B̶a̶c̶k̶f̶i̶r̶e̶ Zeus | WCS Recoil | Boardnamics M1 Gear Drives/220mm hangars | 12s3p 40T

[ChrisLips]

Merry Christmas!

Been meaning to post my build here. After riding my Backfire G3 Plus for about a year, I decided I really enjoyed the deck/trucks but I wanted more. Converting it into a Zealot wasn’t going to be enough for me, so I decided to charge down the path of building a board using this deck. Below are the specs:

Battery: 12s3p Samsung 40T w/ smart BMS built by @jack.luis - Jackson is a great dude and made this pack to fit my enclosure. One reason I went with 40T besides the power is being able to take the 12s2p pack from my G3 Plus and run it as a range booster for this board if needed.

Motors: Torqueboards 6355 190 KV- originally I thought I would be running my original Caliber II 184mm hangars. With those, 6355 was the max I could fit. Now I find myself wanting more torque, but I’m debating keeping the 220mm hangars or making Boardnamics 184mm work.

Drive: Boardnamics M1 Gear Drive - mine is one of the early boards running this all steel straight cut set. Everything from Boardnamics is very precision-made and so far these have been a blast. For my first DIY, cutting my motorshafts was quite the fun head-first dive.

ESC: Lacroix Stormcore 60D - originally bought a Unity with a blown anti-spark. Had a keyloop made for it, but when we plugged everything in we got a huge spark from the ESC and it was friend. $200 down the drain…figured I would just get a Stormcore and have something with a warranty that could last me through several builds.

Deck: Backfire G3 Plus carbon fiber deck - choosing to stick with this deck has posed it’s fair share of challenges, especially fitting an enclosure that wasn’t designed for this deck. In the future I would probably work with deck/enclosure sets designed for each other or just got full on custom enclosure.

Trucks: Boardnamics 220mm hangars on Caliber II baseplates - considering dropping down to 184mm, but it is tight with the TB110s to avoid wheel bite.

Wheels: Torqueboards 110mm Artic Blue 72a - I’m a basic bitch that loves these wheels. They were one of the first things I purchased for this build.

Remote: Hoyt St. Puck - Custom Blue - won this in the DCESK8 Scavenger Hunt. Nearly matches my TB110s. Got a softer .45 spring for it and now it’s perfect.

Enclosure: Boundmotor - the overall shape of this enclosure looks like it was made for the G3 Plus deck, but there are flares in the corners and center designed for its original deck that made fitment a bitch. After lots of experimenting with layers of yoga mat I am now pleased.

Bushings: Original Backfire G3 Plus - need harder bushings if I stick with 220mm hangars. Possibly all barrels in the rear.

Running this at 60amps currently. Loving the setup, but starting to want more torque.

[jack.luis]

YES DUDE! I love seeing diy esk8 success stories like this! I’m so glad I could be a part of it. You could pull 70A from the pack if you want now that it’s cold out.

God what a beautiful build

Edit:

Adding battery pics

[AnotherEndeavor]

That’s a fiiiiine looking board

[b264]

Wow, great build, dude!

@ChrisLips

Trucks: Boardnamics 220mm hangars on Caliber II baseplates - considering dropping down to 184mm, but it is tight with the TB110s to avoid wheel bite.

After having done this many times, I think you’ll like the BN184 hangers better, even if you have to use a riser. They don’t look as nice, but they ride nicer. It’s more responsive with more control.

But unfortunately sometimes you just have to use longer hangers due to clearance issues.

[ChrisLips]

Yeee thanks for your help dude. Indeed I may try ramping up the amps and deciding if that’s enough or if I want bigger motors.

[ChrisLips]

Yes. I think the narrower hangars will feel more maneuverable and carvy. I’m actually running my 184 Caliber II hangar up front now with the BN220 in back at the moment. Board looks like a dually truck, but already feels nicer to me and no wheel bite. Got a BN 184mm coming soon so I can mate it to the gears in back and then we will see where things are.

[monsterbuilder]

Beautiful build. How do you like the BN M1 GD? Were they easy to set up?

