So I’m brand new to eSk8, coming out of my lurker cave finally and joining an awesome community.
This is my first build. Until now have not shown it around much online. I’d love to share and see what ppl think. I approached it with my love for boarding and applied my personal interpretation of how electric could be done from the ground up. I also have a thing for the challenges of optimization and design, which has kept me going on it in spite of demanding career and busy life stuff (I started this in early 2015).
BASICS:
The design utilizes axle motors built around the truck. They engage the wheels with pegs that stick out of the motor housing to grab the wheels (no wheel modification for common spoked wheels). This allows you to use stock wheels, and choose various sizes, based on rider preference, and allows you to rotate and flip wheels around effortlessly (especially for those who slide). The pegs unscrew, are moveable and replaceable. Multiple peg positions are available for patterns that adapt multiple wheel types (such as Flywheels, Kegels, etc.).
The theme for me was to make the aspects of a powered board as un-invasive as possible to riding purists. And while power is important, I prefer to keep the rig’s weight low, and it’s smoothness optimal. Ergo efficiency is king. The hub/axle motor approach effectively has only 1 moving part in the motor’s the power train, so minimal mechanical losses via belts, etc. Better glide, reduced complexity, and fewer potential points of wear and failure.
In my design the motors are fairly small. Less than 50mm diameter on this first prototype. Allowing use of wheels as small as 76mm, while giving reasonable clearance with terrain. The power is not extreme, I’ll say about 400w per motor, and this first board is just 2 motor. And hey, if you demand the power, you can do motors on all 4 wheels, which I plan on my next go.
I hope for elegance and fun.
maybe you could get a longer motor to use instead since you say you have little power. I tried a similar design but found the axle not straight enough for a motor…that might be a problem if it were longer and didn’t use a precision axle.
Those lil hubs look awesome! with small wheels I bet it feels like a regular board!
high pole count motors are finally popping up more often now. whats the kv?
and for sure add a couple vesc’s with foc, you’ll have silent lightweight ride!
Nice work. I like the fact that you use stock wheels with no modification. I love the idea of setting yourself design constraints. Are those off the shelf hub motors? Where from? and whats the kv? what’s your supply voltage?
Yeah, off the shelf motors, 320kv 24 stator, torn apart of course. Batt is only 2s. I tried higher V at first, but without current control it was too much heat on these little guys. Roasted a couple stators.
Those are rated up to 6s, but this doesn’t account for the amperage of the Low-RPM/High-Torque application and poor-er cooling (vs open motors driving a drone propeller).
