Casting DIY Skateboard Trucks At Home - Ep. 3

[@GoodRoads]

I just noticed that I got the term for risers wrong a whole bunch over the course of this vid. The tubes coming up out of the mold that I cut with the brass tube aren't gates or runners, they're risers. Please excuse my amateurish use of casting language hahaha!!!

[@brentmosser1494]

Only if you excuse me for calling you Alex in a comment a few weeks back. Sorry about that. Not sure what I was thinking. I'd be so excited to see your custom board get some exposure on Braille's channel. I'll definitely comment over there that they need to check out Chris from Good Roads.

[@GoodRoads]

All good! I told you: just don't call me late to dinner!

[@shadowcard6923]

You may wish to check out the complete handbook of sand casting, I own it and it’s an amazing resource

[@byfingerboard]

how to make fingerboard truck

[@snowboardik]

Pivot cup, kingpin hole and mounting holes are drilled/milled after casting on a majority of trucks. No need of trying to cast this elements at all.

[@fredkennedy8435]

haha, "I am not a patient man," says the man who's building his own skateboards from scratch.

[@trickswithjp]

As a foundry worker (I don't make molds just smelt iron) I daydream about trying this almost daily. Just the thought of grinding concrete curbs on homemade trucks is kinda badass

[@GoodRoads]

Iron work is so sick though, if you've already got that experience you're half way there

[@Eldritch-1]

Definitely badass DIY, punk as f@ck!

[@DTC1138]

The true 'indie' truck

[@crackin2000]

Living the dream. I have long fantasized about opening skate shops in third world cities that presses casts and thaned everything in house so the don't have to import parts. Very well done.

[@markblewden6188]

Hey Chris, thanks for the shout out. You should be very proud of what you’ve accomplished.

[@GoodRoads]

Yo dude! Thank you so much for all the help! My casts came out much cleaner this time

[@tinayoga8844]

To keep the sand for the pivot cup in place, put a nail in it. The nail will add support to the sand. Also use more parting compound on the inside of the pattern. Use a fine hair (artist) brush to paint the parting compound on the more vertical surfaces.

[@GoodRoads]

Thank you! I will give this a shot next time around

[@noveltystylus6703]

That proud smile makes this video all the better. Great job my dude

[@footycheck]

I knew it was best to wait for the last part and watch all together. What a fun ride. Thanks

[@BootlegHuman]

Like the NightHawkInLight but for Boards, love it

[@guitarwi3rdo]

Would love to see an updated version of this

[@Snakes_N_Crafts]

The ollie legitimately surprised me. Nice work. You should feel great about this lol

[@matiasvaccaro453]

You are a trully help to the diy community

[@michiganprospectors]

I am not into skateboarding but the casting is coming along very well. That is what brought me here.

[@JanBinnendijk]

This is Great.. nice that you show all the steps of Casting these Trucks.. I wouldn't be worried about the axles.. i think a lot of companies do it the same way "now make your own Bearings.. :)" I've been thinking about making my own trucks as well, but i would machine them out of solid Aluminium, and make the Pivot angle adjustable..

[@Charbarhousemusic]

I hope you had a huge sense of achievement when you finally got to skate your creation. Well done.

[@GoodRoads]

For sure, I had a huge smile on my face

[@joshlawton4973]

He did it!

[@mineral520]

Since you used old router metal. Route Trucks has a good ring to it! Dude, this is so awesome.

[@GoodRoads]

Hmmm, I like it!

[@MAYERMAKES]

absolutelly amazing... great now I have areason for getting a furnace!

[@GoodRoads]

It's always good to have an excuse. Like, for example, if I get a heat treating oven I can make my own axles. No such thing as too many tools.

[@zvotaisvfi8678]

this is the craziest thing ive ever seen

[@omni5129]

So with the axles .. they usually cast in a dummy rod, made from sand and resin, the resin burns away and you are left with just sand .. that's the reason why you see the axle showing through in 3 spots, as those spots hold the resin rod straight .. the casting is then heat treated to T6 ... then the axle is pushed in as heating the axles will soften the metal. The other holes for pivots etc are just left blank and drilled later.

