This is part 3 about wheelbase. This one talks specifically about pairing the right truck with the right deck to find the "goldilocks " zone for your style.
@@bendegros Hi Ben! I’ve just watched all of your wheelbase videos and i’m struggling what trucks should i get for 8.25 x 32 (14.25 inch wheelbase) Real deck. I’m 188cm - i think thats about 6’2” and i decided to take 14.25 WB instead of 14.375 and i dont know is my decision was right. Any help? :)
Damn I’ve been skating for almost 10 years and just realized I haven’t been choosing my set up according to my preference. Also, I lost it when you talked about masculinity and indys 😂
You’re the man, Ben! Keeping the skate community informed! Quick question: Could you possibly do a “backside ledge” tutorial? I think people would love to see you explain back tails, back lips, back 5-0s, back smiths, back nosegrinds, etc... Help your viewers go backside! Thanks again!
This is pretty cool information that nobody talks about. There’s so many variables with trucks and decks I think it’s overwhelming so skaters just accept that when they get a new deck or trucks it will feel different but they don’t know why and accept that it’s just the break-in period. Good stuff dude!
Skated ventures lows with 8.25 for the longest time and a ton of issues with control and technical tricks! Switched to an 8.375 and some Indy 149s !! NEVER GOING BACK!
@bendegros Please just to clarify: which trucks has the shortest- to longest wheelbase in that order? I can pretty much only talk about thunder 148 hollow lights..... I'm getting started after ten years off board and I need all the advantages I can get! I skate 8.25-8.38 on 52mm tablets. Almost always on 14.2 wheelbase on Sour boards. Thanks Doctor!🙏
I can't wait to get a pair of hollow indy's. Soonish. My favourite setup all year has been the real deck with the 8.38 wheelbase with indy's on it. I'm sure it could have been even better with hollows.
i had a 14.38 wheelbase birdhouse mellow concave deck with tensor low aluminums. it was an awful pairing. then i added riser pads, suddenly i had no complaints. at that moment I realized, no wonder why everyone at birdhouse skates indys. mellow concave is just better with added height
I just recently got back into skating after a 8 year break. A friend gave me a black 8.0 deck. And I bought independent 139’s. I couldn’t do anything. I was so frustrated. So I bought an alien workshop 7.87. And I bought venture 5.0. Cause I skated both 5.0 &5.25 trucks. The 5.0 lo’s ventures felt to small n low. I did skate venture lows at one point. So then I bought venture 5.25 mids. It was much better. But yes the wheel base on the ventures was to much. Then I said f ,I’m gonna go back to what I skated on for years. Destructo 5.25’s. And the destructo mids are like the same height and wheel base as the original destructo trucks,I skated back in the day. Now I’m fully in love with my setup and I’m slowly getting to where I was. Alien workshop decks and destructo trucks !!! For life !!! Lol oh yeah and the wheel base in the destructos is way way smaller than the wheel base on the ventures. I can’t stress any harder. I f in love those destructo trucks !!!
An 8.25 Girl board, shape G052, has a 14” wheelbase, I put Venture highs in it and it has been one of my favorite set ups in a while, I typically don’t like shorter wheel bases, but this set up made me very happy
@@user1138 a little bit, because before that I was skating 8.125 Disorder boards and it’s got a tiny tail, but I ended up changing my set up to an 8.25 Primitive board with 144 Indy Mids, and that’s been my set up for months now
this is like the second or third time I watch this. I always get the feeling after that it would be cool to have an interactive wheelbase combination tool online that gives you some math related to the "departure angle" of the tail & nose as well as your true wheelbase measurement for each setup combination.
btw, I could develop the software.. just need Ben's mind because I don't know about all the different products in the market. I've skated since I was 12 in the year 2000 and I just now am beginning to learn all of these things that Ben describes so well in his channel. I pretty much just chose the skateboard I wanted by stepping on it at the skateshop or just holding it ... I didn't even know the real difference between a 7.5 or an 8.5 other than one setup just felt heavier or longer or snappier, etc.. And buying trucks, wheels and decks was more of a whim to me because of the hype and marketing. Little did I know I probably had a shitty setup for all of these 21+ years that probably hindered my progression. I picked up skating after being off of it since college pretty much, I took on - in my mind - less painful sports like surfing and skimboarding, and now from studying Ben's videos and thinking more logically and mindfully about my skating I am actually better now at 33 years than I ever was which feels really good. But I guess what I'm getting at is that if I was more educated earlier on about the right combination of skateboard parts for the style of skating I want to do and of-course my body size and ability I probably not only would have progressed in a more linear fashion, but I would have also felt more engaged in the sport during those years that I was clueless as to why my board got me so tired or why my setup just wasn't so snappy as the pros in skate videos. Heck! I probably would have spent more money buying the right parts and explored different setups with a better grip (no pun intended) ... anyway, Ben thanks for the videos. I hope your knee gets 100% soon.
Good video. Two comments: They say that shorter boards spin better, ie 360 shuv. do you think you could take a longer board and put something like a royal/ theeve on it and get the desired effect or does the board have to be shorter? On the other end, would a girl deck with royals spin effortlessly? Is there any reason to go with a board size that is in between truck sizes? My thinking is the trucks are what contacts the ground, so the overall feel shouldn't change much between a 8.38 and 8.5 deck on 8.5 trucks. You might as well take the width. Same with 8.38 or 8.1 on 8.25 or 8 in trucks. i recently went up from 8.38 to 8.5, same trucks, and it didn't take much to get comfortable.
