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

FooARage Skateboard Company

As 2012 comes to an end, we wanted to highlight one of the biggest and most exciting developments of the year for us at the Roarockit Skateboard Company.  It took a lot of hard work and organization, but we were recently able to introduce the FooARage Skateboard Company as our official UK and EU distributor of Roarockit Technology!  

We are so proud of the work they have done in their community; engaging kids by not only building their own boards, but by actually riding them and helping to beautify their environment with some incredible artwork.  They have gone above and beyond with the direction of their programs (they actually do their own wheel art! Like C'MON!!), and we look forward to seeing what they come up with in the years ahead.  

We asked owners Brent and Nicola to tell us how they got started, and what using Roarockit Technology has meant to them:

"Brent has had a passion for skateboarding all his life, so we decided to build a mini ramp in our back garden in September 2011 to run some skate sessions. Later that day we discussed the idea of making skateboards, as part of a youth engagement project. That’s when our journey begun to expand as we researched the UK for a workshop that would explore the way they are built! Unfortunately, we found no one in the UK promoting that kind of thing, so our research took us into Canada to buy the maple wood and this is where we come across Roarockit....... WOW this is exactly what we would like to do here in the UK.

As professionals; Brent is a qualified teacher and builder by trade. I am a mixture of Management sales and working with the public on many levels of support. We decided to mix these skills together to make some changes to the way we could deliver education to those who are disengaged with the regular school curriculum. Our passion to create positive change and to inspire those who need it most is exhaustive.  

We have found that the Roarockit Thin Air Press process is fantastic because it’s simple and safe, and has a hands on experience which makes the whole process individual, while still being done in a group environment! No power tools involved and the TAP bags create awesome decks!

So here we are a year on, running many courses and changing many young people’s lives by creating positive social change with the amazing Roarockit Tech! This has been a truly inspiring experience and Norah and Ted have been fantastic mentors. We are the official distributor of Roarockit materials for the UK & EU and are very much looking forward to 2013 and what it has in store!!"

And what about the name FooARage you ask?

"...Oh, and the name FooARage was made up by our son who mixed two of his favourite band names together; Foo Fighters & Rage Against the Machine, to create his XBOX online tag name and because he is a big inspiration for us, we used the name."  Very cool.

Skateboards and Griptape and Wheel Art OH MY!

Make sure to check out the amazing work done by FooARage by following them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!  You can also email them for information about their programs and ordering Roarockit materials in the UK @ fooarage@gmail.com

Lil' Rockit Builder Kit

To celebrate the 10 year anniversary of our first deck building kit - and in an effort to keep up with trends in the skateboard industry - Roarockit has developed a new kit to help introduce riders to the board building process. This is our answer to the 'mini-cruiser' craze that has been hitting the streets around the world. Introducing... the Lil' Rockit Builder Kit.

Mini-cruisers like the Penny Board and Z-Flex have been around for a long time, almost since the beginning of skateboarding itself. The smaller boards appeal to both advanced riders who want to try something new, and young kids who get their introduction to the sport riding something their own size. Either way, there is a nostalgia attached to the smaller boards and we want to give builders a chance to make their own.

The Lil' Rockit Builder Kit comes with everything needed to make your own 7 Layer mini-board. The veneer, foam, Thin Air Press vacuum bag, tools and even the glue are all included in one box. This is our most economical introduction to board building, and for the first time ever, we will also be including our Colour-Infused maple veneers with every set purchased!

The preshaped veneers measure 23" long x 6.25" wide, and the foam mold features mild concave with a 5/8" kicktail.  

So not only will you be able to stuff this board into your locker or backpack, but you'll be able to brag about the fact that you built it yourself!

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There are a few different options for building this board:

1. Lil' Rockit Double Kit = $125.99 ($5.00 extra for Teacher's Curriculum) 

2. Lil' Rockit 4 Pack Kit = $155.99

The Double and 4 Pack Kits come with everything needed to make 2 or 4 – Lil' Rockit boards, including:

(2 or 4) Sets of Lil' Rockit preshaped veneers (one colour sheet per set)

(1) Preshaped Foam Mold

(1) 14 x 47” TAP Kit – includes 2' Breather Netting, TAP Pump, extra Sealing Tape rolls

(1) 8 or 16oz Bottle of Glue

(1) Edging Tool

(1) Glue Cup/Sanding Paper/Glue Roller/'Handcrafted' Sticker

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Refill Kits are meant for builders who may already have a Thin Air Press vacuum bag, and just need certain materials to build one of our preshaped boards. Click on the products below for more information and pricing.

