Some get it and some don’t, this thread should have been named “3-Link Drama” as it was never an invitation to design your own 3-Link. I think I have done enough damage here and I just hope a procedure can be adopted going forward to enable friends to remain friends, please don’t let your egos cloud that.
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one thing to think about here is that that picture vs my rendering are 2 completely different base plates. That base plate looks to be about half the length of my base plate. Which changes proportions. I think having 1 piece would be a lot more expensive and not needed.
The entire base plate is 5mm thick which arguable is the weakest point in the design. I could easily beef that up if need but trying to save weight from somewhere.
As it is now, it screws into 21mm of 5/8” threads. That with a big nut on top should be plenty strong enough to hold it.
First time I saw a 3link style truck was on @RipTideSports Instagram.
Just double checked and that was February 1st in 2018. Come to find out that it was a design by the speed freak himself @MoeStooge.
I acknowledge Moe as the original creator of these trucks and these seem to be exact copies of those trucks.
Moe I would suggest you put in paperwork for a patent to protect your hard work.
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I would think its too late for a proper patent.
My impression was you only have a year from public disclosure to file.
Though, I honestly don’t think there’s really all that much value for such a niche market as they’d attract. They don’t seem very adaptable nor desirable for mass market.
I’d consider the design to be at very little risk for subversion by any larger market companies with reach outside the community, and the community itself can often be very good at discouraging blatantly stealing ideas and designs. I’ve seen a truck company completely blacklisted by the community before after a collaboration fell apart and two entities ended up with two version of the same design.
After all, isn’t community pushback that the reason this discussion here instead of Electricskateboardbuilder?
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I think it’s easy to see these as an exact copy. The principle is the same, just as the principle of every rkp is the same. But there are many differences.
I’ve seen welds on Moes design fail at the main nuts, I’ve seen hiem plates fail, and lately, a tire implode at 40+ mph. These are just my observation from the few races I’ve been too and I’m sure there’s been many more failures. Though I’m sure he’s focused on these points of failure, Until you address the fact that you could make 99 good welds and 1 bad weld, it only takes 1 to kill someone.
These are points I’m trying to address with my variation of the 3 link turner. These are improvements to the design imo.
I listed above some of the main differences so I won’t list them again. But they are not the same construction. Beyond that, I’m not using his secret sauce (the exact geometry).
I think that if these take off, someone like that neo guy will make them dirt cheap before you know it.
I just don’t understand what you want Brandon.
- If it’s recognition as the inventor, you have it.
- If you want money, you can have it.
- if you want to have input over the design, you can have it
- if you don’t want offers profiting off of your ideas, you have that
- If you want domination over the market, that doesn’t exist unless you can make a product economically and with a superior design.
If I don’t do it, I promise you someone will. The more DIYers get their hands on it, the more it will spread, and the more people that will design their own. It’s just a matter of time until they take off imo and before someone in China makes them.
This is beyond the fact that I’m designing a truck for motors that you have no plans of making trucks for… so I’m not even in competition with you. And beyond that, I’m still in the DIY phase until I have a finalized design.
I think the thing that gets lost is this is a risk for anyone to make. It costs thousands to get started and theirs always the risk that it will take multiple iterations before your happy with the final result. It requires 3D cad skills, building relationships with manufacturers, problem solving skills, money, Manufacturing skills, analysis skills and more.
I’m getting more and more tempted to just open source the project and let anyone build upon it and make their own.
@Deodand you are a brilliant engineer. I’m sure you could do some really cool things with these principles for example.
I’m sure boosted, which was the first successful complete eskate company, didn’t want anyone else to make complete electric skateboards. Since then, we have build far better technologies than what they currently sell. Yet they still dominate a large portion of the complete market.
The cornerstone of capitalism is competition. Competition drives companies to build better products and not be content with their current ways. You’ve had years of no competition. But I think either way, someone is going to make them besides you. If I were you, I personal would rather have friends that I can influence doing it than strangers in a factory in China.
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I’m going to stick my butt in again…
there are already people with similar DIY race trucks being designed and fabricated.
i think @MoeStooge has already told you what he wanted… complete distance from your project and design, at a very minimum I’d suggest you change the name… not that Moe has a trademark or copyright to 3-Link Trucks, but to provide distance between your projects.
and I dunno if the market is ever going to be any larger than a niche market… if someone would start producing a similar product… I’d look into buying axles from them if they were guaranteed 4130… and I’d prolly want to see mil/certs… that would leave most of the cheep copy-caters out of my wheelhouse.
other that axles, fabbing the truck baseplate is the most complex… but I can TIG like a futhermucker and I have a sheet-metal brake and know how to use it… all the rest is LEGOs once you get the geometry correct… then the hardest part…
making them work as intended!
good luck!!!
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The reason I called them 3 link turners was
A) to give credit to moe for the principles
B) keep consistency in type of truck. I guess using nkp is how I should link it into the category and rename the project to distance it from his project
Thank you for the advice 
I’m half tempted to put a big penis sticking forward out of the front base plate and a ball sack on the back baseplate so they don’t look the same 
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I can understand both parties here. No one is wrong. However feelings and principles seem to weight a lot in this discussion since the start.
Now I’m off to bed, good night.
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A.B. I understand all that you mentioned and laud you for giving credit… but it appears… IMHO that’s really not what is being requested… I’d even consider distancing myself from the NKP acronym…
call them anything you want to, but consider distancing your project from his as much as you can.
call 'em skateboard race trucks or something equally benign…
hell I don’t know anymore than you what’s going on in Moe’s head…
But I for one look forward to more people building/designing/racing skateboard race trucks!
competition sharpens the products…
here it’s 4:47 PDT 4/23/2020… I’m calling my skateboard race trucks “k00kTrux©”
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Kookers Truck Edition 
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nah… your name is too close to my copyrighted name… name yours something else, please…
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Im calling mine Koo Key trucks
Totally different
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Definitions: A kook is a pre-beginner surfer , an aspiring wave rider, a nerd, or someone who tries - and fails - to mimic the surfing lifestyle. Kooks are careless, odd, exotic, and ridiculous. They disrespect the nobility of surfing .
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So anyway I was working on this new truck design.
I was wondering if anybody could help me with a name.
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In my opinion this design is novel and it warrants a patent and should have been applied for in advance. Big mistake on @MoeStooge’s part.
I would be pissed if I put years of sweat into it and someone came and started selling something heavily inspired from my design. If the product is not available for sale yet, then don’t use it on your board that you are trying to sell. Use something else like everyone else or come up with something novel.
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I get where your coming from in this. A patent in this case would be difficult and probably easy to get around.
The issue I have with your characterization is that these years of development have to do with geometry. Geometry that I’m ignoring and learning on my own. The ideas I’m using from this have to do with the principles of how 3 link turners work, that haven’t changed in years.
And again, beyond that, I’m making something Brandon has no plans to make… I’m targeting a very specific hub motor. Yes there’s potential to apply it to more than that, but right now, I’m focused on a specific case that Brandon is NOT planning on selling.
Everything is novel until it becomes mainstream. Rkp trucks were novel at one point.
I’m sure I won’t change anyone’s mind at this point. But it is what it is.
I wish the mods like @mmaner could just close this discussion since it’s not really going anywhere and it’s not beneficial for anyone at this point. When I have something I’m ready to talk about, I’ll make a new thread distancing myself from moe then.
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Other Planet are my trucks.
They’re not just mine, but yeah I helped make those.
And the mechanism in that kook truck, that is actually a design I just straight up copied from an early OP.
Keen eye.
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this makes me smile… see how catchy the name is…
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