Santa Cruz VX Deck Review

[@BeardedForever]

That's right children, today's Canadian word of the day is Tuque. A knit cap, originally of wool (though now often of synthetic fibers), is designed to provide warmth in cold weather.

[@hawkwind769]

I dated a Canadian long ago and her tuque lingo lingers on. I still refer to it as tuque....

[@coops5060]

I died when he said that

[@kevvymetal666]

its spelled toque. that's what we canadians call them. beanie sounds like it should have a propeller on top.

[@oniongummy8969]

Toque*

[@Thallod]

English word of the day: Matte (of a color, paint, or surface) dull and flat; without a shine.

[@gonzo13ist]

It’s amazing how you adapt to all these different size boards, trucks, and wheels. One day your riding a 7.5, and the next day your on a 8.25. There is a huge difference. I would think it would be hard to adapt to all the different sizes you review. But your able to skate at a high level no matter what’s your riding. Your awesome!

[@18JR78]

Jersey Devil Agreed. Shows his experience and skill level. 👍🏽

[@mr.jamster8414]

How though, I feel like the only guy who can ride any size board. although there is definitely a difference and some people prefer one size, i doubt it would affect your skating much.

[@TheEchelon]

Anthony Flores What are you talking about dude? I think YOU don't know what height and width is. He's a carpenter too.

[@alexismendoza1545]

@@mr.jamster8414 yea I've rode only 8.0 for the last 2 years and I just jumped up to 8.25 and don't feel much different.

[@robweissman5952]

I've been skating on and off for over 30 years now, and I never knew how much I did NOT know about the actual skateboard itself, until watching Ben's videos.... (He's taught me a ton) I hope Ben's channel blows up in 2020, he deserves it. He has a great KZbin channel for skaters!

[@ScottGarrettDrums]

His main channel, Vancouver Carpenter, has significantly more subs and is where he focuses most of his time. :)

[@markstaud]

He still should have 400,000+ Followers for this Channel it’s crazy he hasn’t even hit 100,000.

[@victorcordero6682]

Your skating is sick no matter what board you try

[@timothyfung1525]

I love how honest and informational he is. He gives the perspective of how the deck feels to different types of skaters which is amazing. These videos really help people choose their skateboards. Keep up the great work!

[@_roughsawn_3990]

You should try the Deathwish Neen Williams twin nose shape. Looks interesting and Neens logic on it makes sense for what he intended.

[@thinkforyourself5672]

Is it any different than the Krooked or Real Twin deck design? I've been riding the Worrest REAL twin boards and they're fantastic

[@fitch9782]

@@thinkforyourself5672 twin nose so longer kicks, AW also has a twin nose out

[@_roughsawn_3990]

@@thinkforyourself5672 as far as I know those are twin tail. Not sure if it's correct but in a video on Neens channel he said it's the first twin nose he has heard of. And he gives his reasoning for why he wanted the design.

[@dustinstoner6195]

@@_roughsawn_3990 was Neens reasoning similar to his skin side up salmon cooking reasoning? If so I'll stick with the Ishod twin.

[@theqsanity5797]

@@dustinstoner6195 lmao what's the skin side up salmon have to do with skating?

[@ryanbamford2425]

Great review Ben. I agree with everything you said. One interesting thing to consider, they are currently on their third generation VX deck. All of these came out within the last year, and they all have slightly different shapes. I've skated one from each. The one in your vid is a second generation one. You can tell by the design on them. They call the first gen ones "VX100 prototype". I feel like the nose and tail shapes are the main things they're tweaking. The first generation shape is more pointy, less steep. 2nd gen is more blunted and round with this massive tail. 3rd gen keeps a pretty big tail but the nose isn't as blunted as the first. The thing that keeps bringing me back to these is exactly what you said, the experience is consistent and they last a long time. I've never broken any of them. I've also had two flight decks and I have chipped those and ripped the nose in half after a couple months. A normal 7 ply maple lasts me about a month. VX decks last me probably 4 or 5 but I replace after about 3 months just because at that point the razor tail begins to negatively impact the shape of the deck. I'll keep buying these as long as they make them. I like the stiffness, feels secure and stable. Whatever the opposite of soggy is. Crispy, I guess

