RAPTOR 2 | Most Powerful Direct Drive Electric Skateboard | Kickstarter

nothing there for florida . but then again race cars drive without a hood .

The R2 continues to impress. The crossover kit looks nice and aggressive.

Questions. Does the profile of the X-wheel load up the centre of the motor drum? Can the motor easily handle the uneven central stress? How far do you envisage that the R2 can you venture of racetrack type surfaces on the crossover setup?

By the way, thoroughly enjoying following the project and looking forward to delivery.

Hey mate,

can you elaborate on this? My current impression is/was, that all european orders will be dispatched to us from an european location? (Or will you now dispatch individual orders from outside europe and ship directly to the customer - leading to import taxes for every european customer?)

Also another question: I teamed up with a member from the Forum on the kickstarter to order together - back then you announced that even if it is a group buy, you will ship the orders individually. How will you handle this?

Third question: Besides the offroad pack - will we be able to buy extra wheels as replacement when we ride them down?

Last but not least: Thank you for all these updates - Its amazing to see how things fall into place :wink:

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Out motor barrel is nearly 5mm thick steel, it is basically indestructible :slight_smile:

This video from @E-Boarding is a great example of the potential.

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Our long-term goal is to have EU distribution/fulfillment warehouse setup, but negotiations have not been coming along at the appropriate pace, so we will probably be forced to ship directly to our backers to begin with. This will eventually change when we establish a better fulfillment chain for our European customers.

We will ship using duty prepaid methods, however, from experience, local couriers can still charge our customers random unexplained fees. We have no control over that.

Yes, our entire business is in the process of being restructured to focus on the primary Raptor 2 product. This means spare parts & accessories will be in stock & ready for immediate shipping in the near future. Due to the same reasons listed above we are still working on this, so they are not listed on our website at the moment. In talks with Amazon UK.

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This is the closest thing to a Raptor 2 yet…Very Exciting, so close now!..

NOTE: this is not the proper battery case, just an old sample standing in for illustration purpose.

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please fix so you send From a EU country. You told US that. If you dont do that then for me it will be like 30% more cost just in taxes and i think im not the only one. I did put my extra money on the boostpack.

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So sick! I was originally planning to switch the board out to a downhill board that i am familiar with, but this design is almost exactly what those boards look like. Gonna leave it as is now…especially like the dark wood veneer. Reminds me a lot of some of the Arbor downhill boards that I love:

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Hey Mare,

Very much appreciate that you took the time and clarified everything.

@Ezzs As far as I understood Jason, he will cover the import duties upfront. However some shipping companies might claim a fee from the recepient for handling the part with customs.

I had this issue on a package (unrelated to enertion ) received via FedEx. They claimed additional 20 euros for handling customs (to which I never agreed for them to do … ).

Please correct me if I missed the point @onloop

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Are these trucks going to be anodized black?

ok, I hope you are right. I did type it for i did think he hade problems geting someone i europe (EU) to send out all the boards. Do he have a service place in europe?

If he send from a EU country then all of us in EU will be very happy for we till not need to pay any extra like VAT (25% Sweden) + customs 3-15%. then that the shipping companies take out a fee dont happen or moste likely not happen. for its easy to send stuff from one EU country to another EU country. I got very happy when he did say he plan do ship from Europe to all in Europe.

I believe the Australian VAT is deducted for overseas buyers when ordering online from Enertion website, so it should be closer to 15% (correct me if I’m wrong). I think Raptor 2 is priced well so in my opinion it’s worth it still. But the major problem for me is that when something breaks sending back to Australia means high shipping costs and longer waiting times.

There is at least one repair guy in Europe and one in US

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I dont think you need to send the board back if something brake. He just send you the broken part and you change. :slight_smile: I think the VAT and so is if its from outside of EU but im not 100%.

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@onloop , I am fairly close to pulling the trigger (even though I’m a bit sceptical about how easy it will be to get support being in the UK). I’d go for the Mellow, however the 4x4 version that could compare with Raptor’s torque and have satisfying range is just too expensive.

I’d like to ask a few questions first.

