been loving it. Dwindle decks last forever for me personally too, however, they are quite stiff. Maybe too stiff for a lot of skaters. On another note I got a new Chinese made DGK deck off OfferUp for $25. I'm not sure what shop it was pressed at, but the first session on it felt nice. I'll still be supporting DLX though, love their products and their customer service was phenomenal in replacing a flatspotted set of formula fours.
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All I know is that Dailan makes Crail boards and they’re my favorite, so this could be a potential non-issue as far as quality goes. What really sucks is raising prices for people who still want to skate the BBS wood.
Dailan has really stepped up their game. I don't know if you were around in 04-09ish, but Crail boards were absolutely terrible back then, super soggy and broke in three days bad. Their boards are great in my opinion now. I have 8.5 chocolate G057 and have been loving it. Dwindle decks last forever for me personally too, however, they are quite stiff. Maybe too stiff for a lot of skaters. On another note I got a new Chinese made DGK deck off OfferUp for $25. I'm not sure what shop it was pressed at, but the first session on it felt nice. I'll still be supporting DLX though, love their products and their customer service was phenomenal in replacing a flatspotted set of formula fours.
Imo they have been terrible until 2015 at least. I want to try one of their decks again since you guys have been praising them that much.
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The one thing I remember was Mason Silva mentioned that the weird sizes ie. 8.18 is actually an 8.25 or 8.125 or something. ie. they purposely pick a weird number.
The other thing I was thinking was that maybe moving the factory to china would line up better with shipping things world wide as I'm sure the number of skateboard buyers has changed and grown vs. being mostly north America based.
The problem here is that a smaller country, that would usually buy a DLX shipment 3 or 4 times a year and get everything on one pallet, will not get Spifires from the China shipment, which could be half the order.
What I am wondering, after what others have said, is the path the product takes to get to the end destination, eg the skate shop.
For USA, it is most commonly, from manufacturer to DLX (SF) then to skate shop. Some smaller accounts who can't or don't order direct from DLX would get their product through Eastern (ESS) or AWH or something similar - an in between distributor, where small shops can order a multitude of brands from the one place.
For others outside of the USA, it would most likely have been a similar path, eg manufacturer to DLX (SF) then to the local distributor in said country or area, then to the shop.
So then, what I am wondering is if product from China or elsewhere might now not need to pass through the hands of people at DLX (SF) or USA at all but go from Asian manufacturer straight to the local distributor, then to the local shop, which would seem easier if that is the path they are taking.
For other products that come from USA or different sources, it would still end up in the local distributor warehouse and then be shipped to the shop, so I would think that a small shop that orders less frequently / four times a year would still be able to get the same product in the same way.
I know that quite often a warehouse inventory is already sold in pre books, so the best stuff might not even make it up on the distributors B2B or whatever, but if said shop has already put in a pre book for things, then they shouldn't miss out if the different deliveries arrive at different times.
Anyway, that is just my take on it, be it like that or something else entirely, but I think it is going to be more viable moving forward in direct distribution of product.
As people have said, there will still be the core product lines that will not be moved elsewhere, but I don't ever think that DLX or anyone else would ship piecemeal in the way that product would go from manufacturer straight to the skate shop, unless it was a huge order for someone like a mega mall store chain and even then, it would still make more sense for the deliveries to go to the local distributor first, then be broken down and reshipped on to whoever has ordered the product.
Sorry to get almost too deep into distribution info, but I often get too curious about this sort of stuff.
Don't even get me started on board sizes / shapes / dimensions, but at the end of the day, if you like the board shapes or whatever, you can choose to ride them or not, it is up to you.
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Such an American thing to keep eagles in North America.
(https://i.ibb.co/LtKS5NK/IMG-3604.gif) (https://ibb.co/d2ZBgmZ)
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Always thought the weird measurement stickers from dlx were just a simple way to differentiate shapes. Nowadays with the nerds bringing their measurement tape to the shop it might not make as much sense anymore. But with a lot of shops the width is the only displayed info and with dlx boards you can just grab the 8.38 knowing that it's your favorite shape, even though in reality it's an 8.5. If dlx had multiple 8.5 shapes you'd always have to check if it's actually your shape.
But with all the true fit shapes and so on this is obsolete and I have to actually check what board I'm paying 80 euros for. Damn you short people
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. For us in Europe this probably means it is going to become nearly impossible to get decks from top manufacturers. Besides deluxe almost all decks at German skateshops are already made in China.
There‘s also HLC, who stepped up their game a lot. Been riding robotron boards recently. They are amazing
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I'd think that a good woodshop in China is better for europe than a good woodshed in Mexico....
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If the boards are the same concave / mold set and everything but cost less, then I can't see a problem with them.
The newer board drops from DLX on BBS wood sound like they are going to be on par with FA / Hockey in price at the retail end, so having something at what people would consider a more "normal" price might be nice.
Just wait and see really.
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If the boards are the same concave / mold set and everything but cost less, then I can't see a problem with them.
The newer board drops from DLX on BBS wood sound like they are going to be on par with FA / Hockey in price at the retail end, so having something at what people would consider a more "normal" price might be nice.
Just wait and see really.
My local has dlx and baker boards priced higher than FA/hockey. All blessings to the sale gear thread
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If the boards are the same concave / mold set and everything but cost less, then I can't see a problem with them.
The newer board drops from DLX on BBS wood sound like they are going to be on par with FA / Hockey in price at the retail end, so having something at what people would consider a more "normal" price might be nice.
Just wait and see really.
My local has dlx and baker boards priced higher than FA/hockey. All blessings to the sale gear thread
Where are you, EU or similar?
I am in Australia, so the average board price is between $120 and $150 now, including DLX and Baker being around middle range. FA / Hockey boards were upwards of $180 a while back here, then it seems they all went on sale and were down on super clearance prices for a while, under $100 mostly.
Sure is interesting between different distributors or what some shops end up selling product for, especially in different parts of the world.
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If the boards are the same concave / mold set and everything but cost less, then I can't see a problem with them.
The newer board drops from DLX on BBS wood sound like they are going to be on par with FA / Hockey in price at the retail end, so having something at what people would consider a more "normal" price might be nice.
Just wait and see really.
My local has dlx and baker boards priced higher than FA/hockey. All blessings to the sale gear thread
Where are you, EU or similar?
I am in Australia, so the average board price is between $120 and $150 now, including DLX and Baker being around middle range. FA / Hockey boards were upwards of $180 a while back here, then it seems they all went on sale and were down on super clearance prices for a while, under $100 mostly.
Sure is interesting between different distributors or what some shops end up selling product for, especially in different parts of the world.
I’m in the us. Massachusetts. 70-75 for FA hockey. Newest drops from baker and dlx are 75-80
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.
If the boards are the same concave / mold set and everything but cost less, then I can't see a problem with them.
The newer board drops from DLX on BBS wood sound like they are going to be on par with FA / Hockey in price at the retail end, so having something at what people would consider a more "normal" price might be nice.
Just wait and see really.
My local has dlx and baker boards priced higher than FA/hockey. All blessings to the sale gear thread
Where are you, EU or similar?
I am in Australia, so the average board price is between $120 and $150 now, including DLX and Baker being around middle range. FA / Hockey boards were upwards of $180 a while back here, then it seems they all went on sale and were down on super clearance prices for a while, under $100 mostly.
Sure is interesting between different distributors or what some shops end up selling product for, especially in different parts of the world.
I’m in the us. Massachusetts. 70-75 for FA hockey. Newest drops from baker and dlx are 75-80
Come to think of it I had heard some people say some US shops had gone up a whole lot more in price than others.
I guess I am more used to checking some of the bigger / more well known online shops from US only - Tactics, SW, or others like 35th North as Dave is on here a bit, so not every other place, as most of these shops still have them around $60 to $70 but even here, there is a significant price difference with some shops compared to others.
Is this a fairly normal price range though?
https://35thnorth.com/collections/decks/?sort_by=price-descending
Limosine $77
Hockey $74
Baker $70
Polar $70
Higest price DLX board $66
Not disagreeing with you either, just curious more than anything. Guessing the shops that have to go through in between distribution companies might have to put prices up a bit more, or others that have a better buying power usually get more discounts too, at least from my own experience in the skateboard industry, so they can afford to keep prices a bit lower.
Every dollar counts though, so I know how things work in that regard.
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If the boards are the same concave / mold set and everything but cost less, then I can't see a problem with them.
The newer board drops from DLX on BBS wood sound like they are going to be on par with FA / Hockey in price at the retail end, so having something at what people would consider a more "normal" price might be nice.
Just wait and see really.
My local has dlx and baker boards priced higher than FA/hockey. All blessings to the sale gear thread
Where are you, EU or similar?
I am in Australia, so the average board price is between $120 and $150 now, including DLX and Baker being around middle range. FA / Hockey boards were upwards of $180 a while back here, then it seems they all went on sale and were down on super clearance prices for a while, under $100 mostly.
Sure is interesting between different distributors or what some shops end up selling product for, especially in different parts of the world.
I’m in the us. Massachusetts. 70-75 for FA hockey. Newest drops from baker and dlx are 75-80
Come to think of it I had heard some people say some US shops had gone up a whole lot more in price than others.
I guess I am more used to checking some of the bigger / more well known online shops from US only - Tactics, SW, or others like 35th North as Dave is on here a bit, so not every other place, as most of these shops still have them around $60 to $70 but even here, there is a significant price difference with some shops compared to others.
Is this a fairly normal price range though?
https://35thnorth.com/collections/decks/?sort_by=price-descending
Limosine $77
Hockey $74
Baker $70
Polar $70
Higest price DLX board $66
Not disagreeing with you either, just curious more than anything. Guessing the shops that have to go through in between distribution companies might have to put prices up a bit more, or others that have a better buying power usually get more discounts too, at least from my own experience in the skateboard industry, so they can afford to keep prices a bit lower.
Every dollar counts though, so I know how things work in that regard.
Oh I think my local is prob pricing stuff up. I stop in sometimes for emergency stuff but I usually buy stuff online from other shops cause the local honestly sucks. What you listed seems like the general pricing. Seems like a lot of the pro dlx boards are hitting 70 with the team decks around 65. What you said makes total sense in terms of distribution/buying power
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If they ramp up the quality I’m ok with it…..BBS has their shit dialed pretty good though. Crail’s Dailan stuff and DWS stuff are pretty good.
That's right, I skated mostle both of brands switching from AH to Chocolate.
Crailtap's deck are good.May be a bit stiffer than BBS decks.
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If the boards are the same concave / mold set and everything but cost less, then I can't see a problem with them.
The newer board drops from DLX on BBS wood sound like they are going to be on par with FA / Hockey in price at the retail end, so having something at what people would consider a more "normal" price might be nice.
Just wait and see really.
My local has dlx and baker boards priced higher than FA/hockey. All blessings to the sale gear thread
Where are you, EU or similar?
I am in Australia, so the average board price is between $120 and $150 now, including DLX and Baker being around middle range. FA / Hockey boards were upwards of $180 a while back here, then it seems they all went on sale and were down on super clearance prices for a while, under $100 mostly.
Sure is interesting between different distributors or what some shops end up selling product for, especially in different parts of the world.
I’m in the us. Massachusetts. 70-75 for FA hockey. Newest drops from baker and dlx are 75-80
Where the hell in MA you buying DLX for $80?!? I live in Boston, and Orchard sells Eagles for $64. New drops are $70 (highest I've seen).
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If the boards are the same concave / mold set and everything but cost less, then I can't see a problem with them.
The newer board drops from DLX on BBS wood sound like they are going to be on par with FA / Hockey in price at the retail end, so having something at what people would consider a more "normal" price might be nice.
Just wait and see really.
My local has dlx and baker boards priced higher than FA/hockey. All blessings to the sale gear thread
Where are you, EU or similar?
I am in Australia, so the average board price is between $120 and $150 now, including DLX and Baker being around middle range. FA / Hockey boards were upwards of $180 a while back here, then it seems they all went on sale and were down on super clearance prices for a while, under $100 mostly.
Sure is interesting between different distributors or what some shops end up selling product for, especially in different parts of the world.
I’m in the us. Massachusetts. 70-75 for FA hockey. Newest drops from baker and dlx are 75-80
Where the hell in MA you buying DLX for $80?!? I live in Boston, and Orchard sells Eagles for $64. New drops are $70 (highest I've seen).
I never buy decks from my local. Just saying that’s what they price them at. I hate the local but I’m sure there’s financial pressure/reason why they up-charge so much (benefit of the doubt). I honestly buy most of my stuff from orchard/library/the garden. It’s the same with shoes, they have a “sale” section where the shoes are literally marked down 2 dollars. They’re also fairly inconsistent pricing wise. For a minute they were charging 75-80 on FA and nobody bought them so they dropped it to 70 but the older drops were still 75/80. I think they’re just trying to see what they can get away with. I feel bad for the kids around here. They all wanna support the scene but sometimes they’ll tell me how much they had to pay for boards/shoes and it bums me out so much. One kid was hyped on a frog board and he told me with grip is was 83 bucks :(
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is there a link to the DLX catalog with the Chinese made product?
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If the boards are the same concave / mold set and everything but cost less, then I can't see a problem with them.
The newer board drops from DLX on BBS wood sound like they are going to be on par with FA / Hockey in price at the retail end, so having something at what people would consider a more "normal" price might be nice.
Just wait and see really.
My local has dlx and baker boards priced higher than FA/hockey. All blessings to the sale gear thread
Where are you, EU or similar?
I am in Australia, so the average board price is between $120 and $150 now, including DLX and Baker being around middle range. FA / Hockey boards were upwards of $180 a while back here, then it seems they all went on sale and were down on super clearance prices for a while, under $100 mostly.
Sure is interesting between different distributors or what some shops end up selling product for, especially in different parts of the world.
I’m in the us. Massachusetts. 70-75 for FA hockey. Newest drops from baker and dlx are 75-80
Where the hell in MA you buying DLX for $80?!? I live in Boston, and Orchard sells Eagles for $64. New drops are $70 (highest I've seen).
I never buy decks from my local. Just saying that’s what they price them at. I hate the local but I’m sure there’s financial pressure/reason why they up-charge so much (benefit of the doubt). I honestly buy most of my stuff from orchard/library/the garden. It’s the same with shoes, they have a “sale” section where the shoes are literally marked down 2 dollars. They’re also fairly inconsistent pricing wise. For a minute they were charging 75-80 on FA and nobody bought them so they dropped it to 70 but the older drops were still 75/80. I think they’re just trying to see what they can get away with. I feel bad for the kids around here. They all wanna support the scene but sometimes they’ll tell me how much they had to pay for boards/shoes and it bums me out so much. One kid was hyped on a frog board and he told me with grip is was 83 bucks :(
Go to solstice
I’ll check em out thanks for the heads up
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Solstice is boss!
+1 anything that involves they.
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is there a link to the DLX catalog with the Chinese made product?
Guessing the only people who had access to that were the shops with pre book options.
What I am curious about is whether any US shops got that info too, or are they all still 100% BBS from Mexico for DLX boards in the USA for future drops?
Not a worry either way to me - sure I can be a bit too nosey sometimes, but I guess if others have already said this and that, hearing from any shop employees within the USA would be interesting.
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is there a link to the DLX catalog with the Chinese made product?
Guessing the only people who had access to that were the shops with pre book options.
What I am curious about is whether any US shops got that info too, or are they all still 100% BBS from Mexico for DLX boards in the USA for future drops?
Not a worry either way to me - sure I can be a bit too nosey sometimes, but I guess if others have already said this and that, hearing from any shop employees within the USA would be interesting.
From the USA here, our shop got the same email. Just a standard email though. No specific product shots.
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is there a link to the DLX catalog with the Chinese made product?
Guessing the only people who had access to that were the shops with pre book options.
What I am curious about is whether any US shops got that info too, or are they all still 100% BBS from Mexico for DLX boards in the USA for future drops?
Not a worry either way to me - sure I can be a bit too nosey sometimes, but I guess if others have already said this and that, hearing from any shop employees within the USA would be interesting.
From the USA here, our shop got the same email. Just a standard email though. No specific product shots.
Thanks.
I guess production costs going up even a little bit globally do have an effect on local markets too.
Everything going up one single dollar at the manufacturing end still means product that arrives in shops that come through more than one distro will have significant increases in retail prices.
Here in AU that means on average about AU$20 increase in the price of wood at the shop end, boards going from AU$130 up to AU$150 and well past that too, but that is to be expected.
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I’m predicting a pretty chilly winter for skateboarding…….
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I am def interested in trying one of these out.
Presuming, since their “intro level” completes are already fab’d in China, this newer announce pertains to (some) team & pro model decks as well?
If that is the case, I’m pretty confident the people at Deluxe have done their due dillies & tested product through riders feedback prior to settling on a partner.
Got me wondering if it’s one of the existing “known quantities” or a newer woodshop, or even a lesser known one looking to step up their game & rep in the bloard market.
Or is it a BBS/China manu collab deal where they establish their own foot hold in the Far East mfg marketplace.
Y’all reckon DLX sank any investment capital into this shop in order to bring it up to snuff, or…?
I’m so curious.
If only there were any SLAP users who worked at Deluxe HQ that could DM me some facts about this interesting new develop in product news. ;)
Anyways, all that to say, I’m planning on picking one up as soon as I can find one in my size.
Will report back w/ my impressions if & when.
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does anyone know what salary is like for working at one of these woodshops in china? i assume it's half of whatever they pay in the states but im curious how wrong i am
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does anyone know what salary is like for working at one of these woodshops in china? i assume it's half of whatever they pay in the states but im curious how wrong i am
Minimum wage varies by region. The lowest is the equivalent of $1.80/hour while the highest is a little more than double that. I doubt that they're pressing boards in Beijing, so it's probably closer to $2/hour.
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Are we still genuinely believing the economics of boards being pressed in the states? Curious how wrong I am….
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Ben Degros mentions he's testing new decks then on YouTube one of them is a "8.25 Anti Hero Eagle" except it's not grey. Wonder if it's a new Chinese deck.
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Ben Degros mentions he's testing new decks then on YouTube one of them is a "8.25 Anti Hero Eagle" except it's not grey. Wonder if it's a new Chinese deck.
This concerns me. Greatly. The 8.25 DLX (specifically the grey Eagle) has been my main deck for YEARS at this point…
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New DLX wood is available for shops to order on August 21st. At least for the States, they are. So, everyone keep up to date with your local that week or the week after so everyone can check out the wood and see if it’s BBS or something different.
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All I know is that Dailan makes Crail boards and they’re my favorite, so this could be a potential non-issue as far as quality goes. What really sucks is raising prices for people who still want to skate the BBS wood.
Dailan has really stepped up their game. I don't know if you were around in 04-09ish, but Crail boards were absolutely terrible back then, super soggy and broke in three days bad. Their boards are great in my opinion now. I have 8.5 chocolate G057 and have been loving it. Dwindle decks last forever for me personally too, however, they are quite stiff. Maybe too stiff for a lot of skaters. On another note I got a new Chinese made DGK deck off OfferUp for $25. I'm not sure what shop it was pressed at, but the first session on it felt nice. I'll still be supporting DLX though, love their products and their customer service was phenomenal in replacing a flatspotted set of formula fours.
I know this is a month old but it's triggering my madness/ocd...
Dalian (not dailan) is not a woodshop or company. Dalian is a place. The actual woodshop is called Dalian Huahong Sports Tool. The company name is "Huahong" but I usually just call it the crail woodshop, though I believe they also press the blanks PGI imports.
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All I know is that Dailan makes Crail boards and they’re my favorite, so this could be a potential non-issue as far as quality goes. What really sucks is raising prices for people who still want to skate the BBS wood.
Dailan has really stepped up their game. I don't know if you were around in 04-09ish, but Crail boards were absolutely terrible back then, super soggy and broke in three days bad. Their boards are great in my opinion now. I have 8.5 chocolate G057 and have been loving it. Dwindle decks last forever for me personally too, however, they are quite stiff. Maybe too stiff for a lot of skaters. On another note I got a new Chinese made DGK deck off OfferUp for $25. I'm not sure what shop it was pressed at, but the first session on it felt nice. I'll still be supporting DLX though, love their products and their customer service was phenomenal in replacing a flatspotted set of formula fours.
I know this is a month old but it's triggering my madness/ocd...
Dalian (not dailan) is not a woodshop or company. Dalian is a place. The actual woodshop is called Dalian Huahong Sports Tool. The company name is "Huahong" but I usually just call it the crail woodshop, though I believe they also press the blanks PGI imports.
As someone previously pointed out in another thread, this page shows that they have supplied skateboards or other related products to Crailtap (Girl), PGI and Tum Yeto, among others.
https://www.importyeti.com/supplier/dalian-huahong-sports-tool
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Ben Degros mentions he's testing new decks then on YouTube one of them is a "8.25 Anti Hero Eagle" except it's not grey. Wonder if it's a new Chinese deck.
This concerns me. Greatly. The 8.25 DLX (specifically the grey Eagle) has been my main deck for YEARS at this point…
The eagles were one line that they said were NOT going to go elsewhere for production. Same as the Real logo boards and a few pro one offs, wider boards / shaped boards and special reissues.
I think you have nothing to worry about there.
* And Ben is riding a black eagle, the 8.125 board, not an 8.25 (grey eagle) board in that video.
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All I know is that Dailan makes Crail boards and they’re my favorite, so this could be a potential non-issue as far as quality goes. What really sucks is raising prices for people who still want to skate the BBS wood.
Dailan has really stepped up their game. I don't know if you were around in 04-09ish, but Crail boards were absolutely terrible back then, super soggy and broke in three days bad. Their boards are great in my opinion now. I have 8.5 chocolate G057 and have been loving it. Dwindle decks last forever for me personally too, however, they are quite stiff. Maybe too stiff for a lot of skaters. On another note I got a new Chinese made DGK deck off OfferUp for $25. I'm not sure what shop it was pressed at, but the first session on it felt nice. I'll still be supporting DLX though, love their products and their customer service was phenomenal in replacing a flatspotted set of formula fours.
I know this is a month old but it's triggering my madness/ocd...
Dalian (not dailan) is not a woodshop or company. Dalian is a place. The actual woodshop is called Dalian Huahong Sports Tool. The company name is "Huahong" but I usually just call it the crail woodshop, though I believe they also press the blanks PGI imports.
As someone previously pointed out in another thread, this page shows that they have supplied skateboards or other related products to Crailtap (Girl), PGI and Tum Yeto, among others.
https://www.importyeti.com/supplier/dalian-huahong-sports-tool
Yes, I know. I'm the one who originally looked up their import records years ago when I cared about this. I even paid for an importgenius account to get the full records.
There were way more than that, actually basically all of the big companies, but it's impossible to tell whos using what because they make a lot more than just decks. A lot of the records manifests just say things like "skateboard equipment" or "outdoor products" although some are more specific. It's pretty opaque but it seems like crail has their own molds and maybe presses within the factory, basically the same setup dlx and bakerboys have with BBS.
Either way, the woodshop company name isn't and never was "Dailan" or "Dalian"...it's Huahong.
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Trucks are still being made in USA?
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Ben Degros mentions he's testing new decks then on YouTube one of them is a "8.25 Anti Hero Eagle" except it's not grey. Wonder if it's a new Chinese deck.
This concerns me. Greatly. The 8.25 DLX (specifically the grey Eagle) has been my main deck for YEARS at this point…
The eagles were one line that they said were NOT going to go elsewhere for production. Same as the Real logo boards and a few pro one offs, wider boards / shaped boards and special reissues.
I think you have nothing to worry about there.
* And Ben is riding a black eagle, the 8.125 board, not an 8.25 (grey eagle) board in that video.
which measures closer to 8.25 so that might be why he said that, but who knows
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Ben Degros mentions he's testing new decks then on YouTube one of them is a "8.25 Anti Hero Eagle" except it's not grey. Wonder if it's a new Chinese deck.
This concerns me. Greatly. The 8.25 DLX (specifically the grey Eagle) has been my main deck for YEARS at this point…
The eagles were one line that they said were NOT going to go elsewhere for production. Same as the Real logo boards and a few pro one offs, wider boards / shaped boards and special reissues.
I think you have nothing to worry about there.
* And Ben is riding a black eagle, the 8.125 board, not an 8.25 (grey eagle) board in that video.
Ya I saw it was black but it's rare for him to fuck that up.
While I did see the same thing in this thread about the Eagles- playing devil's advocate why wouldn't they pull a Primitive and do all logo/non pro decks there? They don't do that many price point decks for it to make sense to only do those.
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Trucks are still being made in USA?
They've been made in Mexico for several months.
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All I know is that Dailan makes Crail boards and they’re my favorite, so this could be a potential non-issue as far as quality goes. What really sucks is raising prices for people who still want to skate the BBS wood.
Dailan has really stepped up their game. I don't know if you were around in 04-09ish, but Crail boards were absolutely terrible back then, super soggy and broke in three days bad. Their boards are great in my opinion now. I have 8.5 chocolate G057 and have been loving it. Dwindle decks last forever for me personally too, however, they are quite stiff. Maybe too stiff for a lot of skaters. On another note I got a new Chinese made DGK deck off OfferUp for $25. I'm not sure what shop it was pressed at, but the first session on it felt nice. I'll still be supporting DLX though, love their products and their customer service was phenomenal in replacing a flatspotted set of formula fours.
I know this is a month old but it's triggering my madness/ocd...
Dalian (not dailan) is not a woodshop or company. Dalian is a place. The actual woodshop is called Dalian Huahong Sports Tool. The company name is "Huahong" but I usually just call it the crail woodshop, though I believe they also press the blanks PGI imports.
As someone previously pointed out in another thread, this page shows that they have supplied skateboards or other related products to Crailtap (Girl), PGI and Tum Yeto, among others.
https://www.importyeti.com/supplier/dalian-huahong-sports-tool
Yes, I know. I'm the one who originally looked up their import records years ago when I cared about this. I even paid for an importgenius account to get the full records.
There were way more than that, actually basically all of the big companies, but it's impossible to tell whos using what because they make a lot more than just decks. A lot of the records manifests just say things like "skateboard equipment" or "outdoor products" although some are more specific. It's pretty opaque but it seems like crail has their own molds and maybe presses within the factory, basically the same setup dlx and bakerboys have with BBS.
Either way, the woodshop company name isn't and never was "Dailan" or "Dalian"...it's Huahong.
ImportYeti shows that Crailtap has been getting their decks and completes from Chop Chop and their trucks from Jeeping for the past few years.
The shipping data makes a distinction between decks and completes as well. Crailtap has not used Dailan Huahong Sports tool since 2018.
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Ben Degros mentions he's testing new decks then on YouTube one of them is a "8.25 Anti Hero Eagle" except it's not grey. Wonder if it's a new Chinese deck.
This concerns me. Greatly. The 8.25 DLX (specifically the grey Eagle) has been my main deck for YEARS at this point…
The eagles were one line that they said were NOT going to go elsewhere for production. Same as the Real logo boards and a few pro one offs, wider boards / shaped boards and special reissues.
I think you have nothing to worry about there.
* And Ben is riding a black eagle, the 8.125 board, not an 8.25 (grey eagle) board in that video.
which measures closer to 8.25 so that might be why he said that, but who knows
I've also heard that the "8.38" military green eagle measures 8.5 while the actual "8.5" navy eagle measures 8.38. I've had the 8.5 navy but never measured and did think it felt narrow.
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The 8.38 is 8.38. I have measured with calipers. It is for sure longer than the 8.5, which has a shorter length and WB than is on the sticker. DLX has 2 other 8.5s- the one with the 14.38 that Real and Krooked are doing a lot of now, and the 8.5 FULL SE which has a bigger, more square nose. I don't think they do the 8.5 full anymore.
Financially speaking it would make sense for DLX to do everything but pro model decks in China, keep special issues, shapes, and pro models in Mexico.
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Will DLX ever go back to pre-covid shortage frequency of drops? There's been 1 summer drop for REAL and I'm getting sick of skating the same Mason graphic all the time.
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I’m curious about how the new molds are going to be. I don’t think generator is going to hand over all the specs. I’m wondering if they will be flatter like girl or primitive Chinese wood decks.
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Generator doesn't have to. DLX can go to the factory and say "make this" and I gurantee they can make an identically shaped copy. It's not very complex to do. Generator doesn't own the shapes they just make them for DLX.
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Ben Degros mentions he's testing new decks then on YouTube one of them is a "8.25 Anti Hero Eagle" except it's not grey. Wonder if it's a new Chinese deck.
This concerns me. Greatly. The 8.25 DLX (specifically the grey Eagle) has been my main deck for YEARS at this point…
The eagles were one line that they said were NOT going to go elsewhere for production. Same as the Real logo boards and a few pro one offs, wider boards / shaped boards and special reissues.
I think you have nothing to worry about there.
* And Ben is riding a black eagle, the 8.125 board, not an 8.25 (grey eagle) board in that video.
Ya I saw it was black but it's rare for him to fuck that up.
While I did see the same thing in this thread about the Eagles- playing devil's advocate why wouldn't they pull a Primitive and do all logo/non pro decks there? They don't do that many price point decks for it to make sense to only do those.
Sorry if this sounds pedantic, but Generator doesn't make anything, they are the retail arm of the BBS company that sells their boards to smaller brands, shops and the like.
BBS is the manufacturer, so they make the boards, not only for the big brands with their dedicated molds, but also the more generic boards that are used by Generator for their program too.
I think someone else said the DLX China woodshop is going to be set up by / under the instruction of people from BBS or something similar, so it could either be involved or at least have the knowledge and experience of both BBS and DLX in getting things up and running there.
Compared to some other companies who have just bought boards from where ever with existing molds and put their brand graphics on them, DLX is setting up a woodshop that makes boards that are to the same concaves, sizes, dimensions and above all the same quality and feel as their usual boards.
Whether that actually happens is yet to be seen, but I have never thought DLX to take short cuts with their product, even though issues and mistakes have happened from time to time, at least all those known issues have been resolved and if there was any faulty product, it has been replaced without much trouble, as many people on here have said over the years - DLX having one of if not the best warranty on their products in the industry.
Edit:
* At the end of the day, it is not a big deal, but I sure would be keen to see and skate a board that is supposed to be the same, but not from BBS. I am not holding my breath though. It was said they wouldn't be out until early 2024, but as people have said, surely they would be testing those boards first for a while just to make sure everything was good.
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All I know is that Dailan makes Crail boards and they’re my favorite, so this could be a potential non-issue as far as quality goes. What really sucks is raising prices for people who still want to skate the BBS wood.
Dailan has really stepped up their game. I don't know if you were around in 04-09ish, but Crail boards were absolutely terrible back then, super soggy and broke in three days bad. Their boards are great in my opinion now. I have 8.5 chocolate G057 and have been loving it. Dwindle decks last forever for me personally too, however, they are quite stiff. Maybe too stiff for a lot of skaters. On another note I got a new Chinese made DGK deck off OfferUp for $25. I'm not sure what shop it was pressed at, but the first session on it felt nice. I'll still be supporting DLX though, love their products and their customer service was phenomenal in replacing a flatspotted set of formula fours.
I know this is a month old but it's triggering my madness/ocd...
Dalian (not dailan) is not a woodshop or company. Dalian is a place. The actual woodshop is called Dalian Huahong Sports Tool. The company name is "Huahong" but I usually just call it the crail woodshop, though I believe they also press the blanks PGI imports.
As someone previously pointed out in another thread, this page shows that they have supplied skateboards or other related products to Crailtap (Girl), PGI and Tum Yeto, among others.
https://www.importyeti.com/supplier/dalian-huahong-sports-tool
Yes, I know. I'm the one who originally looked up their import records years ago when I cared about this. I even paid for an importgenius account to get the full records.
There were way more than that, actually basically all of the big companies, but it's impossible to tell whos using what because they make a lot more than just decks. A lot of the records manifests just say things like "skateboard equipment" or "outdoor products" although some are more specific. It's pretty opaque but it seems like crail has their own molds and maybe presses within the factory, basically the same setup dlx and bakerboys have with BBS.
Either way, the woodshop company name isn't and never was "Dailan" or "Dalian"...it's Huahong.
I recall reading all the info you had posted and it was very interesting and helped me with a lot of the woodshops in China, so thank you for that info, from then and again now.
It is always appreciated.
I wonder how "cut throat" the woodshop industry is over there, whether they are always trying to get more sales or find the big accounts or they have enough business as it is with a line up to their door so to speak.
Seems some of those woodshops are producing more boards than ever, but it is difficult to work out a lot of the who, what and where, when compared to many of the very definite markings and production info from the main US and Mexico woodshops.
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I would gladly skate the current Craig wood with dlx heat transfers, if that’s what they wind up doing
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I highly doubt that’s what they will do….IMO I think just as a consumer without any political stance on it….it’s sick…
DLX has good quality stuff and if it isn’t to my liking…..BBS still presses a ton of boards….
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If DLX goes to China, I would understand. BBS board prices are through the roof. But also, BBS is why DLX is known for having great boards.
Like it was said above though, there’s plenty of companies using BBS now.
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Does this shop press boards one at a time or in stacks? I know some of you have some madness about what number your boards are in the stack so that's something else to consider. On the plus side, if they are pressed as singles, you have a more consistent deck if you tend to frequent specific shapes.
If the Chinese molds are the same as the ones being used currently, this would mean the board would take on the steepest version of the mold, right? As in, they'd all pretty much be 1s coming off the press?
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Does this shop press boards one at a time or in stacks? I know some of you have some madness about what number your boards are in the stack so that's something else to consider. On the plus side, if they are pressed as singles, you have a more consistent deck if you tend to frequent specific shapes.
If the Chinese molds are the same as the ones being used currently, this would mean the board would take on the steepest version of the mold, right? As in, they'd all pretty much be 1s coming off the press?
Erf. Hadn't thought about about this. I am "IV" diehard...
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Will DLX ever go back to pre-covid shortage frequency of drops? There's been 1 summer drop for REAL and I'm getting sick of skating the same Mason graphic all the time.
Sales of sporting goods are absolutely moribund in the "post-Covid" era. Shops are still trying to unload stock they bought during the rush of 20/21, so I imagine that manufacturers are not eagerly releasing tons of new product without demand from shops or consumers.
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Does this shop press boards one at a time or in stacks? I know some of you have some madness about what number your boards are in the stack so that's something else to consider. On the plus side, if they are pressed as singles, you have a more consistent deck if you tend to frequent specific shapes.
If the Chinese molds are the same as the ones being used currently, this would mean the board would take on the steepest version of the mold, right? As in, they'd all pretty much be 1s coming off the press?
Erf. Hadn't thought about about this. I am "IV" diehard...
That is the main reason, why I don't skate DLX decks, the four different steepness numbers. I also prefer a "IV".
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Does this shop press boards one at a time or in stacks? I know some of you have some madness about what number your boards are in the stack so that's something else to consider. On the plus side, if they are pressed as singles, you have a more consistent deck if you tend to frequent specific shapes.
If the Chinese molds are the same as the ones being used currently, this would mean the board would take on the steepest version of the mold, right? As in, they'd all pretty much be 1s coming off the press?
Erf. Hadn't thought about about this. I am "IV" diehard...
That is the main reason, why I don't skate DLX decks, the four different steepness numbers. I also prefer a "IV".
What do you ride?
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Does this shop press boards one at a time or in stacks? I know some of you have some madness about what number your boards are in the stack so that's something else to consider. On the plus side, if they are pressed as singles, you have a more consistent deck if you tend to frequent specific shapes.
If the Chinese molds are the same as the ones being used currently, this would mean the board would take on the steepest version of the mold, right? As in, they'd all pretty much be 1s coming off the press?
Erf. Hadn't thought about about this. I am "IV" diehard...
That is the main reason, why I don't skate DLX decks, the four different steepness numbers. I also prefer a "IV".
What do you ride?
BBS pressed 8.25 decks. Current one is a Magenta and that thing holds up well for me. I would ride any 8.25 BBS made deck with the same specs.
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Does this shop press boards one at a time or in stacks? I know some of you have some madness about what number your boards are in the stack so that's something else to consider. On the plus side, if they are pressed as singles, you have a more consistent deck if you tend to frequent specific shapes.
If the Chinese molds are the same as the ones being used currently, this would mean the board would take on the steepest version of the mold, right? As in, they'd all pretty much be 1s coming off the press?
Erf. Hadn't thought about about this. I am "IV" diehard...
That is the main reason, why I don't skate DLX decks, the four different steepness numbers. I also prefer a "IV".
You do realize that every other company (other than DSM wood) has 4-5 different levels of steepness too but DLX is the only one who numbers them right? The variance is a side effect of pressing multiple boards at a time, not something unique to BBS/dlx. All they're doing is saving you the time of stacking boards to figure out which one fits your preference.
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Does this shop press boards one at a time or in stacks? I know some of you have some madness about what number your boards are in the stack so that's something else to consider. On the plus side, if they are pressed as singles, you have a more consistent deck if you tend to frequent specific shapes.
If the Chinese molds are the same as the ones being used currently, this would mean the board would take on the steepest version of the mold, right? As in, they'd all pretty much be 1s coming off the press?
Erf. Hadn't thought about about this. I am "IV" diehard...
That is the main reason, why I don't skate DLX decks, the four different steepness numbers. I also prefer a "IV".
What do you ride?
BBS pressed 8.25 decks. Current one is a Magenta and that thing holds up well for me. I would ride any 8.25 BBS made deck with the same specs.
I would imagine that any woodshop that produces BBS / DLX boards would still be four to a press. It is just done that way to maximise deck production and with the number stamp for place in the press, it makes it a whole lot easier for people who are a bit more specific about the board concave they prefer, even if they have to ask shops or distributors for certain number boards, at least they get what they want, more so than a lucky dip, which is what I feel any other board order for BBS or similar can be compared to.
As for specific other brands like Magenta, the 8.25 x 31.8 or so with 14.25 wb is a very common board size and shape, but one that DLX doesn't have, so from that alone I would say I understand you saying you would not ride DLX boards.
I have a couple of Magenta 8.5s that are bang on the same BBS / generic shape of 8.5 x 32.3 or so with 14.5 wb, 6.75 tail and 7.1 nose which I find pretty much perfect, along with a whole stack of other brand BBS boards of the same dimensions that just work so well for me, but I can't get that from DLX board shapes, so I am a little torn between a board I find works best, or something like the DLX 8.38 shape, which is a little smaller, especially in the tail, but I ride them for smaller stuff anyway.
The only thing is I can always get a DLX board in the IV concave I like, but these other boards, I get and then sort through picking out the more mellow ones I will ride and passing the steeper ones on to others, or just putting them in the shop, so I could get maybe five or so boards I want to ride out of twenty that I had come through my hands. Those odds make me more keen on DLX boards, so it is a good thing and bad thing either way I look at it there.
You do realize that every other company (other than DSM wood) has 4-5 different levels of steepness too but DLX is the only one who numbers them right? The variance is a side effect of pressing multiple boards at a time, not something unique to BBS/dlx. All they're doing is saving you the time of stacking boards to figure out which one fits your preference.
I was thinking that too, but I also wonder if some woodshops sort and separate out the steeper boards for some brands and the more mellow for others, even though that would seem to be a pain in the ass and cost time, therefore cost money, or if it is worth it in the long run.
Most brands I have had multiple boards from the same run, same graphic, etc are a mix of everything, some very steep and some quite mellow, but it also seems some brands all are steeper, some brands all more mellow, with the same shapes, even though people could say they come from different presses too, different molds, but it is not like FA / Hockey steep vs Real super mellow mold.
I usually measure more the cross board concave anyway, as I can always flatten out kicks by parking on the boards, but if it has too much cross concave, it is going to find a new home very quickly, as far as my own boards are concerned.
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Is it fair to say though with DLX boards you are more inclined to get steeper boards than other brands pressed by BBS?
To the concept of pressing single boards, it’s possible but I think what is leading to that conclusion is because other shops in China do it…..but I suspect given you can do anything in China so they could run it the same old way….
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Is it fair to say though with DLX boards you are more inclined to get steeper boards than other brands pressed by BBS?
To the concept of pressing single boards, it’s possible but I think what is leading to that conclusion is because other shops in China do it…..but I suspect given you can do anything in China so they could run it the same old way….
Re steeper from DLX compared to BBS, I don't think so, but that might also be based on which shape / size you prefer.
The DLX 8.25 boards always seem steeper all round (especially compared to other BBS boards I have lots of), but the DLX 8.38 boards almost always seem not as steep, even the I in 8.38 often seems not as steep as the IV in 8.25 size, from lining a lot of them up, but then the 8.5s can often be more in the middle, regardless of press number.
They are the most common sizes I have pass through my hands, but I also have a number of the 8.06, 8.125, 8.62, 8.75 and 9.0 plus some of the shaped boards, like the Grosso 9.25 double drilled or the Gonz 9.81 sweatpants shape. Some of those are a bit more here and there, but other BBS boards have been steeper more recently - quite a number of 8.5 size from Magenta, Element, Black Label, Cash Only and some Generator shop boards as examples that I can think of right this minute.
Others I have that are not so steep, but more on the same 8.38 shape as the DLX 8.38 include Baker, Birdhouse, Deathwish, DGK, Element, all of which are not as steep as the 8.5 boards, but it seems that mold or whatever they do the 8.38s on is more mellow anyway. That is the most common board size I have skated in recent years, so when they have been on sale or whatever, I have bought quite a lot of them.
Interesting to hear from others though, as I know some experiences differ quite a lot.
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Checked out all the new DLX wood. Looks like BBS to me. No BBS sticker, but you can tell.
I wonder when the switch is coming, if it does come
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Checked out all the new DLX wood. Looks like BBS to me. No BBS sticker, but you can tell.
I wonder when the switch is coming, if it does come
The pre book info was for delivery at the start of 2024, so people had said from USA and other places, including here in AU, so I don't imagine there would be much or any stock before then if they are still yet to get things up and running in the new woodshop.
Of course, it could already be in production and there could be some come in somewhere, anywhere, but the main thing is to check the "Made in Mexico" line on the red and white warning stickers that are on the existing BBS boards, which any board from China would not have.
Apart from that, I think that everything else, be it the mold shape, size, dimensions, etc would still be exactly the same as the other boards. That is what they were going to do, not just a generic board from an existing woodshop with a DLX graphic on it, the way some other brands have done in their change over from BBS to China based woodshops.
Anyone else with more info, set me straight or whatever, but I am guessing a cool head and common sense will prevail without mass hysteria re woodshop origin theories spinning out of control.
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I've got this real nice 8" medium/mellow Magenta board. The last few 8"s from BBS were Passports and they just didn't work for me. This Magenta feels totally different.
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When I compared the 8.25s I had, all were a little bit different. Darkroom and Magenta were almost the same, the Darkroom a bit steeper as the Magenta. The Polar 8.25 was a bit longer and the steepest of the three.
I prefer the Magenta 8.25 because it has the mellowest concave and the specs feel good to me.
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Checked out all the new DLX wood. Looks like BBS to me. No BBS sticker, but you can tell.
I wonder when the switch is coming, if it does come
The pre book info was for delivery at the start of 2024, so people had said from USA and other places, including here in AU, so I don't imagine there would be much or any stock before then if they are still yet to get things up and running in the new woodshop.
Of course, it could already be in production and there could be some come in somewhere, anywhere, but the main thing is to check the "Made in Mexico" line on the red and white warning stickers that are on the existing BBS boards, which any board from China would not have.
Apart from that, I think that everything else, be it the mold shape, size, dimensions, etc would still be exactly the same as the other boards. That is what they were going to do, not just a generic board from an existing woodshop with a DLX graphic on it, the way some other brands have done in their change over from BBS to China based woodshops.
Anyone else with more info, set me straight or whatever, but I am guessing a cool head and common sense will prevail without mass hysteria re woodshop origin theories spinning out of control.
DLX doesn’t do prebooks on hardgoods. Good call on the red and white warning sticker.
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Checked out all the new DLX wood. Looks like BBS to me. No BBS sticker, but you can tell.
I wonder when the switch is coming, if it does come
The pre book info was for delivery at the start of 2024, so people had said from USA and other places, including here in AU, so I don't imagine there would be much or any stock before then if they are still yet to get things up and running in the new woodshop.
Of course, it could already be in production and there could be some come in somewhere, anywhere, but the main thing is to check the "Made in Mexico" line on the red and white warning stickers that are on the existing BBS boards, which any board from China would not have.
Apart from that, I think that everything else, be it the mold shape, size, dimensions, etc would still be exactly the same as the other boards. That is what they were going to do, not just a generic board from an existing woodshop with a DLX graphic on it, the way some other brands have done in their change over from BBS to China based woodshops.
Anyone else with more info, set me straight or whatever, but I am guessing a cool head and common sense will prevail without mass hysteria re woodshop origin theories spinning out of control.
DLX doesn’t do prebooks on hardgoods. Good call on the red and white warning sticker.
So the shop people might disagree with the "DLX doesn't do pre books on hardgoods" as they have done that for a while now, or at least here in AU they certainly do, as they did with all the China boards, which started this thread - see the first post - from someone in a shop in USA I believe.
More and more product seems like it is being pre booked so both the distro and the manufacturer know how much to order / make and whatever, but the best lines are all pre book only here, with whatever else ending up on the normal b2b for shop accounts to purchase as they like.
That way it is not the lucky first to jump online after the product is put up to get whatever it is and also so those bigger accounts don't just buy all of it as soon as it comes out, leaving everyone else without the good stuff.
This is just my own experience from working in a few shops over the years, but I do talk to quite a few other shop people from all over, USA, EU and other places, as much as I might annoy them, I do find it very interesting how everything works and like to hear the different experiences of someone here compared to USA or EU or where ever they are.
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^ Despite being in my 40s, I had a shop sponsor awhile ago (shop eventually lost lease, went out of bid’ness), that was heavily involved with DLX. IIRC, they often did DLX pre-order stuff.
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I've been at my local when they've done the pre order at the start of a drop but they've told me after the initial drop they cannot select inventory when they re-up.
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Checked out all the new DLX wood. Looks like BBS to me. No BBS sticker, but you can tell.
I wonder when the switch is coming, if it does come
The pre book info was for delivery at the start of 2024, so people had said from USA and other places, including here in AU, so I don't imagine there would be much or any stock before then if they are still yet to get things up and running in the new woodshop.
Of course, it could already be in production and there could be some come in somewhere, anywhere, but the main thing is to check the "Made in Mexico" line on the red and white warning stickers that are on the existing BBS boards, which any board from China would not have.
Apart from that, I think that everything else, be it the mold shape, size, dimensions, etc would still be exactly the same as the other boards. That is what they were going to do, not just a generic board from an existing woodshop with a DLX graphic on it, the way some other brands have done in their change over from BBS to China based woodshops.
Anyone else with more info, set me straight or whatever, but I am guessing a cool head and common sense will prevail without mass hysteria re woodshop origin theories spinning out of control.
DLX doesn’t do prebooks on hardgoods. Good call on the red and white warning sticker.
So the shop people might disagree with the "DLX doesn't do pre books on hardgoods" as they have done that for a while now, or at least here in AU they certainly do, as they did with all the China boards, which started this thread - see the first post - from someone in a shop in USA I believe.
More and more product seems like it is being pre booked so both the distro and the manufacturer know how much to order / make and whatever, but the best lines are all pre book only here, with whatever else ending up on the normal b2b for shop accounts to purchase as they like.
That way it is not the lucky first to jump online after the product is put up to get whatever it is and also so those bigger accounts don't just buy all of it as soon as it comes out, leaving everyone else without the good stuff.
This is just my own experience from working in a few shops over the years, but I do talk to quite a few other shop people from all over, USA, EU and other places, as much as I might annoy them, I do find it very interesting how everything works and like to hear the different experiences of someone here compared to USA or EU or where ever they are.
My bad. I meant to say that I was in the US. Didn’t know they did prebooks in other countries. Would be interested to see what’s coming out in the future. How far out does DLX usually prebook?
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My bad. I meant to say that I was in the US. Didn’t know they did prebooks in other countries. Would be interested to see what’s coming out in the future. How far out does DLX usually prebook?
Not a worry!
:)
I think the latest offering is for mid 2024 that has just come out, some people already expressing excitement at new products on here and in other places in the last week or so, which would be Spring 2024 Drop 1.
The one before that with the pre book in question with China boards was for early 2024, so it seems like it can vary from six to eight months out sometimes.
Sure is a while to order and wait for product, but increasingly it helps distros and manufacturers to make enough of everything with orders in advance, rather than make a few hundred of everything, have some sell out in minutes and no one can get more, or have almost all of something else sit and end up on clearance sales because no one wanted it.
I don't know how long most other brands have pre book offers out, but some seem to keep it to about six months as well, just to ensure production meets demand.
* I meant to add too that leading up to / around Spring in USA seems to be the biggest drop of the year for some brands too, as much as there is often less product for the colder months, the warmer months get a big push, it seems, which stands to reason - more people getting out and skating, etc.
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My bad. I meant to say that I was in the US. Didn’t know they did prebooks in other countries. Would be interested to see what’s coming out in the future. How far out does DLX usually prebook?
Not a worry!
:)
I think the latest offering is for mid 2024 that has just come out, some people already expressing excitement at new products on here and in other places in the last week or so, which would be Spring 2024 Drop 1.
The one before that with the pre book in question with China boards was for early 2024, so it seems like it can vary from six to eight months out sometimes.
Sure is a while to order and wait for product, but increasingly it helps distros and manufacturers to make enough of everything with orders in advance, rather than make a few hundred of everything, have some sell out in minutes and no one can get more, or have almost all of something else sit and end up on clearance sales because no one wanted it.
I don't know how long most other brands have pre book offers out, but some seem to keep it to about six months as well, just to ensure production meets demand.
* I meant to add too that leading up to / around Spring in USA seems to be the biggest drop of the year for some brands too, as much as there is often less product for the colder months, the warmer months get a big push, it seems, which stands to reason - more people getting out and skating, etc.
Most all brands are about 3-6 months in advance for prebooks as well.
I always like to nerd out and see what’s coming in the future, but lately it’s starting to lose its excitement. Not knowing and getting surprised is the new move. When that’s in the cards at least. Prebooking shoes and apparel is a must, so no surprises there, unless there’s a special drop like those new NB# 480’s
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Are these the Made in China Dlx boards now hitting the shops?
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/grimple-stix-85-pp-skateboard-deck (https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/grimple-stix-85-pp-skateboard-deck)
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I doubt it….my impression was that they were manufacturing a high quality board in China this looks like a price point board….they’ve made these for awhile no?
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Yeah, think it's technically correct that this is a DLX board which is made in China, but not the type of boards we are discussing in this thread.
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Got it. Thanks.
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Are these the Made in China Dlx boards now hitting the shops?
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/grimple-stix-85-pp-skateboard-deck (https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/grimple-stix-85-pp-skateboard-deck)
It could be..
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Are these the Made in China Dlx boards now hitting the shops?
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/grimple-stix-85-pp-skateboard-deck (https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/grimple-stix-85-pp-skateboard-deck)
It could be..
The newer "Made in China" DLX boards are still yet to drop anywhere, as far as I know - thinking first physical drop in 2024 when they all arrive, but at least that is from the info I have seen and heard. Everything else is still 100% BBS from Mexico up until that point.
The pricepoint decks like that one were always still BBS, made in Mexico with all the rest, only they used cheaper ply laminates for those ones, that were rejects from the pro board laminates, or something like that.
