Do you struggle with your flip tricks, do your board feel heavy, do you frequently get wheel bites, or do you find the turnings stiff? Well, trucks are the crucial component that defines your skateboarding. Trucks are the heaviest component in your whole setup, and it holds all the moving system of your board. Getting the best skateboard trucks is an investment in your skateboarding as they are the only component in a skateboard that may last the longest.
Skateboard trucks are metal T-shaped components mounted onto the skateboard deck’s bottom and securely hold skateboard wheels and bearings. Trucks’ quality, size, and height could affect your riding experience; therefore, getting the best skateboard truck that suit your skateboarding style matters. For the ease of our readers, our team has tested top skateboard trucks brands and handpicked a list of top skateboard trucks to determine which trucks are best suited to which style of skateboarding and for what deck size.
Top Skateboard Truck Brands
What are the Best Skateboard Trucks?
Selecting the best skateboard trucks depends on your skateboarding style and the size of skateboard wheels and decks. Some trucks are suitable for cruising, and some are best suited for tricks. Whether you’re getting your first board or had a skateboard for a while and you want to get a new set of trucks, or maybe you’ve got a pair that’s worn out and unsure which trucks to purchase, well, you are in luck. This guide will help you select the best skateboard trucks best suited for your skateboarding style.
Best Trucks for Skateboards
Since trucks bear the load of a skater, maneuver, slide on ledges, and grind on copings. For some skaters, the steering of trucks matters, whereas for some, trucks’ weight or grinding behavior matters. However, certain types of skating call for specific trucks. To sum up, it’s all personal preference to which skateboard truck brand you get used to.
Note to Beginners
Each company has its truck size guide. Lot of model numbers and measurements could be overwhelming especially for a beginner. Therefore, it would be best to match the truck’s axial length to your deck’s width. (Highly recommended)
Axil length is labeled in the product description. Don’t stress out with hanger widths or trucks model numbers.
Similarly, match the truck’s height/profile to your skateboard wheels size, and bam! You are good to go.
Best Street Truck– Independent 149 Forged Hollow Silver
Features:
Independent measure their trucks by the hanger width, meaning Indy 149 has a 149mm wide hanger to grind. However, we recommend going by axial length and keeping things simple. These mid profiles trucks have hollow axle & kingpin, making them 10% lighter than Stage 11 standard trucks. These trucks are more substantial and more impact resistant than any other truck because of forged construction.
These mid-profile trucks are the best match with 54mm wheels and under for optimal performance and to meet the technical demands of modern skateboarding. If you like to ride bit bigger wheels, you might need risers to avoid wheel bites.
Indy forged are neither too low nor too high. The trucks turn amazingly don’t bend or dent while grinding or sliding concrete. These light trucks make your board feel light, enabling you to flip the board faster and ollie higher. You’ll find these are trucks ideal for street skating, skateparks, skating mini ramps, curbs, and ledges with stability and less resistance.
My skating experience with these trucks is terrific. A few months back, I got Indy forged hollow 149 for my Bamboo 8.5″ deck and I took them to Kona skatepark for testing. It took me a day or two to break in the bushings of these unique trucks. Since then, my ollies have been higher, grindings are smooth and able to flip board faster. These are some of the best skateboard trucks and are the cream of the crop for street/park skating.
One huge plus of forged baseplate is that it last longer when nose sliding chunky ledges. A lighter board and smaller wheels are all you need for skate tricks. If you are a beginner and learning tricks, these lightweight and mid-profile trucks are for you. Incredibly durable and has a great turn radius.
Independent Truck Size Guide
Best Trucks Skateboard- Stage 11 Polished Standard Independent
Features:
Indy standards are high profile, durable, all-purpose trucks for all skateboarding styles. These are hands down, the most outstanding, most ridden and most loved trucks worldwide. Stage 11 standard trucks are undoubtedly the best combination of features and geometry, that Independent has ever produced. These are heavier than other Indy trucks but offer a solid and stable ride.
