Technically, yes. Weird system, eh?
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Well⌠we also have our flaws, but at least we choose some who can tweet and look better on instagram.
That is NOT at all what is being communicated here. Whether you are a beginner, intermediate, or advanced, the laws of physics hold. Virtually ANYONE can feel the difference between having lots of quality urethane under you, or a small amount of urethane. Having said that, if the only thing that youâve ever ridden is a poorly performing and rough riding wheel and if you have NOTHING else to compare it to, you can accurately say, âItâs the best Iâve ever feltâ.
Most beginners donât WANT to slide when turning and more good urethane can help them with that. Vibrating and dancing around on rough surface and breaking contact with the ground can be hazardous to your health, which is a legitimate concern for the newbie.
You can feel the smoothness of having lots of urethane while riding in a straight line, regardless of your experience. You can feel the increased traction and control of having lots of urethane while cornering, regardless of your experience. Of COURSE itâs more important to people who are going at high speeds and to people who demand performance. But just because you arenât a professional skateboarder doesnât mean that you donât benefit from high performance products. This idea that itâs âokay for a beginnerâ is really just a cover for not wanting to say that âbeginners might be able to feel the differenceâ. I might not know the difference between a good golf club or a good tennis racket and a bad one, but I can tell the difference between a Tesla and a Yugo without being a race car driver.
Thin amounts of urethane wears out more quickly than large amounts of urethane whether you are a beginner or a pro. Yes, the pro may put more wear and tear on wheels than the newbie, but BOTH benefit from having more. The truth is, Iâm spoiled when it comes to urethane. Iâve made sure that when I want a lot, a lot is available. Itâs been expensive for me, because itâs a LOT cheaper for me to sell you a big hub with a small band of urethane around it. Itâs cheaper to sell you a sideset wheel. Itâs cheaper to sell you a small wheel. But I ride what I make and yes, Iâve peen a pro and a racer, so I make something that performs. But even the newbiest newbie benefits from this kind of performance.
This HAS been tested fully. More is smoother. More is better. Hub motors arenât inherently bad or evil, but there is a price that you pay when go that way. I think that the price is so steep that Iâm going a different way. There is a price to pay for using belts and pulleys and I wouldnât dream of denying that fact. But I think the belt/pulley price is minimal and the upside is awesome and so my choice is an easy one. And I could change my mind if hub motors can be miniaturized, come in a number of widths and diameters, can be easily cooled, and provide gear reduction ratios that are better suited for the weight of the human being and his/her board.
And yes, I donât quite understand how watching videos of hub motor wheels flying off the rims at a relatively slow speed and when travelling in a straight line is helping the case for hub motors.
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Iâve heard a lot about what chris likes. What about everyone else?
I think a good solid drive train is important for anyone beginner thru advanced. Our boards move too fast to chooch the basics.
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this thread is on very thin ice, about to be closedâŚ
please try to stay on topic. please try not to directly insult people. please donât discuss politics
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Mine! 10 chars
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No theyâre not. They are âtheâ go to wheels for what we do and were well before all of us were building boards. Very informative posts too. Even for Hub motor Salesmen.
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I tried Superflys and theyâre great. Reflex thane roll speed is great, much better than classic thane formula. I need them, I need extra thane in my life.
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If theyâre not all spoken for, Iâll pm you my address! 
From what I got from this there is a noticeable difference from using wheels with more urethane than not. My question following this is by how much of a factor will the difference be, I do plan on hitting high speeds once I get used to it which is kinda why I got the R2.
Yes, agree⌠lots of great subjective infoâŚ
but eventually, as a community of people who all crave cutting edge performance specs, we should all collectively ask for some test results not just more walls of text.
I believe chris should now back up claims with some specific data related to wheel performance on electric skateboards, Iâll be very interested and more than willing to learn.
- At what point does a wheel diameter start to have negative impacts? if ever? 20cm 30cm?
- Is it possible to have too much urethane? if so how much? urethane to weight to diameter ratios?
- At what point does vibration dampening characteristics of thicker urethane become undetectable?
- What types of surfaces are these results based on? smooth, rough? how does this impact the wheel design?
- how is surface quality defined?
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Agreed!!! When all of the boards and product are out and inundating us with opportunities to run comparisons in real time it wont be so frustrating. Iâm going to set up 2 new builds in the coming months with 107âs (a 10s4p belted dual 200kv, and a 12s4p carvon V4 double drop)
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It is a LOT easier conduct tests when there is a large number of items to test, and where those items are incrementally different than one another.
Example #1: Try a group of wheels all of which have a the same hub, the same urethane formula, the same durometer, the same wheel width, the same (basic) wheel shape, and the same number of teeth in both the motor pulley and the wheel pulley. Of course you use the same direct drive system to power the wheel. Change only the wheel diameter and possibly the riser pad height to maintain the same ride height for the deck. Now youâre in a good place to test the difference in torque and/or urethane depth.
Example #2: Try a group of wheels all of which have a the same hub, the same urethane formula, the same durometer, the same wheel width, the same (basic) wheel shape, and the same number of teeth in the motor pulley. Use a different wheel pulley for every different wheel diameter to try and maintain a constant level of torque. Consider ride height for the deck. Now youâre in a good place to test the difference in urethane depth and wheel size.
This type of test is essentially impossible to do if you only have one wheel size or one gear ratio. What this tells me is that unless and until we have all of the equipment to do the tests, we can only speculate about the results. Weâre getting closer, and part of my contribution to the community is to make a lot of different wheels and make a lot of different pulleys that fit those wheels.
Iâve already done a TON of testing without the pulleys and with gravity and pumping as my motor. Ignore my findings at your own risk ⌠itâll just give me a huge advantage.
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Like the guy that used a board in high school I bought a Inboard M1 as my first board in 15years and my first longboard. What I can say is the the ride quality was fantastic on my first run on it. This board has basically no urethane on the hub motors⌠I then tried a regular longboard inside a shob on a nice floor and even there I could feel the big difference on having more urethane.
Also when I ride longer sessions of 10km++ My feet are killing me since itâs shaking like crazy in the rear. I would love to test it with more urethane but itâs not a option since itâs hub motors 
So I think you will be happy with it if itâs your first board like me buts itâs not for the reason that little urethane is great. Ignorance is bliss.
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Nope. Shouldnât be worried at all. The R2 is a sick ass ride. This thread is all about arguing fine points over bourbon and cigars.
Also i admire your commitment to acquiring the poontang.
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Itâs all about the [quote=âlonghairedboy, post:290, topic:27818â] poontang [/quote]
I sold my motorbike so I could try and build a eSk8, itâs the new mid life crisis
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