For more information about the Lil' Rockit Builder Kits, or how to incorporate this project into a classroom setting, feel free to email chris@roarockit.com or call us Toll Free @ 1-888-857-7790

Handmade with Roarockit Technology

2012 has been a huge year of transition for the Roarockit Skateboard Company. From moving to a brand new location, helping facilitate the growth of our Australian (Australian Skateboard Kits) and U.K. (Foo A Rage) distributors, to the release of the RockitRuler skateboard tool – Roarockit has been focused on the future of board building around the world, and all of this coincides with our 'Handmade with Roarockit Technology' campaign.

The idea of the 'Handmade with Roarockit Technology' campaign is to help promote the quality craftsmanship that goes into each board and project made using our Thin Air Press. Sometimes independently made products, and especially skate/longboards, get a bad reputation for being 'poor' quality. This is often a response to the perception that only large companies make quality products. There is also a learning curve attached to building goods by hand, which can contribute to a perceived lack of quality, when in fact it is more a case of inexperience.

Everyone makes mistakes, even big companies, but it is important to learn from that experience to get better. We have seen so many builders progress their skills over the years, learn from their mistakes, and now produce some of the highest quality goods around. This is why we want to promote these high-quality products that have been.... you guessed it - 'Handmade with Roarockit Technology'! 

You may have noticed receiving our new 'Handmade' stickers in a recent order. We are giving away one of these stickers for every board's worth of material sold to builders across the world. The stickers themselves are printed on a thick, glossy stock, and are highly reflective. We encourage builders to put these stickers on their finished products to show their support for handmade quality. They also look great on helmets, or as a giveaway for customers when they buy one of your boards.

CONTEST:

Now that there are a few thousand of these stickers floating around, we want to hear what this sticker means to you?  Tell us why you support 'Handmade' goods for your chance to win a Roarockit Swag Pack!  

Check out www.facebook.com/roarockitskateboard for more details

Rules & Regulations  

• No purchase necessary

• Prize can only be awarded to someone residing in US or Canada

• We have the right to use user submitted content for promotional purposes

• Contest will be promoted on our Facebook and Twitter feeds, but are not sponsored, administered by, or associated with these companies

• Any submissions with profanity, vulgarity, obscenity, racism, religious, political or as deemed inappropriate by the organizer will be disqualified from prize considerations

AM Wood Skateboard Company

One of our favourite, and most advanced builders is Alistair McCall – Owner/Operator of the AM Wood Skateboard Company.

Alistair started building boards out of his garage in Grey County, Ontario as a fun and profitable woodworking hobby. His first boards were all custom built for friends and local riders, which gave him an opportunity to work with a variety of materials and board styles. This experience led him to eventually launch the AM Wood Skateboard Company in early 2011.

AM Wood's has since become one of the most prolific and recognized independent builders in North America, selling their boards to riders in over 10 countries (and counting). They have also helped build their name by being a part of some great events including the Toronto Board Meeting and the 2012 Stylus Awards.

They are also proud supporters of the Thin Air Press vacuum bag, and use them for all of their composite work and one-off custom boards. In his own words;

“It is 100% the best way to laminate composites. I have laminated in my big press before with mixed results. The best part about the tap is you can control the resin content through the use of peel plys, perforated films and pressure control. There is a reason all “real” composite parts are done with bags, aerospace, f1, boats etc…I also use the vac bags for all my custom shapes. Foam is a lot easier to work with than wood.”

The AM Wood Skateboard Company is expanding and moving its production facility later this year.  We look forward to seeing what the future of AM Wood's looks like, and will have a follow up post when they get set up... to be continued :)

You can keep up to date with AM Wood by checking them out at the links below.

AM Wood - Official Homepage

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