A motorized mountain board is different from a traditional skateboard. Think of your motorized mountain board as you would a car or an electric scooter; it needs mechanical servicing regularly to keep it running smoothly. Give it deep servicing periodically and something as simple as an oil change regularly.
The details of maintenance will vary, but the principle is the same. Without servicing your motorized mountain board, it won’t serve you for as long or as well as you would like it to.
Here’s our mountain board maintenance guide to keep handy for when the time comes!
With that in mind, here are some of the key maintenance tips for your motorized mountain board.
Mountain Board Maintenance and Cleaning
Unless you are really into off-roading and love how your car looks when covered in mud and dirt, you are probably going to visit a car wash at least once every week. Most people even get their cars detailed that often. The same reasons why you get your car cleaned are the same reasons why you should get your motorized mountain board or electric skateboard cleaned:
- Keeps the exterior in good condition
- Protects the paint job
- Makes it look brand new
- It helps you to avoid costly tire repairs
- Allows you to see any cracks or damages while cleaning
There’s no doubt that your mountain board or off road electric skateboard will go through rough terrain, and it will pick up dirt, dust, mud, and other types of debris while at it.
Fine particles can get into the nooks and crannies of your mountain board, like the trucks, bearings, and even the wheels, compromising their quality and directly impacting the performance of the entire mountain board. If there’s fine dust grinding away at the bearings, soon enough, the overall performance will be compromised.
They will either cause an accident or need replacement sooner than anticipated.
This can all be avoided by regularly and thoroughly cleaning your mountain board. Here are some simple tips on how to do that:
- Clean your mountain board of fine dust and dirt by using a damp piece of cloth or grip tape
- Be careful not to get any water into any of the motorized parts
- When you are done, wipe it down with a dry piece of cloth
Clean the Bearings and Hub Motors
Your mountain board can take on rough terrain, including crazy amounts of dirt, dust, and mud. As mentioned, this kind of dirt gets into everything, including the bearings and trucks. If you don’t clean that out regularly, and we are talking as soon as you are done with the day’s riding, it will eventually affect the riding quality of the motorized mountain board.
The trick is to ensure that there’s absolutely no residual dirt, dust, or mud in the bearings of your boosted board. In extreme cases, you might have to take the wheel system apart to clean it properly, but you should only do this periodically. Just like you probably only take the car in for thorough detailing once every so often.
You should, however, make it a daily habit to clean the bearings. At least on the days on which you go riding. Note that since this is a motorized mountain board, some parts won’t mix well with water and, as such, should be cleaned with care. Water can cause more damage to the bearings.
The simple trick is to follow the cleaning advice given by the bearing manufacturer. If you haven’t had a chance to buy and change the bearings yet, follow the cleaning instructions as set forth by the mountainboard manufacturer.
Here’s a video giving you clear instructions on how to clean skateboard and longboard bearings. The same principles apply when dealing with a motorized mountain board:
When it comes to caring for the motors of off road electric skateboards, there isn’t too much you can do unless you are technically gifted except take it in for a tune-up or a checkup regularly.
That said, there are some steps you can take to prolong its functionality and life:
- When you’re finished riding, dust off any dirt that has accumulated
- Make sure it has no debris clinging to it
- Wipe it down to get rid of any mud
- Let it run while you aren’t riding and listen for any strange noises
- Make sure it’s properly oiled
If you find that the hub motor on your motorized skateboard is making strange noises or overheating, you should get an expert to look at it immediately. Going out riding while it’s in that condition could cause more harm and might cause it to stall altogether.
Check the Drive Belt
Whenever you are riding your electric mountain board through rough terrain at high speed, the kind of debris and dirt you kick up can get stuck between the drive belt and the gear. This is one of the main causes of damage to the drive belt and your mountain board in general. To prevent this kind of damage, it’s important to always check the drive belt for debris before you go out on every ride, especially if you’re planning to travel at high speed.
It’s also highly advisable to give it a once-over after every ride. This is mostly to check for normal wear and tear as well as any residual debris. The simplest way to do this is to turn the wheels, which will then spin the drive belt.
This kind of preemptive care gives you a chance to see how slowly or quickly the drive belt is wearing out. It also allows you to see if any issues are causing any accelerated wear and tear to the drive belt. This gives you a chance to fix it earlier on before the damage becomes irreversible and you are left with little choice but to replace the drive belt.
