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| ALPHA MICRO Skate tool |
| BLKPRJKT |
People who know me will tell you I'm not much of a gearhead. I don't have a big quiver of specialized set-ups. I don't scan through magazines and buyer's guides for the latest "innovations". It is my belief that the equipment in skateboarding that works best is the equipment that has been simplified and streamlined to the lowest common denominator: pure function. I really have no interest in reading pointless diatribe about drag coefficients, engineering language, or how some breakthrough technology will shave a 100th of a second off of my run time.
So when someone starts telling me about their new invention and how much better it is than previous inventors' attempts, I always take a cynical stance when evaluating their claims. MRZ was given a prototype tool by the Alpha heads at a recent trade expo. When he first showed it to me, my initial response was "Prototype? I'll wait to see the production version." I didn't really want to entertain the idea of getting stoked on something that I couldn't go out and purchase yet. And, to be perfectly frank, when I hear the word prototype associated with skateboarding in this day and age, I generally figure that yet another huckster is trying to cash in while the industry is riding high, and 99 times out of a hundred, my assumption is proven correct.
Once in a hundred times, however, the product in question proves to be a genuine article. The production version of the Alpha Micro skate tool fits this description nicely. Erik at Alpha engineered this tool with 3 obvious features in mind: size, ergonomics, and complete functionality. When the tool is collapsed down to it's closed position it measures a mere 3 inches in length, about the size of a bic cigarette lighter. By unscrewing the grip tape file / ratchet arm extension, you access all of the necessary tool features for any set-up. For mounting hardware, you have the 3/8" wrench and a socket attachment head for both phillips and allen head. You have the 1/2" and 9/16" wrenches for axle and kingpin nuts respectively, and a second axle nut option in the wrench shaft itself. This is where one of the smartest innovations of the Alpha Micro tool comes into play. Listen up street dawgs! If you happen to be one of those guys who keeps ruining his axles with the kickflip action, that annoying problem of stripped and damaged axles is no longer an issue. As an add-on attachment, you can also purchase an axle re-threading tool. It may look like an ordinary nut to the layman, but it can and will save you headaches out on the road. Erik even went so far as to include a plastic cap to enclose this attachment within the tool itself, so that you wont have to carry a loose nut in your pocket or bag. Definitely well thought out, and smartly engineered for total functionality and zero hype.
As with all skate tools, this baby could put a hurting on you if you fall on it, after all it is made of case-hardened steel, not some crappy pot-metal casting, but who skates with a tool in their pocket anyways? Keep it in your bag, Gillnitz. Or hook up your keys to it with the included keyring, and set it aside while riding, and hope some kook doesn't steal it.
The Alpha Micro tool will set you back $15.99, and the additional axle re-threader costs another $2.99. This tool clocks in around the upper average in price, but it's worth every penny in my opinion. No other tool on the market provides the totality of features of the Alpha Micro, and certainly no other tool packs the functionality of it into a size anywhere near as small. My suggestion to all of you screwdriver and socket set and allen key toting heads is to wise up and grab an Alpha Micro tool, you won't regret it.
For more info, tech specs, or to buy it, click here:
-BLKPRJKT / PHOTOS MRZ |
Sunday 14th 2007f January 2007 08:48
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