Are you getting started with a skateboard? Well, you can just skate around your area, or you can use this as an easy ride. However, the real potential of skateboards comes with different kinds of tricks.

Not only do the tricks look cool they also make skateboarding fun. And most people go into skateboarding for this reason only. You can learn skateboard tricks the way you want to. But it’s very helpful for skateboard tricks to learn in order. It’s not compulsory, but it can be very helpful.

Also, you can’t do every trick with every skateboard. Your skateboard needs some features that contribute to the tricks. Let’s check out the skateboard features. 

Skateboard features required for doing tricks

When it comes to choosing skateboards for tricks, some features must be considered. Whether you choose the skateboard for beginner adults, teenagers, or for toddlers, this features should exist in skateboard for better tricks. The first thing to go through is the size of the board. You would want a board that lets you move your feet around correctly and freely, especially if you want to do tricks on the board.

Read: Can you do tricks on Longboard?

Aside from that, there are some intricate details you should consider. They are as follows-

• You would want to have smaller wheels on your skateboard. As they have a quick acceleration and response way sooner. High-quality wheels are also very important. Because most of the pressure of your tricks will go through the wheels. So, you would need them to be heavy-duty. 
• The trunk and decks need to be responsive for better trick performances. And they have to be durable as well. 
• Always get a single-pressed deck for the quality. Anything besides that will serve no purpose at all.
• In the beginning, the phase tries to go for a mellow concave rather than a steeper one. Because it makes moving your feet a lot easier. 

In short, the key requirement in a skateboard for doing tricks is to get something responsive. It’s important because you want the board to respond to your actions as fast as possible. The tricks you will usually do on a skateboard have a fast pace. So, you will need something fast that can go hand in hand with that.

Read: What to wear when skateboarding?

Tricks that can be practiced from easy to hard

Here, we will take you through some basic tricks for skateboarding. The order here is based on difficulty. Learning the tricks in order will help you progress better and faster. Also, it diminishes the risk factor for the harder tricks by a lot. Let’s check out the tricks. 

1. Ride Switch

The first thing you should learn after regular riding on a skateboard is the ride switch. It’s not essentially a trick but a technic that improves your control over the board. A ride switch is when you use an opposite footing while riding. Your footing will be opposite from your normal stance. 

For instance, if you use your left foot as a leading foot, then ride switch means using your right to lead the board.

2. Drop-Ins

To proceed further in learning tricks, you have to learn the drop-in. This is an absolute must if you plan to perform tricks on quarters and ramps. The trick is relatively simple to understand but takes some courage in the beginning.

3. Manuals

Manuals is like the wheelie for skateboards. It’s the trick where you simply lift two of the wheels and keep them in mid-air while skating with the other two. Now, you can do this with the nose end or the tail end of the board.

Learning and mastering manuals take time and practice. You will have to practice balancing the board first to do this trick perfectly. 

4. Kick Turn

Kick turn is a very useful skill to learn on your board. It helps you turn your board without stopping at all. All you do here is lift the nose of the board and use your front foot to pivot and turn the board in your desired direction.

While you lift the nose, make sure to keep a balance; don’t lift it all the way. The direction depends on your feet’ movement.

5. Tic-Tac

Tic tac is a great way to gain speed while skateboarding. It requires some movements from your shoulders and hips that translate to your feet.

To do this, you have to keep your back foot on the tail end a lift the front wheels or nose just a little bit. And then turn the board left and right respectively every time you lift. 

6. Casper flip

Moving on to a more difficult trick here with the Casper flip. In a Casper flip, you essentially flip your board 180 degrees using your feet’ movement. Here, you have to pop your board using your back foot and use both of your feet to rotate the board 180 degrees and land on the board. 

7. Ollie

Ollie is the gateway to some of the most complicated tricks on a skateboard. In this trick, you will need complete control over your feet and board. Here, you pop the board and lift it in mid-air.

And to be honest, lifting a board to a decent height can be very hard at the beginning. This helps jump over obstacles with your board.

8. No Comply

Initially, this trick may seem difficult to perform until you know the techniques. You will take off your front foot from the board to the ground and then use your back foot to flip the board 180 degrees.

Flipping the board is the hardest part of the trick because you have to slap the tail of the board with your back foot to flip it.

9. Heelflip

This is a hard one here. To do a heelflip, you first have to learn a proper ollie. Just imaging adding a 360-degree rotation on the board while doing an ollie. This is the very basis of a heelflip. You will use your heels to flip or rotate the board 360 degrees in a mid ollie.