- Note: Making sure that your drive belt has just the right amount of tension is also another useful electric mountain board maintenance tip. The ideal drive belt should be tight enough so that it doesn’t skip but not so tight that it creates unnecessary resistance when turning the wheels. Ensuring it has the right tension increases its lifespan and goes a long way toward giving you a quieter board and more range.
Here’s a video giving you some tips on how to check and even change the drive belt on your motorized mountain board:
Check the Screws and Nuts
As you can imagine, there are little technical and mechanical things you can do to ensure that your motorized electric board is in fine working condition. These are little steps to take, even if you aren’t technically or mechanically gifted. Things like making sure the screws and nuts are tightly in place and aren’t coming loose.
Use a screwdriver or a spanner and check if the screws and nuts are firmly in place. You could also unscrew them and screw them back on to ensure they don’t get rusty due to residual water or moisture in the grooves. Simply unscrew the screws and nuts, wipe them down or clean them, then screw them back on tightly.
This will also give you a chance to see which screws and nuts are coming apart or need replacing since that affects your overall riding experience.
Rotate the Wheels
The drive wheels on your motorized mountain board are going to suffer the most wear and tear because they are in constant contact with the ground. You need to form the habit of rotating your wheels now and again. The best way to go about it is to rotate the wheels after you have undertaken a long ride or spent a weekend cruising down the side of some backcountry hill.
As you can imagine, there are little technical and mechanical things you can do to ensure that your motorized electric board is in fine working condition. These are little steps to take, even if you aren’t technically or mechanically gifted.
Things like making sure the screws and nuts are tightly in place and aren’t coming loose. While rotating the wheels is a good habit to develop, sometimes, that might not be enough. You have to keep a very close eye on all the tires. If they start getting bald spots, you’ll know it’s time to get new tires. Mountainboard tires are not only meant to give you traction but also to protect you from the terrain.
The tires on your boosted board should be rugged enough to provide the traction for the terrain you are likely going to be riding on and have enough pressure to protect you from the impact that you are most likely going to feel when riding over rocks and uneven ground. As such, ensuring that the tires remain relatively new and have adequate pressure is necessary.
Here’s a video giving you a quick tutorial on how to change the tires on your motorized mountain board:
Service and Maintain the Trucks
Much like your mountain board wheels, the trucks also need to be managed and maintained. While these might be a bit more complicated, once you understand the basics of how they work, maintaining and managing them shouldn’t be that complicated.
The first thing you need to learn how to do is to adjust the trucks.
Here’s a quick video showing how to adjust the trucks on your mountain board (and how NOT to):
There are two very good reasons why you need to learn how to adjust each truck on your mountain board:
- If they are too loose, your mountain board ride will be wobbly
- If they are too tight, the mountainboard will be too rigid and difficult to turn
Initially, as a beginner, it’s almost always better for you to keep your trucks a little tighter than usual – just tight enough so that the board is slightly stiff. This will give you the stability and balance you need as you learn the board and the basic skills of electric skateboarding. The more experienced you become, the more you will find your sweet spot between too tight and too loose.
Your trucks will also need cleaning from time to time. You shouldn’t do this too frequently, but frequent enough to ensure that they aren’t rusting or that the wear and tear occurring in that specific area isn’t going unnoticed.
To clean your trucks, all you have to do is:
- Remove the wheels
- Unscrew the trucks
- Remove the kingpin nut
- Pull the trucks off the board
Use a damp cloth to clean every part of your all terrain electric skateboard, and then reassemble it again. Make sure it’s not too tight once you are done.
Of course, there are other factors to consider, such as servicing the hub motor or replacing it when necessary. These are more technical aspects of the maintenance process for a motorized skateboard that might need the input of an expert. However, if you are technically gifted, you can simply learn how to do it from YouTube, or you could ask the motor manufacturer for a guide, either in written or video form.
These are some of the most important maintenance tips when dealing with your motorized mountain board. As you can tell, most of the tips are quite easy and straightforward. The key is consistency. You need to do many of these things frequently and consistently to see positive results and keep your motorized mountain board functioning well for longer.