Gear madness support thread

[AlumarX]

Expand Quote

I had a PS stix 8" deck that just wasn't working for me on venture lows, so I bit the bullet on 5.2 v-light hi to get the forged plate and it felt incredible. But for some of my other decks I might try something else, the pivot cup squeak is gonna drive me insane lol, it sounds like my aunt's 1999 Eddie Bouer Explorer suspension.

[close]

lots of solutions for this. soap. cum. bike grease. dish soap. motor oil. bar soap.

I do it every 3 months, it always comes back.

[Ok]

Expand Quote

Expand Quote

Took my 8.27 setup with Indy 149s out this morning cause it was a little wet outside (just a mist). It’s crazy how much easier it is to maneuver than my 8.5 setup with Indy 159s and Radial Fulls. Still, I’ll take speed and stability over maneuverability.

As more time passes I’m starting to realize how insane it is to have multiple setups if you only skate 2-3 times a week.

Even if you skate daily. It’s best to say, “This is my skateboard. I’ll make it work.” It’s like choosing a partner, at some point you have to stop searching and pick someone’s who’s “good enough.”

Online dating is really bad right now cause everyone always thinks there’s a better person out there, so they become addicted to meeting new folks. It’s like that with madness too. There’s so much cheap gear out there, it’s easy to become addicted to finding the perfect setup that doesn’t exist.

Idk, rant over 🥲

[close]

I hear you, I feel you. BUT the more the merrier, no? I don't think I can be properly monagamic, ever. At least I gotta have a specific setup for big transition that is obviously quite a bit different from what I ride when I want to hit curbs and flatground. I mean, yeah, if you're good enough, one setup can be enough, but I'm not Grant Taylor.

Having said that, I've also steered towards a one setup approach recently. If I'm not hitting something like near-vert transition, I tend to ride an 8.25 with 144 Indys or 5.6 Venture His pretty much everywhere. But still, that 8.125 in the corner keeps whispering in my ear when I plan to hit the techier street spots...

[close]

My .02 cents...

I think it also depends on why you have different set-ups. I have three. 8.25, 8.75, and a Black Label Street Thing. The 8.25 is my main ride. But, as I've said many times before, sometimes shit just feels better on a bigger board. Without question, I actually skate better on the 8.25, but at least for me, skating is not always about skating at my maximum potential 100% of the time. Sometimes I just like the better feeling of Smith grind on my 8.75. I really love Chicken Korma, but if I had to eat it every single meal of my life, I'd prolly grow sick of it. Sex is fun, but always doing in the same position wouldn't feel as good. Reasonable variety can make things better at times.

so you have sex and can smith grind.
fuck you.

[LebowskisRug]

I've been riding Venture V-Cast with the all hollow bullshit or V Lights for the last 6 weeks. My deck is almost dead so I tried my Thunders on it today.

It took a long time to adapt my flip tricks and they weren't any better. I'd need 3 sessions just to adjust for questionable benefits. I frankly don't get how I ever made such drastic or frequent changes or how others do so with confidence. I can't imagine going back and forth constantly especially between options that effect timing.

[Mbrimson88]

Anyone try Bones in Indy? I feel like they're too short in height and would fuck up the geo instead of compliment it.

A few people I know ride the Bones bushings in anything and everything and customise the height / angle with or without added washers depending on whether the bushings are new, old or whatever truck they are in.

Bones hards are the usual go to though, starting off just the bushings and maybe the Bones flat washer on top, then as they break in and soften up some / flatten down, they add in the usual washers, or two top Indy washers - the smaller ones - on both top and bottom as you would for any other set of conical bushings.

I have skated one guys board from just putting them in to being well worn in and they work in any trucks - Indy, Venture, Thunder being what they ride, so although I am not really a fan of how they perform, the Bones hard bushings hold up well enough for the most part for the skating that they do and they don't go easy on them, that's for sure.

To note, this guy switches things out every other month or less as well, so there are a lot of sets of well used Bones hard bushings floating around in my spare parts area, way more than any other brand of bushings, but that is what he rides, so I don't argue.

[Ok]

Expand Quote

Anyone try Bones in Indy? I feel like they're too short in height and would fuck up the geo instead of compliment it.

