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How to Clean a Skateboard Completely?

Your skateboard’s performance could be drastically, drastically affected if you don’t know how to clean a skateboard. And isn’t it only natural with all the things that the board of wood has to go through?

With yourself sliding and riding it across streets or any random surface at your own will, it will be surprising if it doesn’t. But since we, your lovely helpers, are here to take charge (or back you up at least), you don’t need to worry about piling filth as we have some home remedies and DIYs up our sleeves to that thing clean and sparkly all over again.

Maybe not sparkly, but you get us.

How to Clean a Skateboard?

In order to roll smooth as silk and ride fast as horses, you’ll need to understand the basics of how to clean your skateboard. But here’s the thing: you don’t be scrubbing them every wretched time you see dirt on the deck.

About the deck, it is honestly unnecessary and even offensive for some to be cleaned, since the scruffs and scratches are badges of honor.

Back to what we were saying, yes, you don’t need frequent cleaning. Only when you feel that you are going slower than your fellow skateboarders, and it isn’t your fault, you know where to check.

We’ll say start with the bearings first. Because dirt accumulated here reduces the level and intensity of your performance. So if you want to get back the old glory of speed and pushing through the streets, we suggest you start right here:

How to Clean Skateboard Bearings?

Now, what to clean skateboard bearings with is highly dependent on the availability of one thing, that we previously mentioned: dirt. So you’ll need dirty bearings, some lubricant, paper towels, single-use cups, and some speed cream.

Pro tip: If you don’t like how garages smell or anyone in your house doesn’t like how garages smell, you can do the whole task outside your home. To understand the effectiveness of your cleansing, roll the bearings pre-cleansing and run it again post-cleansing. It should be rolling smoother now.

Anyway, some bearings may come with added, removable shields. When you are cleansing bearings, get rid of these. Placing a paper towel on areas where you will work, you can prevent probable accidents and injuries from slipping from the lube.

Pour/spray the lube into a cup. Any cup other than styrofoam would do.
Take your bearings on hand and pour them into the cup to let them sit in the pool of lube. Some say you can keep it for an hour; some say you can keep it for longer.
Coming back, if you notice the lube getting dark and dirty from the dirt leaving the bearings, it’s time to change the situation and replace the lube in the cup with a fresh pour.
Leave your eight bearings in the second arrangement as well. Keep repeating the process till you see clean lube left on the cup. A good suggestion is to use WD-40. This leaves a relatively thin film of residue once done and can cleanse better whatever remains from before. But you could go your own way too.
Now, use the paper towel to clean your bearings. Don’t jumble them up, clean them one after the other for a proper result.
Roll the bearings and shake off what’s excess.
Next, use any speed cream with Teflon to lube them the last time, and they’ll be ready for next use.

How to Clean Skateboard deck?

As you know already, skateboard decks are made of wood. So the one cleaning method you will not follow is washing the deck with water. Otherwise, it will deform in shape, and the whole thing will be troublesome to ride and do tricks with.

Be it downturned performance levels or softer wood that we don’t want, and there are better ways to clean decks. There are furniture oils and spirit/linseed oil mixes that can get the stain out of the wood at the bottom.

But on the surface, this requires you to clean the grip tape along, so we would like to discuss the whole thing there.

But you could clean it with water/vinegar mix if you can do it fast, but you will have to let it dry under scorching heat to let it dry completely.

How to Clean Skateboard wheels?

No matter how clean the streets or ramps are, your wheels are bound to get dirty with time. And there’s undoubtedly one dirt that you can’t fix so correctly, and that is the yellowing of wheels. In that case, you’ll need changing. But otherwise, you can tackle the dirt with us.

Here a two ways you can adopt to clean the wheels. Firstly, by removing them, Secondly, by not.

You can not remove it and clean with a wet rag the parts of the wheels that come in contact with the ground to improve the rolling if there isn’t much dirt. Spin the wheels and keep cleaning first with the wet and then with a dry rug. This can fasten the drying process as the water from the damp cloth can damage the bearings.

Now let’s come to the point of removing them and cleaning them.:

Using a wrench, you have to unscrew the wheels.
You’ll also have to remove the bearings to clean them. Use a screwdriver to pry these out and keep them separate for separate cleaning.
Next, you will need a wire brush or toothbrush and some dish soap to scrub off the dirt. Get brushes with thinner bristles that can get inside curves and edges and squeaky clean it.
After that, soak them in warm water for 15-20 minutes or so and scrub them a final time. (Try not to use WD-40 here as you did in the bearings. But according to some, post-cleansing, you can apply lotion to let the boy roll better.)
We suggest you let them dry naturally or use paper towels.

How to Clean Skateboard grip tape?

You could be one of those guys, to whom the best way to clean skateboard grip tape is to remove it, un-grip it or peel it off for some fresh, new grip tape.

While you may have some rightfully earned bucks spent in this process, we love to be on a budget and do some DIYs, and hence we’d rather clean it than go all over for this new fuss of replacing grip tapes.

Anyway, the first method in which you can do it requires a microfiber cloth, soft brushes, and rubber. Don’t get confused about the last bit.

There is a thing called grip gum, sold by shopkeepers, that allows you to take the grime off the surface. A similar product if you don’t find this is the rubber cement remover.

You have to put much pressure to slide it over the deck and have it cleaned.
Once you are out with the surface-level grime, you can use your brush too deep clean and delve into the process. That’s what some articles will tell you. But that’s honestly pointless and has ruinous results.
If you use a soft dry brush, there is no issue. You can dust off the excess with a cloth.

But if you are using a wet one and cleaning with water too, be prepared to have the perforated grip tape of your shortboard malfunction and lead to the damage of the whole thing with time.

If you ask us, soft brushes can’t precisely clean the grip tape as much, being what they are: soft brushes.

The second method is meant for longboards, and this one is rougher.

Now, a piece of quick information: longboards do not usually have perforated grip tapes, so you may use the window cleaner/soft brush technique to scrub off the excess dirt first.
You can use small, repetitive strokes to clean the grip tape thoroughly till you reach one end from the other.
After that, use the microfiber cloth to dry it off completely
Then use the grip gum method to clean it totally. This won’t work on the damp grip tape. So make sure your grip tape is dry as a desert.

How to Clean Skateboard trucks?

Skateboard trunks have the issue of rusting of all things. For that:

Get yourself some white vinegar and paper towels.
After detaching the truck from the deck and the wheels, you can see where the rust has formed. This rust sometimes causes truck breakage, and since we don’t want, what you have to do is wipe vinegar on it, depending on the amount of rust or soak it in vinegar till the rust goes off.
After a few hours, scrub it off, cleanse it with paper towels and leave them.
Before reassembly, spray lube on them to prevent future resting.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which household items help in cleaning skateboard bearings?

See the section on what to use to clean skateboard bearings: it’s lube, paper towels, and cups.

Is it bad if you get your skateboard wet?

Yes. It can deform.

Is grip tape ruined by water?

For shortboards, yes.

Conclusion…

We hope you learned how to clean skateboards from our article. Use all this information for your next cleaning spree and don’t do DIYs unless you are sure they won’t harm your little treasure.

Happy cleaning!

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Is Skateboarding or Longboarding Easier?

Amelia Reed 9 Comments

It’s like you’re asking us, “Clementines or oranges?” Skateboarding or longboarding has quite a few differences yet seems not to have any, which is why we had to dig up this article for you.

Some say that with the right wheels beneath the boards, you could take your skateboard to the hills or your longboard to the skating park.

But that’s some advanced experiments and calls for injuries that we don’t want the beginners to tax themselves with. In this simple one, we will assume you just started on the cruise to boarding, and we’ll treat you so, to give you the basics of it.

Skateboarding Vs. longboarding for Beginners

So, should I get a skateboard or a longboard? As beginners, we like to have more space, don’t we? More comfort, more breathing area until we get used to what’s ahead of us.

From here, you may have guessed why learners take their time to get used to skateboarding. The availability of less surface area to maintain your balance on makes it harder if you are just starting out.

That way, longboarding may seem more appealing. Longboarding will also seem more attractive if you think of the wobbly feet you’ll be getting when post speed-bumps or when you go downhill at a higher speed.

But tell us this. Is it easier to handle a sizeable moving item or a small one? Isn’t the small one likely to give you a better grip? (Hint: skateboarding!)

Don’t frown at us; we won’t be confusing you!

Here, we will mention the plus and minuses of each of them and break it down further as to which is easier, skateboard or longboard, for a beginner.

