Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard

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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.

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
  • Gear ratio 1:3 (16-48T) for responsiveness and fast acceleration

Specifications

  • Released: January 2017
  • Model: D1 / D2
  • 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 INR (Lithium manganese nickel - LiNiMnCoO2) 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, or ACER SK8 Ceramic 608 Bearings 35USD
  • 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: 100 kg / 220 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 42V 2A DC 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 - be seen
  • Belt cover - 3D printed to prevent grit coming in-between the belt and pulley
  • Current sensor, ESP current and voltage display - battery health
  • On-board web server with current and voltage chart history on OLED display/wireless OLED
  • External 2A USB power socket - to charge the remote and phone
  • Replace rear truck with dual motor and extra speed controller - more speed and acceleration
  • Swap over to HTD-5M 15mm 53T belt and 15-36T (or 15-40T) pulleys - for more efficient drive train

Truck assembly

Front truck, regular assembly

Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard assembly front truck product.jpg

Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard assembly front truck.png

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

Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard assembly rear truck product.jpg

Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard assembly rear truck.png

Rear drive wheel

Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard assembly drive wheel product.jpg

Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard assembly drive wheel truck.png

Hand-held remote control

Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard remote.jpg Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard assembly remote inside.jpg

Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard assembly remote.png


Electronics bay

Benchwheel Penny Electric Skateboard electronics bay.png

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.

Guides

References