+ Art of Skateboarding Articles

  This is pretty much just as you might expect in the title. Take a nail or screw, drive into wall at desired height, slip through truck hole, and viola...fastest install ever! (haha) Keep in mind that if using a screw, you will have to unscrew it from the wall, slid it through truck hole and then re-screw back into hole in the wall. You will also typically have to put another nail/screw in an additional truck hole in order to balance the board out either horizontally or vertically. Variations include driving the nails/screws into a 2x4 mounted to wall in order to display several decks side-by-side or to simply create some space off the wall much like the "floating" displays mentioned here later.

  This is probably the most common method of all. Take some fishing line / shoestring/ etc., loop one end through a truck hole and bring back around through truck hole next to it. Tie a knot of your choice (make sure it is tight!) with the ends to complete your "loop". Finally, hang the "loop" on a nail, screw or hook mounted to the wall. It is often best to use a picture hanging hook (you can find kits of these in stores like Home Depot, Lowes, etc) or better still, a silicon, non-scratch hook (for example, a 3M Command hook).

  This covers a range of non-wall-mounted solutions that have been seen over the years. This is a good option for folks that have limited wall space or are not able to nail/drill into their walls. Examples of this include using a guitar stand to hold a deck and even using pre-built stands available on Etsy and similar sites. Heck, with a little ingenuity and elbow grease, you can make your own!

A little history lesson....

  A lot of people do not know this but when AOS first started in 2000, yes, we listed decks in the "price guide", but another big part of the site was selling deck displays. No one was doing it or had anything to offer other than the good ol' "hang it on fishing line" method described earlier in this guide. In fact, I am quite proud to say that we were the FIRST to actually use the term "floating" deck display/hanger to describe our own product that is basically what you see everywhere today. It was the exact same concept...spacing the deck off the wall to give the appearance that it is floating in air. We used the same idea for our custom shadowboxes as well. At the time, the price to ship versus the actual cost we charged plus the time it took to make them, package and send became just too much hassle for too little pay off ($5-8 per hanger).....and the fact that it was just easier to tell someone how to make their own...all led to just calling it quits on that part of AOS and focusing more on the site. Fast forward a bit when I began to see a lot of companies popping up, each selling their own "floating" product, I was admittedly a bit pissed and considered even sending them "WTF man?!?!" emails (nicely worded of course haha), but I didn't really see the point. Again, it was easier just to tell people how to build their own, and if someone wants to just buy one, hopefully the company making them is paying good folks with that money. Karma....or something like that. haha

Make Your Own (DIY!)

  There are LOTS of videos online that cover how to make these on your own. Just looking at one should give it away though. The concept and basic design is all the same, but there are a few variations you will see: some use different “backings” (blocks of wood, molded plastics, die-cut metal, repurposed old skateboard pieces, etc.) that go against the wall, some use different “pegs” (screws, dowels, polished smooth metal pins, plastic rods, etc.), some use different protective pieces on the "pegs"(“felt”/cloth wrapping, plastice sleeves, etc), and some use different "end caps" on the "pegs" (end cap bolts, platic nibs, hex bolts, etc....and I have even seen some cool ones with little plastic skulls!). Give it a try to come up with your own unique take!

Company Manufactured "Floating" Hangers

There are TONS more than these as well if you just do an internet search for "skateboard floating hanger". This is just a sampling of some of the more popular ones.

  Very similar to the “floating” hanger and other examples above except you can “print” them at home or through a service (for example, my local UPS store will 3D print as a service they offer.).