Indy polished standard trucks have an Aluminum Hanger and Baseplate with Chromoly steel axle to offer strength, durability, and a grind feel that no other truck can offer. Indy 159 and 169 models feature 6 holes universal baseplate with old and new school mounting patterns. Therefore, the trucks are compatible with new and old-school vintage decks. If you want the baseplate to have the old school bolt pattern, you must get trucks with axil width 8.75″ and above.
Indy high trucks offer more responsive turns, making them ideal for pool/vert skating and cruising. With these trucks, you can ride bigger wheels with less risk of wheel bite and high-speed wobbles. Moreover, they are designed to bear the brutal street abuse making them the best option for performance skate trucks.
Independent makes the best trucks for skateboarding. My first set (with Flight deck) lasted over three years of hard Jacksonville street riding. I did put bones bushing in them, made them even better. Highly recommend putting bones bushing with these trucks for more flexible turnings. These solid trucks grind and turn well, and additionally, Kingpin doesn’t cause any problems. Because the trucks are higher, they give a lot of pop .We recommend these durable and the best Independent trucks to beginners. Most importantly, they let you choose various wheel sizes for all skateboarding styles and offer precise turns and better stability on landings. Lastly, highly recommended for old school pool decks.
Noteworthy Mention – Best Trucks and Wheels for Skateboards
If you are a beginner or a casual skater who likes to cruise the street, it might be best for you to install standard Independent trucks with 83a Duro wheels. These wheels are not too hard and not too small. Selecting this whole set will save you from the hassle of matching the trucks with wheel size and finding the appropriate wheel. Just install these, and you are good to go.
Best for Tricks–THUNDER 149 Team Edition
Features:
The skateboarding world is divided mainly into two parts Indy fan and the others in favour of Thunders. These are top choices for many technical or street skaters because of their light and strong design, their responsiveness, grinding ability, and durability.
The company has its sizing guide and refer to their trucks as high or low. Thunder refer to this truck as high. These are hefty compared to Hollow and Titanium counterparts but lighter than any other brand truck. They have a wheel clearance of 54 mm, and for bigger wheels, you need risers to avoid wheel bite( the deck’s bottom rub against the wheels) . The lightness, responsiveness and compatibility with low wheels make these trucks a perfect choice for street, skateparks and trick skating.
These trucks are lighter than Indys; however, they don’t turn as great as Indys, but it doesn’t affect much for tricks or street skating. Unlike Indys, the Thunder’s bushings break in no time. Thunders immediately feel more technical and lighter, more nimble.
They turn quicker and reacts faster than the others. Easy to lock into grinds and bushings rarely worn out or get flaky. They grind perfectly and smoothly, and they are easy to break-in. I’ve ridden them for almost a year, and they haven’t failed me yet.
I have been skating for over 15 years, and I’ve ridden various trucks such as Ace, Krux, Indys, Gullwings. For technical skating, these are my top choice. If I want to do technical tricks like some manuals, flip tricks, or flat ground technical tricks, I go with thunders because as soon as I step on a board with thunders, I feel like I can do more technical tricks. It just feels lighter and more responsive.
To sum up, these are a must for all skaters who love to do tricks, carve, and skate the parks. You can carve more than sliding because they are so smooth to carve. Best skateboard trucks for street. Don’t question whether buy or not.
Thunder Truck Size Guide
Best Low Trucks–Thunder Polished Hollow Lights
Features:
Another loved truck by many skaters worldwide is Thunder hollows. These are perfect mid-size trucks that meet the need for modern skateboarding. Thunder’s high technology designed hollow axels and kingpins make these trucks lightweight. The forged baseplate offers more strength than standard Thunder trucks.
The turning seems more responsive than Indys, and the crooked grinds lock-in seems easier. The hollow lights are Trucks are real light and maneuverable. Therefore, these are the perfect choice for technical, skatepark or street skating. Thunder hollow makes your board feel light, enabling you to flip your board easily and swiftly.
