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Tested Decks
Most of all the companies that went out on a limb and contributed decks to be tested deserve our thanks and gratitude because without them this test would not have been possible. All these companies had enough faith in their product to send decks to be tested. Any decks not associated with these companies' decks were purchased for the test in order to have a low end comparison. Decks were measured and compared in several areas, weight, width, tail angle, depth of concave, thickness along with the other tests already mentioned on the data page. Please review the data page to view this info and determine which deck best fits your needs. These were only sample tests and data for this group of decks may vary from test to test depending on wood moisture content, wood grain, construction process, gluing process and any number of unforeseen occurrences. The deck coatings were compared and how different construction materials effect performance. The deck reviews can only tell a rider the strengths and weaknesses of a deck.
A local skate park has started in my area. In a old shirt factory 25 miles from my home in Paris. The next closest is in Nashville 120 miles away. I wanted you to know the decks from the testing that I purchased and the ones donated, I am giving to under-privileged kids that can't afford decks. Everyone who donated decks were very kind and I am grateful. Most of the decks still had a lot of life left in them and it seems like the right thing to do. I had already given the untested duplicate decks away to thru the donations for
Baker Dykema Mfg. Co. Libtech Notanotherskateboardzine Primewoods Penn’s Wood Performance SK8 Powell Santa Cruz California Skate Factory
Overall Deck rankings
BEST TESTED!
Future Tech Series, Performance Sk8, Made by Madshus. Made in Norway. $79.99 They come with the patented Performance TipTM System which allows the integrated tips to be replaced. Did great on the abrasion test, increasing board life and performance. The deck did well on the stress test and chart shows that the deck performed well under stress. Did good on the slide test. Shared highest with Dykema decks on Brinell Hardness. An all round great deck and based on the performance it was best tested. Based on cost and performance it would be a great buy. It is the type of deck that falls in the expert class.
Great buys!
Flip, New Wave, California Skate Factory deck Cost $49.99 Made in USA. UV painted. Deck did well on stress test and chart shows it responded well under stress. Deck did well on slide test. Deck did well on area damaged by slide test. Hardened Egg Shell UV Printing baked into the deck greatly increases deck life. Their Various Wave Technologies use corrugated stiffening ripples on deck surfaces to radically increases performance. Deck did well on abrasion test. A great all round deck. Based on cost and performance this deck would be a great buy. All California Skate Factory Products are 100% Guaranteed against manufacturers defects.
Terror Company Deck, Rob Dykema Mfg. Co. decks Cost $ 49.99 Made in USA. Did good on slide test. Did well on the area damaged from slide test. UV Painted. Did good on the abrasion test. Did good on the pressure difference in stress test but chart shows deck did not respond as well as some to the stress. Shared highest on Brinell hardness test with Performance sk8. A great all round deck. Based on cost and performance it would be a great purchase.
Baker- Bareback,California Skate Factory & Primewoods are Manufacturers, Cost $45.99 Made in USA. All the Baker decks tested excelled in several areas of testing. Did good on the stress test, they had a low pressure difference and chart shows the decks performed well under stress. The decks did well on the slide and had a small area of wear from the slide increasing deck life. They are a great all round deck. Based on cost and performance they are a great buy.
Power Lyte, Santa Cruz, Fiberglass/wood deck Made in USA. Cost $59.99. Did good on the stress test but did not respond as well as some to the stress. Did good on the abrasion test. PowerLyte's super-thin 8-ply maple veneers and bullet-proof top layer yield a strong deck. Constructed 90% of wood, it's the PowerLyte's other 10% that tremendously increase its strength while at the same time allowing for a 22% reduction in weight compared to conventional wood decks. Based on the deck cost and performance makes it a good choice for purchase. All Santa Cruz decks come with a 120-day warranty covering delamination due to materials and/or workmanship
Seven Six Fifty Series, Deck, Rob Dykema Mfg. Co. decks Cost $49.99 Made in USA. Decks did well on the stress test and chart shows responded well to stress. Decks did good on slide test. Did good on area damaged by slide test. UV Painted. Clear Coated. Deck did not do as well as some on abrasion test. The deck did great on Brinell hardness test. A better than average deck. Based on cost and performance it would be a great buy.
Above average Decks
E-Matrix, Libtech, Fiberglass/wood deck, Cost $69.99. Made in USA. The deck was best tested on the abrasion test. Greatly extending deck life by preventing razor tail. The deck did well in the slide test also. The deck performed average in the other areas of the testing. Based on price and performance these decks would be a great purchase.
