First off you have your pin tails these will generally be the cheapest of the full size boards and they're great for beginners because they are decent in every style of riding. Also they can take most any setup large wheels or small wheels. These will also support any size person as well.
Mini longboards are the next category and they look like skateboards but they have a larger deck larger trucks and larger wheels. These are mainly for bigger skateboarders that need a bigger platform for their feet. A lot of people like these at skate parks where you won’t see full sized longboards because that is not what they are built for.
Next the free ride boards these are generally drop through decks (trucks are mounted on the top of the board) and they are skinnier where the trucks mount and are much thicker where your feet go. This gives them an extremely small turn radius which enables you to be able to change direction very quickly with ease.
Next there are downhill/fast free ride decks these are usually an oval shape with no wheel cut outs. Having it like this it makes your turn radius larger but it also decreases speed wobbles at high speeds. Speed wobbles are when you are going so fast that your deck begins to wobble because you are not perfectly weighted. Having this can really screw you up.
Then you get into the really expensive stuff the drop down decks. This type of deck enables loose trucks and at higher speeds this is because you are lower to the ground giving yourself a lower center of gravity. Which lets you have better balance and stability. While still being able to carve up the streets.
Choosing the right deck also has a lot to do with what trucks and wheels you will be riding on. Trucks are really going to vary on you and whether you are going to be going downhill or freeriding. For example the larger the baseplate degree the deck will be higher up and less stable than that with a lower degree baseplate. For downhill people will ride anything from 35 degrees to 45 degrees. For free ride you will usually see anything from 48-50 degrees.
Bushings are another aspect of trucks that shouldn’t be forgotten. These could be the most important part of your entire board. Bushings are the small little rubber things on the top and bottom of the truck hanger. They are cheap and easy to install and may seem irrelevant now but if you have the right bushings you will enjoy your ride much more fun.
So there are a lot of small aspects that go into one board. And it all may seem like craziness now but it will make sense later. Expect to see a post on wheels within the month