Tag Archives: skateboards

New Deck 2025 – Death Benson

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Somehow, a couple of years ago, I ended up with a spare deck. I was going to put it on the wall as a display item, but recently I changed my mind.

The deck in question was this Death Benson Devil Woman. I think I decided it was too wide and set up a different deck to skate – an 8.25″ Patrick Melcher Mermaid deck. I wouldn’t normally buy a deck just to display, so I must have skated one set up for longer than anticipated to end up with a spare.

Whatever the reason, this 8.5″ Benson was put aside to mount on the wall. Recently, my current set up was starting to get really worn out – I obviously needed a new one. As I’d been considering going wider, this 8.5″ deck was brought out of retirement and set up, ready to go.

I used some older Independent trucks that just about fit OK, and moved my current Slime Balls wheels across to this set up.

The result: a great new skateboard. It has that nice poop that new decks have, it feels awesome. I’ve really enjoyed skating it, slightly wider was a good move.

I’ve had one of these decks previously, though in a smaller width (you can read about it here). I’m still a big fan of Death skateboards, and of course the amazing artwork of Liane Plant!

New wheels may be an option in the near future, and definitely new bearings.

And there you have it: just another little post celebrating these rad skateboards that I’ve had the pleasure to ride over the years.

All of this stuff was bought from the extremely brilliant Native Skate Store.

The Death Skateboards website is here.

Liane Plant’s website is here.

New Skateboard 2024 – Death Blinky

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Yes, it’s new skateboard time! Though with the disgusting weather we’re having – and more set to continue – skate time this summer looks limited…

Anyway, let’s crack on, ‘cos these blog posts are really only for me – no one else reads them. I just like to document different decks and set-ups for the sake of posterity.

No surprises, I bought a new Death Skateboards deck again. This time it’s a pro rider model, for Sam ‘Blinky’ Hutchinson. It’s 8.25″ wide, great shape and concave, with a weird graphic that I kinda like.

Deck
Full set up

My previous Indy trucks have been carried over to this model, together with Independent truck bolts.

New wheels though: I went for a slightly softer durometer and got some Santa Cruz Slime Balls “Snot Rockets” – 95a, 53mm.

All bought from good ol’ reliable Native Skate Store (with free grip applied), but otherwise built by me.

I also bought some yellow Pig Wheels rails, which need to be fitted on still.

Top
Bottom

First sesh has proven this to be an excellent set up – I even learned a new trick: blunt to 5050 stalls on a curb. A small curb, but who cares? I’ll move to bigger curbs in the future.

Stoked!

Stats for anyone interested (probably just me):

  • Death Skateboards ‘Blinky’ 8.25″ deck (with free griptape)
  • Independent Trucks 144 Mid Stage II
  • Santa Cruz Slime Balls “Snot Rockets” 53mm 95a
  • Independent Trucks GP-S bearings
  • Independent Trucks allen bolts 1″

The Death Skateboards website is here.

The Native Skate Store website is here.

Slime Balls
Snot Rockets

Skateboard Museum: Albert 2

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Regular visitors to the Virtual Hot Tub may well recall that in the Skateboards section, I’ve posted a couple of blogs looking at my very first skateboard. It’s an old, faded plastic relic from the 1970s which my Gran gave to me. That skateboard is incredibly important to me, as it was the board I first learned to ride on in my early teens – and thereby created a lifelong obsession.

Imagine my surprise when I was contacted out of the blue by someone I had never met, and had read my blog about my original skate. And they had one exactly the same for sale. The same “Albert” red plastic skateboard, only as good as new and completely unused.

Naturally, I jumped at the chance. I’m not a skate collector as such, but it was very affordable and a unique bit of history for myself. Soon enough, a cardboard box arrived marked “Made in West Germany”, and inside was a pristine and unridden version of my old skateboard.

You can see the photos here of Albert 2, in comparison to my old original. The plastic is bright red, the wheels are clear. It’s not the greatest skateboard of the era, nor an expensive collector’s item, but it is pretty cool to have in my possession.

I’ve still no idea how I managed to learn to ride on that tiny plastic skateboard, but thank God I did. I’m now 51 years old, and still love skateboarding. If it wasn’t for my Gran presenting me with good ol’ Albert 1, my life would have been much more dull.

Read more about My First Skateboard here and here.

