Cutaways, wheel wells, drop decks and drop through mounting opened up a whole new world for longboarding. Lowering the board / rider interface created a more fluid ride, was more forgiving, createing a more positive connection between rider and the riding surface.

Laminating a deck with the ends raised above the standing area drops the rider-board interface. Angles can be added to the shape of the raised end changing the effective truck geometry for very specialized riding. Drop decks are also very popular with pushers for obvious reasons - as low as you want to go. Some racers like the feedback that they get from the front and rear walls of the drop features, These are purpose built boards, with features in the board geometry that tune the the board for a specific use, but limits the versatility of the board for most applications. The rapid contours in the drop also greatly limit the materials that can effectively be used in the board construction at a reasonable cost.

Drop through decks require a pretty massive hole to accomidate several manufacturer’s baseplates to fit through. These openings are precariously close to mounting holes and require extra reinforcement in the board. With a drop through mount, the baseplate is no longer pressing firmly against the deck, in fact, the deck wants to pull away from the truck. You and your deck are hanging on eight mounting bolts - hanging from the small amount of board that the mounting bolts are attached to.

Top mounting has been the preferred method since skateboarding started. It is the most efficient means of translating board movement to the dynamic geometry of the truck, transmitting road feed back to the board and rider. The newton retains geometry of popular reverse kingpin trucks in a shorter, lighter, top mounted package. The hanger and baseplate have been shortened in the section which protrudes through the board, retaining the same low stance and handling charteristics with a cleaner, more reliable mount.

The newton was designed primarily for top mounting on a cutaway board. If you are currently using any one of the 50 degree trucks in a drop through configuration and your board is about .35” thick, wheel clearance should be the same. If your board is thicker, you will get less rub with the newton. If your board is thinner, you will get more wheel rub. Wheel rub has always been dependent on the shape of the board, width of the hanger, angle of the trucks, size of the wheels used and tightness of your trucks. In a non-cutaway board, you will need to use riser pads. With some cutaway boards, riders have even been able to drop mount, or use a drop deck. Always test for wheel rub standing still, with a full lean before riding.