smoothstar.com Reviews 

Really disappointed with this skateboard. The quality is nowhere near what was advertised. The deck feels cheap and started to flex in ways it shouldn’t after just a few rides. The trucks are flimsy, the wheels feel like cheap plastic.

For the price, I expected something at least usable, but this thing is unsafe. I’ve used plenty of boards over the years, and this is easily the worst I’ve come across. Definitely wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.

Their office in Freshwater, Australia is closed for the last 6 months, they won't answer their phones, and I haven't yet received the order or tracking information. I am considering reporting this business as fraudulent

I never recieved the board I ordered. Month later they send me an email telling me that they had an issue with their support plattform. I asked them to refund me but never got an answer. So I´m still waiting for my money.

Paid for items that were never delivered. They expected me to post whole order back for a refund which would have cost me more that re-ordering the same items.
Very rude and unhelpful on the telephone

I bought 2 deck onlys and several other sites of wheels and spare parts from these guys. One of the decks is scratched and with chipped paint and ware marks from deck risers and is obviously second hand. The Web site is really poor. Many items listed have incorrect specifications, and others are misleading. The customer service was unhelpful, condescending and rude.
Do yourself a favour and shop for carver or waterborn. Both have excellent quality and customer service.
Postage is slow, tracking is inaccurate, and bot all items were delivered but smoothstar is refusing to send the last few items.

SHORT VERSION:
I received the wrong board and Smoothstar refused a return because I didn't discover the mistake until I rode the board 100m. Smoothstar also refused to pay only for the international shipping of a replacement (I offered to pay for a 2nd board). There are relevant details related to shared responsibility for the mistake explained below... as I reflect more on it, I think it's just better to buy this type of equipment in person. Smoothstar has put a lot of effort into their website and on explaining sizes... but the criss-cross requirements of multiple pro surfers, names including numbers, multiple board lengths, and availability of new wheels versus old wheel designs is just a big confusing barrier to overcome.

LONG DIRECTORS CUT EDITION:
The 34" Felipe Toledo boards were sold out in the EU. I wrote an e-mail to customer service telling them exactly which board I wanted. It was available in the American store, but that required an additional $180 in shipping and customs fees. I decided to go for it, but then there was a mistake in the order and I ended up receiving a 32.5" model.

This might sound like a small difference, but I promise you it is not. The second I tried the board I could feel something was wrong. Smoothstar's core expertise is on tuning surf-skateboard trainers to a specific body type so that it feels like you are riding on water. All of their models are named after the pro-surfers who helped shape and design the boards. Their website has detailed information on how to ensure you get the right size and warns specifically "If you are in doubt, go a size up. Never order a board that is too small"

It turns out that the mistake was that I clicked on the wrong product in their web store. I got confused about the difference between their new wheels versus their old wheel design and how a Felipe Toledo number 77 board fits to each body type... I ordered a board with the latest version of Smoothstar's wheel design... and that seems to have complicated things because there is some technical thing about the 34" model not fitting with their new wheel design. Smoothstar blames me for the problem because I did not see that on my invoice it said 'Felipe Toledo Number 77 32.5". I blame Smoothstar because I wrote them an e-mail saying I wanted the 34" model and they sent a 32.5" one. Missing that detail on the invoice ended being a $500 mistake.

I am frustrated because I wrote directly to customer service at the beginning, and I was very specific. I said that I wanted the Felipe Toledo number 77 34" model, and they wrote back with a confirmation that specifically named that model and size and they said I could order a Felipe Toledo number 77 34" board in the American store. I was dealing with the same customer service representative the entire way through and I wrongly assumed that meant there would be continuity between my first mail and the product that was dispatched.

There was an opportunity for both of us to catch the mistake and we both missed it... I think there is shared responsibility, I told Smoothstar and I proposed solutions that were shared (details on those below).

To Smoothstar's credit, they were exceptionally responsive and helpful with tracking the shipment.

I did not discover the mistake until I rode the board for half a block...I wrote to Smoothstar telling them I received the wrong size and they said 'We can work something out'.

I was honest about only discovering the mistake after taking the board for a 100m ride... but Smoothstar used this as a reason to refuse the return.

First I suggested that I buy only a new deck, but Smoothstar said it wouldn't fit with the wheels on the board I had received.

At this point, the only solution was to order a completely new board... with more international shipping and customs fees. I was even open to this... I proposed that I pay for the new board itself, but I asked that Smoothstar share some of the responsibility for the mistake and cover the shipping.

They refused, so now I'm left here... in the sad corner of the internet where we share bad experiences in order to help the next person along the same path.

I try to write this review as less of a blame game and more of a shared experience about the difficulties and confusion that arise in internet purchasing when size is key.