The Penny Board is a plastic tiny skateboard with trucks, and wheels attached under it. This is smaller and lighter than a regular skateboard. Penny board was first introduced by Ben Mackay and he named the brand after his sister Penny.
On the other hand, Cruiser board is a type of skateboard, shorter than a longboard and larger than a regular skateboard. It is used as a commuter board to roam the suburbs. Cruiser board is very suitable for school going students and for riders who want to explore the surroundings.
- The basic difference between a cruiser board and penny board is construction material & purpose of riding.
- Usually, cruiser boards are made of maple wood and penny boards are made of plastic. Riders use cruiser boards for traveling and going long distance & they use penny boards for doing different types of tricks and short distance riding.
- Another source of comparison is size. Cruiser board is longer and wider than a penny board.
What is Penny Board
Penny board offers different size skateboards for enthusiastic riders. They are 22inch, 27inch, 29 inch surf skate, 32inch, 36 inch longboards. Penny board decks are normally retro-shaped (an old school shape), having a tail carved upward, no elevated nose.
It features a waffle top texture which helps riders to stick to the deck easily. The texture makes the board non-slip and provides a good grip over the board. Due to the textures on the deck surface you can ride it barefoot.
This is the only skateboard you can ride barefoot with just grip and comfort.
Deck width ranges from 6 inches to 9.5 inch. Street skaters prefer narrower boards. So (22×6) inch and (26×6) inch penny boards are suitable for them. One who wants to go downhill can choose (36×9.5) inch penny board for a fun ride.
One can do Ollie’s, kick flip and grinding with a smaller penny board. Also, you can ride them in a bowl but I do not recommend Vert riding with a penny board.
Penny board is a lightweight board, thanks to its plastic construction. One can carry it anywhere without hassle. It’s simple but stiff structure made it rigid and sometimes more sustainable than most other timber skateboards.
The plastic deck is formulated in such a way that it can survive the weight of a car and can return to its normal shape again after weight is lifted.
The Penny board deck provides stability and perfect grip underfoot which helps it to turn smoothly and also to practice a bunch of tricks. The penny board deck is smaller compared to longboards and is not suitable for curving, hill mob and moves normally done by longboards.
It comes in a variety of designs and colors. An aesthetic person may find it charming & can paint it with skate painting elements to make it eye soothing. Most college students are fond of it as it can fit in a college locker and school bag.
Checkout Some Penny board
What Is Cruiser board
Cruiser boards are shorter than longboards and longer than regular skateboards. It is meant for cruising or just roaming around while skateboards like penny boards are meant for practicing different tricks.
You can’t perform tricks on most of the cruiser boards as most of them do not have an elevated Kick tail. Some cruiser boards do have tails but not as precise as penny boards.
Cruiser boards are made for cruising, caving and long distance riding. They provide a quality time spent crawling here and there. A normal cruiser board length is between 25 inch & 37 inch. Longer than that size is called a longboard, though there are other elements that make them distinct.
Cruiser board decks are normally concave shaped. Also there are many shapes available in the market.
Cruiser board deck is made of wooden planks like other skateboards and longboards. It uses maple wood for deck construction. It can be narrower or shorter. There are some cruiser boards that are Popsicle in shape and some are concave but mellower than skateboards.
Some cruiser boards have tails to let you hop on or off the over the board. But it doesn’t allow the grinding ledge, sliding on rails, popping Ollie and any kind of flips. You can do kick-flip to some extent if they contain elevated tails.
The cruiser board provides more comfort and balance than a penny board. As it is bigger in size and wider than a penny board, it provides more room for feet to keep balance and turn smoothly while downhill riding or riding at speed.
Checkout some cruiser board
Riding Style (Penny Board vs Cruiser)
Riding style is an aspect of comparison between a penny board and a cruiser board. Penny board is a type of skateboard that is suitable for some tricks, commuting, turning and sometimes downhill. It is used as a mini skateboard on which everything you can do on a skateboard can be done easily.
Cruiser board is normally larger than a penny board and shorter than a longboard. It is called a mini cruiser for its riding style. Cruiser board is suitable for commuting and roaming here and there.
It is a stiffer and strongly shaped board and you can ride it on any surface, let alone its condition.
Board Material (Cruiser vs Penny Board)
Penny boards use high-quality plastic particles as raw material. As the brand uses plastic to make the base deck, it is very light to carry and comes within budget. Its trucks are of cast aluminum and wheels are made of polyurethane.
Penny board uses a responsive plastic formula that works as elastic. You can put a car weight onto it and after you lift the weight the board returns to its original shape.
Cruiser boards come in wooden deck form. Some cruiser boards are made of plastic and they can be considered as close to a penny board.
Cruiser boards can be of high durable maple wood, cherry wood or grade A plastic containing a pair of aluminum cruiser trucks and 2 pairs of polyurethane wheels.
Trucks (Cruiser Board vs Penny Board)
Penny trucks are made of cast aluminum. Trucks join the deck and wheels together to ride the board. Penny trucks are like regular trucks in the market. The size of the trucks for the penny board depends on the length and width of the deck.
Normally, cruiser trucks are used in penny boards. For 22 inches and 26 inch penny boards, we use 3 inch trucks. For longer boards trucks need to be larger than 3 inches. Kingpin bolt is normally set loose for turning and better tricks.
