WEBSIGHT360 Posted June 22, 2008 Report Share Posted June 22, 2008 This spring I discovered longboarding with the purchase of my first longboard, a Loaded Dervish. It is a pretty good board, but it had me wanting a longer board. So I chose to buy a 60" Surf Rodz Freeride model, mady of 17 Ply Birch, with a brushed aluminum bottom sheet. The trucks are Original S-10's, with the heavy white springs. Wedged in the front, and de-wedged in the back. These trucks with the heavy white springs are amazing. I have mounted a Spin binding on the front. I also experimented with one for the rear foot, but I found it interfered with the movement of my back foot, and made exiting both bindings too slow and dangerous. I really like the way I can jam the front of my foot up against the front of the binding when I am pushing. It gives you a very firm footing which ensures your foot is not going to slip. Not ever. It is also very easy and natural to just slide your foot completely into the binding when you step back onto the board with both feet to start to carving or cruising. When the binding is mounted, it gives you the ability to carve much deeper, with much more confidence. It is also great for riding up onto sidewalks and transitioning from un-even surfaces. The binding lets you hop “up” and lift the board with ease when riding over deep cracks too. As for exiting in an emergency, I find it very natural to slide my front foot back out of the binding when I anticipate trouble. This makes jumping off easy. This deck is the closest thing I have found to riding my Tanker 200 with plates. The wheels are the soft red 75mm Avilas. They stick like glue to the road and give you a great ride. I love being able to carve all summer long now. My legs are in great shape, and the workout I get with this deck on my local bicycle path is awesome. I have also been using it to carve fresh-paved local hills at night when there is no vehicle traffic. What a rush! I highly recommend this board! I still ride my Dervish, but this deck is the "Top Dog" in my summer quiver. The great thing about longboards, is they are relatively cheap. You can buy two or three quality longboards for the price of one snowboard. I am now completely hooked on longboarding! ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr D Posted June 23, 2008 Report Share Posted June 23, 2008 very nice. I love his stuff. I got the pleasure of demoing a few of his soft boot/soft groom carvers this season. loads of fun. he's got some great ideas kicking around inhis head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobdea Posted June 24, 2008 Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 man, I have the original 150s, crazy trucks. scary on short boards! they can turn a six foot circle, bad ass but scary as **** at speed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WEBSIGHT360 Posted June 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 I am using the new "Heavy" white springs. I weigh 220, and I have yet to get any speed wobble or feel uncomfortable at high speeds using the Original trucks. The black springs that are stock are useless for heavier riders, and perhaps even dangerous IMO. But the white springs give the board a very stable feel and give you even more rebound coming out of turns. These new springs really change the way this truck performs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingCrimson Posted June 24, 2008 Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 You don't like setting it to the longer WB? Should feel even sweeter, I can't imagine the stability of a deck that long with white springs. You could bomb a hill while taking a nap! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gecko Posted June 24, 2008 Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 Surf Rodz are interesting boards beautiful construction on his skateboards...I learned from both his boards and Scratch's Big Lazy's that Originals are awesome on big long boards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WEBSIGHT360 Posted June 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 "King Crimson" asked: "You don't like setting it to the longer WB?" I did use the forward-most holes at first, but I preferred the feel of the board when I moved the front wheel in. I tried moving it inwards toward the board on the rear too, but found this wheelbase too short. It feels "just right" where it is now. At it's longest wheelbase I found it a little less responsive. The white springs really do make the truck perform. I keep the front truck fairly loose, and the back truck a fair bit tighter to so I can load up the rear spring in the carve to give me lots of rebound to power me into the next turn. The other nice thing about adjusting these trucks is that you only need a 5mm allen key like my Bomber TD2's. Very stable, very fast ride. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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