Fingerboard

There are several versions of the appearance of a fingerboard. The following is the most common:

In the late 1970s, Robert Lance Mountain invented the new Fingerboard entertainment. In 1985, Lance Mountain wrote an article “How to Make a Finger Skateboard” in TransWorld's SKATEboarding magazine, which launched a new popular hobby . Of course, the first fingerboards were very different from the current ones. Now these fingerers are called old-school (“old-school”, literally “old school”) - they have a lot of similarities with the first fingerboards.

And fingerboarding itself began in 1998 in California . It is alleged that the first miniature board was brought into the world by bad weather. A young California skater, Steven Asher, forced to stay home because of rain, made a small skateboard, made suspension materials, wheels, and even put graphics on his finger-skateboard. He rode it with his index and middle fingers and did the same tricks as in the present.

Peter Asher, Stephen's father, was a veteran of the toy industry at that time. He liked the idea of ​​his son, since skateboarding has already gained popularity in the USA, and such entertainment could appeal to California teenagers. So there appeared Tech Deck fingerboards.

Since the 1990s, large manufacturers have realized the potential of these products and started large-scale production. The company has come a long way from a rainy California day to the present day, when more than 50 million Tech Deck fingerboards have already been sold worldwide.

Board

As mentioned above, the board can be of various shapes and sizes. Fingerboards are also divided by material: plastic (TechDeck, My Area, Sbego) - beginners use it, but it is best to choose wooden boards with a good concave (groove), as they are better suited to perform stunt elements. The sizes of the boards are different: the width is from 27-35 mm, and the length is from 95-105 mm. At the moment, there are a very large number of companies that manufacture wooden boards for fingerboards, both in Russia and abroad. Several excellent brands can be noted both abroad and in Russia: Berlinwood, Planktoon, Hooded, Catfish, Yellowood - foreign; ROUND | SIDE, Systeam Fingerboards, BUR Fingerboards, Jersey FB - Russian.

Trucks

The suspension, in turn, consists of several parts:

• Suspension platform ( base ).
• Kingpin - the main bolt ( kingpin ).
• Shock absorbers ( bushings ) - come in different densities: hard, medium and soft.
• Gaskets for suspension ( pivot caps )
• Bolts and nuts.

At the moment there are several sizes of pendants: 26 mm, 29 mm, 32 mm, 34 mm (any size can be extended by bushings (spacers). The most popular companies that produce pendants: Blackriver Tucks, Yellowood, Planktoon, Dynamic. Improved in the width (from 29 to 32 millimeters) of Tech Deck.

Wheels

Fingerboard wheels can be made of plastic or polyurethane ; in many models the wheels have bearings.

• Fingerboard plastic wheels create quite loud clicks when riding and can crack with a strong blow.
• Polyurethane wheels are softer, less noisy when riding. The presence inside the bearing reduces friction and backlash. Also, when riding, the difference between the plastic and polyurethane wheels is felt.

The most famous companies producing fingerboard wheels abroad: FlatFace wheels, Winkler Wheels, Oak Wheels, Joycult.

In Russia, only BUR Fingerboards ( polyurethane ) and Turbo ( plastic ) produce wheels for fingerboards.

Skin

There are two types of skin for a fingerboard:

1. Riptape ( riptape ) - neoprene ; often found with wooden compliments and separately; the rubber surface is soft to the touch, gives a good grip with your fingers (various soft riptaps easily break; riptaps like FBS, Blackriver live much longer than their soft counterparts); often used by professionals.
2. Griptape ( griptape ) - sandpaper ; more common with plastic compliments; It gives a great resemblance to a skateboard, it is quite convenient to use, but with frequent skating, the skin of fingers and nails is rubbed, it is difficult to tear, it is long erased.

Fingerparks

Fingerparks are various devices for performing tricks on them.

• Ramps - semicircular figures: riding takes place by the method of departure and rolling in (BlackRiver, Turbo, Tech Deck).
• Street figures - steps, railings, tables, benches and other street obstacles (BlackRiver, Turbo, Tech Deck).
• Figure Park - halfpipes, quarterpipes, fanboxes, overclocking, big airs, plazas (BlackRiver, MyArea, Turbo, Tech Deck).
• Pool or pool: it can be either plastic or concrete.
• Concrete figures - autoblocks, concrites, kickers, boxes and many other street ones are also produced in Russia (ComixZone, Jersey, Warrior Fingerboards)

With many parks, fingerboards (Tech Deck, My Area, Sbego) and other budget sets are included. BlackRiver, and other more reputable companies offering wooden (rather than plastic) pieces, do not have compliments in sets.

• Official Tech Deck Website
• Official Russian site Tech Deck