Skateboarding

Bored of Southsea is an independent skate shop with over twenty-six years experience in the UK skateboard industry and many more as skateboarders, and we can help you with all of your skateboarding wants and needs. Whether you're just starting out and looking to buy a complete skateboard for beginners, or an experienced skater looking for some new hardware for your set-up. Generally skateboards are made up of a deck (the board), two trucks (the metal under-carriages), 4 wheels, 8 bearings, hardware (8 bolts) and griptape for the top of the deck. We stock a wide choice of all skateboard parts and hardware from loads of the best skate brands on the market. One of the most important things to remember when choosing is that it's all about personal preference and comfort, but it's worth baring in mind that if you are small / young, then it may be better if your deck / skateboard is on the smaller side too. To help you out with some of these choices if you're not already familiar, we have full explanations of all the component parts below.

More on Skateboards:

• Deck
This is the board in skateboard. Usually made from 7-ply Canadian maple wood, with an elevated nose & tail at each end, and concave edges running down the length of the deck to help with grip and steering. Every board has 8 holes drilled in the deck to fix the
trucks to it with hardware bolts, and usually range in sizes from 7.5" to 10" wide depending on your size and preferences. Deck shapes can vary from the most common "popsicle" shapes, to the more old school "fishtail" (80's) and "football" (90's) shapes. One of the best things about skateboard decks is the graphics, often with a small logo on the top, and then a large full graphic on the bottom.

• Trucks
The two metal under-carriages that enable the skateboard to turn, as well as connecting the deck to the wheels. Skateboard trucks are made from aluminium and steel, consisting of two main parts, a hanger that houses an axel that the wheels are fixed to, and a baseplate that attaches to the deck. The two parts are joined by a large Kingpin bolt that enables steering, along with two rubber bushings and a pivot cup.

• Wheels
Since the 1970s, skateboard wheels have been made from polyurethane, or Urethane, and are bought in packs of 4. Coming in a wide range of sizes and hardness, depending on the type of skateboarding you're doing. Going up to around 70 mm for cruiser and longboard wheels, and as small as 40 mm, but these days most people go for something around 51 mm - 58 mm. In addition to the size, wheels can vary in hardness,
with old school soft cruiser wheels being around 78a - 80a durometer, and modern street, ramp and skatepark wheels being between 99a- 101a. Each of the 4 wheels take 2 skateboard bearings per wheel for it to spin and fix to the trucks' axel.

• Bearings
Sold in packs of 8, with 2 skateboard bearings used per wheel to enable it to spin on the truck's axel. Available in a variety of ratings, including ABEC5, ABEC-7, ABEC-9, ABEC-11, and Ceramic, Swiss, Super Swiss Bearings. We stock top brands including Bones Reds, SFK, Mini Logo, Spitfire, Independent, Spitfire and Bronson.

• Hardware Bolts
Once again, coming in packs of 8 and generally coming with an Allen key or Phillips head, these small hardware bolts attach the trucks to the skateboard deck. Depending on the size of your wheels and if you use riser pads between your deck and trucks, bolts range in length from 3/4"- 1.5". Along with brands such as Independent and Bronze
Hardware, Bored of Southsea have our own hardware bolts brand Usain Bolts, so be sure to check them out if you're in the market.

• Griptape
Applied to the top of your deck to provide grip and traction for your feet on the board, self-adhesive backed griptape. Easy to apply to your deck, you can either keep it classic and cover the deck entirely, or choose to express yourself by cutting it up or adding some paints. At Bored of Southsea, we supply a FREE sheet of griptape with every
deck you buy with us.