Original Construction Deck, Libtech, Fiberglass/wood deck Cost $69.99. Made in USA. The deck did well in several areas of testing. The deck is on the cutting edge of technology. The Epoxy resin coating is very strong but the coating doesn't slide as well as some of the other decks tested. The increase cost justifies purchase based on the increase life and performance it will provide. I think one of these decks would last for years if not abused. Based on cost and performance it would be a great purchase
Mini Logo, Skate One Corp. SST Coating deck, Cost $29.99. Made in Santa Barbara, CA. These decks slide great. The SST coating adds life to these decks. It can take a little getting used to at first but can easily increase your sliding performance. The wood did not do as well as some on the abrasion test. Based on price and performance they are a good buy.
The Firm, California Skate Factory, New Wave deck Cost $49.99 Made in USA. Deck did good on slide test. UV Painted. Best tested on area damaged in slide test. 2 sq. in. Hardened Egg Shell UV Printing baked into the deck, greatly increases deck life by reducing damage to the deck wood. Their Various Wave Technologies use corrugated stiffening ripples on deck surfaces to radically increases performance. Better Slides the ripples reduce contact area while increasing control when sliding on the board . Deck did average on Stress test but did not perform as well as some to the stress. Tested higher on damage from abrasion test of decks tested. Based on cost and performance the deck is a good buy. All California Skate Factory Products are 100% Guaranteed against manufacturers defects.
Fiberglass Deck, Notanotherskateboardzine deck Cost $34.99, Made in USA. The deck did well in several areas of the testing. The deck didn't do as well as most on abrasion test but a great deck for sliding. A good deck if you don't abuse it or if you are not heavy.
Penn's Wood, 7.5, Painted deck Cost $20.99 Made in USA. Made from 100% North American Maple. Manufactured in Pennsylvania by skatboarders. This deck did well on the slide test. Did well on the stress test and chart shows it performed well under stress. Based on the cost and Performance this would be a great deck to purchase.
Average Decks
Blank 9 Ply, Notanotherskateboardzine, Vision, Clear Coat deck Cost $29.99 Made in USA. The deck did not test as well as the higher end decks tested. Based on performance it would be a beginner/intermediate deck. I bought one just to ride and check it out a little further. I have rode it for a weeks now and I don't feel like I wasted my money.
Penn's Wood, 7.6, 7.75 & 8 in.decks. Painted decks Cost $20.99 Made in USA. These decks did well in the slide tests but did not test as well as some, and as the 7.5 in. deck made by the same company. Based on cost and performance the decks would be a fair purchase for a beginner.
Other Decks tested
New Lite, LLM Direct, Aluminum deck Cost $9.95 Made in China. The plastic tips did great on the abrasion test. But there were still some sharp edges on the aluminum. The deck bent during stress test. If you are light and not grinding on abrasive surfaces you might find a use for the deck. Based on price and performance some people will enjoy it as a novelty deck. I am going to try it on snow/sand without the trucks.
Yocaher, Aluminum deck Cost $20.98 Made in Germany, Deck did well on the slide test. Did good on the abrasion test but still had sharp edges from test.. Tips are replaceable. Deck did not slide well. It had some sharp edges on the aluminum. If you are light and not grinding on abrasive surfaces you might find a use for the deck. Based on price and performance some people will enjoy it as a novelity deck. I am gonna try it on snow/sand without the trucks.
World Industries, Flameboy Squaler deck Cost $49.99 Made in China. Deck had a low pressure difference between stress tests, but Chart shows deck did not respond well to the stress. Did poor on the slide test. It had damage to wood deck from the slide test. Tested poor on the abrasion test. Had lowest score of all decks tested in Brinell Hardness test.
Alliance, Davis and Associates Inc.Kiss Series, Cost $31.98 Retail Complete. Made in ? Did good on the slide test. Did well on the abrasion test Fair beginner level deck. The trucks broke when I tried to put them on another deck.
Decks That scored Lowest
x2s, Wal-Mart deck Cost $8.83 Made in China, The decks we tested did well on the abrasion test due to the fact that they had been on the shelf for years and the wood was really dry thus increasing deck resistance to wear. The deck lacked any design characteristics that skaters have come to expect from a deck. It tested poor in the other areas of testing.
Control, VFX Gear, Variflex of California Cost $9.95 retail complete. Made in China. Deck did poor in all areas of testing.
Extreme Boards, Gravity Games, Primedia Speciality Group deck. Cost $29.99 complete. Made in China. The deck did poor in all areas tested.
Skateboard Testing Data 2003
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They get a star for being a skateboard.
Below Average. 
Average
Above Average
Excellent 
Award of Excellence. The product excels in a area. 
Good Buy. |
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