Unpopular Gear Opinion Thread 2025

[hayduke lives]

I thought mine sucked. Jammed more and a group of us that got them at the same time all had cages break basically skating flat and ledges. It's just a marketing gimmick.

did you get bad swiss or china 6-balls? i know there was talk of bad batch of big balls on here years ago. i've been using swiss 6 since they came out and have never had any problems. hands down they're my favorite. i'd counter that based on my one set quantum atoms were the worst bearings i ever bought. i had two wheels spinning like crap from brand new. sent them pic of reciept and video thinking they'd make it right with a few new bearings or at least send lube. they just told me to "buy speed cream" lol. even after a couple drops of speed cream still crap. my friend swears by his but i'll never give them another shot. funny how one bad experience can sour us on a product.

[churned gristle]

Riser pads are underutilized.

In what way? I tried risers after succumbing to the bigwheel and they made me feel too high off the ground.

[biaherl]

I don't mind how white Bones wheels are


Could care less about wheel graphics, you're never gonna see mine

[DERBY]

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Riser pads are underutilized.

[close]

In what way? I tried risers after succumbing to the bigwheel and they made me feel too high off the ground.

depends on what trucks ya be using. find out they work best on aces and thunders. indys feel od

[Mbrimson88]

Riser pads are underutilized.

Ha yeah once I would always have something under the truck because everything just felt a little too low and I would get way too much wheelbite back in the 2000s and early 2010s on Thunder, Indy (earlier stages) and some others.

Now I tend to not really use risers as much as I would cut wheel wells in to any board that I am finding I wheelbite on, but on Thunders I have to use both a 2 mm riser (I made them from rubber sheeting offcuts) and cut wheel wells, to have things feel comfortable.

It is not that I even ride the trucks "that loose" but more just I have become so used to the amount of turn I get from the front that any board now just feels a little off.

Also I think the average wheel size I ride has come down from 56+ mm to closer to 52 - 54 mm in general, which means lower and easier for me these days.  I used to regularly set up 59 mm Bigheads back before F4 came out.


* I still have a lot of boards with 1 mm thin rubber risers when on bigger wheels on a normal setup, but have risers on almost any and every cruiser setup with big soft wheels, as they just work better like that.

[swongolianbbq]

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Even Bones doesn't need Reds, super Reds, ceramic Reds and so forth. Give us Reds, Swiss, maybe one other.

[close]

There is room for the Swiss-6 and Big Balls Reds. I pick them all day over the 7 ball variants. I'd be fine with just Mini Logos, Big Balls and Swiss 6.

I definitely think there's room for em. I have 3 sets of big balls, 1 set of super swiss six, two sets of mini logos, and two sets of ceramic reds. In the past I only ran black bones, I've never had the swiss ceramics, I use my ceramic reds packed with with grease on cruisers/rain setups, I used to have mini logos with the shield popped on an 80's setup and it was great, now I have the mini logos to help my friends out when they need new bearings or blow one out or whatever.. my super swiss 6's got all rusty and fucked up after skating in the rain early one morning to get more booze, and I shook em up in the bones bearings cleaner a couple weeks later and added some speed cream and they're totally back to normal

Big balls are prolly my fav at like 30 bucks a set

[BeachChicken]

So there's still no statement of what they actually do better, just some general "hey I liked mine enough". There are supposed benefits of acceleration or speed which wouldn't even be noticed at skating speeds and it's cool if yours were fine but I was approaching more from "do we really need them"

To be fair I thought some of Quantum's marketing tech was bs, but I have had some Atoms for 5 years, clean them less frequently, and they've been more durable than my last few sets of Swiss or 6. Maybe it's the tech, but they are a sensible addition to the market although their catalog is insanely bloated.

[Too Frank To Fred]

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Riser pads are underutilized.

[close]

In what way? I tried risers after succumbing to the bigwheel and they made me feel too high off the ground.

Not just for wheel bite. They can help with pop and improve truck turning. Just takes a bit of effort to dial in the timing...

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

Even more so than trucks....all bearings are the same. 

[Obijuan91]

Classic shaped wheels have a wimpy flip

[Pbn_jake]

You don’t always have to do switch tricks off the nose or fakie tricks off the tail

[skatebruh]

All bearings are the same

[biaherl]

I can instantly tell when I’m not skating Bones Swiss

[Boog]

I can instantly tell when I’m not skating Bones Swiss

Me too. You don't have to push as much and they just feel smoother. I love my Swiss.

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

New wheels + reds….repeat…

[JM]

New wheels + reds….repeat…

New wheels + Mini Logos

[munchbox]

after spending north of $1200 usd (shoes excluded)
im enjoying skating my gear to dust

it was all in search of a comfortable setup
and now that i found it,
i kind of lost the will to spend on gear
1 deck in the wings in case of a break
thats all at this point

its fun to live vicariously through your stories

[BeachChicken]

Every time I see graphic grip or Shake Junt I lose some respect for the person.

