Some of our wheel molding-making and production tools are intentionally obscured in pictures because I’m not in the business of launching everyone else’s “new wheel company”. It’s fairing simple to cut through a wheel and reverse-engineer a finished product, but we don’t need to also tell others HOW to make them. There are too many people (overseas) who know nothing about wheel design, were never around testing the viability of new hub and designs, never sponsored a race or racers, never advertised, never marketed, never branded, never established relationships with shops and skaters all over the world. They just copied what we did, made them in a substandard urethane using whatever minimal pay and work environment they could get away with, and peddled them on the cheap. And because they look the same it makes people erroneously believe that our products are mediocre AND they also directly compete in sales with ours. Other people launch their skateboard companies using these crappy clones without any regard for who designed and paid for everything.
I have many lathes and mills and machine tools including an American made CNC lathe, an American made CNC mill, and an American made CNC router. It’s expensive and there’s a big learning curve, but we don’t want to just copy what’s out there or make stuff and “pray” that it works. We’ve never made outside sales calls or tried to force our products on people. We make our own wheel molds in house on the CNC lathe here in Huntington Beach. I was there at the beginning when our wheel house opened - their first longboard wheel customer. They’re in HB as well.
The reason WHY we do what we is because we love respect ALL types of skating. We are willing to make wheels that other people can’t or won’t because they’re more interested in making money. We aren’t motivated by hitting a big demographic and selling ONE cookie cutter product to the masses. I’m a freak. I like freaky things. THE FREAKS ARE MY PEEPS!
It’s not about launching each others wheel business. This is an open source forum I’d like to think at least. Sharing information is what this forum is suppose to be about (though it’s become a catalyst for selling products lately). I try to be as open and honest about the processes I have tried so others can learn from my mistakes. And when others have done the same, I have learned a lot.
Things like how to make a good molds for things like wheels or some ideas of what blends of urethane have what properties I would imagine reveal some secrets, but would help a lot of people. Look at how many hubs we have on the market and how few that don’t have slipping problems or just shitty urethane. Since the cost of making hub motor wheels are so high for you, maybe you could share any information so that others could learn and become as enlightened as you?
Wish I had a brass spur gear box… that would be the shit!
In fact while i’m there i wish it was helical so it would remind me of the sound of my old Husaberg, but now i’m just getting sentimental.
Can you machine stuff from brass @MoeStooge?
1) Imagine that you attend a trade show wearing an Abec 11 shirt and walk past a booth where someone is displaying what appear to be Flashbacks, Gumballs, and ZigZags. Then you see 83mm Flywheels, 90mm Flywheels, and 97mm Flywheels in a bunch of different colors on a Flywheel hub, and an opportunity to put “Your logo here!” A salesman from the country of origin comes out to greet you and has no idea whatsoever who you are and what an Abec 11 is. He starts to tell you what an awesome product he is selling and quotes you prices that are lower than what you can make your own wheels for, and at MOQs (minimum order quantities) less than what you can do for your own wheels. They sell to anyone and everyone at less than wholesale, as long as you have the almighty dollar. Now tell me that I should teach these pricks how to make a better wheel. What sense of duty do I have to these parasites? Do you have any idea of how long it’s taking to sell off all the crap that has inundated the longboard market in this “race to the bottom”? Too long for some of us to even survive. I’m not bitter
2) There are some people who routinely come on this forum and intentionally deceive the viewers or just out and out lie about their skateboard parts. They can’t even cop to basic dimensions if they’re worried about how it may be perceived. I agree with you about what this “supposed” to be. But when I ask direct and pertinent questions and they are met with dodges and misstatements and are then followed up with the typical “kill the messenger” commentary, it’s NOT particularly valuable to the community.
3) If it ONLY helped the guys in the garage trying bang out just enough to outfit their own boards, I’d do it in a heartbeat.
4) It’s not that the cost of making hub-motor wheels is so high for ME. The cost would be high for most everyone else. And it’s not that I lack empathy. Prototyping can be an extremely expensive path and one with no promise of success or a return on investment. So if, and only if, I think that it’s a worthwhile venture will I open my wallet and get behind the project. I know myself. I like options. I like lots of urethane. Others want to skimp or take another path. That’s fine. But I personally believe that I would be painting myself into a corner and forcing myself to solve a very unnecessary problem. If we had 26.5" to 29" tires and/or gears I’d probably be singing a different tune. But our street wheels are between 3.5" to 4.25" and we weigh what we weigh. I want most of my wheel to be urethane.
It’s a solution for a lot of people, but yes … it’s big f’ing problem for me. And I’m not the only guy who is suffering from all of the knock offs. And this is not the only industry either. If you can’t protect your design or AFFORD to protect a patented product, you’re going to get cloned. As it turns out, there is NO honor among thieves …
