I built this enclosure for my haero with the intention of having a purpose built, light ride for pump tracks and jumps in woods. Range is not necessary for this board so the battery is small. My first iteration of this board used a pelican R60 case holding my lipos and it seemed kinda heavy, ~2.5lbs empty. I always liked what @Pedrodemio and @PixelatedPolyurethan did with their printed enclosures. Those designs needed top and bottom plates which I could not do myself. Then I found out about sendcutsend. The plates only priced out to $17 each and ship pretty fast. So I thought I would move the esc into the battery case and save some more weight. The aluminum plates also heat sink the esc, although my configuration hardly produces much heat. If you do order from sendcutsend you will need to countersink your screw holes if you want a nice flush mount.
Lots of ideas I used in this come from the community, subconsciously absorbing things from “Pictures and Nothing Else” or just blatantly using ideas like hex standoffs in a slot for securing the plates like Apex does.
The enclosure is built around using two 6s 8Ah lipos and zenith. I used M12 type connectors for the sensor port (12 pin) and the balance connector (17pin) [I use a balance charger]. I know some of you use GX type (?) connectors, but I was looking for something that had a right angle and was small as possible so it would not break when I would inevitably stack. Bonus was that TE connectivity had step models so I could get the proper orientation for the keyed right angle cable. The M12s are ok, nothing to write home about since they cost a bit more than other options.
I also made a little internal honeycomb tray to hold down the batteries which seems to be working well. Made my own version of panel mounts for the MR60s and MT60. They work ok. I still need to seal the whole enclosure and ports with something like silicone.
I printed the whole thing in PLA on my Pursa. Since the batteries are small I could print the walls as a whole piece. I added some 3/8" neoprene between the batteries to protect them. I also put some of that same neoprene between the case and the board. Cheap amazon straps hold it down. They have not failed yet and I usually take a few spills each ride.
I was able to fit the Xenigotchi and GPS in there too. The gotchi really helps sorting out the VESC settings. I don’t think I want ever use the VESC tool again. I don’t really need GPS but I threw it in there anyway and I was surprised that I actually can get a lock with the aluminum plate right over the top of the module.
Everything’s been holding up pretty well. I thought I would need to print this in PETG or something stronger but most of the strength comes from the plates and the hex standoffs. On my next iteration I might drop a few of those hex standoffs as 4 on the long side seem overkill.
I also have an iteration of the design that would use a heatsink from Nebula or an Infinity Sink (mini). Then the plates could be made of G10 or carbon fiber. I did not build this yet. I doubt it would save me much weight but it might look pretty cool. The cost per plate goes up to something like $40 or 50. I figured I would go the cheaper route first and sort out any of the design issues then maybe try composite plates
I like the openness of this community, sharing models and ideas, so I posted the fusion model on my git repository here. There are lots of parts in there that make up the model that you might find useful. @Andrew thanks for the zenith model, that really helped to size and orient everything right. The model also has my design history which might be useful if you want to use this as a basis for your own enclosure but change features or connectors. The only thing this model doesn’t have is cable routing. I have seen it done in Solidworks but I am not sure it actually helps. I certainly can’t do that yet in Fusion.
For reference, the rest of the board is built with Etoxx gear drives, adjustable base plates and hubs with MBS trucks. Motors are Flipsky 6354s. Nice antisink plates from @Savage1. Total weight is ~30lbs. I think @Andy87 and @DEEIF might have done a bit lighter builds. To go in that direction, I would need to use a smaller battery, plastic wheels and perhaps belt drive. Not sure if I will go that far to save some lbs
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hoe do you make it stop to work on it?