Almost complete rebuild! (space cell, enertion 190kv, dropdeck, VESC on the way)

[cmatson]

So my original plan was to use the arbor deck that I loved for this build, but it was skinnier than expected (the two ends of the space cell were less than half and inch from the edge of the deck) and it had too much flex for my liking…

I went back to my OriginalSkate drop freeride (incredibly stiff board) to finish this build!

components: enertion 190kv enertion k3 propulsion kit (modded it to face backwards because of the dropdeck… as soon as I switch to a downhill board I’ll go back to the enertion carbon fiber mount) torqueboard’s 12s esc (soon to be VESC) castle BEC (soon to be obsolete with the VESC, hense why I didn’t attempt to fit it in the case) enertion space cell caliber trucks abec flywheels OriginalSkate drop freeride

The build is rather similiar to alot of others with one main difference… I build a wood case, rather than use ABS or some type of resin.

here’s just a brief tutorial for the wood case, because my first one (built about 6 months ago) is still rock solid, and I think I’ve got the hang of it now. whatcha need in addition to your wood: wood clue clamps (can make due with heavy objects if need be…) pocket knife, or some sort of razor blade.

First, get your pieces cut into the shapes you want (measure 42 times, cut once)

Then, figure out in what order do you want to glue the pieces. What I did for the build, was screw the end piece to the sides first (and didn’t glue it) so that I’d have a solid way of holding the sides in the correct orientation while I glued on the top.

Then I ran a bead on wood glue (don’t be stingy, excess isn’t a problem) along the top of both sides, and clamped on the top peice.

here you can see the top piece after being glued, and the end piece held in by a screw on the side (right angle bracket inderneath) and a screw through the top. The other screws are for mounting the case:

Showing how it will eventually sit:

adding the other angled piece, and cutting the holes for the space cell IO. You can see the excess glue on the far side: just cut it off with some sort of blade after it is fully cured, and then said down the whole corner with some fine grit sand paper:

After you get everything glued, run an extra bead along all the inside corners to increase it’s strength:

at this point you you can remove your original screws on the first piece (if you choose to do so. I left them because they weren’t interfering with anything)

add a coat of paint, mount it up, and you’re done!

<img src=“https://esk8content.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/uploads/db2454/original/1X/97f46d77890ea6d7b61a8d307846accd4d47a427.jpg” width=“690”

if there was anything I would change, it would be to add some apoxy to the corners so that they look smooth… minor complaint though since they are going to get beat up anyways.

as far as the electronics go, it’s kinda a mess right now, because it a couple weeks it’ll all be redone. The esc will soon be a vesc, and the castle bec will be gone. (The bec isn’t included in the case for that reason). I’ll have more space for wiring once the vesc is installed, because it has a much smaller footprint.

testing final fitment (remember, measure 42 times, cut/drill once)

I also modded the old enertion k3 propulsion kit to face backwards (15 minutes of minor dremel work) because of the dropdeck… I’d like to get a flat downhill board, and use enertion’s carbon fiber mount at some point too… (keeping the same everything else)

And She’s done!

I’ll also throw calibers on the front to match the rear at some point… Just to make it look more professional (black case, black/white board, and black trucks) but for my personal use I really like the feel of these bear trucks cosmetic issues aside.

[psychotiller]

I really like your wood enclosures! Very simple to pull off a solid box. If you sanded all of our outside edges to smooth rounded seams before you paint them they would look off the shelf!

[cmatson]

I agree @psychotiller - it needed a little more of the fine detail work. I have a bunch of wood and glue left over, so I might just end up making another one…

they aren’t difficult, and really just take patience since you have to glue each piece individually, and wait for it to cure before moving on. For this one, I just spent around 15 minutes glueing each section after school (glue it, clamp it down, and then leave it to cure. Then repeat for the next section on the following day). By the end of the week, I’ve got an enclosure and I can mount it all up over the weekend.

[psychotiller]

You could make a jig on your work bench. (maybe a slighly smaller version to lay all of your pieces over) Then you could glue and clamp it all at one time. Then you’d be able to make/complete one in a day. I may be shooting from the hip here, but I think you’d be able to sell a few.

[cmatson]

Thanks for the idea! I’ll look into it.

I’d love to get an X-carve (not just for making skateboard cases, but just for designing things in general)

for skateboare cases though, it would allow me to get everything to fit perfectly, and create more complex designs since I’m not relying on my hands and a jigsaw… unfortunately they are like $600-$1200 depending on the options, so it’ll take a lot of weekends making $85 every Saturday to get there…

Here’s their website: https://www.inventables.com/technologies/x-carve

[psychotiller]

That would be awesome! I’d like one of those too! It feels good though to really make things by hand. I make all of my abs molds with a chop saw, files and sanding blocks. Once the mold is done it’s nice to see identical parts emerge.

[sgaana]

@cmatson thanks for this tutorial. How did you secure your enclosure to the deck ?

[cmatson]

Right now it is just 6 screws. The electronics on the inside are all held to the deck, so the case doesn’t have to do any of the heavy lifting. I could run it without the case if I wanted, and everything would work fine besides not being protected.

There are 4 screws on the front, and two on the top right now. I’ll add two more once a get the VESC and finalize my inside layout (that way I don’t drill a hole now, and figure out I can’t mount anything there because the VESC will sit in that space)

[cmatson]

future plan: I will do a whole separate build log, because basically everything will get redone to some extent.

Esc will be changed to a VESC, and the BEC is gone. This will give me a lot more wiggle room and a 25% performance increase.

Deck: James Kelly pro model -Arbor (could change, but if you haven’t figured it out so far, I like wood…)

wood box design (yes, that is spanish at the top of the page… eboard life at school…)

So you can see I drew the current case (bottom left, and far right) compared to what I will make in the coming weeks. basically it is the same general idea, just slimed down and less of a box. With the VESC, I will have a lot more room to work with, making the tapering design feasible.

The case will not be spray painted, and instead, will be stained to match the deck. I have built numerous tables and desks, so I have a pretty good idea of how to stain wood- the box will also be more refined than last time (first one was sorta a proof of concept for me), with sanded edges, and a (hopefully) seamless look.

and suggestions are totally welcome! I’m looking forward to seeing how this turns out… wood cases (besides routing out a 6x4) haven’t been very common among eboarders…

[onloop]

Looking good man… its all about progression… the more we build the more we learn how to build better an better.

I am still impressed on your motor mount mod. How you managed to rotate it. A mini thread on that would be interesting.