Important questions to ask one’s self when browsing your options! I created this guide to help explain what one should consider when looking to purchase an Electric Skateboard. I spent years considering what I wanted, and as such I gained a wealth of knowledge in the subject and want to help those that may follow in my footsteps figure it out.
Legality
Before you read this document, before you even shop for a board, you need to read up on your local laws and see how Electric Boards are treated in your local area. Laws are very rarely written with Electric Boards in mind, and as such they often get reclassified as Electric Scooters, Electric Bikes, Non Electric Bikes, Atvs, and sometimes even full blown Electric Cars. Most places that do have laws specifically for Electric boards have often gone out of their way to do so in order to outright ban them.
BUT…. you only break the law if you get caught. And besides just outright avoiding the police, sometimes you get lucky and city police either don’t know the local laws on boards or they actively choose to ignore them. (But do keep in mind that alot of their behavior towards you is gonna be dependent on your behavior riding around. Riding a skateboard in the first place is automatically going to reduce their likelihood of cooperating with you due to skateboarding’s historic connections with underground cultures. So be on your best behavior as a default.) If after some online research you are unsure how police may react to you on a board, you can always go down to your local station and ask. In all likelihood, they don’t actually care, even if the law says they are supposed to.
Some good practices you can do to stay out of legal trouble on you board could include:
-Stay in the same areas one would typically expect a bicycle to be.
-Wear proper safety gear.
-If you have it, keep whatever licensing you need for vehicles on you.
-If you have to ride on a sidewalk, give pedestrians the right of way.
-If you have to ride in a street, don’t impede traffic, and follow basic road laws. (use some hand signals to signal incoming movements)
-Always prioritize having control of your board over going fast.
-There’s never any shame in kick pushing the board. It is a skateboard after all.
Finally, I am not a lawyer. If you get yourself in legal trouble over what you read in on this page I am not responsible for it. Use your head man, learn the law, and then avoid breaking it.
Buy or Build?
If this is your first board, you’re buying. Don’t go the DIY route. Make sure you like this new toy before you spend 1000’s of dollars building the custom one. And yes, it will be thousands. There are kits out there for Hundreds, but they are either crap or lose support within only a few years. Technically, if you wanted to do all the programming yourself and already had a donor board you could even make one for less than 200 bucks. But don’t. You plan to put yourself on top of this contraption and you have never gotten to experience how they are SUPPOSED to work. You could hurt yourself really badly.
Get a pre made board first, and if you like it, you can then go build your dream board and spend the proper moneys to make it happen. (or mod the board you bought to live up to the new standards you wish to have.)
Deck Types
Before we can even start thinking about motors, batteries, and other electronics, we need to focus on what kind of board is going to suit the uses you will need it for. There are 3 Main types of Boards available in the Electric market right now: Skateboard, Longboard, and Specialty Boards.
Skateboard Length
The Style of board that started it all back in the 70’s. The skateboard style deck tends to be between 28 – 33 Inches long. This causes the board to have a very short separation between the front and rear wheels which allows for tighter turns at the cost of the deck being stiffer and shorter. In the non-electric world, skateboards tend to also have smaller wheels allowing for faster acceleration but in the Electric world skateboards tend to borrow longboard’s bigger wheels due to the requirement for the wheel to be bigger than the motor powering it. (This is something to keep in mind should you want to swap out wheels later down the line) The main advantages to a skateboard is that it is more portable, has a sharper turning radius, typically cheaper to buy, and is optimized for doing tricks if that is what one wants to do with it. The Disadvantages to a skateboard are a stiffer deck that makes the ride much more bumpy, less space for your footing, limited ranges due to size constraints on the battery, being prone to speed wobble at high speeds, and finally all the deck styles of this type of board put the wheels at least partially directly below the deck itself, meaning that wheel-bite (When the wheels touch the deck causing them to brake suddenly and typically unexpectedly mid turn) is an unavoidable possibility.
The skateboard is best for someone who wants to do lots of tricks, travels through very tight environments that require a small turning radius, or needs a smaller board for storage/portability reasons.
^Classic Popsicle Style Deck, Not super common on Electric boards but could make for a great DIY.
