Electric Skateboard Reviews - Electric Skateboard HQ

Meepo Board is traditionally known to make powerful boards at the best “price-performance” ratio. The brand is always your go-to choice for eskates in the sub-$500 segment. Although, they’re having less recognition for higher-priced boards. Meepo Board changes the game in 2021 with Meepo Hurricane. This $1699 board has been overwhelmingly popular in the eskate community. So, what sets this all-terrain carbon fiber board apart from its peers? How is it different from other 2-in-1 boards that use the Evolve formula? Let’s find out.

Build and specs of Meepo Hurricane

Deck: T700 carbon fiber, double-drop, wide concave, stiff deck, top-access electronic compartment
ESC: LingYi FOC ESC 70 Belt, 4-speed modes, push-to-start feature
Marketed Top Speed: 35mph or 56km/h
Motors: 3500 W * 2
Batteries: 12s4p Molicel P42A
Marketed Range: 31miles or 50km
Trucks: Double Kingpin Truck
Wheels: 155mm pneumatic wheels; 90mm street wheels
Board Weight: 34 lbs or 15.4 kg
Warranty: 1-year guarantee

Meepo Hurricane uses a T700 Carbon Fiber double-drop deck with a built-in, top-access electronic compartment. We didn’t really know what T700 carbon fiber is until we were researching for this review and apparently, it’s commonly used in drone cameras. This type of carbon fiber reduces the probability of cracks.

The deck is also wide and has a full concave. There’s no flex on the board. The carbon fiber is stiff and it’s designed with wave lines that look sleek yet adds a military theme.

Top-access electronic compartment

Inside the carbon fiber deck, you’ll find a giant battery with a 12s4p configuration using Molicel P42A. This is considered a great cell in the market. It adds up to 725.8 watt-hours, which is the third biggest battery pack you can find on any 2-in-1 board. In terms of specs, it’s behind by only a few watts than the Ownboard Zeus’s 13s4p 899wh and Eovan GTS Carbon’s 12s4p 852Wh pack. Okay maybe not ‘a few’, but you get the point.

Big bubble (high top speed) third highest on the chart

This 725.8wh battery pack gave Meepo a marketed range of 31miles or 50km on all-terrain wheels, and 44 miles or 70km range on street wheels.

Our 210lbs or 95kg test rider put the numbers to the test and got 18.5miles or 30km out of the AT set up. With street wheels, we got 31 miles or 50km.

In our range test, we tried as much as possible to ride. You could probably get the higher advertised range with lighter weight or by riding conservatively.

Electronic Speed control – Hello again, LingYi ESC

For the electronic speed controller, Meepo uses their usual LingYi ESC and they got the latest and greatest version, as always. Hurricane is installed with LingYi FOC 70 Belt with a push-to-start feature. It has 4-speed modes and 4 brake modes that can be set independently of each other.

Meepo Hurricane also uses Double Kingpin Trucks. In the riding experience, we’ll see if these trucks blend well with 155mm pneumatic wheels. Purchasing Meepo Hurricane also comes with 90mm street wheels if it matches your preferences better. You can also swap these wheels for other semi-AT wheels like Cloudwheels or Meepo’s 110mm Cyclone wheels.

To check out our Meepo NLS Belt Review, click here.

Dual Belt drive – 3500W belt motor

Powering these wheels is a set of 3500W belt motors. Motor wattage means little at this price range, but just for those who are interested, these numbers are the highest out of all belt-driven boards in our database.

With these motors, the Meepo Hurricane has a top speed of 35mph or 56km/h and we managed to only hit 31mph or 50km/h. Although the 35mph was not met, 31mph is still very fast.

The board weighs in at 34 lbs or 15.4 kg and comes with a 1-year warranty.

As you can see, Meepo does what they do best with the Meepo Hurricane – offering beefy specs for its asking price. What’s unexpected for me is how well built and well polished the board is.

If Meepo Hurricane is the first Meepo, you might have no idea that the company has its roots as an affordable brand. While looks can be subjective, I think everyone will agree that this is the best-looking Meepo ever seen.

Riding experience of Meepo Hurricane

Now, let’s move off the specs on paper and onto the road.

The highlight of the Meepo Hurricane is its power. Meepo loves injecting loads of power into their boards and that’s definitely what happened here.

Out of all 2-in-1 boards in the market, the Meepo Hurricane ranks high on the list, beating any other board that isn’t a 4-wheel drive.

Power: Meepo Hurricane VS Exway Atlas

Comparing its acceleration or power against Exway Atlas, Meepo Hurricane is way stronger than the 2-wheel drive version of Atlas and almost as strong as Atlas’ 4-wheel drive.

