THE FUTURE OF SKATEBOARD MANUFACTURING

THE CLOUD BASED SKATEBOARD FACTORY

2HEX is to skateboard companies what Foxconn is to Apple and Samsung. We enable our customers to be the world’s strongest skateboard companies.

At 2HEX you get the best skateboard productions. We apply the same production processes as Nike, Adidas or Apple Computers for our customers to have the highest quality and the biggest selection of customization options. This makes 2HEX the leading skateboard manufacturing platform globally.

We do not only arrange your deck productions, but also arrange griptape-, bearing-, wheel-, truck-, hardware-, t-tool and machinery- productions starting from the raw material! This means that we do not print your design on some pre-stocked components. Instead we manufacture every skateboard component exactly the way you have envisioned it to be!

If you want your brand to be special, to stand out in skate shops and to be remembered for the highest quality and competitive prices. And if you want to spend your time growing your company instead of holding lengthy price negotiations with suppliers, then you have arrived at the right place. We think the same way you do.

Welcome to 2HEX, the final stop on your search for a skateboard manufacturer. We will make you win!

THE FUTURE OF SKATEBOARD MANUFACTURING

Manage your skateboard productions from the palm of your hands - anywhere and at any time. Develop your own products, submit your order, and have the goods delivered right to your doorstep.

Production orders are sent directly from your phone into the factories’ production lines. It is super simple, transparent and fast!

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2HEX SKATEBOARD MANUFACTURERS

HOW 2HEX SELECTS ITS SKATEBOARD MANUFACTURERS

2HEX SKATEBOARD MANUFACTURING PARTNER SELECTION PROCESS

2HEX itself, like for example Nike or Apple, does not operate its own factories. We continuously source new skateboard factories with the right machinery and interview skateboard factory owners. Once we find a suitable new partner, we teach the factory owner and his management team how to set up a world-class skateboard production and how to follow our standardized production protocols.
Once the skateboard production line has been set up correctly, we supply the skateboard factory with our molds, shapes and the necessary raw materials and skateboard components to ensure the highest quality and consistency among all of our skateboard factories.

Once a new skateboard factory has reached our high-quality requirements by passing all tests, we fill this skateboard factory’s complete production capacities to prevent losing money on idle machinery, idle workers, or on not reaching full economy of scale on raw materials.

By cooperating with multiple skateboard factories for every component instead of owning and operating one very big factory ourselves, we can better fulfil our promise of the market’s highest quality, consistency, innovation and price leadership.

Not operating our own skateboard factory (which we have taken into serious consideration) enables us to combine the production knowledge of all of our skateboard factory partners. It lets us scale our production capacities more quickly, and it gives us the opportunity to let all of our skateboard factories compete by quality.

By leaving the factory ownership with our partners, we know that the human resource sourcing process and taking care of hundreds of workers is in the hands of a careful and intelligent manager. This gives us the time to conduct research on new products, production technologies and quality control processes – which leads to a bigger product customization offer for you.

THE 2HEX SKATEBOARD DECK MANUFACTURERS

HOW ARE SKATEBOARDS DECKS MADE BY 2HEX SKATEBOARD MANUFACTURERS?

2HEX professional skateboard decks are made of 7 layers Canadian hard rock or sugar maple and glue.

The thickness of a skateboard deck is between 1.00 cm (0.39”) to 1.10 cm (0.43”), however we have recently found a way to keep our decks’ strength and stiffness at 0.95cm (0.37”).

The Canadian maple used by 2HEX is grown around Lake Ontario. Because of the freezing cold winters and the hot summers, this is the strongest, stiffest and most durable maple in the world!

The trees are cut into logs, cooked and after reaching a humidity of 40% rotary cut into thin veneers. We divide maple veneers into two grades:

- Outer wood

- Heart wood

and into three groups:

- Face veneers (thickness of 0.062”)

- Centers (thickness of 0.062”)

- Cross band veneers (thickness of 0.045”)

After cutting the logs into veneers, a few veneers are placed into large buckets of dye. They stay in the buckets for multiple hours to reach a beautifully saturated color. Then all veneers are baked (or dried in room temperature) until they reach a humidity of around 8 to 12%.

When 8% is reached, the veneers are taken to the pressing chamber. There the center and cross band veneers are placed between two rollers, that evenly apply glue on both sides of the veneers. For this step the customer chooses between water-based glue or Epoxy resin. Water-based glue is lighter but less durable. Epoxy is a little heavier but gives the deck the perfect stiffness, durability and pop.

