BAMBOO

Since introducing our 1/16” Solid Birch veneers just over a year ago, builders have been having great success experimenting with different combinations of Birch and Maple layers. The ability to fine-tune the feel and ride of a board by using different materials in the decks construction, is something that board builders are always looking for.

That being said, Roarockit has been working to source another high quality material to offer along with our 1/16” Maple and Birch veneers. We are excited to announce, that we will now be offering a very special 1/16” Bamboo material.

So let's get to it!

Why Bamboo?

Bamboo is used in the construction of many different styles, shapes and sizes of board. It is often used for its flexible properties, but it also has a look to it that is very unique and can be used simply as a decorative face (exterior) sheet on a deck. Bamboo is regarded as a 'green' building material because it is one of the most versatile and fastest growing plants in the world.

 

Why our Bamboo?

We looked at a bunch of different options for the type of Bamboo we thought builders would enjoy working with most. With samples in hand, and feedback by some of our most trusted and experienced board builders, we were able to decide on a 1/16” non-carbonized, solid veneer product.

Most of the bamboo available from other sources is a plywood product (not unlike Baltic Birch) and even in the 1/16” thickness, is made up of multiple pre-glued layers that in our tests broke down after constant flexing. We wanted to find something that would be strong, easily bendable and adhere to most locally available, waterproof glues.

There was also the option of getting carbonized or non-carbonized (natural) bamboo. We chose to go with the natural bamboo for a variety of reasons, the most important being that it is a stronger, denser material. Carbonized bamboo products are used mainly for aesthetic reasons, and for board building we thought that strength of the material was more important.

Here's some great insight as to the pros and cons of carbonized vs natural bamboo from doityourself.com. The article's focus is on bamboo as a flooring product, but the same rules apply.

Bamboo Properties 

• Flexible
• Strong
• Stable (no warping)
• 1/16” thick (veneer, not plywood)
• Non-carbonized (lighter shade and stronger material) *carbon process softens material and is more expensive
• Works well with Titebond III adhesive and Epoxy
• Presses easily in the Thin Air Press Vacuum Bag

Material Dimensions 

• 10.5” x 46” x 1/16”

How to Purchase? 

We have tested multiple different ways of packaging and protecting the bamboo veneer for shipping. Due to the somewhat fragile nature of the product (it has a tendency to split along the lengthwise gluelines) we have found that it is best packaged in a minimum group of 10 sheets. We are also going to offer single sheets of bamboo, but it is only meant to be ordered along with other larger veneer packs so that we can bundle them all together in the same box to increase stiffness. 

Here are the three options we have prepared for ordering from our website:

10 Pack Bamboo20 Pack BambooSingle Sheet 

 Also, for a limited time we are going to offer a special Pro-Builder Kit that will include (4) FREE sheets of Bamboo along with the (18) sheets of Maple veneer in the bundle. The Pro-Builder Kit also comes with a 2" thick sheet of our high density foam, and a 20x70 TAP Kit for laminating your decks!

Click for ProBuilder Kit with FREE Bamboo!!

The team at Roarockit is very excited to see what builders are able to do with this new veneer layer option. We have been playing around with different combinations of Bamboo, Maple and Birch, and plan to post some of the boards and experiences in the near future :) 

Roarockit Europe

Introducing..... ROAROCKIT.EU!!

Click here to check out the Roarockit EU facebook page

Roarockit founders Ted Hunter and Norah Jackson are stoked to announce to our EU customers that our Roarockit skateboard building kits and materials are now available from within the EU!

Trained in Toronto and based in France, Sarah Jackson and Nicolas Alix operate the newest division of the Roarockit family. This means that you can order our quality building materials and receive orders free of any long shipping waits or import costs to get in the way of building that custom board.

You will be pleased to find our premium Canadian-grown Maple skateboard veneer is now easily available to you at a reasonable cost.

Contact Sarah and Nico via their website: www.roarockit.eu

Monga Boards

Straight Outta Sweden, some crazy board builders named MONGA!!

One of the best parts of Roarockit's Thin Air Press technology, is giving people the oppourtunity to start building their own high-quality custom boards, and seeing it grow into something bigger.  These three young builders, based in Stockholm, have been impressing us with their custom designs, craftsmanship and enthusiasm towards growing their own company.

Building their own longboard started as a high school project, and after a lot of positive response (and graduating) builders William, Karl and Rikard have continued to build on their success with Monga Boards.

The small team at Monga explain in their own words, the process involved in the creation of Monga Boards: 

“We had no knowledge at all and we just experimented our way forward. The first board we made actually got some really nice comments from our friends. They were surprised that we actually managed to make a longboard that was rideable! But when we take a look at the board today, we understand that we had no clue what we were doing, and that board we built was absolutely NOT rideable haha! 

We started to look on the Internet on how other people pressed their boards, and after some research, decided to make a 'rib press'. Well, even then we didn’t think much about how to do it, and just experimented our way forward. It took us 4 rib presses to finally make a decent board that we could present.

Even then, we still wanted to make better boards and the process with the rib press was taking too long and we hated it. Just working with it made us angry! But one day, William was looking on Facebook and saw another board company in Sweden that uploaded a picture of something called a 'vacuum bag'. 

