My Skateboard Quiver

Quiver is a bit of an exaggeration. Maybe one day...

The images were taken with a late 20th Century Apple QuickTake 150. So the quality is not the best. Click on a thumbnail to get a larger version in a separate window.

Blockhead Laban

This is my most recent buy - September 2002. I got the deck, grip and trucks from SkatePool, the risers from Ebay and the wheels are relics of my previous skate life (1976-1979).

Deck: Blockhead Pheidias Laban Superglide - 7 ply canadian maple, white Superglide bottom, old school mounting pattern, width: 9.5" (240mm), length 32.25 (800mm), wheelbase: 14" or 15" (340mm or 370mm), nose: 6.75" (165mm) or 5.75" (140mm), tail: 6.5" (160mm), length to width ratio: 3.45
Trucks: Tracker Aggros Black - hanger width: 6.5" (166mm)
Wheels: Powerflex 9 - durometer: 92a, diameter: 64mm, depth: 46mm, contact: 36mm, green and blue.
Other: Schmitt Shok Blox 3/8" urethane risers. Cheapo Abec 5 bearings. Clear grip tape. Domehead hardware.
Comments: Blockhead have re-issued some of their old school models, but not this one. Probably because it is too bland in its graphics and too new-school in its shape, which are all the reasons I bought it. It has a mellow concave which doesn't bend your feet against their nature, a nicely angled tail and nose and its nice and wide. I redrilled the nose to give an extra inch of wheelbase. The Superglide base is the Blockhead equivalent of a Santa Cruz Everslick - an extra layer ptex for smoother board slides. Ptex is the same stuff as used on the bottom of skis and snowboards. I rode it for the first time on the vert ramp at VertX and within five minutes I was getting higher up the ramp than I had ever been.
The Tracker trucks are everything the discussions on NCDSA say they are. Smooth turning, stable, strong and surprisingly light. Here is a larger image.
The Powerflex 9's are a little too old and wide for this setup, but they give a fast, quiet, grippy ride that you can still slide, so I'm keeping them on until I find something else.
Since taking these pictures I've got some Variflex X wheels from Ebay (1980's wheel, durometer: 94a?, diameter: 62mm, width: 54mm, contact: 40mm, radiused front, conical back, centred bearings, plastic hub) which were a fraction too slippy for me, but otherwise a fun wheel.
I now have OJ II Team Riders (durometer: 92a, diameter: 64mm, width: 37mm, contact: 22mm, slightly radiused front and back, symmetrical, centred bearings) on this board, which are really good wheels - fast, smooth, grippy but you can still slide 'em. I'm still really pleased with this setup - I've got the stable, smooth ride I've been looking for.

Roller Snakes

This is the first board I bought when I took up skating again in August 2001.
I got it as a complete from Roller Snakes one of the larger UK mailorder companies. If you want new school equipment their prices and service are some of the best I've found.

Deck: Roller Snakes blank - 7 ply canadian maple, green stain, new school mounting pattern, width: 8" (204mm), length: 31.25" (775mm), wheelbase: 14" (340mm), nose: 7.125" (175mm), tail: 6.625" (165mm), length to width ratio: 3.91
Trucks: Destructo Raw/Black - hanger width: 5" (126mm)
Wheels: Icon Code - durometer: not specified probably 99A, diameter: 56mm, depth: 34mm, contact: 17mm
Other: Icon Abec 7 bearings, Lucky's countersunk hardware
Comments: The Icon Abec 7 bearings are typical of the overhyped, rebranded mediocre quality bearings peddled by the skate industry. The shield on one of them would not stay on and eventually got lost. Other than that they are serviceable - just not worth the money.
I replaced the supplied Lucky's risers with custom ones made from layered self-adhesive vinyl floor tile. That way the riser fits the offset Destructo mounting holes and it can be made the exact height required.
I also used self-adhesive floor tile to make the tail guard seen in the first image. I wanted to extend the life of the deck while I learned to ollie. My ollies are now very minimalist, but I no longer bother replacing the tail guard.
The extra holes in the tail are the result of a wheelbase extending experiment. I moved the tail-end truck back about 3/4" and then turned the board round to use the nose as the tail. This gave me a slightly more stable ride on ramps which convinced me to look for an old school board to use as my park/ramp board.
I've since redrilled the nose as well which gives me a 15.25" wheelbase using the nose as the tail.
I still keep coming back to this board, especially now that I've extended the wheelbase, because I like the lightness of it compared to the Laban. I'm currently considering a set of Abec 11 No Skoolz (60mm, 92a version) to go on this board, when funds allow.

1970's Slalom board

I found this recently at the back of my parent's garage, cleaned it up, gripped and mounted it. My dad had the board made by a metal working company he knew through work following my design, which was in turn a ripped off G&S fibreflex slalom copied from Skateboarder magazine ads. Before that the board had been a twin kick - again a copy of the aluminium Kamakazi boards that were briefly available. It was too bouncy for that, so a slalom deck seemed the best way to make use of it.

Trucks: Tracker Aggros from the Laban with blue Doh-Doh bushings. Too wide for this board really, but good for a laugh. I've got them back on the Laban now, if I ever have any spare cash I'll get some Tracker RTX or Fultracks for this deck. But with no one to race with, it's not a very high priority.
Wheels: Kryptonics - durometer: 78a, diameter: 76mm, plastic hub. A nice, big soft wheel for cruising along in stealth mode.

Thanks to all the people who responded to my ignorant questions on alt.skate-board. You've helped me re-discover the thrill of skateboarding and shown me that there is still a variety of equipment, skate styles and terrains out there if you know where to look. If you want to comment on this site, send an email to skatepark@freeuk.com.

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Last updated May 2003