Trucks | What Is Best Size For Small Boards?

No info can be found on either forum, apart from common sense :wink:

So on small boards/penny boards, (let say under 31’’-ish) what is the ideal hanger size, for you?
Here are some examples of what i would call a small board as for reference.

31’’ Arc Aileron

30.43" Powell-Peralta

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So, of course, smaller trucks have better manoeuvrability but are less stable (*compared to wider trucks) and wider trucks are the opposite.
In this topic i don’t care about axle size and different drive options, if you want a small board witha small drive then you are either going single, dual diagonal or hub motor anyway and that is your choice depending on what you want to build.

I just want to know what size trucks Is the most appropriate for small boards. <125mm? >175mm?
What is ‘‘too big’’ or ‘‘too small’’.
RKP or TKP?
btw what are surfrodz hybridz trucks?

I also want to add that this thread might go very well in conjunction with this thread

Solution = Post 60

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On small decks with kicktails, anything over 185mm is too long imho. The short ones give you so much control over the vehicle.

Also wide rear hangers make kick-pushing without hitting the wheel difficult if you need to do it in an emergency.

On longboards with no kicktail and a longer wheelbase, wider 200mm+ hangers seem to offer few disadvantages in my experience. They do seem to make the steering a tiny bit muted or dampened in my experience, but not nearly as much as on a shorter wheelbase.

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The Arc Aileron uses 184mm trucks, or 10".

I’d say 9" RKP would be nice.

I used 184mm Caliber IIs on my Orbiter deck, which is a 25" deck, a smaller version of the Aileron, i like it.

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Thank you both. I knew i had forgotten a build of your’s @Linny, i mean you have too many to remember :rofl:

I don’t like how common-looking the calibers look imo so i i am thinking more Surfrodz or something more fancy, but at the same time a small board like this does not go ‘‘very fast’’.

Just to add a question, what makes a ‘‘precision truck’’ to justify the price. For example a surfrodz rkp 184mm vs Aera RF-1? is it just the precision/tolerance in the cnc/forging or the quality of metal? Does one really feel a difference?

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I do feel a difference when riding Caliber IIs and the Boardnamics 184mms. It feels more snappy and responsive when turning, also gives me a bit more confidence riding a bit faster?

The Surfrodz TKPs are a pretty good choice.

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I’m evaluating the same thing. Especially as it relates to weight saving

I just picked up some 200kv 5045 motors. They weight about 10-12 ounces each vs 6355 at 1.5lb and 6374 nearing 2 lb each

Planning 184, 5045s and 85 cags

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So on calibers 2s you can put dual drive, that’s how it was done with 1st raptor for example. But maybe with 9mm or 12mm belts.
So SR tkp come in 127,150 and 177 mm. Plenty of mounts available also.
The precision part comes mostly from bushing seat and straight axles. Because when forging or casting regular trucks, the axle bend so wear on the wheels is uneven and mount alignment is not perfect.
In my opinion, there is no need for precision trucks on commuter/slow boards. But for speed junkies, there are benefits

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Surfrodz tkp on a short deck are perfect.
Not a fan of caliber trucks on decks under 34"

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Wanting to try out tkp soon.

Also, for most of the SR trucks, the motors mount at the ends of the hangers. For caliber, they mount on the hanger. The clamp mounts have a bit more flexibility than the end clamps. For SR, there’s gonna be less adjustability in the motor mounts, if any. Not true with tkp

A 200 SR hanger with a press fit mount will have 200mm between motors and no way to bring that in. VS my 184 BN hanger that currently has 130mm between mounts.

So a 184 hanger really winds up about 210mm since there is 13mm of Wheel pulley, bearing and spacer before the inner wheel bearing on each side. For a SR hanger with pressfit axle/mounts, that will add more… should at least. I don’t own them ***** not true with hex tkp

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Not true with tkp.
Surfrodz tkp are typically clamps. @Psychotiller @Boardnamics @akhlut and @Mikaelj mounts all are very adjustable

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Ah because they’re hex shaped, not the funky RKP hanger shape right?

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how about some oldschool indy 169’s ? isnt that what usually went on cruisers or techslide decks ?

would be a bit difficult with the mounts tho i guess

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I generally wouldn’t recommend calibers. If you’re doing belt drive I highly recommend something with enough axle length to put the bearing on

Very affordable options are available from several suppliers to address this

Indys are great trucks and all but I honestly feel like the surf rod tkps are very comparable.

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yea no doubt about that, i diddnt realize there was a 159mm option

Hell I’m running a 127mm hanger in the rear with the 179 up front.
My clamps are at the very end of the hanger.
And then I have it set up where I have bearings throughout the entirety of my pulleys. ( 3 each)

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im still baffled about how flexible those sz tkps are, still got indy’s stuck in my head :joy:

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ahem, stay on topic please :rofl:

So @Skunk, what size would is ideal for you? The options are quite vaste

  • 100mm
  • 127mm
  • 139mm
  • 159mm
  • 177mm

Also what size axle is prefered? I see this post from @rusins about bearings 10mm to 8mm step down axles for Surf Rodz (Gauging interest)

I’ve had my surfrodz tkp on four different decks all set up at different widths. I love how versatile they are.

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So what if I want precision RKP’s instead of TKP’s, and similar in size to Caliber II’s, what are my options?