New Skateboard 2023 – Death Lurk II

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Yes, another entry in my ongoing quest to commemorate every skateboard I own. As I’ve said before, these blog posts are really just for me – so I can look fondly back on the boards I’ve owned over the years.

Actually, this is just a new deck only. I bought a new deck – a Death Skateboards Lurk II model – got it gripped, and switched my old Independent trucks and Death wheels over to this skateboard.

The trucks, wheels, bearings and hardware were all in fairly good condition still, so no need to go crazy. Those trucks cost big money!

I chose another Death deck, as I have done for a while, and so far it’s going great. Cool graphic too, till I scraped most of it on tail stalls and rock’n’rolls. The Lurk II is 8.25″ wide which suits me fine.

Here are the stats if you’re interested:

  • Death Skateboards Lurk II 8.25″ deck (with free Jessup griptape)
  • Independent Trucks 144 Mid Stage II
  • Death skateboards wheels 52mm
  • Independent Trucks GP-S bearings
  • Independent Trucks allen bolts 1″

The deck was purchased online from Native Skate Shop. You’ll already now I’m a big fan of Death Skateboards, with this order I also bought a Death t-shirt, to proudly declare my allegiance.

50 years old and still skating!

The Death Skateboards website is here.

The Native Skate Store website is here.

The Best of 2022

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Happy New Year! And here we go, full throttle into 2023!

2022 was not an easy year for your old pal, Platinum Al. But the Virtual Hot Tub soldiered on regardless, never giving up despite the odds. NEVER SAY DIE. And in the end, the year 2022 was a successful one for this blog, with site views up approx. 2% on the year before.

Not a massive improvement, I’ll grant you – but I’ll take all the good news I can get. I certainly didn’t expect to finish the year with those stats, just the opposite.

So what were the most successful blog posts on the Virtual Hot tub in 2022? What articles brought in the hordes of avid readers? What did YOU want to read?

Here’s the traditional review of the Top 10 blog posts by number of views. In reverse order, countdown style, of course…

10. Hawarden Classic Car Show

Events started to return in 2022, and this local classic car show was a great example of the fun to be had as restrictions were lifted. Some nice pics.

9. New Skateboard 2022 – Death Benson

I like to chronicle my skateboards (or at least just the deck) for posterity, and just for myself. Despite my doubts, this rad set up made the Top 10.

8. Pentre Fest 2022

My beloved Pentre Fest was BACK in 22, with two more days of metal bands at high volume. Not long till the 2023 event!

7. Liverpool Comic Con 2022

A family trip out to Liverpool for a great con and a load of cosplay photos.

6. Scars of Halloween Horror Fest

My annual horror movie fest provided this blog, which was by far the most popular this year as it featured a Hammer classic.

5. Star Wars Figures- Empire Strikes Back Part 2

I’m happy to see the second part of my blog focussing on my Star Wars figures from The Empire Strikes Back feature in the Top 10!

4. Subskate Summer Fun!

An in depth investigation into the merits (and failings) of a pool toy that never quite made it.

3. Star Wars Figures – The Empire Strikes Back

The first part of my feature concerning my original Star Wars figures from Empire. Good to see this was popular!

2. Return of Wales Comic Con

More Comic Con and cosplay fun, with a visit to Wrexham and Wales Comic Con back on home ground.

So what was the number one blog post of 2022? It was…

  1. Chester Comic Con 2022

In the number one spot, a visit to Chester’s Comic Con! A summer afternoon, loads of merch and dozens of cool cosplayers made this article the most successful of the year!

Events back on the menu has, unsurprisingly, dominated the results this year. They were all great fun, and well worth the visit. In contrast to the results from last year, where events were (understandably) under represented.

It’s also gratifying to see some skateboards and toys being appreciated, too.

This year, we look to return to a “new normal” in our post pandemic world. But with a Cost of Living Crisis, Brexit still unleashing it’s mayhem, and the same gang of inept cowards and liars in charge, we still have plenty of obstacles ahead.

Never the less, we at Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub remain vigilant – bringing you the best entertainment. Thanks for being with us in 2022. Stay tuned for ever more greatness in 2023!

Subskate Summer Fun!

