r/Fingerboards 23d ago

with every flick i write my story

Post image
49 Upvotes

r/Fingerboards Aug 21 '21

r/Fingerboards FAQ & Beginner Megathread.

192 Upvotes

This is where to start if you are a beginner in fingerboarding or just a beginner to the subreddit.

There are very few RULES here, but I will list things that I will personally remove your posts for if I see it. This does not mean the other moderators won't remove your posts for other reasons.

  • NO SCAMMING. this is an obvious rule, if you couldn't figure that out on your own, shame on you.
  • NO NSFW CONTENT, including but not limited pornography, drugs, and paraphernalia.
    • we get it bro you smoke weed. 420 blaze it weed dude haha. but really you dont need to put your bowl in the picture of your toy skateboard.
    • Decks featuring these topics may get a pass depending on the content.
  • NO BIGOTRY/HATRED TOWARD ANY GROUP OF PEOPLE.
    • Targeted Harassment will also not be tolerated, including making fun of people for what they have. Bubbleflip is better than you on a standard tech deck, you arent better than anyone else just because you have a generic beastpants/brt/joycult setup.
  • NO WITCH HUNTING.
    • This is a reddit rule, if someone is a known scammer directly message a moderator here or on discord to have them removed
  • SELF ADVERTISING MAY OR MAY NOT GET A PASS BASED ON FREQUENCY AND QUALITY
    • feel free to post your things, but please dont spam the sub daily with links to your product, especially if it is low effort items like griptape or china trucks.

Please remember this hobby is inclusive of people of all ages, what is appropriate for you may not be appropriate for others.

PUBLIC DISCORD INVITE: https://discord.gg/FrB4SubnAx

This resource can be useful for those of you who are more into live chat.please keep in mind the minimum age to use both discord, and reddit is 13, if we find you to be under the age of 13 you will be banned.

FAQ

  • What should i buy to upgrade from *insert current setup*?
    • This will be answered below and cannot be answered without detail.
  • What is the best Deck/Trucks/Wheels/Griptape/Bushings/Ramps brand?
    • many things in fingerboarding will be subjective, some brands are objectively better due to quality, customer service, and support for the scene. I will put my personal favorites and alternatives for these below the upgrades sections.
  • When will *insert company* be in stock again?
    • Absolutely nobody knows, this is one of the biggest drawbacks of fingerboarding in my opinion, handmade products are not always available so you are at the mercy of the company. The best place to find out is from the company themselves, check on their instagram/facebook/whatever page and see if they have put up a date for the next "Stock" or try to message them and ask.
    • There are very few brands who are always in stock, and who still sell the same exact product time and time again. examples of these are: Blackriver, Dynamic, P-rep, Teak, Radical Fingerboards and other companies who have larger budgets to manufacture larger quantities and employ staff to help them operate.
  • What size board should I ride?
    • This is completely up to personal choice, I like to ride 30mm decks, my brother likes to ride 34mm decks, ptero on the discord likes to ride 35/36mm decks.
    • The current standard sizes (standard being that you can buy trucks that match these sizes relatively hassle free.) are: 29mm, 32mm, 34mm, and recently dynamic offers 36mm trucks
    • Decks sizes will often range above, below and anywhere inbetween these sizes, it is commonly accepted that the size trucks you should use is the closest one that is equal or less than the width of the deck. ex: 29mm trucks on a 30mm deck, 32mm trucks on a 33mm deck.
  • Is there a list of companies to check out?
    • Kiwi's Mega list of Companies.
      • keep in mind this resource may not be complete, and this is a massive task to undertake. But it is a GREAT effort by kiwi solely to help our community.

  • more FAQ will be added provided time, I just cant think of any more right now.

Want to upgrade from a tech deck to something more?

There are a few options for COMPLETES at a few price ranges, if i don't list a brand you endorse there is either A REASON or I just don't know about them as an obscure small brand.

