Welcome people. This will be the story of “The Phoenix” - my way of a board just for racing.
This is going to be a really long story, you probably want to get yourself something to eat or drink 
First some information about myself, because it is the first time, I really do a thread. I am from Germany. Got my first production board in 2015 and was instantly hooked. I just loved the feeling. 10 years and many boards, riding & learning later - I wanted to get my first real raceboard to compete with the best.
The idea - How everything started
2020-2022
Everything started doing some sessions on a parking lot of an hotel during Covid, but nothing real serious. Just having fun with friends, measuring times with an oldschool system and some production & custom Evolve`s.
In Winter 2022/2023 I saw a post of @davidpilny on Facebook. It was a race event of Xerace in Prague. My best friend and I signed up for it.
2023
Esk8Con - Vegas
Right before the event in Prague in April, another opportunity showed up in this forum and I got the chance to race in Vegas for Defiant Board. Flights/hotel booked and off I am to Vegas. Spontanous. Really enjoyed the possibility and got so much input. Wasnt really successfull, struggled with the Boas urethane, still learnt a lot. Met many cool people. Filled sandbags with Mario and @fessyfoo, built the track with Socal - The Legend, folded many barriers. And also met @davidpilny for the first time in person. Just a few weeks ago, we were writting on Facebook about Prague Also met @davidbonde for the first time, such an awesome person. But probably many cant remember this, but thats totally fine. For me, that was hugh. And at the end of the event, Moe gave me the possibility to ride on one of his V5s. It was such an honor to step on a real raceboard for the first time.
Pitland - Prague
It was just awesome and again so much input. I used my Flux DIY in the Open Category. Called “The Orkaan”. Never did a thread for it. Just a quick spec sheet:
20s5p - Spinted ESC - Radium 6485 - Matrix II with Riptide.
So not ideal on an indoor track with only sharp turns and shitty tires.
But my best friend and I were hooked. We met so many cool people, had an amazing aftershow party at our camper and we loved to compete.
Fast forward to the end of 2024
In June 2024 my best friend and I achieved our first podium/victory in the Open Category in Xerace Pardubice. But we only got it, because others were struggeling (looking at you, David`s V5). The last event in Prague in November showed me, my board is the limit. So if I want to compete with the best of the best, I need to get a real raceboard done. And I met a key person in Prague, who helped me a lot (got my board back on the road, after I fucked up with the VESC tool a day before the race in Prague) and most importantly is such a brain and great person @Dinnye. Another benifit, he is living really close to me. Important information for the development part, I am not good in building shit, especially electronics. Without the willing and knowledge of Bence, it wouldnt have been possible for me, to get this board so fast on the track. He was really patience and tried to help me with all my questions about parts.
The Development
First I want to give credits to my best friend Oskar, because he was a hugh part in developing and evolving every step of “The Phoenix”. I got a lot of inspiration and also help in this forum. @Tasventouras @Ash @Dinnye
The goal
Get a rolling chassis done as quickly as possible with these important points to achieve:
- Reliablity
- Easy to maintenance
- Lowest ride height possible, super agile, but still stable in a straight line
- Powerful battery
- 4WD with OpenGears for the possibility of a quick change of tires
December 2024
I got many parts over the years, always a build of a raceboard in mind. Inspired by many people and experience. But never really got it done, for many reasons.
A few examples:
- 3-Link-Trucks from Moe
- different decks + enclosures
- ESC enclosures
- Motors
- ESC`s
Deck
Which deck should we use? I got a few laying around, but nothing would be a really good choice. Too small, not wide enough (I am a big foot), no real drop. Except one pretty beaten RE44. So lets get some epoxy and fix it. Done and another friend will give it a nice finish and design. Awesome. One job done, we are going to use the DS enclosure and everything will be good. I really dont like the look of a top mounted battery enclosure. Next step.
