We are gonna talk more about the pros and cons of these two motors and compare them. In the end, you can make your decision more easily.
Pros and cons of hub motor electric skateboards
Pros
Lighter weight
As mention above, hub motor builds have the motor placed inside the wheels making the board looks neat overall, and the weight is also lighter.
Higher top speed
Hub motor boards have less torque since there are no gears to drive them, so they have higher top speeds than their belt-driven motor cousins.
The eSkateBuddy blog has some information about top speed of some electric models, if you are interested, let’s check it out: https://eskatebuddy.com/
Quiet
Gear driven is the main cause of noise in an e-board. The hub motor board doesn’t have it so it is quiter. Plus, the urethane wheels can help to keep the noise inside so you don’t here anything. This is pretty convenient when you can sneakly ride around your school campus without getting too much trouble as teachers will see you just riding a regular skateboard.
Freewheel
As the motor is inside leaving the wheels free, then they can run with the least friction. This allows you to ride the board easily when it is not powered.
Less maintenance
The motor is protected inside the wheel, so water and dirt can hardly get inside. So you less maintenance is required. In addition, the motor also last longer so you can save a significant amount of money to replace them.
Cons
Less heat dissipation
When operating, the motor tends to heat up. If wrapped inside the wheel, the heat of the motor is not released outside, creating a hot environment inside, which reduces the life of the motor.
Hard to change wheels.
Since the wheel and motor are one unit, when changing the wheels you need to make sure they are compatible with the existing motor. Plus, there are not many options for you when it comes to swapping out wheels.
Less torque
Less torque so the climbing ability of the board will be slightly worse. If the terrain you usually go is sloping terrain with many hills, then I recommend you choose a belt-drive motor.
Also read the comparision of hub motor vs belt driven electric skateboards to have an in-dept sight about this topic. See also: https://eskatebuddy.com/hub-vs-belt-motors.html
Pros and cons of belt-driven electric skateboards
Pros
More heat dissipation
In contrast to hub motors, belt-driven exposes all components including gear drives, belts or chains to the environment. Heat generated during operation from there is also easier to dissipates. In addition,the air can pass through to cool the engines when they have to work hard. The motor, there fore, will last a little longer.
More torque
The gear set helps to generate more torque, which helps you to climb hill better. The special thing about belt-driven skateboards is that by changing the size of these gears, you can change the torque multiplication. However, nowadays, manufacturers have tried to produce hub motor skateboards that are capable of producing the same torque as a belt drive board, so hub motors are not that total loser in terms of torque.
More wheels options
In belt-driven skateboards, the motor is attached to the wheel separately so you can replace the wheel more easily. You also do not need to spend too much time to be able to choose a wheel that is suitable for the motor.
Cons
Noisy
Yes, that's right, because the motor is not covered by anything, all the sound is emitted. Hub motor is housed in urethane wheels, a substance with excellent sound insulation. That's why hub motorboard often make whisper quiet. Many people like the noise of belt-driven motors because they can alert pedestrians and are safer at night.
More maintenance and replacement
More parts are exposed to water, mud, and dirt, factors that make the gear, the belt, and the motor wear out more quickly. You will have to replace it more often and these parts are often quite costly. In electric skateboards, you need to protect each part as well as you can so that they don't cost you much to replace them.
4. Create more friction
If your battery dies, it will be difficult to mannually push your board home because the gear drive magnifies the friction in the motor. Then you will most likely have to carry your board along.
So each type has its own advantages and disadvantages, you can refer to this article to make educated choices. There are tons of web site out there talking about esk8, one of those is eSkateBuddy - a destination for those who want to become a pro skater. Let’s go!
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