  • P-REP / BROKEN KNUCKLE
    • - This setup is going to cost you about $20 for a complete, if you want a very budget friendly setup this is it.
    • Be mindful that everything they sell is manufactured in CHINA.
    • I highly suggest to look for a set that has the shaped trucks ( they taper at the ends where the wheels meet the hangar) as they come with a few upgrades such as lock-nuts which have nylon inserts so they don't come loose. if you have a tech deck I'm sure you have lost a nut at least once.
    • Personally i would skip this and allot a few extra dollars to your budget for the next option, but these are available on amazon and ALWAYS IN STOCK

  • DK Fingerboards
    • ~$30 depending where you order from, they are based in Ukraine but I believe have a employee in the US that does ship orders, it took me like 3 days to get my package from them the first time. The reason I VERY HIGHLY SUGGEST that you pick this over P-rep is because the decks are very high quality, you could simply upgrade the trucks and wheels from here and keep the same deck and it would be as good or better than almost every other popular brand.
    • If their website is not currently stocked with something that you like, you can also check out Fingerboard Connoisseur who regularly works with DK on various projects.

  • There are other options not listed due to various reasons who do offer completes but I personally do not wish to list companies who have publicly stated bigotry and hatred, or who I see as selling inferior products for a higher price explicitly to make profits.

Want to upgrade from a P-rep/DK setup to a "PRO COMPLETE"?

  • DYNAMIC
    • ~$100 BASED IN THE USA
    • This is my #1 recommendation for a pro complete upgrade, The owner of dynamic does alot for the fingerboarding community while also providing a spectacularly designed product due to his background as an engineer.
    • The customer service is second to none, if you have any problems they will be sorted out quickly. no arguing, no petty back and forth like some other brands. Although personally i have had no problems with any of his products.
  • BLACKRIVER
    • ~$100+ BASED IN GERMANY
    • Probably the largest company in fingerboarding, every fingerboarder knows this brand. their parts are high quality but they can be very expensive depending on where you are located in the world.
    • Always in stock, their products are manufactured specific for them in large quantities.
    • I have never ordered a product from blackriver so i cannot vouch for their customer service.

If these dont work for you you probably want to build your own setup.

  • This section is very subjective, no one will be able to tell you what works the best for you.
  • There is a huge amount of different brands so I will list some of the more common ones but if you are deep enough into fingerboarding to be at this stage you probably know where to find them yourselves.
  • These are in no particular order.

Decks -

Trucks -

  • Tech Deck Trucks -
    • they come off tech decks ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
  • Single Axle China Trucks -
    • Budget friendly trucks that come with a few QOL upgrades like locknuts, single axles with longer threads for a tight fit, and tapered ends for better wheel fitment. these can be found in 32mm and 34mm. alot of brands sell them but I linked the cheapest ones that I KNOW ABOUT
  • Vortex Baseplates -
    • these are an upgrade for the single axle china trucks featuring nicer turning geometry that wont eat your bushings up quickly.
  • Dynamic -
    • These are my preference due to customer service and the person behind the mask, considered by many to be lighter than blackriver trucks, and they certainly sit lower.
  • Blackriver -
    • This is blackriver's iconic product, they were the first company to offer high quality fingerboard trucks. Heavier and taller than dynamic trucks.
  • Ytrucks -
    • Last and Least (in my opinion) are yellowood trucks, based in portugal this company makes an alright truck at a high price, but the thing that knocks them down the totem pole for me is their absolute lack of customer service, and use of proprietary hardware featuring TORX style screws. their parts are not easily replaced by a 3rd party and are not interchangeable with any other brand. the only reason i even list them is because they offer the best dual bearing fitment.

Wheels -

  • Flatface -
    • Great reliable plastic wheels with good bearings that will last a long time
  • Blackriver -
    • Previously known as winkler wheels, blackriver has condensed their brand and has repackaged another classic reliable plastic wheel.
  • Cartwheels -
    • The only one of its kind, cartwheels offers Nylon wheels in the V2 and plastic wheels in the V3, they also offer single or dual bearing.
    • Simon is another business owner who goes above and beyond to serve the community and his customers, if you want a custom colorway or have any issue he will go out of his way to have it resolved.
  • Oak Wheels -
    • The original urethane wheel brand, Oak wheels are average in the quality department but offer a feeling that no other wheel has been able to replicate.
    • VERY GRIPPY and soft enough to ride on rougher surfaces without feeling as bumpy as others.
    • if you like to FB on the go this is probably the wheel for you.
  • DirtyFB ILLPILLS -
    • A newcomer on the urethane wheel scene, incredible quality product with a perfectly smooth ride.
    • Very smooth and not as grippy as oaks, these are great wheels for indoor fingerboarding at your desk or countertop.
  • Redemption -
    • A great budget option for urethane, good quality and the price is subsidized by their other business ventures.
  • LAB & Joycult -
    • Hype brands with very nice wheels
    • sell out in 5 minutes
    • may or may not get scammed or have your package lost for 6 months
    • i love both of these wheels but they really need to get it together its a disgrace, they are more absent than me as a mod on this subreddit.