I had no idea what it was or how it worked so I googled around and luckily found Roarockit's homepage with the great TAP bags! At this time we only had a few weeks left on the project and we were behind schedule. But when our first TAP bag arrived we managed to create an awesome pintail with the veneers provided and we really thought that this was going to change the whole project for us. A new way to press using foam and a vacuum bag, which took up no storage space at all and was easy to work with. We were really stoked! 

As we were giving the presentation at school in front of our class and teacher, we got even better feedback and everyone was wondering how we managed to do the boards so well! It must have been around that time that we decided “let’s do this after the project as well!” 

We graduated and all went our separate ways, but as everyone got back from their vacation we had a very short meeting and decided to do this. So we ordered another TAP bag, but this time the bigger version. And we love it. 

This project has given us so much experience, not just in how to make a longboard, but in how to plan something as well. Always keep your patience and really think something through before executing it. But that’s not all, we are really tight friends now and we wouldn’t know each other like we do today if we wouldn’t have started building boards 2 summers ago and getting the top grade on our project. 

Thank you all at Roarockit who made this possible and for your excellent service and quick deliveries despite that we live so far away from you!"

No, thank YOU!! Hearing a story like this, inspires us to continually get better in an attempt to grow with, and meet the needs of the independent builder like yourself.  

You can find out more about Monga Boards by visiting their Facebook page @ https://www.facebook.com/MongaBoards

PINK Veneers!

Pink Floyd

Pink Panther

Pretty in Pink.

Breast Cancer Awareness

Valentine's Day

Bret Hart.

And now.... Pink Skateboards!

For far too long, Pink coloured veneers have eluded board builders around the world. For the first (and likely only) time, the Roarockit Skateboard Company has gotten a very special order of Pink Maple Street Deck, and Longboard veneers.

The colour on these limited edition veneers came out amazing! A vibrant, Magenta-like shade of Pink that has been described by some as 'Vivacious' and 'Pink Popsiclicious'! If the shade is a bit too dark for your liking, a thorough sanding will help to lighten it to more of a 'cotton candy' Pink.

Our builders for years have been asking about the possibility of Pink dyed veneers, and it has been a surprisingly difficult process to make this happen. After a few science lessons, a couple of long conversations and a bit of arm-twisting... we were finally able to get our standard high quality, 100% Canadian Maple, 1/16” veneers in Pink!

Quantities are limited, and we have 2 sizes available:

1/16” Street Deck Maple @ 10” x 35”

1/16” Longboard Maple @ 12” x 40”

We were able to get our standard Street Deck sizes veneers, but were only able to get Longboard stock at 40" in length.  Forunately, if you want to make a board using the Pink veneers, that is longer than 40", it is possible to join them to make a longer piece... this process can also make for some very unique board art! 

** Like our other Coloured veneers and RockitLam sheets, these must be ordered with another set of veneers or as a custom bundled order. This is done to ensure the veneers are not damaged in the shipping process.

If you need help putting together a custom order, feel free to contact us @

Toll Free 1-888-857-7790

email - chris@roarockit.com

Board Building in the Classroom

A big part of Roarockit's business is working closely with schools, after-school programs and non-profit organizations. There are many great programs/organizations around the world who have integrated board building using Roarockit Technologies into their students curriculum. It is such an amazing thing to see a full classroom of kids, walking away with a high quality, handmade board of their very own... not to mention some of the coolest graphic and design jobs we've seen in the skateboard industry!

While it is not a 'traditional' method of teaching by any means, instructors who have used the program have reported many benefits in their classrooms, including; 

• increase in attendance levels

• students are focused, attentive and apply themselves to complete their decks

• can work as an incentive for both 'under' and 'over-achieving' students

• teamwork and mentoring scenarios occur naturally during the build process

• students gain experience working with their hands

• the program can be applied to a wide range of subjects including Art & Design, Mathematics, Construction Technology, Business and Entrepreneurship, Physical and Environmental Sciences, and more

• students relate well to skateboards and its counter-culture aspects

• great opportunity to involve their community through fundraisers, art galleries, open-houses, etc.

Another great part about the Roarockit skateboard deck builds is that they do not require the use of power tools and can be done in any classroom, or even outdoors...we've even had classrooms set up on picnic benches in a park! There are also no harmful glues, paints or coatings required, and the Thin Air Press is considered to be the 'greenest' method of pressing skateboards in the world (it's all hand powered!).

As part of our push to see more and more schools/programs building boards with their kids, we work diligently to help build a scenario that matches your particular teaching needs in regards to time constraints, class size and budget.

Here are a few links that include more information about course curriculum, funding options, examples of successful programs that use our kits, tutorials and more!   

Curriculum and Lessons - http://www.roarockit.com/curriculums.php

Funding - http://www.roarockit.com/how_to.php

Downloadable Order/Estimate Form - http://www.roarockit.com/materials_resources.php

Tutorials - http://ministryofwood.com/764-2/

Oasis Skateboard Factory - A Toronto District School Board reengagement program that helps students earn high school credits by running a skate/longboard design business.

Stoked Mentoring - Stoked is an action sports, youth development agency based in New York and Los Angeles

Feel free to give us a call or email if you would like to get more information about how to integrate board building into your own programs.  

You can call us Toll Free at - 1-888-857-7790

or email - norah@roarockit.com