Hello guys I’m Tom I’ve been riding a Ownboard for about 6 month and I want to start my own hub motor build. (I’m 70kg, the board will be used daily mostly on flat sidewalks, about 10km a day) My budget isn’t rock soild but it’s around 800$ give or take. I tried to research info about recommend components but couldn’t find a much. (Found few posts talking about the hummies motors but couldn’t find a proper website for them). How are the maytech MTO9055? (How do I know what esc is compatible with them? Enertion foc box? Or do maytech have a batter option) If anyone can list the parts he recommends using for this kind of project I’ll be very thankful! Sorry for my ignorance I really did try to find for myself but my English isn’t great.
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i can´t tell you so much about which hubs the best to take, but i can say you that all hubs on the market will work with a vesc/focbox.
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If you have an ownboard, why you want more hubs?
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Its giving me constant problems(couldn’t get support and I’m stuck. I really need a board it’s my car)
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What problems?
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What kind of problems do you have. The Maytech Hubs are equal to the motors you already have. A step up would be Direct Drives if you are set on a non geared drive train. Your current motors paired with two VESC’s or a dual Vesc will give you a much better performance then your current ESC. If you really want to replace your car, then I guess is 800$ a tight budget.
The board is just turning off mid ride, turn on while I charge it (sometimes turns on randomly after a few minutes) changed esc didn’t help. Checked all the visible wiring and connections seems fine. Any other ideas?
Hey TomK, I have a review of the Maytech Hubs and VESC 4.12 linked below. Any VESC or Focbox would work with Hubs or any motors really, just dont try and use a car ESC, it’s awful. And yeah I would try and run those existing Hubs with a VESC because I’m sure they’ll work fine.
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The problem is the bms! I know someone who had the same problem. You need to bypass your bms and the problems are gone. Their bms is just giving an IC error (mostly when breaking is that right?)
I have the ownboard hubmotors and esc but I use a different bms and I have never had any issues.
If you wanna do a more powerfull hubmotor build, I should go for the dual Flipsky Vesc with the ownboard hubmotors.
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Unfortunately, hummie hubs are basically your entire budget.
I would recommend transplanting your current hubs over to a new build, as suggested by others. Can’t say they will last, but it’ll save you some money to spend on other parts.
Right now, a bullet proof dual drive board will cost you around $1500 to build. Other wise, you start buying lower quality parts (especially vesc’s) that will be a hit or miss (they work for some, and not for others, probably due to shitty soldering and the use of fake components).
What you want for esc’s:
- Focbox unity
- Chaka (ollin board co) vescs
- Trampa Vesc 6
- One of the vesc 6’s from the forum (like stewii’s, avoid flipsky)
None of those options are cheap, but the unity is the best bang for your buck (at $150 per motor).
Now that leaves you with $500.
Battery wise, it’s your choice. Lipos are cheaper and pack a better punch, but I would recommend a bms with them to make them safer (or a balance charger).
Li-ion have become the standard in the industry though, as they are safer, and easier to configure in the form factor and configuration you need them in.
Depending on what kind of range you need, go 10s or 12s. I personally like at least 8ah to get 5-10 miles of range (around 15km) (at 12s). The battery, depending on what you get, will cost between $200 - $500.
If doing a li-ion, just remember these type of cells sag a lot, so you really want at least 3 cells in parallel to make it reasonable. I still don’t find that enough, and like 6p or higher.
The unity has a built in power switch. If you use something else, use an xt-90 anti spark loop key. They are cheap and bullet proof.
Now most of your money is gone. But that’s the whole electrical system. Then use a deck of your choice. You can find great enclosures from psychotiller.
When those hub motors break, which they will at some point, you can save up again and upgrade to some better hub motors, like hummies or even DD, like torqueboards or carvon.
Just remember, buy cheap, buy twice. If you want a toy, cheap is ok. But if this is a transportation device, you want reliability, which will cost more. Upgrade parts over time if money is the issue. Start with good esc’s and build out from there. Cheap batteries are the place I would start, since it’s the one thing that will wear out and need replacing eventually anyways. The rest of the parts, if they are quality, will last a long long time.
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@evoheyax info is damn good.
Just make sure they are safe and cheap. Lipos from hk are a way to get rolling safely on a budget.
Hubs in general suck balls though in my opinion. Unless you’re dropping your whole budget on them it sounds like you’d be better off with a single 6374 on a decent esc with some big ol commuter wheels, loop key, caliber 2s, a simple mount and a deck of your choosing.
Light, quiet on foc, easy to maintain and work on, allows for easy future upgrades, packs a punch for commuting, less to go wrong and you’ll find the ride way more comfortable. That build is totally doable on $800, especially if you are patient and use sales and solid buys from the used parts here.
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Yes, hk lipos (especially turnigy and zippy brands) are good, randoms lipos from ebay… Avoid please.
The only hubs I like are hummies. The rest that I’ve tried usually break quickly, and if they don’t breal quickly, they feel like shit. Since John is getting new wheels poured from ande, they feel really smooth, not too much different from a 90mm flywheel. But again, they are over $600. So I would say priorities are your key.
I really want to try a build with kaly’s gear drive mounts. Those things are silent and seem super reliable. I personally hate belts because I found myself constantly replacing them. That’s what pulled me into hubs. Hubs are still the only way to really protect the motors from road debris. My hummie hubs, 1000+ miles later, still look like new, not even a scratch on them (the trucks, are a different story though, haha).