Best Arbor Longboard: Ultimate Comparison Guide [2022 Lineup]

The Pocket Rocket is the smallest board in the Arbor lineup at 27″ x 7.75″ with a 14″ wheelbase. It’s best suited for a smaller rider or as a small lightweight setup for getting around school or the neighborhood.

Assuming its size fits you, the Pocket Rocket is a really cool mini-cruiser you can easily carry around and stash anywhere. The small diamond tail and nose kicks let you quickly pop the board off the ground for easy curb hopping and fun slashing.

The Pocket Rocket is fitted with 108mm Paris trucks designed for street riding and street/park tricks. The 61mm wheels are quite big considering the deck size. The soft 61mm Arbor Bogarts make the cruising experience very smooth and cushy for such a small board.

Check out the Arbor Pocket Rocket on Evo

See also my detailed post on the Pocket Rocket

The Pilsner, at 28.75″ x 8.125″ with a 15″ wheelbase, is nearly 2″ longer and slightly wider than the Pocket Rocket. As such, it’s a better option if you’re a bigger/taller rider with a larger shoe size.

Like the Pocket Rocket, the Pilsner is smooth and tight turning thanks to its street trucks – Paris 129mm this time to match the larger deck width – and big cruiser wheels – the same comfy 61mm Bogart soft wheels with wide contact patch.

The Pilsner has a slightly bigger kicktail compared to the PR, and a similar nose. One important difference is that both the Pilsner’s tail and nose are wider and fuller, offering more foot space for hops and tricks.

I personally like the Pilsner for my size (6’1) and love its shape. It’s very smooth riding, quality built, and super portable and convenient for getting around town. See my full review .

The Arbor Oso has a super cool vintage pool shape with a really wide aspect ratio (10″ wide! for 30″ length), and a really wide-nose. The 16″ wheelbase makes it nice stable for pool riding.

The deck’s outline tapers at the “waist” and boasts a massive, wide, high-angled kicktail that accounts for close to 25% of the deck’s full length. The deck also offers a tiny nose kick and a nice medium concave for those rad kick turns in the pool and on park transitions.

The Oso is simply awesome for us 80s-style retro surf fans. Like its ancestors, it performs amazingly well in the pool. It’s not limited to that, though, and is one of the best sidewalk cruisers in the lineup.

The 169mm Paris street trucks are perfectly adequate for the 10″ deck width. They are snappy, turny, and robust for radical snapbacks, grinds, kick tricks etc. The 61mm Bogart soft wheels make for smooth rides on rough pavement, and solid grip in radical moves.

The Sizzler is a stylish surf-style cruiser with a swallow tail and a slight kicktail. It’s similar in length to the Oso but noticeably narrower at 8.625″ and with a longer 17″ wheelbase.

The low angle of the kick makes for a comfortable foot platform. The narrow outline facilitates responsive turns.

The Sizzler is not as “trickable” as the Oso (smaller kicks) but is designed for city slashing, surf-style carving, and tight turns. The long wheelbase and narrow shape (for the length) make this board really nice for down-the-line riding on ditches, banks, or pump tracks.

The 149mm Paris trucks are narrower than the 169mm and hence even more responsive and snappier. Besides the stiff 7-ply maple version, the Sizzler also exists in a flexier and lightweight bamboo version.

The Rally has a classic surfboard outline and an exceptionally long wheelbase of 20″ for its 30.5″ length. It’s designed primarily for serious cruising/commuting on city paths, combined with nice and tight carving abilities.

This board has virtually no kicks, which makes that super long wheelbase possible. The 20″ wheelbase makes the Rally exceptionally stable when pushing and commuting.

The deck has very little concave, giving you complete freedom of move when traveling and pushing.

Unlike the similar sized Arbor Oso and Sizzler that come with street (TKP) trucks, the Rally ships with 150mm longboard (RKP) trucks, giving it a pleasant cruisy and flowy feel on longer rides.