Is skateboarding or longboarding easier?

difference between skateboard and longboard

Skateboards

A regular skateboard measures 28-36 inches and has curvy ends to let you do tricks or simply “flex,” as the millennials call it. You can find it at any sports-item selling store.

You may hear “shortboard” instead of skateboards, and they’re just the same. The board itself called the deck is rightly made of Bamboo or Maple. The advanced boarders like their decks made of aluminum or fiberglass, but that’s the story for another day.

There are metal “trucks’ ‘ that link the wheels to the board, the wheels preferably made of urethane, not plastic or rubber.

The bearings which allow the wheels to spin should be rated a seven or a five for being capable enough for a good ride.

To know more about skateboard measurement, read our guide on Standard Size Skateboard.

Read: How many calories can you burn longboarding?

Longboards

A longboard is a skateboard too, but undeniably never a shortboard, as true as the sun that rises in the East.

In theory and practice, it can be as long as you would like. But they are most as much as 30-59 inches, and being more prolonged than that would lead to a clumsy thing to handle.

Surprisingly sometimes, a longboard is shorter than a skateboard, which can happen if you buy large skateboards.

Anyway, the nose and tail of longboards are no longer curved here but are rather flat. But there are customizations here. For example, a Pintail has a pin-like, pointy tail but a flat nose.

Again, a Topmount has pointy ends on both sides. The same goes for a speed board. The opposite goes for Cruisers, where both parties are blunt.

The difference between skateboard and longboard

Other than visual differences, they do have other dissimilarities. Tricks, commute, cruise or race, longboards, and skateboards allow you to do it all. But if you are thinking of taking smooth turns and attempting smoother long rides, longboards are yours, whereas, for smooth tricks and faster acceleration, the smaller and harder wheels of skateboards give you better results.

For those with bigger feet and those who prefer more space, longboards let you be balanced as you move. Inevitably, they weigh more and are bulky. Also, you need to spend more if you are buying longboards.

On the other hand, unless you are purchasing large skateboards, you won’t have much space: only a limited amount. Also, they are much easier to carry. These are even more affordable when it comes to spending your first bucks on learning.

Again, if you are thinking of getting skate-apt shoes, they are likely to get torn and trampled much worse on skateboards than longboards.

The Similarities

They are both born of surfing enthusiasts. The fact that you won’t always find the ocean or answer the calls of the waves as you are running after the city life, you could almost carve out the fun on the streets from these babies. Longboarding/skateboarding is an excellent skill to learn.

And for introverts like us who just don’t know how to make more friends, this is a great way to start! Another similarity lies in the names of the parts used to construct the boards. Trucks, decks, bearings, and wheels, and you know which is which.

The Styles

With skateboarding or longboarding, you have to first start with regular riding. After that, with skateboarding, you could advance to skills such as mini ramps, skate bowls or skate pools, verts, parks, or even freestyle your own method of riding with tricks of your own.

With longboarding, cruising is again what is considered healthy and safe for beginners. But if you want yourself a hard time, going downhill and the adrenaline kick can be an adventure! Dancing, carving, and freeriding are also other styles that come with longboarding.

Final Verdict…

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What Is a Standard Size Skateboard? -Everything You Need to Know About Sizing Skateboards

Amelia Reed 7 Comments

If you’re wondering about what a standard size skateboard is, and got confused while sizing the deck, wheels, or trucks, we’re here to help.

In this article, we’ll cover all you need to know about the sizes of the different components in a skateboard and how you can choose the right one.

Standard Skateboard Size

Choosing the size of a skateboard, especially a width, is undoubtedly the most in-demand question of all. For picking the right size, we suggest starting out with a deck width that proportionates your shoe size.

When your shoes are men’s 6.5 to 9, you should go for a board that is wide by 7.5-8 inches. And if you wear larger than 9, get a deck having a width between 8 to 8.5 inches.

Skaters who are in the flip tricks, ledges, technical tricks, or flat bars, mostly prefer narrower boards having a width something from 7.75 to 8.25-inch.

On the other hand, the big bowl skaters, or those who are in the habit of jumping downstairs or large gaps, find themselves comfortable with much wider boards (8.3 to 9-inch).

In general, the larger is your board, the better your transportations will be, as they offer more stability and comfort within the standing platform.

Take a look at the chart down below, which will help you get a more clarified idea about the standard size skateboard width.

