Raptor 2 Deck Swap (help)

Hello all,

I would like some of your expert knowledge on why a deck swap would be beneficial if i have a Raptor 2.

I can think of some reasons, more flexible deck (less vibrations), lighter weight etc…

Does the original deck weight that much in comparison to other decks? If so, i would be looking to change to another… the board is heavy at 12 kg

What are your thoughts?

Thanks

I don´t know anything about the Raptor deck, but I know that it´s not good to pack a stiff battery under a flex deck.

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The raptor 2 deck is as stiff as a rock… i find it very hard to turn properly with it for some reason, maybe its my skill level at Esk8.

I have seen some people change it to landyachtz, but would like to know why exactly? is the deck lighter? better handling?

if you can´t turn than change your bushings or bushing tension, but please don´t use the stiff battery pack under a flexy deck. you will break the connections and in the worst case burn down your whole board.

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Thanks man, i have tried to change bushing tension but i cant get it right, its either too wobbly at high speed or stable but big turn radius…

How is a “flexible” battery pack made? I have never seen one

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every p-pack is “stiff” connected. all p-packs are wired indipendend to flex with each other. For this you use silicon wire or braided copper.

something like the picture from @anon64938381 :point_up:

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Very nice! I learnt something new, that is a very smart idea, hopefully the welds are very strong!

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It took me over 20 sets of bushings to get my setup right

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Can i know your bushing setup? how much do you weigh?

Just go to a local skateshop and they will help you out!

Back to the original question the reason people deck swap the raptor is they prefer a different type of deck. I imagine that a lot of other deck would be lighter than the raptor 2 deck because they don’t have the big metal handles in the side. And as for bushings go to the bushing set up help thread

Or swap the back baseplate for a lower angle one because as far as I know the stock ones for the raptor both are the same angle But honestly a combination of bushings and split angles is probably best and if after that you just don’t like the deck feel or shape of the raptor then look for a new deck

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Swapping decks made all the difference in the world and being comfortable while riding on the r2 and not feeling sketchy/awkward or like I couldn’t get planted and feel secure on it. Highly recommend. image image image

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Will read for sure, thanks!

Which deck is that mate?

How different does it feel? turning is easier? how much lighter?

It’s a moonshine “outlaw” deck. Love it.

Shorter answer to all of your questions though, is “yes”. Easier to turn. Lighter. Waaaaay more comfortable in more ways than one. Easier on the feet. Looks way cooler I think personally.

The biggest thing when choosing a deck to use/swap out with the original one is just to make sure you get one that has a wide enough wheelbase to fit everything, especially if you plan to use the whole e-tray/enclosure that comes with it like I did. That can be a challenge because not all decks, or many decks, don’t have a wheel base wide enough so do your measurements two or three times to be sure you don’t end up with too little of space.

I wish that Enertion @onloop @CarlCollins would make a stencil that came with it like Jason said they were going to do in old videos so that it would make deck swap easy because that is another not hard, but not easy, part of the job is making sure you get all the holes properly drilled on the deck since it mounts opposite of how most of us normally secure our enclosures to the board.

Let me know if you have any other questions and be sure to post some pictures once you do the swap because I’m interested to see what deck you end up choosing and how it works out.

Good luck!

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@Jansen

You never know what surprises will be later this year :wink:

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I changed the deck to Landyachtz Evo in Raptor 2.0. For me, Raptor2’s normal deck felt high and unstable. I do not use kicktails. Landyachtz Evo is fast and stable, so I can enjoy the power of Raptor2 with confidence. Then I was keen on DIY ESK8. Raptor 2.1 has great motors and ESCs, which will be good teaching materials in the future. I learned a lot from Raptor2.

How much lighter is the deck now with Evo? It is 12 kg stock.

Do you feel better turning radius? Please describe your overall feel of the raptor 2 deck vs evo with the same configuration.

I do not measure the weight, but I think it is not so different from Raptor2’s deck. The height is obviously lower and the wheelbase is longer. Straight running stability is considerably improved. The front bushing is Venom 80A, rear is 83A. Both are double barrel bushings. It is a stable setting at 53km/h with a 97mm wheel. However, the turning radius is large. I can not do a small turn. Usage is limited. How to play focusing on speed. Evo deck feels very hard but bends slightly when shocked.

image

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