How tight should skateboard trucks be?

How to adjust truck tightness is not a new thing in skateboarding.

Everyone went through this step when they were beginners. Someone says that you need to loosen trucks for your skate as it makes easier to turn. While others prefer tighter trucks because you can make certain tricks with tighter trucks as it gives more stability over your movement

Both opinions are correct, but which one to choose? In this blog, we will find the answer to all your questions.

What is the difference between loose trucks and tight trucks?

Loose trucks

Loose trucks mean a small pressure is directed to your trucks. If you stand on your skate, you will notice that the deck is wobbling, which means that your kingpin bolt is not tight.

Loose trucks are great for tic-tac tricks. It is much easier to turn around and carve a skateboard with loose trucks. You will not need to turn the front truck with your hand. Just move your body sideways.

If you are one of the beginners who face problems when turning, consider using loose trucks to learn it faster.

Also, looser trucks are recommended for long-distance skating. If you enjoy cruising, loose skateboard trucks are for you.

For landing tricks, a skateboard with loose trucks lands more smoothly, since the truck absorbs all the cruelty when it comes into contact with the ground and the deck feels only a smaller part.

But having loose skateboard trucks has its limitations

As the truck turns freely, this causes the wheel bite as the board will put pressure on the wheels, and the wheels tend to wear.

In addition to the wheel bite, it is more difficult to ride a loose skateboard truck at a higher speed, since swinging does not allow you to keep balance and can lead to bad consequences. Therefore, in places with high speeds, such as bombing hills and riding downhill, be aware of the restriction of loose skateboard trucks

Tight trucks

On the other hand, tight trucks are the opposite term of loose trucks. The pressure towards the skateboard trucks does not allow them to turn and makes it harder to pivot the deck.

This gives you a sense of stability because when you are riding at higher speeds, you feel safe because there is less wobble and swinging.

For beginners who learn to ride fast, tight trucks are recommended.

To perform flip tricks, a preferable decision is to tighten skateboard trucks, as this gives more control over your board and you can feel the wheels touching the ground.

If you choose to tighten skateboard trucks, you need to be ready for the limitation of tight trucks

Tighter trucks do not have the problem of loose truck wheel bite but it has another one.

When you ride on tight skateboard trucks, you can notice the problem of bushings wear, as the load on them is greater than when loose trucks for the skateboard.

It’s hard to turn your board like for loosened trucks. You will need to turn the front wheels to turn your skateboard.

Which type of truck is best for me? Loose or tight trucks

After knowing what is the difference between the two kinds of trucks, the next question comes

How tight should skateboard trucks be? Which one to choose?

Well. It is not right to choose just one of them. Too tight or loose truck tightness is not everyone. You need to find your balance based on your personal preference and skateboarding style.

If you want to do cruising and turn the board easier, choose looser ones.

But if your skateboard became very wobble and hard to manage, tighten your trucks.

But if you tighten it too much, it will be difficult for you to turn your skateboard.

Find a great balance by making small increments and checking if it suits you

Following your own preferences, you will find this sweet spot.

How to adjust the truck tightness?

When we have finished choosing between loose or tight trucks, the next question is how to adjust.

During the procedure, you will need to have a skate tool. Without it, you can’t change anything. Using the skate tool, you will adjust the kingpin nut in the back of your skateboard which is located at the center of your truck.

With it, you easily control the tightness of your truck. To make tighter trucks you need to turn the kingpin clockwise. While loosening your truck, turn counter clockwise.

It is recommended to loosen or tighten with small adjustments and ride on such installations to check if it suits you. Then make further changes.

After finishing, remember that after a while the kingpin bolt may loosen, so periodically check the tightness of the trucks

If you haven’t found your level of tightness and want to do further truck adjustment, you can put special bushings. They will allow you to loosen or tighten the skateboard trucks more depending on which ones to use soft bushings or hard bushings, respectively.

Conclusion

Both loose and tight trucks have their own characteristics. In some moments, the first option is better than the second. And at other times – on the contrary. To the question, how tight should skateboard trucks be? It’s hard to choose just one of them.

Instead, we recommend choosing the average level that is optimal for you, so that you do not give up the pleasures that are not available for another truck. By riding more and making changes to your tightness depending on your preferences, you will find this moment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are skateboard trucks supposed to be tight?

As much as you like to ride and perform flip tricks, your skateboarding trucks should be tight. If you want your skateboard to swing less, tighten your trucks.

Can you tighten trucks too much?

Yes, you can. But it may cause damage to your bushings.

Depending on the condition of your bushings, you can determine whether the truck is too tight or not.If you notice that the bushings have started to bulge and are damaged, it means that you have tightened too much. In this case, you can fix it in two ways.

With the first solution, you can simply loosen the trolley. This reduces the pressure on the bushings.

But if this solution does not suit you and you want to have a more rigid loader, replace the previous bushings with new ones, preferably with more rigid ones.

How loose Should trucks be for cruising?

It depends on the rider’s preference.

The skateboard’s trucks should be optimally balanced so that it is not too difficult to move the skate side by side.

How tight should my trucks be to my board?

It depends on your skating style. If you like cruising and you want to perform land tricks, why not loosen up trucks?

Just make sure that the kingpin bolts aren’t too loose so it doesn’t fall off. Make sure that all the kingpin bolts are properly wrapped in all places. Check if there is any damage or weakening. Fix it if you find it.

How can I tell if my trucks are too loose?

Make sure that all the kingpin pin bolts are inserted correctly and your skate should not be too pivoted, so it does not prevent you from skateboarding.

If you notice that your skateboard became harder to stay and you fall often. You need to tighten the truck of your skate.

Do loose trucks cause speed wobbles?

Yes. Due to less pressure on the trucks, the board will sway, especially when skating fast, this causes more fluctuations.

Should you tighten new trucks?

When you get new trucks, tightness is rarely the right fit for you. In some cases, sellers give trucks in disassembled condition so that customers can customize themselves.

If you get new trucks in disassembled condition, adjust them as we discussed above.

If you get new trucks that have already been tightened, check the tightness of the new truck by skating on it. If you don’t feel any discomfort and they match your skateboard style, there is no need to tighten them.

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