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Can You Put Longboard Wheels On A Skateboard

Longboards are getting popular, and the bigger wheels have some perks so you may be wondering if you can put longboard wheels on a regular skateboard.

Well, this article will answer that question for you and give you all the details you need to know before deciding to do it. It will look at the steps required and the things to consider before making the altercation to your skateboard.

Can You Put Longboard Wheels On A Skateboard

Can You Put Longboard Wheels On A Skateboard

Why Put Longboard Wheels on a Regular Skateboard?

So the answer is yes you can technically put longboard wheels on a regular skateboard, but it comes with some limitations.

There are a few things you have to consider before doing it, so before going into how to do it the best way we are going to address why you might want to do it.

The first reason why one might want to put longboard wheels on a skateboard is that they probably think it will look cool.

Since longboard wheels are larger meaning that they have a wider diameter someone might think that it will make their skateboard look like a monster truck or something. Outside of the look factor though, there are some practical reasons. Longboard wheels are softer which means that they absorb bumps better. If one was mainly just using their skateboard to get around town, then they might want a smoother ride that the longboard wheels can offer.

Another practical reason is they would theoretically take less energy to use.

Since they are more prominent, they pick up speed faster, and you would have to kick less. This goes back to being useful for someone who is doing more cruising instead of tricks. So now that you know why someone might want to put a beginner longboard wheels on a regular skateboard, we can get into the more detail part of how and what to avoid.

What to Avoid

The main problem that comes about when putting longboard wheels on to a regular skateboard is you can get wheel bite. This is when the wheels hit the edge of the board which mainly occurs in turns. The reason this is bad is that the wheels stop spinning dead in their tracks which will then throw you off the board.

The simple way to avoid wheel bite is to just get smaller longboard wheels. If you get little 55mm wheels or wheels close to that size, then you probably won’t run into this issue. Another way to avoid this problem is to get a skateboard that is slightly longer than a standard board. This will also fix the problem. If you want the huge wheels though for your best longboards for the money then you will have to do some more advanced customization.

How to Install Longboard Wheels on Regular Skateboard

What Are The Best Longboard Brands On The Market

What Are The Best Longboard Brands On The Market

If you want the large longboard wheels such as 70mm ones, then you will have to do some upgrades to your skateboard. This is because like has been mentioned you will get wheel bite on turns with huge wheels. The way to prevent this is by lifting your board. By having the board raised it gives the wheels more clearance room.

To lift your board, you will need to install risers. The riser pads fit between where the trucks connect to the board. Depending on how big of wheels you are going to install will determine how much you have to raise it. To get the best results you just have to experiment. Another thing is your trucks may not support large wheels because they mount differently. If that is the case, you will have to get longboard trucks and install them on to your board as well. You will still probably have to use risers even if you change the trucks to avoid wheel bite for bigger wheels.

Problem with Risers

The problem with having to use risers is it makes your board higher off the ground. While this may look cool to some and give you more of the monster truck look that you might have been going for it isn’t suitable for riding purposes. The whole point of longboard wheels on a regular board is so you can have a smooth ride. If you are doing tricks, then you really should keep your normal wheels. If you want a more comfortable ride, then having the board higher negates that. This is because it is harder to kick off the ground since you are higher and takes more energy to kick.

Should you Install Longboard Wheels on a Regular Skateboard?

So knowing all this information now and knowing that you can install longboard wheels on a normal skateboard does that mean you should?

Well, the answer is it depends. If you want an easier ride, then going with some small longboard wheels that are in the 55mm range will give you the smoother easier ride you want without much complications. If you install larger wheels then this though, then it probably isn’t a good idea.

Conclusion

Installing longboard wheels on a regular skateboard can give you a smoother ride that is more like cruising. If you want to do tricks, then you shouldn’t install longboard wheels onto your skateboard, but if you just want to get around easier, then using some reason you can find some good longboard wheels to accomplish this goal.

Tom Chandler
 

"When your hands hit the floor, they get cut up. When mine hit the floor, they slide with ease"

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