After applying the glue, the veneers are stacked in the following order:

Each stack of seven veneers will turn into one pro level skateboard deck.

At 2HEX all pro decks are single-pressed. Unlike most professional skateboard deck factories that save costs by placing between 5 to 8 decks into each mold, we only place one deck in each mold. This process ensures, that each deck receives the same evenly distributed amount of pressure and all decks consistently have the same shape.

2HEX 50TDP Machine, semi-automatically presses decks at 50 tons for 12 to 15 minutes depending on the glue.

After the glued and pressed veneers are taken from the deck press, they have the typical skateboard deck thickness, concave and kick. Now it first looks like a skateboard deck.

This uncut deck is then taken to the cutting chamber, where an eight-drill machine symmetrical drills the truck holes. The uncut deck is then fixed by the eight holes into a cnc router. The CNC router cuts the customers selected decks’ length, width and shape before rounding the edges.

Each deck’s edges are sanded in multiple steps, from rough to very soft to give it that perfect feel during grab tricks or while being carried.

After cutting and sanding the deck it is placed into a control room, where it is kept until it reaches the perfect humidity of 8%.

When the deck has reached and kept its perfect humidity for over 24 hours, a thin layer of lacquer is applied on all sides. The lacquer ensures that the deck keeps the correct humidity under sunshine or if in contact with water for short periods of time.

Lastly based on the customers’ requests a heat transfer print is applied on the bottom and sometimes the top of the deck. Other options skateboard companies often select are glossy metal prints between the deck’s bottom and the actual design or a laser engraving on top of the deck.

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2HEX SKATEBOARD MANUFACTURERS

The production process is comparable to what a skate shop manager does, when you buy all components for a skateboard complete: <br><br> The production of skateboards is done inside 2HEX’ specialized assembly factories.

1. the griptape is taken of the back paper and it is being applied to the skateboard deck by slowly unrolling it starting from the center of the deck towards tail and nose. With a razor blade or a cardboard cutter, the excess griptape around the deck is being cut off. Then the 8 truck holes of the deck are freed by drilling through the griptape.
2. Then 8 nuts and 8 bolts are used to fix the trucks. Most of our completes come without spacers, so we use 7/8” carbon-metal bolts. These close nicely with the edge of the nut reducing excess material and weight. The hardware of each truck is fixed in a diagonal pattern to ensure that the trucks are mounted horizontally.
3. Our standard completes use trucks that have an axle of the same width as the deck. This way we ensure that the trucks and decks align beautifully.
4. nuts and bolts




5. Two bearings are pressed into each wheel before the four wheels are fixed on the two trucks. We carefully check, that the wheels spin fast and do not wobble.
6. Lastly, we do a final check of the whole complete skateboard to ensure that the trucks are mounted correctly, are not too loose or too tight, that wheels spin without being too loose, and that the overall picture of the complete is perfect.
7. We then place each complete skateboard into a big protective plastic bag. Four completes are packed into one carton. Once the completes arrive at a skate shop, the skate shop carefully unpacks the completes and places them on a deck rack or shelf.

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2HEX SKATEBOARD TRUCK MANUFACTURERS

HOW ARE SKATEBOARD TRUCKS MADE?

1. Melt aluminum
2. Place an axle into a mold
3. Pour the melted aluminum into the mold
4. Press the two sides of the mold together and let the aluminum dry
5. Open the mold and take out the hanger and baseplate
6. Drill the whole for the pivot cup, add the axle’s screw-thread.
7. Sand and polish the hanger and baseplate.
8. Dye the baseplate or hanger
9. Add a print or laser etch the logo.
10. Hammer the kingpin into the baseplate.
11. Assemble the baseplate, hanger, bushings, washers and nuts.

HOW ARE SKATEBOARD TRUCKS MADE AT 2HEX’ SKATEBOARD TRUCK FACTORIES?

AT 2HEX we mix aluminum with multiple other metals and chemicals do reach a very light yet neither porous nor bendable material. The metal is injected at a higher pressure which allows us to reach corners not reachable solely by pouring.

This leads to more precise and detailed truck shapes. When combined with our hollow titanium axle and kingpin, you get a precision-made light truck. For the bushings and pivot cup we use super high rebound urethane. Every component as well as the complete truck shape are customizable.

Minimum order quantity: 600 trucks

Pro Trucks Price per piece: USD 3,50 to USD 7,20.

Customization: Custom Shape, Custom Color, Custom Print, Custom Bushings and more.

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