Why Is My Skateboard Not Turning Well (3 Reasons & Solutions)

After balance, turning is the most basic thing you need to learn. Without learning proper turning, you can move forward into skateboarding. But what happens when the board itself doesn’t turn?

There can be several reason behind it and without it you’ll lose your control over the board.

So, in this article I’ll be discussing how a skateboard turns, how you can solve the turning problems and improve it for better experience.

So, without wasting any time, let’s begin.

What Makes The Skateboard Turn

Before we get to the reasons why your skateboard is not turning well, you need to know what makes the skateboard turn. So, under the deck of the board, there is a pair of trucks at each end that actually makes the skateboard turn.

To be more precise, the wheels of the skateboard are attach to the axle of the trucks. When you try to make a turn with your skateboard, the wheels connected to each axle also turns in a predefined arch, therefor turning the board.

Why My Skateboarding Is Not Turning

Skateboard’s turn depends on the perfect collaboration of your feet, wheels and the trucks. If any of that is off, you’ll notice turning issues with your skateboard.

Before you think about solutions, first you need to identify the reason why you skateboard isn’t turning. Here are some potential reasons why your skateboard is not turning.

Truck Tightness

This is a very common issue beginners and skaters with new trucks face quite often. The truck is the part that connects the wheel with the deck. If your skateboard truck is tight, your skateboard will be too stiff and you won’t be able to turn it freely. Fix the trucks issue first to get your skateboard start turning.

Foot Placement

Wrong foot placement is another common issue that can result into turning stiffness for your skateboard. Especially, beginner skateboard riders often seem to have wrong foot placement.

When you try to turn your skateboard with your feet, it needs certain type of twist and force to make the turn. With wrong footing, it’s not possible to apply that and therefore your skateboard might not turn properly.

Worn Wheels

No matter how premium wheels you buy, at certain point it’ll wear out. And if you are sensing hindrance during turns, the worn wheel might be the reason behind. Even beginners with new set of wheels can face this issue.

Because, lots of beginners tend to lean of one side of the board, causing more friction to that side’s wheels and wear them out.

How To Fix The Problems

The reasons mentioned above are the most common ones behind skateboard not turning. Solving those issues are pretty easy too. Here is how you can do it:

• Truck tightness can be easily adjusted by loosening the kingpin on trucks. It’ll make the trucks more responsive and easier to turn. You can either adjust that with regular screwdriver or a skate tool.
• Foot placement fix is as easy as it gets. Just ask a fellow skateboarder to get your footing right. You can also try different positions and see what works best for you.
• Wheel are meant to wear out and there is no actual fix here. But when you are purchasing wheels, try to get a high-quality one so it lasts long. Also, work on body weight distribution so only one side’s wheels don’t get worn. 

How To Make Skateboard Turn Better

Trucks Turn Improvement

• Getting your stance right can get you a long way towards improving truck turning. When you are turning at a certain direction, leaning towards that direction helps a lot to improve trucks turn.
• Replace the bushing is another way. Bushing works as the suspension, and when it wears out you can face issues with turning. Replacing the old bushing can get you the old turning smoothness back.

Wheels Turn Improvement

• Regularly cleaning the wheels is the key to keep the performance intact for a long time. Dirt and debris attached to the wheels can make the wheels hard to turn. You can easily fix that by cleaning the wheels regularly also clean the bearings with solvents for better performance.
• The bearings inside wheels make the wheels turn.  So, if that bearing is not well lubricated, it’ll eventually get harder for the wheels to turn. Though maximum bearings comes lubed from the manufacturer, routine lubrication can drastically improve wheel turn.

Last Words

Perfect turning capability of your skateboard is the key to Now that you know about the potential reasons why your skateboard wheels are not turning, you should be able to solve the issues easily.

Even if your skateboard is turning well, you can make them turn even better by following the tips I mentioned.