Does anyone have any clue as to what could cause bearing failure on the drive wheel in a single motor setup? As far as I can see, all pulleys are lined up correctly, and belt tension is good. At most, Im getting about 10km out of it before it starts clicking/grinding and eventually shearing apart. Ive gone through 3 sets so far trying to work out the problem. What kind of things should I be looking out for that could cause this kind of failure?
Make sure you have speed rings in the correct locations on the truck axle, like one between the wheel and the truck and one between the wheel and the nut. Also, check if you have the washer inside of the wheel move just shaking it. The washer inside of the wheel shouldn’t really move by shaking it from what I know.
You could possibly try ceramic bearings…?
That really all the advice I know that I can provide.
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Your belt is to tight.
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Thanks - Perhaps Im asking too much from my 1 motor setup then (given my size - 115kg). It is loose enough that it is skipping when heavy breaking or accelerating.
Maybe time to look at idler pulley and second motor.
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Yes. I would say idler could help and could be made easily on your mount likely with a couple skate bearings a drill and quick trip to the store for bolts… 
Do you have a spacer inside the wheel between the bearings? This is essential.
With the belt removed and the axle nut tight how freely does the wheel spin?
What brand of bearings?
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Yep - spacer is in there. Wheel spins freely without the belt there. First I had Bones Reds in there, then some generic rubbishy brand, now Modus.
Maybe something with built in spacers (zealous) would be worth trying.
make sure belt is aligned properly. like your motor and wheel pulley should be aligned.
I noticed a large deviation wears the bearings out quickly
Can you grab a picture?
I’m new to the whole Eskate thing, so I’m having trouble visualizing exactly.
Going through 3 sets of bearings sounds like there could be more going on than belt tension to me.
Does the belt move to opposite sides of the pulley if you hand-spin it forward versus hand-spin it backwards?
Yeah - will take a pic when I can.
I noticed that Evolve and some others use an additional bearing on the drive pulley - as in 2 for the wheel, another for the pulley. Mine doesn’t have this. Is it possible im putting too much stress on the wheel bearings without this extra one for bracing. I dont know how common this 3rd bearing is on peoples setups.
@b264 I havent noticed the belt moving sideways on the pulley when hand spinning it. Will check when I get home.
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When you push your belt with your finger, how much pressure does it take to deflect it a few mm?
Hard one to answer - lets just say that when pushing with a “reasonable” amount of force, I can push the belt maybe 5mm. I felt that perhaps it wasnt tight enough as it slips on strong acceleration and braking.
Belt will move slightly (maybe 1 mm) over the course of 3 or 4 complete turns of the wheel… Once it gets to that point though, it doesnt move any further out. Change the direction of the wheel and it moves 1mm back the way it came over 3 or 4 complete turns again…
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Is that all the way as far as it can go either direction before it bumps and edge of the motor or wheel pulley?
Stays pretty central on the motor pulley at all times. The wheel pulley - the belt will move over to about 0.5mm away from the raised edge of the wheel pulley (wheel side), then over the other way to hang off the pulley by about 0.5mm (there is no raised edge on the truck side). Nothing seems to stop it from moving further - it just never seems to move more than that amount.
The belt and pulleys are 15mm - could the wider belt be causing extra tension?
No, a wider belt is good.
I was wondering if there was a misalignment. Not really hearing anything indicating that, especially if it’s not hitting the sides of the motor pulley.
Slightly off-topic; Does the trucks misaligment wear the bearings?
I believe I have solved my problem - Belt was simply too tight… I have loosened it significantly. A good 1 hour ride last night with no grinding bearings… Belt is skipping under hard acceleration and braking, but no more or less than it was when it was much tighter. Moving to a larger motor pulley and dual motors should hopefully help with this - just started ordering parts. (didnt have the space to fit a idler pulley in)
Thanks all for your input - @Deckoz hit the nail on the head.
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Any lateral movement on the bearings due to truck misalignment would wear the bearings faster than a perfectly inline setup.
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