Recommendation for first complete build - BenchWheel?

[wyckedscepter]

Hey All,

Looking to buy my first e-board, a pre-built / complete board. I know this is probably a super common question, but have not been able to find anywhere. If it is somewhere, please feel free to point me to the right board / wiki / post.

I want to get a relatively inexpensive complete board, figure out what I like and don't like, and then venture into building my own. I'll just bullet point this out, any help would be greatly appreciated!

General:

- I weigh 220 lbs
- Looking for something I might be able to make slight upgrades to, but I think I would sell the board and start from scratch to build my own after I get some experience
- This is a cruising board for transportation and fun, I live in santa monica, CA, looking to be able ride around on trails, road to run errands or go different places

Budget: Looking to spend $400 - $750 for intro board

Desired Specs (by order of importance):

- 20 mph speed
- 10 mi range
- Ideally under 20 lbs, but go for something heavier if need be
- Dual motor

From my research, it seems like the BenchWheel dual motor maybe the best at around $650 or the i-wonder sk-d :

Link to BenchWheel Board http://www.ebay.com/itm/Benchwheel-...406453?hash=item2110e5a5f5:g:jwMAAOSwQjNW~Md8

Link to the i-wonder http://www.i-wonder.cn/SK-D-Electric-Skateboard.htm

I have also looked at the Loov, and someone mentioned the altered pro-line 600 v3.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

 

[Vanarian]

Welcome!

If you don't want to fiddle with electronics and want fun quickly with the specs needed, don't get a kit, get a Stary board! :wink:

[youtube]IPffZJj8aH4[/youtube]

Well you have many other offers but I like this one

 

[wyckedscepter]

Thanks for the recommendation on the Stary, unfortunately, they are back-logged until August, and I really want soon to take advantage of the summer.

Inline, what do you mean by the below, are you saying the benchwheel doesn't have the below?

no remote control - weight / angle sensor - hub motors - one frame for all wheels sizes between 80/125mm - 4 KW +-

 

[r3volved]

Where are you located?
I found this one yesterday in Canada: http://www.goboardcanada.com/

Carvon also has a rad little mini cruiser for $500USD: http://www.carvonskates.com/store/p31/CARVON_Emc2_--_Electric_Mini_Cruiser_with_Dual_Hub_Motors.html (little light on specs though)

 

[wyckedscepter]

that carvon looks good, but you're right, a little light, and really want a longer board.

That canadian board looks pretty solid, I live in Los Angeles, so need to take into account exchange rate and shipping. Any other thoughts? Is there a main online store that carries all the different brands? Have not been able to find.

Thanks again!

 

[WeeChumlee]

My goodness, how many names has that Backfire board got?? Add another to the list - GoBoard.
If you are of small build that would actually be OK. Don't expect too much but they do actually perform OK for the price.
Don't try long steep hills, you will pop the motor.

 

[r3volved]

I'm on team short and <140lbs. The convenience of locality and price of the goboard peaks my interest, but the first thing it says before you can even access the store is "Avoid WATER!"...I don't know that any DIY I would make would be waterproof either, but we're so humid here that it is a bit of a put-off.

Most companies will just have specific distributors in countries. I have yet to see anyone carry multiple brands.
I'd be curious how easy it would be to swap everything on the Carvon over to a longer board. Carvon is operated by ES user LEVr and even though it's an import board and not his own creation, he's got a lot of respect in the community with his knowledge and skills - I would trust his decision of import board. The 2500mAh is really light, but with a longer board you'd have space to add capacity at leisure. The double-hub / double-ESC / remote / (small but included) battery / ready-to-ride for <$500 is pretty darn tempting :S

Probably be a darn decent setup if you swapped to a longer board and replaced the battery with an Enertion SPACE cell! That would likely still be just under $1000.

...damn it now I really wanna do that...