Unpopular Gear Opinion Thread 2025

[Rick Trapasso]

Rails look stupid.

Clips with rails on the board look worse.

[Mbrimson88]

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I’ve only skated stock bushings. Is there really a noticeable difference or benefit in changing them?

[close]

Seeing as it is the unpopular gear opinion thread, I am going to go ahead and say that modifying bushings to suit your needs is mandatory - for me anyway.

[close]

Short answer: no it's not – for the majority of people.

Longer answer: it's totally dependent of the skater and the trucks. Most people do just fine without any mods.

Subjective input: I don't modify my bushings on Ventures at all. With Indy, the only "mod" I make is that I sometimes swap in harder bushings.

All the filing / cutting / yada yada is usually just extreme tedious measures and yes, can serve some people, but they are mostly in the small minority. I've NEVER had to sand down a bushing or cut it smaller.

I think this is the fastest moving thread on here right now, or at least on Shoes and Gear.

The funny thing is I wanted to try to stir the thread up, only with a little bit of truth tied in because I just can't deal with total shit talking online, but I see a few people have added comments re bushings, so it is an interesting topic any which way.


The funny thing is so many people I skate with have no end of trouble with getting their boards set up how they want them, but I think the main thing is adjusting bushings as needed.  If things are skating just fine, of course don't change anything, but if not, usually the most common solution is taking down the top bushing, or going up a duro to firm things up, or sometimes both.

Firmer bushings with a little more play have made a huge difference with some setups for people.

[Barack Hussein]

Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

[Lurknopost]

Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

I’d skate an 8” deck before I ever skate an 8” truck

[Sila]

I skated a bunch of wheels before F4 so when I'd read the endless praise about them I thought they'd be some magical wheel. Eventually I got some 99as and wasn't feeling them at all.

[Wilhelm]

Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

That depends on how wide the board is, doesn't it?

[JM]

This should be Limo’s permanent logo.

[DERBY]

This should be Limo’s permanent logo.

nice! though i think their peace logo is the best

[Rick Trapasso]

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This should be Limo’s permanent logo.

[close]

nice! though i think their peace logo is the best

Haven't seen this before, pretty cool.

[moonordie]

Great brand, cool team, awful logos.

[SmashtheState]

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Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

[close]

That depends on how wide the board is, doesn't it?

Nobody wants a flying carpet setup.... Or even a hotrod.

Rails look stupid.

Clips with rails on the board look worse.

That's a hot take especially with older dudes and some dipshits who skate with 1 rail?! Wtf was up with that corny trend?

[Richard Skidder]

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Black grizzly is better than mob and jessup

[close]

What's it like? I've skated jessup forever because I like a slightly less sticky griptape.
If grizzly is in between mob and jessup for stickiness I might give it a try next time.

[close]

Its a completely different formula than whatever they use for their printed grip. (grizzly full color print is too gritty and I do not endorse it) No shop ever carries plain, no bear grizzly, but if, you ever come across the black stuff, give it a feel. I think if you feel the grit then you'll instantly know if you'd like it. I'd describe it as pre-broken in mob.

I sand down my mob if it's not printed. I think the ink on printed mob dulls down the grit just enough to make it perfect from the start. I like to run the thrasher rainbow mob as often as possible.

[close]

Awesome, thank you!

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Obviously there are a lot of newer skaters and old head casuals who need to loosen their trucks quite a bit.
That being said, there are plenty of “accomplished” skaters that could stand to tighten their trucks a half to whole turn.

[close]

I mean, just skate your trucks however is most comfortable for you. I get a lot of shit for skating "tight trucks".
I'm a very tall, very top heavy guy (6'4 190lbs), when I start tipping over it gets out of control quick.
I just don't feel stable on loose trucks, so I skate a nice medium tightness.

Anytime one of my friends steps on my board they always comment on how tight my trucks are.
Buddy, I'm a foot taller than you and outweigh you by 60lbs, they don't feel tight to me!

I'm sure there are guys out there with my body shape who can pull off loose trucks, but it's just not my thing.

I think what you’re saying actually falls in line with what I meant.
The tight trucks portion was mainly to rule out the droves who crank the bushings into pancakes and then complain about them cracking.
Nothing wrong with a nice medium tightness tailored to the riders preference or even a tight trucks/hard bushing combo.
The point of my statement is that I see a lot of skaters who are on the opposite end of the spectrum running an insanely loose set of trucks that could clearly benefit from some added stability.
Not to say that really loose trucks aren’t perfect for some but definitely not for all. IE: The “ look how loose my trucks are!” crowd, if that makes sense.
In the end, I completely agree, ride what works for you.
I’m on the medium program myself.

[Too Frank To Fred]

Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

1/2" is a massive shift in the skateboard world.

[back smith]

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Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

[close]

That depends on how wide the board is, doesn't it?

[close]

Nobody wants a flying carpet setup.... Or even a hotrod.

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Rails look stupid.

Clips with rails on the board look worse.

