I have been desperately trying to source some (quality) fingerboards with steeper kicks and deeper concave the past couple of months…but as most of you know they are somewhat of a rarity these days due to the demand and popularity of shorter, ‘flatter‘ decks. After looking at WELL over 50 shapes/brands I noticed 7 or so that really caught my attention…and the F1 mold by Fatal Fingerboards was one of them.











Stats:

Deck: Fatal F1 mold - split ply (custom)
Size: 33.3 x 101mm
Kicks: Mellow. Tail is 23 degrees. Nose is 25 degrees
Concave: DEEP!!!
Real-wear - No
Country: USA
Cost: 23USD (31USD with shipping fees to Australia)
Method of purchase: Contacted owner via email on website (mikeallor@yahoo.com)
Website: http://fatalfingerboards.bigcartel.com/

Purchasing:

Couldn’t have been easier! I simply emailed the owner (Mike) and asked for a custom split ply and he got back to me in less than 24 hours saying ‘let me know the design and size you want and I will make this happen’. Mike was VERY prompt with everything in fact, at the time of purchase I had 4 or so custom orders (from other companies) in process and he was without a doubt the fastest of the lot. No offence to the other companies intended, I was just blown away by how fast he completed the order and replied to my queries.

First Impressions:

REALLY happy with how the split ply came out – the pictures do NO justice what-so-ever to Mike’s attention to detail. The split blends into the side plies PERFECTLY giving a very ‘clean’ finish.

Performance:

Giving the INTENSE concave I was expecting this to be a bit of a ‘pop monster’ but the mellow kicks keep the deck from popping to absurd heights. Another thing I wasn’t expecting the decks tendency to flip and spin very ‘level’ e.g. when doing a kick flip the board stays nice and ‘flat’ – and doesn’t ‘rocket’. This makes tricks like 360-shuvits really easy to control. The deep concave also really helps for flipping out of tweaked grinds (like FS crooked, Howard grinds etc.).  

Overall:

I have only been using this deck for a week or so and whilst I LOVE the craftsmanship and deep concave the mellow kicks are a bit too…well, mellow for me – especially after using the ‘King of pop’ (Fonky Fingers ‘gnar’ shape). It’s still a very fun and extremely usable deck; a friend of mine had a quick go of it and absolutely loved the shape and feel of it. I would still HIGHLY recommend a Fatal to anyone looking for something a bit different or a custom split-ply – especially for the price and service Mike offers.  

- Jono

just want to say i love your reviews man, i honestly dont know how you even hear of half these companies that you review but am ceratinly glad that you review them or else i would never have heard of them, IMO the concave on this deck would have kept me away from it since im getting more towards the low/medium concave decks. i do have a deep from P-rep tho that i thought was the shit but went low since i wanted more board control.


keep the revies coming, i honestly trust your opinion.

abselutely true, your reviewes are great & a pleasure to read!

Yeah, kickass review man!

Thanks heaps for the feedback everyone, really do appreciate it I really do enjoy writing fingerboard reviews...especially on lesser known brands that aren't surrounded by 'hype'.

I will be doing some more reviews in the near future for sure...in fact, next on the list is a 4ply Smooth from Russia

- Jono