[Music] with flips and jumps part of the sport active skateboarders damaged their decks beyond repair every few months but instead of tossing the ruined skateboards into landfills they're being reclaimed for a different kind of trick a transformation into electric guitars from skateboards to fret boards it may seem quite a leap but making electric guitars out of old skateboards is not such a wild idea skateboards are often made of multiple layers of rock maple which is a traditional tone wood for guitars a guitar maker evaluates the condition and color of the boards and once he's made
his selections he aims a heat gun at the grip tape on top to soften it he prized the edges of the softened tape away from the board using a razor he grabs the tape and pulls it off the skateboard he can now get a better look at the damage done to the board and he decides it can be salvaged he sands off the adhesive and the graphics the sanding doesn't remove the turquoise color the dye has penetrated the wood it is part of its intrinsic appeal he cuts off the nose and the tail of the
board and discards them he'll just be using the wheel basis the next step is to laminate five the skateboards together he applies a liberal coat of glue spreading it with a putty knife for complete coverage he adds the final board to the glued stack and places the stack in a hydraulic clamp to protect the surface of the skateboards he sets a wooden board on top the clamp squeezes the skateboard sandwich together as the glue sets a day later he removes the now laminated skate boards a blade shaves the surface of the stack smooth and brings
out the grain he trims the edges of the stack so that they're more even he applies glue in a zig-zag pattern to one of the side edges and spreads it across the entire edge he joins another skateboard stack to this one and clamps the two together fuse together they form a block that's large enough to be crafted into an electric guitar body with a pencil he traces around the template of a guitar shape to transfer the outline to the laminated skate boards using a bandsaw he cuts out the shape the skateboard colors form a random
pattern within the guitar shape he places the template on the guitar body once again and secures it with double-sided tape with a router he refines the profile giving the guitar smoother lines using a different pattern as a guide here outs and drills cavities to accommodate the guitars neck electronics and bridge he removes the template and inspects his work he sands the edges of the cavity smooth then he drilled several holes in the back of the guitar for attaching the neck later with the guitar body held steady in a clamp he bores a hole for the
input jack [Music] after crafting the neck of the guitar from reclaimed skateboards he files it aggressively to shape it to the desired profile he then sands the entire neck the body undergoes an extensive sanding - and then he coats it with clear gloss this is the first of seven to eight coats with the sanding in between each one with curing time this lacquering process takes three weeks after a wet sanding and buffing the guitar body and neck have a mirror finish the guitar maker Nestle's the neck in the hollow space at the front of the
body and screws it in place from the back of the guitar this recycled skateboard get our can now be assembled and wired and is set up to rock it takes a month to transform some battered old skateboards into a sleek electric guitar trading the halfpipe for the stage these skateboards are no longer has bins [Music]
