Best Comet for DH?

[bduddy1]

I want to start doing some downhill, nothing too serious, and am looking into buying a comet. I'm 6' 2 180 pounds and saw that the Crystal Mountain decks are 46" and that seems like it would be more stable for someone my size. I'm completely new to this so any recommendations would help. Drop through vs top mount? Voodoo? Pagan? How large can the wheels get on these before you experience something like wheel bite? Anyways w/e you guys know would be cool.

[bduddy1]

You can recommend trucks, bearings, wheels etc too. I've been riding a sector that i bought as a complete when i knew nothing about longboarding. I've looked up a lot of reviews, but feel free to let me know what you ride and why you like it.

[enemy combatant]

The best Comet for DH is an Earthwing Mystery Model with Randals and 66mm Zigs.

[Big Dev]

Whatever you get I'd score a flush style deck. They're more responsive than drop-through decks and driftier than a top mount.

If you want a more "all around" dh board then the Loki is really fun. More of a completely dh oriented board, I'd suggest the pagan. Once again, I prefer flushmount to dropmount.

For trucks, 50* randals should be great on either the loki or the pagan.

They're are a lot of wheel options depending on whether you want to slide, not slide, etc. For an all around wheel that will be easy to learn to slide on, I suggest the orangatang stimulus in 83a. Orangatangs (in my experience) slide a little easier and ride a little comfier, but wear down pretty quickly.

If you need anything else let me know.

EDIT: Haha, Enemy Combatant just reccomended the DH setup that I personally ride

[bduddy1]

haha maybe i should be checking out EW instead.

I appreciate the advice. Any reason why i shouldn't get larger wheels than 70mm? I definitely want to learn how to slide.

When you say 50* are you talking about the 180 mm?

When you say the loki is more "all around", does that mean that it wouldn't be as stable as the Pagan at higher speeds? I'm not planning on going too fast and will have to spend time working on technique before i can work my way up to bigger hills, but i just want the most stable board. I watched the vids on the comet page of both boards..the loki definitely looks more versatile and fun. both look sick though.

Any experience with Bones bearings? big difference between reds and swiss? any other bearings you might recommend instead?

thanks again for all the help.

[NC longboarder]

tell us what your looking for. they pretty much have everything except a drop deck or flush dropthrough.

[bduddy1]

tell us what your looking for. they pretty much have everything except a drop deck or flush dropthrough.

Just a really stable set up that will also be fun to ride if i'm not doing DH..i'm liking the loki.

I've never built my own longboard as i said earlier so i'm just trying to get a sense for what would be good to consider.

[enemy combatant]

Any reason why i shouldn't get larger wheels than 70mm? I definitely want to learn how to slide.

Wheel bite is more of an issue with larger wheels. Smaller wheels often have narrower contact patches and can actually be more easy to slide than larger ones. I really like 65mm Orangatang Fat Frees in purple and yellow for drifting.

Any experience with Bones bearings? big difference between reds and swiss? any other bearings you might recommend instead?

Get some $10 MHS, VXB, or Pleasure Tool double sealed bearings. They are just as fast and you will have money left over for more important stuff like bushings, wheels, and pads.

[WolfOnWheels]

Is there some reason you particularly want a Comet?

As far as trucks go, Randal 180mm 42* (degree, as in angle of the baseplates) would be more stable than 50* baseplates.

For wheels and bearings, Orangatang 83a 4Prez would be a good mix between slip and grip, so it wouldn't be too difficult to learn to slide and more grip can't hurt when you're learning to DH (don't wanna get crazy drifting) Bearings, if it spins, it will work, Bones Reds would be just fine, but really even some $10 bearings would work just as well (like MHS bearings)

[bduddy1]

Wheel bite is more of an issue with larger wheels. Smaller wheels often have narrower contact patches and can actually be more easy to slide than larger ones. I really like 65mm Orangatang Fat Frees in purple and yellow for drifting.



Get some $10 MHS, VXB, or Pleasure Tool double sealed bearings. They are just as fast and you will have money left over for more important stuff like bushings, wheels, and pads.

alright, definitely will do that. I though wheel-bite would be the main problem with larger wheels, but wasn't sure so thanks for clarifying that

[bduddy1]

Is there some reason you particularly want a Comet?

