First build - Subsonic Century, Kahua and Bergs, Avio MK2 Gear Drives, Dual Motor

DIY Builds
#1

I will attempt to post my progress on my first build. To begin, I don’t normally name my vehicles, but if someone has a good name in the future, I may make an exception to this. I have wanted to build my own board for a while, but I thought it would happen in the future some time; I didn’t know when or with what parts. It wasn’t until a GB came up that I bit at a deck + enclosure combo, and then the drive-train shortly followed, and it has come together much quicker than I had anticipated, at least for the parts.

So, here is a list of the parts that I am using. I didn’t mean for my build to be so similar to a couple of other ones out there (@Kfromthebay, @agentdev, @deucesdown). It just kind of happened that way. We all have good taste, I guess.

Deck/enclolsure: Subsonic Century 40 & Eboosted enclosure (@Bradley & @eboosted). I instantly fell in love with the deck! I quickly joined the GB for this that made me start buying these components (as well as the recent promotion at work). The deck with the eboosted enclosure are my motivation to complete this thing!

Subsonic and eBoosted
Subsonic and eBoosted1241×669 268 KB

Drivetrain: Avio Mk II Gear Drive with the Kahua trucks and Bergs (@avX, @haggyboard.timo). As mentioned above, quite similar to other builds out there. I decided on the complete kit when ordering the gear drive set. Honestly, for the past year, I mentally didn’t accept using pneumatics on a skateboard. However, the horrible state of the roads here and being surrounded by light-rail made me rethink this. I may add a large PU tire in the future. I’m keeping the gear assemblies alone until I can assemble them on the trucks, so they are not pictures.

Bergs Kahua Reds
Bergs Kahua Reds1014×1114 505 KB

Motors: TorqueBoards 6380, 170KV pair of motors (@torqueboards) . I may have bought these too early. I believe that they will fit, but I will know how little room is left soon enough.

TB 6380
TB 63801443×771 555 KB

Battery pack (edited): Requested the battery pack (@eBoosted)! It will be 12s4p pack using Molicel P42A with a BMS.

ESC (edited): I’m still unsure awhich way to go here. The two options in my head are the NeoBOX and the TorqueBox. The NeoBOX is shipping in groups and it looks nice, but I would like to hear some feedback from those who have already installed them into their boards. The torquebox is also said to be out soon and is undergoing a lot of testing, just so far, no word as to its release (I may have missed that, though). Input is appreciated here, as the ESC is important, yet I know not the differences in performance/options between the two NeoBOXes, etc. I don’t want to fry any electronics either…

I decided on two NeoBOX v6 ESCs. Those testing seemed to have not much bad to say about them.

Remote: Hoyt St Puck. In my research, it seems like a solid choice of remote. I went with the plastic instead of the bamboo version.

Hoyt St
Hoyt St1063×1226 644 KB

I’ll post pictures of the progress as I successfully accomplish the build steps. I will only post failures if they are glorious to behold.

19 Likes
#2

If you need a P42A battery pack I’ll be happy to build you one

5 Likes
#3

I will send you a PM.

#4

The good thing about copying builds is you get to learn what works and what doesn’t from others. :slight_smile: The ones before my incomplete build are wonderful examples.

3 Likes
#5

At the end of the day, I can’t deny that I too shamelessly copied the original Subsonic Century build by @eBoosted. It truly is my favorite platform. Can’t wait to see your finished product!

3 Likes
#6

Good part selection. Do you have anything in mind to make it unique? Custom paint job, lighting, etc?

#7

I have yet to go over options for lighting; that I haven’t even started on. I also need to decide on what I will do for grip. Originally, I was thinking about the glass frit, but I may just go with a minimal grip tape job. As far as the deck and power-train, it is fairly similar, but I’m sure I’ll have some of my own things here and there.

3 Likes
#8

Can you confirm the subsonic century 40 does not interfere with the berg wheels or forward mounted avio drives and motors at full turn?

#9

I’ll be mounting the trucks next week with any luck. I will be able to personally say then. As there have been multiple builds using this basic setup (see the first post for the users I know have done so), it doesn’t seem to be an issue.

1 Like
#10

I have been tossing the idea around about naming this La Quintaesencia, only because it is the Spanish word for quintessence, which was another term used for the Aether, speaking of the fateful Michelson-Morley experiment. I could always use Aether as well, but the Spanish sounds better in my head.

#11

I went with the NeoBOX v6 x2 for the ESC. I’ve been kind of waiting until everything shows up before I really get into it. I’ll lose track of what I’m doing otherwise. For now, just waiting on the battery pack and ESCs to be finished and arrive.

For other updates, I’ve drilled the holes into the deck and enclosure. The inserts have been installed. In testing the enclosure for fitment, I found that one hole was just a little off and I will need to re-drill through the enclosure (end up being a slightly oblong hole, as it is less than a mm off) and another is a little forced, so I’ll fix that to avoid frustration when I need to open it up.

I’m looking at anti-spark switches now. I’ve seen a few comments regarding this one:

Any opinions on this for this application? Anything that I should look out for?

1 Like
#12

As far as I know, lots of people use them and there’s zero failure reports so far.
Mine has been perfect.
Pretty good track record for a flipsky product :sweat_smile:

2 Likes
#13

Yeah, it’s that track record that makes me hesitant. Worst case is I have a little stumble and the board goes back on the bench.

#14

Did the motors fit?

#15

They do fit. Aside from the normal adjustment when installing the gear drives, check for clearance from the KP mount on the truck. If the gear drive is adjusted only to clear the deck, the inside of the motor will touch the truck on full tilt. I’m not sure if the 6374 avoids this slight issue.

#16

Did you have to chop the motor shaft?

1 Like
#17

I did cut it at the output side for the gear. The MK2 housing doesn’t allow for the stock length.

#18

How did you cut it?

#19

I used a small hand hacksaw and sanded off the sharp parts. I know others use more sophisticated/precision methods, but I’m pretty simple.

Edit: Now thinking about it, I WAS going to use a hacksaw, but became bored and used a grinder/cutter.

1 Like
#20

Damn, don’t have the tools available to do it. May have to buy a hacksaw…