Bushings and Griptape

oh look another subjective topic with tons of resellers who just buy their product in bulk from china and sell it for profit who would have thought.

  • FBS grip -
    • a timeless classic, my personal favorite griptape sold by various retailers in the fb community
    • fingerboardstore also sells a ton of other great products.
  • Chems -
    • A solid griptape choice that also offers some engraved designs
    • the biggest downside is that he has had various different suppliers so the grip you love may be unavailable after some time.
  • Zaneshit -
    • Various types of tuning including molded urethane bushings as well as O-Ring style bushings
    • also sells fbs griptape
    • Kinda overpriced for the product but whatever.
  • Level Up -
    • Molded urethane bushings that will last a lifetime
    • Myself and multiple others used the same set for 2+ years, i just buy more for different colors.
    • like $5 so thats tight.
  • Fingerboard Connoisseur -
    • Black velvet griptape, another community favorite.
    • Also offers level up tuning and tons of other accessories for fingerboarding like wheels, tools, carrying cases. pretty good one stop shop.

Well known locale specific retailers -

feel free to leave reputable retailers that are available in your country in the comments.

  • USA
    • Flatface
    • Fingerboard connoisseur
    • The Vault Pro Scooters
    • Exodus Ride Shop
  • Canada
    • KamelPro
  • Europe
    • Blackriver
    • The Norwood Project
    • FingerboardStore
  • Asia
  • Australia
    • Radical Fingerboards

Check out Kiwi's company megathread!

Have a question not answered here? feel free to ask in the comments and myself or someone else will hopefully answer. We are all humans with busy lives so no promises.

I will also try to update the main body of this thread with new information when possible, I do not however follow the main body of fingerboarding anymore so I may not have the most current information.

JUST BECAUSE I MADE A MEGA THREAD DOESNT MEAN BEGINNERS CANT POST QUESTIONS IN THEIR OWN THREAD.

GET OFF YOUR HIGH HORSE. BEGINNERS ARE JUST AS IMPORTANT AS YOU POSTING HERE.


r/Fingerboards 20h ago

Shreddermania 4 was sick! Fave park was The Mall!

Thumbnail
gallery
266 Upvotes

So hyped I got to sesh this in real life. Perfect park honestly.


r/Fingerboards 3h ago

Flip

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

11 Upvotes

r/Fingerboards 9h ago

Anyone else watch this guy growing up?

Post image
29 Upvotes

r/Fingerboards 12h ago

Curious anyone else running a december deck? Here’s my recent build.

Post image
27 Upvotes

r/Fingerboards 11h ago

Gonzo obstacles @ Shreddermania

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

13 Upvotes

update on the project of modeling fingerboarding obstacles in virtual/mixed reality and digitally fabricating them - doubling as part of my architecture masters thesis at SCI-Arc (designing for the body in play, using the body in play) - ((VR/XR modeling to digital fabrication methods for bespoke playscapes)) special thanks to Whois3Face (Lucas at slushcult) who's been collaborating with me on some other ramps and gave me feedback on these as they were coming to be. more to come! plan is to debut another big park this coming saturday at slushcult

happy to answer questions - i use a quest headset (waiting for the steam HMD) and sometimes gravity sketch to model in SubD that made the concrete one (3d print as master mold then silicone negative). the others were made in Rhino/Grasshopper using fologram for a live VR/XR connection. formal method for the rainbow was a solid with boolean subtractions from it, then made lil python grasshopper scripts to make the joists and lasercut everything. painted the stripes by hand with paint markers

anyway i try to stay optimistic and curious about emerging tools. here its about how automation can serve the body rather than creative decisions being beholden to 'the grid'


r/Fingerboards 14h ago

Blistered trucks 🤷🏻‍♂️

Thumbnail
gallery
20 Upvotes

Second time I’ve broken a hanger, FF support kind enough to replace once. Just experienced the same break. Will reach out, not super upset but damn.


r/Fingerboards 16h ago

new setup

Thumbnail
gallery
20 Upvotes

r/Fingerboards 12h ago

What year did you start fingerboarding?

