Friday 14 October 2011

Longboarding Wheels

A good deck won't do you much good without a solid set of wheels. Today we'll be looking at the best of the best for different riding styles.
Freeride:
For freeriding most people want a nice and slidey wheel that is consistent. For that there are a few good choices. There are the Zombie Hawgs, the Abec 11 freerides and my personal favorite, the Orangatang Stimulus. Each of these wheels comes in a different durometer. The higher the number, the slidier the wheel. The Zombie Hawgs come in 78a, 80a, 82a, 84a and finally 88a. They all come with rounded which allowes them to have a good, consistent slide right out of the box. I would suggest either 82a or 84a so that you can slide when you want to, but still keep good traction when you need it. The Abec 11 freerides come in 78a, 82a and 84a. You also have the choice of having them centerset or offset. Centerset wheels can be switched around to have an even wear all around. The 84a's are what I'd suggest for this style. They break traction right when you want them to and are easy to hold out a slide on. Finally there are the Orangatang Stimulus. They come in 80a, 83a and 86a. With a rounded edge these wheels will slide great right out of the box. They also have a fairly large contact patch for grip when you need it. The 86a's are great to start out on. They slide like butter, look awesome and don't make a sound or leave huge stains on the street.
All of the wheels that I have just named come in different sizes. Make sure to do some research on your board to be certain that you won't get wheelbite.


Downhill:
For downhill riding you want a wheel that won't slide out on you when taking turns at high speeds. A wheel with a wide contact patch and a low duro is just what you need. For this the most popular ones are the Abec 11 Gumballs, the Abec 11 Grippins, Seismic Speed Vents, and finally the Orangatang In Heat or 4President. The Abec 11 Gumballs and Grippins are very similar. The main difference is that the Grippins are a bit smaller to minimize the chance of wheel bite. For these wheels I would suggest getting them in 75a duro. The Gumballs have a 46.5mm  contact patch whereas the Grippins have a 50.5mm contact patch. The Seismic Speed Vents are very high performance, high quality downhill wheels. With a 53mm contact patch and a possible 75a duro, this wheels isn't sliding anywhere. You'll be able to take those scary turns at high speeds with no worries at all. They also come in a bunch of different sizes and colours depending on your personal preference. Finally there are the Orangatang wheels. This company makes wheels that can be used for anything, but their best downhill wheels setup you have to be the 80a In Heats or 4Presidents. The only difference between these two wheels in the size. The In Heats are 75mm with a 56mm contact patch and the 4Presidents are 70mm with a 53mm contact patch. Both of these are extremely good for downhill. They will give you all the grip you need for the steepest hills you can find. The 80a In Heats can also be bought with an aluminum core for a higher performance. If you plan on doing competitive downhill, this would be the wheel for you.


Carving,Cruising and Freestyle:
For these styles, the type of wheel doesn't matter nearly as much as the deck and trucks do. Any Orangatang or Abec 11 wheels that fit your board would do fine. A harder durometer helps for carving and cruising. I would suggest anything from 75a to 83a. For freestyle many people find it easier to do some tricks with slidier wheels. Anything above 83a will slide nicely, especially if it has rounded edges.


These are some of the most popular and higher quality wheels. Others may still do the trick but you won't be dissapointed with the ones I have suggested. Remember to always check what SIZE wheel is best for your setup. The last thing you want is to buy a set of wheels and have to send it back because you get wheelbite. If you have any suggestions for future topics or if you have any questions hit us up with an Email at longboardingtips@gmail.com and we'll answer as soon as possible.


NOW GET OUT AND SKATE :D
The LongboardingTips crew

Longboarding Decks

So you're starting out longboarding and you don't know which of the hundreds of boards to get. First of all, you have to decide what style of riding you plan on doing. The different styles are: Downhill, Freeride, Freestyle or Carving and Cruising. Some boards are better than others for certain styles and we are now going to give you a few examples of good boards for each riding style.
Downhill: Downhill boards are typically very stiff, low to the ground and have a good amount of concave. Rayne longboards are all high quality and definitely good for downhill. Some of their more popular boards are the Nemesis, the Demonseed and the Killswitch. They are all between 35 and 44" long and 9.5 to 10.5" wide. Landyachtz is also known for making very good downhill boards such as the Evo (regular and carbon), the Switch, the Switchblade and the Chinook. It is possible to get downhill boards for cheaper but they won't be as good, and the few that I have named are definitely worth the few extra bucks.
Freeride: Freeride boards have little to no flex, medium to high concave and are symmetrical which means that there is no front or back which helps with riding switch. Loaded boards are very popular for just about every style. For freeriding, the best are the Tan Tien, the Bhangra and the Dervish. Loaded is currently advertising that they will be coming out with a pure freeride board fairly soon. Other good boards for this style are from Landyachtz. Their most popular boards being the 9two5 (regular and carbon), the Drop Carve, the Drop Speed and the Time Machine. Finally there is the Original freeride board which is very good for sliding but is a bit heavy if you are used to boards such as the Tan Tien.
Freestyle: I wouldn't suggest getting a longboard only to do freestyle for the sole reason that it is much easier on a regular skate board. I will be naming a few boards that are good for freestyle but can also be used for freeriding or cruising. As I said before, Loaded boards can be used for just about anything. For freestyle, the Tan Tien, Bhangra, Ceviche and Fattail are all very good. Another popular board for freestyle and cruising is the Apex 34. Other than these few, any board under about 30" with a nose and tail should do fine. But again, if you only plan on doing freestyle, I suggest getting a skateboard. It will save you lots of money and will be much more enjoyable.
Carving and Cruising: For this section the most popular companies are Loaded and Original. The Loaded Dervish, Pintail and Vanguard and all very good boards. These three, as well as all the other boards made by Loaded, are very flexible which is comfortable to ride around on and help with you carving. Original boards are almost all made with cruising and carving in mind. For this style, it is hard to find boards better than the Pintail 43, Pintail 46, Apex 34, Apex 37, Custom 35 and Custom 44.
So there you have it, the best of every style of boarding. If you still don't know what you want to get i would suggest a Loaded board because they are so versatile. Wether you want to make it down a hill sliding like a mad man, or just cruise around town, these board can do everything. All the boards that I mentioned can be a bit pricey but the difference between these and a cheap one is indescribable. We will hopefully be posting information on what wheels, trucks and bushings to get within the next few days. If you have any personal questions such as opinions on what setups to get please send us an E-mail at longboardingtips@gmail.com and we'll be happy to answer. Hope this helped all you longboarders out there.
Till next time,
Longboardingtips Crew