Due to the massive onslaught of new topics asking if a set-up is good or not i thought i would make a little guide to buying your first set-up!
First of all you need to ask yourself if skateboarding really for you?
Do you really want to spend over £100 on a complete set-up that you'll only use for a while then ignore? My first piece of advice is if its your first ever ride on a board you should aim cheap, not £10 for a complete but aim to spend under £50 because at the end of the day its your first board and your hardly gonna be thrashing the hell out of it.

So yeah depending on your budget check out Argos if you really don't want to spend that much. Staying under £50? Check out company's like Renner and Stateside who sell completes for under £50. Have a little bit more of a budget?
You can get some fairly nice complete decks for under £100 as well with company's such as Blind, Bullet, Enuf, Powell and world industries. Really wanna go over £100?
Well there are completes out there for you, company's like Birdhouse and element.

If you'd prefer to pick out each item separately and build your complete that way you can still get good quality merchandise for fairly cheap. I think decks for under £50 are usually fairly good, most British company's build to a high standard and retail their boards for fairly cheap. Company's like Blueprint, Death, Rogue, Unabomber, Heroin, A third foot, Karma, Landscape, The Harmony and Think are all examples of decks that are fairly cheap but to high standard!

As for trucks, wheels and bearings i think the best bet is to stay in a certain price range and just experiment with different company's, for trucks i think stay between £20 and £50. With Wheels you should stay between £20 and £35, and finally Bearings i recommend you staying between £15 and £40.
And thats all i can think about to help really, its ultimately down to personal preference budget and skill level. If you really wanna splash out on a massive super pro complete it wont make you a better skater but probably make it a little bit harder as the equipment might be harder to control. I can tell you what to buy but from my many years skating this is the best advice i could think of, if you have any other queries please post them in here instead of making a new topic!

And finally a little note about skate shops, if you have a local skate shop run by skaters (known as a SOS skate shop) please support the shop before considering buying from the internet. There is a worrying crisis in the amount of skate shops shutting down because of chain stores like "Route one" and "Quicksilver" etc outselling the Skater run shops so please think about where you want to see skateboarding in future before buying your deck!

*Please note that all hyper links I've added are to the companies website, to the best of my knowledge the best place to buy stuff online is Kateskates, they always have stock and delivery to the UK is free. Also after a quick Google etc i came across these other really good sites!
>Halfpipe
>Reskue
>50-50
>Note
Support your local SOS store!!!!*

ill use this when buying my next board instead of just buying anything

Nice guide Mikeyfish


One thing I found when I came to buy my first board in 25 yrs was that I didn't really know what width of deck i should be looking for...not having stepped onto a double-kick deck before ()

So the guy in the shop suggested a 7.5" & I can understand why...my feet aren't big exactly, lol. But not knowing was best beforehand, 7.5 turned out to be too narrow; now i use a 7.75"...soo much better.


So if you're getting a first deck, try somone else's to get a feel for the right width.


On the upside, i have a narrower deck for that far-off day when I get enough competency to do flip tricks. Maybe. Yeah i live in hope

Do these wheels look ok? ----- https://idealbirmingham.ssl-01.com/shop/pro...uhr50efk7soo004
Like, as in quality and that??
I don't really want a thickness over about 53mm because the ones I've got now are 50.

heroin make good rough and ready wheels, nice and durable and nicely priced. you will find over time that hardness aside there isn't much difference between wheels and it will just come down to your preference of size.

Kates Skates is expensive - this tool in Ideal skate shop https://idealbirmingham.ssl-01.com/shop/pro...products_id=546

is the same as this one in Kates Skates http://www.kateskates.co.uk/productdetails...p;x3=2142577913

but its half the price. What the hell? I prefer Ideal.

sk8ter93 ,supply enjoi,almost,element,darkstar,baker,alien workshop,foundation,blueprint,toy machine,flip,tensor,krux,independant,grind king and many many more..check out the website

www.sk8ter93.com

would any of you guys Reccomend a Third Foot? Not as a first deck, i've just found quite a nice ATF deck, 7.75 for £40.00, Are they nice decks?

Absolutly no point when you can get a landscape for the same price, i hear they are ok but everyone will say landscape are better.

Yeah, 2 of my mates just got landscapes, hopefully i'll try one out.

third foot are th eonly major enlgish company to have boards made in england and they shape and wood is of as good a quality as any other boar dout there, so its more what lovely little trend your friends are following.
i have come to the conclusion that most deck opinions are substantiated on bullshit.

What about almost decks, are they any good??
http://www.half-pipe.co.uk/catalog/product...products_id=150

the best thing to do is to go into a real shop, and have a look and a stand on the decks you are interested in. make your own mind up rather than allowing it to be directed by droves of people who think they base their opinions on board feel, but are actually dictated by fashion when it transpires that most wood used is the same and many 'better' brands are made in the same location, with the same materials and methods as those so called rubbish brands.

i like almost boards, nice stiff concave. made by dwindle who also produce enjoi, blind and darkstar.

i agree with all that they are strong boards maybe a bit heaver than a blueprint but last alot longer. my almost board still got its pop in it after 2 months

Looking at a third foot deck was nothing to do with Trend.
I've never seen anyone with one, which is why i asked if they're nice, alot of people i see skating use either a landscape or a switch deck...

So, no-one here has a Third foot deck they would reccomend?

never used one before and i dont know anyone who does sorry

i would whole heartedly recommend them.

Where can one buy them from?
Theres no option on the actual page is there?