[close]

A few people I know ride the Bones bushings in anything and everything and customise the height / angle with or without added washers depending on whether the bushings are new, old or whatever truck they are in.

Bones hards are the usual go to though, starting off just the bushings and maybe the Bones flat washer on top, then as they break in and soften up some / flatten down, they add in the usual washers, or two top Indy washers - the smaller ones - on both top and bottom as you would for any other set of conical bushings.

I have skated one guys board from just putting them in to being well worn in and they work in any trucks - Indy, Venture, Thunder being what they ride, so although I am not really a fan of how they perform, the Bones hard bushings hold up well enough for the most part for the skating that they do and they don't go easy on them, that's for sure.

To note, this guy switches things out every other month or less as well, so there are a lot of sets of well used Bones hard bushings floating around in my spare parts area, way more than any other brand of bushings, but that is what he rides, so I don't argue.

bones hards are the best, of that brand.
i use to see this person that has since left us, whom i very much admired from a far, use bones mediums in stage 10 indys. he was early to the skating of 149s, and made everything he did look really good. much if my gear madness, was sparked in part by watching this dude.
once stage 11s came out i saw less people using bones in indys. couple of older guys that went full into bushings were buying both mediums and softs, and using the soft tops….that’s just too much. not sure why you’d want to make life that much more difficult.

i first used bones when i messed up my orion’s bushings, by cranking and exploding them. now, before ye jest, at the time orion had some dudes. and i think they were just supposed to skate like a lower, lighter indy. maybe i was on the tail end of that tho….no one check the timeline of these products, but i ‘remember’ all of this happening in the early 2000s. ish. the orions were actually kinda sick. i probably skated them for a week and then quit for a months, per usual for me, at this time.

[lamfordie]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CxTJvxitrGl/?igshid=NjIwNzIyMDk2Mg==
An inverted hollow titanium magnesium truck for only $60. Sounds too good to be true.

[Creachteach]

I've given myself madness. Suddenly im skating Venture 5,8 V-Hollows. I kinda like it them, but not. I'd really like a more mellow setup that doesnt require as much force all the time.
Considering going back to indy, but I do find them too twitchy at center. Any way to make them more stable center?
Also consider buying a pair of Ace AF1 Hollows.

As a larger than average individual I’ve fucked around with bushings a lot. To try and make skateboard trucks just work, and not get kills by wheelbite.
I’ve come up with this. I found these washers that really hug the bushings. They go on the bottom, with a hard barrel bushing, and then I just put a bones har bushing on top, cause I love the snap and response of bones, but I want more resistance at the end of the range.
Haven’t skated that much lately, but I think this how I’m getting down going forward.

[manysnakes]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CxTJvxitrGl/?igshid=NjIwNzIyMDk2Mg==
An inverted hollow titanium magnesium truck for only $60. Sounds too good to be true.

I guess it was only a matter of time until we got Alibaba brand skateboard components.

[rocklobster]

Expand Quote

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CxTJvxitrGl/?igshid=NjIwNzIyMDk2Mg==
An inverted hollow titanium magnesium truck for only $60. Sounds too good to be true.

[close]

I guess it was only a matter of time until we got Alibaba brand skateboard components.

If weight was the sole factor for truck performance then Tensor trucks alone then Dwindle would be thriving and be sold for 5x the original price.

[boneless900]

Expand Quote

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CxTJvxitrGl/?igshid=NjIwNzIyMDk2Mg==
An inverted hollow titanium magnesium truck for only $60. Sounds too good to be true.

[close]

I guess it was only a matter of time until we got Alibaba brand skateboard components.

Looks like a set of trucks from Temu

[Xen]

Look like thunder-ish hangers.

sooo many threads showing on that ti pin. I'd try them but I'm trying to wrangle my for fun/experimental skate purchases Ti pins are soooo light (RIP Theeve) I'd prefer a ti pin and cast plates/solid hangers.

They should sell that krux style downlow pin tho since everyone shifted to the hex one this round.

[Xen]

Expand Quote

Bones bushings get way too much hype in my opinion. Stock bushings in Indys and Ventures cover most needs and last longer than Bones. And as Slappers above stated, if the orange stock Indys feel too soft (GIVE THEM TIME FIRST), the blue 92s are the bee's knees.