These trucks look cool with blue bushings and sleek design. If you like to ride wide boards and want a lighter feel, get some Thunder Hollow Lights. You won’t be disappointed. In addition, Thunder trucks make your wheelbase feel a little bit longer because of the way they’re slanted, resulting feeling the board lower.
Moreover, I love the way thunders feel on transition especially coping. I really consider thunders a coping hugger. I never struggle with thunders when doing backsides. They carve great in bowls as they mid-profile trucks. I love to do ledge tricks like pinchy crooked grindy tricks on these trucks.
Lately, with my other trucks, I struggled with my front side crew grind variations and fell off from ledges a lot because of the height and the width, but these worked really nicely for me due to their perfect mid-height. Smith grind clearance is adequate, and it’s definitely better than your standard Thunder.
Over all, Thunder Hollow lights are lightweight, durable, cool-looking and great turning mid- profile trucks at an affordable price.
Best for Beginners- Venture Polished 5.2 HI
Features:
Venture trucks are among the famous skateboard trucks and are loved by many pros because of their balanced geometry and high quality. The venture trucks feature their iconic “V” logo on the hanger and are ideal for street skating. These trucks have standard baseplate and are 53.5 mm high, the same as Indys. Venture highs, the regular ones are not hollows and are 8 inches wide.
I love riding these lightweight and durable trucks. Bushings are perfect for my type of riding. I prefer looser trucks. When I got these, I noticed huge clearance from the kingpin to the hanger, which proved beneficial for Smith grind tricks. I did flip tricks with my old Element deck and Spitfire F4 Classic wheels, and I got really great pop, so I’m not surprised that some of the biggest poppers in the industry are riding Venture trucks like this Nick Tucker and Torey Pudwill.
For some reason, they feel skinnier than Indy’s, and they relatively feel skinnier than Thunders. Even with an older and kind of flat board, you’ll get pretty good pop; however, it would be an ideal setup with brand new gears.
Many people favor these trucks because they have a light poppy feel. Smith grinds, backslide,50-50 s, and flip tricks all come really quickly with these trucks. I recommend you to get these if you want an excellent non-expensive set of trucks! If you are a beginner or learning tricks, you must try these affordable quality trucks.
Venture Truck Size Guide
Strongest Skateboard Trucks- ACE 44 AF-1
Features:
ACE AF-1 are the strongest and most technical trucks ever made in skateboarding. These trucks are designed explicitly for precision turning, easy flow and smooth grinding. ACE has updated the sizing for a better fit across multiple board widths. Their new casting process shrinks the Aluminium molecules, making them denser and making this truck 70 % stronger than the previous ace truck.
Do you hate stripped axles? Good news – the AF-1 comes with rethreading axle nuts. Say goodbye to damaged axel ends. These mid profiles (52mm) trucks are perfect for both technical street skateboarding and flowing turns on ramps and bowls in transition skating. Due to their deep turning radius and lightness, Ace trucks are ideal for various terrains like streets, skateparks, downhill and vert.
Most importantly, ACE features the board size laser-etched into the axle. You don’t need the size chart to pick the trucks. Ace has upgraded the axle, so it’s not going to bend or slip back and forth if you land primo a lot on your board. They have also added the faced hangers to prevent bearings from banging against the truck and exploding your bearings. The truck comes with a red rethreading axle nut. This nut comes in handy in many ways, you pop it in any skate tool, twist it, and it will rethread your axles for you.
They weigh the same as Indy’s, turn the same (but deeper), and the grinding feel is awesome—excellent curving and perfect for those who like loose trucks. In transition skating, they grind outstandingly on metal copings. However, the sharp turn of these trucks could be overwhelming to a beginner or heavier rider, so we recommend tightening the axles according to your preference while being broken in.
