We were having issues getting foam to bond to the rubber. I only just found a primer today that may allow the foam to chemically bond so a sample is en route to the factory for testing.
The V2 prototypes that we’re running at the moment are pretty good and we could put those into production, but I think it will be worth the wait for V3 which should be next level like the V1 were.
It’s very tricky to make something cheap, reliable and really good but we’re almost there. It does feel like we’re reinventing the wheel given the difficulty of this project but its gonna be soooo worth it🤤
Considering the amount of core delamination issues other wheel projects have experienced, I really appreciate you guys taking the time to nail such issues down
Here’s an idea. How about a 3D printed material like TPU instead of foam? You can print pretty complicated 3D structures that will emulate foam or pneumatic compression. Of note, TPU does get softer as it heats up.
3D printing and wheels should never go in the same sentence imo.
Foam is brilliant because the air trapped inside it acts like a spring to store and then release energy more efficiently than a solid material with a lattice. Its also much lighter than a solid lattice would be. Keeping the weight down on a rubber wheel is a real challenge. The V2 which are solid weigh 810g each.
We need to get the first batch of boards out ASAP so we’ll use prototype tooling to make just enough for our boards first most likely. If we can solve the manufacturing challenges soon then we could go straight for the production tool and make a larger batch it just depends when we figure things out by.
I really like how the pulleys fit into the back of the wheel. I think when it comes to maximizing performance and longevity of the core, you need a pretty precise core/pulley interface.
Its also very important how the pulley mates against the face of the core as most of the pulleys I’ve ever owned had a decent amount of eccentric runout.
Its really nice being able to make parts that fit our own parts perfectly despite still keeping to existing standards (these pulleys should fit most kegel core wheels).