Tighten Skateboard Trucks

You always have to tighten your skateboard trucks, as the come loose naturally. It makes your board ride smoother and cleaner and helps tune the board to your turning style. It also gives you more balance. If you use your board regularly, learning to tighten your own trucks are essential.

Steps

Fixing Loose Trucks

1. Know that truck tightness is a matter of personal preference. At the end of the day, there is no "perfect" amount to tighten your trucks. The tighter you turn the trucks, the more difficult the board is to turn. Too loose and you won't feel like you're stable, and your turns will be wide and difficult to control.The spot right in the middle of these extremes, your perfect tightness, is based on your own style and preference. Luckily, there is a large range of rideable tightness -- this isn't rocket science!
   • Generally, tighter pins provide more resistance on turns, key for high-speed skating.
   • Looser pins have a more forgiving feel on turns and landings.
2. Grab a board you like, flip it over, and test the trucks by tilting them back and forth. The amount the wheels tilt back and forth depends on how tight the trucks are. If you have a board (or a friend's board) that you like, test the tightness on them and try to replicate it in your own board. The amount they wobble right and left relates to how tight they are.
3. Use a skate tool or other useful tool to tighten or loosen the big nut in the center of the truck. This single bolt controls the tightness of the trucks. It points directly to the ground when you're skating, and is found between the wheels.
   • Turn it clockwise to tighten the trucks, getting tighter turning.
   • Turn it counter-clockwise to loosen the trucks, getting a softer turning feel.
4. Go out for a ride to test your trucks. Don't just tighten the trucks and hit the skate park. After tightening, ride around a bit, trying a some turns, some ollies, and basic skating. Remember that there is no "right" tightness-- you need to find out what works for you.
5. Bring your tool with you on your first few rides to make simple adjustments after testing. A hard day of riding will show you all the pros and cons of your new truck set-up. But that doesn't mean you need to be stuck with your set-up all day. A skate tool is small and easy to carry. Bring it along and make adjustments as needed.

Further Adjusting Your Trucks

1. Re-pack your bushings to fit your skate style. The bushings can be tightly packed or loosely packed, with the former decreasing turning and the later increasing it. When tightening your trucks, you are actually compressing the bushings, so you can get similar results by changing the bushings altogether.
   • While not difficult, many skaters have this done at a local skate shop for the convenience.
2. Try a new brand of trucks. Not all trucks are created equally, and each company has different specs and styles. A lot of it comes down to testing different boards out and finding out what you want, but there are some things to consider for all trucks:
   • High or Low Kingpin: Higher pins are best for grinds, manuals, and other tricks. A lowered kingpin is best for popping ollies and kickflips.
   • Wider Wheels: Most wheels are standard, but heavier riders might want wider trucks, as they distribute the added weight better for smoother control.
3. Add risers to get the board higher and reduce vibrations. Risers are attached between your trucks and your board, providing lift for tricks. Furthermore, risers you will dampen landing vibrations, though the higher board will take some getting used.
   • Higher trucks can make it harder, however, to grind.

Tips

• Remember the phrase, "righty tighty, lefty loosey".

Warnings

• Don't tighten it too much or they can get damaged. Tighten a half or quarter turn, test, then adjust again.

Things You'll Need

• Skate tool
• Skateboard

Related Articles

• Assemble a Skateboard
• Balance Yourself on a Skateboard
• Avoid Injury on a Skateboard
• Ollie

Sources and Citations

See also

• Choose a Good Skateboard
• Remove Grip Tape from a Skateboard
• Make a Skateboard
• Clean Skateboard Bearings
• Build a Longboard
• Assemble a Skateboard
• Clean Skateboard Wheels
• Get the Bearings out of Skateboard Wheels
• Put Griptape on a Skateboard
• Spring Clean Your Skateboard

What links here

• Choose a Good Skateboard
• Ollie