Rain Board 2.0: All Aluminum Fury

Rain isn’t good for skateboards. The water can warp your wood, you could get mold and rot between the layers of your deck, some of the metal parts of your hardware and trucks can rust, your bearings can rust, and even your grip tape can become problematic. Then you’ve got the issue of hydroplaning, and the reduced friction is going to make turning, slowing down, just everything more difficult. But let’s say you like to skate every day. Let’s say you like to occasionally bomb a hill or commute, and you just don’t want to stop just because of the rain or because of wet pavement. What then?

You build yourself a rain deck.

A while back, I made myself a rain cruiser. However, the 70mm wheels made it sit just a little too tall. I loved the fact that I could easily carry it or even strap it to my backpack if I decided it was raining just a little too much to skate, but I didn’t like how high I sat over it. With a slick road, I just had to bend too much to push without slipping. It wasn’t bad for shorter commutes, but going over a mile became a little bit of a pain. Plus, I didn’t feel as confident having a bit of fun on it, due to the tall platform and short wheelbase. So, I decided to make another rain board. Here’s what I’ve used and some suggestions on how you could make one for yourself.

Setup:

• Beercan Hard Cider, 35″ aluminum top-mount with massive drops
• Eastside 70mm Grooved Rain Wheels, tried and true
• Gullwing Charger trucks (10″, but about 178mm hanger width)
• Riptide wet formula lube
• Zealous ceramics (mostly)
• Soft risers
• Rubber sheeting for mudflaps
• Duck Tape duct tape
• Some spare hardware I had laying around. I ordered some more so it’ll match better, don’t worry.

Deck: Beercan Boards Hard Cider, 35″

I already did a review of the Beercan Boards Hard Cider. All of that applies here, but I’ll summarize. The deck is a top-mount with massive drops and wheel cutouts. This gives riding on it a sort of “pendulum” sense. You feel like you’re balancing your weight somewhere above the board. It’s a steadfast and well-balanced position, that still allows for tight control and agility when you need it. However, it can be a little off-putting at first if you’re mostly used to smaller drops and drop through decks or top mount decks with microdrops or no drops. However, it’s a lot of fun, so I recommend giving top mounts with massive drops like this a try.

The deck is a heavier than my wooden decks, and then I added mudflaps and tape, which only made the situation worse. Beercan Boards could have perhaps made it more narrow in the center, a sort of hourglass shape. There’s a slight indentation where the grommets are, but this could have been more pronounced. It’s a wide deck at 10″, a little cut out of the rail could have lightened it up without removing usable foot space. An extra two grommets would have made holding their weight easier as well.

Weight is mostly a pain when you’re carrying your board, but it also becomes a problem when you go to change direction or stop. That mass makes initiating slides easy, which is a whole lot of fun! However, the extra mass means there’s more force you’ll need to slow down or stop. You especially notice this when moving fast or in slick conditions. You know, like over wet asphalt.

Looking back, I wish I had based this off of Beercan’s 32″ “Ginger Ale” deck. This is more of a deck for kids (thus why it’s a soft drink name instead of alcohol), but the smaller size would have made it more easy to carry. The Ginger Ale is 0.6 lbs lighter than the Hard Cider. It definitely would have felt more like a typical longboard at that weight. This, complete, is about a 0.8lbs heavier than my heaviest deck. Some of that’s certainly the mudlfaps, but my second heaviest deck is my 42″ Medirian, with 9-ply maple, slightly larger trucks, and a foot stop. It should be heavier than a 35″ board, but it’s not. The Hard Cider is lighter than you’d expect for this stiffness, but still heavier than wood.

We really have to talk about that stiffness. The board is shockingly stiff, especially if you primarily ride on wood. You step on a stiff maple deck, and you don’t realize it gives a little. Step on this, and you realize what stiff really means. There’s absolutely no give in this board. It doesn’t bother me too much, perhaps in part due to the density of the deck, but I’m usually more concerned about the rain when riding it. I’m sure the water on the ground softens the ride slightly as well. That stiffness does help with reliable slides.

This is a heavy duty deck, and that’s not going to be right for everyone, but for those willing to put up with the weight for an ultra stiff deck, it might be right for you.