Question 1 Yes it does make the board a little bit more manageable for 360 flips or 360 shuvs when the wheelbase shrinks but the deck length stays the same. Qusetion 2 I am not too fussy about truck size. I don't like it when they are too small though. I was just riding a 8.25 deck with 8.5 trucks. It didn't bug me at all. But I would prefer not to ride a 8.25 deck on 8" trucks.
Thank you so much for all this!! I'm about to get a deck 32.75 with a 13.75 wheel base... It seems like an extremely short wheel base for this length. It will be mostly for Bowl riding, mini vert and vert.
Just seen this video after I Ordered a creature vx 8" w/14.38" wheelbase and thunder shane o'conors. I was looking at the independents too.... well going to stick with it anyways maybe I'll like it ahaha
Kept coming back to these Wheelbase Trilogy of Ben and finally, after my own tests, I realized my legs like me some 14.25 wheelbase boards with Thunders.
Great stuff Ben, love it.👏 Glad I found your channel. Is that a HILTI Impact Driver I see there.?? As soon as I saw that, the speed square📐, & the tape measure📏, everything about your logic and understanding of the mechanics of skateboards made perfect sense. **I'm also a skilled craftsman, so I comprehend similarly. Your breakdown of how individual components combine to work in conjunction differently when they are varied is something I also began to understand when trying out multiple pairings of trucks & decks over the last few yrs myself. I originally skated Trackers & Thunders waaay back in the day on the old school tank boards. Now I've tried multiple combinations of Indys, Ventures, & Thunders, among others along w various board sizes & specs. The changing wheelbase phenomena became apparent during this and helped me to conclude which trucks to pair w what board/s. **Having a buddy that used to skate a freestyle board back in the day, also allowed for some insight as to what skating a shorter(super short!) wheelbase feels & rides like. Although, that was an exaggerated version because of its extremely small size & wheelbase, and very flat deck(literally zero pop!) I still remember what that felt like to this day. Good to hear someone speaking my language about the mechanics of skateboards. I now feel justified in having similar hypotheses about various setups, and you've got me anxious to further hone them to suit diff purposes...and people, as I have also built completes for friends as well. **Def wanna try out some of that non-abrasive grip I keep seeing...no more shabby looking shoes.!👟 Thanks for the awesome vids and keep up the great work.!💪
You should review the prime skateboard re issues, I always wondered where they stand compared to other companies. I also think you do a really good job testing out products 👍🏼
Been wondering about Prime too. They also make a lot of blanks you can get at SoCal skates. I bought a Kris Markovich re-issue and dang that thing is BURLY.
i feel so ignorant. lol. I haven't paid attention to wheel base ever. I'm 30 been skating since i was 13 with like 6 years of almost no real progression. I'm gonna have to figure something out.
@@something_in_the_radiator1665 sadly no and I just got a hyperextended knee a few months ago and cant skate for the moment.....But imma try again one day
Ben, thank you thank you thank you. Been riding different trucks for two months now because of your information. There is a huge difference in balance, pop and all around feel. I can't stress enough how much you've helped my progress. Dude, your the man Ben. Oh by the way, when are you getting your patreon account running?
Hi Ben, I got idea for new setup madness. I've been mixing different parts from different trucks to figure out what works the best for me. For example I mixed Tensor Maglites with baseplate with Destructo inverted kingpin baseplate to get the best kingpin clearance and get lightweight trucks that grind well. I can even add board rails and it would weight as a regular board but it is ultimate street destroyer. Although the geometry of trucks are different in many cases they can be easily adjusted with washers on kingpin in most cases. Also I combine harder and softer bushings on the same axle so that my trucks are kinda loose when turning but stays perfectly firm and flat in a straight line.
I've just got a zero bold 8" deck, I was set on getting some indy 139 Reynolds Low trucks, but now I'm not sure, considering thunder 147 hollow lights instead, what do you think
Amazing vid Ben! Thank you! Would you do one specifying what particular board brands are better for Indys, Thunders or Ventures? That would be awesome! 🙌
Your right. I actually deleted my comment right after I wrote it because I realized I pretty much just repeated you in different words but the comment is still there for some reason. I will definitely think on it. Maybe it would be like some sort of overlapping graph or something. Your right about the wheels too but thats just me being short sighted as I never really change my wheel size so it's not on my radar.
I recently found your channel and have been watching your truck reviews. Really Informative and interesting stuff, keep killing it. :) Also would be cool to see maybe Krux review at some point.
Thanks for these videos Ben! Really informative. I’ve just ordered a new setup after 10 years + away from skateboarding. Didn’t even know what wheelbase was when I used to skate back in the day! I’ve opted for a toy machine (8.25x32.375) with a 14.5 wheelbase, paired with independent standard 144’s. Do you think the indy’s will shorten the wheelbase up enough to be good for street skating? I wanted a wide-ish board to increase stability, compared to the 7.5’s I used to skate years ago.
At opensource skateboards I designed a deck with sk8-cad and Beau makes it now for me. The wb is 13.5" and nose/tail are both 6.375" with an 18° angle. so shorter wb = board flips faster (if the pivot point is in the middle of the board between the trucks), easier on the feet for freestyle shorter nose/tail as usual = more pop, less surfacte to stand on (nose- tailgrinds) lower kick angles as usual = quicker pop I'm exited how it will work with my Theeve trucks. Btw, will you give them an review as well? I had Thunders before and the theeves feels heavier and it tookt me a few days to break them in but they feel very responsive for me and they're higher than high tunders. At least they have a lot of meet so they seems like a good truck for grinding.
