Answering Your Surfskate Questions (Part 1)

[@nateross14]

We definitely need more vids like this, and hell ya make one with you building various Surfskate setups!

[@concrete-waves]

Sweet! Thanks for the feedback nate 🙏

[@lurklingX]

​@@concrete-waves yes please do! also love any test/comparison vids whether completes, builds, etc. standard, longboard, surf skates, anything. :]

[@LDPizza]

For the bigger wheel question at 14:14, I can say that on ldp you go from 80mm to 100mm for that mix of efficiency and top speed, but also for feeling less vibrations with bad roads. But some people prefer their wheels more close to 80mm (for acceleration), others to 100mm (for constant speed)! On a surfskate I tried max 80mm wheels and they take some acceleration off, on a longer deck they make sense but on a short wheelbase I find them to be quite worse than 65 or 70mm wheels. Great video 😊👏

[@concrete-waves]

That is a great point that larger wheels will take acceleration away. I appreciate you sharing all of this. Very helpful 😎🙏

[@TheSurfskateboarder]

Look forward to seeing your video on experimenting with setups! I’ve been switching up my surfskate setups almost… daily 😅. It’s becoming an addiction I’ll need therapy for soon. On deck height, I think there is easy widespread room for improvement in making decks with cutouts for wheel wells and sunken baseplates. I’ve been talking to a guy who is doing tons of this stuff himself, including filing the baseplate to be shorter, and he’s got some really low surfskate setups. I’m excited to see some lower lighter setups. I really think you’re going to love the Carver Surfrider when you get your hands on it. It’s the lightest lowest smallest I’ve been on…. But it’s totally a surfskate.

[@concrete-waves]

Interesting david 🔥 Great points about wheel wells and sunken baseplates. I'd love to see the setups that guy is creating - does he have an IG that I can check? I keep hearing great things about the Carver Surfrider - sounds like I'm gonna have to pick it up haha

[@icantsee0]

I'll be a part of the people waiting on a part 2 👀

[@nateross14]

You touched on some very interesting aspects of Surfskate function and evolution in this vid.......especially regarding ride height getting lower. My personal experience with building custom Surfskate setups has been that everything is a compromise and that by gaining one function, you're usually giving up something else. In the case of giving up deck height, by lowering the deck the compromise is having less total lean when turning, once you get below around a 5" deck height. Part of the magic of what makes Surfskates feel so flowy and surfy is that they have much more lean, and the more the board leans during turns, the more it resembles getting on your rails Surfing. Most secondary pivot Surfskates like the Yow Meraki are around 5" tall. I've been able to get my Meraki setups down to 4.5" tall with 65mm wheels, by swapping out the front hanger with a lower profile 3.5" wide hanger that's about 0.5" lower than the stock hanger and also tightening up the front bushing nut so the front truck doesn't flex as much. Getting a little lower down to a 4" deck height with a secondary pivot setup and standard shape deck is definitely possible, but deck lean will have to be limited to avoid wheelbite, which will make it feel less surfy. This could be solved with drop decks, and you could then have a very low deck height, but that would be at the expense of the visual aesthetic of a traditional surf inspired board shape. It would be nice to see Surfskates evolve to a little lower height around 4.5". Surfskating is all about what and how you feel while riding, and though this might sound trivial to some, the shape of a board makes you feel a certain way when riding. When I ride a Pintail I get a totally different vibe merely from its shape that when I ride something like a kicktail cruiser. Symetrical boards and drop decks are a no go for me personally for Surfskates because they kill the vibe I get from Pintails and other Surf inspired deck shapes. If I was just commuting A to B for efficiency, I'd be fine with symetrical shapes though. So I think the limiting factor of how low Surfskates evolve to will be determined ultimately by what the market will tolerate for deck shapes. My feeling is that departure from traditional surf inspired deck shapes will be a hard sell with Surfskating because of the importance of vibe and visual appeal....but who knows, it'll be interesting to see how Surfskates evolve and it's always exciting to see new designs and systems.