[close]

That's a hot take especially with older dudes and some dipshits who skate with 1 rail?! Wtf was up with that corny trend?

I mean looks is one thing maybe someone likes it but most people have rails for easier grabs or slides not looks..

One rail gives more control for slides as you can wiggle between plastic and wood. I have a book from the good old days of 1989 and in the photos the rail situation seems to be pretty evenly spread between no rails, one rail, and two rails, so not a recent trend either.

[TwisT]

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Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

[close]

1/2" is a massive shift in the skateboard world.

Half an inch, but really like a 1/4 inch in each side.

Also I feel like people rode 149s on everything from 8.25 to 9in back in the day.

[Sedition]

At some point we will look back the Big Wheel / Tiny Wheel Base era the same way we look at the Tiny Wheel / Big Pants era.

[MxsDx]

I skated a bunch of wheels before F4 so when I'd read the endless praise about them I thought they'd be some magical wheel. Eventually I got some 99as and wasn't feeling them at all.

What wheels do you prefer?

[SmashtheState]

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Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

[close]

That depends on how wide the board is, doesn't it?

[close]

Nobody wants a flying carpet setup.... Or even a hotrod.

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Rails look stupid.

Clips with rails on the board look worse.

[close]

That's a hot take especially with older dudes and some dipshits who skate with 1 rail?! Wtf was up with that corny trend?

[close]

I mean looks is one thing maybe someone likes it but most people have rails for easier grabs or slides not looks..

One rail gives more control for slides as you can wiggle between plastic and wood. I have a book from the good old days of 1989 and in the photos the rail situation seems to be pretty evenly spread between no rails, one rail, and two rails, so not a recent trend either.

Huh never knew I knew it was good for pool and transition albeit vert and stuff but street skating seems weird.

[Xen]

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Anyone who rides an egg shaped board, must buy and skate a Rick and Morty Primitive shaped board as their next setup.

[close]

Why? Please elaborate this corny take.... I have a ccs 90s egg shape and it's my replacement for a deck that was stolen years ago in the early 90s and haven't had the chance to buy one till recently.

[close]

Lol, it is a corny take, but I see that shape as useless as the primitive board. If it makes you feel better, the SLAP gods did -1 rep for it.

Guess it was truly an unpopular opinion.

[close]

You’re in the right thread.

He’s an uncomfortable truth that’s probably even more unpopular.

Ipath has the ugliest shoe logo, and no one who wears them has any right to complain about Cariuma’s logo

Too make matters worse:

"The IPATH logo always kinda looked like a bull to me. You say it’s an “I” though, is there something subliminal going on there?
So Matt [Field] had this dream where there was a bull in a field charging at him and he wasn’t wearing shoes so he had to run into the forest and he came to a tree where he fell asleep and he woke up and looked at his footprints and they had the bull horns.

No, I’m kidding, there isn’t any bull connection. It’s an I. The I in IPATH stands for the creator of all things in this world, who guides our lives in the right direction. In our daily lives, we are always at the crossroads of good and evil. Everyone has a creator inside them who guides their path."

[neonbrown]

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Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

[close]

1/2" is a massive shift in the skateboard world.

[close]

Also I feel like people rode 149s on everything from 8.25 to 9in back in the day.

For the first ~20 years I skated, I had trucks of indeterminate widths and bought first whichever decks my mom would allow, and then whatever was cheapest. I don't think issue of deck or truck width crossed my mind until I was at least 30.

[JM]

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Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

[close]

1/2" is a massive shift in the skateboard world.

[close]

Also I feel like people rode 149s on everything from 8.25 to 9in back in the day.

[close]

For the first ~20 years I skated, I had trucks of indeterminate widths and bought first whichever decks my mom would allow, and then whatever was cheapest. I don't think issue of deck or truck width crossed my mind until I was at least 30.

I wish I had your care-free demeanor. That seems really nice.

[roba]

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Anyone who rides an egg shaped board, must buy and skate a Rick and Morty Primitive shaped board as their next setup.

[close]

Why? Please elaborate this corny take.... I have a ccs 90s egg shape and it's my replacement for a deck that was stolen years ago in the early 90s and haven't had the chance to buy one till recently.

[close]

Lol, it is a corny take, but I see that shape as useless as the primitive board. If it makes you feel better, the SLAP gods did -1 rep for it.

Guess it was truly an unpopular opinion.

[close]

“I don’t like egg boards” could potentially be seen as an unpopular opinion, but “Anyone who rides an egg shaped board, must buy and skate a Rick and Morty Primitive shaped board as their next setup” is just a stupid thought you pulled out of your ass and decided to post.

bro took it personal

[neonbrown]

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Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

[close]

1/2" is a massive shift in the skateboard world.

[close]

Also I feel like people rode 149s on everything from 8.25 to 9in back in the day.

[close]

For the first ~20 years I skated, I had trucks of indeterminate widths and bought first whichever decks my mom would allow, and then whatever was cheapest. I don't think issue of deck or truck width crossed my mind until I was at least 30.

