THRASHE
KATEBOARD MAGAZ
THRASHIRTS
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NO BETTER SPORT
Since I haven't seen any letters from up
here in the frozen North, I thought I'd drop
you a few lines. First and foremost,
Thrasher rips. It's been said before;
Action later, Thrasher now! Second, I go
to this lame school in Eau Claire, Wiscon
sin, for nine months out of the year and in
my three years up here I have never, I
repeat, never seen anyone skating here
except myself. But I keep street skating
(and freestyling in my room in the winter)
and stoking out people at the local malls,
etc.
Third, for three months (summer) I live
in St. Louis, Mo. There it's a lot better.
There are various half-pipes, an old
closed down skatepark and a bunch of
good skaters. Including Danny Gibson,
Glen Stallings, Terry Barnes, Steve
Bacon (now in K.C., Mo.) and too many
more to list.
Finally, I'd just like to say that I've been
skating for about 6 years now and there is
no better sport on the face of this earth.
All types of skating are cool too: vert,
banks, street skating, freestyle and yes,
even slalom and downhill.
Oh Yeah! The Mike Smith interview
was great. He sounds like quite a crack
up.
COL-O-RAD-O
Jon Harms
Eau Claire, WI
I thought that the January '82 issue was
one of the best ones ever. The Mike
Smith interview was hot! Do one on
Caballero. When I heard that Lakewood
had closed, I was heartbroken, but
skating will never die! No matter how
many parks close. I think that our park in
Boulder (High Roller) might close, but I
don't know for sure.
I was wondering where I can get plans
for a half-pipe with flat bottom. There is
one in Estes Park, but the kid who owns it
is a real kook.
Please print this to show that ColoRADO
isn't all mountains and John Denver. Stay
cool and don't be a jerk with your ramp.
Jason Simenez
Estes Park, CO
P.S. DK's and Hendrix rule!!
Check out the August 81 issue for an article
on ramp building -ED
FREE THE PARKS.
To all skaters all over the World! We in
Hawaii have one of the only free
skateboard parks left in the World. When
visiting Hawaii make your first stop at
AALA Skatepark and Cobra Skateboards
(538-7255). Let's keep the parks open
and free like Hawaii. All Hawaiian skaters
think and know Thrasher is da best mag
and we want to keep it alive.
Aloha,
Hawaiian Free Skaters
Cobra Skateboards
Paul J. Mattes, President
BEARINGS
WEAR AND CARE
Ever hear anyone make the claim that
German bearings are better than Japanese
or Italian bearings? I have and I'm here to
tell you that all of that talk is a bunch of B.S.
Bearings are graded by an engineering
group called the Annular Bearing En-
gineers Committee or ABEC. ABEC
grades bearings on a scale from 1 to 9, 1
being the lowest grade and 9 the highest,
with 3, 5 and 7 inbetween. Most of the bear
ings used in skateboard wheels are ABEC
1. Spending more money on higher ABEC-
rated bearings (and I mean a lot more) is
useless as the rating is mostly a vibration
and noise test. The higher rating means
that the tolerances in the bearing are
higher, but this doesn't necessarily mean
that the bearing, or your wheel, is going to
roll any faster. Quality bearing manufactur-
ers generally use excellent steels, super
finishing and tempering of the races and
balls. I recommend using German, Italian,
Swiss or NTN Japanese with an ABEC 1
rating. Don't pay more than $2 each for
these or you're getting ripped off.
SPEED
TALKIN' SHOP X
DEL*13, SKATE MECHANIC
Del "13, testing his bearing theories at a drainage ditch appropriately titled "The Mud Pit
make contact with the inner and outer
races of the bearing, producing a minimal
drag, but effectively sealing out moisture
and dust. Shielded bearings are faster, as
the metal shields do not make contact with
the inner race; however, they do tend to
wear out faster when dirt and water are al-
lowed inside. I prefer metal-shielded bear
ings with the shield facing the inside of the
wheel removed. This lowers the drag ef-
fect, makes the bearing lighter, and allows
cleaning lubrication and servicing without a
lot of fuss. To remove the inner shield, in-
sert a small knife blade inbetween the
shield and the inner race and pry it off care-
fully to avoid damaging the ball cage inside.