However, the Atlas 4-wheel drive has better torque than Hurricane and can start from a complete stop even on thick grass. Hurricane struggles with this acceleration feature. The 4-wheel drive Exway Atlas also has more grip in offroading and when going up very steep hills, more so when the roads are slippery.

LingYi catches up with Hobbywing ESC

With all that power on the board, it’s no surprise that the Meepo Hurricane also has good speed control. We can finally say that the control smoothness of the latest LingYi ESC is now indistinguishable from the gold-standard set by Hobbywing ESC.

Meepo Hurricane has 4-speed modes, and all are smooth and intuitive. Mode 1 and 2 are tame, probably intended for casual riding, while mode 3 and mode 4 are thrillingly powerful. Having 4 different modes for braking also allows you to choose between gentler braking to having a very strong brake on the 4th brake mode. Those who love strong brakes would be really happy with the brakes here.

To check out our Meepo V4 Review, click here.

Double Kingpin trucks geared towards stability

Meepo clearly wants Hurricane to be ridden fast, as even the double kingpin truck on Hurricane is geared towards stability rather than for fun carving. The trucks are not the most agile and the board remains comfortably stable at high speed.

However, this also means that the Hurricane is not your best option for carving. Stiff deck, big wheels, and tight trucks are all minus points for fun carving, and we don’t feel much temptation to carve around when we are on the Hurricane.

This is in contrast to the Exway Atlas, which is geared towards responsive trucks that are more fun to carve with, but less stable at high speed.

Built for speed and stability

Besides the trucks, the rest of Hurricane’s built speaks stability, too. The carbon fiber deck is wide and has a nice concave to it. It feels nice and stable underneath the feet. The double-drop deck also allows a low to ground ride feel, further adding to the stability. Stiff decks don’t bounce, which is yet another point for a stable high-speed ride.

With all that said, designing a board this way has a few trade-offs. For starters, a low ride height also means low ground clearance, and your beautiful carbon fiber deck is just one tall bumper away from becoming less beautiful.

The stiff deck and relatively smaller 155mm pneumatic wheels mean going off-road on gravel, and small rocks aren’t as comfortable as other 2-in-1 boards with bigger wheels and flexible decks.

Going with street wheels further exacerbates both of these problems, where the board bottoms out on each bumper and becomes unbearable when riding on poorly paved roads.

To avoid feeling every small crack and bump, we would recommend skipping the 90mm street and going for semi-AT wheels like the 105mm cloud wheels, or anything bigger. The safest bet is to stick to the AT set-up.

THE VERDICT- Should you buy Meepo Hurricane?

You see, it has been more than half a year since the initial launch of the Meepo Hurricane and even as the hype cooled, the board remains wildly popular. We think all this love is well-deserved, as Meepo Hurricane not only hit it out of the park when it comes to delivering maximum value for the price, it also has an amazing look and amazing polish to go with it.

While the similarly priced Exway Atlas 2-wheel-drive is a better carving board and has some fun features such as having a smartphone app, Meepo Hurricane has a much better range and better power. So, whether you are looking for an all-terrain board that speaks power and stability, or simply want a polished AT board that tops the competition with specs, Meepo Hurricane is the board for you. Do look elsewhere, if you want a board that has maximum carving fun, or looking to do hardcore off-roading.

RIDE SAFE, GUYS!

If you are interested in buying the Meepo, be sure to check out our affiliate link here.
You’ll be tagged as an Electric Skateboard HQ customer and probably be treated better. Cheers!

March 10, 2022July 27, 2023 by Paxson Lim

Wowgo 2S Max Review – The best budget electric skateboard.

Not too long ago, we crowned the Wowgo 2S Pro as the best budget electric skateboard under $500. So imagine our surprise that just after 7 months, Wowgo find the need to one-up themselves and released Wowgo 2S Max as an update for the 2s Pro.

From Wowgo 2s Pro to 2s Max:

The obvious key changes are

slight upgrade in motor wattage (500W -> 550W) and top speed (25mph ->28mph),
giving the option of 105mm Honeycomb wheels for an extra $120.
update in ESC

Unfortunately, the improvement doesn’t come free, as the $479 Wowgo 2S Max also saw a small price bump from $429 of the 2S Pro to $479.99 for the 2S Max. While it is a pretty foregone conclusion that the 2S Max will inherit the throne of being the best budget electric skateboard, we will have to examine if there is any flaw to the package.

