14
THE
SKATER'S
EDSEY DENIKE
Bob
THERE THE
UYAT MEN
BOARD TO DEATH MODEL
10% x 30%
CONCAVE
Mosca para aqui!
Craig Johnson's a big guy and it's not altogether
unusual for him to break a skateboard in half.
Some manufacturers won't guarantee their
boards under these harsh conditions. Most, in
fact. "Check it out," says Bob Denike in this
month's column about......
Warranties
I pick up the cassette tape, pop it in my
few month-old Ghetto Blaster, sit back and
dig on the tunes. Moments later, to my
horror, the music begins to gurgle, slow up,
grind, chomp and altogether came to a
stop. Silence. I inspect the badly damaged
tape, toss it in the trash, and try my luck
again. In goes the tape, on come the tunes,
again comes the screeching, grinding, etc.
Fully stressing on my situation, I begin to
hunt through my shoe box marked
"important papers" until I come across the
owner's manual for my blast box. Flipping
through the pages I discover, much to my
liking, that this tune box is fully covered for
one year from the date of purchase.
Realizing my dismal fate, because I
obviously didn't send in the card, I begin to
dismantle the stereo to get down to the root
of the problem. One hour later, I find myself
swimming in a sea of parts, screws, and
wires. It now sits inside another shoebox
on a shelf in my closet awaiting further
attempts at repairs.
I sit back and ponder my situation. How
many times have I purchased something of
extreme value and in my excitement of
owning it, tossed all known warranties,
guarantees, manuals, etc., into the nearest
trash can. Come to think of it, I've done this
many times when buying a skateboard
deck, only to find out one month later that
the warranty card given to me when I
bought the board really was an important
piece of paper, because now the deck is
badly delaminating in front of my eyes.
Skateboard warranties should be taken
seriously by the buyer/skateboarder.
Almost every quality product, inside or
outside of skateboarding, comes with
some kind of warranty coverage against
manufacturers' defects. Skateboard
companies don't print up these cards just
for fun, they have good reasons for doing
it. For one, warranties serve as a selling
point for the buyer when picking out which
brand to go with. For example, some
warranty periods for certain companies are
longer than others. Second, a warranty
helps manufacturers to keep tabs on a
product and its performance, sort of a field
test you might say. Third, a warranty
protects the manufacturer from a buyer
making a claim on a board that has been
neglected or abused. Lastly and most
importantly, a warranty protects the buyer
if he/she has had the misfortune of buying
a defective deck.
If you read through all the warranties
that are available today, you will quickly
notice some similarities among them all.
They all have basic conditions that must be
met and also somewhat of an idea of what
is meant by the words "normal use." Some
examples of these conditions are:
1. All warranty cards must be sent in to
the manufacturer within a certain time
period.
2. The board must be assembled
properly.
3. Truss-head screws (round-heads)
must be used when mounting trucks and
accessories. The use of counter sunk
screws will void warranty.
4.,Boards will not be replaced if cracks
are caused by impact of nose, tail, or rails.
5. No jumping of any type will be done on
the skateboard.
6. Worn nose, tail, or rails does not
warrant replacement.
7. Boards are not covered for warpage
due to water, sun, or heat.
8. Skateboards will not be replaced if run
over by a car.
These are some of the main areas
covered by the warranties and each
individual deck has its own unique
conditions that should be followed. I
suggest you read through the warranty
while purchasing your board, something in
a warranty may cause you to choose one
brand over another.
One attitude that I've picked up from
skaters trying to return boards is that the
manufacturers can get away with not
replacing a deck because of the stringent
conditions that must be met in order for the
warranty to be valid. I feel this isn't true.
Even the shortest warranty period (30
days) is more than enough time for any
defects to appear and the conditions as far.
as assembling the deck are all in line with
trying to get the most life out of your
skateboard. The manufacturers do try their
best to comply with the warranties.
I must mention, before closing, a few of
the bad things I see with the warranties as
they currently stand. First, most of the
warranties spell out that the board must be
returned by the buyer directly to the
manufacturer. The buyer cannot get a
replacement at the original place of
purchase. Second, postage must be paid
by the buyer when returning a deck. Third,
four to six weeks is not uncommon to wait
for a return. Fourth, most companies will
not replace your griptape if you return your
board. In my opinion, because of the
waiting period and the hassle of mailing
the deck, a lot of defective decks do not get
returned and the buyer will usually just
save up and get a new deck. Hopefully, in
the future, manufacturers will strive for a
working agreement between themselves
and shop owners on some sort of return
system.
In conclusion, warranties are a good
thing. They show that skateboard equip-
ment is becoming higher in quality and that
manufacturers are willing to back up what
they sell. Don't get me wrong, the majority
of boards purchased never have any
problems throughout their lifetimes, but
please be aware that you should receive a
warranty when you purchase your board.
(If the company offers one.) Fill it out, mail
it in, and follow the warranty instructions. If
you do all this, you are fully covered if any
defect should appear and you will be a
happier skater in the end. Take care and
skate safe.
THER
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QUE
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