That sounds like a good deck. I am kind of attached to the 7" nose but if I had to go to one dimension or the other I would do what you did and make them both smaller. I just finished filming for a review of theeves. The all titanium ones. They were super light but they didn't grind on some materials which was a sticking point for me (literally).
I thought Independents were my goldilock trucks because Im on the shorter side, turns out ventures feel amazing not as much turn but really stable and poppy. I do enjoy independent’s turn but When doing flip tricks you dont need to be carving, Ventures let me set up my feet without immediately turning like indys
I love how he can say on a 31 3/4" board that 14 2/8" is a short wheelbase but 14 3/8" is a long wheelbase😂 im like damn i need the 14 5/16" wheelbase for sure
Hey so what boards do you suggest for thunder 148 trucks? I'm currently writing a real deck with them and I'm not a fan I must admit, it seems way too Steep and it's hard to pop my tricks causing me to slip off my board or just to miss flick or whatever any suggestions would be awesome thanks :-)
Hi Josiah. Toy machine boards are mellower. They go pretty nicely with thunders. They are actually a tad too mellow for me. I like the super steep feel.
I am still confused... If I select Thunder trucks, would I need a longer deck wheelbase or a shorter one to reach that goldilocks zone? 14.00, 14.25, etc.? Thank you.
I had a 14 3/8 wheelbase with Thunders and couldn't get it to do shit, was going to give the deck away. I got Indys and now it feels great. (Darkroom The Ripper 8.38X 32.125, Indy Stage 11 149s, Spitfire Classics 53mm. Pants have 32" inseam. Usually a black t-shirt.)
I'm 32 and been skating for 20yrs myself, and your right Ben, we didn't care about any of that ish when we where kids!! We just thought 1 thing.. get outta school and go sk8 with the dudes
I have a Foundation 8.5 board, on a pair of 6.1 (8.75) V hollowed VENTURE'S rolling on a set of Ghetto Child wheels. It is a _Beautiful Skateboard_ (I love it!)
Hey, dont want To bother you. Since Plan B Decks are shorter, indys would be prefered i guess. My question is, would PlanB 8 inch Work with thunder 147s? Would feel weird i guess in Terms of your Analysis? I love Plan B and I love thunder, but ive only tried indys with Plan B (dont want indys anymore, 2 pairs broken After 1 month) I mean since thunder is for wider wheelbase boards and the Plan B is short, i dont think it will feel good?
Would you say if a deck had a 14.4 wheel base a skater should lean more toward the shorter wheel base truck like an Indy to make the wheel base feel smaller?
Now I’m confused. I’ve got a 14” wheelbase 8.25 Creature deck, and I’m riding thunder hollow light-ii but they’re a bit too low for my 54mm wheels. Would you suggest a move to Indy 144s? Or stick with Thunder and get the higher truck?
Took me a fair while but just moved into the unknown territory that is wheelbase experimentation. Measured all my boards and trucks yesterday to see what I was actually riding and turns out my current preferred set up has been a 8” board with a 17.25” combined wheel base (board 14” and trucks adding 3.25”) with low (50ish mm) and light trucks (Thunder 147 Hollow Lights) and then 50mm Spitfire 101a Formula Four Classics. But just ordered a 8.25” Toy Machine board with a 14.5” wheel base and some Tensor Mag Lights so I have more to experiment with. If I put my Thunders on that board I can try skating a board with .5” more in combined wheel base than any I’ve skated so far.
This video kinda makes me want to pull the indys off a board a friend gave me to try on my antihero deck. I love ACE trucks but to be honest I usually skate reissue 80s decks. Sometimes I want to skate a popsicle but the feel of ACE on my deck don't feel as good as I would like from how they feel on my Jeff Kendall board. If it don't work the way I like, I'm probably going to redrill the deck for the wheelbase I like.
Hey ben. Would you say a 14.3 wheel base is ideal for indys? I've just made the move from thunders. If I was to go a shorter wheel base would I be seeing ghost pop or easier scoops and flips? Currently just set up an 8.375 from a 8.25. Just experimenting sizes.
Ben why dont you mentions how you can play around with risers? to change the variables you are talking about. For example 1/8 riser will give better pop on a low truck,you seem to never use it why? It would be nice if ever answer. ;-)
what do you think would be the perfect combination with 149 indy hollows? I'm looking for a mellowish 8.25, I'm looking to manual and basic street/flatground if anyone could help it'd be much appreciated thanks!
Got 5 blank decks, they're all identical 7.75 with a 14" wheelbase, what trucks do you recommend for these boards?, my hollow indys aren't working too well for me.
hey ben,could you give a suggestion for me, i have a board with steep concave and the wheelbase is 14inch, do i use a shorter or longer wheelbase truck to improve my flatground trick? FYI my shorter WB truck is little bit higher than the longer WB truck.
Hey Ben - this is really great. I’m 5’4” I’ve got a 30 inch deck and I’m on Thunder Sonoma trucks. Current wheelbase is 13”. My goal is to have the perfect set up to achieve the perfect pop for ollies and other tricks. With that information would you be able to make an educated prescription for that? Someone told me shortening the wheelbase further might be necessary. Is that something I can do if so?
