Thunder Skateboard Trucks

High-quality skateboard trucks are as important for an ideal skateboard setup as a deck that fits you. Skate trucks are not only necessary for steering, but also essential for tricks like grinds. For this reason, they should not only have good steering performance but should also be especially robust.

Skateboard trucks from the most famous brands such as Thunder Trucks and Independent Trucks have proven themselves for years. Newer brands like Film Trucks or ACE also offer excellent alternatives.

No matter which skate truck you choose, in the skatedeluxe skate shop you'll, only find high-quality trucks from the best skateboard truck brands. Also, you'll find a lot of know-how and tips to help you buy your new skateboard trucks on this page. If you know which truck width you need and if you want to have low, mid or high trucks, you can order the right trucks easily and comfortably online.

Frequently asked questions about skateboard trucks:

• How is a skateboard truck constructed?
• What should I pay attention to when buying skateboard trucks?
• Which truck width fits my deck?
• High, mid or low truck - Which truck height is right for me?
• Hollow, light, etc. - what special truck technologies are available?
• How do I adjust the steering of my skateboard trucks?
• What accessories do I need for skateboard trucks?
• Where can I find more information about skateboard trucks?

The construction of skateboard trucks

The construction of skate trucks is basically the same for all manufacturers. Roughly, trucks are composed of two basic elements - the hanger and the baseplate. The hanger is where the wheels sit. The baseplate is mounted to the deck. These two parts are connected by a bolt called the kingpin. The kingpin also holds the bushings, which provide mobility.

From Hanger to Pivot - the individual parts of skateboard trucks

Besides bearings, skateboard trucks are the most technical components of a skateboard. All parts fulfil a purpose – without these, skate trucks wouldn't work optimally.

1. Kingpin nut
2. Top washer
3. Top Bushing
4. Axle nut
5. Speedrings
6. Axle
7. Bottom bushing
8. Kingpin
9. Baseplate
10. Hanger
11. Pivot cup

Buying skateboard trucks online - what to pay attention to

When buying skateboard trucks you should pay attention to three things: truck width, truck height and quality. You don't have to worry about the latter in the skatedeluxe skate shop. We only have high-quality trucks from "real" skate brands. So you can rest assured about their quality and steering behaviour. Besides that, your skateboard trucks should match your deck and wheels. In short, the truck width has to match the deck width and the truck height has to match the wheel diameter.

Skateboard truck width and deck width - how to coordinate your setup

Why axle width instead of hanger width?

Skateboard truck manufacturers specify the width of their trucks by numbers or values in the names of their products. This is usually the hanger width (inner width) in inches or millimetres.

1. Axle width (outer width)
2. Hanger width (inner width)
3. Hanger
4. Baseplate

Unfortunately, the width specifications of the different truck brands are not standardized, so different names can mean the same width. Therefore, the axle width (outer width) is a more useful size specification.

What happens if the trucks don't fit the deck?

If your trucks are wider than your deck, the centre of gravity of the deck shifts outwards. This can affect the flip behaviour and general board feeling. In extreme cases, you may hit the protruding wheel while pushing and you'll kick your board away from under your feet.

If your trucks are much narrower than your deck, the steering behaviour and overall stability of your skateboard will get worse. You'll probably have less fun riding your board and find it harder to learn tricks.

High, Mid or Low trucks - find the right truck height

The height of your skateboard trucks has to be adjusted to the size of your wheels. The height of skateboard trucks also affects the characteristics of a skateboard. Trucks can be divided into three heights - low, mid and high.

The height of a skateboard truck is measured from the bottom of the baseplate to the centre of the axle. Unfortunately, the manufacturers' descriptions of truck heights are not uniform either. Therefore, we divide the trucks in the skatedeluxe skate shop ourselves into low, mid and high:

Skateboard truck height - description and dimension

• Low trucks: 46 - 49mm
• Mid trucks: 50 - 53mm
• High trucks: 53.5 - 58mm

High skateboard trucks

With high trucks, you can skate on larger wheels up to 60mm. For even bigger wheels we recommend riser pads.

With high skateboard trucks, the distance between the deck and ground is bigger. This allows you to skate tighter turns. At high speeds, high trucks may appear less stable.

Low skateboard trucks

For low trucks, smaller wheels up to 53mm are suitable.

