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Skateboard Trucks

In the youthful, male dominated world of skateboarding there are many different components to the skateboard itself. One of the hardest is the skateboard trucks.

Skateboard trucks are typically made of an aluminum alloy which connects the wheels and the deck. These trucks can be further broken down to be understood as the baseplate and the hanger. The baseplate is a flat piece of material that is screwed, typically in 4 or 6 screws into the skateboard’s underside. The hanger is a hallow piece that holds the axel for the wheels. Connecting these two pieces is the kingpin.

The kingpin is important, functionally, to the skateboard trucks and consequently the skateboard itself. Because there is some mobility in the bushings that lay beneath the baseplate just prior to the hanger, the trucks have some give and mobility to them. By adjusting the kingpin, you can increase or decrease the mobility of this joint. This mobility creates a softer or harder suspension on the skateboard that is directly correlative to board’s capacity to turn. A looser kingpin will have a quickly turned skateboard, while a conversely tighter kingpin will have a more rigid and less capable turning system. All in all, trucks are the item which enable the skateboard to both turn and roll, as it houses the suspension and the wheels for the rest of the system.

 

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