I appreciate your videos and find them very informative. In the case of having trucks too "low" what's your opinion on adding Riser Pads? I personally like them, especially with Thunder to increase pop "height" and clearance against wheel bite. I use the Thunder 1/4" risers
If this helps, I ride typically a 8.75in wide shaped ride. Brands very from Friendship, Primewood.LA, and StreetPlant. I typically ride Thunder 151 raw silver, with Thunder 1/4" risers. 52mm Spitfire Conical Fulls (99a), and Synopsis bearings. Great fun for slappy curbs, boardslides, and all around goofing. Thank you for your reply. Look forward to your next Vid
Are there any general rules that you could display? e.g. street with best pop = long deck wheelbase and long truck wheelbase, street for technical tricks = short deck wheelbase and long truck wheelbase with low trucks etc...
i didnt realize how important the pairing of the trucks&deck was, i never thought too much of it until one day I had this birdhouse deck that was mellow concave, 14.38 wheelbase and i put low trucks on, it was awful. then i added riser pads, and suddenly it was way better. no wonder those guys all skate indys.
hey ben, your channel is the best skateboarding channel in my opinion. i have a question how often should i change my boards? keep the good work , peace
Hi Ivan. How often to change boards will be different for everyone. It has less to do with how long you have had it and more to do with how you are performing on it. Boards typically last me 3 to 6 weeks. In the summer I can easily go through a deck in 3 weeks. In the winter I don't always skate as much so it lasts a bit longer. For me, once a deck starts to soften up a bit, the tail gets a little razored and the grip is not very grippy it starts to effect how well I can do my tricks. On average this is about 1 month for me (I would actually like a new one even sooner but it is wasteful and expensive). Some people might easily be able to get 3 or 4 months out of a deck if they either don't skate as much or it doesn't effect their performance.
+Ben Degros well i've been riding my real board heavyweight edition 8.38 size for 6 months it was an amazing board overall and it last long and holds the pop well, but now after this long usage my tail became chipped so much that i can't pop, so i am using my nose for all tricks which is akward, the grip tape is worn down and there is a crack near to the tail but that was my fault i stomped it because i was angry, but i still ride this board because i am poor i can't change decks as often as i like. if i had enough money i would ride for max 2 months . thanks ben keep the good work , peace
ivan durov two months would be a reasonable and responsible amount of time to ride a deck. I think once a month is slightly less than ethical considering the dwindling resources we are facing. I should consider my own words here🤔
I am a 8.125 girl board with ace 33s kinda guy myself. The combination of the mellow feeling of the board and standard to high feeling trucks is a nice match for me
Hey Ben really nice video that was very interesting :) I want to build a new setup, I like skating ledges and I like to getting a good pop, I was skating a 8.25 before but I found it a bit too large for me so I found a "REAL" 8.18 and 14.25 wheelbase I'm looking for some high trucks I'm hesitating between INDEPENDENT 144 STAGE 11 and THUNDER 148 HIGH TRUCK what do you think should I buy please ? Thanks.
Would love for you to make lists of decks that fit different trucks best. I have taken to watching the pro and seeing if they ride Indies before buying a deck.. has helped. If they ride Ventures the deck doesn't work well.
i currently have a 14 inch wheelbase with venture lows. i like it a lot because it still feels tight like a venture but i do get a little bit more turn 0:52 is my exact setup and i noticed the same thing about pop so i just added risers. they say that takes away the venture low feel of when you grind, i mean, yeah, but i dont mind grinding on high trucks too much either and its not THAT high anyway
How do you measure or get to know your truck wheel base? For a deck you can easily measure but for a truck itself, assuming you're trying to buy and get new ones?
I wish i paid more attention to the set ups that felt the best to see if i accidentally did this right lol Ps i threw chunky manly indies on my deck too in the name of man hood xD
Dude, you should get a ph.D. in skateboarding
Ben De Gros SD Resident Skateologist
You and Paul Schmitt need to do a collaboration on the perfect deck.
He’s got an honorary doctorate
@@bendegros Hi Ben! I’ve just watched all of your wheelbase videos and i’m struggling what trucks should i get for 8.25 x 32 (14.25 inch wheelbase) Real deck. I’m 188cm - i think thats about 6’2” and i decided to take 14.25 WB instead of 14.375 and i dont know is my decision was right. Any help? :)
Damn I’ve been skating for almost 10 years and just realized I haven’t been choosing my set up according to my preference. Also, I lost it when you talked about masculinity and indys 😂
Joel Sandoval Me too!! I'd probably have a better time skating if I just explore what works for me, gender roles be damned.
@@keithg1313 lmao
You’re the man, Ben! Keeping the skate community informed!
Quick question:
Could you possibly do a “backside ledge” tutorial? I think people would love to see you explain back tails, back lips, back 5-0s, back smiths, back nosegrinds, etc...
Help your viewers go backside!
Thanks again!
I will get on it soon.
This is pretty cool information that nobody talks about. There’s so many variables with trucks and decks I think it’s overwhelming so skaters just accept that when they get a new deck or trucks it will feel different but they don’t know why and accept that it’s just the break-in period. Good stuff dude!
That Krooked looks tasty with that pink stain mmmm
Also, they dryer these videos become, the more excited I get about them. #SkateNerdsUnite
We need a fifth video that combines fingers of flat and truck combos!
I can't stand the feel of a heavy nose, I'm a short guy lol
Skated ventures lows with 8.25 for the longest time and a ton of issues with control and technical tricks! Switched to an 8.375 and some Indy 149s !! NEVER GOING BACK!
Love the nerdy/tech part of skateboarding, thanks for this.
@bendegros Please just to clarify: which trucks has the shortest- to longest wheelbase in that order? I can pretty much only talk about thunder 148 hollow lights.....
I'm getting started after ten years off board and I need all the advantages I can get! I skate 8.25-8.38 on 52mm tablets. Almost always on 14.2 wheelbase on Sour boards. Thanks Doctor!🙏
14.38 WB w/Indy forged (lower than standard indys) = PERFECTON
I can't wait to get a pair of hollow indy's. Soonish. My favourite setup all year has been the real deck with the 8.38 wheelbase with indy's on it. I'm sure it could have been even better with hollows.
