Flightjunkie's first e-foil build

I have pumped my one board up a few time when the ESC had a very low current limit. Its very tiring because it’s a lot heavier than a normal board.

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Hey @Flightjunkie, upgrading my pelican case to an acrylic box. Was going to use some separate bullet connectors, but I am looking to use the trolling motor plug instead because it seems way cleaner.

This look like the same one you use? https://www.hawkusa.com/manufacturers/marinco/connectors/12vbrs3oem and https://www.hawkusa.com/manufacturers/marinco/connectors/12vbps3oem

Amazon was out til august 8th and these seemed a little cheaper as well for some reason.

You have a couple extra male connectors to connect to your charger? So I need 2 female and 4 male for everything.

Did you use the 3rd pin on there to make the series connection?

Hi.

Yep. That’s the plugs. I get them on Amazon.

I take the third pin out. And fill the hole with JB weld. It makes the plug lighter. It’s not needed. I recommend installing the plugs upside down in the battery box. Follow the polarity marked on the plug for the (+) and (-). Look at my pictures. Negative goes to the fuse. Positive is on the top of the plug. That way if you need to remove the battery from the case you can remove the negative from the fuse and get at the Allen screws to remove the positive from the marinco plugs.

Yes. You need 2 females for the battery box. Then 4 males. Two males are for the charger. They are separate plugs. Wired normally.

The two males that plug into the battery box, (+) on the left plug goes to the ESC and (-) on the right plug goes to the ESC. You then permanently connect the remaining (-) on the left plug to the (+) on the right plug.

Look at my pictures. Does this make sense?

These plugs on the battery box need to be waterproofed. I have posted pictures about how to do this before. They need an o-ring on the bullet connectors. When I get the housing all back together I check for leaks by silicone greasing the rubber cap and putting pressure on it for a minute or so to make sure it doesn’t leak.

The male plugs I fill completely with silicone grease making sure there is no air voids in the housing.

Lmk if I can be of further help. I have made two of these batteries, making a third soon. And I have helped two of my friends make this design. So, that’s 4 of these batteries currently in use. They are great.

Don’t cut corners. 6AWG wire! And solder everything. Literally…every connection. I solder the sleeve that come with the plugs to the wire, then the Allen screws hold those in. And all connections are coated with silicone grease.

:call_me_hand:


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Thanks @flightjunkie! That is very helpful. Got some plugs coming. I’m going to CNC the holes for the case today and be ready for when it arrives.

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What cable glands did you use for your VESC alu enclosure? Can you take out the wires with the connectors on when the cable glands are unscrewed?

Hi @vicdes2

I just bought a box of assorted sizes off Amazon that had the highest ratings. The size depends on your wire gauge. I run all 6AWG. I used PG9 size. You want to use the smallest size the wire will fit through if you want the most watertight seal. And no, I can’t remove the wires because the connectors are soldered on the ends.

And don’t forget to fill your box 1"-2" deep with corrosionX.

:call_me_hand:

I have done it nearly in the same way.
@Flightjunkie
i searched in the thread but i couldnt find it.
How do you cool the Vesc?
I tried only with the Box but it gets to hot after 30 Minutes of riding time.

Hi guys.

I single handed my Boat, with my girlfriend, dog and toys over to Kauai. Been e-foiling in Nawiliwili and Hanalei so far. Board is working good. I met up with, and foiled with a friend who has a Lift board. He was super impressed and jealous of my DIY board.

He had to go in a swap batteries. My battery lasted almost all the way through both of his batteries. I think the Samsung 30Qs I used are better quality then the cells Lift uses, and my folding prop and infinity 84 wing are super efficient. He had the stock Lift 3 blade prop with no duct and the standard Lift e-foil wing size. I got 1h48min ride time and over 20 miles on one battery. Long ride was helped by lots of surfing and pumping without the motor. :desert_island::surfing_man::sunglasses::call_me_hand::beers:



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:call_me_hand:

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Looks super sick! Lift has 14s14p Samsung 30q cells.
I’d imagine it was the wings that made the difference. The infinity 84 has bags of lift so it would be super efficient at cruising speed.

Ok, thanks.
I thought you had managed it without external watercooling.

Thanks

All ESCs need water cooling unless you do a large heatsink that is in direct contact with the water.

Water cooling is really easy. You don’t need a pump. Just a hole in the nose cone. There is plenty of ram pressure.

:call_me_hand:

Hi.

Yea. The infinity 84 is a really good surf wing.

I’m quite impressed with it’s overall performance. I can foil at 7mph. And I can comfortably fly at 20mph. And hit 23mph if I’m pushing it. It’s also very maneuverable, a super efficient, low drag wing.

:call_me_hand:

I think so.
At the moment i can ride 36 minutes without watercooling.
For testing i will add two extra heatsink to the box.

And after this, I am sure do activate watercooling :slight_smile:

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Nice man, flying the dream

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@Flightjunkie are you putting custom screw threads into your Lift enclosure to keep your ESC box in place? I don’t have those same screw holes in the back. Did you melt them in or something?

Can anyone clarify why the FR blades (or any blades) have variable thicknesses? Is it for strength only, or is there some hydrodynamic advantage of a variable thickness prop blade?

Thanks

Pretty sure the blades of a propeller follow similar rules to that of an airfoil.

Hi.

Yea. I just drilled the enclosure floor. It’s a plastic material. Not CF. I tapped the holes and just screwed it down. Seal the treads or water could get into the core. A better way to do it would be to drill a large hole (1/2"). Fill that hole with structural epoxy, then drill and tap a small hole in that. I use “Splash Zone” by “Pettit”. I’ve been using this stuff for 20 years on boats. It’s stupid strong.

On my SUP efoil build I used this method and installed straps because I want to easily be able to remove the e-foil gear and use the board for Wing Surfing and SUP foiling

:call_me_hand: