Hi everyone,
I’m new to the world of e-foils and I’d like to try building my own electric foil board from scratch.
I don’t have direct experience with this type of project, so I’m looking for advice on:
Materials to use for the board
Choosing the foil and motor
Electronics (battery, controller, etc.)
Required tools and build steps
For reference, I weigh 90 kg and I’m 188 cm tall.
I’d like to understand what board size and motor power would be most suitable for me, while keeping a good balance between performance and budget.
If anyone has already done a similar project or has experience, any tips, photos, or links would be super helpful!
Thanks in advance to anyone willing to give me a hand
Well all most everyone here has experience building their own stuff in some form.
The big question really is what type of riding you want to do, what your budget is and how much effort you want to throw into the project.
The original DIY efoil designs are of the older hatch style boards. It’s probably time someone updated this concept with a more modern style like the Lift 5, Lift X or Waydoo etc
I’m thinking of completing the whole project within about a year so I can take the time to do things properly.
As for the budget, I’m not exactly sure yet — probably around €2,000 (about $2,000), maybe a little more if needed.
I’ve already looked into different ways of making the board, for example starting from an EPS (expanded polystyrene) core shaped to the desired profile, both for the board and for the foil.
What’s holding me back is that I’d like to have a complete design first, so I can understand every detail before I start: exact dimensions, shape, battery and motor size/placement, and also where to source components like the mast, fuselage, etc.
How could I go about creating this preliminary design, and what tools/software could I use, so I can have a clear and precise plan before getting started?
Look into EfoilHolland. There new board will be available soon to build. Believe me, starting from scratch is hard, very hard. Building the EfoilHolland board will still take a bunch of hours, but it will keep your mind from going going crazy.
You should decide if you will enjoy the “complete” build process as much or more than the “riding” experience.
Both of those can be very rewarding but the build process can be an journey that can get bogged down if you don’t have a DIY background and prior experience sorting things out.
Might be a reasonable idea to visit an EFoil dealer/school first to get an on water experience BEFORE you get to far into the build.
I think a number of people here use Fusion360 for the design work.
Okay, I need to check if there’s anyone in my area who could let me try this experience. I honestly think the building process is super interesting and I really want to give it a try. I’m pretty good with DIY repairs, but I’ve never actually built something from scratch. That’s why I’d love to create something that’s truly mine, built with my own hands.
This is why I was asking where to start — how to make the board, where to simply buy an extruded EPS panel, how to shape the battery and motor compartment, and where to install the mast. I’d also like to understand how to reinforce it with fiberglass or carbon fiber, and get help figuring out measurements, distances between components, and proper shapes. Even if it’s a bit challenging, I really want to succeed and build my own e-foil.
I’ve seen some boards only (just the board) for sale on this forum for around 450 dollars/euros. If I buy just the board and build the rest myself — the electronics and foil system — do you think that could be a good strategy? This way I can learn gradually and upgrade or modify components later if needed.
This is what many of us did but it was more expensive than that. I built my efoil with a Fliteboard Pro board it’s an amazing board very light and completely watertight great desing with the VESC mounted on top of the mast no need for watercooling. All the other components are easily available at a fraction of the cost of the big brand so easy to repair in the future.
Please be respectful of forum policy. Spamming posts trying to sell your product isn’t a good way to gain any acceptance here.
If you want some suggestions post your prices on your website rather than your current model of contact us for a quote. I for one would not buy from you just on that fact alone.
For example your efoil remote looks identical to the Flipsky VX3 but you don’t describe it as such or post your price.
Thank you for kindly reminding me how I should respond to that kind of message. I’ve already written a dedicated post, though I didn’t include any pricing details yet. I’ll definitely consider adding that in future posts — it’s a really helpful suggestion. Wishing you all the best!