The only DLX boards that are made in China are the budget completes and have been for a while now, which do have different concaves to BBS boards and are as people would expect from a cheaper complete out of China, in terms of the product. They still hold up fine for beginners or people not going too hard, but break fairly easily under normal conditions when put to the test. Seen a few of those come back "for warranty" when I worked at a big shop and they were denied every time - incorrect landing and the board broke / get a pro board and learn to land correctly, etc.
Sorry if I keep on about this, but I feel like a lot of people are now crying wolf, which is understandable, but the list of boards in the 2024 drop has which ones are BBS and which ones are China made, no current boards or graphics.
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I have a link to the Spring 2024 Drop 1 catalog and no mention where each deck is pressed. Just a regular DLX catalog with graphics and dimensions. Cool shit coming, either way.
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I have a link to the Spring 2024 Drop 1 catalog and no mention where each deck is pressed. Just a regular DLX catalog with graphics and dimensions. Cool shit coming, either way.
There is the PDF catalog, then there is the shop order excel sheet, which had all that info on it.
Guessing a lot of people would have seen a PDF catalog here and there, but only the shop people see the Excel sheet, which doesn't get shared around.
As you said, either way, it will be good.
I am still very interested to see and compare boards from different places.
You guys might get them sooner there, even this year, or almost now, as it takes a while for to get any stock here, compared to USA or other places.
Example, that Pigeon Vision huffer is USA, as is the Hewitt board, but the other Pigeon Vision range of pro boards for Raney, Kanfoush, BA, etc are said to be China, so check them when they make it to shops.
New Huffer out. https://dlxskateshop.com/collections/skate-goods/products/antihero-john-cardiel-pigeon-vision-deck (https://dlxskateshop.com/collections/skate-goods/products/antihero-john-cardiel-pigeon-vision-deck)
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Phew. Thanks for the LD. I'm sure the Chinese made boards will be of good quality but I still prefer something manufactured a little closer to home... I have the new Huffer on order from the local...
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Antihero out with a new 8.5" with 14" wheelbase
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/taylor-pigeon-vision-85-skateboard-deck
If this info is correct, these boards are the ones made in China, so if anyone can keep an eye out for any of the other pigeon vision boards (except the Huffer shape and the Hewitt decks) and check top stickers or any of the markings, etc on them.
The whole list of this current drop is not one to share, but more of them are said to be the made in China boards than the usual made in Mexico BBS DLX boards.
It would be interesting if people have seen any in shops or could take pics of stickers (if any) or other info.
* Just to say it again, DLX always does top quality stuff, so I have no doubt that these are going to be well made and hold up the same as any other DLX deck, but I am super keen to see pics or hear more about them, seeing as they will be a fair way off coming here at least, the AU drop scheduled for early next year - Feb 2024 from memory.
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.
Just to add to that, it is entirely possible that USA still gets all BBS / Mexico boards cause they are looking very expensive on Tactics and I did see one sticker on top that was still the usual BBS / Mexico warning label.
The boards from China were considerably cheaper than the newer drops from Mexico, but that is not so much the giveaway as to where a board was made, compared to a sticker with a "Made in... " on it, so I should just wait and see what people in USA say more than anything.
Board info below:
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/doobie-pro-875-wheel-wells-skateboard-deck/yellow
ANTI-HERO DOOBIE PRO 8.75 WHEEL WELLS SKATEBOARD DECK
$79.95
(https://www.tactics.com/a/ev9g/1b/anti-hero-doobie-pro-875-wheel-wells-skateboard-deck-top.webp)
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.
Just to add to that, it is entirely possible that USA still gets all BBS / Mexico boards cause they are looking very expensive on Tactics and I did see one sticker on top that was still the usual BBS / Mexico warning label.
The boards from China were considerably cheaper than the newer drops from Mexico, but that is not so much the giveaway as to where a board was made, compared to a sticker with a "Made in... " on it, so I should just wait and see what people in USA say more than anything.
Board info below:
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/doobie-pro-875-wheel-wells-skateboard-deck/yellow
ANTI-HERO DOOBIE PRO 8.75 WHEEL WELLS SKATEBOARD DECK
$79.95
(https://www.tactics.com/a/ev9g/1b/anti-hero-doobie-pro-875-wheel-wells-skateboard-deck-top.webp)
Yeah that same Grant Taylor board on skate warehouse's site has the made in Mexico sticker on it. Looks like it's just a new shape.
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Another point re: China…my understanding is it’s their factory versus I assume the price point ones are not.
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Antihero out with a new 8.5" with 14" wheelbase
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/taylor-pigeon-vision-85-skateboard-deck
If this info is correct, these boards are the ones made in China, so if anyone can keep an eye out for any of the other pigeon vision boards (except the Huffer shape and the Hewitt decks) and check top stickers or any of the markings, etc on them.
The whole list of this current drop is not one to share, but more of them are said to be the made in China boards than the usual made in Mexico BBS DLX boards.
It would be interesting if people have seen any in shops or could take pics of stickers (if any) or other info.
* Just to say it again, DLX always does top quality stuff, so I have no doubt that these are going to be well made and hold up the same as any other DLX deck, but I am super keen to see pics or hear more about them, seeing as they will be a fair way off coming here at least, the AU drop scheduled for early next year - Feb 2024 from memory.
We have about 10 of these where I work and they all have the made in Mexico stickers with the Roman numeral stamps. We checked a few other decks we got at that same time and they are the same.
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Antihero out with a new 8.5" with 14" wheelbase
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/taylor-pigeon-vision-85-skateboard-deck
If this info is correct, these boards are the ones made in China, so if anyone can keep an eye out for any of the other pigeon vision boards (except the Huffer shape and the Hewitt decks) and check top stickers or any of the markings, etc on them.
The whole list of this current drop is not one to share, but more of them are said to be the made in China boards than the usual made in Mexico BBS DLX boards.
It would be interesting if people have seen any in shops or could take pics of stickers (if any) or other info.
* Just to say it again, DLX always does top quality stuff, so I have no doubt that these are going to be well made and hold up the same as any other DLX deck, but I am super keen to see pics or hear more about them, seeing as they will be a fair way off coming here at least, the AU drop scheduled for early next year - Feb 2024 from memory.
I think that's just one of the new true fit shapes. Pretty sure the ten curbmandments I was just looking at in 8.5 is 31.7 and 14wb and that's been out long enough it's sold out most places. Stamps and stain both match BBS.
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Another point re: China…my understanding is it’s their factory versus I assume the price point ones are not.
So my best guess on this "own factory" stuff is not that they're investing in actually building a factory there. That would be pretty risky with the state of their economy and how they've been treating foreign firms, especially if you're a company that isn't big enough to take a loss like that on the chin should China decide to pull a Russia. It's a whole different political and financial climate to when Rod set up DSM. I have to assume they're doing what Girl did with Huahong and basically leasing part of one of the existing woodshops, so they'll have their own presses but everything else will use the same materiel and logistic chains. I wouldn't be surprised if it's whoever does their PPs (hehehe), I'd actually kinda expect them to stick with someone they're comfortable working with.
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Antihero out with a new 8.5" with 14" wheelbase
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/taylor-pigeon-vision-85-skateboard-deck
If this info is correct, these boards are the ones made in China, so if anyone can keep an eye out for any of the other pigeon vision boards (except the Huffer shape and the Hewitt decks) and check top stickers or any of the markings, etc on them.
The whole list of this current drop is not one to share, but more of them are said to be the made in China boards than the usual made in Mexico BBS DLX boards.
It would be interesting if people have seen any in shops or could take pics of stickers (if any) or other info.
* Just to say it again, DLX always does top quality stuff, so I have no doubt that these are going to be well made and hold up the same as any other DLX deck, but I am super keen to see pics or hear more about them, seeing as they will be a fair way off coming here at least, the AU drop scheduled for early next year - Feb 2024 from memory.
I think that's just one of the new true fit shapes. Pretty sure the ten curbmandments I was just looking at in 8.5 is 31.7 and 14wb and that's been out long enough it's sold out most places. Stamps and stain both match BBS.
Unless they're doing another one, the 8.5 TrueFit has a 13.75 wb.
Incidentally, I just got an 8.5 Real board with 14.1. Not sure I've ever seen that measurement but excited to try.
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Antihero out with a new 8.5" with 14" wheelbase
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/taylor-pigeon-vision-85-skateboard-deck
If this info is correct, these boards are the ones made in China, so if anyone can keep an eye out for any of the other pigeon vision boards (except the Huffer shape and the Hewitt decks) and check top stickers or any of the markings, etc on them.
The whole list of this current drop is not one to share, but more of them are said to be the made in China boards than the usual made in Mexico BBS DLX boards.
It would be interesting if people have seen any in shops or could take pics of stickers (if any) or other info.
* Just to say it again, DLX always does top quality stuff, so I have no doubt that these are going to be well made and hold up the same as any other DLX deck, but I am super keen to see pics or hear more about them, seeing as they will be a fair way off coming here at least, the AU drop scheduled for early next year - Feb 2024 from memory.
Thanks!
That was the sort of info I was after, as all the pigon vision boards were the drop that were from China, for the AU delivery.
It was not so much the specific board from the link above, the shape or anything else, more just that series, so regardless of it being a standard shape or not, almost all the new boards for us here in AU are going to be from China, which arrive Feb 2024. Things are always a few months behind in stock getting here, unless it is fast tracked by air (which then costs a ton more), otherwise it goes in a shipping container by sea and gets here after it has travelled half way round the world.
It would make sense that USA gets wood from Mexico and other countries / continents like AU, Asia or Europe get wood from China, but only DLX knows exactly what is going on there, so not a worry either way to me.
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Antihero out with a new 8.5" with 14" wheelbase
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/taylor-pigeon-vision-85-skateboard-deck
If this info is correct, these boards are the ones made in China, so if anyone can keep an eye out for any of the other pigeon vision boards (except the Huffer shape and the Hewitt decks) and check top stickers or any of the markings, etc on them.
The whole list of this current drop is not one to share, but more of them are said to be the made in China boards than the usual made in Mexico BBS DLX boards.
It would be interesting if people have seen any in shops or could take pics of stickers (if any) or other info.
* Just to say it again, DLX always does top quality stuff, so I have no doubt that these are going to be well made and hold up the same as any other DLX deck, but I am super keen to see pics or hear more about them, seeing as they will be a fair way off coming here at least, the AU drop scheduled for early next year - Feb 2024 from memory.
I think that's just one of the new true fit shapes. Pretty sure the ten curbmandments I was just looking at in 8.5 is 31.7 and 14wb and that's been out long enough it's sold out most places. Stamps and stain both match BBS.
Unless they're doing another one, the 8.5 TrueFit has a 13.75 wb.
Incidentally, I just got an 8.5 Real board with 14.1. Not sure I've ever seen that measurement but excited to try.
That's a different one, there's 31.75 and 31.3. The 8.5 x 31.7 14wb one is more in line with the dims on the other true fits and like I said it's been out a while. This was the first deck I remember seeing on it
https://www.skatestore.com/skateboarding/888560294714--anti-hero-ten-curbmandments-skateboard-deck-true-fit-mold-8-5.html
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Oh word. Was not aware!
Those dimensions seem much more reasonable too. The 13.75 one was so crammed.
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The blue eagle shape is 31.75 on the dot and a 14.12wb
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Antihero out with a new 8.5" with 14" wheelbase
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/taylor-pigeon-vision-85-skateboard-deck
If this info is correct, these boards are the ones made in China, so if anyone can keep an eye out for any of the other pigeon vision boards (except the Huffer shape and the Hewitt decks) and check top stickers or any of the markings, etc on them.
The whole list of this current drop is not one to share, but more of them are said to be the made in China boards than the usual made in Mexico BBS DLX boards.
It would be interesting if people have seen any in shops or could take pics of stickers (if any) or other info.
* Just to say it again, DLX always does top quality stuff, so I have no doubt that these are going to be well made and hold up the same as any other DLX deck, but I am super keen to see pics or hear more about them, seeing as they will be a fair way off coming here at least, the AU drop scheduled for early next year - Feb 2024 from memory.
Thanks!
That was the sort of info I was after, as all the pigon vision boards were the drop that were from China, for the AU delivery.
It was not so much the specific board from the link above, the shape or anything else, more just that series, so regardless of it being a standard shape or not, almost all the new boards for us here in AU are going to be from China, which arrive Feb 2024. Things are always a few months behind in stock getting here, unless it is fast tracked by air (which then costs a ton more), otherwise it goes in a shipping container by sea and gets here after it has travelled half way round the world.
It would make sense that USA gets wood from Mexico and other countries / continents like AU, Asia or Europe get wood from China, but only DLX knows exactly what is going on there, so not a worry either way to me.
no problem. we have a bunch more showing up next week sometime and i'll keep a look out for any differences.
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The blue eagle shape is 31.75 on the dot and a 14.12wb
for the sake of my sanity I am choosing to take the size labels at face value, haha.
I've never had a Deluxe board that was labeled 8.5 x 32 x 14.1.
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As long as the shape label matches the dimensions should and you'll be fine. I've never had a shape completely mislabeled just the normal label vs reality.
I can say I have little faith in numerals lately. My shop had a few decks where a I was as mellow as a Baker and then on another DLX shape a III was like skating a square without a top.
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Expand Quote
Antihero out with a new 8.5" with 14" wheelbase
https://www.tactics.com/anti-hero/taylor-pigeon-vision-85-skateboard-deck
If this info is correct, these boards are the ones made in China, so if anyone can keep an eye out for any of the other pigeon vision boards (except the Huffer shape and the Hewitt decks) and check top stickers or any of the markings, etc on them.
The whole list of this current drop is not one to share, but more of them are said to be the made in China boards than the usual made in Mexico BBS DLX boards.
It would be interesting if people have seen any in shops or could take pics of stickers (if any) or other info.
* Just to say it again, DLX always does top quality stuff, so I have no doubt that these are going to be well made and hold up the same as any other DLX deck, but I am super keen to see pics or hear more about them, seeing as they will be a fair way off coming here at least, the AU drop scheduled for early next year - Feb 2024 from memory.
I ordered that board and it'll be in this week. Will share what I find.
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As long as the shape label matches the dimensions should and you'll be fine. I've never had a shape completely mislabeled just the normal label vs reality.
I can say I have little faith in numerals lately. My shop had a few decks where a I was as mellow as a Baker and then on another DLX shape a III was like skating a square without a top.
Funny you say that.
I have more than half a dozen 8.75 boards, assorted graphics and the older ones are as per spec with the numbers, fitting nicely in a I II III IV stack, but as you said, these newer ones have quite varied concaves, a I and III way flatter than a IV, but then two other IV boards being about middle of the range when I sorted them into steepest through to most mellow.
Although I do tend to get the IV boards, I am actually glad these all just arrived as is, because I would definitely have thought this IV is way steeper, both across the concave (which I can't change) as well as the kicks (which I can change) so that one is going to someone else.
The more mellow concave across I can work with a lot more.
I haven't really seen any other size / shape with as many beside the 8.38 but I haven't bought any of those for a good six or so months now, but they all line up fairly well, only a few being the exception - oddly enough those with teal tops are all super mellow, which I am very happy to have.
Anyway, that is nothing to do with China boards, but still relevant to DLX, so I guess it is ok.
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Do AH use a lower quality ply in their eagle team decks than the pro boards, like in the price point completes? Thought I read that earlier somewhere in this thread…
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Buddy of mine has an AH 8.5 Copier Eagle. It feels a bit thicker and heavier than the normal eagles. Wonder what's up with that?
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Those are the budget decks right?
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I think the copier decks are budget, they're cheaper than the regular eagle team decks anyway which makes me think that...
...which are cheaper than the pro boards...
Is that just a graphics / special shape / pro's name on board increase in cost, or is the ply quality better too?
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One of the employees at my local used to work at BBS and claims that price point decks just use natural or yellow/orange/lighter veneers and are pressed more at a time so there is more variance across the stack. IIRC they said 10 for PP, 5 for standard, 4 for DLX, but this was a convo several months ago. The wood, glue, etc. is the same.
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Copier eagles are price points
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Do AH use a lower quality ply in their eagle team decks than the pro boards, like in the price point completes? Thought I read that earlier somewhere in this thread…
Buddy of mine has an AH 8.5 Copier Eagle. It feels a bit thicker and heavier than the normal eagles. Wonder what's up with that?
Those are the budget decks right?
* As said, Copier eagles are price points, normal eagles are pro wood.
All the pro boards including team models like eagles, krooked eyes and real ovals are on the same wood, but the budget / price point boards are on the cheaper wood.
Easiest way to see now is the pro boards usually have one / two top stained ply layers, then one bottom stained layer. Pricepoints / budget boards now are all natural and although they do look like thicker ply layers, the few that I had and measured didn't seem any thicker than the pro boards, which was weird. Another one that someone else had was definitely thicker and heavier though, so make of that what you will.
Not to say that doesn't change, as some of the more recent drops had very specific all natural layers on some Real decks, for certain graphics - Kwalks and someone else, I think, but I didn't look it up again.
From an old BBS video, they said something like they sort the grades of ply, the best ones become stained layers, the worst ones go to the pricepoint wood, everything else becomes the middle layers or something like that, so it would make sense that of the five normal layers (with two cross bands) there are three or so better stained layers in pro boards, compared to the lesser quality ply layers in pricepoint boards.
I guess any which way you look at it, by skating a good number of each, you can make up your own mind on what you prefer, but I would say the pro wood holds up way better than pricepoint wood, for most people. I had posted about the different quality before, with pics and other info, as per the DLX thread:
https://www.slapmagazine.com/index.php?topic=85076.msg3844087#msg3844087
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One of the employees at my local used to work at BBS and claims that price point decks just use natural or yellow/orange/lighter veneers and are pressed more at a time so there is more variance across the stack. IIRC they said 10 for PP, 5 for standard, 4 for DLX, but this was a convo several months ago. The wood, glue, etc. is the same.
I have always enjoyed the orange or yellow veneer boards from way back, when that was all that the DLX wood seemed to come on and they held up so well too, but that sure is interesting to hear things like that, from a woodshop perspective.
PS Stix was said to do five boards at a time as per an interview with the Professor, maybe even Clutch too, but I can't recall where I got that info from.
Compared to the newer presses which hold up to nine boards in the one stack, all individually pressed, some of the older woodshops almost seem like they are behind on that front with outdated equipment, but I don't mind the search - beats having all the same steep boards I can't skate.
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Do AH use a lower quality ply in their eagle team decks than the pro boards, like in the price point completes? Thought I read that earlier somewhere in this thread…
Expand Quote
Buddy of mine has an AH 8.5 Copier Eagle. It feels a bit thicker and heavier than the normal eagles. Wonder what's up with that?
Expand Quote
Those are the budget decks right?
* As said, Copier eagles are price points, normal eagles are pro wood.
All the pro boards including team models like eagles, krooked eyes and real ovals are on the same wood, but the budget / price point boards are on the cheaper wood.
Easiest way to see now is the pro boards usually have one / two top stained ply layers, then one bottom stained layer. Pricepoints / budget boards now are all natural and although they do look like thicker ply layers, the few that I had and measured didn't seem any thicker than the pro boards, which was weird. Another one that someone else had was definitely thicker and heavier though, so make of that what you will.
Not to say that doesn't change, as some of the more recent drops had very specific all natural layers on some Real decks, for certain graphics - Kwalks and someone else, I think, but I didn't look it up again.
From an old BBS video, they said something like they sort the grades of ply, the best ones become stained layers, the worst ones go to the pricepoint wood, everything else becomes the middle layers or something like that, so it would make sense that of the five normal layers (with two cross bands) there are three or so better stained layers in pro boards, compared to the lesser quality ply layers in pricepoint boards.
I guess any which way you look at it, by skating a good number of each, you can make up your own mind on what you prefer, but I would say the pro wood holds up way better than pricepoint wood, for most people. I had posted about the different quality before, with pics and other info, as per the DLX thread:
https://www.slapmagazine.com/index.php?topic=85076.msg3844087#msg3844087
Thanks man, really appreciate the knowledge
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One of the employees at my local used to work at BBS and claims that price point decks just use natural or yellow/orange/lighter veneers and are pressed more at a time so there is more variance across the stack. IIRC they said 10 for PP, 5 for standard, 4 for DLX, but this was a convo several months ago. The wood, glue, etc. is the same.
It is unlikely that your employee worked at BBS, veneer colors have nothing to do with classifying a price point deck, and you cannot press any # of decks you'd like in the same mold. Each mold is designed for a specific thickness, anything greater or less than that thickness would produce a failure in lamination. It is 4 decks per press for 99% of the decks produced.
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I have a handful of SSD ones with colored inner plys, but ive also seen boxes full of price point dlx boards without a dyed ply in sight a few years ago. If you watch the BBS (or any proper woodshop really) tours the very first thing they do is sort the veneer by grade, I can't remember if it was BBS but there's like way more grades than I expected...like 9 or something. Obviously the highest grade veneers are face ply and the further down you go the more likely you are to encounter a defect. My understanding was that with the PP boards it's basically just whatever spare lower graded plys are lying around the warehouse when it comes time to press.
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Definitely a lot more boards in newer / future drops being from China for the AU market, but still some exceptions (bigger boards or specific graphics) being BBS from Mexico.
So from what others had said and people confirmed in this thread, all the boards in this current drop in USA are still from BBS / Mexico, but the same drop when it gets here will be the China made boards.
Still interested to see / skate one and have it for others to ride to see if anyone can feel any differences.
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.
Definitely a lot more boards in newer / future drops being from China for the AU market, but still some exceptions (bigger boards or specific graphics) being BBS from Mexico.
So from what others had said and people confirmed in this thread, all the boards in this current drop in USA are still from BBS / Mexico, but the same drop when it gets here will be the China made boards.
Still interested to see / skate one and have it for others to ride to see if anyone can feel any differences.
I expect the addition of epoxy resin will stiff in these things up a noticeable amount, v. the Mexico made BBS decks, and that most experienced practitioners will notice the diff.
Not that it will be a neg, per se: many of us enjoy DSM, and other epoxy construction decks.
I, for one, am likewise keen to try one out.
Love my BBS wood, but I like trying all kinds of stuff.
Def looking forward to your impressions, Brimmo.
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One of the employees at my local used to work at BBS and claims that price point decks just use natural or yellow/orange/lighter veneers and are pressed more at a time so there is more variance across the stack. IIRC they said 10 for PP, 5 for standard, 4 for DLX, but this was a convo several months ago. The wood, glue, etc. is the same.
It is unlikely that your employee worked at BBS, veneer colors have nothing to do with classifying a price point deck, and you cannot press any # of decks you'd like in the same mold. Each mold is designed for a specific thickness, anything greater or less than that thickness would produce a failure in lamination. It is 4 decks per press for 99% of the decks produced.
Well that employee did also work (confirmed) at Transworld, 2 companies that have a tight BBS relationship, and now runs a shop that gets all their decks from BBS directly including blanks. I don't want to out the shop specifically.
Veneers are dyed and when used as a bottom/top ply are a higher quality as others have noted. For inner plies the quality is rated by the consistency of the gain and absence of any irregularities.
You're also mis-reading what I said about the molds. A mold goes into a press and they can press stacks in different amounts. This is one reason why you see so much variance in the BBS generic shapes vs a DLX shape or even some of the DLX price points can be dramatically steeper/mellower than one another.
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.
Definitely a lot more boards in newer / future drops being from China for the AU market, but still some exceptions (bigger boards or specific graphics) being BBS from Mexico.
So from what others had said and people confirmed in this thread, all the boards in this current drop in USA are still from BBS / Mexico, but the same drop when it gets here will be the China made boards.
Still interested to see / skate one and have it for others to ride to see if anyone can feel any differences.
Not that it will be a neg, per se: many of us enjoy DSM, and other epoxy construction decks.
I, for one, am likewise keen to try one out.
Love my BBS wood, but I like trying all kinds of stuff.
Def looking forward to your impressions, Brimmo.
The funny thing with the glue is I don't think they would change from what they usually use in the BBS plant in Mexico to resin for those boards that are being made in China.
I know other woodshops like DSM are well known for the resin epoxy they use, which was prohibited in USA, Mexico and other places for health reasons, if I recall correctly, but I think they are more set on putting out boards that resemble their existing line and can seamlessly fit in with the other product, given how much everyone loves DLX boards - yeah I know I exaggerate sometimes, but you get what I mean.
Now if they put a picture sheet of Frank or Jims face in between the layers or something a little more funny like that, then I think you would have your "DLX Boneite" scandal, but any which way, I am expecting a DLX board from China to skate like any other DLX board I have ever had, which is more than I would ever want to think about, when it comes down to it.
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.
Definitely a lot more boards in newer / future drops being from China for the AU market, but still some exceptions (bigger boards or specific graphics) being BBS from Mexico.
So from what others had said and people confirmed in this thread, all the boards in this current drop in USA are still from BBS / Mexico, but the same drop when it gets here will be the China made boards.
Still interested to see / skate one and have it for others to ride to see if anyone can feel any differences.
Not that it will be a neg, per se: many of us enjoy DSM, and other epoxy construction decks.
I, for one, am likewise keen to try one out.
Love my BBS wood, but I like trying all kinds of stuff.
Def looking forward to your impressions, Brimmo.
The funny thing with the glue is I don't think they would change from what they usually use in the BBS plant in Mexico to resin for those boards that are being made in China.
I know other woodshops like DSM are well known for the resin epoxy they use, which was prohibited in USA, Mexico and other places for health reasons, if I recall correctly, but I think they are more set on putting out boards that resemble their existing line and can seamlessly fit in with the other product, given how much everyone loves DLX boards - yeah I know I exaggerate sometimes, but you get what I mean.
Now if they put a picture sheet of Frank or Jims face in between the layers or something a little more funny like that, then I think you would have your "DLX Boneite" scandal, but any which way, I am expecting a DLX board from China to skate like any other DLX board I have ever had, which is more than I would ever want to think about, when it comes down to it.