10. Kickflip

Similar to the heelflip, kickflip also follows the same principle and basics. It also uses the ollie and gets a 360-degree rotation of the board. But instead of using your heels, you have to use the upper part of your front foot to get the rotation from the nose end. This is the gateway to more advanced flips you can do. And it’s harder than a heelflip as well. 

Learn more about kickflip variations and the perfect foot position to achieve the kickflip.

So, these are some of the basic tricks to perform in order on a skateboard. Of course, there are more advanced tricks that you can do, but to do them, you have to master these first. Otherwise, you will keep failing without any progress.

FAQs

What skateboard tricks should I learn first?

The first tricks you should learn on a skateboard are ride switch, drop-ins, popping the board, ollie, and manuals. These open up possibilities to do some advanced tricks. 

What is the easiest trick to learn on a skateboard?

The easiest trick you can learn on a skateboard has to be the drop-in. It doesn’t take much skill to perform; you just have to be confident and understand the basics of balancing your weight. Other than that, the ride switch is also pretty simple.

Final Words

You don’t have to learn the tricks in order. But the skateboard tricks to know in order can make things much easier for you. You can progress much faster and better without failing too much. This also keeps up your motivation higher.

The skateboard truck is one of the most important parts of a skateboard which can make a huge difference in your skating experience. With time the truck starts to get loosen thus regular tightening is very important for a smoother ride. Most of the people who do skateboarding know how to tight the truck.

However, if you are a beginner in skateboarding or do not know how to tighten skateboard trucks then this article is for you as I will talk about it in detail.

So, go through the whole article to get detailed information about tightening a skateboard truck.

Table of Contents

How Tight Should Skateboard Trucks Be?

There is no proper adjustment as the truck tightness of a skateboard. It is a matter of personal choice. The one who rides it will fit the trucks the way he likes it.

However, there are a few things you have to consider while tightening the skateboard truck.

If you are a beginner, then you should keep the trucks tight as one can easily control the skateboard with tight trucks.

On the other hand, loose trucks give a better flow to the skateboard and allow one to do tricks in a better way.

So the tightness is your personal choice and there is no perfect tightening adjustment of a skateboard truck.

How To Tighten Trucks On Skateboard With Skate Tools?

Tightening skateboard trucks is not a difficult job as it can be done by anyone. The task gets easier if you have the skate tool. A skate tool is given with most of the skateboards so that you can do necessary adjustments to the trucks.

Before tightening the truck first think how much you want to tighten it. A tighter truck gives more control and stability to the skateboard but over-tightening is not recommended.

Flip your skateboard and check the truck with your hands by tilting them back and forth. If the trucks are tilting too much that means, it’s very loose. Now use the skate tool and place it in the big nut that is right in the middle of the truck. This nut controls the tightness of the truck of a skateboard.

Now, turn the nut clockwise with the skate tool to tighten it as much as you want but do not over tighten it. As there is no perfect measurement of tightening a truck you have to decide how much you want to tighten it.

This is how you can use the stake tool to tighten skateboard trucks. After tightening you should always check it by going on a ride with the skateboard. If you feel it should be tighter you can adjust it again using the skate tool.

How To Tighten Skateboard Trucks Without Tools?

Above we learnt to tighten a skateboard truck with tools and now we will know how we can do it without any tools.

You don’t necessarily need a skate tool to do any adjustments. You can tighten the nuts by using a wrench or screwdriver as well. The screwdriver has to match with the nuts size in this case because only then you will be able to adjust it.

So, if you don’t have a skate tool find a wrench or screwdriver in your house. The method of tightening with a screwdriver or wrench is almost the same as the method of tightening with a skate tool.

You have to place the screwdriver or the wrench whichever you use in the nut and turn it clockwise. The nut will keep turning until it gets too tight so you can tighten it as your choice.

In this way using a wrench or screwdriver you can tighten skateboard trucks easily without the skate tool.

FAQs

What Tool Do You Use To Tighten Trucks On A Skateboard?

Most of the skateboarders use the skate tool to tighten the trucks of a skateboard. Other than that, skateboarders also use wrenches or screwdrivers to adjust the trucks.

Tightening trucks is a very easy job so it can be done without the skate tool as well.

However, the easiest way is using the skate tool that’s why it is used the most rather than any other types of tools.

Can You Over Tighten Skateboard Trucks?