^Cruiser Style Deck, Most Short Electric Skateboard come in this style.
^Penny Board Style Deck, TOO small for Electronics.
Longboard Length
This is by far the most popular type of board on the electric board market. And it’s pretty obvious why. Longboards were designed from the ground up to be a comfortable and easy to use method of transportation in contrast to the og skateboard’s more trick focused roots. This means that as people started adding motors to things in the early 2010’s, the most benefit was pulled from the motors attached to longboards. Longboards tend to be 35 to even 60 inches in length. This wider distance between the wheels means that the deck can flex under the weight of the rider offering a natural form of suspension in the board itself. It also allows for more room for a bigger battery which can greatly increase the range of the board. Longboards also tend to have larger, spongier wheels than skateboards. Depending on your deck shape, you can even get wheels so large that they can be taller than the board height itself. This is basically a requirement should someone want to use a board in offroad environments. The Main advantages of buying a longboard are the various attributes of the deck and wheels that create natural suspension for bumpy rides, lots of space for your footing, extended ranges dues to larger batteries, faster cruising speeds due to more stability, the option of offroad configurations, deck styles that can completely eliminate the concern of wheelbite, and more availability of aftermarket components. Disadvantages include a wider turning radius, being more expensive, being heavier and less portable, and succumbing to wear and tear faster for a variety of minor reasons.
The longboard is best for a rider who intends to travel long distances, wishes to go over bumpy or gravel roads and/or go offroad, or wants a wider variety of options and customizability.
Over Wheel Styles (Full)
This decks offer more foot space with the sacrifice of risking wheelbite.
^Pretty Classic Long-board that resembles the surf board that long-boarding culture hails from.
^A “Dancing Board” That maximizes foot rel-estate so that one may do Long-board based dances. They are distinguished by a prominent kick tail.
^An example of a Full size deck meant for Downhill, Drifting, or Pumping.
Open Air Wheel Styles (Cutaway)
These decks completely eliminate the possibility of wheelbite at the cost of less foot space. Sometimes they can be “drop deck” style, where the board has longitudinal shaping to give it a lower center of gravity.
^A Classic Example of a cutaway deck.
^The Cutaway style often allows for drop-through trucks to be installed.
^An Extreme Example of a Drop-Deck. This deck almost drops to the same height as the center of the wheels!
Specialty Board Types
This category of board basically has no rules. These boards typically don’t optimize to be the best at the typical things you would want from an electric board. Instead they aim to do something interesting or different. In the list of reputable brands at the bottom of this document, I will be sure to mark the Specialty boards in a “Special” way. 🙂
Deck Materials
Wood
Classic. Some woods may be stiffer and some softer but the main advantage to Wood is that it naturally is slightly flexy to some degree and will help absorb bumps leading to an overall smoother ride. Two of the most common wood decks out there are maple and bamboo. Availability of aftermarket/replacement decks is also better than plastic or Carbon decks, which typically have to be custom made by your particular OEM.
Plastic
Plastics can be cheap like what is found on Amazon or can be high grade Polymers. Cheap plastic boards can be dangerous, as they may not due well under constant rider weight. This is the big reason it is not recommended to go for any boards one happens to find for cheap on Amazon. Most of the reputable brands listed at the bottom of the page are using far more advanced polymers in their boards when they do decide to use plastic at all.
Plastic decks tend to be better for stealth as the battery and ESC can be hidden within the deck itself without making the board look like an Electric Board. But this comes at the cost of no options for deck replacements other than OEM.
Carbon-Fiber
Just like everything that uses carbon fiber as a selling point, this mostly has the same properties as the plastic version but obviously stronger.
Metal
SUPER rare. Typically only used on specialized offroading boards. Gonna be very durable, but it’s lack of elasticity means it will be a far stiffer ride. You are far more likely to find plastic or Carbon decks reinforced with metal than an actual “full metal” board.
Hub or Belt Drive Motors?
Finally, Let’s get into the fun part, the thing that differentiates an electric board from a normal one. Electronics. Motors obviously deliver motion to the wheels so you don’t have to. And there are two (kinda three) main ways that have become the standard way of doing just that.