If Louie trusts China shops then I will too.
But, I do feel better knowing that the deck I skate didn’t have to travel far to get to me. And… as non-sensical as it sounds: “supporting local” means more to get deck from Mexico vs across pacific.
But if I was in AUS, China is a lot closer than Mexico
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Im in New Zealand. Looks like we will be getting China wood too. I hope they don't use epoxy ala Dwindle boards!
I find those decks too stiff, they just don't feel right to me. They take ages to break in. They last longer for sure.
Interesting to hear the use of epoxy is banned in US/Mexico for health reasons.
I also hope that the China boards come with the roman numeral designation. I always go for the steeper decks, I-III..
Someone supposedly in the know said that there shouldn't be much difference between the Mexico and China decks. I also heard that shaped decks like my fave Huffer will still be Mexico made...
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Im in New Zealand. Looks like we will be getting China wood too. I hope they don't use epoxy ala Dwindle boards!
I find those decks too stiff, they just don't feel right to me. They take ages to break in. They last longer for sure.
Interesting to hear the use of epoxy is banned in US/Mexico for health reasons.
I also hope that the China boards come with the roman numeral designation. I always go for the steeper decks, I-III..
Someone supposedly in the know said that there shouldn't be much difference between the Mexico and China decks. I also heard that shaped decks like my fave Huffer will still be Mexico made...
i like the crail shapes/sizes.
the wood is as you say tho, too stiff. i couldn’t break it if i wanted too. not as lively of a deck tho, pop just doesn’t feel as springy. or something
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New wood from China in the DLX thread if anyone is keen to see it, page 75 and now 76
Images from @LewFarrell from skate shop in Canada, as per the Pigeon series drop from DLX.
First post here:
https://www.slapmagazine.com/index.php?topic=85076.msg4120987#msg4120987
Current (last page) here:
https://www.slapmagazine.com/index.php?topic=85076.2250
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The DLX China boards have arrived in Germany.
I was browsing the Sk8deluxe site this morning and they have new DLX wood.
Upon closer inspection you can see the Top sticker says made in China and they are €5 to €10 cheaper than the BBS Mexico boards.
I sent them an Email to find out if they only carry the Chinese ones in the future or if there will also be more the expensive BBS ones to choose from.
I’m going to order one and see what it’s like.
https://www.skatedeluxe.com/de/real-lintell-prey-8-4-skateboard-deck-multi_p168055
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The DLX China boards have arrived in Germany.
I was browsing the Sk8deluxe site this morning and they have new DLX wood.
Upon closer inspection you can see the Top sticker says made in China and they are €5 to €10 cheaper than the BBS Mexico boards.
I sent them an Email to find out if they only carry the Chinese ones in the future or if there will also be more the expensive BBS ones to choose from.
I’m going to order one and see what it’s like.
https://www.skatedeluxe.com/de/real-lintell-prey-8-4-skateboard-deck-multi_p168055
Thanks!
That board looks nice, concave and everything looks just like any other BBS board, but I know looks are the least of it.
Still waiting to stand on one and maybe even skate one, but that is still months off here.
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The DLX China boards have arrived in Germany.
I was browsing the Sk8deluxe site this morning and they have new DLX wood.
Upon closer inspection you can see the Top sticker says made in China and they are €5 to €10 cheaper than the BBS Mexico boards.
I sent them an Email to find out if they only carry the Chinese ones in the future or if there will also be more the expensive BBS ones to choose from.
I’m going to order one and see what it’s like.
https://www.skatedeluxe.com/de/real-lintell-prey-8-4-skateboard-deck-multi_p168055
Good eye! That's a nice shape btw.
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The DLX China boards have arrived in Germany...
Completely unrelated...If you are in Germany, can you suggest any German-based web sites that cover the skate scene in Germany?
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They arrived and look promising.
At first look they are almost identical to the Mexican ones. You can tell the difference by looking at the top sticker, it says made in China instead of made Mexico on it.
Also, the Roman numerals on top are missing.
Speaking of those, I would say, the concave is between a three and a four. The blue antihero BBS Deck I put in the pictures for comparison is a two.
They seem to be single press. I ordered two, of Concave and kicks are exactly the same.
I just stood on it for the first time after setting it up and on the carpet it feels good and inviting. I made a sound comparison and it kind of sounds the same when I pop it on the floor. Flexibility is good too. Doesn’t feel too stiff yet.
But to see what it really feels like I have to take it outside.
It’s raining right now and it’s my wife’s birthday so I’ll see if I can sneak outside and take it for a spin. I’m so excited to find out what it feels like.
Here are some first pictures:
(https://i.ibb.co/v3XDzb0/IMG-0557.jpg) (https://ibb.co/v3XDzb0) (https://i.ibb.co/NZ5MVX6/IMG-0558.jpg) (https://ibb.co/NZ5MVX6) (https://ibb.co/xGc5j5q) (https://i.ibb.co/hVmxGBp/IMG-0560.jpg) (https://ibb.co/hVmxGBp) (https://i.ibb.co/Y30TMMD/IMG-0561.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Y30TMMD) (https://i.ibb.co/qYrbFzP/IMG-0563.jpg) (https://ibb.co/qYrbFzP) (https://i.ibb.co/ws3JKkN/IMG-0569.jpg) (https://ibb.co/ws3JKkN) (https://i.ibb.co/F6vvgY6/IMG-0570.jpg) (https://ibb.co/F6vvgY6) (https://i.ibb.co/s6z25TJ/IMG-0571.jpg) (https://ibb.co/s6z25TJ) (https://i.ibb.co/N7cnSBF/IMG-0573.jpg) (https://ibb.co/N7cnSBF) (https://i.ibb.co/cNKHHvX/IMG-0574.jpg) (https://ibb.co/cNKHHvX) (https://i.ibb.co/pWnCvD4/IMG-0580.jpg) (https://ibb.co/pWnCvD4) (https://i.ibb.co/nLHKTPs/IMG-0583.jpg) (https://ibb.co/nLHKTPs) (https://i.ibb.co/7n9pgRw/IMG-0587.jpg) (https://ibb.co/7n9pgRw) (https://i.ibb.co/d0g7C50/IMG-0588.jpg) (https://ibb.co/d0g7C50) (https://i.ibb.co/yYWQy3x/IMG-0589.jpg) (https://ibb.co/yYWQy3x) (https://i.ibb.co/fDnpZzz/IMG-0591.jpg) (https://ibb.co/fDnpZzz) (https://i.ibb.co/tzDy3nX/IMG-0592.jpg) (https://ibb.co/tzDy3nX) (https://i.ibb.co/LkMYCvG/IMG-0593.jpg) (https://ibb.co/LkMYCvG) (https://i.ibb.co/ZHDQSx1/IMG-0594.jpg) (https://ibb.co/ZHDQSx1) (https://i.ibb.co/ZKm9NYH/IMG-0596.jpg) (https://ibb.co/ZKm9NYH) (https://i.ibb.co/d5f3MKg/IMG-0595.jpg) (https://ibb.co/d5f3MKg)
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No clue if is the same factory but I had a Chinese Primitive and I liked it better than the classic Mexican one.
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No clue if is the same factory but I had a Chinese Primitive and I liked it better than the classic Mexican one.
A little birdie told me it‘s indeed the same factory Primitive uses for their Chinese pro decks…
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Expand Quote
No clue if is the same factory but I had a Chinese Primitive and I liked it better than the classic Mexican one.
A little birdie told me it‘s indeed the same factory Primitive uses for their Chinese pro decks…
shoutout to birds
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They arrived and look promising.
At first look they are almost identical to the Mexican ones. You can tell the difference by looking at the top sticker, it says made in China instead of made Mexico on it.
Also, the Roman numerals on top are missing.
Speaking of those, I would say, the concave is between a three and a four. The blue antihero BBS Deck I put in the pictures for comparison is a two.
They seem to be single press. I ordered two, of Concave and kicks are exactly the same.
I just stood on it for the first time after setting it up and on the carpet it feels good and inviting. I made a sound comparison and it kind of sounds the same when I pop it on the floor. Flexibility is good too. Doesn’t feel too stiff yet.
But to see what it really feels like I have to take it outside.
It’s raining right now and it’s my wife’s birthday so I’ll see if I can sneak outside and take it for a spin. I’m so excited to find out what it feels like.
Here are some first pictures:
(https://i.ibb.co/v3XDzb0/IMG-0557.jpg) (https://ibb.co/v3XDzb0) (https://i.ibb.co/NZ5MVX6/IMG-0558.jpg) (https://ibb.co/NZ5MVX6) (https://ibb.co/xGc5j5q) (https://i.ibb.co/hVmxGBp/IMG-0560.jpg) (https://ibb.co/hVmxGBp) (https://i.ibb.co/Y30TMMD/IMG-0561.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Y30TMMD) (https://i.ibb.co/qYrbFzP/IMG-0563.jpg) (https://ibb.co/qYrbFzP) (https://i.ibb.co/ws3JKkN/IMG-0569.jpg) (https://ibb.co/ws3JKkN) (https://i.ibb.co/F6vvgY6/IMG-0570.jpg) (https://ibb.co/F6vvgY6) (https://i.ibb.co/s6z25TJ/IMG-0571.jpg) (https://ibb.co/s6z25TJ) (https://i.ibb.co/N7cnSBF/IMG-0573.jpg) (https://ibb.co/N7cnSBF) (https://i.ibb.co/cNKHHvX/IMG-0574.jpg) (https://ibb.co/cNKHHvX) (https://i.ibb.co/pWnCvD4/IMG-0580.jpg) (https://ibb.co/pWnCvD4) (https://i.ibb.co/nLHKTPs/IMG-0583.jpg) (https://ibb.co/nLHKTPs) (https://i.ibb.co/7n9pgRw/IMG-0587.jpg) (https://ibb.co/7n9pgRw) (https://i.ibb.co/d0g7C50/IMG-0588.jpg) (https://ibb.co/d0g7C50) (https://i.ibb.co/yYWQy3x/IMG-0589.jpg) (https://ibb.co/yYWQy3x) (https://i.ibb.co/fDnpZzz/IMG-0591.jpg) (https://ibb.co/fDnpZzz) (https://i.ibb.co/tzDy3nX/IMG-0592.jpg) (https://ibb.co/tzDy3nX) (https://i.ibb.co/LkMYCvG/IMG-0593.jpg) (https://ibb.co/LkMYCvG) (https://i.ibb.co/ZHDQSx1/IMG-0594.jpg) (https://ibb.co/ZHDQSx1) (https://i.ibb.co/ZKm9NYH/IMG-0596.jpg) (https://ibb.co/ZKm9NYH) (https://i.ibb.co/d5f3MKg/IMG-0595.jpg) (https://ibb.co/d5f3MKg)
Sick, thanks. That’s promising.
The numeral looks like it would be under the sticker if there was one. Did you pull off the China sticker to see if it’s under there?
(Purple top. Wowee 🤩)
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No clue if is the same factory but I had a Chinese Primitive and I liked it better than the classic Mexican one.
I think Chinese wood gets a bad rep. I’ve been riding a Chinese Element board and it’s been my favorite board in years. I loved it so much I ordered three more.
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They arrived and look promising.
At first look they are almost identical to the Mexican ones. You can tell the difference by looking at the top sticker, it says made in China instead of made Mexico on it.
Also, the Roman numerals on top are missing.
Speaking of those, I would say, the concave is between a three and a four. The blue antihero BBS Deck I put in the pictures for comparison is a two.
They seem to be single press. I ordered two, of Concave and kicks are exactly the same.
I just stood on it for the first time after setting it up and on the carpet it feels good and inviting. I made a sound comparison and it kind of sounds the same when I pop it on the floor. Flexibility is good too. Doesn’t feel too stiff yet.
But to see what it really feels like I have to take it outside.
It’s raining right now and it’s my wife’s birthday so I’ll see if I can sneak outside and take it for a spin. I’m so excited to find out what it feels like.
Here are some first pictures:
Amazing effort for all the pics!!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Sick, thanks. That’s promising.
The numeral looks like it would be under the sticker if there was one. Did you pull off the China sticker to see if it’s under there?
(Purple top. Wowee 🤩)
All single press boards, so they should not have any numbers and will all be the same concave too.
Expand Quote
No clue if is the same factory but I had a Chinese Primitive and I liked it better than the classic Mexican one.
I think Chinese wood gets a bad rep. I’ve been riding a Chinese Element board and it’s been my favorite board in years. I loved it so much I ordered three more.
A while back things were quite different, but they really seem to have been stepping up a lot more in recent years, so yes, as you said, same as others I know who ride China boards find them way better than what they used to be, at least the boards from that specific woodshop in China. Don't know about all the other woodshops in China though and some still seem like they are pretty cheap, but you get what you pay for in that regard, but the bigger ones do seem to be coming out on top - Excel, Jeeping, Dalian, etc - full names and info in woodshop thread anyway.
Here's hoping they skate just as well as they look.
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Well, I’ve taken mine out for a session. I rode the first half of the session on a bbs made Deluxe deck & then set up the Chinese Deluxe deck.
My sentiments regarding the concave echo what was said above: felt like a 3 or a 4.
The shape I have is an 8.5 with a 14.25 wheelbase & there was a finger (& change) of flat before the kicks start. Pretty similar to the Deluxe shape I had to compare it with. Tips measured 6.92 & 6.48.
The kicks have the same slight spoon to them that the Mexican made BBS decks feature.
Deck thickness is pretty much the same as well, according to old Mr. Digital Calipers.
It is true that these are single pressed decks & use epoxy resin as the adhesive matrix & as a result it is noticeably stiffer.
After I got used to the rigidity & adjusted my pop accordingly, I found the deck had a crispy snap that felt nice once I embraced it. That same stiffness had an effect the feel of landings as well, but after some time on the deck I ceased noticing the difference.
Visually, the quality appeared up to snuff, with a pair of died plies on top & another on the bottom & a nice looking finish, even though mine was just a blank test sample.
I’ve only just had this one session, but overall my first impression is that if this is what the Deluxe offerings were to be like, I wouldn’t be mad.
I still prefer the BBS wood for feel, but this new wood may grow on me.
Jury is still out on durability, as I’ve only put a single session in on it, but if the tips mush out or chip, if it starts to show stress cracks prematurely, etc, I’ll let you know here.
For now, my initial impression is “Sure, this is actually fine.” I’d ride this wood & shape all day/every day & be perfectly happy if I could get it with a 14.5 WB & maybe a squared tail.
Don’t be skurt to try out these new Chinese woods. If you’re not already accustomed to epoxy resin decks, it may take you a few minutes to dial in, but it feels like these things are a pretty solid go, barring some new development in durability arising.
Looking forward to hearing others impressions here, but for what it’s worth, there’s mine.
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why would they have the numeral if it's an entirely different factory?
how do we know it's single board presses? What do we really know about the construction? Were girl boards the same as almost boards? both china? PS vs. BBS....same country....must be the same....
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Well, I’ve taken mine out for a session. I rode the first half of the session on a bbs made Deluxe deck & then set up the Chinese Deluxe deck.
My sentiments regarding the concave echo what was said above: felt like a 3 or a 4.
The shape I have is an 8.5 with a 14.25 wheelbase & there was a finger (& change) of flat before the kicks start. Pretty similar to the Deluxe shape I had to compare it with. Tips measured 6.92 & 6.48.
The kicks have the same slight spoon to them that the Mexican made BBS decks feature.
Deck thickness is pretty much the same as well, according to old Mr. Digital Calipers.
It is true that these are single pressed decks & use epoxy resin as the adhesive matrix & as a result it is noticeably stiffer.
After I got used to the rigidity & adjusted my pop accordingly, I found the deck had a crispy snap that felt nice once I embraced it. That same stiffness had an effect the feel of landings as well, but after some time on the deck I ceased noticing the difference.
Visually, the quality appeared up to snuff, with a pair of died plies on top & another on the bottom & a nice looking finish, even though mine was just a blank test sample.
I’ve only just had this one session, but overall my first impression is that if this is what the Deluxe offerings were to be like, I wouldn’t be mad.
I still prefer the BBS wood for feel, but this new wood may grow on me.
Jury is still out on durability, as I’ve only put a single session in on it, but if the tips mush out or chip, if it starts to show stress cracks prematurely, etc, I’ll let you know here.
For now, my initial impression is “Sure, this is actually fine.” I’d ride this wood & shape all day/every day & be perfectly happy if I could get it with a 14.5 WB & maybe a squared tail.
Don’t be skurt to try out these new Chinese woods. If you’re not already accustomed to epoxy resin decks, it may take you a few minutes to dial in, but it feels like these things are a pretty solid go, barring some new development in durability arising.
Looking forward to hearing others impressions here, but for what it’s worth, there’s mine.
Well written and on point. Thank you for sharing.
I took mine out for the first session yesterday as well and couldn’t find better words to describe my experience.
I too felt a slight difference in Pop-Feel and attribute it to epoxy glue. My first impression was that it feels like a dwindle board but better quality. It’s a slightly different flex when you load the board with pressure but you get used to it really quick.
The shape is definitely exactly what it should be.
I’ve been riding the 8.4x32
On my main setup for over a year and I felt right at home straight away.
Steepness wise, I prefer the concave and the kicks to the BBS ones. And yes, I pulled the sticker off and there’s no roman Numeral.
I especially ordered two decks for comparison and I would definitely confirm single press. I have a stack of 10 boards of that exact shape pressed by BBS and not two of those are as identical as the two Chinese Ones. There is always slight imperfections with the BBS ones.
This could be really a big advantage for the Chinese ones in the future because you will get the same exact steepness every time. Could make the Chinese ones a preference for me too.
The only thing that makes me prefer the other wood at the moment is a slight sound difference when it pops. But that could also be because I’m really, really used to the BBS feel at the moment.
And the clear coat finish could be a little less shiny. Makes it look cheaper than it feels imo.
I’m also curious if they will last as long as the originals. And also how the pricing will be in the future. Right now they are €5 to €10 cheaper than the BBS ones. If they hold up well, then this will be fair imo.
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Expand Quote
The DLX China boards have arrived in Germany...
Completely unrelated...If you are in Germany, can you suggest any German-based web sites that cover the skate scene in Germany?
I’ve been a little bit out of the loop in the last couple of years but I asked a friend and he recommended those:
https://pocketskatemag.com/
https://soloskatemag.com/
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Expand Quote
The DLX China boards have arrived in Germany.
I was browsing the Sk8deluxe site this morning and they have new DLX wood.
Upon closer inspection you can see the Top sticker says made in China and they are €5 to €10 cheaper than the BBS Mexico boards.
I sent them an Email to find out if they only carry the Chinese ones in the future or if there will also be more the expensive BBS ones to choose from.
I’m going to order one and see what it’s like.
https://www.skatedeluxe.com/de/real-lintell-prey-8-4-skateboard-deck-multi_p168055
Good eye! That's a nice shape btw.
Thx. I’ve been enjoying the DLX 8.4 a lot. Love the dimensions and especially the straight rail. Usually it’s been exclusive to Antihero so I was surprised to see it on a Real Board. I like Harry so it’s cool to ride the shape I like on his board. And as a street skater, I can relate way better to Harry’s skating than to Peter Hewitt, TNT or Raney Beres’s. Since it’s a little bit of a unicorn shape, those are the pros who usually get it..
But since I’m not that young anymore, the shape is way more important to me than the pros name on it.
And I think it’s a good development that the unicorn shapes like the 8.4 and 8.28 get a little bit more exposure.
But that’s a discussion for the main DLX Shapes Thread.
It’s just really comforting for me to know now that the Chinese alternative is shape wise actually as good if not better than the Mexican one we’ve all grown to appreciate so much.
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.
If I may add a little info, purely speculation, but well established woodshops like BBS and others have very specific hardware and existing presses, usually single stack with four or so boards in each, whereas the up and coming new factories or new technology in woodshops in China have single presses, but often up to ten or so boards in each stack, as per a few pics / instagram posts below.
This in itself makes for a more uniform board, as well as up to ten boards per press, compared to the lower number of four boards per press, with four different concaves on each, if that makes sense. It also makes it way cheaper to press more boards at a time too.
Not saying this is how the DLX boards are pressed, but it seems like more factories / woodshops in China are going to this method, more so than any other older press system.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BM4pPC-gsgE/
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-8b5oDFoRZ/
Also copied this from a while back:
https://skateparkoftampa.com/article/785/Paul_Schmitt's_Skateboard_Deck_Factory,_PS_Stix
The comment:
You know the plies of your skateboard deck? Well, this machine is a press that glues the separate plies together. They do five boards at a time, so that's why sometimes you get the same exact board with a little more or little less concave
(https://skateparkoftampa.com/spot/images/pss3.jpg)
Other places like BBS do FOUR at a time (top the steepest concave and bottom the most mellow concave), while many others (especially in China) are geared up to do ONE at a time, but they have presses that hold about eight to ten decks in each, so each individual deck is identical.
(https://www.fysboard.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/skateboard-mold.jpg)
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why would they have the numeral if it's an entirely different factory?
There are no numbers.
In my case, I used the comparo to give folks an idea of approx how steep the concave was. Would be pretty funny if they went ahead & stamped a "III" into ALL of them just for the sake of reference.
how do we know it's single board presses? What do we really know about the construction?
Single pressed, made in China, epoxy glue. These basic details, I have from the beak of a certain, very well connected bird.
Same little bird also told me that these are pressed up in the same shop that has been pressing up the decks for their completes, but with new cash/knowledge injection from DLX, BBS, and rumor has it, a certain detail oriented Canadian consulted on some of the more finite deets.
Were girl boards the same as almost boards? both china? PS vs. BBS....same country....must be the same....
Obviously, the woodshop, rather than the region of the globe, will be more instrumental in dictating the product quality. It's safe to say we have moved past, or let go of the “Chinese production = low quality” sterotype by now.
Chinese manufactories are more than capable of building to the spec they are contracted to (you get the quality you pay them to build for you.) I know which specific woodshop these decks are coming from: I was given this sample deck as a tester because I’ve been waaay too curious about them & the fellas probably figured this was a good way to shut me up, but I'm not sure if I'm at liberty to disclose that to the general public, so I will respectfully withhold that piece of info at this time. Heck, I don't even know if I was supposed to know: the etchings were covered op by a sticker, but you just know I was peeling that thing up w/ a razor as soon as I got it home.
I had planned to set my regular BBS/DLX deck back up again after I borrowed the trucks wheels off of it for an apples to apples comparison, but I enjoyed this new Chinese wood to the point I decided to keep it set up for the life of the deck, however long that may be. Not to mention, I’m gonna need more than one session to get a gauge on durability.
Naturally, I'll keep this thread posted if it explodes while rolling off a curb or shatters on a proper "bolts" landing. I’m pretty much aged out of snapping boards on landings now , due to not being able to pop higher that my knees anymore, so it’ll def be a quality issue if it does break in the next month.
More impressions as I get them, but for now I’m giving these a thumbs up w/ the following caveat: stiff, but oh boy!
Don’t be afraid of these things, they ride nice even if the feel a bit different from the BBS Deluxe offerings. If you've ever ridden an epoxy deck & enjoyed it, these will suit you fine. Kinda like a DSM deck, but with mellower kicks.
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i like flat, so i’m interested to try.
thanks for the excellent notes that the 3 if you have posted about feel.
i’ve whinged on about how i don’t prefer the stiffness of say the crail boards, compared to a ps, but the consistency and durability sure is nice.
i am currently skating an 8.38 generator shop
board that was the flattest they had, and it’s one of the best decks i’ve had in a long time. if i could get this repeatedly i’d just do that. and i’ve felt the same with ps boards. hard to get the consistent qc, and the flat.
blah blah blah
thanks for the field research
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rumor has it, a certain detail oriented Canadian assisted on the more finite deets.
No way :o I will keep my guesses. But I love this rumor.
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@JM, I happened to come across same said Canadian sessioning the Rockridge skurbs earlier this year, and while vague on the matter, when asked what he was in town for, he said he was visiting his brother while doing some work with a "local company."
That same bird I mentioned in a prior post later confirmed my suspicions rather directly.
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@JM, I happened to come across same said Canadian sessioning the Rockridge skurbs earlier this year, and while vague on the matter, when asked what he was in town for, he said he was visiting his brother while doing some work with a "local company."
That same bird I mentioned in a prior post later confirmed my suspicions rather directly.
Either this is some heavy confirmation bias, or I feel much more confident of this person’s secret identity ;D
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I buy American vehicles (GM, Ford, and Setallatis) because I support union labor and living wages. So I think you’re totally right, but what’s wrong is assuming it’s “xenophobia” also hella cringe to unironically use the term xenophobia.
this thread has been very informative, thanks ya’ll.
i do not really like bbs boards, and during the pandemic they were worse (felt off/half-baked/mushy).
i’d much prefer a pgi/dsm deck. i don’t need/like steep kicks, but dailan boards are very consistent, and long lasting.
my strong preference is to buy as locally as possible, generally for jobs/working conditions, but also environmental concerns. interesting to read well informed ideas that the environmental concerns are not always assuaged by local manufacturing.
the xenophobia is true and real. the qc concerns are largely ironed out.
manufacturing in china, to me, still represents a large degree of prioritizing corporation’s profits, at the expense of local jobs, and possibly/probably being exploitative of a workforce elsewhere.
milwaukee makes a decent work glove, or, i should say, milwaukee has a decent work glove, for sale at home depot, that was possibly made by slave labor in china. fits well, lasts, and isn’t terribly expensive. still bad.