Trucks
@Dinnye was using Dualities and really loved these. After talking for a bit about the trucks and the way, they are working and how easy these are to maintain, it was clear, I need these. So I left the 3-Links in the shelf and wanted to order a set of Dualities. With the help of Dinnye and also @Titoxd1000 I got a set of 270mm Dualities as a Flatdeck version. He only had the raw version available, but I liked the look and in the end, it was the perfect call. In between, I saw the build thread of @Ash and his Archangle. That thing was a hugh inspiration and also Ash was super helpful with all my questions. So I ordered the exact same motor mounts as him of @IDEA. Because I really wanted to get my motors under the deck. That will not work out in the end, but I loved the idea.
Battery
What could we fit in the DS enclosure? 18s4p? Maybe more. Which cells should we use? Still not really sure, but it wasn`t necessary to descide it now, it is almost Christmas, so can decide it in January with Dinnye. But it was clear, it will be 18s.
ESC
So what are our options with an 18s configuration:
MakerX D100s - Not reliable enough 
Spinted - had problems with it in my Flux
Stormcore - nooooo
SKP Solo`s - seems reliable, maybe not the most powerful, but perfect choice for our goal 
Ordered two from @Skyart (one to put inside the enclosure and one with a separate enclosure to mount it on top)
Motors
I really liked my Radium 6485. I used these on my Flux. So I already had another set of these in the shelf. Bought them a long time ago, like many other parts. So I only needed the 6455 for the front. Ordered these from Radium. Another step done.
So I only needed to order a few bits and pieces, like a second set of Opengears & another drivegear from Moe and some other stuff. BRPs were already in the shelf. So at the end of December, I ordered all the parts to get my rolling chassis ready in January. Lets gooo. We are in time to get it to Dinnye at the end of January.
January 2025
Are we on the right way?
The first parts arrived and we started to put it together. First the deck and enclosure with the trucks. After talking to a lot of people in the last month about the ride height and the goal, to almost align the deck with the trucks and I also saw the different versions of Moes new raceboards, I wasnt happy with our outcome.. The ride height was way too high in my opinion and we would miss different goals. We wanted a raceboard without any compromise on the ride height, so how could we solve it?
Let`s get our visual preferences aside and think more pragmatic.
I got the following idea:
- Battery topmounted
- both ESC`s topmounted in the front and back (need to order another one)
- Cut out the front and back of the deck
- Mount the trucks “dropthrough” on an aluminium plate
- And get an aluminium support frame, which will be bolted on both sides to the aluminium plates - so the deck wouldnt crack and it has maximum stiffness
A day later and we were convinced, that`s the way we want to do it. So we talked to Bence and shared our ideas. Especially the possible structure of the battery + seize was important. What could be the maximum seize of the battery. More is better Also our schedule was tight, the original plan was to get it done before Bence heads off to Vegas for Esk8Con. We still thought, it would be possible, but soon we will realize, nope
How are we going to get it done?
Another big shout out to my best friend. Without him and his iPad I already would have been fucked The following nights we were in my “Cave” and got a 3D model made for the frame and the plates. He was getting better and better at it. When he was done, he printed it in real seize, glued it on cardboard and checked, if he got the dimensions right. Full commitment. He added a channel for all the wires into the frame. So thats looking really promising, why dont we do also a design for the battery box. If we need to put it on top, lets make it good looking. On this part, Bence again helped us a lot, because he got the knowledge, what needs to fit in. At the end of January, we were ready to order the parts. I found a CNC-manufacturer in Germany. We still had one major problem, we need the parts as fast as possible. The faster = more expensive. Still it will take around 4 weeks to get the parts. And we also decided to skip the box made out of Aluminium, because way to expensive. We chose 7075 aluminium.
Another “problem”
We talked to Bence a lot about the battery and which configuration we will do. We also talked about my choice of motors. He mentioned an issue with older generations of the 6455 with high voltage. So I talked to @Tony_Stark about the issue and the solution in V8.0. Alright, fuck it. I dont want to take the gamble, I want reliablity. So I ordered a new set of the 6455`s. My 6485 should be fine, because the V5.0 was robust. But nevertheless, a new motor was just released, a collaboration of @fujio001 and Radium. The 6495 and I couldnt controll myself and also ordered these… 
February 2025
Fingers crossed
As we were waiting on the aluminium parts and hoping, we did all the measurement right, we still had the issue with the battery box. So how could we get it done with a good and nice look to it? Without braking the bank. Again my best friend comes into the game and said, lets do it with wood. And also, lets keep the look of our 3D model. I was like, how? How could we get a bend like that? How can we cut that precise and get it in the right shape according to the deck?