[close]

Just bought some conical 92s to throw in my cruiser so I can be surfing but stable while rolling around. If I like em enough may get an extra set for my main setup. Currently on 90 conical

I was a Bones bushings fanatic  (medium hard was my go to) when I was a teenager. Their gimmick (be it valid or placebo) was that the bushings were good to go right away. That appealed to me as a teenager because I was impatient and didn't wanna break in bushings for whatever trucks I skated. However, like Lakais that break in quick, they wear out quick so I do recall getting 50-70% of lifespan in them compared to my Indy bushings. I had quality at the cost of durability.

I tried them in Thunders, Royals, and maybe Silvers.  Not sure if I tried them in Indy once I committed to riding those full time since 2010. Anyone try Bones in Indy? I feel like they're too short in height and would fuck up the geo instead of compliment it.

Personally, I find Med Bones and indy to be the best combo for me (when riding indy, that is). Could be that I did for soooo long that it's memory muscle feel. Yeah the bones can blow out (could always go hard bones suffer the break-in as they hold up way longer and feel like forever mediums once broken in.

[munchbox]

please let the next board i buy be the one i fall in love with
im tired of searching

[Boog]

please let the next board i buy be the one i fall in love with
im tired of searching

Buy what you like. What you progressed most on. Not what you think you will like. And just stick with it. Constantly changing isn't going to help anything.

[Ourladyoftheflowers]

Skated two years on Indy. Last two sets broke on me, two replacement sets from broken hangers. Switched to venture and absolutely love them. The only thing is after about seven months I hit axel (usually I get about a year from Indy’s if they don’t break). I sprained my ankle and when I could cruise around I had Indy’s in my cruiser. The pop feels so good. Indys feel like home but I’m afraid if I switch back I’m gonna have the same issues breaking them. My issue is with everything but decks I have my setup dialed so I have a set of ventures on ice. Trying to resist buying Indy’s with Black Friday sales so I don’t start the madness again.

[LebowskisRug]

We often hear of broken trucks or major gear issues on here but the reality is lost people ride shit and never break it or have major issues. People who tend to skate a lot, especially bigger stuff with lots of impact, will be much more likely to eventually do something especially as stuff wears. You probably got unlucky or there's something we don't know about your skating or how worn the gear was before breaking.

I will say that it does seem broken Ti axles are an Indy specific thing that pops up on here and my local shop mentioned lots of cracked hangers near the axle ends but that that improved after the move to China.

[Ourladyoftheflowers]

We often hear of broken trucks or major gear issues on here but the reality is lost people ride shit and never break it or have major issues. People who tend to skate a lot, especially bigger stuff with lots of impact, will be much more likely to eventually do something especially as stuff wears. You probably got unlucky or there's something we don't know about your skating or how worn the gear was before breaking.

I will say that it does seem broken Ti axles are an Indy specific thing that pops up on here and my local shop mentioned lots of cracked hangers near the axle ends but that that improved after the move to China.

Yeah truth prob just got unlucky cause they both broke within two months and I mostly skate ledges/wallrides and am very low impact. I was surprised cause I always thought of Indy as the most durable truck. Maybe I will try a set after these ventures wear out so if I have any issues I still have the ventures (or if they work out I’ll give the ventures to a kid at the local)

[OhioGuy]

Expand Quote

please let the next board i buy be the one i fall in love with
im tired of searching

[close]

Buy what you like. What you progressed most on. Not what you think you will like. And just stick with it. Constantly changing isn't going to help anything.

Yup. Gotta say, “This is my shape and I’m sticking to it.” The perfect deck doesn’t exist. Also, I can pretty much get used to any popsicle after a session or two. I think it’s mostly mental. If you tell yourself that you hate your deck you’re gonna perform badly.

[Ok]

Expand Quote

Expand Quote

please let the next board i buy be the one i fall in love with
im tired of searching

[close]

Buy what you like. What you progressed most on. Not what you think you will like. And just stick with it. Constantly changing isn't going to help anything.