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I buy American vehicles (GM, Ford, and Setallatis) because I support union labor and living wages. So I think you’re totally right, but what’s wrong is assuming it’s “xenophobia” also hella cringe to unironically use the term xenophobia. Expand Quote
this thread has been very informative, thanks ya’ll.
i do not really like bbs boards, and during the pandemic they were worse (felt off/half-baked/mushy).
i’d much prefer a pgi/dsm deck. i don’t need/like steep kicks, but dailan boards are very consistent, and long lasting.
my strong preference is to buy as locally as possible, generally for jobs/working conditions, but also environmental concerns. interesting to read well informed ideas that the environmental concerns are not always assuaged by local manufacturing.
the xenophobia is true and real. the qc concerns are largely ironed out.
manufacturing in china, to me, still represents a large degree of prioritizing corporation’s profits, at the expense of local jobs, and possibly/probably being exploitative of a workforce elsewhere.
milwaukee makes a decent work glove, or, i should say, milwaukee has a decent work glove, for sale at home depot, that was possibly made by slave labor in china. fits well, lasts, and isn’t terribly expensive. still bad.
i don’t know what you are trying to say.
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Still hadn’t had a chance to have a second session on the Chinese board. It’s just too damn wet and damp outside right now.
But I must say it’s growing on me just by staring at it. The only thing I don’t like at the moment is that the clear-coat is too shiny on the edges. Looks like a candy apple and this makes it look a little cheap. Thinking about just sanding it a little bit.
And course I stood on it many times on the carpet comparing it to the BBS setup.
Some more pictures after one session. No stress cracks visible. Compared it to another BBS one with almost the same color top Plys stamped III, it’s the yellow anti-hero. In the top view the one on the left or the one in front of the other one.
(https://i.ibb.co/p389NLS/IMG-0687.jpg) (https://ibb.co/p389NLS)(https://i.ibb.co/dDh8DGt/IMG-0688.jpg) (https://ibb.co/dDh8DGt)(https://i.ibb.co/zxPtRVL/IMG-0689.jpg) (https://ibb.co/zxPtRVL)(https://i.ibb.co/YTY1NqB/IMG-0692.jpg) (https://ibb.co/YTY1NqB)(https://i.ibb.co/XW2jKfg/IMG-0693.jpg) (https://ibb.co/XW2jKfg)
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I recall my Enjoi board seeming lasting very long. As a "heavier" rider, BBS seems to get pressure cracks, and become really soft after not that long of a time. Tho the Enjoi deck was stiff at first, it become perfect after some sessions.
I wouldent mind if DLX decks would be like that
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It's really rainy here still so there haven't been too many full sessions on the Newbies.
But so far they feel good. Since I was only able to skate flat lately I got the itch for a little smaller setup so I ordered an Antihero 8.25 Doobie made in China a week after the 8.4's.
First Impressions where the same as the 8.4:
Concave and Kicks between a III and IV, Edges a little to rounded for my taste and definitely too shiny (fixed that by sanding them a little). Other than that it's the exact shape like the standard 8.25, same Wheelbase, Nose- and Tail- Shape BUT not as wide as the BBS ones. Might now be a true 8.25 but I haven't had a chance to measure. I put a used 8.25 BBS next to it and the difference was noticeable. Put Venture 5.8's on and they felt a little too HotRod which wasn't the case on the BBS ones. But it doesn't feel too small and it felt really close to the BBS ones. In my opinion it could be a good thing if the width is consistent now and not all over the place like the old ones. We'll see.
How do they ride so far?
I had no problem switching over from the BBS made Boards. I'm a multiple setup guy due to a case of madness and so I had two identical 8.4's, one BBS-DLX, one China DLX Side by Side to compare. Same Trucks and Wheels.
Right now I'm pretty used to BBS Boards, been on them since about 2009 if I recall correctly. Before that I rode a lot of Dwindle Boards, mainly Cliché and Enjoy.
At first the Pop on the China- Boards felt a little hard and plastic, but that went away after a short period on both. Pop is crisp and responsive. Flex comparable to the BBS which is very good, Dwindle was stiffer. I refer to Dwindle Boards because the way they are pressed, the way the edges are sanded and finished looks very comparable to them. Shape and Concave is 100% DLX. Both Boards hold up good so far, wear is normal.
So far I like them. I was really scared of this change because I'm old and I really liked a lot of the DLX BBS Boards I had. So scared that I have a huge stack (about 12 8.4's, 5 8.25's and a couple other Shapes) I collected just in case I wouldn't be able to get them in the future.
But right now I'm thinking of selling all the I's and II's out of that stack because the new flatter ones feel better.
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It's really rainy here still so there haven't been too many full sessions on the Newbies.
But so far they feel good. Since I was only able to skate flat lately I got the itch for a little smaller setup so I ordered an Antihero 8.25 Doobie made in China a week after the 8.4's.
First Impressions where the same as the 8.4:
Concave and Kicks between a III and IV, Edges a little to rounded for my taste and definitely too shiny (fixed that by sanding them a little). Other than that it's the exact shape like the standard 8.25, same Wheelbase, Nose- and Tail- Shape BUT not as wide as the BBS ones. Might now be a true 8.25 but I haven't had a chance to measure. I put a used 8.25 BBS next to it and the difference was noticeable. Put Venture 5.8's on and they felt a little too HotRod which wasn't the case on the BBS ones. But it doesn't feel too small and it felt really close to the BBS ones. In my opinion it could be a good thing if the width is consistent now and not all over the place like the old ones. We'll see.
How do they ride so far?
I had no problem switching over from the BBS made Boards. I'm a multiple setup guy due to a case of madness and so I had two identical 8.4's, one BBS-DLX, one China DLX Side by Side to compare. Same Trucks and Wheels.
Right now I'm pretty used to BBS Boards, been on them since about 2009 if I recall correctly. Before that I rode a lot of Dwindle Boards, mainly Cliché and Enjoy.
At first the Pop on the China- Boards felt a little hard and plastic, but that went away after a short period on both. Pop is crisp and responsive. Flex comparable to the BBS which is very good, Dwindle was stiffer. I refer to Dwindle Boards because the way they are pressed, the way the edges are sanded and finished looks very comparable to them. Shape and Concave is 100% DLX. Both Boards hold up good so far, wear is normal.
So far I like them. I was really scared of this change because I'm old and I really liked a lot of the DLX BBS Boards I had. So scared that I have a huge stack (about 12 8.4's, 5 8.25's and a couple other Shapes) I collected just in case I wouldn't be able to get them in the future.
But right now I'm thinking of selling all the I's and II's out of that stack because the new flatter ones feel better.
I had meant to say thanks yesterday, but ran out of time.
This is all very interesting and I appreciate your info, details and perspectives.
Very much in the same situation and can relate to that last paragraph a lot.
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China-made might be a relief for me. I always go for IV/III stamped, which can, at times, be hard to track down. If the China made ones are consistently flatter, it’s going to make my life a lot easier.
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China-made might be a relief for me. I always go for IV/III stamped, which can, at times, be hard to track down. If the China made ones are consistently flatter, it’s going to make my life a lot easier.
feel the same.
i prefer items made closer to home, for myriad reasons, but down to give these a try.
most china-made boards that i’ve tried, don’t feel as lively as bbs/ps-stix decks.
anything flat i will try
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I’m sure APB, but Ben D on 9 club mentioned developing a flatter board with slightly flatter kicks…..
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I’m sure APB, but Ben D on 9 club mentioned developing a flatter board with slightly flatter kicks…..
I took it as it will be a new shape DLX will release in the coming months.
Called “Flat as Fuck” shape, or something.
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I’m sure APB, but Ben D on 9 club mentioned developing a flatter board with slightly flatter kicks…..
What's this...(currently on Real site)
https://imgur.com/a/OdYCzJR
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I’m sure APB, but Ben D on 9 club mentioned developing a flatter board with slightly flatter kicks…..
What's this...(currently on Real site)
https://imgur.com/a/OdYCzJR
They’ve had mellow mold for a while now. You can go back to two years ago and see it in the catalogues. Maybe even longer back.
What Ben described was the nose and tail “not too steep, not too mellow”… but the area around the bolts would be flatter…. So the side concave starts further back. (So your foot over the bolts is completely flat no concave it sounded like)
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I’m sure APB, but Ben D on 9 club mentioned developing a flatter board with slightly flatter kicks…..
What's this...(currently on Real site)
https://imgur.com/a/OdYCzJR
What Ben described was the nose and tail “not too steep, not too mellow”… but the area around the bolts would be flatter…. So the side concave starts further back. (So your foot over the bolts is completely flat no concave it sounded like)
i feel like bbs has gotten more and more intense with their swoopy concave. it does create a longer lasting board. it is annoying as heck. not as annoying as my repetitive comments on this subject.
i’d love to see this.
i am still really interested in deck shaping/dimensions, fingers of flat and the like. i feel like the professor would do this really good job of talking around the points of interest, much like how a football coach will discuss tactics with the press: use some words, show that you know something, but don’t give away the special sauce.
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The bend that Ben Degros would like to flatten does serve as wheel well of sorts also. Something to consider. If the deck goes really flat there, your flick might improve but your wheels will bite way easier....
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As a fan of single pressed/epoxy decks (DSM/NHS/Girl) bring on a dlx resin 7 style...
Perhaps they'll also have more control over having accurate dimensions...
All those Foxen trucks...just who is buying them? Where are they selling them? Where do all these no-name or 'off big brand' skateboard parts actually go?
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As a fan of single pressed/epoxy decks (DSM/NHS/Girl) bring on a dlx resin 7 style...
Perhaps they'll also have more control over having accurate dimensions...
All those Foxen trucks...just who is buying them? Where are they selling them? Where do all these no-name or 'off big brand' skateboard parts actually go?
People in asia who want a Jaws Toy machine deck
https://www.instagram.com/p/CzqxpURrbNM/?hl=en
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The bend that Ben Degros would like to flatten does serve as wheel well of sorts also. Something to consider. If the deck goes really flat there, your flick might improve but your wheels will bite way easier....
true. but.
on the huffer the flares are sick, but, i want flat.
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It's really rainy here still so there haven't been too many full sessions on the Newbies.
But so far they feel good. Since I was only able to skate flat lately I got the itch for a little smaller setup so I ordered an Antihero 8.25 Doobie made in China a week after the 8.4's.
First Impressions where the same as the 8.4:
Concave and Kicks between a III and IV, Edges a little to rounded for my taste and definitely too shiny (fixed that by sanding them a little). Other than that it's the exact shape like the standard 8.25, same Wheelbase, Nose- and Tail- Shape BUT not as wide as the BBS ones. Might now be a true 8.25 but I haven't had a chance to measure. I put a used 8.25 BBS next to it and the difference was noticeable. Put Venture 5.8's on and they felt a little too HotRod which wasn't the case on the BBS ones. But it doesn't feel too small and it felt really close to the BBS ones. In my opinion it could be a good thing if the width is consistent now and not all over the place like the old ones. We'll see.
How do they ride so far?
I had no problem switching over from the BBS made Boards. I'm a multiple setup guy due to a case of madness and so I had two identical 8.4's, one BBS-DLX, one China DLX Side by Side to compare. Same Trucks and Wheels.
Right now I'm pretty used to BBS Boards, been on them since about 2009 if I recall correctly. Before that I rode a lot of Dwindle Boards, mainly Cliché and Enjoy.
At first the Pop on the China- Boards felt a little hard and plastic, but that went away after a short period on both. Pop is crisp and responsive. Flex comparable to the BBS which is very good, Dwindle was stiffer. I refer to Dwindle Boards because the way they are pressed, the way the edges are sanded and finished looks very comparable to them. Shape and Concave is 100% DLX. Both Boards hold up good so far, wear is normal.
So far I like them. I was really scared of this change because I'm old and I really liked a lot of the DLX BBS Boards I had. So scared that I have a huge stack (about 12 8.4's, 5 8.25's and a couple other Shapes) I collected just in case I wouldn't be able to get them in the future.
But right now I'm thinking of selling all the I's and II's out of that stack because the new flatter ones feel better.
I had meant to say thanks yesterday, but ran out of time.
This is all very interesting and I appreciate your info, details and perspectives.
Very much in the same situation and can relate to that last paragraph a lot.
Thank you for the feedback and you're welcome. I gained a lot of really good info from your posts as well, so thank you back. That's the way a forum like this should work.
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It's finally sunny but really cold. Between -5 and -8 degrees Celsius.
Managed to have some sessions anyways and the 8.25 is still going strong even though it's in really harsh conditions.
Pop and flex are constant at this point. After the short initial stiffness in the very beginning it felt just right the last couple sessions.
While sitting on the couch yesterday evening I realized that I hadn't paid any special attention to how my board feels, just had a normal session and that's a good thing to me. That's also the reason I didn't take any new pictures.
Wear is normal, if not slower than BBS. The edges look pretty good for a lot of failed flip attempts on asphalt, seems like the Epoxy seeps into the pores of the wood and hardens it. This seems to prevent them from flaring up a little bit better.
So far I still like it, definitely amongst the better 8.25's I've ridden.
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Just wondering if anyone else has bought and skated any other China made DLX boards and would like to share experiences?
Thanks.
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Also wondering if there are China made boards in USA or only every other country too?
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Also wondering if there are China made boards in USA or only every other country too?
Meeee too.
I’ll post up if I see any.
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I had a Silvas board with that same sticker style/location and it was made in China. One of the best boards ever.
Have the same one in ice, I'll post a pic later.
Board arrived today. "Made in Mexico"
Nose and tail have concave! Is the China-made board completely flat on the tips? The Silvas I got is 8.25", 14" wb with almost equally long nose and tail. Feels perfect standing on it.
Stoked for you!
The China made boards I stood on had flat faces on the kicks and didn't have the "spoon concave" the way BBS does, so at least that should be a plus for you there.
I tend to go on about it a whole lot, but that is why I really only ride BBS boards, as they just feel like home for me now.
The other boards hold up fine and others really like them and yes I can even skate them if that was all there is, but I am very much a creature of habit and prefer something that is comfortable, over anything else, with even half the BBS boards I stand on being too steep for me, but I am used to picking and choosing, so never run short on wood.
* That board might be more popular now if he won SOTY as well, but I was going to say, get some more if you know they are what you want, for wood, shape, etc.
So, I did order two more decks from a different shop (UK-based, same as the other shop) and the boards arrived today.
These boards are actually made in China!!!
Some details:
The Mexico-made board is 8.25" width, 14" WB, 6.8" Nose and 6.7" Tail with 31.915" Length.
The China-made boards are 8.25" width, 14" WB, 7" Nose and 6.75" Tail with 31.85" Length.
All boards have the exact same graphic underneath, and seem to be cut using the same outline. The nose is not too square but not as pointy as I would prefer, with the tail having a normal taper. The nose is steeper than the tail. The China-made boards are thinner than the Mexico-made board (I could notice just by taking the boards out of the box).
Despite the positive comments by other posters on here, and despite the overall build quality which is absolutely amazing, I am a bit bummed on the China boards just because I want the nose and tail to be as similar as possible. I fear that these will feel slightly like an FA deck (steep shovel nose + small, pointy tail). To end on a positive note, all boards DO have a spoon-type nose and tail with a little concave and for this reason they DO NOT feel like toys when I step on them. Again, build quality feels perfect on all boards.
Below I added images of the decks and the stickers with the dims and location of manufacture. All other stickers in the packaging are exactly the same and are positioned in the same places, bar the loose Primitive sticker.
(https://i.ibb.co/N6r4S6s/20240123-184828.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Z6SZm6V)
(https://i.ibb.co/71dkgvS/20240123-184844.jpg) (https://ibb.co/6W7XvYy)
(https://i.ibb.co/2tkYby2/20240123-190157.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Sn37LPT)
(https://i.ibb.co/rGf2T5J/20240123-190229.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Fbq4N8t)
(https://i.ibb.co/fHZPfYh/20240123-190243.jpg) (https://ibb.co/x6wRWSp)
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Primitive =/= DLX?
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Is the factory known? Could it be the same as crailtap factory?
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Is the factory known? Could it be the same as crailtap factory?
Word is it is NOT the same as Crailtap, but that it is one of if not the biggest in China, so make of that what you will.
The big / main ones are DSM, Excel, Dalian Hauhong, Jeeping Wooden Industrial and a couple of others.
Also the difference between their usual China boards out of certain molds and these DLX boards out of very specific custom molds means that they are closer to the BBS shape concave, spoon like kicks, than the flat faced generic boards that have been coming out of most places, eg Dwindle concave, or Excel concave or even Crail board concave, etc.
@Esquivel thanks for posting those too!!!
* Yes it is the DLX thread, but it is relevant in terms of boards from China vs boards from BBS / Mexico. That would also be really good in the Woodshop thread too, if you could post it there too?
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Is the factory known? Could it be the same as crailtap factory?
Word is it is NOT the same as Crailtap, but that it is one of if not the biggest in China, so make of that what you will.
The big / main ones are DSM, Excel, Dalian Hauhong, Jeeping Wooden Industrial and a couple of others.
Also the difference between their usual China boards out of certain molds and these DLX boards out of very specific custom molds means that they are closer to the BBS shape concave, spoon like kicks, than the flat faced generic boards that have been coming out of most places, eg Dwindle concave, or Excel concave or even Crail board concave, etc.
@Esquivel thanks for posting those too!!!
* Yes it is the DLX thread, but it is relevant in terms of boards from China vs boards from BBS / Mexico. That would also be really good in the Woodshop thread too, if you could post it there too?
Primitive =/= DLX?
I originally posted this in the woodshop thread. Then I thought that primitive were BBS, so I panic-deleted from there and pasted on here :)
Really looking forward to get done with some "civillian" commitments next week, and finally go skate these bad boys! Gonna report back on wear&tear and general performance. Just crazy that the same pro model in the same size can come from two different locations..
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I’ve finally moved on from the China deck, but only because I was over the comparatively shorter 14.25” wheelbase and longed to return to spreading my legs on a 14.5” wheelbase deck, so I recently set up another BBS made DLX 8.38”x14.5” jammers that have been working so well for me lately.
I’ve only managed 4-5 decent sessions on this set up in the few weeks I’ve been running it but here are my final impressions.
In the end, I did not mind the stiffness of the epoxy resin, though I for sure could feel the board’s lack of flex/give in my feet when landing hard, especially when I was deliberately trying to break it by with poor foot placement on landings. Same tricks that killed a PS Stix recently were unable to cause so much as a stress crack in this thing (photo of one of the attempts to snap the deck included for reference, so you know I was at least trying.)
(https://i.ibb.co/HzThDLY/Stomp.jpg) (https://ibb.co/3NmRy5W)
I may, however, have caused a few stress cracks in my spine, but hey… that’s just aging w/ a skateboard.
The shape was faithful to the DLX standard so many have come to love, even if the dims were not quite ones I had ridden personally yet.
I actually really came to enjoy the relatively mellower concave & think that one of the bennies of epoxy is that you can run a milder concave but still retain strength/rigidity through the stiffness of the glue.
This deck had me wondering if Ben DeGros hadn’t been talking about these things when he was discussing concaves on the 9 Club last month.
I’m going to say that, given my drothers, I would probably go with the little extra give of the BBS wood for the sake of my bones, but if this wood was on a shop wall, in a size/shape I like: 10/10 would gladly do it again without worrying about my choice.
These things seem fine & fun.
Now I’m just left wondering if the North American market will ever see any of them or if that was my one brief fling?
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I’m wondering if the china ones are single board pressed or stacked….thats the one drawback of BBS boards are the variances….not all the concaves are the same…..vs. what chop chop does….
My impression was the Ben D ones were coming out of Mexico….
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I’m wondering if the china ones are single board pressed or stacked….thats the one drawback of BBS boards are the variances….not all the concaves are the same…..vs. what chop chop does….
My impression was the Ben D ones were coming out of Mexico….
From what people have said, they are all the same each in a single press with epoxy glue, in the same way all the usual China boards are from other companies, compared to BBS in Mexico with four per press and some steeper and others more mellow.
They are also closer to a III or IV rather than a I or II which has also been noted (and has me a bit more happy) as I prefer mellow boards.
As to Ben D and his test and trial of boards, I would not have a clue where things came from, but at least it seems like they were in the process of making these boards from China, even if they were not from China for his test boards, if that makes sense.
He has had a few boards from China before, from Dwindle boards to those Canada Skate Shop steep and sturdy mold boards, that people had been talking about at one point - not sure which woodshop, but they seemed like other boards from Dwindle or Excel from what people were saying.
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Now I’m just left wondering if the North American market will ever see any of them or if that was my one brief fling?
And thanks again, Lou for another good read (and visual representation) of the new DLX board.
I am also wondering if they make it to these other places first, then start to filter into the US market as well, if they get a good reception from elsewhere. Very likely any which way, but I know with a change like this, I would not be rushing things in the good old U S of A, that's for sure!
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Now I’m just left wondering if the North American market will ever see any of them or if that was my one brief fling?
And thanks again, Lou for another good read (and visual representation) of the new DLX board.
I am also wondering if they make it to these other places first, then start to filter into the US market as well, if they get a good reception from elsewhere. Very likely any which way, but I know with a change like this, I would not be rushing things in the good old U S of A, that's for sure!
DLX surely has been looking at sales data to see if people can and will continue to pay $80+ for decks.
Maybe BBS stabilizes prices. Maybe they don’t. Maybe China press is the way for DLX to stay profitable and everything gets moved to China (including US).
Maybe the sales numbers really hasn’t changed much, and $80+ decks are just fine for the US market, and they keep using BBS because it’s closer.
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I dont fuck with anything but South Central. I used to skate PS Stix until they started messing with their shapes and concaves. Then I was skating BBS until I was breaking their boards almost every other week (I weigh around 155 fyi). Politic and my local's shop decks have kept me happy for the last decade.
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(https://i.ibb.co/HzThDLY/Stomp.jpg) (https://ibb.co/3NmRy5W)
Appreciate the review @Lou Strux and that's some hefty sprack on the board-breaker attempt. What were you trying?
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(https://i.ibb.co/HzThDLY/Stomp.jpg) (https://ibb.co/3NmRy5W)
Appreciate the review @Lou Strux and that's some hefty sprack on the board-breaker attempt. What were you trying?
I was trying to break the board!
No, seriously though… I don’t really recall what trick I was attempting here.
I had set up my phone to record video, hoping to capture the moment I defeated the inanimate laminate plywood plank, and the image shared is just a cropped frame grab of one of many attempts from that session. Whatever it was, I can assure you it wasn’t very tech. I’m old and scrawny & don’t present much threat to most decks, so make of this what you will, but I threw my all into busting this in the name of “science” and all I got were sore feet & a stiff back. Your results may vary verily & for now, I’m right back on that sweet, sweet BBS wood.
Regardless; I’m going to choose to take your words as a compliment, and I thank you for the generosity.
Gracias, my King.
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Clearly just an anecdote- but my buddy ordered a krooked black dipped egg shaped board and broke it skating flat ground in 3 days. It was pretty bizarre. Happens of course will all companies sometimes, but krooked I've never heard of it happening with, and the wood on the inside looked kind of weird. He got it on sale, so maybe sat for a bit.
Sat in water, and then dried out next to a space heater, prolly.
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The Ishod Burnout deck I just picked up here in TX, US of A had the “Made in Mexico” sticker and was 83.95 retail.
With 6.50 grip, I did a double take when the dude said that’ll be 97.xx.
DAMN!
still worth it.
That’s all… just reporting the latest US deck is made in MX for now.
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The new DLX Spring Drop arrived in Germany last week and there's Mexico made BBS Boards.
At 95 € for an Antihero Grant Taylor reaching a new price high. It used to be 89 € before. So the China ones seem to be offered as cheaper option. And there's still BBS coming here. Maybe it alternates with each drop, couldn't get any info on this.
The China Bords are still in use and doing good. Will hopefully find some time soon to report a little more in depth on them.
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All the new drop of the DLX boards are out now in Australia too, so there will be a lot of China made boards for people to go check out, at least so far I have seen them online in OCD and Fasttimes but I am guessing everyone else should have them soon enough too.
Note there are still BBS / Made in Mexico boards in there too, not just all from China now, so check the top stickers to see what is what, if you can look in person - the same colour sticker but either "Made in Mexico" or "Made in China" on them.
Most of the current pro graphics are China made boards, the exception with some specific riders and most of the bigger shaped boards, as well as the team AH eagles, Real ovals and Krooked eyes all on BBS wood still.
I am yet to go anywhere to check them out but I am pretty keen to see and stand on some, even if I don't need any more boards for myself at all, it is pretty interesting, to say the least.
* The giveaway for most should be the price, as the China made boards are still more a pre covid 2020 price when comparing, around AU $130 or so, but the newer BBS boards are all up there in the higher range, around AU $160 plus. Bigger sizes so anything 8.75 and up is another $10 or so more, so around $140 China boards and $170 BBS boards.
That is Australian dollars, which is fairly normal for us, so not US or other usual prices.
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Update to that last post about DLX boards now in Australian shops.
The easiest way to determine where it is from is by looking at where the warning sticker is on the board.
The BBS boards still have the sticker above or up higher to show the number stamp, whereas the China made boards have the sticker right in the middle of the front bolts area.
Of course looking at the sticker in person you could see if it says "Made in Mexico" or "Made in China" but if you are shopping online and they have a top pic of the board, you can work it out from that, as per these images / links below:
BBS board
https://fasttimes.com.au/antihero-classic-oz-eagle-deck.html
(https://cdn.fasttimes.com.au/media/mf_webp/jpeg/media/catalog/product/cache/16b65a7d1c22784b76083f0ce19cd6ef/image/15328191eb/antihero-classic-oz-eagle-deck-153281.webp)
China board
https://fasttimes.com.au/antihero-misregistered-eagle-wheel-wells-deck-270938.html
(https://cdn.fasttimes.com.au/media/mf_webp/jpg/media/catalog/product/cache/8d5b7e8faf7efae730aa1fcdd1770c80/image/154112c730/antihero-misregistered-eagle-wheel-wells-deck-154112.webp)
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I just finished skating the first deluxe China board I got in December. So I guess it’s time for a little feedback. The 8.25 is still good, I just got annoyed by the long wheelbase as always after a couple weeks. The one I’m gonna talk about today is the 8.4 Harry Lintell Real board. I set it up on the 10th of December in the midst of the cold German winter. For first impressions see a couple posts above.
