The Thunder Thread

[Frank and Fred]

That's doing it! But seriously, it's fun and good to see people modding their gear.

Related, but on another note: I once saw a cheap complete that had riser pads that would extend the front and cover the pivot cup like a slider Tensor's had.

That's actually not a bad idea, like a lapper for the front of your baseplates.

[theloniousmonk]

Somebody who knows how to 3d print things could make some and set up an online shop to get them out

[rawbertson.]

dude you want to talk about sliders check out this homeys

[DinnerDog425]

We're coming full circle back to 2000 era Tensors

[Rick Trapasso]

dude you want to talk about sliders check out this homeys

That guy is the human form of the madness thread.

[Xen]

We're coming full circle back to 2000 era Tensors

His wheels are straight carved from potatoes too.

What is up with that bottom washer?

"hahaaaha yess !! Custom Tape Rolls , mad flat side wallz and weight reductions 💥💥💥. Got a home made “death saver” washer under my truck bushings there too 😹😺😺🙏🙏🙏🎉🎉❤️❤️🎊🎊🎊🎊"

[CarcassToss]

Louie Barletta's autistic twin brother. I feel bad he doesn't have better friends that can talk him out of these ideas.

[Frank and Fred]

dude you want to talk about sliders check out this homeys

This dude is delightfully insane. Wood screws poking thru the top for extra grip!

[Xen]

Proceeds to then showcase that he does not slide any further than anyone riding regular thunders.

[Free hat]

dude you want to talk about sliders check out this homeys

Anyone watch kids in the hall? Big Scott Thompson character vibes

[moonordie]

Expand Quote

dude you want to talk about sliders check out this homeys

[close]

That guy is the human form of the madness thread.

Must be horrible 😅

[rawbertson.]

idk i think this guy fuckin rips if you ask me!



i love his setup! hahaha like this is the exact type of person i love to talk about skateboarding gear with. most people round here dont give a fuck! ride the same shit. gotta live a little, take some chances! Riding indy all the time is boring.

[LeDave]

idk i think this guy fuckin rips if you ask me!

i love his setup! hahaha like this is the exact type of person i love to talk about skateboarding gear with. most people round here dont give a fuck! ride the same shit. gotta live a little, take some chances! Riding indy all the time is boring.

Love your signature bro, thanks.

[Richard Skidder]

My face when I see these modded Thunders:



All kidding aside though whatever makes skateboarding more funnerer for the user is alright with me.

[Xen]

idk i think this guy fuckin rips if you ask me!



i love his setup! hahaha like this is the exact type of person i love to talk about skateboarding gear with. most people round here dont give a fuck! ride the same shit. gotta live a little, take some chances! Riding indy all the time is boring.

I can't stop looking at his hands.

[crescentfresh]

Do blue transparent bushings (90duro) loosen up with time ? I skated them like 3 or 4 hours, setup stock on the trucks (flush kingpin) but I find them being a bit stiff and have to tic tac quite a bit.
Should I just wait or slightly unscrew (1/8th or 1/4th turn?) the kingpin ?

mine we're feeling really stiff recently so i removed the bottom washers (something someone suggested around here) and now they feel much better, similar to bones medium bushings. i've only skated them about an hour so this might result in blown out bottom bushings, but we'll see...

[j....soy.....]

Keaten is my homie….I saw him on the weekend on his way to buy grip and we jammed out a bunch. 

[Rick Trapasso]

Keaten is my homie….I saw him on the weekend on his way to buy grip and we jammed out a bunch.

Tell his gear crazy ass to get up in the mix on here......

Unless he already is 👀

[rawbertson.]

I gotta say Thunders with the Real Wood Risers feels pretty slick. It feels like you can turn deeper.
I set up my old Team Thunder 148 with these 57mm OJ Elite wheels and it feels sick as fuck. I dont feel like I am "on risers" it just feels like I am on a higher truck.

[j....soy.....]