[close]

Yup. Gotta say, “This is my shape and I’m sticking to it.” The perfect deck doesn’t exist. Also, I can pretty much get used to any popsicle after a session or two. I think it’s mostly mental. If you tell yourself that you hate your deck you’re gonna perform badly.

i mean whe you say it like that….

madness is this sludge of me wanting to be stoked, excited. that’s it. i went to skate last night, highly less than ideal scenario, dragging after work, get out there and it’s dark, damp, under a street light. some folks suffering from drug addictions popping up. whatever. anyways, being me, i had 2 pairs of shoes, 2 setups. i skated ‘better’ on the 8.125 with 5.2 lo’s, than on the 7.75 with 5.0 lo’s. what i noticed, was that i didn’t care. it was nice to land more stuff, and the vibrations/tone of the ps stix 8.125 felt noticeably better, than the older crail 7.75. but the 8.125 looked dumb as fuck. to me. the pov was not my fave.
i also hated looking down at the dunks, as opposed to my old half cabs. skate better in the dunks. and hurt less today, from spending more time in the more supportive shoe.


blah blah. one board better.

[OhioGuy]

Expand Quote

Expand Quote

Expand Quote

please let the next board i buy be the one i fall in love with
im tired of searching

[close]

Buy what you like. What you progressed most on. Not what you think you will like. And just stick with it. Constantly changing isn't going to help anything.

[close]

Yup. Gotta say, “This is my shape and I’m sticking to it.” The perfect deck doesn’t exist. Also, I can pretty much get used to any popsicle after a session or two. I think it’s mostly mental. If you tell yourself that you hate your deck you’re gonna perform badly.

[close]

i mean whe you say it like that….

madness is this sludge of me wanting to be stoked, excited. that’s it. i went to skate last night, highly less than ideal scenario, dragging after work, get out there and it’s dark, damp, under a street light. some folks suffering from drug addictions popping up. whatever. anyways, being me, i had 2 pairs of shoes, 2 setups. i skated ‘better’ on the 8.125 with 5.2 lo’s, than on the 7.75 with 5.0 lo’s. what i noticed, was that i didn’t care. it was nice to land more stuff, and the vibrations/tone of the ps stix 8.125 felt noticeably better, than the older crail 7.75. but the 8.125 looked dumb as fuck. to me. the pov was not my fave.
i also hated looking down at the dunks, as opposed to my old half cabs. skate better in the dunks. and hurt less today, from spending more time in the more supportive shoe.


blah blah. one board better.

I get that. You want to be stoked on your gear. And all of it doesn’t feel the same. Wasn’t trying to deny the differences. Was just saying you gotta just give up at some point. That’s all 😌

[FGO925]

I’ve complained about this here before, but I need to vent yet again.

Does everyone just skate with broken bushings or is it just me? I’m truly not sure what’s going on and I’m convinced I’m doing something wrong but I don’t know what.

Every truck brand/bushing brand I use starts to split and crack and eventually disintegrate within like 2 weeks. I’m 170lbs and I ride my trucks medium ish? I understand most people who say medium actually ride them right, but I would say mine are closer to loose - nut is flush, maybe  tighten them to the point you can see 1 thread on occasion.

I don’t leave my board in my car, and I’m not doing super pinched tricks constantly like crooks. Recently I set up a board with Indy’s and within about 2 weeks the front bushing blew up. So I replaced both of the tops with stock Indy bushings, and again this time within a week they’re both splitting and deforming. I can feel it in the turn as it lacks stability and makes the truck feel way more loose. I also skate maybe 1-2 times a week.

I guess my question is does everybody have cracked bushings? Is this just normal and I’m overthinking it?

[LebowskisRug]

Post a pic of your trucks/bushings. Sometimes the top washer circumsizes a little bit of the outside of the top bushing, but does not actually crack it. I crack Thunder and Venture tops doing lots of Slappies but it doesn't change the turn until the split goes to the inside toward the kingpin. I had a cracked bottom bushing in my Thunders for a year and when I replaced it it felt the same.

[Ok]

Expand Quote

Expand Quote

Expand Quote

Expand Quote

please let the next board i buy be the one i fall in love with
im tired of searching

[close]

Buy what you like. What you progressed most on. Not what you think you will like. And just stick with it. Constantly changing isn't going to help anything.

[close]

Yup. Gotta say, “This is my shape and I’m sticking to it.” The perfect deck doesn’t exist. Also, I can pretty much get used to any popsicle after a session or two. I think it’s mostly mental. If you tell yourself that you hate your deck you’re gonna perform badly.