  This is probably the most "ballerific" and legit way to display your decks. You mount the deck (or have it done) in a "shadowbox" you buy, build or have custom made. Much like the "floating" hangers, AOS made and sold custom "shadowboxes" way back starting in 2000. However, as you might find, ordering a shadowbox can be expensive. It was not the cost of the shadowbox (we charged $80 for the "basic" one), but the cost of shipping that can be $100 or more in some cases. For many people, that just makes it to cost prohibitive to have sent. Your best bet is to find a mass-produced, "big box store" product or have your local framing shop make one or build your own. A cheap option that a lot of collectors use is to order or buy direct from the "craft and hobby" store, Michael's ($59.99 at www.michaels.com). You can often find discount coupons or codes to knock the price down or wait until they are "buy one get one free" so you get two for about $60.00. There is also the company, Legacy Shadow Boxes (legacyshadowboxes.com), that offers another option. Finally, if money is no object, you can get one of the professionally made “Cadillac” products. Lastly, there are lots of online videos to build your own, and it really is a simple, process. The nice part of using a shadowbox is the ability to add additional material along with the deck to display such as related stickers, artwork, autographs, memorabilia, etc. to add to the overall composition. Lastly, there are all manner of options to really make your shadowbox stand out such as using different color/pattern "backgrounds" (or even using cloth/felt or collages of magazine clippings or artwork), using different colors and stains for the frame, using different materials for the frame (wood, plastic, metal, etc.), using hinges, "slide in" or mounted front panel and using different materials for the front panel itself (glass, plexiglass, etc.). For this method, it really is a "sky is the limit" kinda thing.

  The question always comes up "...but what if I want to display a complete deck?!?! How can I hang it with trucks and wheels on!?!?". Some folks try to come up with gadgets that wrap around the board or some kind of big hooks or a clamp that fits over the nose and holds the truck. I have seen some "out there" ideas. Let's not overthink and complicate this. It is actually much easier than you might think. ANY of the above methods listed will also work for completes. Ready for the big secret?....... Simply remove truck bolts as needed (usually 2) and then go through the same process using those truck holes for any method we discussed. You will have to account for the additional weight when hanging and displaying a board in this manner, but it does work. In addition to the methods listed above, here are a few other ideas for displaying completes...

  Much like mounting completes, a lot of people tend to overcomplicate displaying a deck horizontally instead of vertically (ie. "long ways").Once again, ALL of the methods listed above will also work to display a deck horizontally. It does take a bit more effort, but works in much the same way. In some cases, you simply use TWO "kits" of any one above methods (for each end of deck) and level it up. The most common methods are:

• Rack - yep, just like your local skate shop has....why not? You can find racks to display one or multiple decks this way. Its also very easy to make your own. PRO TIP: Cover inside edges of rack and any place that might "touch" the deck with felt (felt strips are easy) to keep from getting scuff marks.
• Hooks - To me, this is a bit much, but I have seen people display decks horizontally using the large "hooks" that bolt into walls and such (like for hanging bikes).
• Floating hangers x 2 - Just attach one to each side and make sure to level them when mounting to a wall.
• Picture Frame style - much like the string/shoelace/fishing line/wire method but intead of looping just one end, run your "string" through both ends to form your line across the back to hang on a hook/nail like hanging a picture frame.

  We covered decks pretty well but what if we have other stuff we want to display? I will not go into too much detail as this one just comes down to your own preference and how fanatical you really want to get (haha). For displaying stickers, a lot of people just simple use picture frames or better still, poster frames and just arrange them as they like within the frame (take care in how you make them "stick" so they do not damage the sticker or backing). For displaying trucks and stuff, just think about how your own skate shop does it best. No need to reinvent the wheel. Most skate shops just use those glass display cases, so why not you too? You can often find those display cases for super cheap on things like FB Marketplace, store closings, auctions, business furniture wholesalers/consignments, etc., so it just a matter of doing a little searching for a good deal. Even stores like Ikea have some pretty cool vertical "curio" cabinets that work well, are cheap, and easy to put together. For wheels, I have seen some interesting ways of showing them off, but I can say that the company NOT PRO Skateboards (notproskateboards.com) does the most amazing job I have seen in all my years. They will also work with you in putting into reality your own custom vision. AOS does not promote many companies, but we have no problem backing NOT PRO Skateboards for the good work they do!