Unpopular Gear Opinion Thread 2026

[Sandwich Marty]

For me and especially in Florida. The nyjah/ginwoo short shorts and drifit shirt is undefeated. I've had the skatepark to myself or almost to myself for hours and hours from like 11 to 3 over summer and its been amazing

Because fools pull up and see you in your undies and go skate somewhere else lol 

Jk. More power to you.

[WashingtonNECKTIE]

follow up unpopular opinion

heavy metal punk rock shop patch vest fs slash grind slappy curb men pouring beer into their increasingly large guts has made skateboarding even more embarrassing than it already was

john lucero is cool because he is a fat pig who is still highly skilled and coordinated and his hairball bizarro tricks are mostly cool because he executes them w elegance and grace

old men larping as lucero is the new mid twinks larping as dylan, it's pathetic and delusional

fat guys ur not lucero u actually suck

mid twinks ur not hot and ur impossibles dont wrap and ur ego sickens me

pretending to be someone else is the opposite of being yourself

so was there an opinion on gear in this or just analyzing men's bodies?

[rob]

I don’t like ace af1 trucks

I haven’t revisited the classics but so far I don’t like the way aces feel

The angle for pop and the instability not for me

The way they pop feels mushy not snappy

The way they can turn but never stay centered and stable bugs me cause I put a lot of weight on my feet setting up and it wants to lean and carve

Probably cause I’m not a loosely goosey truck guy

[c-dock]

NB# shoes are all very ugly

Been saying this for years, and now it bugs me even more with how trendy they at the moment

[sadnocomply]

Everyone should be skating Ipath rn instead of athletic brands

[gsosa]

Everyone should be skating Ipath and Hours is yours rn instead of athletic brands

[DarkPools]

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Ventures turn well enough stock.

[close]

That was the sentiment of my original post. I'm an ogre. I don't actually want to be able to u-turn on a dime. I want trucks that keep my board on a somewhat stable trajectory while I frantically try to set up my feet for the trick I've been trying for the last hour. If my trucks respond to the slightest movement I won't even make it to the ledge.

[close]

i'm with this. turnmaxxing trucks are not as fun as people claim. more fun to be able to approach obstacles and have balance and board control.

That's why I like Indy, they do all the good parts of Venture & Ace well enough, but with fewer drawbacks to committing to either end of the truck spectrum.

I can make my Indys carve *like* an Ace, but still feel stable & grind just as powerful as Venture.

I got mad respect for people who can actually pop high on Ace + still make their style look stable and not sloppy. Any time I try Ace, it's like I just got new legs that don't work yet 😆

[dumbfuck]

Expand Quote

follow up unpopular opinion

heavy metal punk rock shop patch vest fs slash grind slappy curb men pouring beer into their increasingly large guts has made skateboarding even more embarrassing than it already was

john lucero is cool because he is a fat pig who is still highly skilled and coordinated and his hairball bizarro tricks are mostly cool because he executes them w elegance and grace

old men larping as lucero is the new mid twinks larping as dylan, it's pathetic and delusional

fat guys ur not lucero u actually suck

mid twinks ur not hot and ur impossibles dont wrap and ur ego sickens me

pretending to be someone else is the opposite of being yourself

[close]

so was there an opinion on gear in this or just analyzing men's bodies?

ur right im a fucking idiot

[Plan9Customs]

Expand Quote

follow up unpopular opinion

heavy metal punk rock shop patch vest fs slash grind slappy curb men pouring beer into their increasingly large guts has made skateboarding even more embarrassing than it already was

john lucero is cool because he is a fat pig who is still highly skilled and coordinated and his hairball bizarro tricks are mostly cool because he executes them w elegance and grace

old men larping as lucero is the new mid twinks larping as dylan, it's pathetic and delusional

fat guys ur not lucero u actually suck

mid twinks ur not hot and ur impossibles dont wrap and ur ego sickens me

pretending to be someone else is the opposite of being yourself

[close]

so was there an opinion on gear in this or just analyzing men's bodies?

He’s just calling guys fat or not as handsome as Dylan. No gear mentions at all. Thirsty!

[moonordie]

Bronson sucks ass.

[Slayer666]

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Changing anything about ur trucks will make them turn worse flat washers or whatever tf stock is best. Put one already broken in indy barrel in ur ventures to make them work 1000x better

[close]

lol so which one is better, stock or indy barrel?

all I’m saying is people complain about  ventures turning bad if ur not patient enough to break them in, Indy barrels fit and make them turn way better if you have to change something about ur trucks. Any other brand I swear by stock

[HyperBeam]

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Ventures turn well enough stock.

