@@drziltonInteresting, I'll have to check it out. For me the Meraki only nose dives when the rear truck bushings are too soft or too loose. Tightening up the rear and switching to stiffer bushings completely fixed that issue for me. I love the Meraki but I'm in search of ways to get a lower deck height. The Slide looks appealing.
@@nateross14 Yes , chanching bushings helps Meraki nose dive issue when your board wb is really short, so short that it is difficult to find properly surfstance and position. Longer wheelbase Meraki boards you need to keep back truck loose, otherwice the front trucks steer too much.
@@drzilton I haven't personally found this to be the case, but ride and " proper stance" is subjective. Im 6'3" tall and ride the full spectrum of board sizes and wheelbases from 22" deck length Micro Meraki setups with an 11" axle to axle wheelbase all the way up to a 6ft long decks with 46" wheebase. On wheelbases longer than about 31" , I prefer the Smoothstar Thruster over the Meraki, but below that I like the Meraki. For my style of riding, I actually prefer the front trucks steering as much as possible and less steering in the rear which better emulates the feel of planted fins in the water. I've found that you get used to whatever you ride and anything drastically different will feel strange at first. So If youre used to setups that have a lot of rear steer, I can totally understand the Meraki feeling like it has too much front steer for you with stiff bushings on the rear. I've found dialing in setups to always be a sort of compromise, lean vs steering etc. I've decided that I like RKP trucks on the rear because they have less initial steering than TKP due to the angle the bushings are compressed. Anyway, just talking semantics and preference which can vary greatly between people and riding styles.... You've got me interested in the Slide so I'll have to try it out and give it a shot. Preferences can easily change, I've found!
@@drzilton If you'd like to see my 22" Micro Meraki setup with 13" axle to axle wheelbase I've been testing, I have a short vid on my channel I recently uploaded. At first I didn't like it at all, way too small and short.... but after spending time on it and learning to ride it how it wanted to be ridden, I'm blown away with it. Its opened up a whole new way and style to ride for me, to add to the quiver. I'm going to get some better vids uploaded to showcase what can be done on a tiny micro setup. I found it's making me a much better rider using it also as a training tool, because it's so small, foot placement and balance has to be very intentional and focused otherwise the board can get away from you. When I get on my regular 18.5" wheebase surfskate after riding the Micro, it feels so good and stable. I love, love, love the Micro/mini setups. so much fun. I'm all about experimenting and pushing boundaries. I really enjoy your videos and seeing the different setups you build and ride!
Looks good. What's the Deck height of that setup? How do you like it compared to the Meraki?
It is lower than Meraki. Also the front truck geometry works with back truck and that avoid nose diving. Nosediving is the issue in Meraki system.
@@drziltonInteresting, I'll have to check it out. For me the Meraki only nose dives when the rear truck bushings are too soft or too loose. Tightening up the rear and switching to stiffer bushings completely fixed that issue for me. I love the Meraki but I'm in search of ways to get a lower deck height. The Slide looks appealing.
@@nateross14 Yes , chanching bushings helps Meraki nose dive issue when your board wb is really short, so short that it is difficult to find properly surfstance and position. Longer wheelbase Meraki boards you need to keep back truck loose, otherwice the front trucks steer too much.
@@drzilton I haven't personally found this to be the case, but ride and " proper stance" is subjective. Im 6'3" tall and ride the full spectrum of board sizes and wheelbases from 22" deck length Micro Meraki setups with an 11" axle to axle wheelbase all the way up to a 6ft long decks with 46" wheebase. On wheelbases longer than about 31" , I prefer the Smoothstar Thruster over the Meraki, but below that I like the Meraki. For my style of riding, I actually prefer the front trucks steering as much as possible and less steering in the rear which better emulates the feel of planted fins in the water.
I've found that you get used to whatever you ride and anything drastically different will feel strange at first. So If youre used to setups that have a lot of rear steer, I can totally understand the Meraki feeling like it has too much front steer for you with stiff bushings on the rear.
I've found dialing in setups to always be a sort of compromise, lean vs steering etc. I've decided that I like RKP trucks on the rear because they have less initial steering than TKP due to the angle the bushings are compressed. Anyway, just talking semantics and preference which can vary greatly between people and riding styles.... You've got me interested in the Slide so I'll have to try it out and give it a shot. Preferences can easily change, I've found!
@@drzilton If you'd like to see my 22" Micro Meraki setup with 13" axle to axle wheelbase I've been testing, I have a short vid on my channel I recently uploaded. At first I didn't like it at all, way too small and short.... but after spending time on it and learning to ride it how it wanted to be ridden, I'm blown away with it. Its opened up a whole new way and style to ride for me, to add to the quiver. I'm going to get some better vids uploaded to showcase what can be done on a tiny micro setup. I found it's making me a much better rider using it also as a training tool, because it's so small, foot placement and balance has to be very intentional and focused otherwise the board can get away from you. When I get on my regular 18.5" wheebase surfskate after riding the Micro, it feels so good and stable. I love, love, love the Micro/mini setups. so much fun. I'm all about experimenting and pushing boundaries. I really enjoy your videos and seeing the different setups you build and ride!