Why are longboards faster than skateboards

If you plan to do any of these, a regular skateboard can be a versatile, nimble and portable solution. You can alternate riding with a set of regular skateboard wheels smaller and harder for practicing tricks, and a set of longboard wheels larger and softer for cruising and transport.

Be aware that mounting big wheels on a street deck will likely cause wheelbite in tight turns. Fitting risers can reduce the problem. If you are a human, do not fill in this field. Thanks for taking time to write this. This article makes me even more excited about my Arbor Shakedown 34 arriving in a couple days. Too old for flipping tricks and going off ramps but still want to have options to progress and cruise.

I have a standard streetstyle skateboard for park riding and a wider popsicle fitted with tall angled risers and 75mm 78a wheels for all-terrain riding.

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Boundouq cropped. Click here to cancel reply. Caleb Thursday 22nd of April Jody Cameron Friday 29th of January Great article! It really is the best of both worlds! Big Kahuna Friday 29th of January We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. Cookie Settings Accept. Manage consent. Close Privacy Overview This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website.

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These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Necessary Necessary. This can explain one of the reasons that longboards can go faster than skateboards. They are great for improving your balance and agility, and it can be really fun to improve your skills.

One great benefit is the ability to ride at nearby skateparks with like-minded skateboarders. Longboards have many uses depending on the board you buy. Longboarding is also widely considered to be easier to learn for beginners.

Longboards are wider and of course longer than skateboards, which makes it a lot easier to balance. Downhill longboarding can be a thrilling experience which makes it addicting. As you get more comfortable on your longboard, you may be looking for ways to improve and increase your speed.

There are a few simple things you can quickly check. Wobbly wheels can be very dangerous; especially when going downhill. If your wheels are too loose, it makes them wobble and can cause you to lose your balance as well as put pressure on your axles that can damage them permanently.

Ideally, you will get a set of bearing spacers that fit between your bearings and wheels. This will allow you to tighten your wheels to be snug while at the same time, it allows the wheels to spin without much resistance. Most experienced downhill longboarders ride with looser trucks. There are billions of industrial bearings produced each year — so even though they are not designed to work well for skateboarding, they are incredibly cheap. Most quality longboards use bearings that are built with higher quality more materials and custom designed specifically for longboarding.

A good way to tell if a bearing is designed for higher speeds and longboarding down hills is to look for the Built-In Spacer which helps to stabilize bearings, reducing chatter for more controlled slides, like Cell Prime Longboard Bearings.

Quality longboard bearings are engineered to generate the most speed out of every hill — rather than being designed to spin at a million miles an hour in a machine which results in poor performance when used on a board like Penny Board bearings. Small narrow trucks use less metal, so Penny Boards use these trucks to save material and again make the total board less expensive.

The problem is that wider trucks are more stable and allow for more control at faster speed when going downhill. Every longboard will always use a wider truck than a Penny Board. While those trucks are more expensive since they use more metal, if you are riding down hills having a truck built to handle higher speeds is critical.

All in all Penny Boards are fun and they are a great option for travel if you want the smallest possible board to carry around. Longboards are a piece of performance equipment where as Penny Boards are more of a cheap novelty deck to play with. Are Longboards faster than Penny Boards downhill? Learn more.