With low trucks, the deck is lower, which makes the general handling more stable. These trucks are especially advantageous for children and people with short legs.

Mid skateboard trucks

With mid trucks, you can skate mid-size wheels up to 56mm.

Mid skateboard trucks are best suited for all-round skateboarding and are the compromise between high and low trucks.

More information about the different truck heights can be found in our Skateboard Truck Wiki. You can easily find all matching trucks in the shop using the filter "truck height".

Why is truck height important?

Your truck height determines which wheels you can skate and vice versa. Wheels that are too big can cause wheelbites. Wheelbites occur when the wheels rub against the bottom of the deck while you are skating or steering.

When landing, wheelbites can make a trick look very messy. At high speeds, wheelbites can also cause the wheels to a standstill, which would most likely cause you to fall off the board. The hardness of the steering plays a role in addition to the truck height. Riser pads can be used to fine-tune the height of your truck.

Recommendation: Truck height and wheel size

1. Truck height
2. Wheel size

Hollow, light, etc. - what do the truck technologies mean?

Special technologies are generally designed to make trucks lighter and more stable. Especially for children or beginners, it can be frustrating to get the skateboard in the air with an ollie. After all, the trucks are the heaviest components of a skateboard, weighing about 300-400g. But lighter trucks are interesting even for technical skaters, because you get a small advantage when doing particularly difficult tricks.

Many truck manufacturers use the terms "hollow" and "light" for the lighter versions of their standard trucks. Such skateboard trucks mostly have a hollow axle or kingpin. A significant weight advantage is achieved with titanium axles. These are even lighter and stronger than classic or hollow axles.

Some manufacturers offer trucks with forged baseplates next to trucks with cast baseplate. Forged baseplates are forged, not cast, making them stronger and lighter. The weight of each skateboard truck in our shop can be found in the product descriptions. More about skateboard truck technologies can be found in our truck Wiki.

Loose or tight - how to adjust the steering of your skateboard trucks

Whether your truck's steer is hard or soft, you can adjust it on the kingpin nut. The easiest way to do this is with a skate tool.

To make your steering harder, you have to tighten the kingpin nuts of both trucks equally. This gives your skateboard more stability. Be careful not to tighten the kingpin nuts too much, as this could damage the bushings. If your steering still feels too soft, you can use bushings with a higher degree of hardness.

To make your steering softer you can loosen the kingpin nuts of both trucks a little bit. By loosening the kingpin nuts, the steering will be more agile. Don't loosen the nut too much, it should sit completely on the thread of the kingpin. Similarly, you can make your trucks even softer by using softer bushings.

Bushings - fine tuning for your skateboard trucks

Bushings are available in different degrees of hardness. As with skateboard wheels, the hardness is indicated on the A-scale. The higher the A-value, the harder the bushing. Cone bushings make a truck easier to steer, while barrel bushings make a truck more stable.

Is your skateboard wobbly, crooked or squeaky? Answers and further hints about skateboard trucks can be found in the skatedeluxe Truck Wiki.

More accessories for your skateboard trucks

A few things should be part of your basic equipment, especially if you move around the city or skate in different spots. Using skate tools you can not only adjust your steering, but also assemble all the other parts of your skateboard. With skate wax, you can make sure that your trucks grind better on rough curbs and surfaces. You will also find a lot of spare and small parts for skateboard trucks like nuts, pivot cups and more at skatedeluxe.

Hardware for your skateboard

The hardware connects trucks and deck and consists of eight nuts and bolts each. Normally a bolt length of 7/8″ to 1″ is sufficient. Whether you choose Phillips or Allen bolts is a question of personal taste. If you want to use riser or shock pads, we recommend bolts between 1 1/8″ and 1 3/4″, depending on the height of the pads.

Riser and shock pads

Riser pads are mounted between the baseplate and deck and are available in different thicknesses. They let you increase the distance between the deck and the wheels. This way you can also use low trucks to ride larger wheels. This way you don't have to buy new trucks if you want to use bigger wheels. To mount riser pads, you need hardware that's long enough.

Shock pads are mounted between the baseplate and deck like riser pads. They're used to cushion shocks caused by rough ground or high impact. Usually, shock pads have a thickness of 1/8″, so you should use hardware with a bolt length from 1″ to 1 1/8″.