His response:
- Right tools and right measure tools
- Cardboard
- Many Cuts, really hot water and pressure. Repeat.
- Screws + glue + pressure
- Finish + paint
A few night later, the box was done. Crazy.. Couldnt believe, how fast we were getting forward. Box was designed to fit an 18s6p battery and still wasnt that hugh. Was really happy with the result. We implemented inserts in the box, aligned & marked the position and drilled holes to bolt it from the bottom to the deck. Bence helped me to decide, which cell would be the best. We chose the BAK45D and ordered enough, so he can build it.
In the meantime, we were still waiting on the aluminium parts. They got delayed a bit…
March 2025
The highs and lows in DIY
It starts with a low. We were having a closer look to the ESC’s. Our first plan was to put one Solo in the enclosure, so thats why I ordered one for this. But that changed and now we realised, fuck, how are we going to use this Solo with the top mounted enclosure? The heatsink of the Solo is a no-match.. We need to DIY the bottom plate of the enclosure and cut it out. Such a shitty job, but again together you can almost solve any problem. Aluminium is a pain, but we managed it.
Mid March I finally received the package with the aluminium parts and I was so hyped. The finish was just beautiful. I couldnt wait to get home and get started.
The deck was already prepared with the cutouts. We still thought, lets fit it to the deck, do some minor adjustments and get it to Bence in two days, maybe he will get it done easily. Later you will see, nothing was really easy..
But that was definitley too optimistic.. We pretty much instantly realised, we need more than two days to get it done and set up the rolling chassis. Different problems showed up. So we decided together with Bence, I will get it to him, when he is back from America.
Solving the issues
Let’s start on the positiv side. Deck and aluminium parts were a beautiful match. So no real mistakes in the general design. We drilled the holes for the inserts on the bottom, we took our time to do no mistakes on this side. Same on both sides with the top plate and the alignment to the chassis on the bottom. Drilled the holes and connected both parts. The wedding was complete. Now we bolted the drivetrains to the deck.
Positive:
- we got it as low as possible, almost aligned the trucks with the deck
- the deck wouldnt touch the ground even on full lean
Negative:
- Our chassis was too good and beautiful. It was in the way of the trucks on full lean. On both sides..
- The enclosures of the Solo’s are touching the tires..
- The channel for the wires was too small
Solutions:
- Shorten the chassis and also cut into the side of the deck on both sides to get the full lean
- Spin the front enclosure and also lift both enclosures.
- Cut out even more of the deck for the wires
We still were confident, that it is strong enough even with our plans. The structure as a sandwich gave us the confidence. After hours and days of adjusting the chassis and deck, we finally got the full lean without touching between hangar and deck 
In between, I ordered the “right” bolts and spacers to lift the enclosures. That worked flawless and another issue was solved.
As we were mounting the trucks to the plate, Oskar realised, we achieved another benefit. If we would use the right bolts, we could get the trucks off the plate without taking off the ESC enclosures. And that’s a hugh benefit. To change the boardside bushing on Dualities, you have to take of the trucks to get to the kingpin. Another + on the maintenance.
April 2025
Esk8Con is done, Bence is on his way home and we just did the last bits and pieces. Installed a front binding and I am on my way to Denmark. Dropped the rolling board at Bence’s house and now Bence starts his magic. He wanted to get it done until Easter. So roundabout two weeks time and boy oh boy, it wasn’t as flawsless. But @Dinnye got it done and found always a solution. He probably could better explain, what issues he had to solve.