[@GoodRoads]

Hm. Yes. I know some of those words. Hahaha! In all seriousness: thanks for the tips, that all seems like super helpful advice.

[@TurboSqu1d]

I'm in the process of making a custom electric longboard and considered this as an option to get just the right size of hanger I needed. I searched everywhere to find this kind of video and nothing came up but went through your backlog of videos after finding your custom wheel videos, remembering the project in its infancy ages ago. I did end up finding a product that I purchased at a good price but this is definitely bookmarked for future projects. Very cool and informative video otherwise.

[@GoodRoads]

Thanks dude! I also searched for a video like this for many many years and didn't have any luck. That's a big part of why I tackled the project, I wanted to get this information out there

[@jesterblackguarde8464]

A good way to shape your pivot cup would be to use a ceramic core. Same thing for any semi-complex holes. Put the cores in place on the bucks, and pack the sand around them to hold them in place.

[@GoodRoads]

That seems like a viable solution, how do you make those inserts?

[@MrOffshore]

I’m impressed! I couldn’t do that!!! We’ll done, crazy to skate a set of one-off trucks you designed and manufactured yourself!!

[@GoodRoads]

Thanks dude! It was really gratifying!

[@KeithSkates]

I really love the idea of the adjustable truck spacing with the holes.

[@adambee4575]

Fantastic Chris, you made trucky truck trucks - excellent work. Braille would be awesome too!

[@jiproijackers7595]

Perseverance pays off. Well done Chris!

[@patrickfoster8252]

Well done, WELL DONE!!!! Innovation in anything comes from people like you that are doing it for the absolute joy of doing. Not driven buy money and greed. Also the baseplate wheel base option holes is brilliant.

[@leradicideglialberi]

AMAZING!!! Really amazing!

[@michaeljohn8905]

Nice ! China can’t seem to make INDYS axle and hangers straight. I’m a lifelong independent rider and now I’m going to change. Yours look much nice. Good job man. I’ll be watching more of your vids. Keep it up

[@jackwatson7323]

gotta say, that assembly was pretty exciting

[@lisagrillo3985]

Next you should make fingerboard trucks next

[@lp_6014]

This is awesome!!!!

[@toony1998]

This is my new favorite channel!

[@Biokemist-o3k]

Wow!! This whole series is super cool. I am starting a KZbin channel soon with a build of a 1928 Morgan MG special Brooklands hillclimb racer. I will be casting a two part aluminum adapter to attach an experimental airplane opposed twin engine to the flywheel of a 4 speed MG transmission. I am researching different aluminum scrap to know what I can use. Thanks for sharing my friend.

[@nirodha7028]

Bear Trucks use that hole pattern. Works well. Man! What an awesome outcome to this project man! If you make more: add a logo ;-)

[@GoodRoads]

Yeah. I knew there was no way somebody out there wasn't drilling their baseplates like that, it just makes too much sense. And yes on the logo!

[@nirodha7028]

@@GoodRoads Will be watching progress with great pleasure my man! You are doing awesome work. What I was wondering is the cost effectiveness of this process. Other than being able to create custom geometry... is it economically viable to create for example a small production run to sell with proffit? The way I see it you are totally set up to sell complete custom boards at ‘custom board’ prices. Pretty sure there are folks willing to fork a sum that makes it viable as a bussiness model. Would you agree? I know you are sharing all your files for those willing to invest the time and effort themselves... which is great by the way! But your personal experience and time is certainly worth money to those who cant be bothered to get hands on. I am personally working on quad skate plates which are UFS inline boot compatible and the truck geometry is totally custom. I designed them with casting in mind but the prototypes are being milled atm (I have a friend). Interested to learn the economics of this process (cost of sand? Reusable? Gas? Other consumables?) and if you have ideas on how to scale up? Perhaps a tree with multiple parts in one go? In that case another method is needed to capture the shapes (lost wax or lost 3D print moulding) but yeah... Looking forward to more sir!