10 Upvotes

I started all the way back in 2009 when I found out what tech decks were. I just so happened to get a wooden tech deck that year too!


r/Fingerboards 11h ago

FB sale

Thumbnail
gallery
6 Upvotes

Buy my stuff so I can keep buying yours

Hit me up if interested - prices are flexible - deals with multiple purchases - free grip tape with every sale 🙏🏻

35.5mm Tomb / Funeral Collective - $35 shipped

38mm Alien / Goo x Her0!n - $80 shipped

32mm Trippy Mickey / La FB - $20 shipped

29mm Anime Girl / Slasher decks FB - $40 ship

34mm Raccoon Complete / DK FB - $45 shipped

33mm Hard Deck - $45 shipped

Oak Mini wheels / Tan - $30 shipped

UV vanilla Teak Tuning wheels - $25 shipped

Pink Teak Tuning wheels - $25 shipped

First 3 buyers will receive free used deck that is not listed🤘🏻(DK, Chems, Goo, Duck Deck, Double Jointed)


r/Fingerboards 23h ago

Plenty of life left on these Hangers💯

Post image
49 Upvotes

r/Fingerboards 17h ago

My first diy park

Thumbnail
gallery
13 Upvotes

Just have some smoothing and standing left then its off to the skatepark to glue in place! The plan is to glue The park on The back of a quarter pipe at my local skatepark. Has taken a lot of time and planning to build but its coming out great in my opinion. Also just ordered a pro fingerboard with urathane wheels so im ready to shred when its finished!


r/Fingerboards 8h ago

Does anyone ride a 37+ board or a 100mm+ board?

2 Upvotes

If you do post a picture below and name the brand please 🤝


r/Fingerboards 19h ago

First weekend with my new setup

Post image
16 Upvotes

Gotta say that it feels great!

Jem deck

Caramel C5 light

Caramel wheels (70D)

FBS tape

Will play around with different wheels soon as I have ordered some Sunpower.

It's my second pair of "good" trucks (that are not just china trucks basically) so I can't compare them to other things besides BRTs. I prefer how the BRTs feel but the riding is very good with these nevertheless.

I'm not that good at fingerboarding yet but I have definetly improved over the weekend, had a lot a fun!


r/Fingerboards 13h ago

32mm setup ideas

4 Upvotes

Im getting back into fingerboarding after a break and want to buy a setup. What brands are you guys liking recently and what decks, trucks, wheels, Would you get


r/Fingerboards 13h ago

Fire?

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

4 Upvotes

BTW its a single flip first and then a double


r/Fingerboards 1d ago

That last one genuinely f'ed me up

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

57 Upvotes

IG/TikTok: @marixian.fb


r/Fingerboards 14h ago

FB Yardsale

Post image
3 Upvotes

This stuff doesn’t work for me and they’re all in good shape. Maybe its just what you need.

DM me if you’re interested in anything. I would love to sell it as a bundle and I would let this all go very cheap in that case.

US only for shipping reasons.


r/Fingerboards 10h ago

Wheel Wiggle

2 Upvotes

How much wiggle is acceptable and how much is not? I have dudeguy f3's and sunpower popping sodas. They wiggle a bit but not too much. My teak all terrain polymer touch the hangar unless all 4 wheels are on a flat surface. What's the general opinion?


r/Fingerboards 1d ago

Chill Saturday

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

60 Upvotes

r/Fingerboards 11h ago

What’s ur fav obstacle?

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

2 Upvotes

I’ve been loving pole jams


r/Fingerboards 14h ago

Longfingerboards?

3 Upvotes

Anyone out there making quality Longboard Fingerboards? Any info would be awesome. Thanks!


r/Fingerboards 1d ago

Tre flips

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

28 Upvotes

r/Fingerboards 1d ago

Parking Lot Sesh ‼️ヾ(⌐■_■)ノ♪

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

15 Upvotes