This is my goto WB, sadly there are so few companies out there that make it. Creature, Real...and?
Chris S. How tall are you?
i had a 14.38 wheelbase birdhouse mellow concave deck with tensor low aluminums. it was an awful pairing. then i added riser pads, suddenly i had no complaints. at that moment I realized, no wonder why everyone at birdhouse skates indys. mellow concave is just better with added height
these are so good! I watched them for multiple times! You're the man Ben!🙏
Hi there!
Yea, Ben has a great attitude, and plus he knows his stuff!
I just recently got back into skating after a 8 year break. A friend gave me a black 8.0 deck. And I bought independent 139’s. I couldn’t do anything. I was so frustrated. So I bought an alien workshop 7.87. And I bought venture 5.0. Cause I skated both 5.0 &5.25 trucks. The 5.0 lo’s ventures felt to small n low. I did skate venture lows at one point. So then I bought venture 5.25 mids. It was much better. But yes the wheel base on the ventures was to much. Then I said f ,I’m gonna go back to what I skated on for years. Destructo 5.25’s. And the destructo mids are like the same height and wheel base as the original destructo trucks,I skated back in the day. Now I’m fully in love with my setup and I’m slowly getting to where I was. Alien workshop decks and destructo trucks !!! For life !!! Lol oh yeah and the wheel base in the destructos is way way smaller than the wheel base on the ventures. I can’t stress any harder. I f in love those destructo trucks !!!
Anyone know what type of ace trucks that have a 14.5 wheelbase? I’m getting a shimizu egg deck soon.
An 8.25 Girl board, shape G052, has a 14” wheelbase, I put Venture highs in it and it has been one of my favorite set ups in a while, I typically don’t like shorter wheel bases, but this set up made me very happy
Been thinking of trying that shape but the long tail kinda freaks me out because I'm used to 6.5 tails. Did it take much adjustment to get used to it?
@@user1138 a little bit, because before that I was skating 8.125 Disorder boards and it’s got a tiny tail, but I ended up changing my set up to an 8.25 Primitive board with 144 Indy Mids, and that’s been my set up for months now
Whats perfect deck and wheelbase for tall people 77inch for verts? :)
Wheel base use to be from axle to axle in skating. Why they changed that a few years ago, I have no idea? All it did was create confusion...
this is like the second or third time I watch this. I always get the feeling after that it would be cool to have an interactive wheelbase combination tool online that gives you some math related to the "departure angle" of the tail & nose as well as your true wheelbase measurement for each setup combination.
btw, I could develop the software.. just need Ben's mind because I don't know about all the different products in the market. I've skated since I was 12 in the year 2000 and I just now am beginning to learn all of these things that Ben describes so well in his channel.
I pretty much just chose the skateboard I wanted by stepping on it at the skateshop or just holding it ... I didn't even know the real difference between a 7.5 or an 8.5 other than one setup just felt heavier or longer or snappier, etc.. And buying trucks, wheels and decks was more of a whim to me because of the hype and marketing. Little did I know I probably had a shitty setup for all of these 21+ years that probably hindered my progression. I picked up skating after being off of it since college pretty much, I took on - in my mind - less painful sports like surfing and skimboarding, and now from studying Ben's videos and thinking more logically and mindfully about my skating I am actually better now at 33 years than I ever was which feels really good.
But I guess what I'm getting at is that if I was more educated earlier on about the right combination of skateboard parts for the style of skating I want to do and of-course my body size and ability I probably not only would have progressed in a more linear fashion, but I would have also felt more engaged in the sport during those years that I was clueless as to why my board got me so tired or why my setup just wasn't so snappy as the pros in skate videos. Heck! I probably would have spent more money buying the right parts and explored different setups with a better grip (no pun intended) ... anyway, Ben thanks for the videos. I hope your knee gets 100% soon.
What do you think about Chapman decks?
Good video. Two comments: They say that shorter boards spin better, ie 360 shuv. do you think you could take a longer board and put something like a royal/ theeve on it and get the desired effect or does the board have to be shorter? On the other end, would a girl deck with royals spin effortlessly?
Is there any reason to go with a board size that is in between truck sizes? My thinking is the trucks are what contacts the ground, so the overall feel shouldn't change much between a 8.38 and 8.5 deck on 8.5 trucks. You might as well take the width. Same with 8.38 or 8.1 on 8.25 or 8 in trucks. i recently went up from 8.38 to 8.5, same trucks, and it didn't take much to get comfortable.
Question 1
Yes it does make the board a little bit more manageable for 360 flips or 360 shuvs when the wheelbase shrinks but the deck length stays the same.
Qusetion 2
I am not too fussy about truck size. I don't like it when they are too small though. I was just riding a 8.25 deck with 8.5 trucks. It didn't bug me at all. But I would prefer not to ride a 8.25 deck on 8" trucks.
Thank you so much for all this!! I'm about to get a deck 32.75 with a 13.75 wheel base... It seems like an extremely short wheel base for this length. It will be mostly for Bowl riding, mini vert and vert.
Just seen this video after I Ordered a creature vx 8" w/14.38" wheelbase and thunder shane o'conors. I was looking at the independents too.... well going to stick with it anyways maybe I'll like it ahaha
Kept coming back to these Wheelbase Trilogy of Ben and finally, after my own tests, I realized my legs like me some 14.25 wheelbase boards with Thunders.
Great stuff Ben, love it.👏 Glad I found your channel.
