So hey! A new Skateboard maker in the UK?
That’s great to see and I’m a big proponent of supporting local businesses and the local scene, so I was more than happy when asked by Nige and Dean of ‘2 Core Longboards’ to review a deck of theirs, actually the first time ever I’ve done this so thanks again guys!
That being said, I’m not a seriously skilled skater but have skated for many years. With that in mind I also got more experienced skaters opinions on the deck to balance the review out. I also took my sweet time about it due to being old and having responsibilities like working and paying bills so thank ‘2 Core Longboards‘ for their patience!
So what do we have?
Well straight away the experienced among you will see that it’s what we could all agree on is a tried and tested design in the world of longboarding being a symmetrical drop down design which has been used by many if not all longboard companies for a decade or more. A design that works for lots of reasons and is suitable for most genres of longboarding from cruising to freeriding and downhill also Long Distance Pushing having that low deck and low centre of gravity making it easy on the knees and legs to push along.
The shape of the deck actually reminds me of a Streetluge pan with the sloped sides and flat’ish centre section which makes it different to the many concaved designs of past and present I’ve owned but also means your feet are well placed and supported and I found this deck so easy to slide immediately because of the deck shape. I stuck on some very grippy grip tape which obviously helps, but I definitely felt my feet were locked in securely when busting out Coleman Slides down my local steep slide hill. I’ve ridden boards with more complex shapes like W Concave etc so find this simpler shape quite refreshing as the deck is uncluttered in a way although maybe flatter sections for foot placement when in tuck would be nice. As for sliding the shape is great holding your feet in place comfortably.
I set up with some 180mm Sabre Trucks and some Cult Chronicles which I have to say are my new favourite freeride and slide wheels making this set up a super fun sideways machine! Easy to control and a smooth ride.
Its a very easy to control deck I found, I like the flat centre section as it made foot placement for pushing really comfortable I could see some Long Distance Pushing types liking this shape and the fact it is lightweight but stiff.
I didn’t feel any flexing but that’s probably more down to my style of skating (being a life long kook!) and that I’m a lightweight kinda guy.. still 10st/70kg at age 50 ain’t too shabby, been this weight since I was 17!
I’m sure the heavier skater will still find this deck doesn’t flex too much, the carbon cores seem to be doing their job.
I skated my local slide hill for quite some time, walking back up wanting to send it sideways one more time as it was much fun I think I could really progress on this deck it really is suited to sliding and Freeriding.
Now as I say I took some time with this review in fact many weeks passed due as I said to work, but also due to the British weather being seriously unpredictable in 2021 but I did manage to get to the UK’s biggest Longboard event at Hoghill, Hogtoberfest, to show the deck to my friends and others in the UK Longboard family.
Nobody had heard of ‘2 Core Longboards‘ of course but the people that looked at the deck all commented on the good quality feel of the deck. A couple of Longboard Dancers even thought it looked good.
One comment from a young experienced skater was that this is an ‘old design’ which is in some ways true, but as I say it’s a tried and tested design that works well and could be said is a’ classic all round longboard design’ and is probably many peoples idea of a Longboard.
Some time past before I could get out on the deck again and this time I wanted to bomb down some bigger hills to see what it was like at faster speeds, time for bigger wheels and putting on my leathers as I would most probably be testing my abilities as much as the decks ability to survive multiple crashes as that’s just how I roll…and roll and end up in a ditch or hedge, but that’s all part of the fun isn’t it? Apologies ‘2 Core Longboards‘ I didn’t tell you I may be testing the deck until destruction!
(Also I’d promised to gift the deck to a new skater who joined my local crew at a later date!)
So the bigger hill I took it to was Beachy Head, famous in the UK downhill scene. A 40 to 50 mph bomb, a fast run into a few twisty corners then full tuck to top speed, a personal favourite of mine on my Streetluges. A dawn Raid is the tradition of the local crew and the safest way to Outlaw the hill so there’s none to little traffic or Authority types! Although saying that the local crew ‘South Down Shredders’ are well known in the area so people let them enjoy their epic local spot they respect the hill they get respect in return.