However, we still recommend trying out different size variations and figure out what standard-size skateboard deck size suits you best. Despite all the precepts regarding standard sizes, it’s your preference that matters the most.

How Long Is a Standard Size Skateboard?

The standard skateboard deck length mostly ranges from 28 to 33 inches. The smaller the size gets, the better it becomes for you to perform the tricks. And we recommend picking a 32-inch long deck, which is a practical size to get the best of both worlds. But still, it’s all up to your preference.

You’ll also find several boards that are over 36-inches in length, which are called longboards, whereas the plastic penny boards usually measure 22-inches.

Standard Size Skateboard Wheel Size

For picking the standard size skateboard wheel size, first, you need to know their types well. There are primarily three types of wheels. Find them with their associating sizes down below.

Street/Park Wheels: 50-60mm in Diameter

These are the hardest wheels that work best in streets and park skating for their lightweight, fast-rolling surfaces. They slide more easily too, which makes them perfect for doing the ollies, flips, or power slides.

Soft/Cruiser Wheels: 54-60mm in Diameter

Cruiser wheels are usually bigger and softer than street/park wheels. They fit any deck, and they are built for rolling fast regardless of the surface type. Throwing on cruiser wheels on your skateboard gives you smoother rides to make your skateboarding the fastest and the most fun way to roam throughout the town.

Longboard Wheels: 60-75mm in Diameter

These are the softest and the largest available wheels out there. They are made for powering through the roughest of surfaces, keeping the grip through the corners. Longboard wheels provide a variety of skateboarding options, including cruising, carving, sliding, and downhill racing.

Which One Should You Pick?

Smaller wheels weigh less, giving you more responsive, quicker pops. It benefits a lot while technical or street skating. Bigger wheels, in contrast, are heavier. Yet, they roll faster, keeping the consistency, especially on rigid surfaces. This trait makes them a splendid choice for transportations and even bowl skating.

Here’s an important thing we’d like to suggest. Remember to add riser pads when you’ve chosen wheels bigger than 56mm. It will add clearance to prevent potential wheel bites.

A Few More Things to Keep in Mind

The size of the Wheel contact patch, which is also referred to as the riding surface, is an essential aspect of the wheel that should be in your considerations. It’s the part of your wheels that contacts the ground. It mostly impacts the amount of grip you’re going to get. While the narrower patches are beneficial for trick rides and technical skating, you’ll be better off with wider ones for better transportations or bowl skating since they keep up the grip firmer at higher speeds.

Another aspect that impacts the grip amount is the wheel profile or the edge of the wheel. It affects the overall weight while determining how well the wheels will lock into the grinds. Generally, round-edged wheels help you slide more conveniently. On the contrary, a sharp-edged one will help you achieve better grip, tucking much firmer into the grind without causing slippage.

Standard Size Skateboard Truck Size

To determine the standard size skateboard truck size, you need to find out whether the axle width of the truck perfectly aligns with the deck width.

It’ll be best if you can find the exact matches, but a little off won’t hurt your riding. We suggest keeping the gap no more than 0.25-inch.

Standard Bushing Size

The urethane cushions underneath the truck are called bushings. They rest on each of the hanger sides to slide onto the truck’s kingpin.

Bushings provide the truck with the stability it needs, allowing you to customize the turns of the trucks. With all the bushings being same-sized and made to fit any truck, you don’t have any particular size to choose.

But here’s one thing, harder bushings will restrict the turns for much better stability, and the softer ones will be more responsive with less stability.

Standard Size Skateboard Bearing Size

Choosing the bearing size for your skateboard wheels can never go wrong, and you can be assured of it.

An 8mm core, 7mm width, and 22mm outer diameter are universalized as the standard size skateboard bearing size and these measurements are meant to fit any wheel you choose.

What you should consider instead is the ABEC ratings of bearings, which determines the physical limits and tolerances of ball bearings and how fast they would spin. Also, you may consider choosing the bearing material among steel, ceramic, and titanium, which come with different durability levels, strength, and lifespan.

Read: How To Slow Down On A Longboard Downhill?

On a Final Note…

That’s all from us about the standard sizes of skateboard components. Hopefully, this write-up will help you figure out the right shapes and sizes you’ll need in your skateboard for the best gliding experience.

But again, all the sizes mostly depends on personal preference. So pick your own riding style and keep exploring to find out what combinations sound more like you.

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