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Are you going on a summer holiday? Maybe a nice Mediterranean place, with lots of sun? Can’t take your skateboard with you? Or if you could, will the pavements be cracked and broken? No skatepark, no surf, but still want to enjoy your board riding fun? Then the subskate could be just the thing for you!

There are many boards in my garage: skateboards old and new, longboards, a snowboard, a mountain board, etc etc. Some years ago whilst on holiday in Greece, I encountered someone with one of these subskate contraptions in the hotel swimming pool, and I had to get my own to add to the collection.

All it is, essentially, is a float – like a buoyancy aid for learning to swim – shaped like a skateboard. Unlike a surfboard (or wakeboard, or windsurf board, for that matter), the rider stands on the subskate which is submerged under the water. There, the “subskater” floats around with their upper body out of the water, and the lower body floating on the subskate in the water. Crazy! Whatever will they think of next??!

See the photos for info. I used a fancy underwater camera for these pics, no expense spared.

Of course, there’s not much to do in the water, just float around. You could try some 360 turns, which I did well at. Shuvits weren’t really happening, though. Everything moves real slow under the water, but the board just wants to escape to the surface!

Where the subskate could prove to be more fun, however, is jumping into the pool using a caveman style trick. This could actually be helpful learning those caveman variations. To be honest though, it got old pretty quick jumping in and constantly getting water up my nose. Or ears. Maybe if you had a crew of similarly kamikaze friends to try this with, it could be more fun…

To be fair, I quite enjoyed the relaxing feeling of floating around in the water. My first caveman into the pool was a good laugh, too. And slow motion ollie practice might have actually been worthwhile! I’ll leave it to the readers to decide if a subskate is worth the valuable luggage space to take on holiday, though. Maybe have a week off with a beer at the bar instead?

Does a subskate look like fun to you? Or am I just a grommet who can’t resist splurging money on skate related nonsense? Leave a comment and let me know.

New Skateboard 2022 – Death Benson

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OK, I get no one reads these posts about my latest skateboard, but I’m not writing this for an audience. I’m writing it for me. One day, when I’m ancient like Yoda, I’ll be able to look back and have a memento of skateboards I’ve had in the past.

Wish I had at least a photo of the decks I had when I was a kid in the 80’s. That would’ve been cool. As it is, I can’t even remember them all. Not so anymore. Now, I’ll have a permanent record of them all.

For the first time in a long time, I saved up some cash and bought a full, new set up. For a while, I’ve been recycling my trucks (and sometimes wheels) to be as economical as possible. This time, it was new everything – ordered from the very nice folks at Native Skate Store.

Here are the details:

  • Death skateboards Benson Devil Woman II 8.25″ deck (with free Jessup grip tape)
  • Independent Trucks 144 Mid Stage II
  • Death skateboards wheels 52mm
  • Independent Trucks GP-S bearings
  • Independent Trucks allen bolts 1″

The set up has been fantastic so far, deck has nice pop and the trucks turn great. I love the graphics by Liane Plant (regular readers may remember I have an 8.5″ version of this deck to go on the wall, and I’m a big fan of Death skateboards). No complaints at all.

Though I’m not going to be able to share this post on Facebook due to the “offensive” graphic…!

See you out on the streets.

The Death Skateboards website is here.

Liane Plant’s website is here.

Visit the Native Skate Store here.

New Deck Update – Death Patrick Melcher

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Continuing my ambition to document all of my skateboard decks, here’s my latest set up for 2021. My Death “Script” in red got worn out through a load of skating (or attempted skating, ha!), so I needed a replacement.

To take over as my day to day skateboard, I ordered another Death deck, the Benson Devil Woman from good ol’ Native Skate Store. It’s 8.5″ wide, great concave and a spectacular graphic from the legendary Liane Plant.

So amazing is this graphic, that I had second thoughts about skating it.

I already had a Death Patrick Melcher deck that I had bought and was planning to hang on the wall. Fantastic mermaid graphic (by L. Plant again, of course) which I’ve shared before on the Virtual Hot Tub, and I thought it would be great as a display piece.

I was in a pickle: do I set up and skate the Benson as intended, or switch to the Melcher? Both great graphics, great shapes and great boobs – but as classic as they are, I needed something to ride.

As the Melcher Mermaid is 8.25″ wide, that was the final deciding factor. Slightly less wide than the Devil Woman, I felt that this would suit me better. I’ve been right so far – the mermaid feels slightly more “me” than my previous 8.5″ Script deck.