2. CLEAN 'EM
Thoroughly remove all the dirt and grit
with some automotive-type solvent and an
old toothbrush. You can also take your
bearings to an auto repair shop and have
them cleaned in a solvent or vibra-sonic
cleaning tank. Blow all remaining solvent
bearings will bind up against the urethane
and become restricted. This procedure of
checking the spacers is very important
since it keeps the wheel from "sliding" to
and fro on the bearings or binding up when
you crank the nuts down all the way. Check
for correct spacer height when buying
wheels, also. Once these precautions have
been taken, you can put the outside bear-
ing in.
Never press a bearing into a wheel by
applying pressure to the shield because it
could easily cause damage. Either use a
bearing tool or just drop the bearing onto
the truck axle, followed by a spacer and
press it into the wheel. Use a washer (flat or
cone) to achieve a good bearing seat and
secure the wheel-bearing assembly with
an aircraft locknut. Tighten that puppy all
the way down and spin the wheel. Now,
have achieved the perfect non-binding roll
back off the nut ever so slightly until you
with no side play.
out of each bearing with an air hose or the MORAL:
like and dry them off with a clean rag.
3. LUBRICATION
For pure speed use a light oil like 3in1 or
preferably a synthetic lubricant with a Tef-
lon base. Use no more than two drops per
bearing and spin each one as you go to dis-
tribute the lubricant evenly. Unfortunately,
the use of the lighter oils requires cleaning
and relubing about every two weeks if you
are sessioning daily. The thinner lubri-
cants, while allowing for more speed, will
tend to break down faster and spin out of
the wheel. Especially if you have removed
the inside shields. If you're not into mainte-
nance, this is definitely not for you, and you
should use common wheel bearing grease.
Either way, wipe off all excessive lube.
INSTALLATION
Clean your axles, spacers and locknuts
thoroughly and slip a washer on the axle.
(A slightly cone-shaped washer is avail-
able, giving the added advantages of a
near perfect bearing seat and nut tension
adjustment.) Slide a bearing on, shielded
side first, then press your wheel down onto
the bearing with a firm motion. Now pull the
wheel off and drop a spacer inside. Check
that the spacer is the same height as the
bearing seat in the wheel. If the spacer is
too wide for the bearing seats that are
molded into the wheel, either file them
down or get spacers that fit. Make sure that
they are flush. If the spacer is not wide
Sealed bearings have rubber seals that enough, definitely look for new ones as the
Thanks to Todd at Powell Peralta Corp. for research assistance.
AND CARE TIPS
Here are a few things that I do to get the
most performance out of my bearings.
1. SEALED VS. SHIELDED
Bearings are one of the few things on a
skateboard that can really make a differ
ence in your performance if they are not
part of the skateboard and containing the
cared for properly. Being the most active
most moving parts, it's sort of ironic that
they receive the least amount of attention
when it comes to maintenance. Different
types of skating produce different types of
wear and tear on the bearings.
Street skating can be much more abu-
sive to your bearings than parks or pools
because of the variety of surfaces and ele-
ments that a street skater comes in contact
with. The wheel and bearing assembly gets
torqued from slamming curbs and doing
high drop-offs. The harsher vibrations from
rough surfaces and the increased speeds
during downhill runs all add up and break
down bearings pretty fast. If you're into rid-
ing every day, keep an eye on the bearings,
look for rust or excessive grime forming on
the seals, and take the time to tear down
your board and clean 'em once in a while.
You'll feel a lot better knowing that your
bearings have just received the treatment
and when you feel better, you skate better,
right?
Next month I'll be spewing forth on the
multitude of board and truck accessories
that are available for skateboards. Rail slid-
ers, skid plates, nose guards, what are they
for and how can you get the best use out of
them? As for bearings, keep this little
thought in mind: "A Little Care Means
Longer Wear."
Color me gone,
DEL *13-S.M.
13