[@concrete-waves]

Dude, such thoughtful insights 🔥"by gaining one function, you're usually giving up something else" That's a great way to put it Nate. Also I've never thought about deck shape in that way. Makes a lot of sense and I often find myself riding shapes that might not be the most functional but look cool to me. This gave me a lot to think about 🙏

[@BMX1903]

Great video. The comet cruiser is amazing. I'm 6'4" 250lbs and only changed the bushing durometer. I make all my other Cruiser boards Handel like the comet Cruiser it pumps it handles speed because of the split angle trucks it's small for travel and it is the most fun to ride in a small durable package. I had to wait one year for it and I got to say well worth the price and the weight if you don't have one you're missing out

[@concrete-waves]

Yessss I love the comet cruiser! I feel your pain about waiting a year for it... I waited 11 months 😂

[@ReinLie]

I get where you’re coming from with lower to the ground surfskates (trying to get my girlfriend to be stable on one has been quite a project). But I think there are just physics limitations here, with wheelbite and stuff being a thing. Maybe you could have something like a longboard shape with no board over the wheels, but for pumping you definitely want your feet over the trucks 🤔 Also for beginners: start with the Carver CX. There’s literally no other option if you want to get your feet wet but also actually want to learn how to pump. Edit: almost forgot, awesome video. Love how genuine and nerdy it is ;)

[@concrete-waves]

Totally Ryan. Great points! I think they will get a little lower - but not by too much bc of the limitations like you said. I agree about the Carver CX though. I'm glad you liked this vid - I wasn't sure how it was gonna be received since it was so different. But I enjoyed creating / reading all the questions so I'll keep it going. If you have any suggestions feel free to lmk 🤙

[@lurklingX]

5:09 yes please make that vid on diff surfskate setups! i'm so interested in the handline and experience of the diff ones. and people would have their prefs within that. if i had endless money, i'd be the type to want to test and compare EVERYTHING. but you already have so much knowledge, you'd be able to throw together several full setups and we'd reap the benefit of that. (especially to those of us who are new OR didn't get into as much with parts specifics.)

[@Nepenthen]

Would love some more vids about surfskate setups. Especially seeing how different trucks alter the ride. Great video!

[@concrete-waves]

Great feedback thanks - noted! 🙌

[@mulchishappy]

Q: Arrange the following fundamental surfskate skills in the sequential order that you think complete newbies should work on? - Pump from stand still - Pump off kick push - Pump/carve down very slight slope - Flatland infinity loops -Pump up a very slight slope - [insert anything I missed]

[@concrete-waves]

Oooo this is a great question! Lemme think about it and will prob cover it in another vid

[@MichaelB-gi4lt]

Surfskating in a parallel stance. Surfskating with your other foot forward. Surfskating and closing your eyes.

[@mulchishappy]

​@@concrete-waves Once you come up with your sequence you could do a video where you use it to teach yourself to pump switch. You'll channel your inner noob and re-experience all the agony and ecstacy!

[@TheReal_DeanD]

Also yes more of this series please. The questions and answers here were great. I got ALOT of good info out of this.

[@StokedNC-surfer]

Great video! The Carver Surfrider is a unique blend between a cruiser and a surfskate. The narrow hanger and deck make it very pumpable and carvy. It is a different feel sort of like riding a traditional fish surfboard

[@concrete-waves]

Thanks john 🙏 I am definitely gonna have to pick up the Carver Surfrider. So many people mentioned it to me recently

[@DK83650]

Hey Billy! 😁 Nice Q&A video format, very informative 🎉 I like every video you create, lol )) Btw, I have three specific questions though… Do you think Globe Chromantic - SS Last In - 33" Surf Skate is a good one? What do you think about Globe Blazer XL 36" Cruiserboard? I am a beginner with ALMOST zero experience. I can ONLY buy those two for now sadly… Thoughts on Globe brand in general? Thanks for the video, and thank you in advance! Have a good day!

[@concrete-waves]

Hey thanks! I'm glad you liked the vid 🙏 Globe is decent for the price. If I was in your position, I would start with the Globe Blazer XL 36" since they have traditional kingpin trucks (TKPs), which will be more stable than the surfskate trucks on the Chromantic. More truck stability, means it'll be easier to balance and push on. Hope this helps - lmk if you have more questions. Good luck 🤙

[@maccam26]

I bought spiceskate type S, S2 and X2, Curfboard, Yow Meraki, Grasp Pado 23, Carver CX and trying different systems is the best part of this hobby

[@lowtechleon9874]

I am recently experimenting with a very flexy long wheelbase drop through with cx trucks and 75mm wheels. It is a lot of fun for going a long distance and it gets pretty fast. I really enjoy it. But there is no way you can drop through the trucks. I even needed to Riser the trucks 1cm and I still get wheelbite

[@concrete-waves]

Oh sick! I'd love to see a photo of that setup... If you have IG, please send it to me haha

[@eenmirc]

Thanks for the answer, loved it very much. I will definitely check larger wheels, and maybe not much of a flexy deck at first. Btw. the comet cruiser is wild, will check it more in detail.