Trucks: Gullwing Charger 10″ Trucks

These weren’t the stock trucks. Those were Bear 852’s (review updated). I swapped them in because they’re a bit more narrow, and I liked the Bear trucks for a different setup. The Charger trucks are… interesting. Later versions, like the Charger 2, come with a more traditional barrel/cone setup, though I can’t find those online anymore. These instead came with a dual cone setup, with one of them being a larger, sort of stepped cone. It’s odd. It’s just a little taller than a standard bushing, but definitely not tall enough for a standard “tall” bushing. It’s almost exactly 0.625″, while most standard longboard bushings are 0.6″. Since it’s boardside, it’s important to match the size. I just used a slightly thicker washer, and it’s good to go.

The truck doesn’t have rake, but with the stock bushing setup, it feels like it does. You can easily dive into turns and commit too much to a turn. If you know what you’re expecting, it’s a fun, flowy feel. Because the Hard Cider de-wedges the trucks ever so slightly (1-2º), I actually like these trucks better than I did on the deck I had them on before, an older Sector 9 Meridian (they still make a tweaked version of it today).

These are my least favorite RKP trucks that I own. However, I plan to get some barrel bushings and try them with the more domed shape of the Paris V3 cone bushing and the barrel. I think that combination would add a lot of stability, with less dive and more lean. It’ll also still give me the more nimble turning of a traditional cone/barrel combo. It should aid in returning to center. We’ll see.

Gullwing trucks don’t list hanger width, they go by axle width. The axle width on these is 10″. The hanger width comes down to about 178-180mm, if you’re looking to compare them to other trucks. There’s no rake on the hanger, all the truck’s diviness comes from the double cone bushings. The height of the trucks is about 67mm tall, so a little over 2.6″.

Another notable feature is that there’s virtually no bushing seat on the deck side of the hanger. Even the roadside is less restrictive than it looks. There’s definitely some slop. The return to center isn’t great, especially with those double cones. If I’m being honest, I wouldn’t use these for anything but some gentle cruising or commuting.

This is a carvy truck, but you’d be better off with something that gets that carviness from something that doesn’t dive and lack rebound to help you return to center. Basically? Go with a cone/barrel setup or double barrel setup with a truck that has a hanger with rake, like many other trucks. I’m not looking to replace these, they aren’t that bad, but they’re not my favorite. However, without much of a bushing seat, there’s always going to be some slop. I can only improve the return to center and reduce slop so much.

With slop, your slides won’t be as consistent. Long story short? Easygoing riding only on these. This is best suited for a boardwalk cruiser or, well, a rain board. Gullwing has their Reverse trucks, and if you’re going with Gullwing cast trucks, I’d recommend those. Perhaps that’s why Sector 9 stopped putting the Charger trucks on their downhill/freeride decks.

Wheels: Eastside Rain Wheels

I’ve discussed these wheels before, so I’ll keep this brief. When you’re moving over water, your wheels are trying to move the water out from under them. Water doesn’t compress well (that’s how hydraulics work), so if you’re moving over them quickly, you won’t make contact with the road very much. This is called hydroplaning. Grooves in your wheels reduce the area that the water has to move. Groove patterns like those on the Eastside H2O Rain Wheels help a lot, but they’re not perfect.

These are deep channels. That means they can accept a lot of water. But those channels will get more shallow as you skate and slide through this urethane. That means that, as time goes on, you’ll be more likely to hydroplane on these.

The best rain wheels would have deep groves and something called exit channels. These help give water a way to leave the deeper grooves out the sides of the wheels. You can see them on wheels like those from Harfang. However, not only are Harfang wheels quite expensive, most of their patterns aren’t as deep as the Eastside wheels. Eastside gives you the grooves for your buck.

Eastside doesn’t recommend using these in dry weather and neither do I. They will have less traction, and you will slide more. I know this because I have, on more than one occasion, skated to work in the rain but skated home on dry pavement. They slide well, but it’s not a reliable slide. Furthermore, you’ll ride yourselves of those grooves quickly, and you don’t want that.

Bearings: Zealous Ceramics (mostly) with RipTide Wet Formula Lube

I say “mostly” because, for a while, I was also running one Zealous steel bearing that I had from a previous wet setup. Why? Because one of my ceramics rusted over. How? Well, the balls themselves may be ceramic (or steel coated in ceramic), but the races and housing are not. A little bit of rust in there, and the bearing’s toast. Ceramics do reduce the number of surfaces that can rust, the ball parts of the ball bearings. In fact, by replacing them, you greatly decrease the chance of rust. The rest of my bearings have survived since the first rain board I built months ago. Just this one finally gave up on me.