As usual, let’s run through the specs to be clear about those theoretical upgrades…

Build and specs – Wowgo 2s Max

Deck: Canadian Maple, bamboo, and fiberglass; subtle concave with no camber/rocker
ESC: Hobbywing ESC; 4-speed modes, smart power-on
Marketed Top Speed: 28 mph / 45 kph
Motors: 550 W * 2 hub motors
Batteries: 12s2p, 5.0Ah, 50.4V
Marketed Range: 14.3 miles / 23 km (90mm wheels)
Trucks: Poseidon Trucks
Wheels: 90mm street wheels / 105mm honeycomb wheels
Board Weight: 18lbs / 8.2kg

Design & Deck – Wowgo 2s Max

The WowGo 2S Max’s deck is a combination of Canadian Maple, bamboo, and fiberglass. It only has a mild flex to it, and it’s even slightly stiffer than the 2S Pro. It also has a wide but subtle concave and is flat without any camber or rocker. As an upgrade, Wowgo put on a foam grip tape to improve vibration absorption for the 2S Max. However, this made the concave of the deck less prominent and our feet felt less secure during carving and rides.

The design on the grip tapes and the backside of the deck is pretty nice, too. The trident graphic gets to stay, and there’s another option of a new black design which looks pretty cool as well.

Trident underneath the deck (photo of 2s Pro)

For the electronic speed controller, the WowGo 2S Max used the 12s Hobbywing ESC which received minor updates from the one on 2S Pro. It also has the smart power-on feature, of course.

Hobbywing ESC Turbo

It is a given that speed control with the 12s Hobbywing ESC is going to be strong, silky smooth, and intuitive, but we are still looking to see if the “minor update” did anything to improve on that.

There are 4-speed modes, with the highest speed mode named Turbo.

And per usual, it uses the elegant remote that comes with telemetry.

Now, let’s look at the trucks. These are the same Poseidon trucks that Wowgo developed for the Wowgo 2S Pro. The trucks look to be Caliber II clones, are 8- inches 50° with 85 A bushing. From our previous review, we know it is a truck that prioritizes stability over maneuverability.

To check out our Wowgo 2S Pro review, click here.

Wowgo 2s Max have one of the strongest hubs

As for the motors, the 2S Max received a 50W boost per motor and now uses 550W dual hub motors. Judging by the numbers on paper, 550W motors will be amongst the strongest hub motors of all entry-level hub boards, with only the Meepo V4 Shuffle beating it at 620W x 2. To give you more context, most entry-level eskates use 400-450W hubs.

As a result, this 550W gave an improved marketed top speed of 28 mph (45 kph) and it did exactly that on our top-speed test.

There are also 105mm hub-sleeves and semi-all terrain wheels available. We will talk about how they perform later.

For the standard wheels, WowGo 2S Max is using 78A soft PU wheels, which is pretty usual for entry-level boards.

And when it comes to power, Wowgo 2S Max uses a 12S2P 5.0 AH battery. This gave a battery pack of 216wh in size and had a marketed range of 14.3miles (23km).

With regular street wheels, our 200lbs (90kg) test rider managed to get only 10miles(16km).
With the 105mm honeycomb wheels installed, our test rider got 8.6miles (14km) out of a full charge.

The range is exactly the same as what we get from the previous Wowgo 2S Pro which has very similar battery stats at 5.2AH. Although Wowgo kind of overstated the range, 10miles is the usual range for boards below $500, so we weren’t exactly disappointed or surprised here.

Battery size vs price, you can see that everybody <$500 has a similar battery size.
(Bubble size = motor wattage, bigger is more powerful)

The board weighed in at 18 lbs (8.2kg) and comes with a 6-month warranty.

Riding Experience of Wowgo 2s Max

Now that we know the build and specs, it’s time to ride!

First, let’s talk about speed control. Wowgo 2S Max’s speed and speed control are perfect as expected of the 12s Hobbywing ESC. Both acceleration and braking of the 2S Max are buttery smooth and intuitive. The brake strength is very strong, even stronger than the previous 2S Pro. This is great news as most riders eventually learn to love and prefer strong brakes, especially when the brakes are smooth and intuitive like they always are with Hobbywing ESC.

To know more about electronic speed controllers (ESCs), click here.

Powerful Even With Semi-AT Wheels

When it comes to the torque, the 550W hub motors perform incredibly well. By using one of the strongest hub motors amongst the entry-level hub boards, Wowgo 2S Max is powerful enough for any hills on your path. Although the torque and thrill are still a step behind what a set of powerful belt motors could offer, the Wowgo 2S Max is still one of the strongest hub boards amongst all the entry-level boards we’ve tested.

Having a powerful motor is important especially when you plan to put on the bigger 105mm wheels. With the semi-AT wheels, torque, and braking from Wowgo 2s Max goes from quite strong to just “strong”. A board with lesser power would have a ride feel of “no power” at all if installed with semi-AT wheels.