As I said there, shape wise, it’s a perfect copy of the BBS one. Concave and steepness wise I preferred it to the BBS ones I have set up at the moment. It resembles my perfect BBS pick. You know when you get the perfect stamped three where the nose is a little bit steeper than the tail. It’s exactly like that. And I just set up the second Chinese one and it’s exactly the same as the first one, had a perfect first session where all the flicks felt right straight away. This is a big plus in my opinion, because from the BBS ones I sometimes got ones where you couldn’t see it at first but then the tail was steeper than the nose or the Concave felt a little bit off on one side. I think in this aspect, the consistency will be large plus.
Speaking of consistency, the way it flexes and ages is more consistent than the BBS ones. Although it is a little bit stiff and hard sounding the first couple sessions, it’s losing its crossbeam flex and overall pop very slowly. It’s also way slower to Razortail and the edges hold up way better than the BBS ones. I was skating some pretty rough ground and the sides of my nose and tail didn't spliss up the way I was used to. I attribute this to the epoxy that seals the wood. So the hardness has pros and cons too. It also doesn’t chip as easily and as far as the other ones. Had a pretty bad one and it only chipped for about an inch.
Let’s get to the cons:
The biggest one for me: It sounds rock hard and a little like really hard plastic. If you’re someone that gets triggered by the feeling and sound of forged baseplates this might not be for you. The first session is pretty bad because it feels rock hard too. Super stiff. But it gets better after 2-4 sessions. To give you a realistic and fair feedback on this I have to wait till it gets warmer outside, because everything sounds and feels a little bit stiffer when it’s really cold.
Altogether it held up super good, especially in this harsh conditions. I have it side-by-side with a similar BBS setup and most of the times I preferred the China one because of the steepness of the kicks. When I chose the BBS one, I had no problems going back-and-forth. In direct comparison, the BBS one feels a little bit more woody, but also a little bit more like a plank sometimes. The China one is a little bit more responsive.
To be fair, I had the years skating, Dwindle DSM epoxy boards, so the China DLX one might feel a little bit more accustomed and at home to me then to other people that don’t have this experience.
Which one will I prefer in the end? I cannot tell you yet. At the moment I’m happy that they both exist, and that I most likely will have a choice to pick between the two in the future.
Adding the price factor, I have to give Deluxe a thumb up for this addition to the range. In my opinion, it fills the gap between the price point boards and the now more expensive BBS ones.
I’m excited to hear what more people will think about them in the future. For right now I’ll keep them in my quiver.
Here are some pictures, I included a couple from the progression of the 8.25 as well:
(https://i.ibb.co/NrHmXC0/IMG-1303.jpg) (https://ibb.co/NrHmXC0) (https://i.ibb.co/Q9MwKGj/IMG-1277.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Q9MwKGj) (https://i.ibb.co/MkRzmCH/IMG-1276.jpg) (https://ibb.co/MkRzmCH) (https://i.ibb.co/VSytn2s/IMG-1357.jpg) (https://ibb.co/VSytn2s) (https://i.ibb.co/NVfrR3h/IMG-1368.jpg) (https://ibb.co/NVfrR3h) (https://i.ibb.co/ZzMKyQC/IMG-1371.jpg) (https://ibb.co/ZzMKyQC) (https://i.ibb.co/tJd9nsK/IMG-1373.jpg) (https://ibb.co/tJd9nsK) (https://i.ibb.co/SR4Q5fb/IMG-1380.jpg) (https://ibb.co/SR4Q5fb) (https://i.ibb.co/12qmRSc/IMG-1383.jpg) (https://ibb.co/12qmRSc) (https://i.ibb.co/7QFNHsq/IMG-1398.jpg) (https://ibb.co/7QFNHsq) (https://i.ibb.co/y67fL4S/IMG-1683.jpg) (https://ibb.co/y67fL4S) (https://i.ibb.co/10y0b22/IMG-1692.jpg) (https://ibb.co/10y0b22) (https://i.ibb.co/5TP6NGx/IMG-1677.jpg) (https://ibb.co/5TP6NGx) (https://i.ibb.co/QHzFQNm/565147-B1-5-D6-D-48-AC-8735-124-B544082-FF.jpg) (https://ibb.co/QHzFQNm) (https://i.ibb.co/SnzKXmK/A274-DC07-1-BAD-4-F72-9-B40-B1-C8-FF30549-E.jpg) (https://ibb.co/SnzKXmK) (https://i.ibb.co/k4NbYFM/IMG-1960.jpg) (https://ibb.co/k4NbYFM) (https://i.ibb.co/1ThSq65/IMG-2082.jpg) (https://ibb.co/1ThSq65) (https://i.ibb.co/m4BVzZt/IMG-2084.jpg) (https://ibb.co/m4BVzZt) (https://i.ibb.co/c3vncJt/IMG-2083.jpg) (https://ibb.co/c3vncJt) (https://i.ibb.co/b5TsP19/IMG-2085.jpg) (https://ibb.co/b5TsP19) (https://i.ibb.co/swkWcFy/IMG-2080.jpg) (https://ibb.co/swkWcFy) (https://i.ibb.co/w7vQ2y4/IMG-2076.jpg) (https://ibb.co/w7vQ2y4) (https://i.ibb.co/FgVntjV/IMG-2160.jpg) (https://ibb.co/FgVntjV) (https://i.ibb.co/4fySpTZ/IMG-2163.jpg) (https://ibb.co/4fySpTZ) (https://i.ibb.co/Xydy70G/IMG-2162.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Xydy70G) (https://i.ibb.co/5WYgw7y/IMG-2165.jpg) (https://ibb.co/5WYgw7y) (https://i.ibb.co/34kNckR/IMG-2168.jpg) (https://ibb.co/34kNckR) (https://i.ibb.co/kDQVRKQ/IMG-2171.jpg) (https://ibb.co/kDQVRKQ) (https://i.ibb.co/NpGZ3CF/IMG-2172.jpg) (https://ibb.co/NpGZ3CF) (https://i.ibb.co/TKJdnHx/IMG-2176.jpg) (https://ibb.co/TKJdnHx) (https://i.ibb.co/NLwjrbR/IMG-2177.jpg) (https://ibb.co/NLwjrbR) (https://i.ibb.co/9ZTYhrM/IMG-2180.jpg) (https://ibb.co/9ZTYhrM) (https://i.ibb.co/HgFVwVD/IMG-2182.jpg) (https://ibb.co/HgFVwVD) (https://i.ibb.co/K79SvCN/IMG-2183.jpg) (https://ibb.co/K79SvCN) (https://i.ibb.co/9hVVBqp/IMG-2186.jpg) (https://ibb.co/9hVVBqp)
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Thanks for the great info. Great to see you're on Ventures. Off-topic, because this is skateboarding: how do you feel about the 14.38 wheelbase with Ventures? And which Ventures are you riding?
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Update to that last post about DLX boards now in Australian shops.
The easiest way to determine where it is from is by looking at where the warning sticker is on the board.
The BBS boards still have the sticker above or up higher to show the number stamp, whereas the China made boards have the sticker right in the middle of the front bolts area.
Of course looking at the sticker in person you could see if it says "Made in Mexico" or "Made in China" but if you are shopping online and they have a top pic of the board, you can work it out from that, as per these images / links below:
BBS board
https://fasttimes.com.au/antihero-classic-oz-eagle-deck.html
(https://cdn.fasttimes.com.au/media/mf_webp/jpeg/media/catalog/product/cache/16b65a7d1c22784b76083f0ce19cd6ef/image/15328191eb/antihero-classic-oz-eagle-deck-153281.webp)
China board
https://fasttimes.com.au/antihero-misregistered-eagle-wheel-wells-deck-270938.html
(https://cdn.fasttimes.com.au/media/mf_webp/jpg/media/catalog/product/cache/8d5b7e8faf7efae730aa1fcdd1770c80/image/154112c730/antihero-misregistered-eagle-wheel-wells-deck-154112.webp)
That sticker placement hurts me so much.
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I just finished skating the first deluxe China board I got in December. So I guess it’s time for a little feedback. The 8.25 is still good, I just got annoyed by the long wheelbase as always after a couple weeks. The one I’m gonna talk about today is the 8.4 Harry Lintell Real board. I set it up on the 10th of December in the midst of the cold German winter. For first impressions see a couple posts above.
As I said there, shape wise, it’s a perfect copy of the BBS one. Concave and steepness wise I preferred it to the BBS ones I have set up at the moment. It resembles my perfect BBS pick. You know when you get the perfect stamped three where the nose is a little bit steeper than the tail. It’s exactly like that. And I just set up the second Chinese one and it’s exactly the same as the first one, had a perfect first session where all the flicks felt right straight away. This is a big plus in my opinion, because from the BBS ones I sometimes got ones where you couldn’t see it at first but then the tail was steeper than the nose or the Concave felt a little bit off on one side. I think in this aspect, the consistency will be large plus.
Speaking of consistency, the way it flexes and ages is more consistent than the BBS ones. Although it is a little bit stiff and hard sounding the first couple sessions, it’s losing its crossbeam flex and overall pop very slowly. It’s also way slower to Razortail and the edges hold up way better than the BBS ones. I was skating some pretty rough ground and the sides of my nose and tail didn't spliss up the way I was used to. I attribute this to the epoxy that seals the wood. So the hardness has pros and cons too. It also doesn’t chip as easily and as far as the other ones. Had a pretty bad one and it only chipped for about an inch.
Let’s get to the cons:
The biggest one for me: It sounds rock hard and a little like really hard plastic. If you’re someone that gets triggered by the feeling and sound of forged baseplates this might not be for you. The first session is pretty bad because it feels rock hard too. Super stiff. But it gets better after 2-4 sessions. To give you a realistic and fair feedback on this I have to wait till it gets warmer outside, because everything sounds and feels a little bit stiffer when it’s really cold.
Altogether it held up super good, especially in this harsh conditions. I have it side-by-side with a similar BBS setup and most of the times I preferred the China one because of the steepness of the kicks. When I chose the BBS one, I had no problems going back-and-forth. In direct comparison, the BBS one feels a little bit more woody, but also a little bit more like a plank sometimes. The China one is a little bit more responsive.
To be fair, I had the years skating, Dwindle DSM epoxy boards, so the China DLX one might feel a little bit more accustomed and at home to me then to other people that don’t have this experience.
Which one will I prefer in the end? I cannot tell you yet. At the moment I’m happy that they both exist, and that I most likely will have a choice to pick between the two in the future.
Adding the price factor, I have to give Deluxe a thumb up for this addition to the range. In my opinion, it fills the gap between the price point boards and the now more expensive BBS ones.
I’m excited to hear what more people will think about them in the future. For right now I’ll keep them in my quiver.
Here are some pictures, I included a couple from the progression of the 8.25 as well:
(https://i.ibb.co/NrHmXC0/IMG-1303.jpg) (https://ibb.co/NrHmXC0) (https://i.ibb.co/Q9MwKGj/IMG-1277.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Q9MwKGj) (https://i.ibb.co/MkRzmCH/IMG-1276.jpg) (https://ibb.co/MkRzmCH) (https://i.ibb.co/VSytn2s/IMG-1357.jpg) (https://ibb.co/VSytn2s) (https://i.ibb.co/NVfrR3h/IMG-1368.jpg) (https://ibb.co/NVfrR3h) (https://i.ibb.co/ZzMKyQC/IMG-1371.jpg) (https://ibb.co/ZzMKyQC) (https://i.ibb.co/tJd9nsK/IMG-1373.jpg) (https://ibb.co/tJd9nsK) (https://i.ibb.co/SR4Q5fb/IMG-1380.jpg) (https://ibb.co/SR4Q5fb) (https://i.ibb.co/12qmRSc/IMG-1383.jpg) (https://ibb.co/12qmRSc) (https://i.ibb.co/7QFNHsq/IMG-1398.jpg) (https://ibb.co/7QFNHsq) (https://i.ibb.co/y67fL4S/IMG-1683.jpg) (https://ibb.co/y67fL4S) (https://i.ibb.co/10y0b22/IMG-1692.jpg) (https://ibb.co/10y0b22) (https://i.ibb.co/5TP6NGx/IMG-1677.jpg) (https://ibb.co/5TP6NGx) (https://i.ibb.co/QHzFQNm/565147-B1-5-D6-D-48-AC-8735-124-B544082-FF.jpg) (https://ibb.co/QHzFQNm) (https://i.ibb.co/SnzKXmK/A274-DC07-1-BAD-4-F72-9-B40-B1-C8-FF30549-E.jpg) (https://ibb.co/SnzKXmK) (https://i.ibb.co/k4NbYFM/IMG-1960.jpg) (https://ibb.co/k4NbYFM) (https://i.ibb.co/1ThSq65/IMG-2082.jpg) (https://ibb.co/1ThSq65) (https://i.ibb.co/m4BVzZt/IMG-2084.jpg) (https://ibb.co/m4BVzZt) (https://i.ibb.co/c3vncJt/IMG-2083.jpg) (https://ibb.co/c3vncJt) (https://i.ibb.co/b5TsP19/IMG-2085.jpg) (https://ibb.co/b5TsP19) (https://i.ibb.co/swkWcFy/IMG-2080.jpg) (https://ibb.co/swkWcFy) (https://i.ibb.co/w7vQ2y4/IMG-2076.jpg) (https://ibb.co/w7vQ2y4) (https://i.ibb.co/FgVntjV/IMG-2160.jpg) (https://ibb.co/FgVntjV) (https://i.ibb.co/4fySpTZ/IMG-2163.jpg) (https://ibb.co/4fySpTZ) (https://i.ibb.co/Xydy70G/IMG-2162.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Xydy70G) (https://i.ibb.co/5WYgw7y/IMG-2165.jpg) (https://ibb.co/5WYgw7y) (https://i.ibb.co/34kNckR/IMG-2168.jpg) (https://ibb.co/34kNckR) (https://i.ibb.co/kDQVRKQ/IMG-2171.jpg) (https://ibb.co/kDQVRKQ) (https://i.ibb.co/NpGZ3CF/IMG-2172.jpg) (https://ibb.co/NpGZ3CF) (https://i.ibb.co/TKJdnHx/IMG-2176.jpg) (https://ibb.co/TKJdnHx) (https://i.ibb.co/NLwjrbR/IMG-2177.jpg) (https://ibb.co/NLwjrbR) (https://i.ibb.co/9ZTYhrM/IMG-2180.jpg) (https://ibb.co/9ZTYhrM) (https://i.ibb.co/HgFVwVD/IMG-2182.jpg) (https://ibb.co/HgFVwVD) (https://i.ibb.co/K79SvCN/IMG-2183.jpg) (https://ibb.co/K79SvCN) (https://i.ibb.co/9hVVBqp/IMG-2186.jpg) (https://ibb.co/9hVVBqp)
Have a virtual gnar gnar because I haven’t evolved yet.
Awesome feedback, thank you. It seems that if it was ALL china wood everywhere then it really would be okay.
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Update to that last post about DLX boards now in Australian shops.
The easiest way to determine where it is from is by looking at where the warning sticker is on the board.
Always take the sticker off, as the first thing I do after removing shrink, but I know some others are triggered about the sticker too, PS Stix has it up higher on the nose, but often on the outside of the shrink when I saw a board recently, so it doesn't get stuck to the board, which is smart.
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I just finished skating the first deluxe China board I got in December. So I guess it’s time for a little feedback. The 8.25 is still good, I just got annoyed by the long wheelbase as always after a couple weeks. The one I’m gonna talk about today is the 8.4 Harry Lintell Real board. I set it up on the 10th of December in the midst of the cold German winter. For first impressions see a couple posts above...
Awesome feedback, thank you. It seems that if it was ALL china wood everywhere then it really would be okay.
Yeah that was amazing to see and read, so I got you covered in that regard.
Still yet to see any in person, but feeling good about them, not worried.
I saw another person (also German location) posted one of those Lintell boards in the Setups thread saying they hated it, so I guess there will be those who want the I stamp or steeper concave, vs those who want a more mellow board, but all part of the usual process of why there is never a one for all option in skateboarding.
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Does anyone know if the 8.5x32.18x14.38WB is china or bbs?
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Does anyone know if the 8.5x32.18x14.38WB is china or bbs?
All the USA boards are BBS - that is to say all sold in shops in USA from current drops as far as I know, whereas almost all the EU, Asia, AU, Canada and other places are China made boards in this current drop, with the exception of the bigger shapes, the AH eagles, Real ovals, Krooked eyes and a few specific boards.
So that shape, along with all the others for you should still be BBS wood, whereas it will be China made for the rest of us.
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Does anyone know if the 8.5x32.18x14.38WB is china or bbs?
All the USA boards are BBS - that is to say all sold in shops in USA from current drops as far as I know, whereas almost all the EU, Asia, AU, Canada and other places are China made boards in this current drop, with the exception of the bigger shapes, the AH eagles, Real ovals, Krooked eyes and a few specific boards.
So that shape, along with all the others for you should still be BBS wood, whereas it will be China made for the rest of us.
Awww man, I was hoping they just weren't for the other side of the globe and would drop over here; from the feedback, they seem much crispier than the BBS boards.
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Feedback makes the decks sound exactly like the girl deck I’ve been riding but with shorter wheel bases. I love my girl deck right now so would be more open to trying than the BBS decks.
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Always take the sticker off, as the first thing I do after removing shrink.
How? I can’t ever get the sticker off without leaving awful paper and tack residue…
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Does anyone know if the 8.5x32.18x14.38WB is china or bbs?
All the USA boards are BBS - that is to say all sold in shops in USA from current drops as far as I know, whereas almost all the EU, Asia, AU, Canada and other places are China made boards in this current drop, with the exception of the bigger shapes, the AH eagles, Real ovals, Krooked eyes and a few specific boards.
So that shape, along with all the others for you should still be BBS wood, whereas it will be China made for the rest of us.
Awww man, I was hoping they just weren't for the other side of the globe and would drop over here; from the feedback, they seem much crispier than the BBS boards.
I'd also like to see some of them in the US. The crisp wood and consistent mellow concave and kicks sound great. I buy almost all my boards from my local and they usually only have one or two of each DLX shape and I regularaly end up with a I or a II when I'd prefer a III or IV.
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Always take the sticker off, as the first thing I do after removing shrink.
Maybe it is just the temperate climate here, but just put the razor blade under the sticker (same one I use for opening boxes or gripping boards, get a corner up and peel it up gently.
More often than not get the whole sticker off in one go, but if not, at least just to scrape up the rest and stick grip straight down over whatever is on the board, no worries.
Maybe a little colder weather is easier to get the sticker off with no fuss, not ice cold or hot tropical conditions.
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Does anyone know if the 8.5x32.18x14.38WB is china or bbs?
All the USA boards are BBS - that is to say all sold in shops in USA from current drops as far as I know, whereas almost all the EU, Asia, AU, Canada and other places are China made boards in this current drop, with the exception of the bigger shapes, the AH eagles, Real ovals, Krooked eyes and a few specific boards.
So that shape, along with all the others for you should still be BBS wood, whereas it will be China made for the rest of us.
Awww man, I was hoping they just weren't for the other side of the globe and would drop over here; from the feedback, they seem much crispier than the BBS boards.
I guess from the information I first saw as well as what others have been posting, it is highly likely that at some point some of the China boards will make it into shops in USA, so even hit up DLX directly and ask them about it.
The more requests and questions they get, the more likely they are to do something that people want too.
Could be they are not far off there anyway, but who knows.
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Does anyone know if the 8.5x32.18x14.38WB is china or bbs?
All the USA boards are BBS - that is to say all sold in shops in USA from current drops as far as I know, whereas almost all the EU, Asia, AU, Canada and other places are China made boards in this current drop, with the exception of the bigger shapes, the AH eagles, Real ovals, Krooked eyes and a few specific boards.
So that shape, along with all the others for you should still be BBS wood, whereas it will be China made for the rest of us.
Awww man, I was hoping they just weren't for the other side of the globe and would drop over here; from the feedback, they seem much crispier than the BBS boards.
I guess from the information I first saw as well as what others have been posting, it is highly likely that at some point some of the China boards will make it into shops in USA, so even hit up DLX directly and ask them about it.
The more requests and questions they get, the more likely they are to do something that people want too.
Could be they are not far off there anyway, but who knows.
If DLX sold ALL decks from China factory, what would happen to the Mexico factory? DLX has to be a major customer. Maybe the BBS owner would move all production and profits from China? (and it would just be the employees in Mexico that would have to find new jobs?)
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Does anyone know if the 8.5x32.18x14.38WB is china or bbs?
All the USA boards are BBS - that is to say all sold in shops in USA from current drops as far as I know, whereas almost all the EU, Asia, AU, Canada and other places are China made boards in this current drop, with the exception of the bigger shapes, the AH eagles, Real ovals, Krooked eyes and a few specific boards.
So that shape, along with all the others for you should still be BBS wood, whereas it will be China made for the rest of us.
Awww man, I was hoping they just weren't for the other side of the globe and would drop over here; from the feedback, they seem much crispier than the BBS boards.
I guess from the information I first saw as well as what others have been posting, it is highly likely that at some point some of the China boards will make it into shops in USA, so even hit up DLX directly and ask them about it.
The more requests and questions they get, the more likely they are to do something that people want too.
Could be they are not far off there anyway, but who knows.
DLX is def a major player for BBS - but when you think about who still uses PSTix (can count on one hand...ok maybe two) or DSM (one hand) and crail...the whole industry uses BBS and pretty sure while it would be a hit, BBS wouldn't have to move production to china (moving/setting up their WHOLE operation wouldn't be cost effective). Seems like DLX made the call to setup shop overseas to handle everything outside of NA, lots and lots of companies do that as it saves a shiton on logistics (shipping).
Honestly I am surprised it took them this long.
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Does anyone know if the 8.5x32.18x14.38WB is china or bbs?
All the USA boards are BBS - that is to say all sold in shops in USA from current drops as far as I know, whereas almost all the EU, Asia, AU, Canada and other places are China made boards in this current drop, with the exception of the bigger shapes, the AH eagles, Real ovals, Krooked eyes and a few specific boards.
So that shape, along with all the others for you should still be BBS wood, whereas it will be China made for the rest of us.
Awww man, I was hoping they just weren't for the other side of the globe and would drop over here; from the feedback, they seem much crispier than the BBS boards.
I guess from the information I first saw as well as what others have been posting, it is highly likely that at some point some of the China boards will make it into shops in USA, so even hit up DLX directly and ask them about it.
The more requests and questions they get, the more likely they are to do something that people want too.
Could be they are not far off there anyway, but who knows.
DLX is def a major player for BBS - but when you think about who still uses PSTix (can count on one hand...ok maybe two) or DSM (one hand) and crail...the whole industry uses BBS and pretty sure while it would be a hit, BBS wouldn't have to move production to china (moving/setting up their WHOLE operation wouldn't be cost effective). Seems like DLX made the call to setup shop overseas to handle everything outside of NA, lots and lots of companies do that as it saves a shiton on logistics (shipping).
Honestly I am surprised it took them this long.
I guess it is just down to the right time and the right circumstances.
Also imagine that BBS would have at least a finger in the pie if not more, of whatever is going on at the new location where boards are being made in China too, because something like that would definitely be a solid chunk of the market, so helping get that going rather than trying to block or take a loss is a good business move.
That is just speculation from myself, not adding anything that I have heard from others either, but I can't even imagine numbers of boards coming out, some thousands of each graphic, how ever many countries boards are being shipped to more easily than having them go to SF and then out to the rest of the world, so the savings alone there are worth the setup costs and keeping board prices more reasonable for the end user, which means more units sold, etc.
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Pretty soon us NA folks will be saying, “man. I need to get those BBS imports. They’re better”
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I was wondering if other brands will switch from BBS to China made decks? Mainly, European brands that use BBS. I was never a fan of the 4 numerals on DLX decks, but if I remember right, those China made DLX decks would be mellow. So like a DLX 3 or 4 right?
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I'm wondering why BBS didn't just set up shop in China. I suspect it's a ton of dough, but if you look at where the growth is in skateboarding....it's not North America, it's Asia/Europe. Seems like DLX still has a pretty big commitment to BBS for now anyhow so it looks good.
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I was wondering if other brands will switch from BBS to China made decks? Mainly, European brands that use BBS. I was never a fan of the 4 numerals on DLX decks, but if I remember right, those China made DLX decks would be mellow. So like a DLX 3 or 4 right?
A III or a IV is exactly how I describe them in relation to the 4-deck press from BBS.
Pretty soon us NA folks will be saying, “man. I need to get those BBS imports. They’re better”
"Better" would for sure be down to individual opinion. I really enjoyed the one I rode, but still prefer the little bit of flex I get from the Mexico wood. For anybody that has enjoyed Crail/NHS/Dwindle wood in the last 5(+) years, these would be another fine addition to choose from. Those opposed to the rigidity that comes w/ epoxy resin glues would likely still seek out the BBS offerings/options should these ever become a north american staple.
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I got my hands on the new wood yesterday, set up a board today and have had a little roll on it, which left me wanting to keep skating, even though I had other things to do.
That seems like a plus one from me, for how they feel, no issues, good wood, good concave (although I usually have or prefer a little less than these boards) so I am going to pass it around this week and see what other people think of it too, then maybe give it the flatten or drive over it test and see if it mellows out the kicks at all, which is what I usually do, taking the nose down to 21 and the tail to 19 degrees on the other boards.
Some of my observations:
Nose is about 23 degrees, tail about 21 degrees, side to side between 10 and 11 degrees, so not the most mellow board to begin with, but it feels stiffer and a bit thicker too, just from holding it and standing on it.