With Raptor(1,2) you seem to aim for the enthusiast group, marketing primarily on speed and torque. I am not a skateboarder yet, my intention is to learn safely and use it for commuting to work every day on a 6 mile long cycle path, so I don’t care much about the top speed (I appreciate range and torque though); I just like how you seem to have picked the components and engineered the product -and I like the competitive price.

a) Realistically it is unlikely that I will push the board over 15-20mph. Is the VESC programming and the remote accommodating for a slower rider or will the power will be scaling too steeply? Is it expected that we understand the VESC configuration and play with it or are the variables too cryptic?

b) Do you think that your design of the board is significantly more demanding for a newbie to handle (stability, manoeuvrability) and learn than other boards?

c) It was mentioned that you have someone in the EU that can offer repairs if needed. Is that true? If so, if i.e. the battery develops a fault during the warranty period, would we send it to him or to you in Australia? Does the parts warranty include shipping? If not, where would they ship from and what sort of costs could we expect?

d) About the “duty prepaid methods” that you have mentioned for shipping to the EU, how does that work? Would we preorder now and pay online for the ex-VAT price and at some point (how soon?) you would provide us with the quote for the duty/VAT and a way to pay it? Will EU orders get to the back of the queue for some reason or will it be FIFO (I am hoping to have the board no longer than mid-July, as I probably won’t be able to use it past October)

Thanks

PS. I understand you’re not properly in the EU market yet and I’m not expecting the kind of support that I’d get from a company with local presence, I just want to know if it’s still viable.

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You can ride the raptor 2 to beginners mode with one flick of the switch on the remote, i suggest starting off in this mode, its much safer. This is the simple way of limiting the performance. I tend to think many people will like this mode as its much more relaxing.

Also, the VESC app can be used to change performance modes too. You can choose from 3 different modes and also limit top speed if you want using the app. This is probably a bit more advanced than a simple switch, but not at all hard if you are comfortable using a phone app.

You could also make custom throttle curves too.

Heaps of user control over performance.

I think for anyone who hasn’t ridden many skateboards there will be a learning curve, does not matter if it is electric or non-electric. Getting your bushing adjusted correctly is the most important thing you can do. It’s really something that must be tuned to the rider’s weight. read this guide: Muirskate Longboard Shop Est.2005 – MUIRSKATE

Our plan is to diagnose faults using videos & email and send replacement parts. We will have detailed videos showing how to do the basic repairs. If it’s too much trouble & you prefer someone else to manage it that’s fine too we have a repair agent in Belgium.

You will never be asked to send anything to Australia.

Duty prepaid is handled automatically by the freight forwarding provider. They pay the taxes when the goods are passing through customs & send me the bill. First orders will be processed first.

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Thanks for the info. :slight_smile:

I did follow the link for the Bushings. And i still dont know what i need. Im a Noob on skateboard and im 100kg heavy. Im going to use the board to get to work. So from A to B. Any tip on bushings?

Bushings are going to be a trial and error sort of thing. Luckily they are pretty cheap and you can try out a few. I’d recommend taking your board to a local skate shop to get some hands on help.

It sounds like you are going to be doing slower speed cruising as part of your commute. Here’s where you can start: https://www.muirskate.com/longboard-guide/bushings/cruising Check out the weight guide and determine how stiff you want your ride to be. Stiffness here relates to how easy it is to turn. Flexy will allow you to make turns very easily without having to do a lot of leaning. However, it will be harder to just maintain a stable straight line. Similar to a snowboard, you may find yourself going turn to turn or edge to edge with this setup and not staying flat. A stiff setup will make those straight line runs much more stable, but you will need to do a bit more leaning to get your turns in. Turns will be something that you may struggle with as a beginner. You need to lean over the edge of the board to activate the trucks and this doesn’t always feel natural…especially to your heelside. Toeside turns are easier to have confidence because you can see the ground. Leaning backwards can feel intimidating until you get a feel for your board and how much you need to lean to turn. One other thing to keep in mind if you ever plan on upping your speed- a stiffer setup helps tremendously at speed. Speed wobbles can be scary and you will want to revisit your bushings if your confidence grows.

Bushings are cheap though, so it;s easy to change a few around until you get just the right setup for your ride style…or to stiffen it up once you start taking on more speed. One other thing that I would recommend if you are truly a noob to boarding- a balance board like this can really help to build some basic balance and key leg muscles that you will need. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003ABE15G/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

One final piece of advice- go grab a regular push skateboard from a friend and practice a bit before you get on an electric board. Learn to footbrake. There will come a time where the batteries will go or your controller will disconnect and you will need to know how to brake without electronic assistance. Don’t try to figure it out in that moment. It’s going to be a few months before the R2 comes out. Get some practice in on the basics now and you’ll be fine when the time comes to get your esk8 on.

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Thanks for the helpful info NummThumz, I was half conscious someone would be eaten alive here by Elitists for admiting to not having previous skateboarding experience and wanting to get a high-performance electric one like the Raptor. Glad I was proven wrong. Good advise and of course we must not forget the protective gear.

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We actually want people to buy and use more eboards, do you know how exciting it is to find another rider in the wild and just ride together. I hope you order the raptor you will enjoy it just use protective gear and practice, its not a bad idea to get a cheap push board and just practice around the neighborhood before you get the raptor.

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