Stability over responsiveness

When it comes to maneuvering the board, it was, unsurprisingly, the same as it was with the older 2S Pro. Carving is fairly fun but more on the tight side, as the Poseidon trucks prioritized stability over maneuverability. The board has a good return to center and feels very stable at high speed.

Honeycomb Wheels Reduces Around 20% of Road Vibrations

The honeycomb wheels are alright, too. On smooth roads, it’s less fun to carve with the 105mm honeycomb wheels as it takes away the silky smoothness of soft urethane wheels. On rough pavement, however, the honeycomb wheels definitely had an impact in reducing vibration at around 20%, in our opinion. This, plus the foam grip tape makes Wowgo 2S Max a good board for those who have the unfortunate fate of living where roads are terrible.

However, if we were to compare these Honeycomb wheels with the Cloudwheels Donut, we would prefer the Donuts over this ‘Cloudwheel-clone’, as Donuts are better in vibration dampening.

The VERDICT – Wowgo 2s Max

So, the verdict seems like the brand with the funny name has done it again. Wowgo is going to retain its throne three times in a row for making the best affordable electric skateboard (first, the Wowgo Knight, then the 2S Pro, now 2s Max.)

Wowgo 2S Max has the performance that either matched or outmatched its competitors, the ride feels that leads the affordable segment and the polish that is much beyond the asking price.

Simply put, for any rider who wants an entry-level affordable hub board, Wowgo 2S Max (for now) should be the first consideration.

Oh! and the board is now available on Amazon -> https://amzn.to/3MRyli8

If you are interested in buying the Wowgo, be sure to check out our affiliate discount link here and use code: “ESKATEHQ” to receive 5% off during check out.
It will help you get a small monetary discount and help us out too. On top of that, you’ll be tagged as an Electric Skateboard HQ customer and probably be treated better. Cheers!

February 8, 2022February 25, 2022 by Paxson Lim

Tynee Board Mini (Belt) Review—not so tiny in power!

In this review, we will be looking at the belt-driven shortboard from Tynee Board which was “creatively” named the Tynee Board Mini. We have been reviewing a lot of Tynee Boards recently, but this one, we were told, was special. According to the company themselves, Tynee Board Mini is one of the hottest selling boards from the brand’s line-up. At first glance, it’s not hard to tell why.

Tynee Board Mini is a $579 10s2p belt-driven electric shortboard that has also copied its look from the late Boosted Mini. There is a 10s3p 8.7AH version available for $629, too. The belt-driven mid-tier electric skateboard is a niche that doesn’t have much competition, so it’s not surprising that the board is selling well if it’s decent. So is it?

As usual, let’s take a deeper look at its build and specs.

Build and specs – Tynee Board Mini

Deck: stiff maple; flat camber and rocker; wide concave
ESC: 12s Hobbywing ESC; 4 speed modes; smart power-on
Batteries: $579 version – 5.0 AH 180 wh Samsung; $629 version – 8.7 AH 313 wh
Marketed range: $579 version – 12 miles / 19 km; $629 version – 22 miles / 35 km
Motors: 5250 Hobbywing Belt
Marketed Top Speed: 24 mph or 38 km/h
Trucks: Tynee Proprietary Reverse KingPin Trucks (Paris V3 clones)
Wheels: 90 mm x 62 MM street wheels, 78 A durometer
Weight: 15.2 lbs / 6.9 kg
Lights: Headlights and Taillights

Tynee Board Mini uses a wide concave deck similar to the Boosted Mini. It’s stiff and is made of maple.

As for the electronic speed controller, Tynee Board Mini uses a 12s Hobbywing ESC with 4-speed modes and smart power-on. Any eskate veteran should already know the Hobbywing ESC demonstrates a perfectly smooth and intuitive control.

Two battery options for $579 and $629 version

Moving on to the batteries, there are 2 options available: $579 for 5.0 AH 180 wh a Samsung battery or $629 for 8.7 AH 313 wh a long-range battery. The marketed range for the 5 AH version is 12 miles or 19 km. For the 8.7AH version, the marketed range is 22 miles or 35 km.

We got the $579 version, so with the 5.0 AH Samsung battery, our 95kg rider got 12 miles or 19 km. That’s pretty solid.

It’s a pretty good range for a belt-driven sub-$600 board, but confusing at the same time. The Wowgo Mini 2 which runs on dual hub drives gave us the same range. Hub drives are supposed to be more battery efficient than belt-driven motors. Even Tynee Mini’s nearest competitor, Ownboard M1, only has a marketed range of 7.5 miles or 12 km for $569. Some sorcery, this is.

