I like that vanguard with the AT tyres. I have seen them on amazon but wondered what they would be like. oh also, where did you get your pulley stock from?
IMO the wheels are perfect for beat up city pavement and all its cracks, the center of the wheel is like 3mm taller than the side due to the dimples on it and they are really wide.
this wheels make a sound due to the dimples, it’s enjoyable especially when accelerating.
the pulley i got here https://www.sdp-si.com/eStore/Catalog
sick video ! awesome builds keep it up
Hello everyone
Here are some update made to my vanguard board.
two of the cell in my 12s lipo started to give some trouble by not accepting a full charge and discharging faster than the rest of pack, this frustrated me a little so decided to change battery chemistry.
Got a spot Welder from eBay.
the spot welder is a 220v model and i do not have 220v line in my apartment. i solved this by getting a voltage converted and this thing works like a charm ;-).
Got some A123 lifep04 cells. the price varies depending on the quantities you buy.
the enclosure that the board have was made having the switch to A123 Lifep04 26650 cell in mind so don’t need to change anything there.
since i’m using a DPDT switch to alternate between 6s and 12s use. i’ll be making 2_ 5Ah - 6S2P batteries that way can reuse the wiring setup in the enclosure.
So to the Cell welding and configuration
First hot glue 2 cells in parallel
and Follow with the rest of the 24 cells
once that is done then cut the nickel strips and start welding cells in parallel.
after this just needed to arrange the cells in series to form the 6S pack
once this is done the next step is to spot weld the nickel strip to the packs in series and attache the balance lead and discharge wires, but i was so excited that forgot to take pictures so it will be for the next one that i’ll detail the whole process.
after a couple of runs with the A123 lifep04 26650 this batteries can hold up pretty good compare to Lipos, the discharge capacity is impressive, a high discharge can be sustained for a good period of time without voltage sag.
one thing to consider, maybe due to the lesser operating voltage of this cells the lifep04 12S pack don’t have that explosiveness of the 12S lipo pack in extreme situations, this difference you will notice if you go more than 30 mph or try to have a drag race style launch.
The range have diminished a little but i think i can live with that, now is 10 miles to a DOD 80%. remember i weight 205 lb (93 kg)
This are some of my runs so far:
made it 10.5 miles
went for a couple of speed trials and the pack did not disapointed
This is another run today
almost crash on somebody today luckily was able to hard brake and avoid that person you can see the braking right at the (2.0 m) mark how the speed change drastically.
had to cut the run short.
Beside the battery swap, i didn’t like the wires at the bottom so made some channel on the board and routed the discharge wires on the top of the board. using epoxy resin to fill the channel and secure the wires at the same time and applied grip tape to give a nice finish look to the whole package.
no wires coming from the battery enclosure to the ESC
The grip tape to cover the channels for the wires and the screws for the battery enclosure.
in this pic the red dot is the push button switch for the lights.
Here you can see the push button for the lipo saver alarm in the battery pack.
the lights are discrete.
One more thing i installed some led lights that are really nice, 2 white for the front and a red one at the back. they can be get on ebay for a good price and be mounted with some 3/8 plastic wire clamp.
the links for lights and clamps below
for the clamp here http://www.homedepot.com/p/3-8-in-Plastic-1-Hole-Cable-Clamps-15-Pack-PPC-1538UVB/100166417
for the lights here
http://www.ebay.com/itm/272138757872?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Still have some more battery cell
i’ll make another post for the construction of the battery for the eMtb as well for the wiring with the use of the DPDT switch for alternating 6S and 12S configuration. this will allow to charge your batteries in 6S mode and use them in 12S configuration without the need of connectors.
Where did you get the cells from? Was it HobbyKing or a legit A123 store? Epic build btw
both really great builds!! the reflective motor idea is genius, Ill have to do that as well on my upcoming emtb
nice build!!
where did you get those wide pulleys?
Vitor Henrique
The pulleys I got from http://sdp-si.com HTD 5mm pitch, 40 T, 15mm wide. But this pulleys are standard you will have to drill the mounting holes and increase the center bore to be mount on the truck.
Those wheels are what I need… I’m building a very similar setup. Where can I buy those wheels from? I think hey’re not longer available on the ATOM longboard web. Are this ones?
Anyone has those wheels for sale?
When building an EMTB, is it better to use belts or chains? Im interested in building one, but I’m not sure which route is better. Im looking to do lots of trail riding and a few tricks. Any advice the forum could give me would be super helpful.
20mm belts
imo spur drives will be the best solution for emtbs. dirt immune, hardly any energy loss, minimum maintenance, most compact! check @esk8 and @Nowind latest builds
Hi there
In my case I started using #25 chain and sprockets the ride was good but I did not like to have to use lubricant on the chain is always a mess. Later I changed to HTD 5M 15 mm wide belt and the ride just got so much better, less rolling resistance than anything I had try out there, as of late I have installed a belt tensioner to the drivetrain and this is awesome provide better performance when Off-roading and superb braking without stressing the system.
You can see the tensioner on this picture.
In my opinion you should go with HTD 5M 15mm belts with a belt tensioner. This will be the more cost effective setup when comparing performance to investment besides you can source the parts easily for any where so if something break your downtime will be minimal at best.
I hope this helps you with your choice of drivetrain for your build any other question feel free to contact me
@Kaly Hi - could you tell the difference (you sensed) between chain and 15mm belt? I always thought chain has less resistance… and that it is also better, as it takes up less space on the axle/truck, Wheel sprocket also seems a bit more narrow than 12-15mm wheel pulley for belt.
Im running 15mm belt myself ( as you know probably) and Im starting to think, that there could be less resistance… for the drivetrain… in my eyes chain had less resistance (at least from what Ive heard) but when you said the opposite It made me reconsider my opinion…
I want to build as effiecient system as possible as my battery capacity is limited and I hate that longboards with their wheel size and material, can achieve twice as good mileage if compared to emtbs and pneumatic tires
My only problem now… is to decide whenever I go with chains or belts for the new system… I need to make an adapter plate and get the pulleys itself, since Im thinking just to replace my current board with new / better wheels without building a new one (complete eboard)…
So far the big wheels has been only a problem for me… Im getting less range with them and also my feet constantly hits them in tighter turns, as they are really close to my foot at 80cm / 32’’ deck im having right now…
In my experience with the chain is as i described above, the belts for me give a better riding experience.
On the range issue this is due to a lots of factors like the materials, reduction, type of threats on the rubber and so on. For your current situation it is better to go with the chain and give it a try, the cost will be not that much for the sprockets and chain.