About me and this board
I have been fingerboarding for about 11 years on and off although my involvement with the online scene is limited. I am sponsored by Close Up only and I hope people see this as an unbiased review for the deck. This Evolve deck is the 20th out of 21 wooden decks I have owned, not counting multiple decks of the same mold/size. I have been skating this deck set up with Snow tape, China wide trucks and Flatface G7.1 dual bearing wheels. I have been using the aforementioned board a non-main setup for 4 weeks but have only used it indoors. This is my eighth fingerboard product review and I hope it is sufficient in detail and interesting to read. I should also note that although a previous review was a request, another review being an exchange of testing feedback for the free wheels, this review of the Evolve deck is of my own accord. I personally prefer text-based reviews as opposed to video reviews as the reader can choose to read it at their own pace instead of being forced to follow the speed of the reviewer and who can often trail-off topic.

Konata on an Evolve sticker holding the setup


Company Profile
Evolve Decks are one of the most amazing fingerboard companies around, established in 2003. The long time that they have been around for have made Evolves one of my dream decks that I have only finally managed to obtain. They are known for making hardcore decks regardless of any trend in fingerboarding. There are currently 3 types of molds (mellow, regular and hardcore). The decks also have a range of amazing graphics. I genuinely treasure my deck as it is such an amazing creation that's travelled a long way to me from Brazil, where they are made. The decks themselves are all handmade by Jader Müller, except for the holes. Although you do not hear regular news on Evolve, Jader has carefully planned monthly production and distribution and does not want to post anything unless he has something new. The decks are sold through distributors since individual international sales all from Brazil is too much of a hassle. I will list where to buy them near the bottom of the review.

Jader also tells me there will be a new Evolve video in 2012.

Company website: http://evolvedecks.cjb.net/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Evolve-Fingerboard-Decks/130366887060366

(Thanks Jader for the additional information for me to complete this section)

Deck Statistics
Deck Length: 103mm aprox (with the high kicks and hardcore concave, this length is actually very suitable)
Deck Width: 29mm (direct measurement from rail to rail, not around the curve of the concave)
Nose and Tail concaves: high
Rail to rail concave: high
Ply Construction: 4-ply, Top to bottom: natural/purple/purple/natural(graphic)
Kicks: high
Asymmetry: The nose seems same size but higher than the tail
Kingpin holes: yes

Everstones be hatin


Transaction Details
Price: $25 US, equivalent to around £15/€17
Shipping: Free
Time to arrive from Brazil to UK: 1-2 weeks

Please note that I bought this deck in a private transaction on FFI and not through one of the distributors. The price should still be $25 at Flatface, not including shipping.

So hardcore, it stands on its side without trucks


Craftsmanship
I've had this deck for a month now and the deck itself still looks brand new. With such an established company, I expected the deck to be perfect... but somehow it exceeded my expectations.

The rails are perfectly perpendicular.
The kicks are perfecctly shaped.
The lacquer uniformly covers the entire board, shiny and there is so much, I doubt I will ever wear it up to the graphic.
The mounting holes are countersunk, perfectly centered, straight and flawlessly alligned with each other. They are also compatible with China screws.
The bottom has an amazing graphic that has no problems with it.
The choice of middle plies is also very good, I heart purple.

Shiny top of deck


No problems with applying the tape on this kind of deck


Packaging
I quite like the packaging, it looks professional with the card, plastic and optimisation for displaying the deck graphic, griptape sheet and a sticker at the back.

I'm picking my nose whilst typing this


Performance
Evolve has been one of my dream decks for a few years and now I finally have one to skate and comment on. Immediately riding this, I notice how hardcore the deck is. As I ride for Close Up, I have quite some experience with hardcore decks. All Evolve decks are much more hardcore though and I only own the regular mold version. I knew that when I bought this deck, it would perform differently to any other deck out there. The length of the deck is suited to the hardcore mold and feels completely normal. The rail to rail concave is also much different to how I imagined as it is a bit like a ¯\_/¯ shape rather than \_/. I like the fact they have something different or else all concave decks would be the same. The 29mm width works well with the unique concave shape and it is fun performing tricks in a slightly different way. It is not my favourite wide deck (that'll still be the Kulture 29mm split) but by no means is this a bad deck. I recommend Evolves to anyone who wishes to take on the challenge of some of the most hardcore decks out there. I perform most of my basic tricks fine with this deck and some of the more advanced tricks takes a bit of tweaking from my normal methods but are all managable. It's got nice pop and the shape is definitely its best feature.

Gripped setup


Comparison with TD Wood Comp Series G2 and Close Up G4
You probably wonder how Evolve compares to the two other major concave decks out there so I will make a few comments in this section.

The TD is obviously the smallest deck in both width and length and the Evolve being the largest. I think the pictures will probably speak better than my words to describe them so please look for yourselves. What I do find annoying is when people assume all high concave decks are exactly the same but each of these have a completely different concave shape and are different sizes, even the application of the graphics are different.

Concaves of all 3


Size comparison of all 3


Evolve on top, Close Up G4 on bottom


...and that's the end of the review. I hope it was alright.

Where to buy
The list of distributors for Evolve decks is here:
Flatface (USA), Fingerboardstore (Germany), Cartoleria Le Coccinelle (Italy), Massacre Shop and Fingerstore (Brazil) and also, Panda&Monio Skateshop (Brazil)

I cannot say when Evolve decks are in or out of stocks at each location though.

You may use this review and pictures, in part or in full, as long as you credit it to me and get permission from me in a PM. Please do give feedback on my review too. I try to be informative with all aspects and details of the product and would love to know what changes you think I should make. Feel free to request a review for anything I own unless you want to offer me a product to review.

Miaow.

Great review!

Nice review, dude. I want an Evolve so bad, that looks like my ideal kick/concave set-up.

They look amazing, and yet again awesome review xi