As far as trucks go, Randal 180mm 42* (degree, as in angle of the baseplates) would be more stable than 50* baseplates.

For wheels and bearings, Orangatang 83a 4Prez would be a good mix between slip and grip, so it wouldn't be too difficult to learn to slide and more grip can't hurt when you're learning to DH (don't wanna get crazy drifting) Bearings, if it spins, it will work, Bones Reds would be just fine, but really even some $10 bearings would work just as well (like MHS bearings)

cool, ya ill prob go with a 42*..stable is better. Definitely going with Otangs also. I probably just try different ones out as i wear them down and find what fits best for me.

As for Comet..i'm not sure exactly. They have a good rep and they were originally out of SF and i live pretty close to there. Mainly, i think just watching their videos on their site just hooked me, hella chill vibe haha. I know those aren't great reasons, but a lot of it has to do with the fact that they have a good reputation starting with their Voodoo. I wouldn't have decided on them if they didn't.

[WolfOnWheels]

Just saying, there are lots of other brands out there besides Comet, not to say Comet is bad, just that you shouldn't limit your options with so many great boards on the market

[LYDropcarve]

My favourite comet is the voodoo XL which seems great for dh and still a nice freeride/cruiser. I ride rayne boards and they have the best feeling out of all the decks I've tryed! Just another option

[bduddy1]

Just saying, there are lots of other brands out there besides Comet, not to say Comet is bad, just that you shouldn't limit your options with so many great boards on the market

ya for sure i know what you mean haha...they're are toooo manyy choices. ill probably keep looking just to make sure i don't find a board that i might've liked even better right after i get a Comet. I'm eager to go get a new board as soon as possible though. What would be a few brands that you or other people you know ride and love? i'll look into them. so far i haven't found anything that's pulled my interest away from Comet though. its just unexplainable preference i guess

[bduddy1]

My favourite comet is the voodoo XL which seems great for dh and still a nice freeride/cruiser. I ride rayne boards and they have the best feeling out of all the decks I've tryed! Just another option

my bad i didn't even notice you had responded. ya the voodoo was the first board that i saw by them. ill check out rayne too...man so many choices

[Big Dev]

@OP, if you want to have a board thats fun to play around on when you're not doing downhill, you should definitely get the loki

As for trucks, I recommended the 50* randals (yes, 180mm) because they'd be a lot more fun on flat ground, and almost as stable.
If you want a stable set up thats still fun on flat ground, You could run a 50* randal at the front of your skateboard and a 42* randal in the back of it. You can buy both of them here Mile High Skates

As for bushings these: Mile High Skates are my favorite.

I still recommend the flush loki, its really fun and very stable

[WolfOnWheels]

ya for sure i know what you mean haha...they're are toooo manyy choices. ill probably keep looking just to make sure i don't find a board that i might've liked even better right after i get a Comet. I'm eager to go get a new board as soon as possible though. What would be a few brands that you or other people you know ride and love? i'll look into them. so far i haven't found anything that's pulled my interest away from Comet though. its just unexplainable preference i guess

Soda Factory. Check them out. (there's no website, it's based out of Silverfish)

[bduddy1]

@OP, if you want to have a board thats fun to play around on when you're not doing downhill, you should definitely get the loki

As for trucks, I recommended the 50* randals (yes, 180mm) because they'd be a lot more fun on flat ground, and almost as stable.
If you want a stable set up thats still fun on flat ground, You could run a 50* randal at the front of your skateboard and a 42* randal in the back of it. You can buy both of them here Mile High Skates

As for bushings these: Mile High Skates are my favorite.

I still recommend the flush loki, its really fun and very stable

Ya, i'm leaning towards a flush loki right now. Unless i find something else tonight that seems better i'll probably get it tomorrow at a local shop. I'll check the other brands that have been mentioned like Soda Factory and Rayne. Every site i go to has some appeal to it haha no matter what i get i'm gonna wonder if i made the right choice. No worries though, there will be many boards to come. This site is sick tho, glad i found it cause its been really helpful.

[bduddy1]

How do bushings affect performance? excuse my ignorance

[Big Dev]

How do bushings affect performance? excuse my ignorance

If you get them you'll be glad that you did.

The ones I showed you will make your board plenty stable, but still fun on flat grounds and they'll have a bunch of rebound (springy feeling that returns the board to center)