Zealous uses a thicker lube, which is good for wet weather and rolling speed (though not as good for acceleration). I do add RipTide’s wet formula though, only because a hydrophobic lubricant can help keep water out. If you can keep water away from the inner workings of the bearings, you can reduce the chances of rust.

These are great bearings. They’re only $30 for the ceramics, which is dirt cheap compared to the hundreds of dollars other brands will charge you. I’ve heard of other bearings using titanium and ceramic to reduce the surfaces that can rust over to zero, but I haven’t had a chance to try any of them. If I can get my hands on something like that, you’ll be the first to know. Until then, these Zealous ceramics have lasted me months of rainy weather with only one failure. That’s phenomenal! My steel bearings couldn’t last two weeks of rainy weather.

What’s Not in It

They looked like a gimmick, but I thought I’d give them a try. Wheel Shields. These go over your wheels to prevent water from splashing up around the wheel. They also allow riders to guarantee no wheel bite and no stepping on your wheels. Mostly, I was thinking about how they could block water from splashing up. I ordered a set. My card was charged, and I waited nearly a month. Nothing happened. Finally, PayPal refunded me, saying they couldn’t get in contact with the business. I hope everyone involved with Wheel Shields is okay, but it seems as though they’re out of business.

The Mudflaps: Rubber. Yup. Rubber.

But I went with a different solution. I had seen people taking those cheap plastic cutting boards and shaping them into mudflaps. I did some car tuning back in my day, and I remember people doing cheap mudflap mods out of this material. I didn’t ever do that for my car, but I tried the cutting board version for my rain deck. I went into a Bed Bath and Beyond, carrying a large aluminum skateboard, mind you, found the kitchen section, and bought some cheap plastic cutting mats. I went home, measured and cut them, drilled holes in them, and mounted them to my board. The next morning I rode that board to work. It was awful. They blocked any water from coming up, but the plastic flapped around and made a racket. I grabbed some tape when I got to the office and taped the plastic to the board, but it still wobbled from the wind on my way home, creating an obnoxious noise.

On the train home, I had a better idea. Rubber, like actual mudflap material. So I went on Amazon and searched for “rubber sheets.” I had forgotten that children wet the bed. So then I searched for “rubber sheeting” instead. There I found rolls of rubber sheets. I got the right size, and ordered it. A few days later, I had thick black rubber sheets. I used the existing rubber boards to cut the rubber, and I had my new flaps.

However, unlike plastic, rubber is extremely flexible. It hung down on the wheels. I, at first, used 3M poster tacks to stick it to the top, but, after a few runs, it started to peel. So I instead got some electrical tape and used that. This worked, but electrical tape can stretch. I knew it wouldn’t work forever. Finally, I got some waterproof duct tape and went over everything. This has held everything in place and out of the way.

I could have slit the rubber up the center, but I was worried about more water getting on top of the deck. I also didn’t want to increase the complexity too much, which can increase the chance of failure. The rubber could tear along that slit, for example. So, instead, I just taped it to the board very securely, and haven’t had issues. This is the shakiest part of the board, but it’s vital.

How Do They Work?

Beautifully! I’ve splashed through some huge puddles with them, watching the water flood out the sides of my deck, while my jeans remained perfectly dry. It was actually really cool to see it work so perfectly. Water flooded out the sides of the board and none got on me. This also works with the slightly more narrow Gullwing Trucks. I had been using the Bear trucks that came on this, but they’re about half a centimeter wider. This puts the wheels just barely outside of the mudflaps. I rode this to work once and got mud on my pants from just one big muddy puddle. I was not happy. I could have gotten wider rubber sheets, but it looked weird. I like the rounded rectangle design. Besides, I prefer it with the slimmer trucks anyway.

Other Options

A member of Reddit’s r/longboarding community created some mudflaps for their Pantheon Trip. They used a more firm plastic and a cutout design that takes advantage of the way the plastic wants to snap back into a flat shape. Then it’s using the shape of the Trip deck to hold it in place, no tape required. I don’t know how it sounds, but it’s certainly a solution that would require less duct tape.

Fortunately, since this is to be my rainy day, muddy beater, I’m not too concerned about appearance. You know, as long as it doesn’t look utterly ridiculous.