Hub Motors
Hub motors get their name from the fact that the motor itself is in the “hubcap” of your wheel. In other words, the motor is housed within the wheel itself. To be honest, compared with Belt motors there are not that many advantages to having the motor within the wheel other than for Style, or for stealth, as the motor is much less obvious in this configuration. They also offer very little rolling resistance so if your battery dies you can always resort to kicking along as normal. The Main advantage to a Hub motor is that there is less parts and research and development, meaning that companies can often sell boards with hub motors for much cheaper. If you are looking at getting a board for anything less than 400 dollars, it’s gonna be a hub motor board.
So now for the Downsides. Of which there are many.
-Less torque. Seeing as the Motor is the wheel, one spin of the motor equals exactly one spin of the wheel and hence you get a pretty lame 1:1 torque ratio. Newer Hub motors will have more oomf than older ones but all of them will accelerate and decelerate slower than their Belt Driven cousins.
-Wheels and Trucks are not interchangeable with aftermarket parts. (Most of the time, there are some exceptions but they are quirky) If you decide later down the line that you want new wheels, it will only be possible if your OEM sells the wheels you want, Motorized, attached to proprietary trucks. Replacing a motorized wheel will require replacing the whole truck/wheel combo typically. This is a bit of a problem as wheels are typically considered a part that one replaces when worn out in the longboarding community. You may need to replace the entire truck if a motor burns out as well. Replacing a whole Truck/Wheel combo is always going to be more expensive due to it being more components.
-More prone to weather damage. If you ride through a puddle, it’s guaranteed that water is gonna touch the motor. This obviously can accelerate the degradation of the motor, but also has the potential to cause shorting which could cause you to loose control of the board’s actions. If you decide to take it on a dirt path, dirt will likely get into the motor. This will make cleaning a task that may require motor disassembly/replacement.
Belt Drive Motors
If you spend over 800 on a Board, It’s almost certainly gonna be a Belt motor board. The Belt Motor configuration gets it’s name from the Belts that connect the motors to the wheels. This allows the motor to be a completely separate piece from the wheel itself which offers some key advantages:
+Better Torque. The torque ratio will vary from Manufacturer to Manufacturer and board to board but every Belt driven board typically has a ratio that beats 1:1 by a decent margin. This means that you will be able to both get up to speed more quickly, and brake with more urgency.
+Better repair-ability/upgrade-ability. Since the motors are separate from the Wheels, it means you can replace just the wheels, or just the motors. Burnt out motors and worn out wheels can easily be swapped. Most major companies offer wheel adapters so that you can use almost any aftermarket wheel from the greater longboard market (that means even wheels that are meant for non-motorized longboards!), and a decent number of companies have decided to forgo developing their own wheels/trucks and simply sell boards with wheels/trucks pre-installed from major longboarding brands.
+Motors are safer. The motors are typically mounted to the truck significantly higher than the actual wheel which helps keep them away from major impacts or debris. Hence keeping them cleaner and healthier longer!
+De-electrify mode: If you remove the belts, you have completely disconnected all the electronics from the board’s movement. Allowing you to use the board as a regular non-electric board.
There are a few notable downsides to Belt motors however:
-Belts create extra friction and resistance. If you ever have to push the board, it will be harder due to this. (But as previously mentioned this can be resolved by removing the belts, which could be situationally difficult to do while out and about.)
-Not stealthy. Motors sticking off of your trucks will make it clear you are riding an eskate. And will make your board slightly louder. If that’s something you need to be concerned about. (see legal section at top)
-Belts are an additional wear and tear item that will need to be replaced down the line, even more prone to damage than your wheels. One (very small and cheap) extra thing you’ll need to buy replacements for down the road.
Direct Drive Motors
This type of motor configuration is rarely sold anymore by reputable companies. Only extremely cheap Chinese boards on Amazon use this layout today and it’s best to simply be avoided. The way to identify this type of configuration is if the motor looks like it is separate from the wheel but still directly in line with it. It also could look like a really chonky truck.
How Many Motors?
