How to Completely Customize a Tech Deck

Author Info

Last Updated: September 30, 2023

A Tech-Deck is one of the hottest collectible toys out there today. They come with a 96-mm board complete with trucks, bearings, grip tape and authentic kick-butt graphics you see on real skateboards - which are all of different brands. These include Blind, Plan B, World Industries and many more. They also come with a Skate Tool for changing the wheels, stickers to add to your boards (or skateparks if you have them) and extra graphic wheels. If you are still not satisfied with all they give you, maybe it's time to customize your board! Maybe you just want it to be a little bit more colourful, maybe you want the kicks higher so you can do Kickflips and Ollies etc. higher. Or maybe you want to create your own graphic! The possibilities are endless, but a few are packed into this article.

Method 1

Method 1 of 5:

Customize the grip tape

Download Article

Advertisement
The hard way and the easy way, but doing it the hard way improves the result.

Method 2

Method 2 of 5:

Cut a line in the grip tape (easy way)

Download Article

The cut should be about a third of the width of your fingernail - approx. 5 mm in width.
This looks pretty awesome and, if you wish, you can then colour the line with different coloured permanent markers, and then even go on to the rim of the deck!

Method 3

Method 3 of 5:

Cut a line in the grip tape (hard way)

Download Article

An easy way to do this is to soak the board in hot water for about 5 min. This burns out some of the glue holding the grip tape to the board.
Once the grip tape is off, cut two parts of the grip tape off in the same area as shown in the previous section. The two parts cut should be the same width as the line should be - namely, about 5 mm apart.
About 15 minutes should do, but 20 to 30 minutes is good if you really want to make it perfect. Done!

Method 4

Method 4 of 5:

Make your own graphic

Download Article

If you take the trucks and wheels off the board, this will be much easier as they take up room so it will be harder to get to those parts of the graphic.
Some ideas are polka dots, stripes, fireworks or just a whole one colour altogether - for example you could make a full-on purple board!
Colour the whole bottom purple, the whole side purple, dot out the logo with a black marker, perhaps even cut a line on the grip tape and colour it purple! The only limit is your imagination.

Method 5

Method 5 of 5:

Increase your kicks

Download Article

Bend the kicks up, try to do it not too wildly (especially the first time, as taking away pop isn't easy), otherwise it would look very fake and you could just do cheating Ollies, so just bend a little.

Expert Q&A

Search

Add New Question

Ask a Question

200 characters left

Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.

Submit

Video

Tips

Also try changing the wheels and adding stickers.

Thanks
Helpful 23 Not Helpful 4
To change the trucks, put the smaller end of the skate tool in the screws on the top of the deck and twist left. Do this for all of them. To put a truck into the deck, hold the truck where it would go while putting screws in and twisting right until you can't twist any further.

Thanks
Helpful 15 Not Helpful 4
If you wanted to change the wheels, take the Skate Tool and put the wider end in the wheel. Twist left - remember, "Righty tighty, lefty Lucy(loosey)", until the wheel comes out along with the nut. To put a wheel in, put the nut in the tool upright and put a wheel in the truck. Insert the tool and twist to the right until it's reasonably tight.

Thanks
Helpful 11 Not Helpful 5

Show More Tips

Tips from our Readers

The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.

For a smoother feel, get bearing wheels for your fingerboard. Instead of being plastic wheels on metal trucks, it will be metal wheels on metal trucks, and they feel exceptionally smoother.
You can just place the tech deck in the water for 5 minutes, then gently peel the grip tape off.
If you want better pop and a nice, crispy feel, consider getting foam griptape.

Submit a Tip

All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published

Name

Please provide your name and last initial

Submit

Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

Warnings

Once you've done these things, you won't be able to undo it - except for the grip tape, you can just get new grip tape and stick it on.

Thanks
Helpful 14 Not Helpful 6