[close]

That was the sentiment of my original post. I'm an ogre. I don't actually want to be able to u-turn on a dime. I want trucks that keep my board on a somewhat stable trajectory while I frantically try to set up my feet for the trick I've been trying for the last hour. If my trucks respond to the slightest movement I won't even make it to the ledge.

[close]

i'm with this. turnmaxxing trucks are not as fun as people claim. more fun to be able to approach obstacles and have balance and board control.

[close]

That's why I like Indy, they do all the good parts of Venture & Ace well enough, but with fewer drawbacks to committing to either end of the truck spectrum.

I can make my Indys carve *like* an Ace, but still feel stable & grind just as powerful as Venture.

I got mad respect for people who can actually pop high on Ace + still make their style look stable and not sloppy. Any time I try Ace, it's like I just got new legs that don't work yet 😆

even indys are borderline for me. i've had some great sessions on indys, but since switching back to regular thunders, there's not a rad slappy you could carve into that compares to the feeling of board control and lightness.

[Mbrimson88]

Expand Quote

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Ventures turn well enough stock.

[close]

That was the sentiment of my original post. I'm an ogre. I don't actually want to be able to u-turn on a dime. I want trucks that keep my board on a somewhat stable trajectory while I frantically try to set up my feet for the trick I've been trying for the last hour. If my trucks respond to the slightest movement I won't even make it to the ledge.

[close]

i'm with this. turnmaxxing trucks are not as fun as people claim. more fun to be able to approach obstacles and have balance and board control.

That's why I like Indy, they do all the good parts of Venture & Ace well enough, but with fewer drawbacks to committing to either end of the truck spectrum.

I can make my Indys carve *like* an Ace, but still feel stable & grind just as powerful as Venture.

I got mad respect for people who can actually pop high on Ace + still make their style look stable and not sloppy. Any time I try Ace, it's like I just got new legs that don't work yet 😆

even indys are borderline for me. i've had some great sessions on indys, but since switching back to regular thunders, there's not a rad slappy you could carve into that compares to the feeling of board control and lightness.

Would another "Unpopular Gear Opinion" be that someone could get used and then stick to any truck, given they had enough time on only that brand / option?

That is not even to think about all the despicable things I do to modify a setup, but just setting up trucks and then getting used to how they skate.

I wonder...

[TwisT]

Bronson sucks ass.

I don't think that's unpopular. Bronson has been all marketing from the jump. I respect NHS's well-executed plan to become the number 2 bearing brand, although I don't think anyone is close to bones in units sold. Bronson Bearings don't live up to their marketing. at least not the G3s. never skated the raws.

[HyperBeam]

but just setting up trucks and then getting used to how they skate.

in my opinion, this is a form of self-gaslighting. i spent significant time skating indy/ace chasing marginal benefits (eg, sick turning, cool-looking, trendy) when, in the main, skating was just not as fun/aggressive/expansive as it was on thunders. told myself it was all in my head and that i could get "used to it," but any time i put the thunders back on, the truth was always right there staring at me. so now i just skate thunders.

maybe others are not so wretched as i am, but that's my truth.

[Sandwich Marty]

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but just setting up trucks and then getting used to how they skate.

[close]

in my opinion, this is a form of self-gaslighting. i spent significant time skating indy/ace chasing marginal benefits (eg, sick turning, cool-looking, trendy) when, in the main, skating was just not as fun/aggressive/expansive as it was on thunders. told myself it was all in my head and that i could get "used to it," but any time i put the thunders back on, the truth was always right there staring at me. so now i just skate thunders.

maybe others are not so wretched as i am, but that's my truth.

You could get used to virtually any trucks, but being used to them doesn’t mean they’re the best truck for you. I’ve gotten used to aces, but when I put thunders back on I’m like “oh yeah, all those tricks are much easier now”

Why do we run from the lightening.

[HyperBeam]

^see what i mean? you put thunders on and you just pop and flick the ever-living shit out of a flatground kickflip and you think to yourself, why would i ever willingly jeopardize this feeling?

[Texas_Tone]

^see what i mean? you put thunders on and you just pop and flick the ever-living shit out of a flatground kickflip and you think to yourself, why would i ever willingly jeopardize this feeling?