[@GoodRoads]

I am certainly not thinking about production level truck manufacturing at this point, I was just compelled to do it for the sake of having done it, but it might be worthwhile at some point to look at the numbers. I honestly think sourcing and processing the right kind of aluminum would be the biggest bottleneck. The rest is pretty straightforward and there aren't many recurring costs. It's just time consuming

[@raistnox]

you might want to try an oil bonded sand, might get a better surface texture. also for your pivot cup issue take a look into sodium silicate sand casting

[@GoodRoads]

I got a tip to add some neutral oil to my sand which I want to try, any thoughts on that?

[@raistnox]

@@GoodRoads not something I'm familiar with, worth a small scale test at the very least.

[@understandinghumanity4653]

Thanks for this lil series bro... really appreciate it and it got me to make my own from scratch snowskate and i love it

[@GoodRoads]

Sick!

[@AB_Pyrotechnic]

to fix the pivot cup issue, put a piece of all-thread in cup as support. think of it like rebar in concrete. if all-thread doesn't work, just a normal course thread wood screw works! make sure to heat the screw very hot before use though. sometimes hardware has wax or oils that will burn off. they will add bubbles to your part or ruin the mold.

[@dhruvgoel2202]

To prevent sand from falling during removal of the part add much more of the powder on the part before putting sand to make mold. Also you can add a little amount of water in sand to increase moisture content to raise the adhesiveness between particles of sand. Also tap multiple times on the part such that it moves walls of soil all around it making it easier for mold to be removed without damaging the walls of the mold.

[@GoodRoads]

Thank you, I'll try this next time around

[@AnttiBrax]

BTW, axles on mass produced trucks have knurling to prevent axle slip. Edit: Oh yeah. You definitely WIN.

[@GoodRoads]

Yes. I definitely want to figure out knurling at some point

[@avakas8271]

This man going to put skateboard companies out of business

[@GoodRoads]

Actually I hope to put many, many skateboard companies into business. Get out there and make your boards people!

[@timort2260]

Damn that's pretty cool. They came out pretty dang well.

[@emanuelecurioni8950]

All I can say is…AWESOME!

[@GoodRoads]

Thanks dude!

[@gaberobinson1555]

great fun, thanks!

[@timchiappetta671]

Amazing!

[@patrickpb3353]

I love this sooo much thank youuuuuuuu

[@paulrowland4371]

I think you done a great job for your FIRST TRY!!!

[@GoodRoads]

Thanks dude!

[@JohnQ84]

So I know I'm a bit late but about the Axel if you spray the casting down with cold water right after pouring it would re harden the steel inside the aluminum plus less waiting but it's that long slow cooling equals soft steel

[@KrakenCasting]

That's so clever, printing a support to use under the cope! I don't have any experience with green sand, but Petrobond can get you a really clean finish. Also, maybe try looking into casting with zamak, it's a zinc/aluminum alloy that's pretty tough, but it has a lower melting temperature. The lower temp might get you a better finish.

[@erich1394]

Regarding the open bushing seat - if you've ever ridden Paris RKP trucks, that's the stereotypical loose bushing seat feel. Amongst other things, I notice a softer endpoint to the truck's range of motion... like you could push them a little further even once you've hit the end of the range, whereas a more restrictive bushing seat can feel like there's a more authoritative / blocking endpoint. I also notice that less energy gets lost in the turn on open bushing seats when carving quickly (or pumping). I wonder if the open bushing seat combined with the progressive turning from your TKP design would make this newest creation a good front truck for a pumping board?

[@AnttiBrax]

Drill the pivot cup and kingpin hole.

[@GoodRoads]

That's definitely an option, I'd just have to make myself some nice precise jig setups

[@thomaslindroos1667]

Awesome work Chris! I have tried skateboarding once and that's about all my experience with that, but I enjoy watching the process anyway

[@GoodRoads]

Glad to hear it, I hope the content I put out is enjoyable diy/maker stuff just as much as it's board sport stuff

[@Yoinkshmoink]

Great video bro

[@ЕгорЕгоров-с2о]

This is so good you did that

[@jaewan234]

Super awesome Chris! This inspires me to try this project for myself in the future.