[@TheAlfone1]

Thanks for your comment and review Ryan. I am afraid of buying it bc usually a board lasts me 3-4 weeks (Flights, or maple decks) at top before it chips, razor tails or just looses its pop/stiffness and is not responsive anymore. Could you tell me if VXs feel solid for a long time and if they are chip resistant at all? Flight decks get chipped/razor tailed pretty quick so, at least for me, they are not worthy anymore

[@ryanbamford2425]

@@TheAlfone1 Alfonso, my current VX deck has lasted me almost 3 months now and there's no chipping that damages the integrity of the board at all. It still feels crisp and like it has life left. A normal deck lasts me about a month, a flight deck, about 6-7 weeks. If you can drop your Gmail somehow I'll send you a series of pics of all corners of my board so you can see how chip resistant it is

[@ryanbamford2425]

@@TheAlfone1 I should also mention that I skate 4-6 days a week, at least an hour per day up to 2 hours, and I go pretty hard. I'm a busy guy so I make the most of that time and try to land at least 5 of every trick, 10 tre flips minimum, at least 25 kickflips in that time, and factor in the failures it ends up in a lot of deck abuse. I do not however, jump down huge stair sets, but I also spend a lot of time at the park practicing boardslides, Smith's, feebles, etc

[@ryanbamford2425]

@@TheAlfone1 also, my boards almost always break from chips in the nose, like landing a tre flip with too much flip to where it's halfway in primo, and it starts to rip the corner of the board off, so I'm familiar with the boards degrading as you described

[@svnbit8408]

Have you tried powerply? Is that only for chips, and not pop?

[@ikkakujuuryuji319]

VX is great. I am 47 and I now only skate VX deck. It is light, poppy and very secure especially for a 82kg missing a heel flip or doing an agressive rock disaster on the coping + NHS makes dope graphics. I change this week for a new one and I was skating the old one for....8 months / the last two 7 plys I had less than a month

[@sarahdennis77]

Omg your hardflips and Nollie inward heels are so good on this board

[@Notch200sx]

I just bought the VX 8.25 been skating it for about 2 weeks and definitely one of the best feeling skateboard I've ever rode.

[@brussells]

"Ssssuper Sensitive Feet" :D I chuckled hard at that. Love the Matt look, and the graphic is super nice!

[@gebsvideos6856]

Awesome review on this deck. Skated my VX deck for the first time tonight. I really liked the pop.

[@ovidiubranga3847]

The Maurio Mccoy Santa Cruz vx 8.25 is the best board I've ever had. NOTHING feels as good after you've had it. You get all your "stats" one-upped with a vx board. I personally love the steep kicks and I ghost pop alot on regular boards.

[@CRYPTfromCATACOMBZ]

Have the same deck and it's very satisfying... What was the big plus for me, it's twin tail, that means i don't have to watch where is nose and where's tail, i simply grab that deck and jump on it.... Besides that same shape on both sides is

[@DarkoNomad]

I absolutely agree, it works great especially on low trucks like Tensor Maglight lows that compensate well for the steepness of kicks and the weight of the board. The quality of wood is much better than on Powell flight decks that are chipping so easily.

[@Juggatarian]

Have you considered doing reviews on flat & round rails from Amazon? Most of the reviews about them are from 80 lb. teens. I'd like to see someone trying real tricks on the Element rails. Probably too expensive for a review video though.

[@nathankarr7665]

You should go for some sponsors with those tricks, you got skills my dude. Also loved how you said tuque cause I’m Canadian too😂

[@vasectomyfail442]

no one's gonna sponsor a grown man. besides ben definitely makes more money from being a carpenter anyway, probably a lot less stress and injuries too

[@johnm3946]

Then couldn't demo all the other trucks

[@scottwaltman2848]

Had one for months, on venture lows. Loved it wore it out pretty quickly and went back to traditional 7 plys

[@iamreptar4534]

im a 220 lb dude, i snap decks like they popsicle sticks. ive tried both the flight and the vx. I like the way flip tricks feel better on the vx once you get adjusted to the steepness.