[close]

I wish I had your care-free demeanor. That seems really nice.

Had, past tense. I just didn't have the luxury of caring, nor were there readily available resources like Slap, where a Team of Experts™ assembled to tell you that you were doing skateboarding wrong.

[Jort250]

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Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

[close]

1/2" is a massive shift in the skateboard world.

[close]

Also I feel like people rode 149s on everything from 8.25 to 9in back in the day.

[close]

For the first ~20 years I skated, I had trucks of indeterminate widths and bought first whichever decks my mom would allow, and then whatever was cheapest. I don't think issue of deck or truck width crossed my mind until I was at least 30.

[close]

I wish I had your care-free demeanor. That seems really nice.

[close]

Had, past tense. I just didn't have the luxury of caring, nor were there readily available resources like Slap, where a Team of Experts™ assembled to tell you that you were doing skateboarding wrong.

As someone who skated 7.75 Krux on 8 bamboo shop boards in high school, I feel this on too many levels

[Steely Daniel]

8.75 trucks on an 8.38 board felt fucked to me when I was trying to skate that setup. Doubling down with 56mm full conical wheels made doing flip tricks even harder. And I don't need any more difficulty in flipping my board. I thought I wanted bigger wheels to help keep speed on the shit ground at the local but it wasn't worth the trade off.

8.5 149 indys on 8.38 with 53mm full conical wheels feels infinitely better to me. Might even go down to 144s after I fully nose slide down to the pivot cup on these trucks.

I should have just stuck with what I knew before I started skating again rather than experimenting with a bunch of clunky heavy bullshit.

[back smith]

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Truck size doesn't really matter that much. The difference between an 8.5 truck and a 9 is uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh a half an inch. Go look at it on a ruler and then imagine half that. Thats how much your wheel moved dude.

[close]

That depends on how wide the board is, doesn't it?

[close]

Nobody wants a flying carpet setup.... Or even a hotrod.

Expand Quote

Rails look stupid.

Clips with rails on the board look worse.

[close]

That's a hot take especially with older dudes and some dipshits who skate with 1 rail?! Wtf was up with that corny trend?

[close]

I mean looks is one thing maybe someone likes it but most people have rails for easier grabs or slides not looks..

One rail gives more control for slides as you can wiggle between plastic and wood. I have a book from the good old days of 1989 and in the photos the rail situation seems to be pretty evenly spread between no rails, one rail, and two rails, so not a recent trend either.

[close]

Huh never knew I knew it was good for pool and transition albeit vert and stuff but street skating seems weird.

Some people like it other people don't. Slides faster than wood, especially after the paint is gone.

[skateboarder4life]

the antihero greasy pigeon is way better than the classic eagle logo

https://www.companybe.com/cowtown/product_photos/rd_images/rd_antihero-skateboards-pigeon-team-deck-8.32.jpg

even something like this would be better

[Richard Skidder]

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Anyone who rides an egg shaped board, must buy and skate a Rick and Morty Primitive shaped board as their next setup.

[close]

Why? Please elaborate this corny take.... I have a ccs 90s egg shape and it's my replacement for a deck that was stolen years ago in the early 90s and haven't had the chance to buy one till recently.

[close]

Lol, it is a corny take, but I see that shape as useless as the primitive board. If it makes you feel better, the SLAP gods did -1 rep for it.

Guess it was truly an unpopular opinion.

[close]

You’re in the right thread.

He’s an uncomfortable truth that’s probably even more unpopular.

Ipath has the ugliest shoe logo, and no one who wears them has any right to complain about Cariuma’s logo

[close]

Too make matters worse:

"The IPATH logo always kinda looked like a bull to me. You say it’s an “I” though, is there something subliminal going on there?
So Matt [Field] had this dream where there was a bull in a field charging at him and he wasn’t wearing shoes so he had to run into the forest and he came to a tree where he fell asleep and he woke up and looked at his footprints and they had the bull horns.

No, I’m kidding, there isn’t any bull connection. It’s an I. The I in IPATH stands for the creator of all things in this world, who guides our lives in the right direction. In our daily lives, we are always at the crossroads of good and evil. Everyone has a creator inside them who guides their path."

I always thought it was Bigfoot’s nose and eyebrow

[Rick Trapasso]

Even though I'm a huge nb fan with multiple pairs in my closet currently. Including a pair of 990s that I love as chillers.

I really don't care about the 933.

It just looks like a worse version of their classic 900 series shoes imo.

After seeing akwasi skate in those crazy Asics, I would just rather see people skating in regular 900 series shoes. It would look cooler, but people would be breaking tf outta their ankles I bet lol.

[SmashtheState]

the antihero greasy pigeon is way better than the classic eagle logo

https://www.companybe.com/cowtown/product_photos/rd_images/rd_antihero-skateboards-pigeon-team-deck-8.32.jpg

even something like this would be better

I'd back this here, simpler and c'mon the pigeon is the official bird all over the SF area.