How to Create Roller Skates

Roller skating is a fun sport that can be enjoyed by children and adults alike, with the added benefit of being good for your health and fitness. Roller skates are widely available in department stores and sporting retailers, but they can be very expensive. A fun and less expensive way is to make your own by modifying an old pair of tennis shoes.

Things You'll Need

  • One pair of tennis shoes
  • Drill or screwdriver
  • Two mounting plates
  • Mounting plate nuts and bolts
  • Hammer
  • Breaker bar
  • Paradigm tool
  • Four trucks
  • Eight wheels
  • Washers
  • King pins and king pin nuts
  • Two toe stops
  • Toe stop bolts
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Instructions

  1. How to create roller skates

    • 1

      Find an old but sturdy pair of tennis shoes and unlace them. Remove the insoles from both shoes and place each shoe over a shoe stand.

    • 2

      Position a mounting plate vertically along the center of the first shoe and mark the four holes at the corner of the plate on the sole with a pencil. Do the same for the second shoe.

    • 3

      Drill through the shoe carefully via the marked holes. Hold the drill firmly while doing this.

    • 4

      Locate all of the mounting bolts and add a metal washer to each bolt.

    • 5

      Check that the mounting plate is aligned perfectly central on the tennis shoe before attaching. If the bolts are not going through the mounting plate with ease, then gently tap with a hammer.

    • 6

      Check that the mounting plate is aligned perfectly central on the tennis shoe before attaching. If the bolts are not going through the mounting plate with ease, then gently tap with a hammer to achieve this.

    • 7

      Screw a mounting bolt nut to all of the mounting bolts, taking each shoe at a time. Use the drill to tighten each nut as firmly as possible.

    • 8

      Position the breaking bar over the exposed, non-required part of each mounting bolt. Gently work the bolt from side to side with the breaking bar until the extra part comes off. Some sharp edges may be left here, so smooth these down with a few taps of the hammer.

    • 9

      Position the trucks centrally on the plate and tighten the king pin manually. Use the drill to tighten further.

    • 10

      Attach wheels manually to the axles of the mounting plates using axle nuts. Tighten them fully using the drill. Check that the wheels are spinning freely. If they are not, loosen the axle nuts by around one and a half turns using the paradigm tool.

    • 11

      Insert a toe stop bolt to each toe stop. Attach the toe stop to the front of the mounting plates using a drill or screwdriver.