Tynee Board Mini is also using Hobbywing 5250 belt motors with a top speed of 24 mph or 38 km/h. The wheels on this board are 90 mm x 62 MM street wheels with a 78 A durometer.

Tynee proprietary reverse kingpin trucks for stability

As for the trucks, Tynee Board Mini uses their proprietary Reverse Kingpin trucks which are based on the upgraded Paris V3. We reviewed this way back from Tynee Board Ultra and know it’s geared towards stability—a little bit more on it later.

To read our review on Tynee Board Ultra, click here.

This shortie weighs 15.2 lbs or 6.9 kg which is pretty average and easy to carry around.

Now that we know the build and specs of Tynee Board Mini, it’s time to ride!

Riding experience of Tynee Board Mini

As we have mentioned, the acceleration and smoothness of a Hobbywing ESC are always expected. While it is a pretty smooth ride, this shortie can also punch. Power on a belt-driven shortboard is what shines the most for Tynee Board Mini.

Not so tiny in power

The current gold standard for mid-tier shortboards that every shortboard should be compared to is, for now, the Wowgo Mini 2. In a few reviews back, we commented that the Wowgo Mini 2 has a pretty darn strong acceleration. Well, the Tynee Board Mini is stronger than that just by the virtue of being a belt-driven board. The brake is also strong and very smooth.

When it comes to maneuvering the board, it is just okay. It’s less fun to carve compared to Wowgo Mini 2 and Exway Wave, but it’s considerably stable at all speed controls.

You would expect a shortboard with the name “Tiny” and Mini to be the most agile boards amongst all shortboards. Sadly, this is not the case. Tynee Boards are amongst the less carvy boards as compared to Wowgo Mini 2 and Exway Wave.

To read our review on Wowgo Mini 2, click here.

Tynee’s proprietary trucks, although based on Paris V3, are biased towards stability. As a result, it doesn’t feel as nimble as most shortboards. This is not a bad thing, though. Being more stable than carvy is better for the Tynee Mini since it packs a bigger punch than most shortboards.

Stability over maneuverability

A lack of carving quality is also not a problem when it comes to shortboards with a kicktail. Yep, this shortboard has a kicktail and even highlighted it as “sexy kicktail” (what is that supposed to mean lol).

However, the kicktail is not the easiest to use. It’s just too short to be easily engaged. On the flip side, this ‘design flaw’ might actually be a plus for more inexperienced riders. After all, the shorter kicktail was a tradeoff made to maximize its wheelbase for maximizing stability. A harder-to-engage kicktail also means fewer chances of an accidental wheelie.

Another downside of the Tynee Mini is its vibration handling ability, which is the flaw of all shortboards. Unlike longboards that have long flexible decks to absorb some of the road vibrations, shortboards are generally harsher when riding through rough pavements.

Tynee Board Mini wasn’t an exception to this problem, but being a belt-driven board that has 4 real wheels does mean that it’s still a tad bit better than every hub-driven shortboard in this department.

To put this all together, this is how Tynee Mini rides.

For $579, Tynee Board Mini gives you power and stability unmatched by its peers. This also means that it’s less nimble and despite the light 15.2lbs (6.9 kg) weight, the shortboard still feels heavy under the feet. The kicktail is not the easiest to use, but beginners might see this as a feature more than a bug.

THE VERDICT – Tynee Board Mini (Belt)

So, is the Tynee Board Mini the best shortboard out there?

Tynee Board Mini with belt motors can be an easy recommendation for anyone who is looking for a belt-driven shortboard. Whether you are a heavier rider looking for a shortboard that packs torques, or someone who just couldn’t stand the ride feel of hub-motors, Tynee Board Mini Belt should be your best option. Not only because it provides a lot of value for the price, but also because there really are no other options for this price.

RIDE SAFE, GUYS.

If you are interested in buying the Tyneeboard, be sure to check out our affiliate discount link here and use code: “ESKATEHQ” to receive $10 off during check out.
It will help you get a small monetary discount and help us out too. On top of that, you’ll be tagged as an Electric Skateboard HQ customer and probably be treated better. Cheers!

January 25, 2022January 24, 2023 by Paxson Lim

Wowgo Mini 2 Review— Probably the best shortboard right now

In the world of electric skateboards, shortboard lovers often get the short ends of the stick as most eskate brands spend most of their R&D resources on longboards. It’s very common for most eskate brands to develop a longboard, slap on the same components on a shorter deck, and call it a day. But, not anymore. The Wowgo Mini 2 shortboard just changed the game.