It has a purple top ply, blue second ply and bluish bottom ply, very shiny and looks well finished all round, no issues in quality or anything else, as well as a pretty cool graphic too, so it makes me more keen to skate it, silly as that might sound.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C4enGmbJ0nZ/
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I don't get the shipping on this. If Oz shops are getting both US and China boards in a drop then surely there are China boards at DLX Warehouse in US and they'll start appearing in US stores.
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I don't get the shipping on this. If Oz shops are getting both US and China boards in a drop then surely there are China boards at DLX Warehouse in US and they'll start appearing in US stores.
Different shipping, so the China made boards come straight from China and are here a good month or so ahead of the USA / DLX warehouse BBS made boards, from what I gather from the timeline of when the product arrives.
That is half the benefit of having the boards made in China and then shipped directly to the end user country, saving cost and time in that regard, rather than having boards go to DLX, then get shipped from there to where ever they are going.
That is my understanding anyway.
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Ok, so the Oz DLX distro will order X decks/trucks/bearings from China shipping and Y decks/wheels from US shipping?
Makes sense.
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Ok, so the Oz DLX distro will order X decks/trucks/bearings from China shipping and Y decks/wheels from US shipping?
Makes sense.
Yeah, something like that, although now, I wonder about other goods, cause I think they would all still be coming in one container from DLX, more so than in a container from China.
Might just be decks from China at this stage, cause the other bigger things along with the usual decks like Thunder and Venture trucks are also made in Mexico, just like Spitfire wheels, but I really don't know about any other goods. Sure other bits and pieces are made in China or elsewhere, but I just don't recall exactly where different things come from, even though I looked it all up at some point and it was interesting to see some of the places of manufacturing origin.
Certainly would be easier to ship anything made in China direct with the decks, but things might not line up quite like that either. Budget completes could be in the same load though.
I know some other places seem to get wood from one place and other things from elsewhere, so they don't come at the same time, but it usually is a container sized load whenever anything does arrive, eg lots of "no name" or blank products come from the same factory it seems, including grip, trucks, wheels, bolts, risers and all that sort of thing, but the branded stuff is a little more specific, grip from this place, other goods from somewhere else, etc.
Anything to stop double or triple handling of stock must be a good thing, at the end of the day.
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I got my hands on the new wood yesterday, set up a board today and have had a little roll on it, which left me wanting to keep skating, even though I had other things to do.
That seems like a plus one from me, for how they feel, no issues, good wood, good concave (although I usually have or prefer a little less than these boards) so I am going to pass it around this week and see what other people think of it too, then maybe give it the flatten or drive over it test and see if it mellows out the kicks at all, which is what I usually do, taking the nose down to 21 and the tail to 19 degrees on the other boards.
Some of my observations:
Nose is about 23 degrees, tail about 21 degrees, side to side between 10 and 11 degrees, so not the most mellow board to begin with, but it feels stiffer and a bit thicker too, just from holding it and standing on it.
It has a purple top ply, blue second ply and bluish bottom ply, very shiny and looks well finished all round, no issues in quality or anything else, as well as a pretty cool graphic too, so it makes me more keen to skate it, silly as that might sound.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C4enGmbJ0nZ/
23 and 21? That sounds like a (II) no?
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I don't get the shipping on this. If Oz shops are getting both US and China boards in a drop then surely there are China boards at DLX Warehouse in US and they'll start appearing in US stores.
Different shipping, so the China made boards come straight from China and are here a good month or so ahead of the USA / DLX warehouse BBS made boards, from what I gather from the timeline of when the product arrives.
That is half the benefit of having the boards made in China and then shipped directly to the end user country, saving cost and time in that regard, rather than having boards go to DLX, then get shipped from there to where ever they are going.
That is my understanding anyway.
And my hope. Less resources used and less shipping time for decks to reach their destination.
Now.. how about a Europe manuf. next ;D
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i am riding one of the 8" china boards and i have to say it is working really well for me. it was warped AF. paid $10 for it and i am doing some of the best heelflips I have ever done in my life.
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Nose is about 23 degrees, tail about 21 degrees, side to side between 10 and 11 degrees, so not the most mellow board to begin with, but it feels stiffer and a bit thicker too, just from holding it and standing on it.
23 and 21? That sounds like a (II) no?
Yeah it could easily be up there, as most of my IV boards are less than that, but some of them have also been as steep as this or steeper in the angle of the kicks in both III and IV, so it is a bit of a funny one, especially when I just go more for the III or IV when I can get them in the past.
Even some of the I or II have been more mellow in some cases, so now I tend to stand on and feel any and every board out that is of a good size for me, just in case and I have found some amazingly flatter boards with I or II on them, almost always with a pale aqua top stain, so I don't know what or why, but they might have been pressed on the mellow mold or something.
That's the thing with these new ones, all identical in press and concave, so if you like it like that, great, but if you prefer a little more or a little less, then you might be best trying to find BBS or other wood. Granted I can always flatten out these boards, which I will do in a week or so, just to see how that goes too, but it does take away the "luck of the draw" with BBS and others who press multiple boards and you end up with different degrees of concave in each board from the stack.
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Nose is about 23 degrees, tail about 21 degrees, side to side between 10 and 11 degrees, so not the most mellow board to begin with, but it feels stiffer and a bit thicker too, just from holding it and standing on it.
23 and 21? That sounds like a (II) no?
Yeah it could easily be up there, as most of my IV boards are less than that, but some of them have also been as steep as this or steeper in the angle of the kicks in both III and IV, so it is a bit of a funny one, especially when I just go more for the III or IV when I can get them in the past.
Even some of the I or II have been more mellow in some cases, so now I tend to stand on and feel any and every board out that is of a good size for me, just in case and I have found some amazingly flatter boards with I or II on them, almost always with a pale aqua top stain, so I don't know what or why, but they might have been pressed on the mellow mold or something.
That's the thing with these new ones, all identical in press and concave, so if you like it like that, great, but if you prefer a little more or a little less, then you might be best trying to find BBS or other wood. Granted I can always flatten out these boards, which I will do in a week or so, just to see how that goes too, but it does take away the "luck of the draw" with BBS and others who press multiple boards and you end up with different degrees of concave in each board from the stack.
The Epoxy crispness and the reports of longer staying crisp, has me very curious to try them.
It would certainly help the madness over what Roman numeral you’re getting. It would be really nice to not have to worry about that anymore :o
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Nose is about 23 degrees, tail about 21 degrees, side to side between 10 and 11 degrees, so not the most mellow board to begin with, but it feels stiffer and a bit thicker too, just from holding it and standing on it.
23 and 21? That sounds like a (II) no?
Yeah it could easily be up there, as most of my IV boards are less than that, but some of them have also been as steep as this or steeper in the angle of the kicks in both III and IV, so it is a bit of a funny one, especially when I just go more for the III or IV when I can get them in the past.
Even some of the I or II have been more mellow in some cases, so now I tend to stand on and feel any and every board out that is of a good size for me, just in case and I have found some amazingly flatter boards with I or II on them, almost always with a pale aqua top stain, so I don't know what or why, but they might have been pressed on the mellow mold or something.
That's the thing with these new ones, all identical in press and concave, so if you like it like that, great, but if you prefer a little more or a little less, then you might be best trying to find BBS or other wood. Granted I can always flatten out these boards, which I will do in a week or so, just to see how that goes too, but it does take away the "luck of the draw" with BBS and others who press multiple boards and you end up with different degrees of concave in each board from the stack.
It would certainly help the madness over what Roman numeral you’re getting. It would be really nice to not have to worry about that anymore :o
Just got home from having a solid session on it today at a pretty good little skatepark and I have to say, by the end of the session I was quite used to it and didn't have any issues skating it as per usual.
Someone else there also had a good skate on it just to see and gave it the total thumbs up for what it is worth. He can both skate better than me and is far less picky in the board department, so I would say it is worth giving them a go.
Let me give it a few weeks and then really get a lot more feedback and see what everyone else thinks of it too, as well as giving it time to go from that new shiny thing I am unsure of, to a well worn in comfortable board I can pick up and skate with not a care in the world.
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Update to my DLX AH 8.75 BA board.
Been going super strong, with multiple people having sessions on it to really give it a go and it is holding up well, very stiff and no issues at all with it.
Almost everyone thinks it is great, some people I gave more info, others not so much, just so they could have a skate on it without having the thought of where it was from, etc.
Compared to BBS which has more flex, this one holds shape and feels more poppy, especially in the first few sessions, almost too much actually, but then it gets a little more comfortable and I could skate it without a worry, as did everyone else.
That said, I would have no issue recommending this board, or any other DLX China made boards to anyone in the future, maybe even recommend them more to people who break boards or flex out boards, but I am still barely into the usual life span of a deck, so will still see how long this one actually lasts for others, who are going to skate it now.
(https://i.ibb.co/d41CbzF/AH-China-deck-used.jpg) (https://ibb.co/chMfb70)
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I'm wondering now how much they'll produce. My impression was they did this because of having to share BBS with all the other manufacturers, but I have a feeling a lot of brands are about to take a dump.....
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Update to my DLX AH 8.75 BA board.
Been going super strong, with multiple people having sessions on it to really give it a go and it is holding up well, very stiff and no issues at all with it.
Almost everyone thinks it is great, some people I gave more info, others not so much, just so they could have a skate on it without having the thought of where it was from, etc.
Compared to BBS which has more flex, this one holds shape and feels more poppy, especially in the first few sessions, almost too much actually, but then it gets a little more comfortable and I could skate it without a worry, as did everyone else.
That said, I would have no issue recommending this board, or any other DLX China made boards to anyone in the future, maybe even recommend them more to people who break boards or flex out boards, but I am still barely into the usual life span of a deck, so will still see how long this one actually lasts for others, who are going to skate it now.
(https://i.ibb.co/d41CbzF/AH-China-deck-used.jpg) (https://ibb.co/chMfb70)
Your “too much skate talk” as per your sig, is always greatly appreciated ;D
Now I really want to try one :o
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I'm wondering now how much they'll produce. My impression was they did this because of having to share BBS with all the other manufacturers, but I have a feeling a lot of brands are about to take a dump.....
I think the main thing was keeping costs down, so at the retail end, boards are going up and up and up, with DLX product from BBS in Mexico, but having the boards made in China, just like Dwindle did all those years ago or other manufacturers are doing with any / all their products, they can keep the retail price down and sell more boards in the process.
The fact that the boards are good definitely helps. At first, I was thinking "Ah no, I don't want to change or ride these new ones!" but I was surprised how good the board is that I have skated, so I just set up another one last night to see how that goes too, this one just for myself, not for everyone else to try, so I can really get a feel for it and see how it lasts.
Sure I will happily say I am very set in my ways and I prefer the concave of BBS to anything else, but now that they have the same concaves in these China made boards, I can still ride it and it works - just takes a little more getting used to as I prefer a more mellow board overall.
I haven't tried any of the usual things, like driving over them or parking on the kicks, with these China made boards, but I will with one of them at some point, just to see if it does mellow out at all, or stays stiff, or breaks / cracks or whatever.
For now though, I have enough BBS boards in rotation and a lot yet to be skated, so I am good in that regard, but I definitely wanted to check them out and just see what they were like, whether or not I could adapt to them, if they were going to be too stiff or any other thing that goes through my head.
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Your “too much skate talk” as per your sig, is always greatly appreciated ;D
Now I really want to try one :o
To add, I guess people everywhere else don't have a choice now - that's all they are going to get going forward, but given how good this first one felt, I am thinking that people in USA who might only have BBS might then have to track them down from somewhere else if they are really keen to skate one, which in itself is kind of funny, given everything usually comes from USA, or at least all DLX product comes through SF.
Maybe USA will also get them, given time, or the market could change to include both, but I really don't know.
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For those that have tried the new China DLX wood: Is there are noticeable change in weight? I.E are the decks heavier?
I've had a couple of R7 Dwindle boards and although they are hardy, long-lasting and maintain their pop they feel noticeably heavier than boards from the American woodshops. Hoping DLX have somehow found a way to incorporate the single press/epoxy glue method without resulting in a heavier board.
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For those that have tried the new China DLX wood: Is there are noticeable change in weight? I.E are the decks heavier?
I've had a couple of R7 Dwindle boards and although they are hardy, long-lasting and maintain their pop they feel noticeably heavier than boards from the American woodshops. Hoping DLX have somehow found a way to incorporate the single press/epoxy glue method without resulting in a heavier board.
I had been skating a few regular DLX 8.75 sized boards on standard 159s and they never felt heavy to me, just a little bigger than my usual 8.38 or 8.5 sized boards on 149s, so it all worked easily enough, even an orange eagle on 169s was big but not excessively heavy feeling.
Then when I set up this new AH board, it did feel like it had more weight, so when I left the standard baseplates attached to the board and just swapped in some 159 hollow axle hangers on it instead of the standard 159s, it lightened it up enough that it felt more like my other BBS setups. Not sure though if this was more in my head or just the board, but I haven't had them on scales or anything to check how much exactly they are.
That said, I am guessing as others have said, they are a little thicker and a little heavier, but it was not really a problem to me after a week and I guess I got more used to it on all points, not just the weight when I lifted it.
Some people might notice it a bit more, but I would say there are always the forged / hollow trucks, or even the titanium axle on forged hollow baseplates that would lighten them up considerably too.
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Ok thanks! A bit disappointing that they are a little thicker and heavier.. It seems to be the trade off with the glue they are using. Hoping they aren't as heavy as some the madness decks I have tried. I'll have to go into the shop and pick one up!
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Ok thanks! A bit disappointing that they are a little thicker and heavier.. It seems to be the trade off with the glue they are using. Hoping they aren't as heavy as some the madness decks I have tried. I'll have to go into the shop and pick one up!
What size / shape board do you usually ride, or would be getting from the new DLX range?
I think all the bigger and shaped boards are still BBS, only the smaller boards (under 9") are from China, or at least that is what I have seen, the one exception being the AH cruiser 9.12 Misregistered eagle Genius shape or similar.
So far I have had the AH BA 8.75 and I just set up the Real Jimmy Wilkins 8.86 deck, drilled in the wheelbase on the tail to make it more like 14.62" from the 15" that it was at so it feels really comfortable now. For that size board, which really is barely wider than the usual 8.75 and about the same now in everything else, (slightly longer tail and shorter nose plus it tapers even more than the 8.75 shape), I did also feel a bit more heft to it compared to other boards, including a normal 9" orange eagle on 169s with similar wheels, which was about the same overall.
Really it is not a huge difference, where weight was concerned, which was why I tried the hollow axles on the first DLX 8.75 I set up from the China wood drop, which then seemed to make it just right. Forged hollow basplates would probably help a bit more too, but I prefer standard everything on my setups and can deal with the weight - not a worry to me, but more just getting used to the new board feel, being a bit stiffer than my other BBS boards.
* I still think it could be more just the difference in the board feel too, which makes things feel a bit heavier or a bit lighter, especially with some things, not just picking up the board or holding one in each hand to try to figure out which is this or that.
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In the consumer world this happens all the time. At least DLXSF is straight forward with their product offerings. A recent post explained how he or she didn't care where it was made. I personally want to support domestic jobs if possible, but we do live in a global market. DLX didn't have to say anything. Hopefully, the sales are so high they needed more manufacturing capacity, or if they need to decrease cost they kept a line for loyal North American consumers. . .
I think that rumor might be unrealistic, it makes little sense to make less profit on "Eagle boards". Typically, in supply you go all in once supplier is approved / trusted. Lastly, DLX won't put out bad product. They are going to stand on their brands.
I sell 2 cars, both are the same price point, one costs me more money, one costs less. Why would Ford or GM tell you that? I doubt "Eagles" are differentiated, I could be wrong, but what percentage of customers even care, 10%? Why pay two invoices?
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Ok thanks! A bit disappointing that they are a little thicker and heavier.. It seems to be the trade off with the glue they are using. Hoping they aren't as heavy as some the madness decks I have tried. I'll have to go into the shop and pick one up!
What size / shape board do you usually ride, or would be getting from the new DLX range?
I think all the bigger and shaped boards are still BBS, only the smaller boards (under 9") are from China, or at least that is what I have seen, the one exception being the AH cruiser 9.12 Misregistered eagle Genius shape or similar.
So far I have had the AH BA 8.75 and I just set up the Real Jimmy Wilkins 8.86 deck, drilled in the wheelbase on the tail to make it more like 14.62" from the 15" that it was at so it feels really comfortable now. For that size board, which really is barely wider than the usual 8.75 and about the same now in everything else, (slightly longer tail and shorter nose plus it tapers even more than the 8.75 shape), I did also feel a bit more heft to it compared to other boards, including a normal 9" orange eagle on 169s with similar wheels, which was about the same overall.
Really it is not a huge difference, where weight was concerned, which was why I tried the hollow axles on the first DLX 8.75 I set up from the China wood drop, which then seemed to make it just right. Forged hollow basplates would probably help a bit more too, but I prefer standard everything on my setups and can deal with the weight - not a worry to me, but more just getting used to the new board feel, being a bit stiffer than my other BBS boards.
* I still think it could be more just the difference in the board feel too, which makes things feel a bit heavier or a bit lighter, especially with some things, not just picking up the board or holding one in each hand to try to figure out which is this or that.
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Sorry late reply! I didn't realise that this change effects just boards under 9.0. I've bought and ride the following Anti Hero /DLX boards: The white Eagle 8.75", Orange Eagle 9.0, 9.18 Huffer shape. I was interested in that Jimmy Wilkins shape you set up (had his Creature deck). Seems the transition oriented boards might be immune from the shift and will mostly continue to be made in Mexico/
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Ok thanks! A bit disappointing that they are a little thicker and heavier.. It seems to be the trade off with the glue they are using. Hoping they aren't as heavy as some the madness decks I have tried. I'll have to go into the shop and pick one up!
What size / shape board do you usually ride, or would be getting from the new DLX range?
I think all the bigger and shaped boards are still BBS, only the smaller boards (under 9") are from China, or at least that is what I have seen, the one exception being the AH cruiser 9.12 Misregistered eagle Genius shape or similar.
So far I have had the AH BA 8.75 and I just set up the Real Jimmy Wilkins 8.86 deck, drilled in the wheelbase on the tail to make it more like 14.62" from the 15" that it was at so it feels really comfortable now. For that size board, which really is barely wider than the usual 8.75 and about the same now in everything else, (slightly longer tail and shorter nose plus it tapers even more than the 8.75 shape), I did also feel a bit more heft to it compared to other boards, including a normal 9" orange eagle on 169s with similar wheels, which was about the same overall.
Really it is not a huge difference, where weight was concerned, which was why I tried the hollow axles on the first DLX 8.75 I set up from the China wood drop, which then seemed to make it just right. Forged hollow basplates would probably help a bit more too, but I prefer standard everything on my setups and can deal with the weight - not a worry to me, but more just getting used to the new board feel, being a bit stiffer than my other BBS boards.
* I still think it could be more just the difference in the board feel too, which makes things feel a bit heavier or a bit lighter, especially with some things, not just picking up the board or holding one in each hand to try to figure out which is this or that.
Sorry late reply! I didn't realise that this change effects just boards under 9.0. I've bought and ride the following Anti Hero /DLX boards: The white Eagle 8.75", Orange Eagle 9.0, 9.18 Huffer shape. I was interested in that Jimmy Wilkins shape you set up (had his Creature deck). Seems the transition oriented boards might be immune from the shift and will mostly continue to be made in Mexico/
The AH eagles are all still BBS, as are the Huffer boards, so you are all good there.
This Jimmy Wilkins shape might be different on BBS, or it might not, but the 15" wb to me just doesn't work on what seems like the same concave as the 8.75 boards when putting them both back to back. It would be the same thing if that board only had a 14.25 wb or something similar, as the mold used best works with a 14.5 to maybe max 14.75 type wheelbase.
I would have to double check, but I think the orange eagle 9.0 with 15" wb is longer in the middle than the other boards like white eagle 8.75s with 14.62" wb, so they both work really well with the amount of flat to the associated wheelbase. I should also check the Huffers I have in comparison too, but they, just like the Grosso 9.25 and the regular cream eagle / 8.62 shape, or even the Blue Meanie 8.75 board but they all work well with the wheelbases they have on the molds they are on.
Might be almost a little too deep in that regard, but certain wheelbases on certain boards work better, or don't work at all if too long, too short, or too offset, which I have experienced in one form or another with a number of boards in the past.
* Had a couple of sessions on the Wilkins now and it was the best decision to drill it in 3/8" and skates so well. Not saying everyone needs to do that, but that's how it works best for me, just drilling in the tail and using it as a big stable transition / go fast board.
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Long time reader and first time poster chiming in.
The new DLX China decks have started hitting stores here in Norway, and I discovered something a little disconcerting. It seems they are offering the same models/graphics from the two different woodshops alongside one another, but the MX and CN decks aren’t the same at all.
For example, the new 8.5 Real Hermann Stene Pro Oval is both available as a BBS press and China press. They are both labeled as True Fit, and the MX version is the correct 8.5x31.35 with the 13.75 WB. The CN version however is 8.5x32 with a 14.125 WB.
I don’t care where the decks are made as long as the wood is good and shapes are the same, but this was a bummer. I haven’t checked if other decks from Real, AH etc have the same weird discrepancy going on, but I can’t imagine it’s a one time thing. One more thing to neurotically research before buying a new deck when you already have a preferred mold and shape you always ride.
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Long time reader and first time poster chiming in.
The new DLX China decks have started hitting stores here in Norway, and I discovered something a little disconcerting. It seems they are offering the same models/graphics from the two different woodshops alongside one another, but the MX and CN decks aren’t the same at all.
For example, the new 8.5 Real Hermann Stene Pro Oval is both available as a BBS press and China press. They are both labeled as True Fit, and the MX version is the correct 8.5x31.35 with the 13.75 WB. The CN version however is 8.5x32 with a 14.125 WB.
I don’t care where the decks are made as long as the wood is good and shapes are the same, but this was a bummer. I haven’t checked if other decks from Real, AH etc have the same weird discrepancy going on, but I can’t imagine it’s a one time thing. One more thing to neurotically research before buying a new deck when you already have a preferred mold and shape you always ride.
For sure!
I recall reading on here or the DLX shapes thread (page 76 actually), at the time, the woodshop in China for DLX boards didn't have the molds set up for the Tru Fit boards yet, so anything that was labelled as Tru Fit or maybe one or two other options besides the normal boards were more on a generic / other shape, still the DLX concave, but as you said, not the dimensions as listed in the catalog for that specific graphic / shape.
Re CN boards - still yet to see many more here in Australia too - seen / skated only the 8.38, the 8.75 and the 8.86 Wilkins, which are all the same dimensions as the BBS boards, but still some differences noticed, especially on the 8.38 and 8.75 as I have a lot of those in BBS boards.
Kind of funny that you have both simultaneously there though - usually places get one or the other, so I wonder if there was a choice for local shops or even for the local distributor. The CN boards are coming straight from there, so get here a lot sooner, compared to the MX boards, which come with the rest of the DLX stock and take a while longer, but I don't mind - worth the wait for me anyway.
Are they significantly different in price between the MX and CN boards in shops you have seen? The price difference here is pretty big.
* Edit:
DLX shapes thread, page 76 with pics and info from Lew:
https://www.slapmagazine.com/index.php?topic=85076.2250
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Are they significantly different in price between the MX and CN boards in shops you have seen? The price difference here is pretty big.
Zero price difference between them, both are around $120.
At least the sticker on the shrink wrap says the correct size if you are in store and have both in front of you. But hopefully the China woodshop will get the correct True Fit mold soon and it won’t be an issue anymore. I’m currently on the Grimple Stix 8.75x31.75 with the 14.25wb right now anyway, and that should be available from BBS for a while longer hopefully.
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Are they significantly different in price between the MX and CN boards in shops you have seen? The price difference here is pretty big.
Zero price difference between them, both are around $120.
At least the sticker on the shrink wrap says the correct size if you are in store and have both in front of you. But hopefully the China woodshop will get the correct True Fit mold soon and it won’t be an issue anymore. I’m currently on the Grimple Stix 8.75x31.75 with the 14.25wb right now anyway, and that should be available from BBS for a while longer hopefully.
Re price - interesting! The CN boards are more pre 2020 pro board prices but the MX boards are going up and up and up here.
I wonder if it is related to shipping / import costs, or just keeping things even.
Overall the CN board with epoxy are more on the stiff side and hold their form, where as MX are the usual BBS and are more springy / have more flex. I am more used to the BBS wood, but others love the stiffness of the CN boards, all with the same DLX shapes and concave so at least there is a choice there now.
Those Misregistered eagles, including the 8.75 x 31.75 shape just arrived here, CN made, from an earlier catalog, but we are always a drop or three behind USA and maybe other places too. Looked it up - USA AH Drop 2 for Spring 2024.
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Been eyeing the latest DLX drops here in Germany. It looks like all the main hardware drops have only been coming from China this year.
There are still a couple mexican produced BBS boards coming through, but it’s only been special things like the easy rider concave or the Chris Cope special Shape.
The Chinese boards are still a little bit cheaper here, so I don’t know if it has to do with the shops and distributors only ordering what sells.
At the moment, I’m curious and want to discuss how it develops in the rest of the world.
For me personally it kind of sucks, cause my go to shape is the antihero 8.4 and there hasn’t been a new BBS one all year. Still have a couple in stock, but after the latest drops, I’m starting to get worried. I sadly might have to turn my back on deluxe because the epoxy just isn’t working for me.
At first, I thought it was a good thing to have more options and was also stoked for the people that don’t feel the difference as much that they had the opportunity to buy a cheaper deluxe board.
But if we don’t have a choice anymore, it feels a little bit discriminating in comparison to the rest of the world.
I hope this doesn’t pan out like that.
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Yeah man I'm in Switzerland and kind of in the same boat as you.
