Hey everyone,
I’ve been a member here since Pacificmeister’s first DIY Efoil and have built a few setups over the years. It’s been incredible to see how much innovation and knowledge-sharing has happened thanks to this community!
That said, it feels like the pace of new components and tech options has really accelerated lately — from motors, ESCs, batteries, remotes, to 3D printed parts and waterproofing solutions. I’m hoping to do a new Foil assist build this season and want to make it as clean, efficient, and lightweight as possible.
I know a lot of you have been experimenting with new gear, and I’d love to get a sense of what the current “state of the art” setup would look like if you were building a drive today. I think having a list of the latest and greatest options would be super helpful for those just starting out, or like me, struggling to keep up with all the recent action.
Specifically curious about:
- Motor choices (outrunner and inrunner, favorite brands/models). Any ourtrunners out now that come out of the box waterproof?
- ESCs
- Has anyone designed any cool printed motor mounts with swappable inserts based on mast type?
- Props- ive always struggled with this one. Any good “new” print files or off the shelf options?
- Battery setups (off-the-shelf packs or custom builds)
- Any new tips for making everything more reliable and watertight. Cool new waterproof high current connectors?
If you were putting together a DIY foil drive in 2025, what parts would you be using?
Thanks in advance for any input! Excited to get back into building and catch up with everything that’s evolved.
2 Likes
Hi @Jsonnett, I thought this was a good question and was hoping to a few others would post here but now it has slipped down front page a bit. So I’ll take a crack at answering a few things and boost it back up.
• Motors – most common is 6384 outrunner but 6374 seems to also work. Flipsky does sell a waterproofed version of their 6384 and I think it’s become a popular option. Haven’t seen many complaints about it yet but it also hasn’t been out for that long. I think some choose to upgrade to nicer stainless bearings. Plenty of people buy cheaper motors and do their own waterproofing
• Props – tricky one to answer, there are many versions of folding props that have been shared in the last few years and multiple places to buy them now too. PropellerKing will sell you one off the shelf (forum member @superlefax). Flying rodeo sells machined blades for assist motors (but no hub, so not sure about that).
• Batteries – I think the best option is probably still to build one yourself. I think 12s2P configurations have been popular for assists.
• Motor Mount – There is a nice strap on pod design that was originally developed by @Strongarm (maker of the ZeroTow boogie!) but modified by a few other forum members and actually sold in a few places (hybrid foils, KParts watersports). It has an insert that can be swapped for different mast profiles.
• Remote – The bremote has been popular in the last two years. Not available at the moment but V2 should be coming our soon. The Flipsky VX3 and Maytech remotes are widely used, not because they are really good, they are just available. If you want to spend all your money on a high end remote, Manta Foils will sell you one of theirs with a receiver to connect to a VESC.
• ESC - lots of Flycolor esc’s get used, I think because they are inexpensive and seem to work for most. I understand that the BLHeli32 firmware they use is not really developed anymore, but for now cheap esc’s using it can still be found. I’m sure there are other/better options. EasyFoil has a few new ones, but I don’t know much about them
1 Like