Gas Scooter Footdecks - Taking Out the Mystery

Aluminum billet, cast aluminum, wood, stamped steel: Gas Scooter Foot Deck choices seem endless. We help you sort through them all.

Foot decks (the place where you stand) come in a variety of materials, shapes and sizes Several of our suppliers offer you an upgrade charge to go with a different footdeck material. Our gas scooter comparison chart notes what the standard material is for each of the gas powered scooters we feature. There are not surprisingly advantages and disadvantages to each. Here are the basic choices.

Wood Footdecks

Wood is by far the most common foot deck for gas powered scooters in the $400-$600 price range. Wood has the advantage of being very flexible (will not permanently bend), and adds to overall look of a scooter if the artwork is well done and the natural grain of the wood is allowed to come through. Downsides include relatively high weight, not resistant to abrasion and possible delamination (where the layers of plywood separate) if soaked. It is important that your scooter have either a plywood deck or a solid wood deck preferably from a hardwood like maple or oak. Steer clear of particle board decks which are prone to chipping and can crack out around the mounting bolt holes.

Steel Plate

- Next to wood, steel plate is used extensively for gas scooter decks. You can tell steel decks by the fact that they are often painted over to prevent rust and are rarely slotted out. Very few heavy duty, off road scooters will come with a painted steel deck although diamond plate (pictured) is becoming popular . Depending on the gauge (how thick) of the plate, the weight will lighter than wood, although the plate will be much thinner than a wood deck. Steel holds up well, but nicks need to be touched up or rust will develop. You see a lot of steel plate used on less rugged electric scooters. Many foreign import scooters use steel plate in that it's plentiful and costs less to ship due to the weight.

Cast Aluminum

- This is a lightweight alternative to steel plate. The fundamental difference between cast aluminum and aluminum billet (see below) is the manufacturing process. Cast aluminum decks are made by pouring molten aluminum into a mold. The resulting deck is light and strong, but lacks the "cut" look of an aluminum billet deck. The process is similar to one used in the manufacturing of lawnmower decks.

Billet Aluminum or Billet Steel

Many times you will see billet aluminum decks offered as an upgrade to a gas powered scooter for approximately $90.00. Billet aluminum decks (pictured) are cut out of a thick sheet of aluminum (the billet) using a cutting process to shape the deck and cut out the holes. Billet decks are very strong, very light and have a high-tech look to them. The colors indicate an anodized coating has been put on. I wouldn't reject a scooter for not having a billet deck, but if you plan on reselling the gas scooter later, it would be a feature that might get you a better resale price.

Overall, I would not pay a premium for a billet deck as an upgrade. I would rather spend my money for a larger engine, shock absorbers or a gas scooter with disc brakes. If you plan on competing and are searching for a racing scooter, it will most likely come with a billet deck along with the upgrades I mentioned previously. I think billet decks look sharp though and if one was offered for free as part of a special deal, it might influence me if the other features I was looking for were already there. More and more scooters are showing up on the market with billet decks.

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