Is that a HILTI Impact Driver I see there.?? As soon as I saw that, the speed square📐, & the tape measure📏, everything about your logic and understanding of the mechanics of skateboards made perfect sense. **I'm also a skilled craftsman, so I comprehend similarly.
Your breakdown of how individual components combine to work in conjunction differently when they are varied is something I also began to understand when trying out multiple pairings of trucks & decks over the last few yrs myself.
I originally skated Trackers & Thunders waaay back in the day on the old school tank boards. Now I've tried multiple combinations of Indys, Ventures, & Thunders, among others along w various board sizes & specs. The changing wheelbase phenomena became apparent during this and helped me to conclude which trucks to pair w what board/s. **Having a buddy that used to skate a freestyle board back in the day, also allowed for some insight as to what skating a shorter(super short!) wheelbase feels & rides like. Although, that was an exaggerated version because of its extremely small size & wheelbase, and very flat deck(literally zero pop!) I still remember what that felt like to this day.
Good to hear someone speaking my language about the mechanics of skateboards. I now feel justified in having similar hypotheses about various setups, and you've got me anxious to further hone them to suit diff purposes...and people, as I have also built completes for friends as well.
**Def wanna try out some of that non-abrasive grip I keep seeing...no more shabby looking shoes.!👟
Thanks for the awesome vids and keep up the great work.!💪
these videos are really informative. honestly I'll be watching them all again back to back when it's time to build a new board
You should review the prime skateboard re issues, I always wondered where they stand compared to other companies. I also think you do a really good job testing out products 👍🏼
Been wondering about Prime too. They also make a lot of blanks you can get at SoCal skates. I bought a Kris Markovich re-issue and dang that thing is BURLY.
Indy's are just too heavy ,I'm trying theeve's right now so far so good ,I always wondered why boards tails and stuff felt smaller than others
i feel so ignorant. lol. I haven't paid attention to wheel base ever. I'm 30 been skating since i was 13 with like 6 years of almost no real progression. I'm gonna have to figure something out.
2 years later, i hope you've progressed!
@@something_in_the_radiator1665 sadly no and I just got a hyperextended knee a few months ago and cant skate for the moment.....But imma try again one day
@@61vibefilms78 give it time. don't rush. knee injury, that's rough. for lack of a better phrase good luck with your recovery.
Ben, thank you thank you thank you. Been riding different trucks for two months now because of your information. There is a huge difference in balance, pop and all around feel. I can't stress enough how much you've helped my progress. Dude, your the man Ben. Oh by the way, when are you getting your patreon account running?
Thank you for this. First time I’ve paid attention to wheelbase in 19 years of skating lol
Hi Ben, I got idea for new setup madness. I've been mixing different parts from different trucks to figure out what works the best for me. For example I mixed Tensor Maglites with baseplate with Destructo inverted kingpin baseplate to get the best kingpin clearance and get lightweight trucks that grind well. I can even add board rails and it would weight as a regular board but it is ultimate street destroyer. Although the geometry of trucks are different in many cases they can be easily adjusted with washers on kingpin in most cases. Also I combine harder and softer bushings on the same axle so that my trucks are kinda loose when turning but stays perfectly firm and flat in a straight line.
I've just got a zero bold 8" deck, I was set on getting some indy 139 Reynolds Low trucks, but now I'm not sure, considering thunder 147 hollow lights instead, what do you think
Hey, I’m 5’ 7”’and ride Indy 149 (forged titanium hollow). Do you have a suggestion for a wheel base size that would give me optimal pop? Thanks
Amazing vid Ben! Thank you! Would you do one specifying what particular board brands are better for Indys, Thunders or Ventures? That would be awesome! 🙌
Toy Machines are thick. YUCK
For the venture loss u should just use risers
Use**
On the fence whether to ride 8" or 8.25" Independents. I ride 8 to 8.25s 🤔
it would be great if you did an excel sheet on this
Ben Degros lmaooo point taken
The only problem is the extreme subjectivity of skateboarding. What one person loves another can hate so maybe just describing how it will feel.
Your right. I actually deleted my comment right after I wrote it because I realized I pretty much just repeated you in different words but the comment is still there for some reason. I will definitely think on it. Maybe it would be like some sort of overlapping graph or something. Your right about the wheels too but thats just me being short sighted as I never really change my wheel size so it's not on my radar.
I see a HILTI impact!! Do a review on that?
definitely helped confirm some of the feelings I was having about my gear. thanks and keep it up!
I recently found your channel and have been watching your truck reviews. Really Informative and interesting stuff, keep killing it. :) Also would be cool to see maybe Krux review at some point.
Mikko Behm thank you☺ I will probably do one this year but I'm not sure when yet.
Thanks for these videos Ben! Really informative.
I’ve just ordered a new setup after 10 years + away from skateboarding. Didn’t even know what wheelbase was when I used to skate back in the day!
I’ve opted for a toy machine (8.25x32.375) with a 14.5 wheelbase, paired with independent standard 144’s.
Do you think the indy’s will shorten the wheelbase up enough to be good for street skating? I wanted a wide-ish board to increase stability, compared to the 7.5’s I used to skate years ago.
That sounds like a good setup. A tad long for getting tech but I think sounds like an enjoyable ride.
Thanks Ben!
At opensource skateboards I designed a deck with sk8-cad and Beau makes it now for me.
The wb is 13.5" and nose/tail are both 6.375" with an 18° angle.
so shorter wb = board flips faster (if the pivot point is in the middle of the board between the trucks), easier on the feet for freestyle
shorter nose/tail as usual = more pop, less surfacte to stand on (nose- tailgrinds)
lower kick angles as usual = quicker pop
I'm exited how it will work with my Theeve trucks.