I always describe the thunder turn as the first 1/4 of the turn is Ace….the next half is venture….the last quarter is wheelbite…..the risers change the last quarter as does tightening your trucks….

[smg1138]

I always describe the thunder turn as the first 1/4 of the turn is Ace….the next half is venture….the last quarter is wheelbite…..the risers change the last quarter as does tightening your trucks….

You just summed up exactly why I don't skate Thunders. Well, that and the poorly designed baseplate.

[Obijuan91]

Thunder turn wears out my legs, feels like you really gotta push down to get a solid turn and by the time you pushed deep enough it’s wheelbite. Hate to say it but I do like the pop on them tho. It’s crispy

[Dmng]

Im still quite surprised about thunder vs ace feeling especially when I read that thunder stocks are soft

I find ace with hard bushings muuuuuch softer than stock thunder. I unscrewed 1/2 of turn of the thunder and they still feel much harder than flushed hard ace. I guess ace and thunder are different groups that don’t communicate so much aha

Actually, how much can you unscrew from flush / stock before the nut starts slipping ?

[diplodocus]

I always describe the thunder turn as the first 1/4 of the turn is Ace….the next half is venture….the last quarter is wheelbite…..the risers change the last quarter as does tightening your trucks….

This. I’ve been on some Thunders for a while now but I just can’t get them to where I like them.

Indys are tippy. Aces are carvey and pretty stable at center for me. Thunders though feel like the “center” point is so small. They’re not tippy like Indy’s per say. Thunder turn takes less effort to initiate but can also max out very easily and wheelbite. So it feels unstable. I ride mine medium tight as well on stock bushings. Anytime I don’t land perfectly square bolts I will wheelbite.

Any advice ?

[Mbrimson88]

Expand Quote

I always describe the thunder turn as the first 1/4 of the turn is Ace….the next half is venture….the last quarter is wheelbite…..the risers change the last quarter as does tightening your trucks….

[close]

This. I’ve been on some Thunders for a while now but I just can’t get them to where I like them.

Indys are tippy. Aces are carvey and pretty stable at center for me. Thunders though feel like the “center” point is so small. They’re not tippy like Indy’s per say. Thunder turn takes less effort to initiate but can also max out very easily and wheelbite. So it feels unstable. I ride mine medium tight as well on stock bushings. Anytime I don’t land perfectly square bolts I will wheelbite.

Any advice ?

Without instantly jumping down the "try harder bushings" type of reply, I do think that slightly harder bushings can sometimes be a win here, even combinations of them, even though I really don't like to mix and match colours, eg a stock top with a harder bottom or something like that, but I will often trim down slightly harder bushings to get the desired result more so than running softer bushings that might turn nicely, but then wheelbite if I land incorrectly.

Any bushing change can be weird, or make you want to swap back the old ones and be done with it, then just deal with the other issues, but that is one option I have gone with that has worked in the past for me.


Thunder trucks being lower also works nicely for me with very thin risers, usually 2 mm tops, of which I have made my own, but there are a lot of people out there that flatly refuse to put anything in between truck and board and that is quite ok too.  For me though, having that extra couple of mm in height makes things just feel more normal and I can turn more and land a little off without things instantly ending in being thrown off the board, which in most cases is easier than putting wheel wells in every board or riding significantly smaller wheels, which I know some others do as well.


So firmer bushings (often cut down / sanded or otherwise modified), risers, smaller wheels are all options for that situation.

[Fifty8mm]

Im still quite surprised about thunder vs ace feeling especially when I read that thunder stocks are soft

I find ace with hard bushings muuuuuch softer than stock thunder. I unscrewed 1/2 of turn of the thunder and they still feel much harder than flushed hard ace. I guess ace and thunder are different groups that don’t communicate so much aha

Actually, how much can you unscrew from flush / stock before the nut starts slipping ?

If you're on less than perfect ground the rattling will unscrew it a couple of times per session. I always catch it before it unscrews completely ( riding venture lo 5.0) but i kinda like that. It distracts me a bit from the frustration of trying a trick  . Feels weird when i dont have to check it.

