How to Convert Hockey Shin Pads to BMX Shin Pads

As stated in one of my previous 'ibles, I ride BMX.

Safety for me is the number one priority and I feel that without the gear you tend to crash.

One example of this is when I went for a small ride - down the driveway - I tried a nose manual without gloves and ripped up my hands and face from the crash.

Another example (the one we will focus on) is when I was too lazy to convert my hockey pads to BMX shin pads - that afternoon I went for another "small ride" and slipped the pedal resulting in the second photo of the intro.

Straight away I decided to build up my pads and make them wearable.

My main problem was that hockey pads are meant to be worn under clothing and sometimes on BMX all you have covering your shins are long socks so I had to at least make a top strap ~ I decided to go the whole hog and put both straps on both shin guards.

Here is how I did it, my fails and re - attempts to end up with a nice, comfy and wearable shin pads!

And for all those questioners out there - Yes, I have slipped the pedals since and the pads have saved my shins from a lot more damage!

Step 1: What You Need:

To make a set of BMX shin pads out of hockey pads you will need to get:

four velcro straps,
Hot glue,
scissors,
two shin pads.

I like velcro because it is quick release and in the event of a crash it can be undone easily without hassle.

My velcro was obtained from an old set of rollerblading knee pads.

I cut the top section and the bottom section off leaving me with two strips of velcro and one pad on fabric.

You need the velcro so whichever way you obtain it, make sure it fits around your calf and just above your ankle.

If you are not using any elastic on your straps you will have to make sure they fit perfect because velcro doesn't stretch.

Once you have your resources sorted you can move on!

Step 2: Dry Run and Then Full Glue!

So, once you have your materials sorted you should do a "dry run".

Put the straps on the hockey guard and put it on your shin.

Grab a nikko pen and trace the rough outline of where you think the straps should sit.

Do the same with the other pad and then return to the table.

You cannot use superglue on this as t will not stick properly to the plastic of the guards.

When you are satisfied with the velcro placement you can go ahead and apply a generous amount of hot glue to the underside of the velcro strip and put it in place.

Now with the strip secure-ish you should put a generous bead of hot glue around the edges of the strip to make sure no edges peel up.

When all that is done, repeat with the last three straps and then ride!

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