The Patrick Melcher is set up with my Independent trucks and Death wheels – and I love it.

Which means that the Benson Devil Woman will go on the wall as an art piece. At least for now…

The Death Skateboards website is here.

Liane Plant’s website is here.

Visit the Native Skate Store here.

New Deck 2021 – Death

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Skateboards don’t last forever. A couple of the decks I have bought over the years I’ve bought to display, but I’m not a collector, as I’ve said before. All of the other decks that I’ve bought are to be skated.

Not that I’m against deck collecting, I just can’t afford it!

So in order to preserve my latest deck for posterity, here it is – a Death Skateboards “Script” deck in red and white. I’ll cherish the photos, ‘cos already I’ve skated it and it’s getting beat up (just as it should be). It’s 8.5″ wide and it skates great.

Yet another Death deck, and bought again from the ever reliable Native Skate Store. I also got some new 53mm Death wheels, some bearings, and Native threw in some stickers. I do love stickers.

There we have it: my current set up. And what a beauty it is.

Visit the Death Skateboards website here.

Visit Native Skate Store here.

The Best of 2020

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Well, that was a mad old year, wasn’t it? 2020 was more like a bizarre disaster movie than the regular fun ride that we’re used to. A pandemic made hermits of us all; working from home became the new normal for many and travel and events ceased to exist. A year from hell for most of us, though it’s far from over yet.

Here at Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub, we’ve aimed to soldier on and bring you the very best in blogging entertainment. Be it music, skateboards, toys or tat, whatever nonsense I could investigate was delivered with all the expected wit and style.

As is customary at this time, let’s take a look back at the top ten most popular blog posts of last year. Calling it “The Best of 2020” seems somewhat incongruous, but let’s roll with it for traditions sake.

10. Haiku – Autumn

An encouraging response to my creative writing, I was very surprised to see that this poetry piece in the Japanese Haiku style was my tenth most-read post of the year. Encore?

9. Firebreather – Under a Blood Moon Album Review

There was a distinct lack of live music in 2020 (Obviously), but quite a few album reviews for my old pals at Ever Metal. This review of Swedish doom metal band Firebreather’s album was the most read at the Virtual Hot Tub.

8. Halloween Horror Fest 2020

The first of my annual horror movie reviews of 2020, this one featured the Hammer version of Dracula.

7. The Best of 2019

I’m not sure if last years top 10 blogs appearing here is a good thing or not? Either way, 2019’s round up of the most popular blogs was a winner.

6. STYLE: Safari Jacket

2020 saw the materialisation of the long-promised STYLE section at the Virtual Hot Tub. This first blog, concerning the wonderful Safari jacket, got us off to a great start.

5. Skate Art: Liane Plant/Death Skateboards

A feature about some of my favourite skate art, as created by the super talented Liane Plant for Death skateboards. Awesome stuff.

4. SK88: Old School Skateboard Playlist

More skateboard based action, with a playlist of songs from my skating youth in the late 80’s. Full of stone-cold classics, these songs still inspire my sessions today.

3. Death Star Playset

I love my vintage Death Star playset. Setting it up with original Star Wars figures for some blog photos was a lot of fun, it’s great to see it was popular!

2. 1980s Skateboard Style

More skateboarding, and another successful entry for the STYLE section! It’s me, dressed in old skate clothes from the late 80s that still fit (or did, before lockdown).

…And what will be the most popular, widely read blog of 2020? Drum roll, please:

  1. Kantouni Village Sausage and Tzatziki

Yes, the most popular was this food blog, which benefitted from a genuine traditional recipe, and an idea to recreate a Greek holiday vibe with ingredients from the local supermarket.

As travel wasn’t happening this year for most of us, perhaps it’s no surprise that the Greek recipe blog came out on top. It was written as an ode to holidays and Mediterranean sunshine, something that wasn’t a possibility for many last year. I hope you found some nostalgic comfort from this post.

Usually my annual Top 10 has featured a load of comic con events – or similar – at the top of the list. Those events didn’t happen this year, so the Top 10 has a very different flavour. Who knows what 2021 will bring us?

Whatever the strange pan-dimensional cross flux of crazy brings us next, I’d like to thank you all for reading my blog. Please remember to pop by Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub as soon as you can!