[close]

i mean whe you say it like that….

madness is this sludge of me wanting to be stoked, excited. that’s it. i went to skate last night, highly less than ideal scenario, dragging after work, get out there and it’s dark, damp, under a street light. some folks suffering from drug addictions popping up. whatever. anyways, being me, i had 2 pairs of shoes, 2 setups. i skated ‘better’ on the 8.125 with 5.2 lo’s, than on the 7.75 with 5.0 lo’s. what i noticed, was that i didn’t care. it was nice to land more stuff, and the vibrations/tone of the ps stix 8.125 felt noticeably better, than the older crail 7.75. but the 8.125 looked dumb as fuck. to me. the pov was not my fave.
i also hated looking down at the dunks, as opposed to my old half cabs. skate better in the dunks. and hurt less today, from spending more time in the more supportive shoe.


blah blah. one board better.

[close]

I get that. You want to be stoked on your gear. And all of it doesn’t feel the same. Wasn’t trying to deny the differences. Was just saying you gotta just give up at some point. That’s all 😌

oh no.

i’m agreeing with you.
at a certain point, you can’t ride all of the stuff, all of the time. just gotta pick one.

i used to think it’d be funny when i’d see someone so strict in their adherence to a personal code: ‘oh i only ride 8.5, i only ride x brand of trucks’, etc.
but now….i’m kinda just flirting with this 7.75 as an identity. if i suck, i suck.

[frontsideNECKTIE]

I've found comfortability in wheelbases from 14-14.25" and I'm afraid I'll forget how to ollie if i go >14.5

[LebowskisRug]

I'm the opposite- any shorter than like 14.1 and my pop is disgustingly bad. 14.5 it feels so nice and floaty.

[Ok]

I'm the opposite- any shorter than like 14.1 and my pop is disgustingly bad. 14.5 it feels so nice and floaty.

i’ve long been a proponent of short wb’s. i think i may have gotten it wrong, and that what i really need is a short tail, and preferably a short deck length.
long wb’s have some serious advantages, speed and stability, and then yeah, there is some advantages for me, on ollies.
primitive used to have a shape just over 8”, that had a longer wb, something like 14.4 ish. i wish i had tried that one. the crail shapes with the short tail and the 14.43 wb are nice (i’ve only tried the 8.5 one, but looooooved it).


*** maybe someone could chime in on tail length. i’m resistant to go down that portal of doom….it is difficult for me to ignore that i enjoy riding both the crail 7.75 with something like a 13.9ish wb, and around 31.125 length, and then the griffin gass shape that’s 8.5x14.43x32. the only commonality is the tail length.

[Sedition]

^ I know I've mentioned it before, but a WB that is too short for me, makes my ollies/nollies feel like I am swinging a bat, golf club, or hockey stick while choked-up on the handle, which is to say it's a total loss of power. Stated another way, it's like trying to run, but not being allowed to break into a full sprint. For non-ollie tricks (say a f/s 5-0 grind on a ramp, any slappy variation, or even just turning out of a board slide), if a wb is too short, it feels super cramped, like a tall isosceles triangle that doesn't have a base wide enough to give it proper stability. Flip tricks get too twitchy/sensitive. I often find myself landing things with my front foot too far out over the nose (which can be deadly on reentry with transition, bank, etc.). If a WB is too long, everything gets really sluggish.

Unrelated, I had been religiously riding IV stamped DLX decks. I ended up with a III a bit ago, and I liked it. I got another III, and also enjoyed it. I decided to push the envelope, and got a II last week. I hated it. Too steep. Sometimes I think it's good to test your assumptions, if only to establish that they still hold true, and def still don't like steep kicks.   

[Ok]

another advantage to a longer wb is i feel like i can swing for the fences, just chuck a flip trick as hard as i can (because i have to).

all in all, i most likely skate better on shorter wb’s, and greatly appreciate the less effort/input needed for the board to go in a direction.
it is also relevant for me to point out 99% of skating for me at this time is going slow in a parking lot trying to back2back nollie flips. or something of that sort.
if i was skating more than 3 mph a longer wb would feel a lot better

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

I think kickflips=long, 3 flips=short…..

[Ok]

I think kickflips=long, 3 flips=short…..

accurate.
 
a little extra: i can get an easier kickflip on a shorter wb, but a higher one on a longer wb.
3flips are really where my short wb fascination comes in.