Independent Truck Company

Independent Truck Company is a skateboard truck manufacturer based in Santa Cruz, California. Established in 1978, the company is owned by NHS, Inc. and sponsors an extensive list of team riders. The trucks are manufactured in San Francisco and in China by Ermico Enterprises, Inc., the only dedicated skateboard truck foundry in the United States.

Independent Truck Company logo

History

The company was co-founded by Richard Novak, Jay Shiurman, Fausto Vitello, and Eric Swenson and the Stage 1 model was the inaugural product, released on May 23, 1978, in Newark, California. The Independent truck (or "Indy") was designed as a response to the lack of quality skateboard trucks on the market at the time. In reference to the two other major truck companies on the market, Blackhart stated that one broke, and one didn’t turn (Bennett Trucks and Tracker Trucks, respectively).[1]

Independent trucks are manufactured with:

- high quality aircraft grade T6 aluminum alloy

- high tensile SAE 4130 Chromoly alloy steel axles

- high rebound formula stock bushings.

Stage 1 - 1978

Original Release Date: July 1978

Available Sizes: 77, 88, 109, 121, 131 (Superwide), 151 (FW), 109 (MFW)

Other Available Trucks:

Available Colors: Silver

Features: T-Hanger Design, Solid Metal Baseplate, Integrated Kingpin with Top Nut, Fast Action Independent Geo

First release, a mix between Bennett and Tracker trucks.

Introduced 77mm and 88mm trucks in July 1978

Introduced the 109mm and 131mm (Superwides) November 1978

Discontinued the 77mm truck and introduced the 121mm January 1979

Introduced the Grindmaster device April 1979

Introduced the 151mm (FW) truck in May 1979

Introduced the 169mm (MFW) truck in July 1979

Stage 2 - 1979

Original Release Date: May 1979

Available Sizes: 151 (FW), 169 (MFW)

Other Availabible Trucks: Stage I 88, 109, 121, 131 (Superwide), 151 (FW), 169 (MFW), Roller Skate Plates

Available Colors: Silver

Features: Implemented Lower Removable Kingpin, Added “Pinch” on Baseplate for Strength, Smoothed Additional Su

Added a support wing to the hanger for strength

Strengthened the base plate with additional material between the kingpin and the pivot areas (known as the "pinch")

Implemented lowered, removable kingpins with less drag

Introduced the 169mm Stage 2 (MFW) truck in October 1979

Introduced the 151mm (FW) truck in April 1980

Introduced Roller Skate plates with hangers April 1980

Stage 3 - 1982

Beefed up, strengthened and smoothed pivot area of hanger

Widened and strengthened yoke area of hanger

Introduced the 159mm truck in February 1984

Introduced the 215mm truck in March 1984

Stage 4 - 1984

Beefed up and smoothed yoke and pivot area of hanger

Stage 4 hanger design is still used to date on 215mm truck

Stage 5 - 1986

Introduced the hollow body in October 1986; redesigned with added hanger 'wing' and hollowed out underside of hanger based on original ideas and concepts from Steve Caballero and Lance Mountain.

Introduced the 149mm truck in June 1987

Introduced anodized color options in blue, maroon, gold, purple and black April 1988

Red Pivot Cup (same geometry as 5-6-7), dual-wing design called the hollow body, which was much more durable and lighter

Stage 6 - 1991

Added material to pivot housing, reduced amount of metal on top of the hanger. This makes them shorter than stage V, BLACK PIVOT CUP,

Stage 7 - 1993

6 Holes: Implemented new hole pattern on base plate to reduce wear on bolts from nose and tail slides. Holes were set back on the baseplate, closer to the center of the board.

Thicker, sturdier pivot housing and reduced material on top of hanger to achieve a lighter weight

Introduced the 136mm truck February 1993

Stage 8 - 1997

6 Holes mounting base plate with cross logo added.

Introduced the 126mm truck (Duralites)

Reduced material on hanger wing to lighten up truck. Introduced new baseplate / kingpin design rendering inverted kingpin use impossible.