Just look back on Meepo Mini 1 and Wowgo Mini. Don’t we all agree on how uninspired they look? Thankfully, this all changed when the late Boosted made the positively received Boosted Mini, and everyone else followed the craze of making better electric shortboards.

Late 2021, Wowgo finally joined the “make shortboard great” movement as they replaced their pathetic-looking Wowgo Mini with the Wowgo Mini 2—a $559.99 electric shortboard that rocks a 10s2p 187.6Wh battery.

Based on its look, it’s pretty obvious right from the get-go that this is not an assembled-from-spared-parts board.

As per usual, let’s go through the parts and specs.

Build and specs

Deck: Canadian maple, U-shaped concave with kick tail
Weight: 15.32 lb / 6.5 kg
ESC: Hobbywing ESC 4-speed modes with smart power-on
Battery: 187.2 Wh – 10s2p
Marketed range: 15 miles / 25 km
Motors: hub motors 680 W * 2
Marketed top speed: 25 mph / 40 km/h
Wheels: 90mm street / 105 Cloudwheel Donuts

First, let’s look at this deck.

The Wowgo Mini 2 went with a deck with U-shape concave, following a pursuit on the popular Boosted Mini. Unlike Boosted Mini or Exway Wave though, the concave is more subtle on this one.

An aggressive concave would have given the board a more responsive feel but may place some discomfort on our feet. I think most people would find this concave in their sweet spot as it still feels responsive, allowing a comfortable feet placement.

To check out our review on Exway Wave, click here.

Functional kicktail with deck guard

The board obviously has a functional kicktail that sure is useful to those who know how to kick turns. It also has a deck guard under it to help protect the tail. If you want to look cool when braking, you can use the kicktail to brake instead of the remote.

Shortboard polish looks premium

Beneath the deck, we have a single enclosure that houses both the ESC and battery. It appears that Wowgo put in a good effort in designing this mini-board. Unlike the first generation Wowgo Mini which was just assembled from off-the-shelf parts, the Mini 2 looks and feels premium. You can tell that they thought about the design thoroughly. The details on top of the deck are sick! Underneath the deck, you’ll find a very nice gloss finish.

Perfectly smooth ride with Hobbywing ESC

Now, it’s time to look at the electronics!

Wowgo Mini 2 uses Hobbywing ESC with 4-speed modes and smart power-on. For the battery, it uses 10s2p 5.0 Amp-hours with 180 Watt-hours. The board’s marketed range is 15 miles or 25 km. We had a 95kg or 209lbs rider test it out and the result is 11 miles or 18km in range. This is no surprise for a 5AH battery.

You can also check the battery charge level underneath the deck, which might be helpful when you want to check the battery level when charging.

This battery powers a pair of 680W hub motors which are pre-installed with 90mm street wheels. Wowgo Mini 2 is also compatible with 105mm Cloudwheel Donuts. The package included stickers for the hub wheels as well, and a lot more stickers with other designs. We suggest you should just forget about it, as it easily comes off the wheel and is not worth the hassle.

The marketed top speed is a standard 25 mph or 40 km/h, which we can hit with no problem.

To check out our review on Cloudwheel Donuts, click here.

Well balanced 45-degree trucks at stock settings

The trucks are Wowgo’s proprietary 45-degree trucks with double barrel bushings. 45-degree trucks are what most eskate brands go with, as it balances between stability and responsiveness. These are not the same trucks as the Poseidon truck found on Wowgo 2s Pro. Let’s see what it can do later.

Now, to summarize the specs.

On paper, the numbers on Wowgo Mini 2 are the same with most sub-$500 boards from affordable brands. For Wowgo, the slightly higher price is certainly justifiable considering the design and polish. Wowgo also used good quality skate parts, which brings us to the review of the riding experience.

So, how well does the Wowgo Mini 2 ride? Well, we are pretty surprised at how nice the Wowgo Mini 2’s performance is.

Riding experience

First things first, let’s talk about the trucks. It felt really responsive, allowing the board to feel nimble on the feet, and they did this without sacrificing stability. We’re pretty surprised that Wowgo’s proprietary truck performs this well.

To put the truck performance into context:

If you compare Wowgo Mini 2 to Tynee Board Mini and Meepo Mini 2, Tynee Mini and Meepo Mini 2 did not feel nimble and were less fun to carve around. If you compare it to Exway Wave’s Trist trucks on stock settings, Wowgo Mini 2 is more stable.

I always believe that most people get a shortboard for a quick and easy commute on the sidewalk, in college compounds, and a maneuverable board is extra helpful in tight quarters. Obviously, the kicktail is useful for that purpose, too.

