A Penny board is a type of
skateboard
A skateboard is a type of sports equipment used for skateboarding. They are usually made of a specially designed 7-8 ply maple plywood deck and polyurethane wheels attached to the underside by a pair of skateboarding trucks.
The skateboarder ...
that is characterised by a short and narrow plastic
deck. Although such skateboards were first manufactured during the 1970s, their name and contemporary popularity comes from the Australian brand
Penny Skateboards, founded in 2010. The company's name has since been widely
genericised to describe all small plastic skateboards.
History
The first line of plastic skateboards was launched in the 1970s by
Larry Stevenson
Richard Lawrence "Larry" Stevenson (December 22, 1930 – March 25, 2012) was the inventor of the kicktail, the bent-upwards end of a skateboard, which made most of today's skateboarding tricks possible and essentially revolutionized the ...
for his Makaha brand. Grentec also began to manufacture plastic skateboards.
[Courtney Rubin]
Penny Skateboards Find a Niche
''Nytimes.com'', 22 July 2015 These plastic skateboards were widely popular during the early 1970s, although the era's professional skaters still shunned them in favour of wooden boards.
By 1978, laminated wooden decks had become the industry standard.
Ben Mackay created the Penny board in 2010, from which the brand Penny Skateboards was born. McKay named the brand for his sister, Penny.
The idea behind the creation of the company was inspired by Mackay's first-ever skateboard, a small plastic cruiser his father bought for him at a garage sale.
Ben Mackay first started manufacturing and designing his own skateboards to sell to local skate shops. Mackay began experimenting with different shapes and types of boards. He used a variety of materials, such as fiberglass and carbon inserts, as an alternative to timber.
By 2015, the Absolute Board Company was providing 36% of the market of boards under 34 inches.
Characteristics
Penny boards are distinguished by a plastic deck. Different parts of the Penny board structure are available in a variety of colours and designs. They are sold in five different deck sizes, the , (the Nickel), 29 in (73.7 cm) "Surfskate", cruiser and longboard. Customers can also buy each component of the board individually.
*Deck: Penny skateboard decks are made of plastic and feature a non-slip "waffle top" texture.
*Grip tape: Grip tape is offered for 22" and 27" models.
*Trucks: Penny
trucks
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...
are made from cast aluminium.
*Wheels: Penny board wheels are made from
Polyurethane
Polyurethane (; often abbreviated PUR and PU) refers to a class of polymers composed of organic units joined by carbamate (urethane) links. In contrast to other common polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene, polyurethane is produced from ...
, with a
plastic
Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...
core. The wheels on and Penny boards have a diameter of , while Penny longboard wheels have a larger diameter of . All Penny wheels are rated at 83A.
The nickel skateboard is five inches larger than the Penny board and is suited for beginners because of its larger deck, but still remains lightweight due to its plastic design. Both the Penny board and the Nickel board are lighter than a regular wooden skateboard.
Reviews
The skater Oscar Candon complained that "you can’t even ollie up a curb" with a Penny board. According to the skateboarding historian
Craig Snyder, plastic is not a popular board component among the skateboarding community.
References
Further reading
*
{{Skateboarding
Skateboards
Australian inventions