16 year old high schooler's first build

For the sake of things, none. I don’t hate the VESC, it’s probably one of the best options for anything other than 6S, I just don’t see the point if you aren’t going to go all out. Unless you are going to go 10S, FOC, Regen Braking, etc. I just don’t really see any advantages, and I don’t think it’s as reliable as the 6S Car ESC.

@cmatson Dude the Louisville game was a joke, literally broke my heart watching that. But when we lose to North Carolina, that’s when you know our team relied on Jameis 100%. The programmer sounds like basically VESC’s features without the VESC.

@michaeld33 After posting this forum it really has helped me out to learn more about my build, especially before making a $165 purchase while I’m not really going to need it until I make my really Beastly board. Eventually I hope I can build one to get 35 mph top speed and get 20 miles out of a charge :smile: . That’s when I’m really going to want the VESC. Not now on my first board at 6s, thanks so much man for getting me to see that.

For weatherproofing I’ve heard this stuff works really well. Got it at Home Depot

I made a kydex elclosure and I plan on sealing it off with a rubber sheet (maybe a piece of a yoga mat) between the board and the enclosure.

If you decide to go VESC (just adding to the chorus), go with the Ollin VESC. I currently have an Enertion, Diyelectric and Ollin’s VESC. I’ve compared all 3 with the same settings and Ollin’s has smoother acceleration, noticeably less cogging on my hubs, and runs substantially cooler.

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One thing, go with calibers trust me, DO NOT go with paris 180’s unless you want to weld/drill the trucks, the shape and design of the trucks is a pain in the ass due to them not being completely circular the whole way, and mounts can slip due to vibrations, calibers is a much better option

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@ndwallick I’ve used Loctite before on other projects and it does work really well. I’ve read that using Exterior door weather striping is a really good sealer in between the board and the enclosure.

@Mrmoonlight Yeah I would go with Ollin VESC if i do get a VESC. But I think I’m going to just get a car ESC for my first build, I also don’t want to spend $160 and then have it break on me in 6 months

That’s where the warranty comes in. @Chaka has one of the best, and the least likely to have an issue.

I personally would either go full bore w/ chaka’s or get the budget version from Enertion or DIYes w/o warranty (and learn to hot-air re-work if DRV fails).

@sl33py Will the benefits of the VESC really outweigh the regular ESC in my situation? Even with the warranty, I’ve read constant articles of the hassle that comes with VESC. And if I do go with VESC I definetly would be going with Ollin, I just don’t know if it is really necessary in my build.

I’m using a FVT esc at 6s - only change I made from standard is to get rid of reverse. Not sure how waterproof these are but the Hobbywing EZRun MAX6 is waterproof and runs to 8s so you can upgrade power later if you want, The max8 is a 6s version, cheaper and also waterproof. I’m new as well, used a vesc for a 10s build, blew one up due to a bug in the firmware and have used the FVT for a 6s build. Edit: used a second vesc for a 10s build and it runs great. I’m looking for another board for a 6-8s build and wwill be using 2 vescs on a dual build.

Man. This hobby hooks you in !

My personal experience, from the first 3 i got from Ben directly, through the latest is that they work pretty damn well. As long as you don’t push the limitations - I have one deck w/ 1.5 years going on 2 years w/ old 4.7hw and 1.13fw - no issues. The VESCs i have killed were trying to use 12s with high kv motors (before Chaka’s article of 60k ERPM limit).

If you stick to <60k ERPM, not 12s, and not FOC - i think they are super reliable (hardware still fails - MTBF is a bitch).

As a high school kid, i would go for the least $ option, with the best features. This to me is not re-spending the $ on an ESC in 6 months. Instead i would spend that $50 towards a VESC. And if you are willing to learn how to solder and hot-air rework a SMD chip - it’s not rocket science. I got a 10 pack of DRV chips for about $6 ea - should last me a long time if any of mine die. So a bit of time if you have an issue, $6 DRV chip, and you are back in business. This is only for DRV failure - still go over the VESC w/ a fine tooth comb and trim all pins and check wire routing to avoid a short.

But only if you want to learn how to do this. Nothing wrong with “plug-n-play” simplicity of other ESC’s - which the VESC is not.

Benefits to me are ability to run >6s without $$$ ESC (i have a Mamba XL2 (8s) and it isn’t used), Quiet operation in BLDC vs car esc screeching brakes, smooth acceleration and no cogging/stuttering with most setups, and ability to run sensored if you want even smoother starts. Again - avoiding 12s, FOC, >60k ERPM and should have few if any issues. Configuration is a bit convoluted the first time, but quick the 2nd and 3rd.

Looking forward to the new VESC tool (replacing BLDC tool), and v6! Call me a fanboy, but i only run VESC now on my boards. I’ve also sent over $200 to Vedder… from his anti-spark (and Fechter) switch as i want to help fund his innovation. ( I sold some spares switches/kits and split $ w/ Vedder, plus some other misc contributions to help him out)

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If you go with Ollin’s it comes with a 12 month warranty. So you don’t have to worry about it going bad on you. Once you got everything dialed in and it’s been working for awhile, you are generally good to go for years to come as long as you don’t constantly push it beyond it’s limits.

I definitely am willing to learn. But for right now, with my first build, and not really needing all the features, it doesn’t seem to necessary. [quote=“sl33py, post:32, topic:10656”] Benefits to me are ability to run >6s without $$$ ESC [/quote]

And I think for the next step up build I make, that’s when I’ll get the VESC with 10s battery setup.

Still pretty knew, I know RPM, whats ERPM? FOC? MTBF?

sorry - bit jargon heavy. ERPM is electrical RPM - we used to know that >200kv motors (200 rpm per volt) on 12s was a bad thing (dead DRV chip), but Chaka found a better measurement of >60k ERPM was where DRV chips seem to fail, and keeping below seems to avoid that failure.

FOC is Field Oriented Control - next level shit for electric vehicles. Supposed to be more efficient and almost silent - realistically on a board not much more efficient (and at cost of top speed), but much more silent running.

MTBF is just a bell curve - mean time before failure. You can get a gadget out of the box and it fails, or in 5 years of use. Most hard drives and other electronics have a MTBF in hours. You can exceed it, or it will fail somewhere in the middle (the bell part), or early. Luck - good or bad. Sometimes you get a brand new ESC (made by anyone - VESC or other) and on your first 5 minutes of the ride it can let the magic smoke out… MTBF… boom. Or years of use, but usually when you don’t have a spare and finally get to ride.

Look forward to seeing your build man! Best of luck!

How does that Mamba XL2 rate compared to say the hobbywing max6 or FVT ? Any experience with those ?

I would stick to a car esc if you’re going 6S. For $60 you can get a decent car esc, with the option of going sensored. You should also consider how much clearance you’re gonna have with 6s lipos. Those are pretty thick. You can also go 4x 3s 5000mah, 2 series and 2 parallel to get the same battery specs with more ground clearance. And definitely go for caliber trucks for the motor mount. I have a 6s fvt on 90mm with sk3 245 kv 16/36 and it tops out at around 25mph

What ESC are you using, I was thinking about using the Mamba Monster 2 for $115.

Why are these trucks so much better? I plan to weld my mount to make it permanent. Or should I not weld it and just tighten the mount instead?

I have the 6s FVT in stock and ready to ship: https://electric-skateboard.market/product/fvt-6s-120a-esc-sensored/