Fingerboard (skateboard)

A fingerboard is a miniature skateboard that is driven with the index finger and middle finger. Fingerboarding is a relatively young fun sport, which is similar to the skateboarding, comes to certain flip and grind tricks to show off or to combine. The tricks are just named as in skateboarding.

There are numerous fingerboard competitions ( contests ) and meetings ( jams ). On 26 May 2012, the fifth Fingerboard World Cup was held in Schwarzenbach an der Saale.

History

The beginnings of fingerboarding were in the 1970s, when the first article on this subject appeared in skateboard magazines. In the early 1980s it was shown in Magazines and skateboard videos fingerboarding. In the late 1980s, the first skateboard keychains were bent towards the fingerboarders with the help of a lighter so appeared that it was possible to drive it. In the 1990s, a toy manufacturer was aware of the fingerboarding and started to produce technically functioning replicas of skateboards. Tech Deck was created and thus began the era of fingerboarding.

From about 1997 developed in Germany and Austria a fingerboard scene. Since 2000, the competition " Fast Fingers " in Schwarzenbach an der Saale is held annually. 2008, the contest was held for the first time as the World Cup due to the growing international starting field.

Categories

There are two categories of Fingerboards:

• Fingerboards, which are mainly suitable for collecting ( for example as a key fob ). These copies usually have no imitation Griptape ( sandpaper ) on the top, but only consist of plastic. Even the items ( wheels, trucks ) are not interchangeable in these specimens part. Therefore, they are only suitable for practicing the finger board sports.

• More or less faithful replicas of skateboards. These fingerboards are made from different types of wood in several layers of veneer or hard plastic and are, as well as the original skateboard, with real grip tape (a type of sandpaper ) or Riptape ( often called foam rubber, but is a thin layer of Neoprene with adhesive backing ) glued. This makes it possible to imitate real skateboarding tricks with your fingers or to invent new combinations.

Fingerboards and Accessories

A fingerboard is similar to the skateboard of several components:

• Deck: in addition to symmetrical structures ( kicks and concave ) there are now decks similar to a modern skateboard from each other have different nose and tail, so a definite front and back. The most common materials are wood or plastic, but there are also decks made ​​of carbon, metal and other materials; the less common are often installed as a hybrid construction together with wood.
• Axles: axles are usually made ​​of metal as a commodity for the toy industry. In recent years, however, also came manufacturer to produce the special axes for the miniature sports and thereby create much higher standards for quality in lower quantities.
• Wheels: wheels are made of engineering plastic, PU or metal and provided some with one or two miniature ball bearings. You are either cast or fabricated on a lathe (or their industrial equivalent).
• Tape: For better adhesion is glued to the deck a strip made of rubber, neoprene or skateboard grip either in fine grain.
• Screws: Are the screws to secure the axles on the deck.
• Bags: Small bags for fingerboards and hardware. Protects equipment. FlashBone Bags here was the first company of the designer Milan Malagan who developed these bags and brought to the market.

The fingerboard decks -Wheels ( rolls) etc. are as authentic as possible to its big brother, the skateboard, manufactured with great precision. While the toy industry produces large amounts of Fingerboards (with plastic decks), use for a long time in the scene active Fingerboarder mostly wooden decks that are made ​​by hand either by themselves or by companies in small series.

For the finger- board miniature ramps are available that mimic real skateboard obstacles ( obstacles ) for fingerboards. There is the same variety as in real skateboard ramps. Materials used are plastic, wood, metal, granite and cement / concrete.