PRODUCT
PATROL
by Jake Phelps
Last month I received a couple of very disturbing
letters that questioned my credibility and said I'm not
doing a competent job. To answer these questions I will
say this: First of all, I have been skating for 15 years
and I do skate every day. Second, your views of a product
are bound to be different than mine because the com-
panies send me the cream of their crops, while
sometimes the stuff that ends up in Bill's Bike World
is of lesser quality. In any case, I'm not telling you what
to buy, I'm just giving you information-you should be
able to make your own decisions.
HOOTLA
Street Outlaw
Alva Skateboards, 32991-F Calle
Aviador, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
Alva sent me the
Murph Street Outlaw
and it is a ripper-a
smooth and func-
tional shape high-
lighted by a killer
stain and concave. The
8-hole front truck pat-
tern lets you choose
between a longer
wheelbase for stabill-
ty or a shorter base
which makes
quick turns a
snap. The Murph
works well in the
street as well as
on vert because
it is 32" long,
10" wide, with
4" or 5¼" of
nose and a 6%"
tail. Lately, Alva
has been coming
94
on strong. Look for
new decks from their
new hot shoes Mario
Rubalcaba, Justin
Lynch
and Jesse
Neuhaus. Don't be
surprised when they
rip the contest circuit.
Stick-on rails
Z-Products P.O. Box 5397, Santa
Monica, CA 90405
The Z-Products dudes have
had their thinking caps on
and the result is Stick-on rails.
It is a good concept, and
when you put these pups on
a new top they slide like hell
and don't come off. The only
complaint I had was that they
weren't as tall as normal rails
and they wear out faster. If
hardware bums your life,
look into the Z-line.
Steve Claar
G&S 7081 Consolidated Way, San Diego,
CA 92121-2604
G&S was wary of sending
me stuff because I said some
bad things about their
wheels, but they've outdone
themselves this time. The new
Steve Claar deck is at the
forefront of concave and
design. It is called the C-90
series and, man, this puppy
is hot. The concave is a lot like
the Cruz Missile from Santa
Cruz-it has a funky bend in
the front end that secures your
foot and lowers your center of
gravity for maximum stabil-
ity. The C-90 also features a
tri-tail which is long and
smooth, unlike most other tri-
tails on the market. Steve's
load is 32" long, 10" wide,
with the 8-hole front truck
pattern (5" or 5½" of nose),
a 6½" tail and a 14½"
wheelbase. This is the
deck that I can't put
down-well, actually,
that I can't step off.
Natas shoes
Etnies RAS BP 2 85130 La
Gaubretiere, France
Like most skaters,
I go through shoes
faster than anything,
so I was stoked to
get some new shoes
from Etnies. They are com-
fortable, light and feature
a sole that is sticky and
slow wearing. The Etnies
also have a built-in rubber
ollie flap that works and
wears well. The uppers are
a combination of leather
and some kind of vinyl,
they have Natas em-
broidered on them, and
they come in a few
smashing colors. They're
cool shoes, but since they
cost more than $35, I'll
stick with Cons.
Tony Magnusson
H-Street, Post Office Box 9990 San
Diego, CA 92109
This new deck from Mr.
Magnusson is different
than his original concave
creation. While his 'Hell
Cave' was completely cus-
tom, this seems like a step
TONY HAGNUSSON
backwards in the 'cave
department. Still, the
board is smooth and func-
tional. The numbers are
31" by 9" with 4½"
of nose, a 6%" tail and a
15" wheelbase.
Butch Sterbins
Z-Products
Also from Z comes the new Butch Ster-
bins. As I've mentioned in past col-
umns, 2 makes skates for skaters' sake,
NATI
not the hype and cash.
This is their best effort
yet. The Sterbins is 31%" long, 10%"
wide, with 4% of nose, a 6%" tail
and a 15" wheelbase. It features a
smooth 'cave and mellow nose area. Z
doesn't have the deepest or longest,
just a quality tool for use and abuse.
Fat Boy pads
Rector P.D. Bax 2764, Santa Rosa, CA
95405
It has been a while since I
checked Rector and they have
done some homework lately.
While the Aggressors were too
tall to provide a controlled
slide, the Fat Boy has a dough-
nut that fits over your knee
which makes for a very com-
fortable slide. The new strap-
神風
SULCH
Z
ping system is ahead of its
time. Most pads slip over your
foot, but Rector has designed
a system that doesn't necessi-
tate taking your shoe off to get
the pads on. When I use them,
I slap a little bit of duct tape
around the bottom adjustment
as an extra caution against
slippage then I ride those slides
out of all kinds of hairy situa-
tions. I'm sure they cost a lot,
but so does knee surgery.
Well, that's all folks. If
you've got a gripe with me
at least be man or woman
enough to sign your name
when you write so that I
can track you down. Write
to Jake Phelps, clo
Thrasher Mag, P.O. Box
884570, San Francisco,
CA 94188-4570.
THRASHER
PRESENTS
MORE FUN THAN YOUR
HOMEWORK
URG MRPF OLG PHLOOPFFT NG!
THRASH
COM
1.50
S
Price is $2.50 per copy (postage and handling included).
Enclose check or money order
(U.S. funds only) payable to:
THRASHER
P.O. Box 884570, San Francisco, CA 94188-4570
Name (please print)
Street Address
Birth Date
City
Number of Copies:
Amt. Enclosed:
AC64
95