Fun to ride with great control and maneuverability

Wowgo Mini 2 is exactly what you want from a shortboard. It is very FUN to ride on smooth roads. Riding it for the first time, I was very shocked.

As we have mentioned, the trucks felt responsive, and the board felt nimble but stable.

And the Hobbywing ESC on this one? The speed controls were super smooth and intuitive, unsurprisingly. What’s rather surprising is that the acceleration is pretty darn strong, too— you might even mistake it for a 12s set-up.

Braking is also smooth and very strong. The kicktail is very functional and easy to use, too. The subtle U-concave of the deck helped with the controls while being subtle enough for you to not notice the shape all the time.

So, great speed control and great maneuverability—those are the strengths. Now, let’s talk about the weakness.

Weak at handling road vibrations

Actually, there is just one weakness.

Wowgo Mini 2 is terrible at handling road vibration which shouldn’t come as a surprise. After all, a shortboard with a stiff deck combined with hub motors is a recipe for a very uncomfortable ride on very rough or poorly paved roads. For most shortboards, you will be standing directly on top of the trucks, and all the vibration from the road goes straight up.

From the road > to the trucks > and to your knees.

The great news here is that you can easily swap to the 105mm Cloudwheel Donuts and greatly decrease road vibrations. But honestly, you should probably consider getting a belt-driven longboard with a flexible deck and big or even all-terrain wheels if you deal with rough roads regularly.

THE VERDICT

So, to summarize.

For $559.99, Wowgo Mini 2 gives you a comfortable and nimble ride. The 25mph top speed and the 11 miles range are nothing extraordinary, but the polished build and riding experience more than made up for it. The obvious weakness for Wowgo Mini 2 is the poor comfort riding on rough roads. However, this is an inherent problem faced by all hub-shortboards, and the Mini 2 fares arguably better for having the 105mm Cloudwheel Donuts option available.

All things considered, it is very easy for us to recommend Wowgo Mini 2 for anyone that’s looking for a shortboard to use on good roads. It is the best shortboard to get for those who want something more refined than the entry-level $400 like the Meepo Mini 2, and don’t want to pay extra for the $749 Exway Wave for all its fancy lights and removable battery.

I think anyone who is in the market for an electric shortboard should first consider the Wowgo Mini 2, as it’s substantially better than its cheaper competitor while simultaneously not too far behind its pricier counterparts.

Great job, Wowgo. Love this one.

RIDE SAFE, GUYS.

If you are interested in buying the Backfire, be sure to check out our affiliate discount link here and use code: “ESKATEHQ” to receive $5 off during checkout.
It will help you get a small monetary discount and help us out too. On top of that, you’ll be tagged as an Electric Skateboard HQ customer and probably be treated better. Cheers!

January 10, 2022May 18, 2025 by Paxson Lim

Maxfind FF-Belt Review — Big wheels and beautiful deck.

Today, we will be looking at Maxfind’s flagship, the Maxfind FF-Belt.

In the Olden days, Maxfind has been known as a brand that produces value-for-money electric skateboards, putting out budget buys such as the Max-A, Max-B. These few years, however, they have been shifting their focus away from price and began to focus more on polish. Their price got higher, their customer service got better, and their boards became more interesting.

So, FF-Belt.

FF-Belt is a cool-looking, $899 belt-driven electric skateboard with a double-drop deck, 12s3p hot-swappable battery, dual kingpin trucks, and big 105mm Cloudwheel clones.

As usual, let’s run through the specs!

Build and specs of Maxfind FF-Belt

Deck: composite, flexible, double-drop (polyphenylene sulfide and fiberglass, coated with carbon fiber)
Battery: 12s3p Samsung, 376 WH, hot-swappable
ESC: 12s Hobbywing ESC
Marketed range: 25 miles/40km
Motors: 2*1500W belt motors
Marketed top speed: 28 mph/45 km/h
Trucks: Double Kingpin
Wheels: 105mm Cloudwheel clones

The most eye-catching part of the Maxfind FF-Belt has to be the deck. Maxfind FF series uses a super flexible composite deck made of polyphenylene sulfide and fiberglass with a carbon fiber coat. It definitely has a more modern and polished vibe than your usual eskates.

The deck is wide and has a good concave to it, so we can always know where to place our feet during a ride. It also has a double-drop design for a decreased riding height. Double-drop decks are known for good stability on streets. Maxfind FF-Belt is formulating excellent stability for a flexible deck with these specs so far.

Hot-swappable batteries accessible from the top

The deck also uses rubber grip tape. We prefer this as it doesn’t catch on fabrics and damage them. What makes Maxfind FF-Belt different from other eskates is that it has a built-in electronics compartment that can be accessed from the top. This allows easy access for the hot-swappable batteries and gives the board a very pleasant unibody look. What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.