Lastly, Ace F1 trucks have become increasingly popular in the skateboarding world because of their quality and top-notch performance available at a moderate budget. These skate trucks the most versatile trucks suitable for all skateboarding styles when sized adequately to a board of similar width.
ACE Truck Size Guide
Best Cheap Skateboard Trucks -Tensor Alloys Regular
Features:
Tensor Truck is owned by famous skateboarder Rodney Mullen who earned his name in freestyle skateboarding and street skateboarding. Tensor’s parent company is Dwindle Distribution – a company known for durable and quality products. The company stands out for their innovative, lightest, versatile trucks for all-terrain and riding styles.
These lightweights, sturdy and fast turning trucks are designed to meet all skateboarding needs such as flipping, grinding and shredding all over the streets and skate parks. Moreover, all-terrain geometry makes these trucks suitable for road, bowl skating, skateparks and cruising. Remember that you might need a bigger wheel for transition skating and cruising; hence, adding riser pads will prevent wheel bites.
Tensor Alloys are quality durable trucks, considering how thin they are at an incredible price. Perfect for your first custom setup. They turn great and grind buttery smooth over rough ledges/ curbs. In addition, these lightweight trucks make your board feel light, enabling you to flip your board faster and ollie higher. Perfect for beginners or intermediate skaters.
If you are on a budget or want a replacement truck, you might want to get your hands on these quality trucks. Skaters who like tight trucks might feel bushings soft. You can switch them with bones soft bushings for tight turns. Tensor stands out for providing vibrant coloured trucks to customize your board. With cool Blind deck graphics, Spitfire Bigheads, and Bronson Speed CO. G3 bearings, these trucks sure will make an eye catching setup.
All in all, Tensors are cool looking, quality and durable trucks at an affordable price. Market’s lightest truck TENSOR MAGNESIUM LIGHT that has gained popularity in a short time is also produced by Tensor .
Tensor Truck Size Guide
How to Choose Best Trucks Skateboard?
If you are a beginner or this is your first truck purchase, we recommend you don’t stress out with a lot of information about trucks. Just keep it simple and get a pair of trucks with an axle width matching the width of your board’s deck.
Trucks hold your skateboard’s whole turning system and help you grind. Skateboard trucks come in various sizes, materials, weights, and colors that impact your skateboard’s performance and stability while riding and doing tricks.
Skateboard Truck Parts
The T- shaped metal truck is composed of many parts. The three main parts of a skateboard truck are the base plate, the hangar, and the kingpin.
Baseplate
The baseplate mounts to the bottom of the deck and has the kingpin and the pivot cup. The distance between the two points where base plates are mounted also defines the wheelbase of a deck.
Hanger
The hanger is the t-shaped metal part that holds the axle and the pivot. It is the biggest component of your truck and holds the axel which passes through it. This is where you basically grind and slide the ledges.
Axle
The axle passes all the way through the hanger and sticks out on both ends so you can mount the wheels and bearings on them. The axle nuts keep the wheels on, and speed washers are there to give the bearing a little extra space, so the axle nuts don’t rub the sides of the bearings while they spin.
Tip: Axel’s ends should line up nearly with the deck’s width. Most brands measure axel lengths in millimeters or inches. All axle nuts need a 3/8 ” wrench socket.
Pivot
The pivot is the part that sticks out into the pivot cup on the baseplate providing the axis for the trucks to turn when you lean from one side to the other on your deck.
Pivot Cup
It holds the pivot in the baseplate and stays fixed, enabling you to turn with those trucks when you push on the side. Over time, pivot cups can wear out, but they’re inexpensive to replace.
Kingpin
The kingpin is a long bolt that holds the hanger and base plate together by sandwiching them between the bushings and washers. Hollow axles and kingpins have gained popularity among skaters because they are lightweight but, at the same time, are sturdy and durable.