[@GoodRoads]

Hit me up when you do! I'd love to see what you make!

[@andrewschryer8131]

With the sand not releasing off the buck what about a different mold release agent

[@ha7179]

I love your content man!

[@ScottEmmert1980]

I've been wanting to do this same project and how cray , KZbin through you up on my recommended list randomly. Loved your journey man. Great story, work and process. Cheers Bro!

[@paulojrg]

My suggestion for the pivot bushing hole is to just create a centre point with the whole diameter and with the same angle as the drilling bit and drill the hole later and the same goes to the bolt holes. Follow the K.I.S.S. method of designing parts.

[@GoodRoads]

I People have been sending me a lot of factory videos and it certainly looks like all those features are drilled after the fact using cast-in-place registration marks. I may very well go that way next time, it's probably a heck of a lot easier

[@paulojrg]

@@GoodRoads Try that it may seem more after work but the rate of successful parts is worth it.

[@PinkPulpito]

Make some rollerskating wide trucks !

[@user-de8ll9gy9p]

you are awesome, sir

[@Biokemist-o3k]

That is so cool!!!

[@brunoraffo6726]

GREAT JOB!! Did you know the Fury trucks with "ballpoint" pivot? I thought was interesting enough. Good luck!

[@JanBinnendijk]

To be honest, for the holes.. if you have a 3D printer, just print a support, cast a Pilothole, and drill the Kingpinhole in the hanger and the baseplate afterwards. I do have a CNC mill, that will greatly assist me in doing that kind of work.. I also like the 8 hole baseplate for wheelbase adjustment.. i've never seen that.. and i think it's cool! Since you can make these Jigs for making the mould with a 3D printer, Go Crazy, and design your own trucks, with a shape that everyone will recognize!.I have made a 3D Design (available on GrabCad) of the Bennet Vector trucks, copy the geometry, and design a less cubic shape.. :)

[@thebusbums2825]

That is fantastic. Great job. I've been following this project for quite some time. Love to see it progress

[@sudo9866]

Next time you set your axles in make sure that you have drilled holes in the axles about 30 mm apart throughout the mid span of the truck axle. This will allow the casting material to go through the holes locking the axle in place preventing axle slip

[@GoodRoads]

I think I'm going to try to go the knurling route, but some feature to lock the axles in place is definitely a good idea

[@710Canuck]

Too cool.

[@minnow11]

Just came across your channel for the first time and I have a suggestion! Try putting a little bit of silicon metal into the aluminum when melting. Mix it up after a little bit then fully melt it and it should flow better.

[@DIYToPen]

One thing to consider, if youre trying to drive away moisture with a propane torch... propane breaks down into water. Most of it will evaporate from the heat, but you are effectively spraying the part with water.

[@dirtysep]

Well done!

[@jessewolter7990]

Wider hangers next time bro ...awesome job.

[@GoodRoads]

Eventually I want to do mountainboard trucks which are about as wide as they get, so we'll get there!

[@JohnJones-oy3md]

In a parallel universe this is how they fabricate illicit skateboards in the Khyber Pass.

[@ErtsenPlayGames]

4:00 sodium silicate is the solution :)

[@maxamoose483]

Way to go bro that is a accomplishment in its self making trucks this was really cool, also your ollies are decent for any trick you want to learn 180* popshuvits etc just practice makes perfect. 😎🤘 need to get some grinds in your ollies are high enough for a nice fun box to practice and learn 😁

[@jonathanpierce828]

Up Next: DIY Griptape

[@erich1394]

epoxy and glass bits - this is an actual thing already!

[@nyslut666]

Dang. All I wanted to do was pro graphics. “Nailed it !!!” Wish I could sit down and do some 3D modeling. That’s a dope skill, along with everything else, no doubt.

[@pandaspliff]

Disk grind the kingpin down so it's more flush with the bolt. Or vice versa on the Axel ends & use a re threaders tool to fix the ends of each point of the Axel. Idk old shit I'd have to do back in the days skating old indy's or venture trucks.

