Is there actually a reliable FOC ESC?

This. I know for example that @mmaner has been running FOC on a dual 4.20 plus with no issues, but considering the QC Flipsky has, that is no guarantee at all that I will be able to run the same.

My ā€œflipā€ on the 4.20 landed on tails. Burnt drv on 3rd ride foc.

Any vesc hardware with 3 phase shunts has a big advantage in foc over those with 2 low side shunts. Especially in sensorless.

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@district9prawn Do esk8ers use sensorless drive in their esk8s often ? Or sensored drive mostly ?

@Yungdaff yes FOC has advantages over BLDCā€¦ But could you tell me which ones are important and observable to riders while riding ?

Observable change in max speed and acceleration?
Observable change in range?
Observable change in vibration, sound?
Observable change in EMC, any change in the reliability in electronics functionsā€™ (connection quality of the remote, remote-controller reaction speedā€¦etc) ?
Observable change in the lifetime of the ESC or other components ?
Anything else ?

@Brenternet is that quality issue only about their ESCā€™s or their whole product line ?

Slightly lower max. speed (minimal),
lower acceleration (itā€™s not as aggressive, but itā€™s smooooooth.)
Slight improvement in range
Much quieter and smoother. Almost silent.
No noticeable change in responsiveness etc that I can tell.
Itā€™s harder for the ESC to do FOC perfectly (much more difficult math with more variables) so if youā€™re using a controller based on 4.x hardware design (two shunts), it will likely not live as long as a 6.x based design.

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idk if that is ment with responsive as well, but i would say FOC defintly works smoother on the start up on hills etc and for sensorless motors for sure way better and smoother start up.

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Yes, very smooth startup. Damn near perfect sensored, and pretty dang good sensorless. Very little to no jerking/shuddering/turning the wrong way.

They suffer general quality control issues across the range. It will improve.

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Dear @Andy87 @MysticalDork @Brenternet , those informations are importantā€¦ So thank you for your detailed answersā€¦ One more to go pleaseā€¦ Sensorless drives, are they commonly used in esk8 community ? Sensored or sensorless which one is more common ?

Iā€™d hazard a guess that most pople are using sensors now. I only know of a few who swear by sensor-less but itā€™s mostly through motor availability and reliability (SK3) or thin sensor wire issues in the past.

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The reason I prefer FOC over BLDC is because of the sound, smoother acceleration and braking as well as better performance in uphill from low speed or even stand still.

As @Brenternet said. I am pretty sure most people are using sensored operation as all the eskate motors from BKB, TB, Maytech and Flipsky all have HALL sensors.

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Using FOC at 12s with my dual focboxes, and FOC at 10s with my TB esc. 0 problems so far; but I have been using the TB esc for no more than a month, so only time will tell.

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Sensors are more common. If you can get the motor you want with sensors, do so. IMO sensorless as a last resort.

I unplugged my sensors as they made almost no difference for me.

Only time they helped for me was when I was at a complete standstill, and if thatā€™s the case I typically step off the board anyway.

I do live in the land of no hills, so Iā€™m sure theyā€™re a little more helpful on slopes and mountainboards.

Edit: should add this is in FOC 12s on 4.12 vescā€™s

I topically user sensors and run hybrid nice. On my Hummies and Carvon v4s I donā€™t, the Hummie Hubbs donā€™t have sensors and the Carbon V4 sensors are junk. With some timing you can run sensorlrss motors in FOC very well with great performance. Sensors make it easy to config, but arenā€™t necessary.

Sensors simply make start-ups suck less, and are a must for larger hub motors (e.g. hoverboard) or hill starts.

If you are already kick starting, then sensors make little difference.

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When you start from standstill in a hilly surface in BLDC, you canā€™t take off and you only roll backwards. Thatā€™s my experience. In FOC no problem. btw. I run sensors.

I just had a more comfortable ride experience on foc, mine was sensorless. Slowing down for a car or pedestrians then accelerating again was sooo much nicer then in bldc. And a lot more torque