“The pick-up”
I can start at the point, when I was supposed to pick it up and get back. It was the Thursday before Easter. He told me to be at his house around 4pm to pick it up. After work, I took the ferry and went to him. Easy, it takes me around 2 hours, including the ferry, to get to him. Last ferry back was leaving around 6pm, so it will be easy to get back home. Unless some issues show up and delay the whole process We had to print spacers and many other shit was still not ready, even with Bence’s dedication alright, I will stay until it is done. Cannot really help a lot, but will stay to give mental support and another problem was: Bence will fly home to Hungary tomorrow. So no real other option. Told my girlfriend and kids, that I will sleep in the car and take the first ferry tomorrow. At 1am in the morning, it was done and raining… So no real option to test it, if everything is working. But I was believing in the magic of his work and was sure, it will be all good. So started my drive home at 1:30am, took a nap on half way and was at the ferry around 5am. I thought, the first ferry would leave at 5:30, but not on a holiday.. So another hour of sleep in the car Still not knowing, that Bence also drove to the ferry, because I forgot my charger at his house.. Didn’t checked my phone until I was on the ferry… As I said before, Bence is a man of full dedication and support. He also slept in the car next to the ferry, but we missed each other.. He gave the charger to the people of the ferry and they took it on the next ferry. I was waiting on the other side and finally getting home at 9am. What a rollercoaster of emotions, but I was soooo happy. 
The first real testrun on the T-Race
Two days later it was finally happening, the first outing. And I was instantly in love and felt just perfect. Better as I thought it would be. It just felt right. First I was a bit skeptical about the setup of the trucks. I chose a real loose setup for the trucks and I couldn’t believe, it would feel stable. But it did, like on rails in acceleration. And in corners it would let me choose any line, really divey. The braking was in the beginning a bit difficult, because of this divey/loose feeling and also this was my first real 4WD board. So braking was something, I had to learn. But nothing scary.
It was such a relive, that every idea out of the development process worked out in the end. I couldn’t stop riding, had to do several sessions on the T-Race track the following days, always chasing another Pb and getting to know “The Phoenix” better and better. We also installed a binding in the back. I wanted to give it a try and it was another golden decision. I was just using it for stability and safety. Still moving my foot a lot.
May 2025
XeRace Prague
The biggest event of Xerace Europe history was getting closer and closer. 17th of May. The first competition for “The Phoenix” ahead. I was really looking forward to get to Prague and see,if it is possible for me, to compete with some of the best riders out there? Tas, Tucker, Dylan, David, Tilo, Vasek, Bence, Vik, David.. so many great riders and crazy boards.
Friday
Oskar and I arrived in Prague on Friday morning. One day before the offical race. David organized Kartplanet for practicing on Friday. The weather was not our friend in the morning, so it took almost till noon until we could slowly start to get out on the track. I instantly was really happy and everything was working. On the second run I was following @davidbonde and he was already pushing a bit. I was around 25m behind him on the back straight as he got a speedwobble in the transition of acceleration and braking. Scary.. He hit his head hard on the ground and I tried to avoid him, fell over him and flipped my board. But that wasn’t important, all the care for David in that moment, because that was a hugh crash. Luckily he “just” had a concusion, still couldn’t compete the next day.. But that showed again, how important good protection is in our sport! My board showed no sign of real damage, even the flip on the ESC enclosures didnt do any damage and everything was still in place. Built to last at least until the next run. I felt really good and improved a lot. But I started to feel some vibration in the front.. Another thing I learned, always check the nuts of your tires… I lost 3 nuts.. I thought, fuck… We will never find them and I dont have enough spares with me.. but again Oskar to the rescue, he said, I will find them and he did find 2 of them Also one of my front BRP’s was bad, so we had to change it. @philo borrowed us an umbrella, because it started to rain. So we got everything back together and we realised, one thread of the rear drives was also snapped.. I had a spare with me, but how are we getting it out? Oskar said, we will find a solution, when we are done with practising. He said, try the new tire and check, if the vibration is gone. And it was gone and felt great again. After the session was done and everybody leaving for the city, we started to get this little problem solved. We got all the tools with us and were prepared for almost every situation In the end, we checked every thread of the drives and almost applied on all of them new loctite, because all of them were loose.
