Kitting Out

LAYO Longboards

Kitting Out

LAYO doesn't currently sell completes. 

First, I don't have a distributor to pass on the savings to you.  

Second, I don't want to limit your design vision! My deck is just the first step to customizing your ride.  There are so many different wheels, trucks, bushings, and even hardware to customize your ride.  Bring your deck to the store, and mix and match different combos to suit your artistic vision.  You don't just want your board to ride good, you want it to look good too. I get it!

I love taking a trip to my local skate shop to see what they have.  New wheels, decks, different colors.. So many possibilities.  Then there is the skate culture, local board meetups, expertise.. like minded individuals.  An experience that I think everyone into riding should have. 

With that being said I have recommendations. 

Trucks. The things that make your board turn. 

There are a bunch of different brands out there.  Look for a pair of trucks that are around 180mm wide, and around 50 degrees for cruising.  Examples, Paris V2 180, Bear Gen5, Atlas 48. I love the finish on the Paris V2's.  Atlas lets you customize your colour scheme if your order them online. Bear has a ton of different colours. 

Wheels.  Make sure they are round.

There are tons of wheels out there! I prefer 78-80a durometer (softness rating) wheels.  Lower the number the softer the wheel.  Wheels in the 70mm size range is a pretty good sweet spot for cruising. Square lipped wheels will give you great grip. 

Bushings.  Those squishy things in your trucks.

Bushings are the plastic looking things on your trucks. They affect the way your board turns. Softer, your board will be loose and quick turning.  Harder and you will be more stable at speed. I highly recommend trying different bushings to suit your ride style.  Some of the stock bushings are a tad too soft for me, I prefer going fast and like to run harder bushings. 

Bearings. Myths or legends?

Don't be sucked in by things like high ABEC ratings, ceramic, lubricated by Tibetan yak tears, etc.  Get cheap bearings. As long as they roll, you're good to go. I order mine from bearingscanada.com but you can get them from any skate shop.  Some skate shops even sell their own brand, with their boardshop name on the dust seals.  

Mounting Hardware. 

1 1/8" hardware will suit my decks unless specified.  Risers won't be necessary unless you go for large wheels and run your trucks really loose.  

Down the rabbit hole. 

Muirskate has created a FANTASTIC resource of all things longboarding.  If you need any info just check out their extensive guide. https://www.muirskate.com/longboard-guide