Yes, you can over tighten skateboard trucks but in that case, you will not be able to take easy turns. Moreover, you will not be able to control the board and skate easily if the trucks are over tighten.

Even though there is no appropriate measurement of tightening the trucks, over tightening it is also not recommended.

Why Won’t My Skateboard Trucks Tighten?

If you are not able to tighten your skateboard trucks either they broke or the blushing has split. Sometimes the trucks broke and in this case, it will not tighten any more. You have to take the skateboard to repair the truck.

Also, sometimes for tightening too much the bushings split. No matter how much you keep tightening it if the bushing splits the trucks won’t tighten anymore.

Should My Skateboard Trucks Be Loose Or Tight?

This question has no accurate answer as the adjustment of the trucks will totally depend on how you like to skate. Many skaters like loose trucks and many like tight trucks.

Tight trucks give better stability, control and help to skate easily thus mostly beginners like tight trucks. On the other hand, skaters who like doing tricks like to have loose trucks.

In the End…

As you are at the end of the article, I hope you have come to know how to Tighten Skateboard Trucks with and without tools. You can now tighten the trucks anytime you want according to your choice. There is no need to take someone else’s help anymore.

If you are a beginner take the tool with you for the first few days so that you can do the necessary adjustments while skating. After a few adjustments, you will be able to understand how much tightness seems good to you for skating smoothly.

If you ask my opinion on skateboarding in the rain or wet… then I have no direct answer for this. Some say riding skateboards in the rain is fun and a totally new experience. While others say they cannot skate properly in rain or wet place and it’s just a waste of energy.

Skateboarding in the wet or rain can never give the same feeling and fun as a dry place. You will not be able to try any tricks as the ground will be wet.

Moreover, you have a high chance to slip on the wet ground which can give you a serious injury. If you are not a professional skater then skateboarding in rain or wet is not recommended. 

Can You Skateboard In The Rain?

People who do skateboarding on a regular basis can be seen skating on rainy days as well. Skateboarding can be done in the off-seasons but in the rainy season, it is really risky. If you have a basement or indoor place then you can practice skateboarding there rather than practicing in a wet place. As much as possible try not to get your skateboard because,

• The bearings will slowly deteriorate from inside
• The grip tape could peel off
• The deck can get water clogged
• The bolts and nuts can rust

Is it bad to ride a longboard in the rain? It is a very common question many people ask. You can longboard in the rain but it is not a wise idea. Some may say longboarding in the rain is fun and a great way to learn different skating techniques. And some will say it is risky for you and not good for the skateboard as well. The skateboard can soak water and it becomes heavy. This can make the skateboard slow and will not provide a smooth ride like before. 

However, if you want to ride a longboard and have the experience you should dry your longboard as soon as you are done riding. Do not keep it wet and dirty. 

If you have an electric skateboard with remote, you may think it will be easy to ride in the rain… But you are wrong!
Think about it… Electric boards are powered by batteries and are also filled with wires. How can you think about mixing your fastest electric skateboard with rain or wet!

FAQs

1. Where can you skate when it rains?

You can do skateboarding in your basement, garage, or indoor playroom when it rains outside. You can also practice on a carpet in your room if you don’t have a basement or garage. People also skate on their rooftops but that seems risky to me. So I will not recommend anyone to do skateboarding on rooftops.

You can also look for any abandoned buildings or garages near your house if you want to skate with your friends. You can also search for indoor skating places which are used for skating on off-seasons mainly. 

2. How do you protect your skateboard from the rain?

If you really want to have a new experience and do skateboarding in the wet, there are a couple of ways to protect your skateboard to some extent. Firstly, change your wheels to rain wheels. Rain wheels are used in the place of normal wheels just to do skating in the rain. Then use a floor sealer or an artist’s fixative spray on the board. It will protect the wood board but it will not last long so it has to be reapplied after every wet ride.

After skateboarding takes a clean cloth and wipe the full skateboard properly and keep it in a dry place. 

3. Can you ride penny boards in the rain?

Penny boards are fun to do skateboarding with but it is not recommended to use in the rain. Penny boards are small thus while riding in the rain you will not be able to hold the grip. It can easily slip and you may get a serious injury. Moreover, you will not be able to do any tricks with the penny board in rain. 

Conclusion…

In conclusion, I would like to say, it is better not to do skateboarding in the rain or wet place. Find a dry place if you don’t want to keep yourself away from skateboarding during the rainy season.

However, if you want to experience skateboarding in a rainy day then don’t forget to take some of the protections that I mentioned above to protect your skateboard.