1 Motor Layout
Single motor layout boards are becoming more rare by the day and typically only come in a hub motor style. They were popular in the early days of electric boards as they presented a way for companies to produce super cheap beginner boards prior to motor production costs getting lower. I would say that it is probably best to avoid this layout unless your budget is under 150 dollars. Having only one motor means that the motorized wheel will wear out much faster than the others and the board will naturally want to push itself into a turn which will cause uneven wear on your other wheels and your truck’s bushings.
2 Motor Layout
The most common layout. Manufacturers will typically put the motors on the rear truck. Though boards with omnidirectional/symmetrical decks obviously could be used in reverse to achieve a front truck motor setup. On belt motors, sometimes the motors will be mounted facing forward of the wheels and sometimes following the wheels, It makes no difference to performance and which you choose to go for and is purely a stylistic choice.
4 Motor Layout (4WD)
This layout is mostly reserved for Offroad Boards. This only comes on belt driven boards. Every wheel receives power giving the board ultimate torque and acceleration.
Battery Considerations
General rule of thumb here is that bigger watt hour/amps equals better. A bigger battery will typically take you further on a full charge, at the cost of taking longer to charge.
Bigger batteries will also increase weight very quickly, if you think you may need to carry the board.
Batteries slowly degrade over time no matter what you do, but some ways to keep it healthy longer include keeping it in a temperature range of 40F to 80F, not overcharging it, and leaving the battery at roughly half charge if you are not using the board for an extended period of time.
If buying a board used, be aware that due to degradation the originally advertised range may not be the actual range the board gets today.
Be warned that most boards regenerate a little bit of power back into the battery while braking. This means that if you are at full charge, and brake down a long hill, you could damage the battery by overchargeing it.
Store your board (more specifically, it’s battery) in a dry place that remains a consistent temperature between 40F to 80F. This is crucial as batteries can explode and start fires. Storing the board in a place that is regularly observed or fireproof are great ways to prevent your ride from burning down your home.
ESC Considerations
ESC’s (Electric Skateboard Controller) are the control unit on the board that takes input from the controller (typically through bluetooth or radio) and applies output to the wheels. It also controls Battery related operations like charging. You can think of it as the brain of the board.
While in the past there were some major pros and cons to different ESC’s being sold out there, these days all the major ESC’s being produced have essentially caught up to one another and stagnated in terms of new features they add to the boards they are installed in. Pick any reputable brand of the Eskate world and they are probably using a competent ESC.
Most Eskate manufacturers will sell ESC’s as spare parts, but this is also the least likely thing you will need to replace on your board. The only way they tend to get damaged is from water damage, which is why it is crucial that you don’t purposefully go out riding in wet weather.
Most Eskate manufacturers will also sell spare remote controllers. Some brands choose to sell a pretty cheap controller with the board and offer a better one as a separate purchase (or with their higher end models). The “better one” will probably have a LED screen that tells you stuff about how many miles the board has traveled, motor voltages, current speed, and more accurate battery level. These are nice additions but at the end of the day all you need to make the board work is a scrollwheel and a button or two. And when buying your board, the controller should be one of your lower priorities.
Offroading Requirements and Considerations
If you are buying an All terrain board you are gonna be forced into buying a Belt driven, Longboard setup with either a 2 or 4 motor layout. Wood decks can be used in less demanding offroad environments but if you intend to really beat on the board and put it through it’s paces you should probably choose a polymer or carbon fiber deck.
Any wheel that is less than 100mm is street only. Wheels of this size are typically gonna be polyurethane and typically smooth surfaced. Wheels that are in the range of 100 mm to 4 inches are typically referred to as semi-all-terrain. These wheels will only really be capable of handling rough streets, easy gravel/dirt roads/paths, and maintained grass. They will also likely be made of polyurethane or some other similar compound and be textured in some way for better grip. Once you start getting over 5 inches, almost all the wheels start to be tires. These are meant to be taken truly into offroad and rough environments.
Some Boards may include suspension. This will obviously improve ride quality tremendously but be warned It will both make your trucks more complicated to repair and they will be entirely proprietary to the company that made them.
List of other Extra’s You May Want on Your Board
Headlights/Taillights/Brake Lights
In some places these may be a requirement by law. If that doesn’t apply to you, you may still want some for the ability to ride at night.
