In this video we remind you of a few things to keep in check to prevent the kingpins from tearing the threads out of standard/regular kingpin roller skate plates.
Hi, this is RollerGirl from RollerGirl.ca and I'm here to talk to you today about a user maintenance problem that we've been seeing with plates a lot recently.
Basically, what's happening here is, if you can see, the threads are being destroyed in people's
plates.
The kingpins are being pulled out and destroying the threads inside the plate, and usually the
threads on the kingpin as well.
And this is not good.
It can usually be fixed, but it's a problem that's better to avoid.
So, what is happening here is that there's a couple different kinds of plates out there.
First of all, if you're riding plastic plates, they look something like this.
You don't have to worry about this.
With this type of plate, the kingpin, which is this buddy here, starts inside the plate.
So, you can see the head.
And it goes through the plate and out.
And kingpins don't come out.
So, you don't have this problem.
So, if your plates are like this, no worries.
Problems are with plates like these.
With this type of plate, the kingpin screws in from the top of the plate and can be completely
removed like that.
Now, due to vibration when skating, this the kingpin starts to come out and this is where the
problem occurs.
So, just the skating and the shaking causes it to slowly unscrew like that.
And over time, as the kingpin starts to unscrew, often what happens is that the skater thinks
that their trucks are loose, because they're feeling unstable and out of control on their
skates.
So they tighten the kingpin nut, here, to tighten the trucks.
Which actually aggravates the problem because it causes extra stress on the kingpin itself.
And it can cause it to break the kingpin, break the pivot, or as what we see more often, is that
as this continues to come out it will just tear at some point, removing all the threads from
inside your plate as well.
Like I said before often damaging the threads on the kingpin as well.
So this is a problem that's really really easy to avoid. You just need to look at your plates on
a regular basis.
So you look at your plates and what you want to see is that the base of the kingpin is flush
with your plate like this.
Nice and tight.
No space.
If you start to see any gapping, even just a little crack underneath the the kingpin, that's a
sign that your kingpin is starting to come loose.
And it's really easy to fix.
You can simply just tighten it down using an 11/16" wrench.
But another great trick for it, so that this doesn't happen again, is that you use this fabulous
product: Loctite.
Make sure you pick up the semi-permanent Loctite (red) and not the permanent Loctite.
It's a thread locker and it will prevent your kingpin from coming out from vibrations.
So, you put a couple of drops of Loctite on the threads of your kingpin.
You reinstall your kingpin.
And using that 11/16" wrench, you tighten it down as hard as you can.
Now, even if you are using Loctite, it's a good idea to just look at your plates regularly.
Once a week, turn your skates over, examine them for damage, and examine the kingpins and make
sure this isn't happening.
Be a good friend and teammate, and look at your friend's skates, too. This problem is extremely
common. We see it a couple of times a week and it can damage your really expensive plates.
That's all for today.
Happy skating!