How to Remove Grip Tape from a Skateboard the EASY Way

Whether you want to remove dirty grip tape, re-grip your skateboard with an epic design, or turn an old deck into a decorative piece in your home, you’ll need to remove your current grip tape. But how do you remove grip tape from a skateboard?

Unfortunately, grip tape has an incredibly strong adhesive, which makes doing so difficult if you just try to peel it off. Fortunately, with a couple of household tools, there’s an easier way.

Here’s what you’ll need to get started:

• A flat razor blade
• A hair dryer or heat gun
• Sandpaper (80-100 and 200 grit)
• Optional: Goo-Gone, mineral spirits, or acetone for removing residual adhesive
• Elbow grease

A Step-by-Step Guide to Removing Skateboard Grip Tape With Ease

Removing your skateboard’s grip tape might be daunting, but I’ll tell you that with the right tools and techniques, it’s actually a fairly simple task. Here are step-by-step instructions on how to remove grip tape from a skateboard.

1. Disassemble Your Skateboard

First, take the trucks off and place them and your nuts and bolts in a safe place. If you leave the trucks on, your grip tape could get stuck under the screws and split—plus, you’ll have to remove them before applying a new sheet of grip.

If you don’t remove your trucks, your new grip tape will cover the bolts, making it difficult to remove them in the future.

2. Use a Hairdryer or Heat Gun to Loosen the Grip Tape’s Adhesive

When adhesives are exposed to heat, they can crystallize and the polymers that compose the adhesive can break down, weakening their strength and stickiness. To take advantage of this, use a hair dryer or a heat gun to apply heat to the surface of the grip tape.

Focus the heat on the area you plan to start removing from rather than the entire deck, as you’ll work your way across the deck. 

3. Peel Back the Grip Tape

After you’ve heated the grip tape for a minute or so, use a razor, Exacto knife, or chisel to lift the grip tape and begin peeling it back.

• Note: Don’t force the razor blade. If it won’t slide under the grip tape with relative ease, make sure it’s not either piercing the wood. Otherwise, heat the grip tape longer and try again after another minute.

As you get a grip on a larger section of the grip tape, continue heating it with the hair dryer or heat gun as you pull the grip tape back. At this point, I’ve found it helpful if you stand with one foot on the board as you pull the grip tape. This will give you more leverage as you pull and keep things steady.

Once you’ve removed the grip tape, your board is ready to be re-gripped. If this was your goal, congrats, you’re done! If you were removing the grip tape for a reason such as you wanted to re-grip the deck with more exposed wood, or will be using the deck for decorative purposes, you’ll want to continue with the following steps:

4. Remove the Remaining Adhesive Residue

Your grip tape will have left a strong and sticky adhesive residue. Use a product like Goo-Gone, mineral spirits or acetone with a rag or paper towel to remove as much adhesive residue as you can.

• Note: If you’re going to use your deck for decorative purposes or re-grip it with more exposed wood, be careful with substances like mineral spirits and acetone, as they could leave marks on your deck where they were applied. Test them in an area you plan to cover before using them on the entire surface of the deck.

Finally, finish the surface by sanding it, starting with the lower-grit sandpaper (80-100 grit), and then the higher-grit (200-300 grit) sandpaper. Finally, wipe away the sawdust with a microfiber rag.

Congrats! You’re Done Removing Grip Tape from Your Skateboard

Now, you’re ready to go ahead with a sick grip tape job, turning your deck into a chair or bench, or whatever your unique project is. Remember to always be careful when using razors to remove grip, and rely more on the heat from a hair dryer than the razor.

With these tips, your project will be on to the next steps in no time!