Pitfalls to avoid, there are many. But I'll just go through decks that are worth their weight in gold.
AWS, Habitat, Heroin, Toy Machine, Popwar, Zooyork, Kayo, Real, Krooked, Rasa Libre. Anti-Hero.
Ok now trucks, you want Ventures, Thunders, Destructo, Fury, Grind King.
Wheels, basically this is personal preference but anything should do as long as they ain't massive. 52-54mm.
Bearings you want Bones Reds/Swiss if possible, if not try and get ABEC 7s at least.
You won't need risers. Griptape anything should do but Black Magic should last the longest (N)
Good luck.
Avoid: Element, Blind, World Industries like the plague.
Because Mark's whining here.
POPWAR- Keep there pop for a long time, medium concave, one of the favorite decks on Ramprage right now. (Highly recommended)
ELEMENT- Ok, by what everyone says on this forum, don't get an element. not as much pop as other boards, odd shapes, they have alot of concave but the feel of the board isn't right. (Not recommended).
FLIP- These decks have great pop and awesome concave...while they last. Tend to loose pop fairly quick, and are one of the weaker decks. (Moderately recommended).
TOY MACHINE- Great board, nice concave, awesome pop. They last for a long time and are pretty strong. (Highly recommended).
DARKSTAR- Not and overall great board, pretty good concave and pop while it lasts. Board gets 'soggy' after awhile. (Moderately Recommended).
BLIND- Not talked about much because people know these boards aren't very good. Ok pop and concave, but they loose them fast. (Not Recommened).
WORLD INDUSTRIES- Same as Blind.^
GIRL- Good mellow pop, nice concave, pretty good deck all around. A little on the weaker side, but not by much. (Moderately recommended).
THINK- Good deck. Nice concave and pop. Fairly strong. (Moderately recmmended).
ENJOI- They sound like a pretty nice deck to the people that owned them. Fairly strong, good concave and pop. (Moderately recommended).
BAKER- A good deck for the short time they last. Nort very strong, but nice pop and concave. (Moderately recommended).
ALIEN WORKSHOP- Great deck, nice concave, lots of pop, strong board that lasts a long time. (Highly recommended).
HABITAT- Good deck, nice pop and cancave. These decks are nice and stiff and will last for a long time. (Highly recommended).
CHOCOLATE- Good deck, same as Girl. Mellow concave, nice pop, pretty flxible board though, not very stiff. (Moderately recommended).
ZOO YORK- nice concave, awesome pop, stiff, not the longest lasting deck, but not close to being shitty. I loved my Zoo York. (Highly recommended).
REAL / KROOKED / RASA LIBRE / ANTI-HERO - Deluxe distribution, what else is there to say? Superb construction, shape, pop, everything.
KAYO boards (DGK, Expedition, Organika) - Kickass boards. Performs superbly, and lasts a good while. only downside is finding bigger sized kayo boards... kinda hard to find a 7.75 or higher. (highly recommended)