a $60 dollar board for my gf

[babooniz]

this is what a poor college kid put together for his not-so-into-longboarding-but-kinda-interested-and-wanna-give-it-a-try gf.

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sector 9 zen (removed the ugly s9 graphics, deck cleaned and sanitized with 91% isopropyl alcohol, wheel-wells sanded down, re-gripped)
0.0032" khiro shockpads
1/8" soft risers
180mm blank trucks
tracker hourglass bushings
92a flashbacks (i'm hoping that these hard wheels wouldn't chunk as easily as softer ones when she runs the board into curbs and stuff)
speed lunatic abec 7 bearings
silver rims
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The deck is my roommate's. I traded a brand new set of jimz bushings for it, so 25 bucks. Grip tape and shockpads costed about 10 bucks. The wheels were 25 bucks brand new from puppy_kicker. All the rest were spares.

Overall, the board:
* turned out to look pretty decent
* rides pretty low to the ground and is easy to pedal with, relatively
* turns really well, no wheel bite
* rides kinda slow, but that's not necessarily bad..
* grips well

[Skinart]

Ahhh. Man, I think you went the wrong route with those wheels. Harder wheels will slide easier
and Flashies seem to have a rep for being drifty. Those harder wheels are also going to transmit
every little bump and crack--so she'll probably feel vibrations to her teeth, especially bumping
over curbs and stuff...

I just think if you really want her to get into it, softer comfy wheels would have been worth the
risk of chunking.

Unless of course she is a shortboarder in which case this will give her something kinda like
what she is used to.

Otherwise...I really think you would be more likely to hook her with 75a or 78a. Or even
something in the low 80's.

But that is a really nice looking starter board--A good deck choice I think.

[xxguitarist]

ive gotta agree with skinart, hard wheels wont inspire confidence in carves, either.

[bean-a-reano]

Yeah I think that alot of the experience is in the soft wheels. Especially at first the smooth roll is what captivated me. Trade those in for some softies, otherwise taht looks like a sweet setup for your lady friend.

[Ogre]

I also concur....Get her some 78a's or there abouts. The first time (which will be soon) The board hooks up on a sidewalk seam/pebble or divit/debris, and tosses her, she will not be too keen on jumping back on board!

[Roodog]

92a flashies arent that bad, they are 70mm, not 52. They will be ok as far as cruising goes and if she is starting out, probably wont have to worry too much about confidence when carving hard.
The set up will be just fine for her to determine if she likes the longboard thing or not.

[rumsurfer]

Looks like you did a good job for a cheapie price.

[CanyonCarver]

Very nice setup. You did very good. As for the wheels, 92 is a bit hard indeed. Oh well.

[Fishguy]

Do you have any pics of her?

I mean, we might be able to give you better recommendations if we knew what she looked like. That's all I meant.
That's good advice about using softer wheels. Wheel chucking doesn't usually happen when running into curbs. And they're so much more comfortable for general cruising.

[krayola]

Wait! You're saying rubbing alcahol disolves paint and graphics?

[djona]

91% isopropyl alcohol, yeah

but it takes quite a bit a time to rub the graphic off

[KIDvoxVISCIOUS]

board looks pretty good to me.

[mc99david]

whats the bottom lookin like?

[wakesavage]

how does the board ride? I kinda like the look of the deck for my brother, looks kind of like what he would like.

he's kind of like the GF... kinda-interested-but-not-too-much-but-intrigued, lol

[Roodog]

91% isopropyl alcohol, yeah

but it takes quite a bit a time to rub the graphic off

It also only works on boards that dont have clear coats applied over the graphics paint design.

I use 99.98% ethyl alcohol that I get from work and the graphics wipe off like chalk on a board.

[Colton]

It looks like I would want to keep it for myself. The Zen looks like a fun little board.

[djona]

It looks like I would want to keep it for myself. The Zen looks like a fun little board.

it is,

used it to commute,
and begain sliding on that deck w/ nineballs

[babooniz]

Thanks to all of you for commenting
What a great community!!


You guys are right. I took the board out for a ride today, and OH MY GOD it is such a bumpy ride. Not only that, the board slides and throws you right off when you carve hard at speed.

Haha, I think I'm exaggerating somewhat cuz I'm all psyched up about this hard wheels situation, but I think Imma swap her flashbacks for some 75a zigzags.


I actually used paint thinner to remove the graphics. The alcohol was more of a final rinse


I'll post pictures of the bottom of the deck once I get the retros on there.

[xxguitarist]

I think Imma swap her flashbacks for some 75a zigzags.

good call

90

[LostBoyScout]

That board actually had one of my favourite S-9 graphics before. Different strokes I guess!