[@samzadgan]

Good review, exactly my experience too. I have the 8.8 size, and i love it even after 2 months of solid riding its still so fresh. The one thing i had to do was get softer wheels 97a’s to take the edge off the stiffness

[@browniegames865]

I got my vx deck like 2 weeks ago and im loving it. Especially since im a heavier dude. I was worried it wouldnt feel good under my feet but its amazing

[@hotelaux4432]

yo ben, don’t know the best way to contact you but I’ll give you another view of my thousands and this nice comment! I hope everything is well with life dude, you have been one of my biggest motivators of getting back on a board in the prime years of life since I have found your channel in 2018. Just want to say thank you from skater to skater for all the information and inspiration with each and every video. You are what I look forward to seeing everyday on my subscriptions when I wake up before I go shred or go to work and shred after work. Learned so many things things from you and how you articulate everything. I have showed many of my friends your channel and we have conversations of wheelbase and tail lengths going to shops haha its awesome. Anyways you’re the best hands down :)

[@justinh8574]

I had the 8.5 vx and I loved it... But once it Razor tailed it cut my fingers the pops was harder hard to find a lot of "ghost pops". I ended up breaking the deck 8 months after I bought it and it was still shareable lol so I gave it to a young skater that didn't have a deck and he loved it!!!!!

[@Alex-lq1uf]

That flatground session was amazing

[@Sadknob]

It's nice to have you back.

[@李暘-y3u]

Great content as always. And btw I'm hoping for a creature/santa cruz everslick deck review for a long time

[@TheAlfone1]

Dope review. Thank you! You have improved sooooo much during last year, congrats on that

[@thealexpshow782]

I never knew it was a W concave until i scrolled the comments. I learned something new😍

[@panchi_wav]

Production quality has been on point recently man!

[@waynebarnette1435]

I ride a creature 8.25 deck with Indy 149s 50mm spitfire wheels.... killer setup 🤘

[@Gnarkilla720]

Ur passion for skating is amazing, I love your videos. Iv bought a few decks because of your reviews. Keep rippin bruh.

[@incsk8]

Would love to see a Tensor ATG review.

[@illastration1]

The Magnesium ATG 5.5s would be perfect

[@wyattsmith1815]

@@illastration1 maglights 5.5 on 8.5 vx is really nice

[@skankwave5245]

If it goes up in the middle it's called a W concave, widely used in downhill longboards. But I doubt it goes up, probably just flat and it feels different.

[@fitch9782]

look at the slide marks at the end

[@mr.jamster8414]

It goes up, otherwise it’s called a flatcave.

[@zoozu2067]

I thought it was called a mid rocker concave

[@ianm659]

Love your channel and skating. Can’t wait to see you ripping on those ventures getting back to your roots

[@zacharyfaber729]

I LOVE YOU BEN

[@Vitalitay]

And he loves us

[@geoffliam55]

Love your channel! Love from germany 🇩🇪

[@andre85022]

GN-YT PHOENIX frohe Weihnachten

[@gr1mace702]

Thank you ben IAM a board breaker my self and I heard creature makes a vx model as well and now I know what deck I want next

[@Luke2231_]

I really appreciate your channel and all the work you've put into figuring out what are the relevant parameters when it comes to skateboard setups. I learned a freaking lot from your videos. What i really would like to see is a review of some of the european brands, especially Jart. Since they have their own factory and single press the boards.

[@cdogcdog4814]

Hey Ben "MATTE" is the type of paint used non metallic paint, OR FLAT colors. BTW, your a solid skater esp* fora 40 year old like me! I quit @34 yrs old, (2010). Broke back too many times & took til 2015 to heal. After skating 22 full years starting back in 1988. Im gonna do yoga & re-start skateboarding come *this* spring. Last day I skated I ollie-kickflipped a picnic table (larger east coast tables) & learned ollie nose manuals on it too. OR "nose mannys" as they call em now. I was double flipping off 4 foot launch ramps & indy grabbing & ollieing 16 stairs or 9 foot drop gaps, for star achievements. Skate lingo wasn't shortened as much, then? "360 flips" not "treflips", & "big spin kickflips" not "big flips" back then. Hard flips were new.

