Beginner Question Thread! 2023 Edition

[b264]

@Hoaz

I found my 275MM 5M belt, so I was looking at pulleys but not really understanding how to match the teeth on the pulleys with the teeth on the belt. The belt has 55 teeth. How do I know what ratios I can do for the pulleys, like will 36/14 work? 40/15? How do I figure this out? Thanks

@Hoaz

I really can’t see how the belt can fit unless I drop the large pulley down from 36 to 28 and the small to 14.

Don’t match your pulley to your belt. Get the pulleys right first, THEN get whatever size belt you need. HTD5M synchronous timing belts are cheap.

Also, just in general, paying attention to order of operations will help you immensely.

@b264

If I could be of assistance, it would be to choose your items in a certain order. Don’t choose anything else until you’ve chosen your deck and enclosure. Because you need to know if it will even fit. Enclosures are much more difficult than you think, and you need to know if flexibility will be something you design for, or not. So go in a certain order, along the whole way making sure you choose things that are compatible with each other.

1. helmet
2. deck + enclosure (flex?)
3. battery (flex?)
4. ESC(s)
5. drivetrain & trucks & motor mount
6. wheels
7. motors
8. {everything else}
9. remote
10. aesthetics: grip, colors, lights

Leaving enclosures until last as an afterthought is a surefire way to end up in a less-than-ideal position.