I don’t think they make circular saw bits small enough so I’m confused why you think a drill would be better? although when it comes to actually drilling holes my drill is shit compared to my dremel 
although I was not drilling holes in this case anyway as I can buy more pulleys but can’t buy the same wheels again
U think these are real or just fake trash?:
Sorry, idk if this is the wrong place to post this but I’d feel intrusive making a new topic. I just got into esk8 about 3 months ago when I moved to Portland, it’s been really great with the Meepo Voyager X I bought honestly but I’m pretty frustrated because one of the busbars on the battery pack came unwelded and I’m currently without any good method of transport. Naturally as someone DIY inclined I’ve decided it’s time to get into esk8 building (already was planning to, eventually.) Although I’m not sure what the cost breakdown looks like and I’d like to get a feel for it before going ALL in, for tools I’m kinda covered I live close to a really filled out makerspace, like, soldering/spotwelder/arc and MIG welder/12 diff 3d printers/aluminum&wood capable CNCs/drill press/a lot of other shit it’s nice. But I’d like to get an idea for what a meepo voyager x -ish build might look like in terms of cost for a reasonably convenient DIY build, I don’t plan to remake it exactly but I just want to get an idea of what the cost for something like that would look like.
tl;dr I wanna know what a meepo voyager x -like (32mph 30 mile range dual belt drive) build would cost to build, it has to be sort of water resistant for Portland perma-drizzle. I am interested in other cool flourishes though and how doable they are, namely grab handle, carbon fiber deck, and maybe a hotswappable battery pack??? Is that a thing? I’d also like to switch between pneumatic and street wheels, not really sure what specifications are needed for a board like that though.
It’s hard to pinpoint a cost breakdown because a build can vary wildly depending on a variety of factors. What’s more helpful is to work backwards- how much money can you reasonably afford to put into a board? You mention range and “flourishes” but there are lots of things to consider when building a board. A high-level, general estimate of between $2k and $3k usd for a mid-to-high-end DIY build but you could easily spend much more.
I’d suggest perusing the DIY section here to get an idea of what you’re looking for more specifically. Peep the parts list of the enticing builds and price it roughly out to get an idea. Then, decide if you need to start making concessions with your parts choices. Also, if ur not in a rush, I’d look at the Esk8 parts market for your parts where possible. Lightly used/like new parts are common as are NIB and you can save a lot of cash that way and get more premium components.
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If you want it to be decent quality, around $1500 give or take $500 depending what and where you get it, good quality could be double that
My recommendation would be go for second hand parts to start, it’s going to save a lot of money on the build and will get you a better sense of what you want, then you can go for more premium parts
If you want it to be PNW proof the easiest option would be to put everything in a pelican case and top mount it, but you can make any under deck enclosure pretty water resistant with some effort
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And I’ve got parts for sale
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Honestly I think this gives me the right idea, lol. I can pull off 2-3k yea. Noted on buying used components, what exactly is a good idea to use reused? I know batteries kinda aren’t. The Omni 3k carbon fiber deck has really caught my eye looking around initially though, idk if that thing has a reputation but I like the idea of having such a large electronics compartment for upgradability purposes. Although I am a bit worried about rolling off curbs. Idk shit about carbon fiber (does it scratch up and wear down easy?)
Any carbon deck is going to be super stiff without any flex, compared to your Meepo which has some flex and bounce to it. Something to consider.
I’m aware yea. I feel like the lamination stuff would pretty quickly wear away though rolling off curbs and scraping the bottom away which is most of my concern tbh, idk I have very little experience with carbon fiber lol. It feels like a long-term necessity though living in Portland with how wet it is.
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Anything will scratch easily, no matter how pretty your undercarariage and hangers are on day 1 they will look like shit very soon, I have a double drop with 85mm wheels and the enclosure is scratched along the full length after 5 mile round trip. But as long as you have something fiber reinforced (fiber glass or carbon fiber) it will survive for a long time, stay away from any type of plastics as they will wear down faster
There is nothing you can’t get used, batteries will have an inherent maximum life cycle as they are only good for 500 to 800 charge cycles after which they are basically garbage (depends on the specific cells and how they are used, the larger percentage of the current capacity being used the longer the battery will be good for), but beyond that there’s no hard limit on how long parts last, obviously you don’t want wheels ridden to bare cores but a lot of the time the only damage after 100s of miles is cosmetic on certain parts (baseplates and wheel hubs should last basically forever)
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O yeah it’s a durability concern I know it’s gonna look fucked up lol
It’s a good idea to make sure you can get an enclosure to fit your chosen deck first, rather than only as an afterthought. Nothing worse than picking a beautiful perfect deck that nobody makes an enclosure for. If you can’t find an enclosure for your chosen deck, then you really should choose a different deck.
In order I’d recommend:
Enclsoure
Deck
Battery
ESC(s)
Motor(s)
Trucks
Mount(s)
Wheels
Co-sign. This is the hans-down best way to weather-proof your electronics. Not the only way but def the best.
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Especially if you get some form of a VESC6 that supports sHFI or VSS (still to stupid to know the difference) and put the ESC in the enclosure, then it’s only 6 wires out which is really easy to waterproof
For best and easiest results put the charge port and power button on a cover plate in the enclosure, then when you lock the lid down there’s no way to get them wet, although I personally would try to tuck them under the ledge of the lid on the outside
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ASS
Sensors
Sensors are so much hassle
That seems like a popular opinion around here, but I’ve never had an issue with sensors… maybe I’ve been lucky. Been running sensored motors for a few thousand miles at least, always just works lol. Although none of my wires have ever been under much stress.
Can the smooth startup provided by sensors be replicated properly when running sensorless? I know you can get some good results with sHFI and stuff, but is it ever as smooth as sensors?
Sensors will always be smoother and quieter than any sensorless setup, I have sensorless builds because the motors didn’t have them or the wires broke or waterproof was gonna be a risk, and I’ve had sensored, definitely prefer the sensors but sometimes you gotta do without
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Beyond detection nor I… but it’s only a matter of dang time. I’m gonna superman at some point bc sensors 
When it does happen, I hope I’m able to NGAF and just roll outta it bur HFI is looking better and better these daaays 