[@TheCreamster]

This is my favorite deck ive ever skated, with hollows its so light and poppy, i mustve skated that deck for close to a year till the nose and tail were shredded down to spear points and it was still poppy af

[@jDDignity]

For your interest the Santa Cruz Matte finish is the color print way on the top for easiest griptape changing. It even is used in colors that don’t reflect light..

[@JoelGlovier]

Thanks for your review, Ben. I'll have to try it without my risers and see how it feels. I rode a couple Flight Decks for close to a year, and as a 250 lb guy who easily breaks decks I appreciated how even after many big drops it only had stress fractures. It was however, kinda soggy after a few weeks. I tried the VX Deck a few months ago and it kept its pop for me a lot better than the Flight Decks did. I did, however, break it after a couple months of doing some bigger ollies down stuff (bigger for me anyway, we're only talking like 4/5 stair type drops). In the end, I still prefer the VX Deck on account of it's steeper feel, and I think a deck that lasts me a couple months is still pretty legit. Example drop on Flight Deck: kzbin.info/www/bejne/np6WZYuDrJ58etE Example drop on VX Deck: kzbin.info/www/bejne/d2eZeKh8pZJ1jJI

[@kmw5100]

4:27, I have an 8.5 Toy Machine right now that I swear feels smaller than my 8.38 real decks, and the 8.375 Santa Cruz I had felt bigger than my 8.5 antihero

[@bertiemunn129]

I've started riding the Maurio McCoy Twin VX deck and it's my favourite board I've ever skated, I've had 3 in a row now. They last forever and don't lose their pop. The only issue is that I skate Aces which are a bit high for the steep kicks

[@TanyutHuidrom]

Hey Ben, your tutorials are pretty much the only ones on KZbin that have helped me out, so please for the love of God I'm begging you to do a how to tre flip, feelsbad

[@philthyphil3324]

I just built a vx 8.5 with thunder 151 and spitfire bighead 52mm. My first board in 20 years. I am heavy so I wanted one that I wouldn’t break my first time out

[@jakethesk8roberts763]

Love the Santa Cruz shapes I like the powerply’s better a little cheaper and last me 2 x as long as a regular board and the pop never goes away crisp pop the whole life

[@Will-wn1fz]

Your skate footage got me pumped to go skate! Thanks!

[@kanklelove1826]

I wish that Tum yeto/Foundation would come up with a new board construction, I like their mellow kicks.

[@sketchliing]

Best skate review channel, no contest

[@nacho77766]

3:19 W concave.

[@nelsonferreira1662]

Awesome reviews. Keep up the good work. Congrats from a guy from Portugal. I only ride flight decks. But from my point of view VX boards and FLIGHT boards are pretty the same thing to me, although i never rode a VX board. Maybe my next buy. Ty for your review on VX boards.

[@allanreyes5520]

i mentioned your name in one of Paul Schmitts The Nine Club intervw, coz yo the man Ben

[@alexismendoza1545]

I would love to see PS and Ben just talk about skateboarding

[@guts1404]

Hey Ben, love you’re videos literally the most knowledgeable skateboarding KZbinr. What I’ve learned from you I can’t from other skate KZbinrs. I’d love if you can do a review on the Mullen Uber deck since there’s not to many reviews on KZbin. I’ve been struggling with the thought if it’s worth buying... So yeah I’ll definitely like to hear you’re opinion and it’s feats on the deck!.

[@eliasvaldiviezo4346]

Yeahh Ben...thanks for the inspiration to keep me skating in diferents areas...well done bro...hugs and good vibes..