LEDs
You can make your board look like an RGB pc if you want. A few major brands make them a main selling point on their flagship street boards to stand out.
Foot-Pedals/Stops/Straps
Just another element to add stability to your ride. Especially off-road. But this could cause a crash/wipeout to be significantly more painful if your feet are locked in place.
Double King Pin Trucks
Double kingpins ride slightly higher than regular trucks, and increase the likelihood of speed wobble but offer much sharper turning radius and more maneuverability.
Carry/Tow Handle
This can come in a few forms but obviously it allows for easier transport of the board in those moments where you have to walk it. Some boards come with one built into the board itself.
Grip Tape
Every board out there will come with some form of grip tape on it’s surface, but you can remove it and replace it with all sorts of cool aftermarket tapes. Including grippier tape, transparent tape, tape with designs printed into it, and tape with cutouts or shapes and/or patterns.
Motor Bash Guard
A protective cage for your motors. Sometimes it doubles as a Tow handle.
American Vs Chinese Manufacturing
All the major Eskate brands are headquartered in either the US or China. And while at this point in time there’s not a clear winner in terms of each countries offerings, there are still a few things to consider. Most companies ship to the majority of continents but ALL companies will ship to Asia and North America.
Pros of American Brands:
+a Trend towards higher quality materials
+Faster Shipping Times (Chinese companies can take months to ship)
+Better Customer Support (That’s english first)
+More likely to be recognised by onlookers
+Less chance of Tariff related price hikes.
Pros of Chinese Brands:
+Boards are always cheaper.
+Faster innovations
+More support for replacement parts
+A lot of shared parts between brands
List of Reputable ESkate Brands:
This is not an exhaustive list. and its in no particular order.
Boosted
[USA]
https://boostedusa.com/
The guys that started the eskate trend in the USA. Popularized by Casey Neistat and others. They have since gone out of business but they are always worth a mention for their historic value. Most of their models are now so ancient they don’t remotely compete with even the cheapest boards on the market today (and that’s before mentioning battery degradation.) But if you can find one on the used market, you could always try finding upgrades and modernize it. Boosted was a recognized name and there are still old farts out there that call every electric board a “Boosted Board”
Their website still exists, but they don’t produce Boards anymore. Instead they sell other companies’ boards (Evolve and Lacroix) through their site.
Notable Models: Stealth
Evolve
[USA]
https://www.rideevolve.com/
Evolve is the spiritual successor to boosted and is probably the only brand on this list you will ever find in a brick and mortar skate shop. They overprice their boards (for the specs they offer) a decent bit due to their reputation. They also have built a bit of a bad rep in the customer service department. So basically they are just boosted 2.0.
Notable Models: GTR, Diablo
Lacroix
[USA]
https://www.lacroixboards.com/
Rich boys Electric Longboard. Made of High end materials with Suspension and headlights and chunky tires. And the prices reflect that. They made an ad once where they filmed a helicopter flying alongside a rider. It’s just that kind of company. Customer Service is supposedly pretty good though, despite their association with Boosted and Evolve.
Notable Models: Lonestar
Meepo
[China]
https://www.meepoboard.com/
Bestsellers in the eskate market due to their really good deals on their entry level boards. Some of their higher end boards have been known to have issues however. But the company is well known for their speedy customer service. They also sell on amazon from decently stocked American warehouses so shipping is fairly quick and often free.
Notable Models: Mini, Voyager
Backfire
[China]
https://backfireboardsusa.com/
Kings of the eskate street world. The backfire Zealot is a name anyone truly into this hobby will recognize as it has been the go to mid-price, city focused, long-board for years now. Only downside is they are Chinese: long shipping times and slow customer service.
Notable Models: Zealot
Ownboard
[China]
https://www.ownboard.net/
Yours truly’s personal pick to buy from. They don’t have the best deals, or the best boards, but they do add cloud-wheels to all their boards as a standard which I think is worth doing business with em. Obviously if you want tires or a more traditional long-board wheel (for drifting maybe?) You may want to go with another brand. Also their website is clean and easy to read.