Warning: Keep in mind that even solid kingpins are subject to breaking because it regulates the overall pressure on the bushings.
Tip: All kingpin nuts need a 9/16 inch wrench socket.
Bushings
Bushings are urethane cushions that compress while you turn, making the trucks more stable by giving them some rebound, so they don’t flop from side to side and turn way too easily. Softer bushings will compress more, letting you turn easier, and harder bushings will give more resistance and stability. Bushings are easily swapped out, so you can experiment with different bushings if you want to customize the way your board turns.
Washers
Washers are there to give bushings an even compression and avoid burying nuts into the bushings from over-tightening.
Kingpin Nut
Finally, the kingpin nut holds everything together and allows you to control how tight or lose your trucks feel. As you tighten, your trucks will become more stable but restrict your turning radius.
As you loosen your kingpin, your trucks will turn sharper, but it can be harder to control and makes you more susceptible to wheel bite and speed wobbles. Play around with it until it feels right.
Skateboard Truck Sizes
When you build a new skateboard setup choosing the best skateboard deck, trucks, wheels and bearings play a vital role in your skateboard’s performance and your ride. Especially for beginners, skateboard truck sizes could be overwhelming. We have elaborated on some of the key factors, you need to consider while purchasing the best skateboard trucks for your setup.
Skateboard Truck Sizes
Ideally, you should get trucks that match the axle’s width to the width of your deck for optimal stability. So if you are skating an 8-inch board, your truck should have an 8-inch axle. If the axles are too small, it will give the board weird pressure points and make flip tricks harder. And if the axles are too wide, they will stick out on the sides, and you might accidentally kick the wheel when you push, which is an almost guaranteed fall. Also, the wheels will be away from the center, and during flip rotations, you might feel your setup really heavy.
Note: Different truck companies list their sizes differently. For example, an independent 139, a thunder 147, and a venture 5.2 have an 8-inch axle width. It’s okay if the axle width doesn’t match exactly but try to keep the difference within a 1/4 of an inch.
To determine the width of a truck, you can either measure the hanger’s width ( inner width) or find out the axel’s width( outer width). Most commonly, manufacturers state the truck’s inner width, and it’s not standardized, which might be confusing; therefore, it’s best to match the axle width with your skateboard deck’s width.
You can refer to the following truck size chart to figure out the trucks matching to your deck’s width.
Skateboard Truck Profile ( Height)
You need to select or adjust the truck’s height to your skateboard wheels size. The truck’s height is the distance between the deck’s bottom and the hanger, also equivalent to the distance between the baseplate and middle of the axle. It is also refer as the truck’s profile, i.e., low, mid, and high. Mid-height trucks are the standard trucks and top choice of most skaters.
Low Trucks ( 46-49 mm)
As the name suggests, low trucks have small heights and are closer to the ground, making your board more stable. Low trucks are lighter in weight and are suitable for smaller skateboard wheels. We recommend 50- 53 mm wheel size for low trucks to perform tricks efficiently, such as flip tricks. If your truck is low, you can’t use two big wheels because they would touch the board when you turn. After all, when you turn, you press on one side and wheels get closer to the deck, making it susceptible to wheel bite. As bigger wheels are usually soft, the risk of wheel bite is pretty high.
We recommend low trucks for technical and skatepark skating as they provide extra stability while performing skate tricks on flat ground railings and some curbs where nothing goes too fast.
Mid Trucks(50-53 mm)
These trucks’ height is somewhere in between low and high trucks. This is also the standard truck, preferred by many skaters for all skateboarding styles. We recommend starting with mid /standard trucks and 52 mm -56 mm wheel size, if you are a beginner. If you want to go for more than 56mm wheels, you can use riser pads to avoid wheel bites.
Mid-high trucks are best suited for skatepark and street skating.