The local distributor doesn't order from DLX very often and it seems like we no longer get shaped boards since production for Europe got moved to China, which sucks. I haven't tried those Chinese boards yet but I'm shit scared of trying as I've been on BBS wood and nothing else for the last 15 years. I'll skate my wall hangers from BBS and might try one of those new ones but if it's not up to par I'll definitely email DLX about feeling discriminated as you said. It might not change much but if loads of us do it maybe it will, who knows?
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We still get some special shaped stuff over here and it seems connected to the drops that still come from the US i.e. Spitfire, etc.
Like you mentioned, I am not sure if it’s because of deluxe not offering it to our market anymore or if the people that ordered it don’t get the difference or only care about the margin.
Or maybe the customers are to blame because they buy a lot of the Chinese boards because they are cheaper. I can imagine a lot of people not really caring about the difference as much as I do. And other people just might prefer them over the BBS ones.
I just want to make sure that I don’t care where a product is made as long as it works for me.
I tried the Chinese deluxe boards in my shape as soon as they came out. Talked myself into it after the first one and ordered five or six. Currently still have the third one set up in my extensive quiver and it behaved exactly like the two before. Just over it at this point.
To me they are just too stiff in the beginning, then have a really short good phase and then just suddenly get mushy lengthwise from one day to the next.
Feels exactly like the DSM boards of which I had a lot in the past.
I personally just get a lot more value and longer consistent feel out of the BBS ones.
To me quality, availability, and consistency were
among the main reasons why I chose to buy mainly deluxe products. But lately it’s also been a pain in the ass to get the desired stuff. I was really stoked on the new 97 formula and had to import one set of Delfino’s from Austria. Really like them and want to get a second pair but no chance at all.
After annoying a lot of shops with email requests if their Spitfires had the new sticker I finally gave up.
Same with cast hollow Ventures..
At least we got the V8’s. But this kind of tells me it’s because of people not pre-ordering shit because of sale numbers. Seems like not many people buy non-pro- edition-ventures over here and same with the old 97 Spitfire formula.
The V8’s have Kostons name on them..
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Europeans about to have the biggest W for affordable boards in 2025. I wouldn’t be surprised for a BBS DLX board to be >$100 retail in USA with upcoming Trump tariffs, probably not much better for Chinese DLX wood.
I guess I’ll be over here parking my car on South Central boards since that’s all Trump wants me to skate.
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Europeans about to have the biggest W for affordable boards in 2025. I wouldn’t be surprised for a BBS DLX board to be >$100 retail in USA with upcoming Trump tariffs, probably not much better for Chinese DLX wood.
I guess I’ll be over here parking my car on South Central boards since that’s all Trump wants me to skate.
I think he's more of a Pennswood guy.
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Yeah man I'm in Switzerland and kind of in the same boat as you.
The local distributor doesn't order from DLX very often and it seems like we no longer get shaped boards since production for Europe got moved to China, which sucks. I haven't tried those Chinese boards yet but I'm shit scared of trying as I've been on BBS wood and nothing else for the last 15 years. I'll skate my wall hangers from BBS and might try one of those new ones but if it's not up to par I'll definitely email DLX about feeling discriminated as you said. It might not change much but if loads of us do it maybe it will, who knows?
I think the first thing I would suggest is try one of the China made boards just to see what it is like.
Personally I prefer BBS wood, just for the feel and how comfortable I am on it, but others here love that China wood and I have been getting more of those boards specifically for those people. I do have a few set up, including the one at the top of this page, which skates just fine now, but I did drive over it just to see and it felt more normal now than it did when new. That was more just for me to see if it changed it, or if it did make it a little more springy rather than ultra stiff as it felt from new.
When I don't have the choice any more, then I think it would be a problem, but I pretty much stocked up on all my favourites so I am sorry to tell you I might have a little more longevity from my BBS stash than most.
We still get some special shaped stuff over here and it seems connected to the drops that still come from the US i.e. Spitfire, etc.
Like you mentioned, I am not sure if it’s because of deluxe not offering it to our market anymore or if the people that ordered it don’t get the difference or only care about the margin.
Or maybe the customers are to blame because they buy a lot of the Chinese boards because they are cheaper. I can imagine a lot of people not really caring about the difference as much as I do. And other people just might prefer them over the BBS ones.
I just want to make sure that I don’t care where a product is made as long as it works for me.
Shortened the quote, but I pretty much agree with everything you had said - sucks that what you want you just can't get where you are.
I am amazed at what we still have here, although things have definitely gone up in price. At the end of the day, I don't go through gear as fast as most people, so what I am sitting on is enough, but for anyone else who has not been fortunate enough to stock up, it is going to get a little harder to find more of things you really want once everything gets squeezed for price, for supply lines to almost dry up because distribution companies are scared to bring in too much, or just can't afford it, or even worst case scenario that they just don't even have the option to bring the product in, but I really don't know the details of any given situation in each country or how things work over there, compared to here.
* At least all the 97 duro wheels will be on the new formula going forward, but if shops are still sitting on old stock, they might be less keen to get any of the newer ones in. The Pedro wheels are the only 100% new formula I have seen here, of which I got four sets straight away, again when I had the chance, I took it, but it could be a while before the other newer formula wheels come in and even then, same packaging and look and everything else, they maybe harder to pick or come by unless you do see that "reformulated" teal sticker.
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We still get some special shaped stuff over here and it seems connected to the drops that still come from the US i.e. Spitfire, etc.
Like you mentioned, I am not sure if it’s because of deluxe not offering it to our market anymore or if the people that ordered it don’t get the difference or only care about the margin.
Or maybe the customers are to blame because they buy a lot of the Chinese boards because they are cheaper. I can imagine a lot of people not really caring about the difference as much as I do. And other people just might prefer them over the BBS ones.
I just want to make sure that I don’t care where a product is made as long as it works for me.
I tried the Chinese deluxe boards in my shape as soon as they came out. Talked myself into it after the first one and ordered five or six. Currently still have the third one set up in my extensive quiver and it behaved exactly like the two before. Just over it at this point.
To me they are just too stiff in the beginning, then have a really short good phase and then just suddenly get mushy lengthwise from one day to the next.
Feels exactly like the DSM boards of which I had a lot in the past.
I personally just get a lot more value and longer consistent feel out of the BBS ones.
To me quality, availability, and consistency were
among the main reasons why I chose to buy mainly deluxe products. But lately it’s also been a pain in the ass to get the desired stuff. I was really stoked on the new 97 formula and had to import one set of Delfino’s from Austria. Really like them and want to get a second pair but no chance at all.
After annoying a lot of shops with email requests if their Spitfires had the new sticker I finally gave up.
Same with cast hollow Ventures..
At least we got the V8’s. But this kind of tells me it’s because of people not pre-ordering shit because of sale numbers. Seems like not many people buy non-pro- edition-ventures over here and same with the old 97 Spitfire formula.
The V8’s have Kostons name on them..
Yeah man it's quite a headache.
Thanks for your review, as bad as it is. :-\
I think I'm gonna skate this last Zion Cubs I have as a wall hanger or check if the distributor still has have any old boards that I'm sure were made by BBS in the shape I skate (8.4 labeled as 8.5, 31.85, 14.25).
Magenta make pretty good 8.4s that are really close to this shape but the concave is different and I prefer the BBS ones, of course...
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You are welcome. I did a little more positive and more in depth. Review a couple pages back in this thread when they first came out.
And just to make sure it’s not a bad board after all and I don’t wanna hate on it. It just doesn’t work for me.
For me it’s special because I prefer the 8.4 antihero shape which has a straight rail and I haven’t seen that shape on any other deluxe brand. somewhat of a unicorn shape so it’s gonna be harder to get this in the future.
From what I gather you ride the 8.5 shape with the 14.25 wheelbase that tapers towards the Tail. You might be lucky because they promised that the anti-hero eagles would always stay BBS made and the 8.5 eagle is exactly that shape. I hope this promise isn’t only true for US fellows.
Also, the new easy riders that came to Germany could be interesting for you. There’s also an Eagle in 8.5 which is the same shape just a little bit flatter concave made by BBS. Maybe that’s worth a look for you. They still came through to Germany this year all the time. Maybe you can order from Sk8deluxe where you are. If you want to make sure you got the right shape just hit me up via DM. I don’t want to derail this threat too much with personal preferences.
And thanks for your insight from the other side of the world Mbrimson88. As always, pretty detailed and well put.
I too stacked up. I might be good till the end of summer, but I’m already looking for an alternative in case it stays like this. I think I ordered all the deluxe 8.4 shapes that were available in my reach. Had to send a couple older ones back because the were too warped. I even kept a couple stamped with roman ones and twos even though I usually only get the three and four stamped ones.
And maybe I’m lucky because before that shape I rode the 8.28 for a long time and antihero made an eagle with the 8.28 shape this summer. So if the stars align and they make an 8.4 Eagle next summer and the Eagles stay BBS made all over the world everything will be good.
As for the 97 spitfires, I was debating with myself to get more but I didn’t like the old 97 at all. They just felt slow and sluggish so I was hesitant to order the second pair I could’ve gotten from the Skateshop in Austria. But I think I read in the Spitfire thread that another fellow member got the second set so at least someone else got a chance to try them and maybe give us an opinion because I hesitated. They are gonna come. I just have to wait.
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You are welcome. I did a little more positive and more in depth. Review a couple pages back in this thread when they first came out.
And just to make sure it’s not a bad board after all and I don’t wanna hate on it. It just doesn’t work for me.
For me it’s special because I prefer the 8.4 antihero shape which has a straight rail and I haven’t seen that shape on any other deluxe brand. somewhat of a unicorn shape so it’s gonna be harder to get this in the future.
This might have been the first and possibly only other time the 8.4 shape was used but as you said, they are out almost every other drop on AH, often a Grimple deck now from the last few.
Can't believe that this has been over a year now, but I think this was the first main drop to be China wood here, but I was very keen to see them, although I never saw that 8.4 anywhere and did get one of the 8.86 Wilkins decks just to see what it was like.
https://www.realskateboards.com/fall-2023/
https://www.realskateboards.com/img/2023/rs-fall23-d2-04.jpg
(https://www.realskateboards.com/img/2023/rs-fall23-d2-04.jpg)
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...somewhat of a unicorn shape so it’s gonna be harder to get this in the future.
I've said it many times before, and I'll say it again. DLX makes too much stuff. Yes, it is awesome they try to make different things, But, they spread themselves too thin, and it becomes very hard to get some of non "standard" decks.
Low-Pro
True Fit
Fulls
SE Fulls
Easy Rider
8-ply
Wheel Wells
Whatever the hell this new 6-ply thing is...
That's not even accounting for some of the less standard shapes (8.28, 8.4, 8.5/14.38, etc). And don't even get me started on Spitfire shapes and hardness variants.
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Well, another reason to just skate blank decks and have the freedom of choice.
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If you want to make sure you got the right shape just hit me up via DM. I don’t want to derail this threat too much with personal preferences.
Yes mate I just sent you a DM.
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This might have been the first and possibly only other time the 8.4 shape was used but as you said, they are out almost every other drop on AH, often a Grimple deck now from the last few.
Can't believe that this has been over a year now, but I think this was the first main drop to be China wood here, but I was very keen to see them, although I never saw that 8.4 anywhere and did get one of the 8.86 Wilkins decks just to see what it was like.
https://www.realskateboards.com/fall-2023/
https://www.realskateboards.com/img/2023/rs-fall23-d2-04.jpg
(https://www.realskateboards.com/img/2023/rs-fall23-d2-04.jpg)
[/quote]
Yeah, I was double stoked when that Harry Lintell board came out in my 8.4 shape. Actually triple stoked, because I got to support someone I really like. And I thought the shape wouldn’t be anti-hero exclusive anymore. Doesn’t seem like it’s already been a year ago.
And it’s that exact real board of which I still have four left in my stack. Was the first Chinese board I skated and liked. Then I had a Chinese 8.25 doobie from anti-hero which I also liked. I must add at that time I only had those two Chinese set ups and no BBS one to compare.
I have another Harry Lintell 8.4 set up right now. The veneer fade looks really cool, yet still the last couple sessions on it kind of ruined it for me. Didn’t feel like skating it at all anymore, then took it out on a few sessions and compared to it my other set ups side by side and never really liked it in comparison.
Right now, it just feels weird when I look at American shops and you guys can just order the board I desire.
And just imagining this will be like that for the rest of the world in the future, leaves a little bit of an unfair taste.
But I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
I’ll keep you guys posted.
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Expand Quote
...somewhat of a unicorn shape so it’s gonna be harder to get this in the future.
I've said it many times before, and I'll say it again. DLX makes too much stuff. Yes, it is awesome they try to make different things, But, they spread themselves too thin, and it becomes very hard to get some of non "standard" decks.
Low-Pro
True Fit
Fulls
SE Fulls
Easy Rider
8-ply
Wheel Wells
Whatever the hell this new 6-ply thing is...
That's not even accounting for some of the less standard shapes (8.28, 8.4, 8.5/14.38, etc). And don't even get me started on Spitfire shapes and hardness variants.
I totally get your sentiment and actually it kind of voices really good how I feel at the moment. Especially since I’m personally affected in a bad way.
But I think it’s a double edge sword because on the other hand we get to try out a lot of things.
And this kind of drives an evolution in board shapes and other stuff.
I think I can explain it best looking at the new ventures. It offers the possibility to try out how different changes affect the feel of your set up. On the other hand it also offers fuel for the fire of madness.
I just realized for me personally I go through different phases where I like to try new stuff and then after that I need a longer period of time where I just stick to one set up that works.
I also have like one main set up, which I don’t fuck with too much and then I have like a test set up which I just take on certain sessions.
But sometimes I think I should just stop it and start buying Baker boards so I don’t have to worry about shapes at all anymore.
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Expand Quote
Expand Quote
...somewhat of a unicorn shape so it’s gonna be harder to get this in the future.
I've said it many times before, and I'll say it again. DLX makes too much stuff. Yes, it is awesome they try to make different things, But, they spread themselves too thin, and it becomes very hard to get some of non "standard" decks.
Low-Pro
True Fit
Fulls
SE Fulls
Easy Rider
8-ply
Wheel Wells
Whatever the hell this new 6-ply thing is...
That's not even accounting for some of the less standard shapes (8.28, 8.4, 8.5/14.38, etc). And don't even get me started on Spitfire shapes and hardness variants.
I totally get your sentiment and actually it kind of voices really good how I feel at the moment. Especially since I’m personally affected in a bad way.
But I think it’s a double edge sword because on the other hand we get to try out a lot of things.
And this kind of drives an evolution in board shapes and other stuff.
No, I totally get that. That said, I wont try any of the DLX "novelty" products until it's clear they are going to be in regular production--it sucks to find something you really like, but then have it be next to impossible to find again.
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Might have already been mentioned, but for the "rest of the world" which is anywhere outside of USA, often stock takes months to get here from DLX in SF, but with the China made boards, they get here directly from China at about the same time as the USA gets the BBS made boards in the current catalogs.
That is a big plus, so people don't see the new catalogs and then have to wait a month (or two usually) for the stock to actually arrive, or helps prevent people ordering from shops that do have it directly from USA. That in itself is another can of worms, which I don't usually get into at all, but back to the DLX China made boards and associated products, it is an interesting one, especially when there is new stock coming out and people don't want to wait.
Here in AU we only just got the Halloween special Spitfire wheels and everything else from DLX in that drop, which came out in October in USA, so there is that for shops to be able to have not only cheaper decks than what are now very expensive BBS made boards, but also a better price too.
Just my observations with the current stock drops, which also include all the non regulation shapes now made in China, or at least that is what I am seeing, so it seems like they have caught up some from when it was only the basic shape options on the China made boards and the rest were from BBS.
Easy Rider are still BBS only, but others are all on China wood that I had not seen before.
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Long story very short: been riding a China-made Krooked 8.25 for a while now, and I gotta say, I don't really notice any difference to BBS-made decks. The concave is a bit mellower than what I used to like in BBS decks (I or II being my favs), but otherwise, the deck feels pretty much as good as its BBS counterparts.
Some folks have complained about the stiffness of the China decks -- for me, I really haven't noticed any significant differences. Weight difference? Insignificant.
Summa summarum: for a mediocre skater, all good with DLX China decks.
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Might have already been mentioned, but for the "rest of the world" which is anywhere outside of USA, often stock takes months to get here from DLX in SF, but with the China made boards, they get here directly from China at about the same time as the USA gets the BBS made boards in the current catalogs.
That is a big plus, so people don't see the new catalogs and then have to wait a month (or two usually) for the stock to actually arrive, or helps prevent people ordering from shops that do have it directly from USA. That in itself is another can of worms, which I don't usually get into at all, but back to the DLX China made boards and associated products, it is an interesting one, especially when there is new stock coming out and people don't want to wait.
Here in AU we only just got the Halloween special Spitfire wheels and everything else from DLX in that drop, which came out in October in USA, so there is that for shops to be able to have not only cheaper decks than what are now very expensive BBS made boards, but also a better price too.
Just my observations with the current stock drops, which also include all the non regulation shapes now made in China, or at least that is what I am seeing, so it seems like they have caught up some from when it was only the basic shape options on the China made boards and the rest were from BBS.
Easy Rider are still BBS only, but others are all on China wood that I had not seen before.
Can second this, my local had the new Andrew Wilson pro decks come in the week his part dropped. I was shocked as its often up to 6 months for regular DLX products to turn up here.
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Most likely anyone who checked the DLX Shapes thread would have seen this, but I am going to bring this thread back, given how far down the board it would have been, as I think some people might need a refresher.
This is what I posted in the other DLX thread anyway:
I think there has been another thread or two about it as well, but this is the main one.
Quite simply, yes I did hear that the team editions, Eagles, Ovals and Eyes were going to stay BBS while others were transitioned over to the new woodshop in China, but then some people were posting that their new Eagle / Oval or Eyes board had "Made in China" stickers on it, so it would seem that almost everything has been produced in both facilities now.
Depending on where you are in the world, USA will most likely keep getting BBS boards, while everywhere else will most likely be getting the boards made at the partner facility in China, which after skating a good number of them now, is not a bad thing, maybe more just different. They are still the same concave as the regular DLX boards, but now come in single pressed and epoxy construction, so a much more uniform concave every time, with a stiffer feeling to them.
BBS prices have been going up and up, so the China equivalent boards are significantly lower in price and come out about the same time as the DLX drops, so we don't have to wait months for the stock to get shipped from DLX SF home base to whatever country, which can take months to get to us down here in Australia.
At least that is the basic info, although there is a whole lot more I have said about them in the past.
Hopefully that helps people who might be surprised to see DLX boards with "Made in China" stickers, which by looking at the other thread has been almost three years now.
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I thought I had posted this somewhere, but here it is again, easy to see here in this thread.
Differences between BBS and China wood DLX boards.
https://www.instagram.com/mbrimson88/p/DRRUabGk0bj/
https://www.instagram.com/p/DRRUabGk0bj/?img_index=1
Same same but different?
Two 8.75 AH Eagles, one made in Mexico, one made in China, as per the stickers. The BBS one is older stock I had kept for myself, but still the same as they are now, whereas the new other one is fresh into the country here and I was lucky enough to snag one before they promptly sold out.
Things to note: apart from the updated size sticker with different info on it, these two boards are so very similar, only some slight details, but essentially the same product, the usual 8.75 with 14.62 wheelbase.
BBS has four to a press, this one with the orange top being a II stamp, so some steeper and some more mellow, water based glue and a little more flexy when I stand on it.
The other one has a blue top veneer and they are now made in single presses, so they are all exactly the same every time, epoxy construction so they are way more stiff feeling to start with and they stay stiffer for longer too.
Both still have the same DLX stain layup, top and second stains, and bottom stained, assorted colours too, with what is very much the same graphic heat transferred as well.
The concave between boards is slightly different, just more so in the shoulder of each, with the BBS board being not quite as curved, as per the pics, blue one on top, orange on the bottom. I have other BBS boards that are closer to the China made boards when I have compared previously, but didn't take any other pics for this post.
I have had more than a few of these 8.75s in both wood now so although I can feel the difference and prefer the BBS boards for the ones I ride, some of the other people I skate with prefer the new wood and would rather ride that now.
Going forward I would say with the success of the new wood, there will be more of these now too, with fewer BBS boards, especially for how expensive the BBS versions are becoming.
I can't see any issues with them, especially if they are going to be cheaper for everyone to buy in the shops now, with Australian prices going up to between $139.99 to $149.99 which funnily enough was the price on the old BBS board from a number of years ago now. Some BBS boards are upwards of $170 and still going.
Brave times ahead...
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...with Australian prices going up to between $139.99 to $149.99 which funnily enough was the price on the old BBS board from a number of years ago now. Some BBS boards are upwards of $170 and still going.
Uhm...I am never going to complain about deck prices in the U.S. again...
Good post. Thanks for the info.
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DLX BBS vs. China dims info in a nutshell:
(Grey Eagle and respective Eyes / Oval / pro models)
BBS 8.25 x 14.38 = c. 8.38 in reality
China 8.25 x 14.38 = c. 8.25 in reality
(Blue Eagle and respective Eyes / Oval / pro models)
BBS 8.5 x 14.25 = c. 8.38 in reality
China 8.5 x 14.25 = closer to 8.5 in reality
BBS concaves = I-IV
China concaves = single press, usually equalling a BBS III-ish
Feel free to add.
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If they ramp up the quality I’m ok with it…..BBS has their shit dialed pretty good though. Crail’s Dailan stuff and DWS stuff are pretty good.
Agree. been riding DLX BBS and also Dailan Chocos.The best deck I rode to me.Wether they're made in China or not doesn't bother me.
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Whoah, deep cut….
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DLX BBS vs. China dims info in a nutshell:
(Grey Eagle and respective Eyes / Oval / pro models)
BBS 8.25 x 14.38 = c. 8.38 in reality
China 8.25 x 14.38 = c. 8.25 in reality
(Blue Eagle and respective Eyes / Oval / pro models)
BBS 8.5 x 14.25 = c. 8.38 in reality
China 8.5 x 14.25 = closer to 8.5 in reality
BBS concaves = I-IV
China concaves = single press, usually equalling a BBS III-ish
Feel free to add.
fascinating that the bbs eagles are both measuring almost the exact same
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I’m in Canada and have been skating the China made dlx wood for 2 years now. The ovals are no longer BBS here. Personally I like the consistency of them now and they’re mellow like a III or IV stamp. Haven’t had any issues on them since they changed over. Highly recommend!
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IV is my favorite.
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IV is my favorite.
Same for a few of us here actually, but once the China made boards wear in nicely, they feel about the same, although they are a little too stiff for me when brand new. I guess I could get used to them over time, but standing on a new IV stamp BBS board, everything just feels normal from day one.
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Expand Quote
DLX BBS vs. China dims info in a nutshell:
(Grey Eagle and respective Eyes / Oval / pro models)
BBS 8.25 x 14.38 = c. 8.38 in reality
China 8.25 x 14.38 = c. 8.25 in reality
(Blue Eagle and respective Eyes / Oval / pro models)
BBS 8.5 x 14.25 = c. 8.38 in reality
China 8.5 x 14.25 = closer to 8.5 in reality
BBS concaves = I-IV
China concaves = single press, usually equalling a BBS III-ish
Feel free to add.
fascinating that the bbs eagles are both measuring almost the exact same
It is a funny thing.
They don't quite line up when stacked though, different wheelbase, different lengths, different shape, but they are kind of close compared to some others.
Another one to add to the list:
BBS 8.38 is almost 8.5 wide, China 8.38 is way more 8.3 wide so those two are quite different as well.
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The China boards are great.
A different kind of great. Bit stiffer than bbs as mentioned but you get used to that in two sessions.
Not DLX but I'm skating a Jacuzzi Unlimited deck right now which is also China and it's an A1 deck.
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I ride IV-stamped DLX decks. And honestly, it's a pain in the ass trying to track them down all the time. If the China ones were consistently around a IV or III stamp, I would embrace them, because it would make life a lot easier for me.
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as a person who would only skate I or II bbs dlx decks, the china boards are a disappointment. here in canada only the anti hero eagles are bbs, i perfer the 8.28 and they don't keep the baby blue eagle in the line all the time. im finding i have to look at other brands now.
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...i perfer the 8.28 and they don't keep the baby blue eagle in the line all the time. im finding i have to look at other brands now.
Yeah, that sucks, man. I am sorry. Also, this goes back my long-standing and only beef with DLX: They simply make too much stuff. And as a result, they can't keep everything in regular production. So, if you like one of the "fringe" products...good luck.
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as a person who would only skate I or II bbs dlx decks, the china boards are a disappointment. here in canada only the anti hero eagles are bbs, i perfer the 8.28 and they don't keep the baby blue eagle in the line all the time. im finding i have to look at other brands now.
I don't know what sort of position you are in or what relationship you have with any local shops but I would be putting it to them to pass up the line to be able to special order in a number of that specific board for you. This might seem difficult for some shops / people / distributors, but given the proximity to DLX, I don't think it should be that hard for Supra Dist to request a box of boards for you as they still get regular deliveries from SF for everything else.
I guess it comes down to how many boards would you go through in any given period, if you have funds to be able to buy a few at a time, where you might usually get them from, etc.
Even asking DLX directly or Supra if it is possible, then sending them to whichever shop you would frequent.
https://supradistribution.com/about/
Seems that 8.28 shape is getting a little more popular too, but I don't see too many around, but I know we only got a limited number of any 8.28s down here in AU and those blue eagles seem like they are harder to come by as well.
I often use US shops as a measure to check what is around, so there shows four options in that shape currently in the DLX shop, the blue eagle, Mason surfboard, Uma Krooked and AH Daan deck, but getting the BBS versions in a I or II could be a little harder if there are not that many anyway.
https://dlxskateshop.com/search?q=8.28