Board Assembly
Welcome to Monsterskate’s skateboard assembly guide. If you have no idea how to put a skateboard together, this is the perfect place to begin.
At this point we assume you’ve purchased wheels, trucks, a deck, bearings and mounting hardware. Sure, you could buy a complete, or have a skate shop put your board together for you, but what fun would that be? We feel it’s important to learn how to assemble and properly maintain your board so that you will truly enjoy riding it. The better care you take of your board, the more of a personality it will develop.
Work Area
You’ll need a clean, flat, well-lit work area to assemble your board. If possible, use a workbench that is approximately belly button height. This will allow you the best possible leverage for assembly. In addition, you may want to lay down a rubber mat or a piece of dense carpet to offer a slip-free surface. This will aid in the prevention of loosing small parts.
Tools
You will need:
1) A standard wrench, or socket, set containing 3/8″, 1/2″ and 9/16″ sizes
2) A Phillips-Head screwdriver or an Allen wrench (Allen wrenches are usually included with the mounting hardware that require it)
3) A razor blade or utility knife (the sharper the better)
4) A file (preferably with a rounded edge)
*Monsterskate sells several brands of skate-tools that come with the necessary components in order to assemble a board – minus the razor blade and file.
Griptape
A sheet of griptape, whether it’s pre-cut, or cut from a roll, should exceed the length of your board. Pre-cut griptape is usually about 33″ in length.
1) Lay your deck face down on the work area. Make sure the top surface is dry, and free of dirt and debris; this ensures the griptape will stick to its full potential.
2) Hold the griptape by the corner and peel off the tan backing, just like you would peel the backing off of a sticker. Make sure you don’t stick the griptape to anything by accident, as it will readily adhere to anything it comes in contact with.
3) Using both hands, hold the griptape several inches above the deck and align it so that the sheet will cover the entire surface.
4) Lower one side of the griptape onto your deck’s nose, or tail.
5) Imagine that you are putting up wallpaper and roll the griptape onto your deck. Roll it on slowly and deliberately, smoothing it down in order to prevent air bubbles.
6) Once it’s down, use your fingertips and the palms of your hands to press evenly over the entire surface of the deck. This ensures that the griptape adheres completely.
7) Next, you need to remove the excess griptape that is hanging over the edge of the deck. At a 45° angle, file around the entire edge of the deck several times using moderate pressure.
With the razor blade, or utility knife, cut along the filed edge of the deck, removing the excess griptape. The best way to do this is to cut from the underside of the deck so that you can see the razor blade protruding upwards through the griptape. Cut towards yourself in a slow and deliberate fashion, keeping your arms and fingers clear of the blade. A steady arm and a sharp blade will make cutting much easier.
Mounting Hardware and Trucks
The next step towards completing your board is to attach your trucks with the mounting hardware.
1) Poke starter holes through the griptape via the predrilled mounting holes in your deck using a Phillips-Head screwdriver, or Allen Wrench.
2) Insert the mounting hardware through the poked holes – griptape side up.
3) With the palm of one hand, hold the mounting hardware from the griptape side, and use your other hand to fasten the truck.
4) Continue holding the mounting hardware from the griptape side, and hand tighten the mounting hardware nuts. This will secure your truck to the deck.
5) Repeat steps 3-4 for the other truck.
*When you put the trucks on, make sure the kingpin and bushings face the inward, toward the middle of your deck. The kingpin and bushings of both trucks should face each other. It is imperative your trucks are mounted this way; otherwise, your board will turn in a manner that could result in injury.
6) Using the 3/8″ wrench and Phillips-Head screwdriver, or Allen wrench, tighten the mounting hardware.
7) Tighten each bolt moderately at first. This ensures that the trucks are secured with even pressure onto the deck. If your trucks are moving from side to side, this means you need to tighten the bolts down a bit more. Be careful not to over-tighten the hardware either. If the bolts are pulling through the top of the deck, you’ve tightened them too much.
Bearings and Wheels
The last step is to insert the bearings in your wheels, and to then attach the wheels to your trucks.
1) Since most of you probably don’t own a bearing press, the next best thing to use is your truck.
2) Remove the nuts from your truck’s axle.
3) Slide one bearing onto the axle, and place a wheel on top of the bearing. Using the palms of your hands, press the wheel down firmly onto the bearing. The bearing is securely inserted into the wheel when you feel it slide in and stop.
4) Since each wheel needs two bearings, flip the wheel over and insert another bearing.