[@1DerfulSniping]

your skating looks really clean and confident on this deck

[@vinceamir7236]

I just got a Creature Vx 8.6 deck (14.625 WB) but cant use it beacause of the snow but i can say that the shape is really good. I just considered buying a 8.25 Vx too but with the steep long nose and tail i just dont know if the Venture 5.6 v-hollow gonna work good with it.

[@williamn9344]

Been waiting patiently for this one.. what a great gift from you to me!

[@gromitmitten7803]

Haven't skated the vx or powerply from nhs but I did try a creature p2 back in the day. Good board but way too stiff for my liking. I like a deck with a little bit of "cushion" when I land. Anyway, I'd love to see more trick tip vids if your up for it Ben. Keep having fun out there 🤙

[@beezy785]

Merry Christmas Ben! I'm starting to get it now when you said 14.19 wheelbase and you said I'm putting Indy's on here, I thought to myself I don't know about that, I think Thunders are gonna be better on this board. And sure enough Thunders! Anyway appreciate what you do Ben looking forward to the next one!

[@dan-iw3bv]

thanks for the upload! happy holidays Ben:) p.s. that nollie inward heel was just explosive!!

[@technolange651]

Thanks for the review. Was thinking about trying this deck. I ride thunders, but my legs are old and tired. 😢

[@VandalEyes05]

matte finish is talking about the paint/print on the board. it means its not glossy, probably noted since the deck comes wrapped in shiny plastic.

[@adamjackson8664]

I dont know if it's just me but your skating is looking mad clean, it already was but sheesh it looks snappier and cleaner. ❤👊❤👊❤👊

[@kencross1208]

I find it funny how us Canadians call them toques while anywhere else they're called beanies

[@gavinsfishingaddiction7738]

Ken Cross I’ll call them TowBoggin

[@alexcantride]

recently i went from an 8 inch to an 8.25 but the 8.25 felt smaller because the concave was super high compared to the extremely flat 8 inch.

[@daynmitchell7543]

I've been curious about these decks! Merry Christmas to you and your family!

[@tigerbalm666]

i did not know there were so many VX boards! Santa Cruz, Creature, Powell...

[@DamienzTheBand]

Amen to tired legs, no harder boards for me! :/ Although would like a higher kick, my own is too low... Great vid!

[@robolinoschmidt8676]

Isn't it the same technology as Powell flight decks??...love it ...as always ben..you're the best . Merry Christmas btw

[@Danny.Perez3204]

I had this exact board the beginning of the month and had to ditch it after about a week. To me, the kicks were too steep and it messed with my kickflips and a few other tricks. I typically like to skate a full nose and tail, so lately I’ve been going with the Santa Cruz wide tips. If they make a VX wide tip in 8.25... It’s game over!

[@augustinweski2436]

I love your reviews but personally never really notice the differences between decks except for shape and how big it is

[@joethomas496]

You've reviewed the Powell Flight deck as well? I'm strongly considering a VX or Flight deck for my birthday in March and would love to see a side by side comparison of the two decks. Thanks.

[@girly.imp69]

Somebody already did that comparison and they picked the flight deck

[@maladon5422]

hey love your videos! some of the most technical explanations on youtube. was thinking it would be awesome if you could could review some big modern "old school" deck shapes. like the polar skate co "Dane1" 9.75 shape for example. Ive only ever seen you riding popsicle decks, and i've really gotten into old school shaped for rising in Bowls and pipes recently. I'd love to hear your opinion on how they skate flat ground vs bowl ect.

[@gt_outdoorexcursions]

Looking smooth on it Ben, definitely worth a second look at one!

[@Unbelievable47]

Considering one of these but an 8.8. I like Creature/Santa Cruz decks so far

[@rikyblue5373]

Skate's nerd 😎 amazing awareness and knowledge 😉 wish you the best for this channel 😃 can you suggest me some good 8.25 brand decks good suitable with an 149 indies please? Thanks 😉

[@AdventuresInSkateboarding]

I need to try this. I will put it on the 2020 list. I am a flight deck guy but they are a bit flat.