[ChrisLips]

They’ve been great so far. Extremely easy to set up. Only part that requires work is shortening your motor shaft to make them compatible, but that’s similar to many gear drives.

[sleepless]

@ChrisLips

Have you had any issues running your motor wires pointing forwards? With road debris or wire strain.
There’s limited adjustability on the BN M1s, I’ve realized…

[ChrisLips]

No issues that I’ve come across. I really should p-clip them to the deck though.

[ChrisLips]

Welp. RIP to this deck. Hit a raised driveway just right and board came to a complete stop. I heard it snap as I was running off. The heel of my front foot is throbbing. Guessing over 300lbs of force went through it before I came off the front. Even feel it in my front knee a tad.

This setup was somewhat janky to begin with. The enclosure fit very poorly and was not suited to such a flexible deck.

Time to consider something new to put these components onto. This time I will definitely be choosing a deck with a purpose made enclosure for it.

[jack.luis]

Sad to hear bro. Good to see you taking this as an opportunity to improve the build.

[Shadowfax]

Backfire told me they’ll be selling the ranger x3 deck and battery/enclosure in late April. I’m not sure if the drop through mounting would have enough clearance with the gear drives - but if it does, that would be one sexy ultraboard.

[ChrisLips]

Funny you mentioned this. I was looking at buying a RX3 deck and enclosure to replace this, but learned the enclosure is segmented on the inside, so wouldn’t work with my battery. I do think it would make for a very solid DIY platform.

[ChrisLips]

In Greek Mythology, Zeus took on many forms. This is his newest.

Since snapping my deck (with an ill-fitted enclosure), I have replaced it with a West Coast Standard Recoil and Fishbone enclosure. Loving the stiff 10-ply, deep concave and drop, and especially the 11 inch wide footpads for my size 12 feet.

In moving my components to this deck, I decided to upgrade to Boardnamics adjustable baseplates running 40 degrees in front and 30 degrees in the rear. May switch the front to 50 degrees, but this thing carves nice above 10mph and is rock stable.

I also replaced the blue 72a TB 110s with the new 76a 100mm Boa Constrictors. I may be the only person who hated my TB 110s, but I am absolutely loving these Boa wheels. Very soft, absorbent, and carve like glue.

Couple of shoutouts before the pictures:

• Shoutout @GJF1 for making moves to connect with me with @Psychotiller to replace my deck as soon as he saw I snapped mine

• Shoutout @Psychotiller for the amazing job with this deck, getting it to me hella fast, and doing the enclosure inserts for me - I hate doing that job and these are holding up great

• Shoutout @Boardnamics for being a great resource when it comes to keeping my gear drives in top shape and tossing in odds and ends to make maintenance a breeze

• Shoutout @rafaelinmissouri for inspiring me with your grip tape designs to do this hand cut clear design to show off as much of this beautiful deck as possible

• And shoutout @jack.luis for the amazing pack still going strong, and always assisting with troubleshooting on my DIYs

Now photos!

[rafaelinmissouri]

This thing looks awesome dude.

I love all the pops of blue.

Interesting that you are running 30/40
I’m running 40/50 on the Llama but it has crazy long wheelbase…

Do you think you notice the higher standing platform with the adjustable baseplates?

[rafaelinmissouri]

And dude…
What do you think???

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B01N08CGVC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_imm_649183KNMDCN0CXH1FEZ

[ChrisLips]

I don’t feel like I notice a higher platform. It might be close to even because I have a thicker riser in the rear than the front.

You suggesting the dye for the wheels? Perhaps when they start looking real bad, but I like the white with clear grip. Boa actually has some blue ones. Not sure how well they’d go with this board.

Boa Constrictor 100mm wheels for Evolve, Exway, Backfire, Boosted.

I’m also curious if clear grip tape would take to dye for a subtle effect.

[TheBoardGarage]

Gorgeous stuff. It’s so nice to see new life being put into the core of a board that’s been broken.

Very cool.

[soknife]

Have you tried the 84a boas before this? Curious to know how they compare.