When stability is required, kingpins are set tight. Normally trucks for tricks on penny boarding require kingpin bolt to set loosen.
Cruiser board is used for turning, cruising and roaming around. So it uses trucks that are loose enough for turning well. Its reverse kingpin bolt is set loose from the penny board so that it can have some flexibility to turn by leaning the body right or left.
Riser pads are used between the trucks and deck to give it height and bushings are softer than penny boards to help turn easily.
Difference In Wheels Between Penny Board & Cruiser
Vintage skateboard wheels can be used in penny boards. Wheels are made of polyurethane with a plastic core in its center. Penny boards use the same type of wheels. Penny wheel size is chosen in proportion to the deck size.
22-26 inch penny boards need 59mm diameter wheels while above 26 inch penny longboards use 69mm wheels. All of them are 83a rated durometer (a parameter of wheel hardness). Penny boards use softer wheels for better navigation and control over the board and for doing tricks.
Cruiser board wheels are bigger than regular skateboards and rotate faster. One can have a great time cruising on a cruiser board as its wheel turns so smoothly. A cruiser board normally uses a wheel size between 55mm-65mm.
You need to select wider wheels for a longer deck in case of cruiser board. If your deck is 40inch cruiser longboard then something between 70-75 inch wheel sizes is perfect for rolling.
For standard size cruiser skateboard, what we are talking about, you should select 60-67mm wheels for boards 37 inch or below. Another important aspect of wheels is the durometer (hardness) of wheels. For cruising boards the 80a-86a range of durometer is suitable for riders weighing from 135-175lbs.
Bearings Comparison
There are a variety of bearings in the market. Steel, ceramic, titanium and other material made bearings are used in skateboards and longboards. You should use a stainless steel bearing for your penny board.
Because many riders ride the penny board in rain and stainless steel is stain resistant. If you use ceramic or titanium, chances are the bearings may get stained making noise in the wheels or even stop the wheels from rotating.
There are many misconceptions over ABEC ratings of bearings. Many people think that the higher the abec rating the longer the lifetime of bearing. Reality is ABEC is only a rating that points towards a tolerance rate and has nothing to do with bearing life.
But still ABEC rating is important because it defines the quality. ABEC-7, ABEC-9 & ABEC-11 bearings are good for penny boards
Cruiser board uses any type of bearings. It normally uses ABEC-11 bearings for a high tolerance rate.
Check out our guide on Best bearings for street skating
Weight Limit (Penny vs Cruiser)
Penny boards can tolerate a car weight which is 2871 pound, according to the penny board company. From that statement, you can realize that penny boards have no issue with weight. From 90 pound kids to 220 pounds adults, it can carry anyone.
Cruiser board has a weight capacity more than 300 pounds. It can carry a toddler to a heavy rider weight on its board. Cruiser board are made of high quality wooden planks and its trucks are strong enough to bear any body load.
Design & flexibility (Penny Board vs Mini Cruiser)
Penny board comes in a very simple design. It is a plastic board offering various colors. Some penny boards contain floral works on its grip tape. For its array of colors it is known as an aesthetic beauty skateboard. Also it provides flexibility to riders. Anyone can go anywhere with this board.
Cruiser board is a smaller version of the longboard. In terms of weight lifting, cruiser boards can carry almost every rider whether they are thin or heavy. It can carry more than 300 pounds of weight on it.
Cruiser boards come in a wide variety of colors and styles. It is a beloved skateboard for aesthetics. Decks are designed with various flowers, animals, or objects pictures, painted in various colors that look awesome and wheels are of different colors. Cruiser board is a perfect option for art lovers.
Should I get a penny board or a cruiser board?
It depends on your purpose of having the board. If just traveling around, going long distance with an easy carrying facility, without doing any tricks, is your requirement, then a cruising board is best for you.
And if you want a board cheap in price and can be carried anywhere doing various types of tricks, then penny board is your choice.
Whichever you choose, you should have basic lessons in skateboarding. You need to learn balancing, pushing the board and stopping the penny board or cruiser board in any situation. Penny boards are very light weighted, so it is easy to fall off if balancing tricks are not properly learnt.
Cruising boards also need to learn turning and curving so that no unexpected situations happen while riding downhill or in speed.
Are Penny boards faster than cruisers?
Yes, a penny board can be as fast as a bike from a point to another if ridden properly. It can be faster than a cruiser board.
The reason behind this is that a penny board is basically made of plastic with cruising wheels and trucks under it.
So it is a very lightweight board. When full body weight is put upon the penny board and it starts to roll over the wheels, it creates a momentum that is way more than a cruiser can generate and goes faster with discontinued speed.
Conclusion
Both penny board and cruiser boards are fantastic boards. Riders get fanatic over the boards when it comes to riding on the street.
Though there are differences between them and each of them offers distinct characteristics, two of them are very popular especially to beginners.
Hi, this is Jerry, a skateboarder, who loves to talk about micro-mobility and future of that industry. Coming from motion engineering background, I am very enthusiast about speed, motion, balance and technology. I have taken a mission to carry the fuel free, environment friendly micro-mobile industry forward by educating people about micro-mobile products especially skateboards and longboards. I love skating around very much and encourage people to do so. Its a fun believe me.