[@concrete-waves]

Glad you liked it! Definitely check out how the comet cruiser is built and see if you can apply some stuff to your current setup 😎

[@notgavinfox]

Thanks for answering my question! I live by the beach and you can cruise the beach because they have nice sideways and I’ve been wanting a new deck for my c7s. I bought a Carver c7 complete and the decks tape is really worn out and I’m looking for a nicer deck. I was just wondering if an old-school deck would work well for that.

[@concrete-waves]

You got it man! But ya, an old school deck should be solid

[@eBoard3R]

*I rarely watch Q&A videos but I enjoyed this one* 👌🏽 🤟🏽🤙🏽🤟🏽 I love setup videos so that would be a cool video! I also prefer bein as low to the ground as possible so I hope they can reduce surfskate heights, even if it's by 10mm 😂 Agree with people not becomin hyperfocused on it feelin exactly like surfin, people should just try stuff and see what they enjoy. 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

[@concrete-waves]

I appreciate you watching! Means a lot. You never know what you'll enjoy 🤙

[@jhinvdpern947]

Build a surfskate with big wheels, like 105mm Dad Bods

[@lurklingX]

great series. the Q&A situation is just REALLY good. brings up things i didn't realize i'd actually wanna know and diff considerations that may not have occurred to me. (i finally got a little Q&A at a skate shop in ATL but the drive is like1.5hr. it's just too far, but i wanted to see "a real skate shop". it was good but i almost feel like Zumiez really just has you covered and often enough you'll have staff who are skaters and are very friendly. at a skate shop you never know what you'll get. this one i went to had a mix of really good and then the WORST, on comments. i chanced it anyways, as i was partway down south and it made the trip a little shorter. owner was nice enough, but it was one of the other guys who fielded a lot of my questions and the owner sort of just moved off. here and there he'd interject.) to their credit they said the board i got would be good for all the basic used i wanted it for, and that i didn't really need anything else. (like a small wheeled board for tricks). they said for all the basics, my cruiser would be fine. but pricewise, Zumiez is pretty close to online, amazon and such. like for bearings and bushings and stuff. wheels are just pricey on the whole. amazon has some rando really cheap ones but overall i mean. the skate shop was more expensive for sure. i got a skate tool there which was mostly online-ish price. if i had extra cash i might buy gear there but omg that drive. it's not exactly "local" for me. Zumiez has locations all over. which, is super cool because if you needed something, like if you were out skating, you could get to one without too much trouble. in ATL area, there's like FIVE lol. 2 are near to the city, i think one is in perimeter, and then there is one in kennesaw and one up in the woodstock/acworth area. if you need a cheaper complete to start out on, it's possible there. $69-89, with a lot more at $99, $110, etc. OH! but the skate shop carries MINI LOGO which is a good budget brand like for bearings, kits, etc. so you likely get more variety. i do with that i had a closer shop and i'd go there. i liked this one i went to. but the Zumiez were good, too. a lot of gear will be priced similar at a local shop versus a place like Zumiez. really just depends. and you will likely get more collective experience at a skate shop. probably i'll go back there for a custom build after i have more time on the current setup. but for little stuff it just doesn't make sense. order online from real skateshops, though, that helps support them too! :) /rambles.

[@bastoneCL]

Great content and production quality 👍5:12 Im in the same spot right now :D experimenting with different boards and exactly with those two truck systems you mentioned. So i would love to see that video :) Have a nice one ✌

[@concrete-waves]

Thanks i appreciate that 😎 I'll definitely do a surfskate experimenting video

[@nateross14]

Billy, if you do some Surfskate build vids, I'd be extremely interested in hearing your thoughts on the difference in feel with running TKP vs RKP for the rear trucks! I notice quite a difference in how they make the rear feel and steer.

[@concrete-waves]

Great idea. I think there's a lot of confusion surrounding the choice of TKPs vs RKPs on surfskates

[@AdventuresInSkateboarding]

This was great. I love my Yow the most for flat ground surf skating. However, I love the waterborne system on my bowl surfskate. I have not found peace with the Carver CX. I rode my friends C5 in the bowl with a white tail in a bowl and loved it. I just haven't figured out my CX yet.

