mark wrote:
Hi all,
A frequent lurker an occasioanl poster here to pick the brains of this
very knowledgeable group...
As the title suggests, I'm going to build a "small" half-pipe skate
ramp for he kids in my back garden...I've located some excellent plans
on the internet for a ramp about 3 1/2' high on each side and about
16' foot across the length and 8' wide/deep. Wood frame and wood
skating surface.
I'm pretty much OK with building the frame and screwing the ply to the
curved frame. My only concern is the "covering" to apply to the
surface. As the ramp will be in the garden, it needs to be waterproof
to protect the wood, yet need to have a certain amount of grip to
prevetn the wheels sliding arounf the place...kind of the texture of
concrete. Any ideas? Or is it going to be a matter of covering it
during rain with a BIG sheet of tarp...All the plans takl about
generic skate ramp paint, but this is all US-based, and expensive...
If anyone's interested the plans are he
http://www.rickdahlen.com/hpplans/plans.html
Go on, build your kids a ramp!
Mark
ps: I'll be using the ramp myself to as I used to skate until about 5
years ago...I'm still better than all my kids, which is emabarassing
for them when I take them to the local skate park ;-)
This is an area where I have a certain amount of expertise... I skate, and
have built a few different structures in my time.
Firstly, I suggest that you also ask this question on alt.skate-board so as
to get more feedback to make a fully informed decision.
Secondly, you could go for a surface material called "Skatelite"
(
http://www.skatelite.com/home.html), but admittedly it is quite expensive.
As the plans suggest, 3/4" ply is good for the surface layers. Marine Ply or
WBP ply (WBP = Water and Boil Proof, IIRC) is what I have used. Some people
recommend Birch ply for the surface layer, but again, this adds to the cost,
and you [probably can't get it treated. You won't need to wet the ply to get
it to curve. The 7'6" transition radius is good - I used 8' for a 4' high
mini ramp - and 3/8" will bend just fine on its own.
I prefer to skate on un-painted / finished wood surfaces, so I'd go for the
"cover with a tarp" option. The traction to slide ratio is pretty good
(sliding is important when doing rotational tricks). And ply is pretty
cheap, so you can replace the top layer quite easily and cheaply (might even
be able to simply turn them over if there's not too much damage). Make sure
you don't strip the screw head when screwing down! (All too easy if you use
a power screwdriver, which you will most likely be using here - who wants to
screw in 200+ screws by hand!?!?!)
I realise that if you are building in your garden then space is at a
premium... 8 feet wide is really quite narrow. My miniramp was 12' which was
just about OK, I wouldn't build less than 16' wide now. Also, don't get PVC
coping - go for proper scaffold pipe (Please, someone, where can this be
obtained for a decent price? Second hand is probably OK so long as it's
straight...)
I'm actually in the process of trying to get an indoor skatepark built in
Watford, UK. Quite a big adventure, but it is good fun too! I have a
business plan and am now seeking funding - it's more of a youth project that
will run as not-for-profit rather than a "make you rich" business...!
If you're close enough to Watford, I'd love to help (& skate it!)... The
plans are pretty good - well done in your search.
AlexL