14
THE
SKATER'S
EDGE
TUNE IT UP
If most of you skaters are like myself,
then you're the type who will just hop on
your skate and go whenever the urge
comes along, regardless of the condition of
your board and body, whether your shoes
are on the right feet or if you have to go to
work or school. Truth of the matter is, the
number one cause of most injuries in skate-
boarding can be attributed to the first item
on the list, that is, poorly maintained equip
ment. Now if you put a little time aside, not
daily or even weekly, but once in a while to
check your skate out and do a little tune-up
on it, chances are you can avoid a lot of
those unnecessary injuries and improve
your skating at the same time. After all, it's
easier to fix your skate when it needs it than
to fix the old bod. The following is a quick
tune-up to keep your skate in tip-top shape.
The best thing to do is read through and
gather all your supplies before you start,
then do it in one big shot. So here we go,
starting from the top and working our way
down.
Griptape. What else can you do with
your grip tape other than just slap it on and
go? Well, whether you are aware of it or
not, your griptape is an important piece of
safety equipment. It, along with the shoes
on your feet, are the only physical things at-
taching you to your skate so you'll want to
keep it as grippy as possible. Griptape, es-
sentially, is just heavy-duty sandpaper with
a sticky backing, and much like sandpaper,
your griptape can clog with gum, dirt, oil,
bugs, skin, woodchips, etc., and create a
smooth, gripless surface. When this hap-
pens, good luck trying any no-handed
moves, let alone ride down the street
safely. To avoid this problem, gather to-
gether a soft plastic bristled brush (a tooth-
brush works fine), an old towel, some liquid
cleaner like 409, and a small amount of
water. Spray some of the cleaner on your
deck and lightly scrub the garbage from be-
tween the grains of your griptape. If it's real
dirty, do it again and then blot the suds off
the deck with the old towel. Now, apply
some water to the griptape and again lightly
scrub to rinse away the liquid cleaner, then
blot with the towel and set your deck in the
sun to dry. Does your griptape grab a little
better? I bet it does and your board looks
good too. Remember this trick when selling
a deck, it'll get you a couple extra bucks for
sure.
Deck. Next we come to the actual deck
of your skateboard. Pick it up and check the
edges for any cracks, splinters, or delami-
nations. Preventive medicine is the key.
here, so you'll want to stop the cracks be-
fore they become a real problem. Grab a
(dry) toothbrush, some Elmer's wood glue
or epoxy, some sandpaper or griptape
scraps, a block of wood, a C-clamp and a
screwdriver. Take the screwdriver and
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gently spread the laminates where there is
a crack and remove any dirt or splinters
with the toothbrush. Keeping the screw-
driver inserted, squirt some glue into the
crack and spread it around with a small
stick to assure complete bonding. Pull the
screwdriver out and clamp the crack tight,
then wipe away the excess glue and let the
deck dry overnight. In the morning, jump
out of bed, grab the sandpaper and wrap it
around the wood block. Remove the C-
clamp and sand smooth any excess glue
and splinters; in fact, sand all the way
around the edge of your deck and eliminate
any splinters that may catch on the riding
surface and in turn remove a nice chunk
from from your board.
Accessories. Check your nose guard,
tail guard, rails, and copers for excessive
wear and replace if needed. If the loops on
your nose guard are stretched out or
cracked you can put them back in use by
placing a large flat washer with a small hole
between the loop and the mounting nut. If
your tail guard always seems to rattle,
chances are your mounting bolts are
stretched a bit, so replace them. Rotate
your slide rails around for even wear and
for those who have rails put on with rivets,
tighten them down and put a few drops of
superglue in each rivet to keep them se-
cured. Lastly, check all your mounting
hardware and replace where needed.
Trucks/Bushings/Pivots. Remember
the saying, "If I had a nickel for every blah,
blah, blah.... well if I had a penny for every
completely smashed, disintegrated, and
generally abused bushing I saw on most
skaters' boards, I would be beyond wealth.
Bushings are those small round little rubber
grommets on your trucks that apply tension
to the hanger so you can turn smoothly and
safely. There is nothing as inexpensive and
more capable of improving the perfor-
mance of your skate than a new set of truck
bushings. Buy a set of the urethane type as
they come in different hardnesses for dif-
ferent riding styles. A set of bushings, when
adjusted properly, should allow only three
or four threads of your kingpin to be ex-
posed. While you're replacing your bush-
ings, check out the plastic pivot cup for any
wear. If your bushings were, shot, chances
are the cup needs replacement also.
Axles/Axle Nuts. While we're still work-
ing on our trucks, take a minute to check
out your axle lock nuts. Do they spin off
fairly easily? You better replace them if they
do as they tend to spin off at the worst pos-
sible times. Also check your axles for any
signs of rust or corrosion. Take a piece of
fine sandpaper and remove any crust on
your axles so it won't spread into your bear-
ings. Sanding your axle will reduce the
thread size slightly, so you will have to re-
place the lock nuts.
Bearings. All right, we've whittled our
way down to the bearings and you now
have to make a decision. If they spin freely
and smoothly, don't touch them and just
pop them back in and go. If they no longer
spin freely, make grinding or scraping
noises, been run through enough water to
penetrate the seals, or just don't seem to
cut it altogether, then follow this quick tune-
up. Remove your bearings, being careful
not to damage the outer seals and wipe off
the outside dirt and grease. Carefully insert
a strong, thin blade (watch your eyes) be-
tween the inside edge of the shield and the
inner bearing ring. Carefully pry the shield
up until it pops off and flush the bearing out
with carburetor cleaner until all the grease
and dirt is removed. Since removal of the
shield will destroy it, remove only one, not
both on each bearing. After you've cleaned.
them all, tap them on a rag to remove the
cleaner and lubricate them with Triflon or a
comparable lubricant. Put them back in
your wheels with the remaining seal facing
out. Place a washer or Speedring on each
side of the wheel and tighten down the nut,
allowing for a little play on the wheel.
Wheels. There isn't much you can really
do to your wheels except maybe clean.
them off with some spray cleaner to make
them look a little newer. Check for any im-
bedded nails or glass and try your best to
remove them with a pick or plyers. If you
ever run over some gum or goo that doesn't
want to come off, try a little acetone and a
cotton ball, it should do the trick.
Overall. A complete tune-up like this, if
you scrounge around for most of the mate-
rials, shouldn't cost you more than $5-10,
or you can just fix whatever is needed the
most. Once you do complete a full tune-up
though, you'll only have to do slight main-
tenance every once in a while to keep your
skate in tip-top condition, and in turn im-
prove your skating. Take care and skate
safe.
Bob Denike
9'
THRA
Don Pendleton J.F.A."
THE ONE AND ONLY
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15