Btw, will you give them an review as well?
I had Thunders before and the theeves feels heavier and it tookt me a few days to break them in but they feel very responsive for me and they're higher than high tunders. At least they have a lot of meet so they seems like a good truck for grinding.
That sounds like a good deck. I am kind of attached to the 7" nose but if I had to go to one dimension or the other I would do what you did and make them both smaller.
I just finished filming for a review of theeves. The all titanium ones. They were super light but they didn't grind on some materials which was a sticking point for me (literally).
Very informative! Thanks ☺
Ben I got an FA deck
8.18
14 inch wheel base
Would this set up go good with Thunder 148 or venture 5.6?
I thought Independents were my goldilock trucks because Im on the shorter side, turns out ventures feel amazing not as much turn but really stable and poppy. I do enjoy independent’s turn but When doing flip tricks you dont need to be carving, Ventures let me set up my feet without immediately turning like indys
I love how he can say on a 31 3/4" board that 14 2/8" is a short wheelbase but 14 3/8" is a long wheelbase😂 im like damn i need the 14 5/16" wheelbase for sure
Goldy locks zone was any 8.5 Corey duffle foundation or any limousine
Hey so what boards do you suggest for thunder 148 trucks? I'm currently writing a real deck with them and I'm not a fan I must admit, it seems way too Steep and it's hard to pop my tricks causing me to slip off my board or just to miss flick or whatever any suggestions would be awesome thanks :-)
Hi Josiah. Toy machine boards are mellower. They go pretty nicely with thunders. They are actually a tad too mellow for me. I like the super steep feel.
Ben Degros thanks so much! Love your content really inspires me!
I am still confused... If I select Thunder trucks, would I need a longer deck wheelbase or a shorter one to reach that goldilocks zone? 14.00, 14.25, etc.? Thank you.
Riser pads are awesome..
I’m riding a 9in deck with a 14.25 wheelbase and some indie 169 standard and 54mm radial fulls 97a and it feel great
Fuckin awesome info I'm on it totally agree goldilocks zone !
Thank bro !
I had a 14 3/8 wheelbase with Thunders and couldn't get it to do shit, was going to give the deck away. I got Indys and now it feels great. (Darkroom The Ripper 8.38X 32.125, Indy Stage 11 149s, Spitfire Classics 53mm. Pants have 32" inseam. Usually a black t-shirt.)
I'm 32 and been skating for 20yrs myself, and your right Ben, we didn't care about any of that ish when we where kids!! We just thought 1 thing.. get outta school and go sk8 with the dudes
I have a Foundation 8.5 board, on a pair of 6.1 (8.75) V hollowed VENTURE'S rolling on a set of Ghetto Child wheels. It is a _Beautiful Skateboard_
(I love it!)
Hey, dont want To bother you.
Since Plan B Decks are shorter, indys would be prefered i guess.
My question is, would PlanB 8 inch
Work with thunder 147s?
Would feel weird i guess in Terms of your Analysis?
I love Plan B and I love thunder, but ive only tried indys with Plan B (dont want indys anymore, 2 pairs broken After 1 month)
I mean since thunder is for wider wheelbase boards and the Plan B is short, i dont think it will feel good?
Would you say if a deck had a 14.4 wheel base a skater should lean more toward the shorter wheel base truck like an Indy to make the wheel base feel smaller?
One question. Does bigger wheel size extend the wheelbase further? I would say yes, right? 🙌🏻
Now I’m confused. I’ve got a 14” wheelbase 8.25 Creature deck, and I’m riding thunder hollow light-ii but they’re a bit too low for my 54mm wheels. Would you suggest a move to Indy 144s? Or stick with Thunder and get the higher truck?
So will thunder 147 work for a Santa Cruz with a 14.22 wheelbase
Took me a fair while but just moved into the unknown territory that is wheelbase experimentation.
Measured all my boards and trucks yesterday to see what I was actually riding and turns out my current preferred set up has been a 8” board with a 17.25” combined wheel base (board 14” and trucks adding 3.25”) with low (50ish mm) and light trucks (Thunder 147 Hollow Lights) and then 50mm Spitfire 101a Formula Four Classics.
But just ordered a 8.25” Toy Machine board with a 14.5” wheel base and some Tensor Mag Lights so I have more to experiment with. If I put my Thunders on that board I can try skating a board with .5” more in combined wheel base than any I’ve skated so far.
I ve been skating a lot of baker and girl/chocolate decks with thunder lights and it always felt better than Indy
This video kinda makes me want to pull the indys off a board a friend gave me to try on my antihero deck. I love ACE trucks but to be honest I usually skate reissue 80s decks. Sometimes I want to skate a popsicle but the feel of ACE on my deck don't feel as good as I would like from how they feel on my Jeff Kendall board. If it don't work the way I like, I'm probably going to redrill the deck for the wheelbase I like.
Hey ben. Would you say a 14.3 wheel base is ideal for indys? I've just made the move from thunders. If I was to go a shorter wheel base would I be seeing ghost pop or easier scoops and flips? Currently just set up an 8.375 from a 8.25. Just experimenting sizes.
Ben why dont you mentions how you can play around with risers? to change the variables you are talking about.
For example 1/8 riser will give better pop on a low truck,you seem to never use it why?
It would be nice if ever answer. ;-)
It all makes Sense!
So wich wheelbase is the Goldie-Lock-Zone for Independent Stage 11?
what do you think would be the perfect combination with 149 indy hollows? I'm looking for a mellowish 8.25, I'm looking to manual and basic street/flatground if anyone could help it'd be much appreciated thanks!