[Richard Skidder]

Expand Quote

Expand Quote

I always describe the thunder turn as the first 1/4 of the turn is Ace….the next half is venture….the last quarter is wheelbite…..the risers change the last quarter as does tightening your trucks….

[close]

This. I’ve been on some Thunders for a while now but I just can’t get them to where I like them.

Indys are tippy. Aces are carvey and pretty stable at center for me. Thunders though feel like the “center” point is so small. They’re not tippy like Indy’s per say. Thunder turn takes less effort to initiate but can also max out very easily and wheelbite. So it feels unstable. I ride mine medium tight as well on stock bushings. Anytime I don’t land perfectly square bolts I will wheelbite.

Any advice ?

[close]

Without instantly jumping down the "try harder bushings" type of reply, I do think that slightly harder bushings can sometimes be a win here, even combinations of them, even though I really don't like to mix and match colours, eg a stock top with a harder bottom or something like that, but I will often trim down slightly harder bushings to get the desired result more so than running softer bushings that might turn nicely, but then wheelbite if I land incorrectly.

Any bushing change can be weird, or make you want to swap back the old ones and be done with it, then just deal with the other issues, but that is one option I have gone with that has worked in the past for me.


Thunder trucks being lower also works nicely for me with very thin risers, usually 2 mm tops, of which I have made my own, but there are a lot of people out there that flatly refuse to put anything in between truck and board and that is quite ok too.  For me though, having that extra couple of mm in height makes things just feel more normal and I can turn more and land a little off without things instantly ending in being thrown off the board, which in most cases is easier than putting wheel wells in every board or riding significantly smaller wheels, which I know some others do as well.


So firmer bushings (often cut down / sanded or otherwise modified), risers, smaller wheels are all options for that situation.

I’d also like to add that a barrel shaped bottom bushing can provide a more stable center even in the same duro. If you were to go a little firmer than stock on the barrel you’d probably prevent some wheelbite situations as well. If you do try this though don’t forget to put a slightly wider bottom washer so it fits properly.

[CweamCheeds]

Switched from ace af1 55’s like 3 weeks ago to 148’s and it was a game changer. I hated it at first and kept playing around with the kingpin nut and washer situation and felt like I couldn’t get it to what I wanted. Then I put both washers on and set the kingpin nut flush. Told myself it’s better to accept that they’re different and get used to them than trying to make them something they aren’t. After I did that I had the best session I’ve had in a long time. I feel as though it’s boosted my confidence and I should’ve been skating tighter trucks a long time ago. Noseslides are wonky but I just changed my technique and they seem to be working fine. Only problem trick has been with crooks but I attribute that to sizing down my trucks and not knowing where it is under my board. (I ride an 8.38)

[Ok]

Switched from ace af1 55’s like 3 weeks ago to 148’s and it was a game changer. I hated it at first and kept playing around with the kingpin nut and washer situation and felt like I couldn’t get it to what I wanted. Then I put both washers on and set the kingpin nut flush. Told myself it’s better to accept that they’re different and get used to them than trying to make them something they aren’t. After I did that I had the best session I’ve had in a long time. I feel as though it’s boosted my confidence and I should’ve been skating tighter trucks a long time ago. Noseslides are wonky but I just changed my technique and they seem to be working fine. Only problem trick has been with crooks but I attribute that to sizing down my trucks and not knowing where it is under my board. (I ride an 8.38)

148s are nice, and i land more tricks using thunders, than i do when i use ace.
frustratingly, sometimes the tricks i land, feel ‘better’ using ace classic 55s, but i finally gave them away to just try and banish that type of feeling

[j....soy.....]

I'm just talking turning radius too....the bushings can make a difference in how the trucks perform.  Honestly I think just skating Thunder's tighter is not the worst idea either.  The beginning of the turn will still be there.....  All the trucks have benefits.