There is not a point to increasing board width without wheelbase width if you flip or pop your board. I'm talking an 8.75 true fit or even one with 14.25 over an 8.5 with the same.

Most people with deck rails don't need them.

[BeachChicken]

In general I see no advantage if you're not increasing length. It will be heavier, flip worse, weight more, and not offer any more "stability". I can see some arguments for the way curb skaters skate or maybe little kids. I think 8" vs 8.5" sure that's a big jump, but do we really need 8.75's that short? Are there thaaaat many skaters with massive feet, long legs, or beholden to 8.75"+ trucks to where these shapes should exist vs IDK maybe DLX making a normal wb 8.06? Prob not.

[back smith]

In general I see no advantage if you're not increasing length. It will be heavier, flip worse, weight more, and not offer any more "stability". I can see some arguments for the way curb skaters skate or maybe little kids. I think 8" vs 8.5" sure that's a big jump, but do we really need 8.75's that short? Are there thaaaat many skaters with massive feet, long legs, or beholden to 8.75"+ trucks to where these shapes should exist vs IDK maybe DLX making a normal wb 8.06? Prob not.

Can do tighter turns and ride tighter transition than a longer board, more room to grind, tricks may take more effort to get going but they are easier to land which gives confidence.. And it just feels good, my shoe size is 11 which I guess is among the most common sizes.

[scab]

In general I see no advantage if you're not increasing length. It will be heavier, flip worse, weight more, and not offer any more "stability". I can see some arguments for the way curb skaters skate or maybe little kids. I think 8" vs 8.5" sure that's a big jump, but do we really need 8.75's that short? Are there thaaaat many skaters with massive feet, long legs, or beholden to 8.75"+ trucks to where these shapes should exist vs IDK maybe DLX making a normal wb 8.06? Prob not.

Most of your opinions boil down to "I personally don't like this, so it shouldn't exist".

[back smith]

Rails on the edge of the board make grabs a lot easier. That's probably not unpopular enough, so lets say rails belong on the edge of the board not in the middle!

[backsideroller]

This is a good thread...

Indys are sooooo boring.

People that complain about ripping shoelaces are weird.

People that only skate one brand of hardware are weird.

Board dimensions do matter, but not much. You could easily skate a 2x4 if you always skated a 2x4. Does that make sense?

Flatspots aren't real.

2 bolts for each truck is fine.

Most insoles that come in shoes are absolutely terrible. Vans pop cush might be the only exception.

Griptape brand is actually really important.

There should be more coloured wheels, not just white and occasionally black.

Any carbon fiber gimmick (VX, Flight, DBX, Impact etc.) is a straight up lie. The only one that is true is the one for Girl boards I forget what it's called. (Pop Secret?)

Similarly, dragon wheels and the like are a scam. They figured out a way to sell cruiser board wheels to street skaters at a higher markup.

The new Andrew Reynolds shoe for NB is HIDEOUS! WTF are those colourways?! NB shoes in general have got to be the ugliest skate shoe brand out there. IDK why but the idea of having 1 letter on the side of a shoe is so dumb to me. My brain says 'At least finish the sentence'.

The NHS board brands are the worst decks I have ever had the misfortune of skating. IDK what woodshop they are but goddamn they suck. Santa Cruz especially.

Amongst many, many others...

i ate shit and blew a truck in half hill bombing with 2 bolts one and one broke mid powerslide i found the hangar with  the wheels but never the bushings since then its always 4 bolts for me

[moonordie]

Radial full look stupid. 

[lulz]

after spending north of $1200 usd (shoes excluded)
im enjoying skating my gear to dust

it was all in search of a comfortable setup
and now that i found it,
i kind of lost the will to spend on gear
1 deck in the wings in case of a break
thats all at this point

its fun to live vicariously through your stories

This is beautiful, congratulations!

What’s your setup, and why does it work for you?

[BeachChicken]

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In general I see no advantage if you're not increasing length. It will be heavier, flip worse, weight more, and not offer any more "stability". I can see some arguments for the way curb skaters skate or maybe little kids. I think 8" vs 8.5" sure that's a big jump, but do we really need 8.75's that short? Are there thaaaat many skaters with massive feet, long legs, or beholden to 8.75"+ trucks to where these shapes should exist vs IDK maybe DLX making a normal wb 8.06? Prob not.

[close]

Most of your opinions boil down to "I personally don't like this, so it shouldn't exist".