High Trucks (53.5-58 mm)
These trucks are the highest, which means your deck will be higher from the ground. High trucks can be used for a little bigger wheels over to about 60 mm. If you get closer to 60 mm, you have to tighten your kingpin so your truck doesn’t turn too much. Moreover, if you use riser pads with high trucks, you can easily use big wheels, almost longboard wheels for cruising setup or filming set up. We recommend using 56mm+ wheels.
High trucks are more suitable for taller people because their legs are big enough to snap the tail on the floor while jumping. When popping with the high truck, the board has a steeper incline, allowing you to ollie higher. Plus, the wheels are less susceptible to wheel bite.
On the other hand, high trucks weigh higher than low or mid trucks and make the board somewhat less stable while turning. However, high trucks are suitable for carving and cruising the streets. Moreover, high trucks with bigger wheels provide you with more speed when skating vert/ pools.
Here is maximum wheel sizes and truck heights recommendations based on tight trucks.
Warning: The skateboard wheels shouldn’t be larger than 60 mm if you’re not setting up a cruiser or a longboard.
Types of Skateboard Trucks
Trucks are the heaviest part of your setup. Therefore, companies come up with innovations to reduce the weight of your trucks.
Note: You can always find the precise weight of the trucks in the product description.
Hollow Trucks
Many brands like Indies, tensor, and thunder make lightweight Hollow trucks. These trucks come with an axle and kingpin that are empty from inside. It reduces the weight of the trucks resulting in a lighter skateboard set up, making it flip faster and pop higher. Some skaters like lighter trucks for their skateboard setups, while others prefer their boards’ heavy feel.
Other than having hollow axles and kingpins, producers can also change the material of their trucks to make the trucks lighter.
Among skaters, it is believed that if you grind on very crusty surfaces such as a lousy street ledge or pool copings, hefty trucks like Independent Standard last longer compared to lightweight trucks. However, you could use lightweight material trucks, such as the tensor made with magnesium, but there’s a higher chance that the hanger gets eroded faster when grinding.
Tip for beginners: When you get your new set of truck pairs or a skateboard, you shouldn’t tighten or loosen the trucks right away. It may blow up the bushings. You need to ride the trucks first and break in the bushings.
Moreover, the bushing should face in, away from nose and tail. Your bushing should be facing in the middle of the board because if you put bushings wrong, your truck will not turn properly.
Skateboard Trucks (Standard Kingpin)
Standard kingpin trucks are the most versatile and the best skateboard trucks for any skateboard. You can customize the way your board turns by tightening or loosening these trucks. We recommend these trucks for skate parks, bowls, or streets.
Longboard Trucks (Reverse Kingpin)
The other type is reverse kingpin trucks. These are primarily used on longboards and give you a tighter and more responsive turning radius making them great for carving cruising and going fast downhill. These trucks work great with wider decks and larger wheels to ride at high speed.
Tip : Always put the pivot cup to the outside. That way, you’ll never accidentally put your trucks on backward.
Final Thoughts
As I mentioned earlier , it’s all personal preference. Some like their board to be light , on contrary some like the heavy feel of their board. If you are not too choosey, you can just grab a pair of trucks of any top truck brands and skate them. Most probably you’re going to like them pretty much no matter what, because you’re going to develop that riding style or get used to them.
Each company has their sizing guide . Trucks from one brand can differ in length and height from other brand. For your ease we have mentioned the truck size charts of each brand with their product reviews. The general rule of purchasing skateboard truck is to match axle length with your deck’s width.
In this article we have recommended some of the best skateboard trucks that are suitable for all skateboarding styles. However here are some good skateboard truck recommendations from from our heart that every skater must try for an awesome riding experience.
Best Street Truck– Independent 149 Forged Hollow Silver
Strongest Skateboard Trucks- ACE 44 AF-1
Best Low Trucks–Thunder Polished Hollow Lights
Best for Beginners- Venture Polished 5.2 HI
Now it’s your turn to customize your skateboard setup with best skateboard trucks , decks, grip tape, wheels, and bearings.