Skateboarding is one of the most famous outdoor activities in the world. In order to play it, someone must have a skateboard. A skateboard consists of a maple board that has coating and designs that vary depending on the manufacturer. It has wheels attached to it that could be used for traveling, the bearings are the support in order to make some good tricks. In this article, we are talking about how to clean skateboard wheels.
Most of the skateboarders are making their moves with a skateboard ramp that could often be found in skate parks. As more and more people are going into skating, there are now clubs or groups of skateboard enthusiasts around the world. You have to be aware of your skateboard wheels. wheels are clear or not.
Today as technology has truly involved, there are now innovations in the skateboard industry. One of the best examples is the manufacturing of electric skateboards that could be used on long travel distances. It saves the feet of the user on propelling; the motor is the one who would propel. It runs through a battery that is mostly rechargeable. The skateboard has mostly two types, the longboard, and the shortboard. They have differences in appearance and function. The blueprint is almost the same.
An Overview Of The History
Before learning how to clean skateboard wheels, it is important to learn the history of the skateboard. By doing so, you will appreciate and take more care of your skateboard. We could trace the roots of skateboarding to the year of the 1950s, people are told that it started in the state of California. It has become a good substitute for surfing, many people refer to it as “surfing in the streets”. No wonder why it is famous in places that have a beach. In fact, the longboard started in Hawaii to make a substitute for surfing when waves are too low. As time goes by, different companies have enhanced the traditional skateboards. They added up different features that make it more reliable and durable. Now, the skateboard industry has a multi-million dollar market around the world.
Parts Of Skateboard
In order to maintain a skateboard that includes cleaning, we should identify its parts. However, some companies have additional parts that are unique to their product. The list of parts here is the most common that exists in many items.
- The Deck– This is one of the most common parts of the skateboard. In fact, this is the word “board” in the whole “skateboard”. Without a board, you would not have a thing to step on. The standard size of a shortboard is mostly consisting of 7 to 10.5 inches. The wider the deck is, the more stability it contains. The other batch is between 28 to 34 inches long, this is most common in the streets used by teenagers. On the other hand, the longboard consists of up to 27 inches. This is common for people who have long-distance travel and requires a higher speed of moving.
- The grip tape – The grip tape is a kind of tape similar to sandpaper. Its main purpose is to avoid slipping while using the board. It supports your feet to be attached through its rough surface. Unfortunately, as it is the stepping platform of the user, it acquires a lot of dirt. So regular maintenance is recommended.
- The trucks – These are the metals that hold the wheels in order to be attached to the board. This must the screwed properly so a problem would not occur in the future or when in travel. The metal should be firm and has a quality passed by international standards.
- The wheels – here is what we are longing to clean later on. Wheels are usually made from polyurethane, it has different sizes and some manufacturers are attaching new technology to its materials. As it encounters millions of bacteria and germs on the road that is why cleaning skateboard wheels should be consistent.
- Bearings– Wheels will not function well without a good bearing. This is the bone of the wheel, a poor bone would make the body malfunction. So, it is important to always check the status of the bearing in order to always have good traveling or tricks using the skateboard.
Cleaning Skateboard Wheels
Now, we are in the process of cleaning the wheels. We will remove the dirt that affects the performance of the skateboard.
- Prepare the tools– before starting, you should list down the things that you would need. Grab a piece of paper and enumerate the following. Screwdrivers, soap, water, and other solutions that could help you in cleaning.
- Disassemble – carefully screw the lock of the wheels from the trucks. After removing it, place it on a safe platform. Carefully remove its bearing from the wheels. There is a thing called a truck axle that could help you remove it easily.
- Remove obstructions– Check the wheels if it has a lot of embedded materials like small stones, sticks, and hairs. You could get a rag to remove it or clean it with a stick or a clipping tool.
- Apply the solution– Get a pale of water, put your solution or soap, you could also use vinegar, then soak the wheels on it for about ten minutes. This would make the germs and dirt become soft and reduce their attachment to the wheels. Just be careful not to soak the bearings.
- Brush it– Get the brush that you are compatible to use, and scrub the wheels until it is good as new. Scrub the outer part as well as the inner. Remove all the embedded dirt and debris as much as you can. After scrubbing, start cleaning it with water. Then, get a towel or rag to wipe it and let it dry.
- Clean the bearing– now, let us go with the bearings. The first thing to do is to remove the bearing shield. Carefully remove it, when the shield is damaged, it cannot be placed back.
- Apply solution– the safest solution is citrus cleaner, do use alcohol or other strong solution materials. This could destroy the bearing. Hold the bearings, then put the spray in front of it. You could also consider soaking it in citrus cleaner, this is the most effective.
- Put oil– Oil is essential for the bearing to function well. You could put those skateboard oil or even motor oil inside the bearing. It is available in most markets.
- Reassemble– now that everything seems fine. Put back the bearing shield and put the bearing in the wheels again. Then attach it to the trucks and your skateboard is good as new.
Skateboarding is very useful to us when it comes to traveling or as a source of entertainment. There is a lot of information on the internet in order to make its lifespan longer. We need to read more articles because the more we learn about properly caring for our item, the longer it would serve us, and it might even save us money. Plus, we should also bear in our mind that we need to clean it consistently. The more the bacteria are attached to it, the more it would have an effect on the skateboard’s performance. So, follow the steps that you’ve learned from this article, how to clean skateboard wheels and enjoy skateboarding.