Stable Sports

Taking good care of the different mechanical components of your skateboard is the key to ensuring its longevity and optimum functionality and performance. You should not really spend hundreds of dollars on its upkeep. As long as you are able to follow these simple steps to easy skateboard care and maintenance, you can help ensure the continued optimum performance of your ride.

Maintain the trucks in optimum functionality.

You can look at the trucks of your skateboard as that component that attaches the deck to the wheels. Trucks are like the metal axle assembly in your car. On a skateboard, the tightness of the trucks can spell the degree to which your board will turn. Absolute beginners will benefit the most from really tight trucks as these help eliminate unnecessary turns. However, if you require greater control of your board, you may want the trucks to be a bit loose; but not to the point that the nut actually falls off the boards kingpin. You may need to adjust the tightness of the nut on each of the kingpin bolt by about a quarter turn and try the skateboard for responsiveness. You can make quarter turns of adjustment each time until you get the desired responsiveness of the trucks.

Adjust the nuts on the axles.

Just like adjusting the trucks, you will also need to adjust the nuts on the axles or wheels themselves. You need to tighten these nuts without necessarily affecting the ability of the wheel to spin. Too tight and the wheels might not spin at all.

Adjust the mounting bolts of the trucks.

The trucks of your skateboard are mounted onto the deck by bolts and nuts. In many models, the nuts come fully integrated with a nylon locking mechanism. However, this could potentially loosen over the course of repeated use. You may need to check this mechanism to see if the nuts have loosened quite a bit so you can tighten them back up. Do not over tighten the nuts, though as these can get embedded too deep into your skateboard deck.

Clean the wheel bearings.

The wheel bearings are what keep your skateboard rolling. As such these must be cleaned, removed of debris, and adequately lubricated to ensure optimum functioning while helping to provide adequate protection for the metal surfaces. Cleaning the wheel bearings can be a significant undertaking, however. As such, if your wheels are spinning just fine, there really is no need for a whole take-down cleaning of the bearing assembly. You may need to apply lubrication, nonetheless to help minimize friction and keep the metallic surfaces of the assembly from heating up.

Clean and replace the grip tape as needed.

If you see the grip already dirty, maybe its time to give it a good cleaning. Some shops provide you with instant solutions to remove stains and other stubborn marks. However, using an old toothbrush to remove some of the stains can be a more practical approach. There are also instances when its best to replace the grip tape altogether.

Taking care of your skateboard is not that difficult. Its like taking care of your car. The important thing to keep in mind is to observe periodic checks to establish the optimum functionality of the different components of your skateboard.