So @Chazamataz, Lets talk about the quantity of broken batteries that you have encountered. I think it totals three so far. Batteries should not break so soon. There were problems with the durability of the nickle strips. Obviously, I’m not going to blame you for your batteries breaking within warranty.
However, I can’t help but wonder about the possibility that some aspect of your roads or your set-up is aggrevating the weaknesses of the early batches of batteries. Three out of four broken batteries is an extremely high failure rate for one customer to have.
So lets talk about the possibility that your batteries have endured higher vibration than most customers. This is not necessarily true, but it is a possibility.
Road quality is one potential factor. If your roads are particularly poor in terms of dimpling, cracks and pot-holes, you should be doing more to reduce vibration. Doing so would make the ride much more comfortable foryour feet, knees and might put you in a place where your remaining working battery and you replacement batteries could last for five to ten years. I’m sure your goal is to have your batteries last longer than just the one year warrantee period.
Another potential vibration issue is that certain decks can set up a jack hammer effect between the deck and the backing plate of the drive. For example, I have found that a cambered, flexible deck like a Vanguard can result in this jackhammering. As the board flexes (alot) the tip of the drive swings clear of the deck and then returns with a hammer like impact. Surprisingly, some young riders can handle the vibration like it’s no big thing. For an older rider like mysef, the vibration is unbearable. Changes to the set-up can fix the vibration.
I’ve seen similar jackhammering on flat (not cambered) decks that are quite stiff. There is very litte flex but just enough for the drive to swing away from the deck and then slap back into place. The Tarab is an example of a stiff deck that can experience this type of slapping.
In either case, the solution to ride comfort is one of two things. You either need to introduce a thicker neoprene pad, or you need to use considerable rubber riser height to create a large enough gap that the pendulum action of the drive never impacts the deck.
For me, I find that a 5/8 inch thick anti vibration pad like this one does the trick.
It works for both the Vanguard and Tarib types of hammering and slapping.
Larger diameter softer durometer wheels or Discovery cloud wheels can also do alot to reduce vibration.
If your pavement quality is extremely poor and if you are strong enough to lift a very heavy set-up, then double trucks can do a remarkable job of smoothing out your ride over cracked and dimpled pavement.
If you want to learn more about reducing vibration, search this thread for “anti-vibration”