I personally don't care about this, just going through the logic. DLX is an example of a brand making really niche shapes and a lot of them like they don't actually really need to exist, yet they are inconsistent in delivering things a lot of people might skate. Just sharing my unpopular opinion on that kind of shape. They're too short for true transition riders, too wide for tech dudes that like short decks and/or kids, and seem to not solve any problems.

It's sorta like the Thunder T2. Why develop a Thunder version of an Indy when they can't even get bushings and durability right on their existing truck. I would ride Thunders if they solved those issues but no interest in a T2.

[scab]

[DLX  makes] really niche shapes and a lot of them don't actually really need to exist, yet they are inconsistent in delivering things a lot of people might skate.

I was referring to your general way of making posts like the above. That reads like a factual statement, not an opinion. But if I follow your logic in this particular case, I see two options: Either DLX knows less about which shapes actually sell than some dudes on the internet, which I find very hard to believe with them being in this business for 40 years, or they do know which shapes do well and actively choose to undersupply them, which I also find hard to believe because skateboarding isn't a luxury industry and the margins are so slim that no company can afford to identify a cash cow and then not milk it. Both of these options don't make sense to me. What am I missing?

[tzhangdox]

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In general I see no advantage if you're not increasing length. It will be heavier, flip worse, weight more, and not offer any more "stability". I can see some arguments for the way curb skaters skate or maybe little kids. I think 8" vs 8.5" sure that's a big jump, but do we really need 8.75's that short? Are there thaaaat many skaters with massive feet, long legs, or beholden to 8.75"+ trucks to where these shapes should exist vs IDK maybe DLX making a normal wb 8.06? Prob not.

[close]

Most of your opinions boil down to "I personally don't like this, so it shouldn't exist".

[close]

I personally don't care about this, just going through the logic. DLX is an example of a brand making really niche shapes and a lot of them like they don't actually really need to exist, yet they are inconsistent in delivering things a lot of people might skate. Just sharing my unpopular opinion on that kind of shape. They're too short for true transition riders, too wide for tech dudes that like short decks and/or kids, and seem to not solve any problems.

It's sorta like the Thunder T2. Why develop a Thunder version of an Indy when they can't even get bushings and durability right on their existing truck. I would ride Thunders if they solved those issues but no interest in a T2.

[close]

You should just make a thread called Beachchicken’s subjective gear opinions.

Mate this is literally the unpopular gear opinion thread

[tzhangdox]

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In general I see no advantage if you're not increasing length. It will be heavier, flip worse, weight more, and not offer any more "stability". I can see some arguments for the way curb skaters skate or maybe little kids. I think 8" vs 8.5" sure that's a big jump, but do we really need 8.75's that short? Are there thaaaat many skaters with massive feet, long legs, or beholden to 8.75"+ trucks to where these shapes should exist vs IDK maybe DLX making a normal wb 8.06? Prob not.

[close]

Most of your opinions boil down to "I personally don't like this, so it shouldn't exist".

[close]

I personally don't care about this, just going through the logic. DLX is an example of a brand making really niche shapes and a lot of them like they don't actually really need to exist, yet they are inconsistent in delivering things a lot of people might skate. Just sharing my unpopular opinion on that kind of shape. They're too short for true transition riders, too wide for tech dudes that like short decks and/or kids, and seem to not solve any problems.

It's sorta like the Thunder T2. Why develop a Thunder version of an Indy when they can't even get bushings and durability right on their existing truck. I would ride Thunders if they solved those issues but no interest in a T2.

[close]

You should just make a thread called Beachchicken’s subjective gear opinions.

[close]

Mate this is literally the unpopular gear opinion thread

[close]

Refer to what Scab said above. He takes it a little further than simply stating an unpopular opinion.

Questioning if a board shape is beneficial and whether or not it needs to exist is a way of expressing an unpopular opinion.

Example: The 14 inch wide heroin egg boards are stupid af and dont need to exist.

^Also reads like a fact... but is just my opinion, though probably not an unpopular one.

[BeachChicken]

This is the opinion thread. Nothing is factual. There are my opinions. I have some reasons for some, others not at all really. I randomly jot some down but I'm not going on for pages about any of them. I usually respond once then move on.

If DLX is so smart about shape sales why do they have so many shapes that last like 2 drops or that are super similar? Lots of people just buy what's at the shop and remotely sounds good and don't think about this much. My wild take is that lots of these things make less sense for brands to produce than finally making bushings for their trucks that don't absolutely suck. Lots of people riding 8" decks don't want a 14" wb and they produce way more of those than True Fits.

Lots of shops don't get to choose DLX inventory much. DLX knows what they supply shops, not necessarily what sells. Most shops don't even have an inventory system especially if they don't sell online. My local shop requests True Fits and DLX never sends any. They send them shit they don't ask for constantly. I doubt DLX has an optimized demand model lol.