Got 5 blank decks, they're all identical 7.75 with a 14" wheelbase, what trucks do you recommend for these boards?, my hollow indys aren't working too well for me.
hey ben,could you give a suggestion for me, i have a board with steep concave and the wheelbase is 14inch, do i use a shorter or longer wheelbase truck to improve my flatground trick? FYI my shorter WB truck is little bit higher than the longer WB truck.
Hey Ben - this is really great. I’m 5’4” I’ve got a 30 inch deck and I’m on Thunder Sonoma trucks. Current wheelbase is 13”. My goal is to have the perfect set up to achieve the perfect pop for ollies and other tricks. With that information would you be able to make an educated prescription for that? Someone told me shortening the wheelbase further might be necessary. Is that something I can do if so?
I appreciate your videos and find them very informative. In the case of having trucks too "low" what's your opinion on adding Riser Pads? I personally like them, especially with Thunder to increase pop "height" and clearance against wheel bite. I use the Thunder 1/4" risers
I haven't tried adding risers to low trucks yet so I have no opinion. I guess we have a future video.
If this helps, I ride typically a 8.75in wide shaped ride. Brands very from Friendship, Primewood.LA, and StreetPlant. I typically ride Thunder 151 raw silver, with Thunder 1/4" risers. 52mm Spitfire Conical Fulls (99a), and Synopsis bearings. Great fun for slappy curbs, boardslides, and all around goofing. Thank you for your reply. Look forward to your next Vid
That sounds like a nice set up.
I've apparently been doing it wrong for the last 20 years....
Anyone has thoughts on independent trucks without bottom washers?
Are there any general rules that you could display? e.g. street with best pop = long deck wheelbase and long truck wheelbase, street for technical tricks = short deck wheelbase and long truck wheelbase with low trucks etc...
i didnt realize how important the pairing of the trucks&deck was, i never thought too much of it until one day I had this birdhouse deck that was mellow concave, 14.38 wheelbase and i put low trucks on, it was awful. then i added riser pads, and suddenly it was way better. no wonder those guys all skate indys.
You should apply for generator bareback or something
I ride a 14.25 wheelbase with thunder highs. What your thoughts on that?
What about the wheelbase on larger 40-42"+ longboard decks?
hey ben, your channel is the best skateboarding channel in my opinion. i have a question how often should i change my boards? keep the good work , peace
Hi Ivan. How often to change boards will be different for everyone. It has less to do with how long you have had it and more to do with how you are performing on it. Boards typically last me 3 to 6 weeks. In the summer I can easily go through a deck in 3 weeks. In the winter I don't always skate as much so it lasts a bit longer. For me, once a deck starts to soften up a bit, the tail gets a little razored and the grip is not very grippy it starts to effect how well I can do my tricks. On average this is about 1 month for me (I would actually like a new one even sooner but it is wasteful and expensive).
Some people might easily be able to get 3 or 4 months out of a deck if they either don't skate as much or it doesn't effect their performance.
+Ben Degros well i've been riding my real board heavyweight edition 8.38 size for 6 months it was an amazing board overall and it last long and holds the pop well, but now after this long usage my tail became chipped so much that i can't pop, so i am using my nose for all tricks which is akward, the grip tape is worn down and there is a crack near to the tail but that was my fault i stomped it because i was angry, but i still ride this board because i am poor i can't change decks as often as i like. if i had enough money i would ride for max 2 months . thanks ben keep the good work , peace
ivan durov two months would be a reasonable and responsible amount of time to ride a deck. I think once a month is slightly less than ethical considering the dwindling resources we are facing. I should consider my own words here🤔
I am a 8.125 girl board with ace 33s kinda guy myself. The combination of the mellow feeling of the board and standard to high feeling trucks is a nice match for me
Hey Ben really nice video that was very interesting :) I want to build a new setup, I like skating ledges and I like to getting a good pop, I was skating a 8.25 before but I found it a bit too large for me so I found a "REAL" 8.18 and 14.25 wheelbase I'm looking for some high trucks I'm hesitating between INDEPENDENT 144 STAGE 11 and THUNDER 148 HIGH TRUCK what do you think should I buy please ? Thanks.
Would love for you to make lists of decks that fit different trucks best. I have taken to watching the pro and seeing if they ride Indies before buying a deck.. has helped. If they ride Ventures the deck doesn't work well.
i currently have a 14 inch wheelbase with venture lows. i like it a lot because it still feels tight like a venture but i do get a little bit more turn 0:52 is my exact setup and i noticed the same thing about pop so i just added risers. they say that takes away the venture low feel of when you grind, i mean, yeah, but i dont mind grinding on high trucks too much either and its not THAT high anyway
i have 149s and i got a 14.25 wheel base deck and it feels better but its still heavy
Well next couple hours is now going to be measuring old decks and trucks 😂
How do you measure or get to know your truck wheel base? For a deck you can easily measure but for a truck itself, assuming you're trying to buy and get new ones?
Hi Ben! Great videos on explanation of the wheel best and the best trucks to pair it with..
What about wheel sizes? Does it matter much?
What’s the best wheelbase and deck for Indy stage 11 144?
My skateboard has a smaller and bigger truck is that okay
I always skate 14.25 with indys
I wish i paid more attention to the set ups that felt the best to see if i accidentally did this right lol
Ps i threw chunky manly indies on my deck too in the name of man hood xD
What decks do you recommend for indy 149s
can you put 8.25 trucks on 8.75 deck?
What’s a good wheel base for thunders?
Love these well informative thanks
Ben Degros, Skateboard Ph.D.
14 inch wheelbase with indies is rad