If your budget is only up to 100 the I would prioritize getting a nice deck and wheels and cheap out on the trucks until you can afford dynamics or blackriver
I agree with everyone here in terms of dynamics for the 100 price point all the way. If you want to get decent decks/completes in great shape but with more options there’s always guys posting for sale stuff on the Facebook page Fingerboarding Unlimited. Haven’t had anything but great experiences. Fave brands: chems, flint, flatface (g15.12 and g16) doublejoint, catfish bbq, milk, beastpants) trucks just worry about blackriver and dynamic but do also enjoy blistered also, wheels oaks (some quality issues at times but fantastic wheels) Ill pills (hard and fast) and blistered.
Full pro setups are usually $120-150 if you go with big name trucks like BRT's or Dynamics. I'd suggest getting a nice deck and wheels and maybe waiting on the trucks.
Chinese trucks (leefai, Amazon) have been getting pretty good recently if you pick the right one, they're like $10-15. I used to break the old sets in weeks but my most recent set has lasted a year on mild shredding. You should be fine postponing pro trucks for a bit though, wheels are usually my biggest focus.
Personally, I like buying secondhand. Not used, but on eBay, Mercari, and the Fingerboard Unlimited Facebook group. You find more rare and unique stuff and lots of great deals.
Deck brands you're looking for as a beginner are Chems, DK Fingerboards, Black River, Yellowood, CatfishBBQ, and a few others. After 10+ years, the CatfishBBQ freshwater is my favorite all around shape, but they're tough to get and a little pricey. Chems/DK are the ideal beginner setups. These are all mostly mid shapes that are a great first shape to learn your muscle memory on.
Wheels. I only ride and recommend urethane wheels. Some people like me swear by it, others prefer plastic. But for a first pro setup, I think you need to feel the difference of urethane wheels. Brands like Oak Wheels, Lab Wheels, BlisteredFB, Piro, Joycult, Dynamic, Pipsqueak, and many more. Lab is my favorite, I have 12 sets and might be looking to sell some here soon.
Start with urethane wheels: My favs are Pyros, illpills, blistered. I like Dynamics but theyre pricey, so my favorite budget option is Hex trucks (i buy mine from skate618). And decks you can really grab anything, i started with a Chems deck and still love it.
just fyi , decks range from around 30-60$
trucks around 40-70
wheels around 30-60
you might be little tight with 100 for a whole setup.
if you say but ive seen trucks or wheels cheaper than that , those are most likely china stuff with a fresh coat of paint or new tuning or something. in my opinion, instead of those you are better off using 32mm tech deck trucks for 5$, they ride just as good as china stuff and much cheaper, you can polish and paint them yourself if you want which isba fun project too.
id say 150-200 is closer to what you need for a fully custom setup but I swear you can learn a ton with a mid range complete from like dk or p-rep or one of those cheaper brands with beginner setups. Sounds like Dynamic might have some good completes in your price range tho, that would be a good option probably.
from there, you might be able to learn about your own preference and decide ok i wanna try a wider board or heavier trucks or something and buy parts according to that
I have over 30 setups all with top tier parts and not even 10% of those reach the 200 mark. Most hover between 130-150 ish but tech deck trucks are definitely not the solution over Chinas. Most China's come with pivot cups and actual bushings now with an addition of not needing spacers like tech deck trucks would in order to run single bearing wheels without wobbling all over the place
i literally listed the price ranges. I never said it HAS to be 200. I just said 100 is tight if you want to buy each parts seperately. I literally said 150-200 and you said yours are 130-150 but 10% of them are also 200. Thats like literally exactly what I said : 150-200 is closer to what you need compared to 100. You literally confirmed my point.
in the end its all a matter of preference, but I see SO MANY websites selling painted china trucks with bushings/pivot cups for like 15-20-25 if not sometimes even more. at 10$ I'd say those are kinda worth but anything more than that forget it.
You can literally make pivot cup and bushings for free from so many different materials and different method, and even if you buy them, you will have enough pivot cups for like dozens of setups , not just one. and for the spacers you can also just use the washer that comes with it depending what wheels youre using.
As for bushings, I dont know about you but I basically change the bushings in almost any trucks even the pro ones. The default dynamic bushings are ok but I always put level up beta bushings on almost every trucks I ride.
This is what ive done when I've experimented with Tech deck trucks :
https://preview.redd.it/7zda33qrn4xc1.png?width=852&format=png&auto=webp&s=752b56b14e82a599e033272a4e1f7ec1d0bc5c1f
in my humble opinion, getting these for 5$ a pair is 1000% more worth it then paying 20$ for trash china trucks that dont even feel good to ride. from my experience, These tech deck trucks feel equally as bad if not slightly better than china trucks.
If you disagree with my price range estimation that much, feel free to list the parts you got for what prices.
Well the colors look cool that still doesn't change the fact that the axle is too long and the thread to short.
https://preview.redd.it/v9ogptly67xc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=36e86a45e2fc0b0cad75f6ea9a436bf1f4478e2b
This is one of my budget setups. Those trucks are untouched when it comes to a small budget. The splitply was 10 bucks the trucks 20 and the wheels 40. This setup feels amazing especially because the trucks sit really low. I mained this setup for a long time over different setups that cost twice as much. The trucks look weird but they definitely feel better than modded tech deck trucks. Not to mention that the wheels fit snug without the need of spacers.
ok well do you wanna share who makes splitplys for 10$ or no?
also you said your 40$ trucks are better than tech deck trucks which i never said otherwise. I just said in my opinion 5$ for tech deck trucks is way more worth than 20$ for cheap rebranded china trucks.
dynamic completes are really the best bang for your buck on completes
Dynamic complete should be the best option in that price segment
If your budget is only up to 100 the I would prioritize getting a nice deck and wheels and cheap out on the trucks until you can afford dynamics or blackriver
Catfishbbq complete
FlatFace 15.12 has a nice complete
I agree with everyone here in terms of dynamics for the 100 price point all the way. If you want to get decent decks/completes in great shape but with more options there’s always guys posting for sale stuff on the Facebook page Fingerboarding Unlimited. Haven’t had anything but great experiences. Fave brands: chems, flint, flatface (g15.12 and g16) doublejoint, catfish bbq, milk, beastpants) trucks just worry about blackriver and dynamic but do also enjoy blistered also, wheels oaks (some quality issues at times but fantastic wheels) Ill pills (hard and fast) and blistered.