[@krishnansrinivasan830]

Incredible :)

[@wesleyraupp7313]

Great video, don't know what else to say to PRAISE THE ALGORITHM GODS

[@stuartbrown3229]

Great idea with the wheel base option! You could cast a baseplate to take an inverted kingpin 🤔

[@GoodRoads]

I could just flip the kingpins on these, I don't know why I didn't think of that. Thanks dude!

[@stuartbrown3229]

@@GoodRoads I would epoxy them in so the nut don’t spin if the aluminium is soft .also I need to check out you home made wheels man 🤙🏻

[@darrentyler1817]

Friggin amazing!! I wonder if you drilled a few holes in the axle, cross ways, if that hole would be filled with aluminum prevent axle slippage?

[@GoodRoads]

I think drilled holes would cause a weak point but there are a lot of factory made axles out there that have some kind of knurling on them to prevent slippage, I'd like to figure out how to make that happen

[@erich1394]

@@GoodRoads I wonder if you could use a vice or hydraulic press (harbor freight has cheap ones based on bottle jacks) to remove the axle after casting and replace it with a new axle that hasn't been exposed to heat? You could potentially make the casting axle slightly smaller than the final axle to achieve a very solid press fit. I know nothing about whether this would just tear apart the aluminum or if it would slide... maybe there's some sort of metal-on-metal casting release agent that could help with this?

[@GoodRoads]

Interesting idea

[@Botmatrix]

Epic, great work!!

[@zephyrfive]

This was awesome! Great work!

[@dodgesamuelroberts3497]

Awesome video dude. Really enjoyed it and yeah why isn't that double wheelbase spacing a thing?!!

[@Chungleas]

Have you considered the PLA/plaster "lost wax" investment casting type method? It might waste a bit of PLA filament, but could help with the reproduction of detailed features that you're having issues with sand casting...

[@GoodRoads]

I have considered that and I'm actually planning on going that route when I get to the base plates for RKP trucks, I want to see if I can get these to work with sand casting though since it requires less equipment

[@ManakSkates]

So sick, Chris! They look great! If you need a test dummy to grind the shit out of them, I’d be happy to put them through the ringer! Good stuff man!

[@inktrooper.]

AWESOME! That was faster than I expected. About the pivot cup issue, I think you can taper the walls of the cup open a little, but I think you'll end up needing to finish the cup with a round-tip drill-bit. I mean making the form of the opening of the cup, but not as deep and marking the point on a flat surface with a some sort of a little cone for drilling. Or even make the wider part of the opening of the cup the size of the final pivot cup and taper it down a good 5° (for an easier release) all the way to the final depth; this way you could easily shave the excess with the drill to get the final shape. Also I recommend you clamp your jig to the drill press plate, I know you were anxious to finish them so you could ride them, but we can't afford you losing a finger ;) (knock on wood).

[@GoodRoads]

Thanks dude, I noticed when i was shooting the b-roll that it looks like the pivot cups on the Indys are actually drilled or machined or something. Definitely a detail to keep in mind going forward

[@inktrooper.]

@@GoodRoads Yeah, man. While you were typing that reply I was editing my comment to give some ideas. Ok, I just dissmounted a couple of my trucks and the pivot cups have drill bit markings, which tell me they were finished on a drill press. And I just found a 90s video of the venture factory where it's shown the pivot cups are drilled on a press. kzbin.info/www/bejne/l4bPdJ9olpmtq9k

[@GoodRoads]

This is sick dude, good find! You can get a quick look at their runners and gates on the hangers too and I like the idea of using a single plate to form both the cope and the drag

[@inktrooper.]

@@GoodRoads Glad you liked it! Yeah I thought using a single plate is a brilliant way of making good compact molds with a perfect parting line, but I didn't know how to express it properly (english is not my first language), haha.

[@sudo9866]

When you are doing reverse kingpin trucks there is a locker washer usually square that slides into position this is what holds an anchors the kingpin in place. The entire barrel of the bottom base plate is threaded to the top the kingpin itself should have enough depth to reach the bottom of the locker washer with 5 mm sticking past the lock washer while the truck is medium tight this allows for people to ride loose and still have enough thread on the locker or nylon ring for it to keep the kingpin stable because it is easy for a reverse kingpin truck to back out the kingpin. For reference use grind King they are the best

[@mojoejojo171]

Maybe try a reverse kingpin ?