[@concrete-waves]

Thanks as always man 😎 That's interesting you haven't connected to the CX. I mainly ride it on longer wheelbases for a deeper carving longboard experience (if that makes sense)

[@AdventuresInSkateboarding]

@@concrete-waves maybe I need to skate it side by side with the yow and send you the clips so you how I skate them.

[@concrete-waves]

@@AdventuresInSkateboarding Ya for sure! If you can, send it to me on Instagram 🤙

[@AdventuresInSkateboarding]

@@concrete-waves next weekend I will break them out. Appreciate it

[@Luuk8320]

Thank you for answering my question 😊

[@concrete-waves]

Of course. Happy to help 😎 Lmk if you have any other questions

[@jeremenichelli]

LOVED THIS, definitely do more!

[@concrete-waves]

Appreciate that Jeremias 😎 I will continue this series 🤙

[@TheReal_DeanD]

Hmm. My original comment wasn’t saved. I’m a dumbass. Thanks so much for answering my question in such detail. Super super helpful. Answering all these questions helps. I’m over my foot and ankle pain. I’m going to dive in like you said and get used to the increased height.

[@Ambubruno]

Hey, great work with the channel, a lot of good information! Do you think is viable to use a surfskate truck in a mini cruiser shape? About 14inches of wheelbase

[@concrete-waves]

Thanks i appreciate that! It is possible, however that is on the smaller side and will feel snappy/punchy

[@hamathndiaye3200]

are you gonna do this for longboard to?

[@concrete-waves]

I was just testing this format to see if anyone enjoyed it and although it doesn't get a lot of views, I'm gonna keep it going because of all the deeper, more meaningful convos it sparks. So, yes I will do one for longboarding. I just put a post out asking to drop longboard questions if you have any - kzbin.infoUgkxPonqJUNBdC8b9mKYFzG57hcd5_MXs6Ry

[@H0NSE]

The height was something I had to get used to. I had some experience as I was already riding on 98mm wheels. Putting the same wheels on my current surf setup didn't help though.

[@concrete-waves]

Definitely. What setup did you have the 98mm wheels on?

[@MrPsiman]

how about some polarizer type surfskate video's ? it's not getting any exposure and it's very fun and more nimble than the normal surfskate's that are 30x10 style decks

[@mulchishappy]

What advice do you give those who are seriously stuggling to learn how to pump on a surfskate?

[@concrete-waves]

I think I will have to do a pumping tutorial soon. This is a common question I get

[@mulchishappy]

When viewed from the perspective of decades, the vibrancy of the skateboard industry is prone to cycles of boom and bust. What explains this in your view? Do you think surfskating will be subject to these same forces? Or does it have the potential for more stable growth in popularity? Explain.

[@concrete-waves]

Wow great question. I have so many thoughts on this haha. I'll get to this once i film another 🙏

[@gh0sted-m3dia]

Nice Video

[@concrete-waves]

Thanks i appreciate it 🙏

[@mr.j774]

whats the craziest set up youve ever seen??

[@concrete-waves]

Haha great question - I've seen some crazy setups where people stack two adapters together. Looks like a death trap to me 😂 Once I film another one of these, I'll find some photos

[@mr.j774]

@@concrete-waves crazy set ups are the best xD

[@poostik]

Yo! Totally random . . . I'm just finding your channel now. I'm an old dude, from a 'traditional' skate background and only discovering that surfskate is a thing. I thought it was all cruiser and longboards. Anyway, I see you're local. I see a bunch of spots you've skated at - that park in Sparta. Three questions. Are you still local (to Sparta)? Do you know if they enforce the 'no skateboards' at the pump track in Vernon? If local, would you meet up and give me some quick tips? Thanks! Oh . . . this is how old I am. I'm the dude in the yellow shorts. kzbin.info/www/bejne/amfZXoeBha6ilbc

[@glennsak]

Surf skates make you look ridiculous. Don’t do it.

[@mulchishappy]

Haha! I feel you on this one. But I am more of an optimist. I reckon it'll take hundreds of hours of awkward spazzy flailing until smooth and graceful mastery is achieved. Noobs gotta steel their resolve for a long character-building ugly duckling phase

[@concrete-waves]

Haha I feel ya! I used to love ripstiks and to me, that's why I enjoy surfskating - a highly manuerable setup for small spaces

[@groMMit1981]

Should see if you can get your hands on a snakeboard