I have seen the light, I still put harder duro bushings in my setup though

[HyperBeam]

looks like lightning struck twice.

time for another one: thunder baseplate is superior for nose and tailslides. the inset baseplate lets the wheels slide more consistently parallel to the ledge, and even if it bites more often, it does so less aggressively, which leads to a more stable controlled slide because contact with the ledge is distributed evenly among wheels and baseplate.

whereas on indy, you're sliding on a single tiny point. if you're out in front by just a millimeter, the corner of your baseplate sticks and it pinches the wheel straight into the ledge.

[Obijuan91]

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but just setting up trucks and then getting used to how they skate.

[close]

in my opinion, this is a form of self-gaslighting. i spent significant time skating indy/ace chasing marginal benefits (eg, sick turning, cool-looking, trendy) when, in the main, skating was just not as fun/aggressive/expansive as it was on thunders. told myself it was all in my head and that i could get "used to it," but any time i put the thunders back on, the truth was always right there staring at me. so now i just skate thunders.

maybe others are not so wretched as i am, but that's my truth.

[close]

You could get used to virtually any trucks, but being used to them doesn’t mean they’re the best truck for you. I’ve gotten used to aces, but when I put thunders back on I’m like “oh yeah, all those tricks are much easier now”

Why do we run from the lightening.

Cuz the turn is ever changing. Sometimes they’re stable sometimes they’re not. But I guess that’s why some run harder bushings on them. I’m on that can’t stay on them can’t stay off them camp. Some day I’ll commit to them… some day.

[DeanMaple]

The blacked out nyjah 4 is one of the best looking shoes nowadays.

[Mbrimson88]

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but just setting up trucks and then getting used to how they skate.

[close]

in my opinion, this is a form of self-gaslighting. i spent significant time skating indy/ace chasing marginal benefits (eg, sick turning, cool-looking, trendy) when, in the main, skating was just not as fun/aggressive/expansive as it was on thunders. told myself it was all in my head and that i could get "used to it," but any time i put the thunders back on, the truth was always right there staring at me. so now i just skate thunders.

maybe others are not so wretched as i am, but that's my truth.

For sure!

It is interesting to see the other replies too.

I always found Thunder trucks to be too low for what I am used to, but a couple of other guys I skate with will say that Indy Standards are too high for them.  I  do have a couple of boards with Thunders on at the regular height (no risers or anything), smaller wheels and tighter trucks, just to make up for that and they do pop so well, especially on the steeper boards I have put them on.

One guy did just trade back some Thunder forged baseplates as he said they were a little too low as well, but he is used to the 52 mm tall truck, so either Thunder cast baseplates or Venture forged baseplates for him.


I guess the amendment which would then take it out of this thread and maybe go better in the Madness thread, but to say this:

There is no point skating something that just doesn't work for you, or for how you skate.  Best to change it out and ride what does work, without having to fight your board every step of the way.

[rikki]

blacked out nyjah

I see what you did there.

[roba]

i never really cared if my skateboard was squeaking or creaking or making any weird sounds. if it rolls and turns i'm good.

[nopopnostyle]

I’ve actually grown to like squeaky trucks.

After trying a lot to eliminate it and finally being successful, I realized that it’s something that kind of serves a purpose. And is part of a sound/feel/feedback thing I need from my board.

[SwitchBenihana]

There isn't a single best truck. Comparing Thunder to Indy or high to low is kinda pointless. It's all subjective and we can stand to be less opinionated about gear.

I enjoyed years on and off T1 especially when my life was just skating my local park and going straight at a few obstacles or just skating flat back and forth. I moved and started skating more transition again and pitched over the front a lot. Risers helped some, but I tried Stage 11 after swearing off Indy and the adjustment period led to many frustrating flat ground sessions things came around. I went back to my old park and did all the same stuff I had done before. No gaslighting, just spent some time getting used to them. They're not as stable, but for my skating it doesn't seem to matter since they still snap back to center fine. They're not my 1st, 2nd, or even 3rd choice these days but I'd recommend them in a heartbeat.

[HyperBeam]

There isn't a single best truck. Comparing Thunder to Indy or high to low is kinda pointless. It's all subjective

Not for me.

transition: Thunder T1
curbs: Thunder T1
flat: Thunder T1
ledges: Thunder T1
manuals: Thunder T1
skating to the store: Thunder T1
bombing hills: Thunder T1

what should you be skating? you guessed it: Thunder T1