So actually a perfect practise session before a race event, because we could solve all the issues,which would have been impossible on race day. Another hugh shout out to my best friend and mechanic Oskar 
Saturday - Raceday
The Open Category was scheduled for the afternoon, so I could enjoy the morning watching other races and prepare my setup and myself. Also had a few nice chats with other racers. It was such an awesome atmosphere. And again the organisation of the whole event was just superior!
Quali went really good and I improved my times continously. Ended in 3rd position and was really happy so far. No issues, a lot of grip even with the wide Brp’s in the rear and my confidence was growing. At halftime, so after the first 3 races and the best 2 combined, I was in position 4. Close behind Tucker in 3rd. I was almost 4 seconds behind Vasek in 1st. Now we will change direction and I thought, I want to get on the podium. The victory seemed out of reach. But I wanted to push as hard as possible to get on the podium. My body felt still really good, no feel of exhaustment, so let’s go. I actually felt really relaxed.
Race 4 was a bit of a mess, Vasek crashed in front and DNF. Tas had problems with the grip and slowed the pace a bit. We were all really close together so it was hard to really push. Everybody was in the way of each other.
Race 5 This time I wanted to leave a bit more space to the guys in front of me and really dropped the hammer. Pushed consistant pace over the three laps, did no mistakes and it felt good. Did my fastest lap of the day also in this race.
Race 6 - Final race I was now second and Vasek was leading by 1,69 seconds. I cut the advantage of him in half and had to make up this time in the next three laps. Sadly he again had issues with the grip and slided out. In that moment, I knew, I need to push me as hard as possible and get that victory. And I did, I won the biggest event ever on my own creation of a raceboard “The Phoenix”. 
I couldn’t believe it… And just as everything was cooling down, we still had the “Dragy Challenge Race”. A Head to Head race. The best 10 riders of the event doing a 5 lap race with a standing start. That was also my first ever full power launch on this board. Starting from the Pole Position, I managed to stay in front and kept it till the end. Again it felt absolutly right, everything. Like a pair of shoes. The board wasn’t fighting me, gave me confidence in finding the limit of grip and always ready to do whatever I wanted to do.
I just secured a double win on the biggest event ever in Europe. Still feels like dreaming.
Another awesome result achieved Oskar in the Open 2WD Category and also secured the victory!! We couldn’t wish any more! 
Also he got on the podium in the “Street Category”
Summary of “The Phoenix”
Thanks for reading soo far!
Mission of Development completed so far for this season! And my fire for racing is burning. I want to win the whole season of XeRace 2025 now.
I achieved the following results in the next races:
- Pardubice I had to skip sadly
- Budapest - 2nd
- Paris - 1st (a lot of awesome footage available)
At the moment I am leading the championship with 68pts over @davidpilny in 2nd with 58pts. Two races left in Brno and the final race again in Prague. I want to stay in front and win this championship 
Sorry David.
Again a hugh THANKS to Bence and Oskar, without them, this wouldnt have been possible! Full credits to you guys!
Specs and list of parts (that’s what everybody really was waiting for)
- RedEmber 44
- Duality 270mm trucks - Centerset in the front - 40/15 angles
- Front: WFB Tall Barrel 93a / Rear: WFB Tall Chubby 93a
- 18s6p Bak 45D by @Dinnye
- SKP Solo’s
- Radium 6455’s 138kv V8.0 & Radium/Mad 6495’s 145kv V8.0
- IDEA Motor mounts v11.3
- SRB Drivehubs & Opengears 67/21
- BRP 3" wide x 6" & 4" wide x 6"
- Zmote Trigger
As always, I want to improve some stuff at the end of this season, so the board hopefully gets even better. I am already planning a few things and will keep you guys posted in this thread. It won’t be as crazy as Bence’s thread, but still interesting. And I really hope, we have a BOTY 2025 award
Cheers!
Hendrik just wanted to get a bulletproof setup that didn’t have any issues, so I recommended to skip the 55s. I also talked to Vik who said the 55s do weird stuff and cutouts at high amps, and actually Flipsky 54s can do higher amps than reacher 55s because of this.