[@GoodRoads]

I'd love to do that at some point

[@iliffetruckco4648]

Hey Chris at Good Roads, I commend you for your effort man. to answer some of your questions regarding your process here is my 2 cents. Petrobond will help you with the KingPin Thru hole and pivot cup areas because it is oil based it "sticks' and adheres and stays together well during the pour. In addition Less gas is formed permitting use of finer sands with lower permeability resulting in a finer finish. Also, yes, the 4 bolt mounting pattern on baseplates is a thing allowing for 4 possible wheelbase options. Seriously man, with your skills you should design your own trucks and move away from leveraging what exists. Lastly, your not the only skater out there doing his/her own thing. Ive been designing and manufacturing machined cnc trucks (RKP & TKP) and carbon fiber skateboards for 10 years. Not bragging - just saying... there are skaters out there doing their own thing, not for money (there is no money in skateboarding) but for the passion! Keep doing your thing man - you have skills! Respectfully, Bill ILIFFE, Skater Owner Operator, Chief Designer at ILIFFE Truck Co. Peace

[@birdfriday]

Very cool and mad helpful! Thank you 🙏🏼

[@maga_skater4207]

Did braille reach out? I would love to see this in a " you make it we skate it"

[@GoodRoads]

I reached out but I never heard back from them. The offer stands! I'd love to get the trucks under their feet

[@rickmcfries5031]

this is awesome, my only question would be if the trucks are able to withstand grinding

[@GoodRoads]

That's my question too! I gotta go ride with some people who know how to grind!

[@everybodycounts8193]

@@GoodRoads haha if you ever need a street skater to skate some concrete or metal ledges flat rails to test your trucks I’m your man very impressed keep it going love this type of content!!!

[@rickmcfries5031]

@@GoodRoads i would love to read your response whenever you know the answer ! keep the good work! i love your channel

[@isarsteinneyvarsson2944]

Next time, you should bend the middle of the axel to prevent axel slip

[@OFB_skates]

So bad ass!

[@InformatrIIcks]

Personally i've been thinking a lot about making trucks, but i think i'll be going the "precision" way, where you machine longboards trucks out of a solid billet of aluminium Also, multiple mounting holes is very common on Longboarding. For the axle, higher ends Longboard trucks have a tapped hole in which you screw the axle part. Allow for more precision, multiple width options, as well as not ruining the temper on the axle

[@GoodRoads]

Yessir. I'm very familiar with the world of precision trucks and hot dang that is a cool world. But as you probably know, the cost increases exponentially as you get into that realm. My riding is not at a point where I need trucks at that level. That said, if you're going to machine yourself a set that's freaking rad and I'd love to see what you come up with. Keep me posted!

[@InformatrIIcks]

@@GoodRoads i need to invest in a small CNC mill (was thinking an ebay 6040 with 4th axis), but that will have to wait for a bonus at work before i can afford such a machine ! If i ever come to it of course i'll let you know

[@GoodRoads]

I hear ya dude. I'd love to get a workbee cnc for snowboard cores and sidewalls, molds too I suppose, but it's never quite a priority in the budget. At least not yet

[@InformatrIIcks]

@@GoodRoads those desktop CNC look super promising but i'm afraid they won't do the cut (pun totally intended) for machining aluminium. They can do it, bit they're really not optimised for this. For snowboard core or skate molds i would look more into an AvidCNC style of machine, though that's a different category altogether ... And quite expensive. But a DIY equivalent has definitely been on my mind for while, though that's quite a project i never found the time to fully get behind

[@wesb9780]

all that's left is to make homemade bolts, bearings, washers, and the rubber things.

[@ignaciogalvan4799]

Amazing. Do you think that this same procedure on another scale can be applied to make fingerskate trucks? Greetings.

[@kabadar]

wow