Hydroflex Skateboards
Skateboards made with surfboard technology is nothing new, I recall it was Hamboards that used to offer a foam and glass construction board, although it seems like they’ve gotten away from that. I was ready to dismiss this kickstarter project for Hydroflex Skateboards almost immediately, but in the interest of pretend skateboard journalism, I decided to check it out. I’m pretty impressed, actually. They’ve taken technology they developed for surfboards, adapted nd improved it for skateboards. Besides being waterproof, they appear to be highly durable and functional as well. You usually don’t see radical (no pun intended) alternative skateboarding manufacturing technologies put to the test in the street. It’s a foam core board with a honeycomb of resin running vertically, connecting the top and bottom layer. Of course, it’s never going to replace 7ply Canadian maple because it’s too labor intensive to produce. I’m not sure how the materials cost compares, but these the prices range from $90 to an unbelievable $230 for the deck alone. As durable as they are for some applications, you aren’t going to want to slide these on anything. Maybe there’s a place for Hydroflex boards in the industry, who knows. Do yourself a favor and watch some of the videos. Even if you don’t see the need for the process, it’s still interesting to see.
OS3 out of Santa Barbara, CA had been making foam core and glass mini surfboards with wheels on them for a while but I think they discontinued them. They were kind of neat because they were actually shaped just like a little surfboard (think of a Turner Summer Ski but shaped like a surfboard) but unfortunately they don’t hold up very well under normal use. I have one of their longboards that is made out of laminated wood instead of foam and it is a really nice looking board with a cool graphic on it and it is also shaped like a surfboard with a turned up nose and rolled over edges, etc. Unfortunately it is all show and no go. The thing rides terrible and the wheels bite unless it has an inch of riser on the trucks. Looks awesome hanging on the wall though. I can’t find their website any more but if you google or bing “OS3 skateboards” you can see some images of the foam ones that Skates on Haight were selling but are now OOS.
Nothing is gonna replace 8 ply huh? What about 7 ply?
That’s what I meant.
Ha, I figured. Just giving a hard time. Though I have actually skated a few 8 ply boards over the years.
..was that a girl pointing at the lizard model?? gross!