Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard

The Benchwheel Penny Board is a 28-in / 71cm single 1000W motor electric skateboard. It's what you would call a Chinese electric skateboard. The appeal is to make a battery powered Penny Board (the plastic boards), actually this is the size of the Nickel board and made of wood instead of plastic.

The range is 10km to 15km / 6 to 10 miles with a max. speed of 24kph / 15mph, but expect less if you don't upgrade to better quality parts yourself. Retail price 349 USD + shipping.

• Benchwheel website
• Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard product page
• Support email: info@benchweel.com

Features

• Comes in two board designs: a classic look and a tech-look, both light-weight, resilient and durable
• Excellent grip carved out grip at the board end for convenient carrying
• Sturdy high-clearance metal box protects the batteries and electronics when going over rough terrains, the slim case design provides low-visible signature making the board appear non-electric
• Large 80 mm high-speed PU wheels
• 36 Volt 1000 Watt high-powered brush-less motor provides top speeds up to 24 kph / 15 mph featuring regenerative braking
• Ergonomic 2.4GHz remote controlling driving modes (speed/energy saving) and direction, the controller employs sine-wave modulation allowing fine-grained speed control
• Recharge the controller only once per week, conveniently on the mini USB charging port
• 90Wh battery pack providing driving ranges of around 10 km / 6 miles, Samsung batteries cells with high discharge
• 1.5 hour quick charging

Specifications

• Released: January 2017
• Re-branded boards: LiftBoard
• Based- and improved-upon: Benchwheel Dual 1800W Motor 2015, Benchwheel Single 1800W Motor 2015
• Board: Bamboo and maple composite, tech model 3 layer bamboo + 2 layer fiber glass, classic model 7 layer maple + 2 layer fiber glass
• Controller: Custom sine-wave modulation (FOC) controller (ESC), battery management and charger (BMS) - both separate boards
• Battery: Lithium-ion 2.5Ah / 90Wh 10S1P 36V (10x3.6V) 520g 14 AWG wires XT60 connector, Samsung INR18650-25R M 20A discharge green 18650 cells
  • Upgrade: Samsung 30Q 3000mAh 15A / LG HG2 3000mAh cells for longer range, or Sony VTC4 18650 2100mAh 30A cells for better torque - 6USD ea
• Charger: 100-220V AC input, 42V 2A output adapter with 3-pin plug, CE RoHS
• Motor: N5065 170kV 1000W 50A 61x49.5mm Ø8 bore Ø30 mounting pattern brushless motor with closed back cover
• Wheels: PU 80x45mm 78A hardness - drive wheel has 8 spoke
• Belt: HTD 225-3M 15mm?/13mm 75 teeth 3mm pitch 225mm pitch length
  • Upgrade: SDP A 6R23M075150 3mm (HTD) Pitch, 75 Teeth, 15mm wide Single Sided Neoprene Belt with Fiberglass Cords - 9.90USD
  • Change the drive train with 5mm pitch pulleys and belt for better power traction, less wear
• Wheel pulley: 48T OD45mm ID36mm 3mm pitch 16mm wide grooves
• Motor pulley: 16T OD16mm? ID8mm bore 3mm pitch 16mm wide grooves
• Bearings: 8x 608-2Z OD22mm ID8mm 7mm wide NMB skateboard bearings
  • Upgrade: Zealous with integrated spacer 20USD, or Bones Reds ceramics 50USD, or Loaded Jehu (use in Boosted) 20USD
• Remote: Ergonomic, two-speed (full-speed/half-speed), jog-stick (forward/reverse), 3-LED board battery level indicator, 800mAh LiPo battery, mini-USB charging, nRF24L01+ based 2.4GHz transmitter and receiver module - reliable
• Grip tape: Tech or Classic design
• Case: Aluminium with RGB LED light strip underneath
  • Upgrade: Better quality grip tape
• Weatherproof: No official rating, but electronics case is sealed except charging port and power button
• Max. load: 90 kg / 200 lbs
• Length: 70.9cm / 28-in
• Ride height: 13.9cm / 5.5-in
• Truck width: 26cm / 10.3-in
• Weight: 4.8kg / 10.6lbs
• Kit contents:
  • 1x Benchwheel Penny Board Electric Skateboard fully assembled
  • 1x Benchwheel wireless remote pre-paired
  • 1x 100 to 240V AC adapter
  • 1x mini-USB remote charging cable
  • 1x EU power cable, UK power cable
  • 1x US power cable, AU power cable
  • 1x Certification stickers
  • 1x Warning leaflet
  • 1x Quick-start guide

Upgrades

• Front and tail LED light mounts/reflectors
• Belt cover - 3D printed
• Current sensor, ESP current and voltage display
• On-board web server with current and voltage chart history on OLED display/wireless OLED
• External 2A USB power socket
• Replace rear truck for dual motor and extra speed controller

Truck assembly

Front truck, regular assembly

Rear truck with motor, belt, pulleys and wheels - note: dual motor shown in drawing

Rear drive wheel

Hand-held remote control

Electronics bay

Analysis

Pros

• Small and relatively light-weight
• Great value at low cost
• Fast and good hill climbing ability
• Good torque and responsiveness due to belt drive
• Powerful 1000W motor
• Handle cut-out to carry the board
• Easy to use and reliable remote control
• Repair and disassembly relatively easy
• Modular design
• Electronics bay opens by removing six screws
• Stronger trucks then previous Benchwheel boards
• Possible two swap drive wheel with any three for even wear
• Motor assembly can be installed on either left or right rear side

Cons

• Board does not flex, hard ride - if trucks loosened, becomes wobbly
• Charging port and power button not weatherproof
• Belt exposed to dust and grit
• Drive-train a bit noisy
• Motor pulley glued in-place with thread-lock
• Battery not easily replaceable (or swappable)
• Poor wheel traction on wet ground
• No head- or tail-lights

Repair / maintenance

Official repair videos are available on YouTube.

• Benchwheel repair and maintenance videos