Hello there,
You might know the recently published Deck Hook by Robert Simpson. If not, make sure to check out his page on kickstarter.com. He invented an amazing product to turn any bag into a skate backpack within seconds.
Robert Simpson, I really admire you for having such a great idea and sense of crafting.
That being said, I wondered if I could build something like the deck hook myself.
I started with a sketch. I assumed the dimensions and cut out a copy of the sketch.
After cutting out the actual metal it was easy to form the hooks with a hammer.
Because I was afraid, that the hooks would soften due to the heavy weight of the longboard I want to carry, I decided to stabilize them with two additional parts.
I drilled a few holes and filed the sharp edges off, so they would not damage my bag. A few screws with washers were installed to hold the straps of the deck hook.
I pulled two straps through the holes and tested it with my longboard. You can see the results here:
I also tested it with a shorter skateboard from a friend of mine and want to give some general thoughts on my creation. I have not ordered the original deck hook from Robert Simpson and do not know whether my version faces the same issues than his product.
Walking with a tall longboard on my bag works, but I had to put a pullover in my bag to prevent the board from repeatedly hitting the back of my knees. After having done so, I was surprised how well it worked. Anyways, I would not recommend using my DIY deck hook with an empty bag and a longboard. My friend’s skateboard was not that long and a lot easier to carry. It felt more comfortable and I could even walk with an empty bag.
Im feel like I am not finished with this project yet. I’ll definitely put some black paint on it. Would be nice to have a cover that suits the DIY deck hook weel and prevents sharp edges from potentially damaging the bag. Maybe a heat shrink film could help. Or something with leather? What do you guys think?
So should you make a deck hook yourself? Probably not. It was a lot of work and it does not work as well as the original one(It’s quite inconvenient to put my version onto another bag). But I had a lot of fun figuring this out. If you like tinkering around with metal and are interested in skating, you could try to make your own(please let me know if you do). If not, just pick up one of Robert Simpson’s for 25$(probably easier ;))
I’ll update the post soon to present you my latest changes. Stay tuned!
Thank you for reading so far StefanK
PS: Although it might seem so, this is not a product placement. I’m just amazed by this guy