has anybody ever tried Hula deck on a skateboard instead of grip tape for riding barefoot? i picked up some free plywood and am gonna make a couple things, including a longboard, thought it was a good idea…
here’s the link, i forgot it earlier…oops
http://www.surfdogz.com/beach/traction/clearkit.htm
tommy
Or you could coat the deck with very a thin layer of resin or polyurethane, chuck some clean sand on it and put another coat on.
Might be cheaper too…
Both ideas are logical, but do not work. I shape old-skool skate decks and longboards, and have tried many things to get away from grip tape. The problem w/ the sand is that it wears down into a slippery black mess. I would expect the resin on the Hula product to just wear off w/ the wear and tear of skateboarding. If u want to have clear grip, go to milehighskates.com. They sell a clear griptape that is actual skateboard grip, yet is easily seen through, i use it all the time. This would be your best bet. Also, plywood is not good for longboards in the long-run, too soft, makes great downhill and old-skool boards though. If u want to make a good longboard, a hardwood would better choice. Just my 2 cents.
-TReilly
Hey TReilly,
Just a comment about ply, I got around the strength issue by laminating 2 sheets together with a layer of glass and epoxy and one layer of glass on the bottom.
The grip tape I used was 180 wet and dry glued on with contact cement. Works OK for me…
hey hicksy
what specs are you getting
im blind as a bat
half my problem is bad wave selection from bad eyesight
are you getting those barsoptics
let me know how they go
i guess it would be good wearing specs…
being able to see the people BEFORE they ran you over would mean no more cut backs for you , silly man .
But since you apparently liking cut backs , maybe you shouldn’t buy any specs paul ?
[also blindish in the water] ben
i wasnt really trying to get the clear look (although that would be nice) but i was trying to get something a little less abrasive on my barefeet.
what if i just hotcoat it, and let it be?
on my longboard skatey i painted the deck with marine varnish & lightly & evenly sprinkled clean builders sand on top. once the varnish went off i brushed off the excess sand & gave the whole deck another coat of marine varnish. came up a treat. pretty clear & nice & hard too.
i wasnt really trying to get the clear look (although that would be nice) but i was trying to get something a little less abrasive on my barefeet.what if i just hotcoat it, and let it be?
If you’re skating barefoot, why not just hotcoat & surfwax?
That’s what I have on one of my homemade indo-type-board decks. Its great.
thats probably what ill end up doing, benny
is there any way that i might be able to get the texture of the cloth as grip?
Use heavy cloth like 10 oz and bag it on with peel ply & absorbent. You’ll be absolutely blown away at how dry you can laminate. The heavy cloth will provide lots of texture.
tomcat- if the main concern is comfortable grip while barefoot, I would suggest trying the “rubberized” anti-slip tape from 3M. It is gray in color, soft textured rubber surface, and adhesive for easy application. They have a white one that is slightly abrasive, the gray which is non abrasive, and the black which is just like skate grip tape. Try the gray. It is sold in strips (1", 2" and 4") from a hardware store or Home Depot/Lowes.
If you want something that is clear. Try using waterbased polyurethane with some anti-slilp additive mixed in. The water based stuff dries clearer than oil based and use the Behr additive (fine white powder) mixed in. By adjusting how much additive you put in and the application technique, you can make it comfortable for bare feet. By applying with a brush the poly will stay on the surface and will be less abrasive. By applying with a sponge roller, you can get the additive to “spike” up and get more grip that way. Both methods will be somewhat clear and you will still be able to see the graphics on the deck.
Howzit tomcat, You could use sugar or rock salt. I've used both on windsurf boards in the past. do a hot coat and just when it starts kicking off sprinkle the sugar or salt on it. Eventually the grit will desolve but it will leave pits and still have a texture to it. I just resurfaced a couple of shower stall bottoms and use rock salt for the texture, at first it was pretty rough so I just knocked it down with some 220 grit paper.Aloha,kokua
carpet, in my opinion, works awesome, you can get scraps for free, and you can ride barefoot
Shag, plush or twistpile … and do you need stainmaster protection?
Silly, yeah getting the Barz Optics ones, cost $326.00 delivered from Qld to WA, I just sent them my script and they rang the next day to let me know they could do it. (my script is off the scale, short sighted in one eye, long sighted in the other, both with astigmatism, pretty rooted really) I’ll post a review when I give them a go…