Unfortunately the weekend I chose to head there happened to coincide with a big storm across the UK but looking at various forecasts Sunday morning looked dry. I hadn’t thought about the wind though!
I spent a very disturbed night in the back of my Skatewagon and as up before sunrise. The wind was still blowing hard and sadly the wrong way for the hill, a headwind, great for air braking, not so great for going fast. In fact after a few runs it was apparent that the wind had knocked off 10mph from what would normally be a 40mph run!
As soon as you stood up that was it game over. It did however mean that I didn’t crash, not even once, very unusual for me! On the few runs done I found the deck smooth, but the wind really did defeat the purpose of being there.
A local longboarder had a go but like me didn’t push it as the road was icy in places but he still bust out a super smooth slide and that was his remark.. Smooth ride!
So I planned to ride the deck on some of my local hills the following weekend hoping for no storms but this is the British Winter after all so fingers were crossed all week.
Luck was on my side the following weekend, dry both days, well, mostly. So a slide and hill bomb session was arranged with myself a tow local skaters, one a newbie and soon to be a very happy longboarder!
The hill a mellow one for me and good for the new skater to get a taste of going a bit faster and cornering and sliding.
I rode the deck with set up as before and found it stable and fun around the tight hairpin corner we had to play with. I wasn’t going too fast on the small freeride/slide wheels probably about 30mph tops, I was happy to carve my way along the faster bottom section of the hill, again the design of the concave with the flat middle and sloping sides meant my feet we’re nicely placed without fear of slipping out when sliding. I was getting into this set up slide after slide feeling easy and confidence inspiring. I was actually looking like a competent skater!
The road was by now nice and dry, It was a bit damp when we first started, I slid for miles in the wet on the Cult Chronicles and they seemed to handle the patchy conditions well and are well suited to this deck I feel and as the session went on with the road drying completely my slides and speed were becoming more relaxed and controlled.
It was time to let the new guy have a go on it as he was my intended recipient of said deck and he’d prepared by buying some new Sabre trucks, Cult Emperor wheels (soon to be a new favourite wheel for me!) and appeared eager to try it out for the first time. He found it very different to his cheaper set up from a well known mainstream shop with a much deeper concave and the micro drop. Also he noticed the Vicious Grip Tape was much grippier than what he had been using, some people find it too much but |I like that grip for my style of sliding and bombing hills I want to be stuck to my board!
So we set up the soon to be his deck and I got the honour of skating the new trucks and wheels and man It was great! The bigger wheels instantly felt faster and I was soon walking back up the hill for more and wanting to go faster. Again the wheels really suited this deck and the deck was demonstrating it’s ability for Freeriding, sliding and bombing Downhill. In the corner my feet had enough space to adjust position and I could decide whether to predrift or grip the hairpin busting out a little slide here and a long Coleman Slide there I really was enjoying the whole set up and was feeling a little envious of the new owner!
After a three hour session where we didn’t really stop or lurk about as we were have too much fun I officially presented the newbie, Greg with the deck and he is now a very happy guy already asking questions about techy stuff and arranging future sessions to skate more.
I feel my good deed for 2021 was accomplished and another Longboarder is born and welcomed to the UKDH and longboard family I look forward to skating more with my new friend and seeing him progress with his top of the range set up. It will be interesting to hear his views as he learns more and gains experience.
So my thoughts on the deck, great shape. Very well made with a quality look and feel. Rides smooth and felt stiff and a nice weight not too heavy not too light or flexy.
If I could only buy one longboard I would definitely consider this deck as a do it all longboard. You can set it up to be a cruiser, an downhill bomber or a super fun sliding machine. Its is priced at top of the range levels, your paying for first class craftsmanship made in the UK supporting your local scene. There are boards much cheaper and you’ll see and feel that difference and it does compare well with more expensive decks from exotic far away lands.
It great to see a new UK longboard manufacturer and I’ll be following their progress with interest.
Now as I said at the start of my ramblings I’m no pro boarder but I do have many years skating (poorly) under my belt so my review is purely my honest opinion. I thought therefore I’d better talk to the guys at ‘ 2 Core Longboards‘ to get their story and a bit of technical information for the techy types to digest and so I don’t feel such a Kook!