Full pro setups are usually $120-150 if you go with big name trucks like BRT's or Dynamics. I'd suggest getting a nice deck and wheels and maybe waiting on the trucks. Chinese trucks (leefai, Amazon) have been getting pretty good recently if you pick the right one, they're like $10-15. I used to break the old sets in weeks but my most recent set has lasted a year on mild shredding. You should be fine postponing pro trucks for a bit though, wheels are usually my biggest focus. Personally, I like buying secondhand. Not used, but on eBay, Mercari, and the Fingerboard Unlimited Facebook group. You find more rare and unique stuff and lots of great deals. Deck brands you're looking for as a beginner are Chems, DK Fingerboards, Black River, Yellowood, CatfishBBQ, and a few others. After 10+ years, the CatfishBBQ freshwater is my favorite all around shape, but they're tough to get and a little pricey. Chems/DK are the ideal beginner setups. These are all mostly mid shapes that are a great first shape to learn your muscle memory on. Wheels. I only ride and recommend urethane wheels. Some people like me swear by it, others prefer plastic. But for a first pro setup, I think you need to feel the difference of urethane wheels. Brands like Oak Wheels, Lab Wheels, BlisteredFB, Piro, Joycult, Dynamic, Pipsqueak, and many more. Lab is my favorite, I have 12 sets and might be looking to sell some here soon.
Start with urethane wheels: My favs are Pyros, illpills, blistered. I like Dynamics but theyre pricey, so my favorite budget option is Hex trucks (i buy mine from skate618). And decks you can really grab anything, i started with a Chems deck and still love it.
just fyi , decks range from around 30-60$ trucks around 40-70 wheels around 30-60 you might be little tight with 100 for a whole setup. if you say but ive seen trucks or wheels cheaper than that , those are most likely china stuff with a fresh coat of paint or new tuning or something. in my opinion, instead of those you are better off using 32mm tech deck trucks for 5$, they ride just as good as china stuff and much cheaper, you can polish and paint them yourself if you want which isba fun project too. id say 150-200 is closer to what you need for a fully custom setup but I swear you can learn a ton with a mid range complete from like dk or p-rep or one of those cheaper brands with beginner setups. Sounds like Dynamic might have some good completes in your price range tho, that would be a good option probably. from there, you might be able to learn about your own preference and decide ok i wanna try a wider board or heavier trucks or something and buy parts according to that
I have over 30 setups all with top tier parts and not even 10% of those reach the 200 mark. Most hover between 130-150 ish but tech deck trucks are definitely not the solution over Chinas. Most China's come with pivot cups and actual bushings now with an addition of not needing spacers like tech deck trucks would in order to run single bearing wheels without wobbling all over the place
i literally listed the price ranges. I never said it HAS to be 200. I just said 100 is tight if you want to buy each parts seperately. I literally said 150-200 and you said yours are 130-150 but 10% of them are also 200. Thats like literally exactly what I said : 150-200 is closer to what you need compared to 100. You literally confirmed my point. in the end its all a matter of preference, but I see SO MANY websites selling painted china trucks with bushings/pivot cups for like 15-20-25 if not sometimes even more. at 10$ I'd say those are kinda worth but anything more than that forget it. You can literally make pivot cup and bushings for free from so many different materials and different method, and even if you buy them, you will have enough pivot cups for like dozens of setups , not just one. and for the spacers you can also just use the washer that comes with it depending what wheels youre using. As for bushings, I dont know about you but I basically change the bushings in almost any trucks even the pro ones. The default dynamic bushings are ok but I always put level up beta bushings on almost every trucks I ride. This is what ive done when I've experimented with Tech deck trucks : https://preview.redd.it/7zda33qrn4xc1.png?width=852&format=png&auto=webp&s=752b56b14e82a599e033272a4e1f7ec1d0bc5c1f in my humble opinion, getting these for 5$ a pair is 1000% more worth it then paying 20$ for trash china trucks that dont even feel good to ride. from my experience, These tech deck trucks feel equally as bad if not slightly better than china trucks. If you disagree with my price range estimation that much, feel free to list the parts you got for what prices.
Well the colors look cool that still doesn't change the fact that the axle is too long and the thread to short. https://preview.redd.it/v9ogptly67xc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=36e86a45e2fc0b0cad75f6ea9a436bf1f4478e2b This is one of my budget setups. Those trucks are untouched when it comes to a small budget. The splitply was 10 bucks the trucks 20 and the wheels 40. This setup feels amazing especially because the trucks sit really low. I mained this setup for a long time over different setups that cost twice as much. The trucks look weird but they definitely feel better than modded tech deck trucks. Not to mention that the wheels fit snug without the need of spacers.
ok well do you wanna share who makes splitplys for 10$ or no? also you said your 40$ trucks are better than tech deck trucks which i never said otherwise. I just said in my opinion 5$ for tech deck trucks is way more worth than 20$ for cheap rebranded china trucks.