Fair range for 12s3p batteries with 376 watt-hours

The swappable battery is a pack of 12s3p batteries with 376 watt-hours and gives a marketed range of at least 25 miles or 40 km. I bet you can immediately tell that this is too good to be true, as it is impossible for a 376 watt-hour to deliver 25 miles in a running belt. And sure enough, our 95 kg rider was only able to get 14 miles or 23km out of a full charge. Well, at the end of the day, it’s still a fair range.

As for the trucks, the Maxfind FF-Belt goes with Double Kingpin trucks and pairs them with 105 mm Cloudwheel clones. We will go into details on how the trucks and wheels perform a little bit later.

For the motors, Maxfind FF-Belt rocks a pair of 1500W motors and combines it with the latest 12s Hobbywing ESC, which comes with a smart power-on. This gave the Maxfind FF-Belt a marketed top speed of 28 mph or 45 km/h which we can hit without a problem.

All in all, the Maxfind FF-Belt is very polished and well built. Unlike most Chinese brands that just assemble off-the-shelf parts, slap on a logo, and call it a new product, you won’t find off-the-shelf generic parts on Maxfind here. However, all of this means nothing if the board wasn’t pleasant to ride, so now, let’s talk about the riding experience!

Riding experience of Maxfind FF-Belt

Maxfind FF-Belt electric skateboard's super flexible composite deck

Maxfind FF-Belt is a comfortable ride, thanks to the deck it uses. The composite deck is very comfy, wide, long, and has a good concave. The double-dropped deck allowed lower riding height and added to the stability of the ride.

The 12s Hobbywing ESC is also, as usual, buttery smooth. Like we always mention, Hobbywing has already perfected the formula in speed control, acceleration, and braking. The torque and braking are both strong. It’s not really surprising for a belt-driven board. To give you some context, the torque is stronger than most mid-tier belt-driven boards such as Exway Flex Riot. Maxfind FF-Belt, however, is not as strong as some of the torque specialists, such as the Beastboard Viper and Ownboard W2 Pro.

To check out our review on Beastboard Viper, click here.

To check out our review on Ownboard W2 Pro, click here.

Stable Double Kingpin trucks

On maneuverability, we previously reviewed the Maxfind FF Street and the Double Kingpin trucks just didn’t work. It wasn’t stable and tended to sway a lot. However, Maxfind has improved on its build and design, and we can finally say that this installation of Double Kingpin trucks is quite alright when it comes to stability and has a decent return to the center. There’s definitely better turning and carving. Being Double Kingpin Trucks, they are obviously easy to turn, and fun to carve in, more so than reverse kingpin trucks for sure. It’s not the best Double Kingpin truck we’ve ever tried, but it’s decent.

To check out our previous review on Maxfind FF Street, click here.

Cloudwheel clones perform well

Maxfind FF-Belt electric skateboard's 105mm wheels. Similar to Cloudwheels but seem to have less grip than Cloudwheels.

Finally, let’s get closer to the ground and talk about the ones that keep the ride rolling—the 105mm Cloudwheel clones. Maxfind FF-Belt was destined to do well in vibration handling given that it was designed with a flexible deck and big 105mm wheels.

Riding on rough roads with this one wasn’t too bad, but we have to say that these wheels are inferior compared to the original Cloudwheels. These 105mm shock-absorbing wheels are harder and seem to have less grip than Cloudwheels. Even though these Maxfind wheels absorb less shock compared to the original Cloudwheels, these wheels still do their job well enough to reduce the vibrations. Size does help, after all.

THE VERDICT – Should you buy the Maxfind FF-Belt?

Maxfind FF-Belt electric skateboard - no glaring weakness in build and specs

So, to sum it all up here’s the verdict.

When it comes to value, paying $899 for a 12s3p belt-driven board with a beautiful composite deck and swappable battery feature is not a bad value proposition by any means.

However, the critique I have for Maxfind FF-Belt is that, while it does everything well—torque, range, speed control, maneuverability up to vibration handling, that’s all it is. The Maxfind FF-Belt is pretty good, but it wasn’t amazing in any of those categories.

What it is, however, is a good-looking board that has no glaring weakness, and isn’t that how a lot of us choose our cars?

RIDE SAFE, GUYS!

If you are interested in buying the Maxfind, be sure to check out our affiliate discount link here and use code: “ESKATEHQ” to receive $25 off during check out.
It will help you get a small monetary discount and help us out too. On top of that, you’ll be tagged as an Electric Skateboard HQ customer and probably be treated better. Cheers!