Overall

So, I actually didn’t like this setup at first. I thought I should have gone with their drop through decks, despite the smaller drop. This was just too much dive. However, that would have allowed more water to splash up on the top of the deck. Also, this is heavy enough as it is. I’d only go smaller, not longer. The truth is, the other day it rained and I thought about quickly putting the wheels on my old rain board and taking that, just because it’s so much lighter. Carrying around that big deck is a bit of a pain. However, the rubber grommets do help me keep my hands mostly dry when carrying it, and that’s certainly welcome. But if I decide it’s raining too much, I’m stuck with a giant board that doesn’t even fit well on my backpack.

I think there will be a rain board 3.0 someday. However, to be frank, I think I nailed the core design. Ignoring the weight issue of the deck, this board keeps me dry while I skate, it’s comfortable to push on, it’s great for sliding, the top mount allows me to have a lot of deep carves and control, and that rigidity makes it feel like a highly reliable platform. You can trust it not to bend while you push into it. Sliding feels “linear,” predictable and mathematical. If portability isn’t a problem, like I’m not meeting up with friends or something and going to have to walk around with it, then it’s definitely the rain board I’ll reach for. However, if there’s any chance I’ll have to carry an umbrella, walk with friends, or get a deck in a small restaurant or bar, then the Penny-based rain deck is going to come out of the quiver.

It’s a great board, I just wish Beercan Boards made lighter decks. Perhaps Rain Board 3.0 will be made of carbon fiber or highly laminated bamboo? Or maybe….

Rain Board 3.0?

As I hinted in the deck section, if I went back and thought about this more, I would have gone for a different deck and truck. I would have gotten the 32″ Ginger Ale Deck and Paris 150mm V3 trucks. Then I would have added my own wheels. The wheels that came with the Beercan Boards deck aren’t the worst in the world, but they aren’t worth having a heavier setup.

At 8″ wide, the Ginger Ale is about the size of the Pantheon Ember or Trip. Both work well with 150mm trucks. Take the Ginger Ale deck for $79 and throw in the Paris V3 trucks for $53. It would have come out to $132, cheaper than a complete. It’s smaller, lighter, and would make a better platform. It’s not often I feel like I made such a big mistake when buying anything, but the Hard Cider was definitely one, if only for this project (it’s still a fun board on its own). It’s just too heavy for everyday use. So, if you’re looking to build your own Rain Deck out of one of Beercan’s Boards, and you’re concerned about weight ad portability, here’s what you do.

• Deck: Beercan Boards Ginger Ale: $79
• Trucks: Paris V3 150mm 50º: $53
• Wheels: Eastside H2O Rain Wheels: $39.99
• Bearings: Zealous Ceramic Bearings: $29.99
• Lube: Riptide Speed Lube, Wet Weather: $9.80
• Hardware: MuirSkate’s Beasto 0.13″ Top Mount Panhead Hardware Mounting Kit: $8.95
• Rubber sheeting: ~$16 (affiliate link)
• Duct Tape: ~$7.98 (affiliate link)

Total Cost: $244.71 + tax & shipping

Just the Deck and Trucks: $132 + tax & shipping

That’s the setup I should have made. I, foolishly, didn’t check out the weights of the decks, and thought I’d prefer the larger standing platform for balance and stability in the rain. Falling always sucks, but it’s a bit worse in low visibility, or when you have to go to work covered in rain, mud, and road grime. Still, these decks are stiff and inspire confidence. I could have gone with the smaller one, for better portability, without sacrificing a sturdy, reliable deck feel. I let the fact that it seems marketed for children get in my head. What I should have done is customized it to my liking.

Don’t make the same mistake I made. Unless you’re a bigger person or a body builder, the larger deck’s weight just isn’t going to be worth the extra standing platform, especially as you add more to it, like risers and mudflaps. I’m 5’10”, if I can ride on a 22″ Penny board without problem, you can learn to ride on a 32″ dropped deck. If I were to do this all again, I’d go with the setup I outlined above. Who knows? Maybe I will someday. Beercan Boards has a renewal program, so I can send in my Hard Cider deck and, for just $50, swap it out for a Ginger Ale. Then I’d just need the 150mm Paris trucks (I only have their TKP trucks in that size currently), and I’d be set with what I have.

But that’ll be a post for another day.

Oh, and a little advice. Skating is always dangerous. Skating in low visibility with reduced traction? That’s more dangerous. Use flashing lights, protective gear, reflectors, force fields, whatever you’ve got to use to feel safe. Be smart, be safe!