If you choose to ignore my advice about DIY boards, you should know these guys sell all the electronics for their two entry models as kits that you could add to your own deck. I still wouldn’t recommend doing that, but if you absolutely hate my advice this is a pretty safe option.
Notable Models: Zeus pro, W2 Pro
Exway
[China]
https://www.exwayboard.com/
Exway has been Ownboard’s main competitor for years, but they were always overshadowed by the cloudwheels. That all changed when Exway introduced the Atlas. The first board under 2 grand with a 4 motor setup. Ever since they have easily been more popular than Ownboard, and tend to compete with Meepo and Backfire.
Notable Models: Atlas
Jking
[China]
https://jkingboard.com/
Jking is a newer brand that has been popping off due to their insanely low prices and the fact that their boards resemble the tech wear fashion trends in Japan and Korea. They also offer the cheapest board out of any of these companies. But their longevity is uncertain. No guarantee that these cheap boards will stand the test of time. Most of their positive press has been surrounding the Jupiter Models so if you do give them a try that’s what you should probably go for. I honestly considered not including them because some of their products look iffy but the Jupiter makes top 10 lists on all the major eskate websites so I guess there is something there?
Notable Models: Jupiter
BajaBoard
[USA]
https://www.bajaboard.com.au/
Do you hate streets? Do you want to ride on sand and snow and mud and rocks and make the Outdoors your bitch? Then Bajaboards may have you covered. At first glance, you will notice they make the most expensive boards out of all the companies on this list. But do not confuse these guys with the posh Lacroix board makers! These boards have custom suspension that works the same as what you would find on an ATV or a Side by Side. They are meant to have bindings like a snowboard. They have headlights that Urbanize National Forests. Motors so big and tough they need heat sinks to stay cool. A battery that will literally carry you hundreds of miles. This board is not for the casual boarder, this is for the wilderness junkie. It is every aspect of a Long-board dialed up to 11 to fight nature itself. Hell, you could argue that these are little electric cars that you stand on.
Notable Models: Altrax, Helix
Propel
[China]
https://www.ridepropel.com
Chinese version of Bajaboard essentially. Still designed to be wilderness ready, but slightly cheaper boards overall. (Probably a better choice than Lacroix if value is a priority) They also make some street boards as well.
Notable Models: X4R
Tynee, Wowgo, Acedeck
[China]
https://tyneeboard.com/
https://wowgoboard.com/
https://acedeckboards.com/
More Chinese brands. Nothing really of note here but they don’t lie about their specs so they made the list.
Tynee Notable Models: Explorer
Wowgo Notable Models: 2S, AT3
Acedeck Notable Models: Ares X5
Onewheel
[USA] [SPECIAL TYPE OF BOARD!]
https://onewheel.com/
I debated even adding this one, but it’s too damn popular to not mention. The one wheel isn’t technically a long-board, though it does happen to do everything that long-boards can do, but better. The major drawback to the One Wheel is that if it runs out of battery it becomes a glorified dead-weight. And a heavy one at that. It also is completely software dependent to be used, making for another serious potential failure point that could cause injury to the rider should it fail at the wrong moment. I have also heard questionable things about the customer service of the company that makes them, but your mileage may vary on that.
SummerBoard
[USA] [SPECIAL TYPE OF BOARD!]
https://summerboard.com/
The summer board chooses to motorize two castor wheels at the center of the board, making it’s riding style emulate that of a snowboard with easy gliding and skid stops. This board would be perfect for anyone who snowboards and prefers it to skating. But may present an extra learning curve to anyone who hasn’t.
Legal Blurb
This webpage is meant to serve as suggestion and is not to be considered the end all be all encyclopedia of Electric skateboards. Anyone who uses the advice in this webpage assumes responsibility for themselves over the products they buy and the author of the webpage, Callan Duffy, is not responsible for any dissatisfaction one finds in their purchased product, any legal issues caused by the purchase and/or use of an electric skateboard, or any other consequences of following the webpage’s advice. Use your critical thinking skills folks!
Testsite404 does not claim to own any of the brands displayed on this webpage. All images and reference to brand names have been done with the intent of journalism of the Electric Skateboard Market.