MICHOBBY 4.95kg assist kit for continuous eFoil use on RRD Air Beluga 140L — thoughts?

efoils – Electric Hydrofoil Surfboards
1

Hello everyone,

I’m about to order MICHOBBY’s integrated foil-assist kit, but my main intended use is continuous low-mounted eFoiling. I may occasionally try it high-mounted as foil assist, but that is secondary.

My setup

i am a wing foiler

  • Board: RRD Air Beluga Y30 inflatable, 140L, about 8.8kg
  • Mast: RRD aluminum, 85cm
  • Front wing: RRD Blaze 1850cm²
  • Hand wing: RRD Evo 5.5m
  • Rider: about 85kg
  • Intended location: Hudson River / flat water

Kit and quoted price

MICHOBBY integrated system:

https://michobby.com/products/efoil-diy-foil-assist-kit

  • Kit delivered to New Jersey with shipping/tax: $2,080
  • Extra plug-and-play battery: $320
  • Extra plastic propeller: $69
  • Standard kit includes aluminum propeller
  • Planned total: about $2,469

Manufacturer specifications/claims

  • Complete installed weight: 4.95kg including battery
  • Battery: 12S2P Samsung 50S
  • 43.2–44.4V nominal / 50.4V full
  • 10Ah / approximately 432–444Wh
  • Battery weight: approximately 2.5kg
  • BMS: 120A continuous / 350A peak
  • IP68 removable battery enclosure
  • Plug-and-play user-swappable battery
  • Bluetooth BMS monitoring
  • Wireless waterproof remote with battery display
  • Signal-loss delay can be set to zero
  • Claimed maximum thrust: approximately 35kg
  • Claimed charge time: 1.5–2 hours
  • Total system runtime advertised as 40 minutes to four hours for intermittent assist use

MICHOBBY has told me directly that the kit is designed for foil assist. For a low motor position and continuous eFoil use, they estimate only 10–20 minutes per battery.

Planned configuration

I want to mount the motor low, roughly 10–15cm above the fuselage, so it remains submerged continuously. With two batteries, I’m expecting two separate 10–20-minute sessions with a shore-side battery swap.

I’ll initially use the extra plastic propeller, then test the supplied aluminum propeller once the mount and cutoff behavior are proven.

Questions

  1. Is 35kg of claimed thrust enough to reliably lift an 85kg rider on this 140L inflatable and 1850 wing?
  2. Has anyone run this exact kit continuously with the motor mounted low?
  3. Is 10–20 minutes from approximately 432Wh realistic?
  4. What motor, ESC or battery temperatures should make me stop?
  5. How much additional drag should I expect from the low-mounted motor and external cable?
  6. Would a 105–120L rigid board materially improve takeoff or runtime?
  7. Any concerns with the sandwich battery/controller plate on an inflatable board?
  8. Has anyone fitted the universal clamp to an RRD aluminum mast?
  9. Is $2,469 with two batteries and both propellers reasonable compared with Foil Drive?
  10. What telemetry should I log during testing?

I plan to document actual installed weight, takeoff speed, current draw, battery sag, temperatures and continuous runtime to share with everyone. Thank you for your help, this is my first post and experience into efoiling

2

I would suggest you use the search function of this forum for michobby and read the opinions BEFORE you spend your $

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3

I didn’t realize people wing foiled out on the Hudson.
I personally would have a hard time spending this much on a MICHOBBY kit, especially since it is an under-board design where the entire case is immersed any time you’re off foil. I think there’s a good chance it would eventually get a leak and some water damage and getting support or warranty from MICHOBBY/Eray isn’t something I would want to try. You would probably end up needing to replace parts and repair yourself, which might be tricky with the underboard unit. If you’re okay with that then I guess this could get you out on the water for less and I think should with your setup.

If you check ebay there are a couple used gen1 Foil Drives for sale in the USA and even a DIY build someone (probably on this forum) is selling. They all cost less and are much more repairable when something goes wrong.

1 Like
4

Thank you @Foilguy and @S_Roger, extremely helpful guidance!

1 Like
5

Following up: would experienced builders choose the lighter Flipsky 6384 (1.27 kg, IP58) or the heavier 65161 (3 kg, IP68 with the improved ceramic water seal)? What would you trust for a reliable first build given my heavier inflatable board and large blade.

6

@retrofoil
It’s not clear what you are trying for. Some type of power assist while wingfoiling or a true efoil.

The 65161 is a tried and proven motor for full Efoil. Lots of builds here to read up on.

A smaller I lighter motor is typically used in a power assist mounted higher up the mast so it out of the water when foiling. Again lots of builds here to read up on.

7

Thanks @Foilguy! i am going for continuous efoil. Appreciate your advice. Will report back in the build, repair & mod, my setup. Cheers

8

FYI
I had a bad experience with MICHOBBY. The remote they sold me was for a skateboard, not waterproof. Then the battery they sold me stopped working. They said the BMS was controlled by Bluetooth from a phone app. The app didn’t work and I never got the battery to work again.