This is a pure soul cruising board that is super nice to cruise on along endless park trails and boardwalks. However, it’s probably not the best option for curb hopping and city slashing.

The Cucharon is a “hybrid” double-kick board with spoon-shaped nose that looks like an oversized popsicle street deck – at 32+” x 8.75″ with a 14.75″ wheelbase.

Compared to a regular street board, the softer wheels and bigger 9″ Ace 55 Classic trucks provide a smoother ride. Yet, pops, ollies, and flip tricks are easy with this board, which is designed with the skatepark and street tricks in mind.

Riding across town on the Cucharon, however, is a lot more comfortable than on a traditional street skateboard. The board comes with 56mm Arbor Whiskey wheels with a 92A duro – softer than your typically trick wheels.

The Cucharon comes in a very attractive Solstice design featuring premium palisander wood finish and gorgeous Buddhist-inspired artwork. Part of the proceeds from the Cucharon sales goes to fighting breast cancer.

The Martillo is another double-kick hybrid similar in size and wheelbase (slightly shorter) to the Cucharon. The Martillo is 32.375″ x 8.875″ (WB 14.625″).

That said, the Martillo is a slightly different beast: while the Cucharon is a classic street shape, this is a retro-style directional cruiser that bears similarities in its outline to the 30″ Oso, albeit longer and narrower – the Oso is shorter and stubbier.

This board is designed for street and park riding, but is also a classic retro pool shape. Its huge kicks are an invitation to pop the board off the ground and throw it around with some nice kick tricks on transitions.

Meanwhile, the wide tail and blunt nose are well-suited for down-the-line, surf-style pool riding, as well as ramp and pump track.

The Martillo comes with 149mm Paris street trucks. It has small but softer 58mm/80A Arbor Shakedown wheels for a balanced mix of street riding and soulful city slashing.

The Pistola 33.5″ is a larger hybrid street/cruiser dual kick directional shape. This board is a classic bullet shape with significant kicktail and nose kick for tricks. Its 15.5″ wheelbase makes it a good street-focused all-around slasher for bigger riders.

The Pistola comes with Ace 55 9″ classic street trucks and relatively small, street-capable 56mm 92A duro Arbor Whiskeys.

Because of its shape and wheelbase, slapping bigger wheels onto this board can turn it into a sweet downhill board – provided you use adequate risers for clearance.

The Pistola bears some similarities with Landyachtz’s ATV series – also versatile street-inspired slashers.

The Axel Serrat is a symmetrical dual kick hybrid also designed for multiple riding styles. It comes in two sizes:

• 34″ x 9″ with a 15.75″ wheelbase
• 39″ x 9.25″ with a 19″ – 20.5″ wheelbase

The shorter version is particularly well-suited for street riding and skatepark due to its massive kicks, 169mm street trucks, and smaller 58mm wheels suitable for tricks.

The relatively long wheelbase and short street trucks also make it a very capable board for downhill speed.

The 39″ version of the Axel Serrat offers a long (adjustable) wheelbase, giving it great stability at speed for freeriding. The pronounced dual kicks and mellow concave are also great for switch riding, sliding, and freestyle flip tricks

The 180mm RKP trucks and large and soft 69mm wheels also make the Axel Serrat 39 a nice and pleasant cruiser for riding distance on flats in the city.

Whether you opt for the 34″ or 39″ depends your focus: street tricks, park, and downhill, vs fast freeriding and sliding + intense city slashing.

The Arbor Shakedown is very similar to the Axel Serrat 34 with exactly the same dimensions and comparable wheelbase (15.625″).

Also a dual-kick hybrid designed for all-around skating – street and park, city slashing, speed – the main difference with the Axel is it’s slightly more directional outline with a nose more noticeably tapered.

Another subtle difference is that, while the Axel’s nose and tail are diamond shaped, the Shakedown’s are squashed, giving the latter slightly more foot space.

The stock setup for these two Arbor longboards are also close as both come with 169mm Paris street trucks. The wheels on Shakedown are slightly larger and softer than the Axel (61mm 78A Bogarts), making it a bit more cruising-friendly.

Both decks have beautiful designs – check out the Shakedown Foundation’s stylish Palisander wood finish.

The Arbor Mission is a pintail-style carving longboard albeit with a diamond shaped tail instead. Its 21+” wheelbase, large kick, reverse kingpin trucks and large soft 65mm wheels make this board super smooth and flowy for long cruises and soulful carving.

Like true pintails, this board’s long wheelbase and flowy RKP trucks make it nice and responsive for surf-style carving, and stable for riding at higher speeds. It’s ideal for traveling on bike trails rides, open roads, and moderate hills.

The Mission is actually more maneuverable than most pintails as it offers a wider tail and a true kick for quick turns and tight carves. The kick also enables some obstacle hopping when carving the city.

The 65mm/78A wheels provide fast roll and the required grip for serious carving. They absorb shocks from uneven pavement adding to the Mission’s very smooth ride.

The Axis is Arbor’s flagship snowboard-inspired drop-through longboard. It’s a classic full symmetrical freeride shape with large wheel cutouts and sidecuts for added responsiveness and carving ability.

This is a solid deck with 8-ply maple construction, which makes it stiffer and thus more stable at speed. The Axis comes in two versions:

• The midsize 37″ x 8.375″ – 27.50″ wheelbase
• The full size 40″ x 8.75″ – 30.50″ wheelbase

This board is designed for easy cruising, long distance commuting, and fast freeriding. The drop-through design makes it ride low to the ground, which makes pushing for long durations a lot more comfortable.

The very long wheelbase (both versions) gives the Axis high stability at speed. The symmetrical shape allows for freeride tricks and switch riding. The low center of gravity gives you the confidence to push the board into slides when speeding downhill.

The Axis’ uplifted rails and medium concave provide some foot lock-in when riding fast and throwing freeride tricks, yet without being overly intrusive.

The Axis comes with 180mm Paris RKP trucks and grippy 65mm Mosh wheels, ideal for fast carving. The large wheel cutouts gives the board solid clearance for tight turns. The sidecuts make it easier to push the board hard into carves or break traction.

The Fish is Arbor’s canonical midsize pintail. Similar to the Mission, it’s primarily a carving board.

In contrast to the Mission though, the Fish is a true pintail, with no kick, a largely flat deck, and a bit more flex for a mellow cruising feel and slow carving bliss.

So while the Misson allows for a bit more radical and slashy riding style due to its kicktail and mellow concave, the Fish is really designed for chilling and pleasant flexy carving along the ocean or along bike paths.

The Fish comes with the same stock setup as the Mission – Paris 150mm RKP 50º trucks for responsive and flowy carving and big and soft 65mm/78A Mosh wheels for smooth cushioning on all sorts of terrain.

The 38″ x 9.75″ Dropcruiser has a directional drop-through shape similar to the compact 32″ Zeppelin. Besides being larger, however, this is a drop deck – aka a double drop since it also has a drop-through mount.

The double drop design results in the Dropcruiser having the lowest riding platform in the Arbor lineup. This makes it the best option for long distance pushing and commuting. It’s also a suitable longboard for beginner freeride.

The Dropcruiser is often compared to the Axis 40 due to their comparable size and wheelbase.

Arbor Dropcruiser vs Arbor Axis

If you’re torn between the Dropcruiser and the Axis 40″, each has its pros and cons depending on the riding style:

• The Dropcruiser rides lower and has greater foot space for long distance commutes
• The Dropcruiser is even more stable at speed due to its lower center of gravity
• The Axis wins for carving: deeper wheel cutouts, sidecuts, feet closer to trucks
• The Axis is easier to freeride and slide on (symmetrical, no drop, sidecuts)