Rec and Sports

Building a Skateboard Deck

For this, you will need a skateboard deck, some skateboard griptape, some skateboard wheels, some skateboard trucks, some skate bearings, some skate hardware (nuts and bolts) and some tools that you probably have laying around the house or in the garage. Before you put your skateboard together, you will have to think about the parts that are going into it

For this, you will need a skateboard deck, some skateboard griptape, some skateboard wheels, some skateboard trucks, some skate bearings, some skate hardware (nuts and bolts) and some tools that you probably have laying around the house or in the garage.

Before you put your skateboard together, you will have to think about the parts that are going into it. You will want to think about the type of trucks you want, the shape of the deck that you want, and also the hardness of the wheels.

If you aren’t sure what these things are for, you can head to your local skateboard shop and ask the knowledgeable people there. Skateboarders are happy to help you figure things out if you’re new to the sport.

Once you’ve purchased the pieces for your new skateboard deck, it’s time to put it together. Many people begin by putting on the grip tape. This is easy to do, simply peel off the backing and lay it down firmly with your hands. Flatten out the bubbles as you go. If there is a bubble that you can’t get rid of, cut it with a sharp knife and it should flatten out easily.

Now that the grip tape is on the deck, it’s time to cut off the extra bits hanging off the edge. Scrape down the grit on the sides of the deck using a screwdriver or other piece of metal. With the tough grit having been removed, the excess tape should cut away pretty easily.

Now that your board has been gripped properly, you’re ready to install the trucks. You’ll need to poke your bolts through the grip tape so that the trucks can fit over them easily. Instead of poking the bolts through the top of the tape, flip the deck over and poke them through the holes there; it’s less of a guessing game this way.

Once you’ve poked holes in the grip tape, insert the screws into them. The head of the screws should be flush with the grip tape, but if they’re not, we’ll fix that in the next step. If you have risers for your board, you’ll want to install them now – they should slip right over the screws.

Once you’ve got the screws in the board and the risers installed, you’re ready to put on the trucks. The trucks are very easy to install, simply place them over the screws and bolt them to the deck.

It’s important to remember that the trucks need to be placed so the king pins and bushings are facing the middle of the board. Also, if the screws aren’t flush with the grip tape, you can over tighten them. If you overtighten them, they will dig into the deck a little, but will look nicer and also help you skate better by not catching on your feet.

With the trucks on the board, it’s time to install the wheels. First, slip the bearings into the wheels. An easy way to do this is to put the bearing on one of the truck axles, and then slide the wheel down the axle until the bearing is firmly inside it. Do this for all four wheels.

Once the bearings are in the wheels, install the wheels on the trucks. Typically, the graphic on the wheel faces the outside edge of the board. You don’t want to install your wheels backwards, so don’t forget this.

Another thing you’ll want to remember is that the order of washers and wheels on the axle goes like this: washer, wheel, washer, nut. It’s O.K. if you don’t have any washers, the wheels should still spin fine. Washers prevent the bearings from scraping against the inside of the truck, but they’re optional.

After you’ve tightened the wheels, your board is ready to ride! It’s important to remember that assembling skateboard decks, like any other job, takes some practice to get right. Your first skateboard assembly will probably not look very good, but it will definitely be functional!

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The Author has been a skater for quite a long time. He enjoys longboarding, trickboarding, and everything in the middle. If you’re looking for an online skateboard shop after reading this article, please check out http://www.the-skateboard-shop.com/

Source: http://www.articletrader.com
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Building a Skateboard Deck