[@scoobiscool]

I want to see a 917 deck review!!! my personal favorite boards

[@emilio-ob5kj]

i had a vx deck and it was really good, it kept its pop for the entire time i used it but it razor tailed pretty quick for me

[@SquatterMoccasin]

Merry Christmas from Washington DC

[@godownondebbygang3456]

Just started skating this deck today. So nice!

[@alexaquiningoc6239]

Bro right?! Hella thin and snappy and crisp

[@godownondebbygang3456]

@@alexaquiningoc6239 yeah bro, i dont think i can ever go back now

[@ohtravo997]

The video we've been all waiting for.

[@skateat4824]

The early VX deck I got had a huge tail, much more like a nose. Seemed super thin, nice feel but just couldn't deal with the massive tail.

[@funnytiktokvideos1724]

Ben how did you know 149s would make a difference? I basically don’t understand how to adjust my setups to get the right wheel base and I think a video on that would help a lot of us out thanks

[@fitch9782]

same wheelbase just lower (1.5mm) and lighter(40g), to lower the angle needed to hit the tail and need less effort to pop. its better to not worry about it because you can drive yourself crazy obsessing over tiny differences.

[@mr.jamster8414]

fitch steeper pop is better imo, i like short tails and huge noses, preferably of the same shape, good for banks and adjusting your pop angle to what feels the best in that situation. like maybe a 7.25” nose and 6.5” tail with 56 - 60mm wheels. if you’re a new skater, just get whatever twin tail or single kick deck so you don’t have to worry about it.

[@sammietam4201]

Wow Nicely done! looking forward for my reviews.

[@mattie_world]

can any fellow ben d viewers recommend other really chilled and not-typical-vloggy-youtube-shouty skaters that are worth subscribing to other than ben? they dont even have to be this good at skating... just ones that are chilled and humble

[@hopetofly]

Late reply is late but you should follow @John Hill 🙏🏾✌🏾

[@siddharthagarrett7643]

Your reviews are so good!

[@justvlogs3554]

happy newyear ben ! i hope you’ll make vid for ricta sparx or ricta high energy and compare it to spitfire formula four

[@jirikurka1829]

I wonder what the "ghost pop" is :) Nice review anyway. Thanks

[@DarkoNomad]

It works wonders (Maurio McCoy VX) on my Tensor Maglight lows. It compensate well for the steepness of the kicks and the weight that is about 150g more then average skateboard deck. I guess any lower trucks would work well for pop timing but Maglights would bring the weight of the whole setup where it should be,otherwise your legs might get tired much sooner. BTW i had Powell flight deck before it but it's shape is quite weird and their wood is horrible because it chips so easily. It doesn't come even close to quality of VX deck.

[@howardli236]

Try a welcome board.

[@mr.jamster8414]

Gonz Wouldgo you seem like the guy that hates on anything but ollie - based flips and grinds

[@kurtbell4096]

Why do you think the other trucks ghost popped? And why did the thunders fix it? Incrasing the wheel base, but is it the height or weight of the thunders?

[@andrew-zr1pf]

Sounds like the same type of concave, size and shape on my Santa Cruz Everslick that I bought this time last year. Solid af for a 90kg 43 yo skater like me. Feels a little heavy. I think I just need to lose a few kilos if I want to Ollie higher though. Lol. I think maybe the fibreglass in the inbetween layers of the VX deck might just be the same stuff that is used for the outside layers on the Everslick?.

[@Dan_Kornfeld]

The deck has “W” concave. (Used on many longboards.)

[@happypeacefront7312]

Please!!! Tensor Mag Light Review, why won't you do this ben???

[@schizobeatz]

That nose blunt was nice! Can't wait to try the vx on these old tired legs lol pz

[@richardsmith7322]

Thanks for the review on this Ben

[@jopat0286]

2k views in 1 hour. That's how good your content was.

[@GregMuniz7]

You’re really good at skating

[@notoriousthrasher9302]

This board is the best I’ve seen you skate goes with you the best

[@TheFeatalion]

I believe that the board feels hard due to double concave. It adds additional reinforcement ribs to the board.