Stage 9 - 2003

Introduced an all-new lighter weight hanger and base plate; designed to be rigid for performance and durability.

Added all-new, ultra durable 4140 chrome molly steel axles

Reduced thread length on axle for tight bearing-to-axle fit and a faster, smoother ride

Precision drilled mounting, kingpin, and pivot holes to ride straight for improved performance

Same Fast-Action Independent Truck Co. geometry

- the first stage that was computer drafted. The truck ended up quite a bit lower, from 55mm to 53.5mm, totally altering the turn. It didn't help that the baseplates sucked too. Those things broke.

STAGE 10 - 2009

Returned to a beefed-up baseplate but the lower geometry remained and the trucks just didn't turn like old Indys, making many riders to look to past models to get the perfect turn.

STAGE 11 - 2012

“I wanted to get it back as close as possible to the Stage V to VII geometry,” return to the classic 55mm height and pivot and kingpin angles inspired by Stage V.

The logo for the trucks was based on the Iron Cross according to the author, Jim Phillips. It has remained the Independent logo since the company's inception and was derived from the French variation of the Cross pattée.

Jim Phillips says in his 2007 book "The Art of Jim Phillips":

...I began toying with the iron, or Maltese cross which was long dead as the old 60s surfer's cross, and even longer dead as the biker's cross. I used a beam compass to make it into a round shape, which looked completely different than the old square iron crosses... I took my idea into the NHS office the next morning and it went on the wall as usual. Jay and Rich each stared at it for a while, and they both thought that it looked a little too "Nazi". My sketches were rejected and I was sent back to the drawing board. I went back to my studio determined to use it, knowing it was the one. I searched my archives and scrap file for some justification for using the symbol. I found a firefighter's logo, symbols on the knights and Columbus sails. Then in my scrap file, under the letter P, I found a Time magazine cover of Pope John Paul from the June 18, 1979 edition. It was amazing; there was a cross on his vestments almost the way I designed mine. I marched into the office the next morning with the magazine to show what I thought was proof of acceptability. They both looked at each other and said, 'Well, if the Pope has it, it must be okay!' That was that, and the Independent cross was born.

Team

References
  1. Denike, Bob. Built to Grind: 25 Years of hardcore skateboarding from the archives of Independent Truck Company. San Francisco: NHS, 2004. Print.
  2. IndependentTrucks (21 August 2006). "Eric Koston - New Independent Stage 9 Low" (Video upload). YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
  3. Strange Notes (August 2012). "On The Spot With Greg Lutzka". Strange Notes. Strange Notes. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
  4. IndependentTrucks (19 May 2010). "CHRIS HASLAM - NEW PRO V SERIES by INDEPENDENT TRUCKS". YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
  5. Sidewalk (May 2012). "New Independent Trucks advert with Andrew Reynolds". Sidewalk. MPORA ACTION SPORTS NETWORK. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
  6. Dustin Dollin (August 2012). "6 Pack: Braydon Szafranski" (Video upload). Strange Notes. NHS, Inc. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
  7. Don Nyugen (2012). "6 Pack: Figgy" (Video upload). Strange Notes. NHS, Inc. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
  8. IndependentTrucks (9 September 2011). "6 Pack with David Gravette" (Video upload). YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
  9. IndependentTrucks (14 July 2011). "David Gonzalez Rides Independent" (Video upload). YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
  10. kdub (19 February 2010). "Fresh team pick ups". Strange Notes. NHS, Inc. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
  11. IndependentTrucks (2 October 2012). "5&5 with Navs" (Video upload). YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
  12. rhino (12 January 2013). "Agenda Trade Show weekend" (Photo upload). Strange Notes. NHS, Inc. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
  13. Aaron Smith (7 September 2012). "INDEPENDENT TRUCKS BEHIND THE AD WITH CHRISTIAN HOSOI". Skateboarder magazine. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
  14. "Riders". Strange Notes. Strange Notes. August 2013. Archived from the original on 12 August 2013. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
  15. "5&5 with Ben Raemers" (Video upload). Strange Notes on YouTube. Google Inc. 26 June 2014. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
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