So, you’ve got yourself an old skateboard or longboard and you want to know if you can easily turn it into an electric skateboard or longboard.
Well, you’ll be happy to know that the answer is yes!
It is super simple and affordable to turn your old school board into an eboard with these electric skateboard conversion kits.
It’s a lot of fun and rewarding to build something with your bare hands. After it’s complete, it really feels like it’s something that YOU created. You’re going to absolutely love it.
On this list, you’ll find some plug-and-play DIY electric skateboard kits which only require a few screws to get them up and running, while others are more DIY electric skateboard kits that are a little more intricate and are a lot of fun to put together.
But don’t worry, I’ll run you through each option and give you a rundown on how easy each of the conversion kits are to assemble, along with a look at the specs and performance you can expect from your new DIY electric skateboard.
And if you scroll past all the eboards, near the bottom, there’s a little guide on the most important things to consider when buying a DIY electric skateboard kit.
The Electric Skateboard Conversion Kits:
BKB Build Kit Boards Electric Skateboard Kit
Assembly Difficulty
Specs
- Range: 14 miles / 22.5km (Single), 20 miles / 32km (Dual)
- Top Speed: 28mph / 45kmh
- Battery: Samsung 30Q 10S2P 9.0Ah 60A 356Wh
- ESC: VESC based controller, hall sensor, 100A constant power
The BKB Electric Skateboard Conversion Kit is a stand out on this list because it is closer to a DIY electric skateboard but the reason I’ve included it is for two reasons.
The first is that it ships with ALL of the parts and tools you need to create your electric skateboard from scratch. Including the deck. BKB has created a top-quality DIY electric skateboard kit and made sure that all of the components operate together seamlessly. Then they’ve packaged it up and offered the whole thing to you at a discounted price.
Secondly, it’s amazing! The specs on this thing outdo most complete electric skateboards available on the market today and the quality of the components is a lot better too.
I put mine together just the other day and it was by far the most exciting electric skateboard experience I’ve ever had. Partly because I got to put it together myself but mainly because it rides incredibly. This is probably going to be my daily driver from now on.
The BKB Electric Skateboard Kit comes in two options. A Single drive and a Dual drive. The only difference is the number of motors it has, one and two respectively. The single gets 14 miles of range while the dual gets 20 miles. The top speed is the same on both of them, however, the pulling power on the dual is a bit higher which means better acceleration and hill-climbing.
It is powered by a Samsung 30Q battery setup and is controlled with a VESC motor controller, both of which are top-of-the-line options.
There is a bunch of other accessories you can add to the kit to make it even better, like a Bluetooth module so you can hook it up to a mobile app to get real-time data on your phone and your smartwatch!
One of the best things about this electric skateboard conversion kit is that it is built from a DIY perspective. That means that if you want to do any upgrades in the future, you can easily do so. The modular system allows you to swap out any component that you want. All you have to do is make sure that the new piece you’re putting in is compatible with your current setup.
I’d highly recommend the BKB Electric Skateboard Kit for anyone wanting to dip their toe into the DIY eskate scene. You’re going to have a ton of fun with it!
Maxfind M5 DIY Drive Kit
Assembly Difficulty
Specs
- Range: 12-36 miles / 20-60km
- Top Speed: 25mph / 40kmh
- Battery: Samsung 10S2P, 4.4Ah, 158Wh, 36V
- ESC: Hobbywing
The Maxfind M5 DIY Drive Kit has to be one of the easiest kits to install. All you need is a deck that is at least 6.3″ wide and 18″ long to fit the enclosure and two sets of trucks.
It comes in three range versions, Standard, Long and Super, but that’s just by adding an extra battery pack to your purchase at each level.
What I love about the M5 is that the enclosure has a quick-swap battery system which makes it really easy to pull out the flat battery and throw in the fresh one. It can be done in under 5 minutes.
Maxfind has two other DIY kits, the M5 Drive Kit with Double Kingpin trucks and the M6 which has all-terrain wheels and hub motors.
They all have the same installation process and range package deals.
I love these because they’re super simple, affordable and have great performance specs.
Use code ESKATEHUB for 5% OFF!
Mellow Drive
Assembly Difficulty
Specs
- Range: 10 miles / 15km
- Top Speed: 25mph / 40kmh
- Hill Climb: 15%
- Battery: 99Wh Quick-swap and Air-travel certified
The Mellow Drive is one of the pioneers of electric skateboard conversion kits. I could be wrong, but I believe they were the first to develop and sell an all-in-one system for motorizing any skateboard or longboard.
It is a simple unit that has the rear trucks connected to the battery pack. So all you need to do is turn a few screws and you’re ready to go.
My favourite thing about the Mellow Drive is that it has an easy-swap battery system. It takes less than 10 seconds to pop out one battery and replace with the other. And you can charge the spare while you’re not using it so you can basically ride forever.
You can connect it to the Mellow app to get info on your rides like distance travelled and top speed, you can change the riding mode between Rookie, Eco and Pro and even update your Mellow Drive’s firmware.
It is on the pricier end of the scale, but it definitely wins out on simplicity and quality. It is German engineered after all.
Pairs Great With
Revel Kit
Assembly Difficulty
Specs
- Range: 10 miles / 16km (Standard), 15 miles / 24km (Extended)
- Top Speed: 28mph / 45kmh
- Hill Climb: 20%
- Battery: 144Wh / 4.0Ah (Standard), 216Wh / 6.0Ah (Extended)
The Revel Kit is another bolt-on electric skateboard conversion kit just like the Mellow Drive.
Revel has been around a while and have continually evolved their product to bring you this amazing piece of tech.
The Revel is unique because it is powered by direct-drive motors. That’s a rarely seen drive-train in all of eskate, let alone conversion kits.
Direct-drive motors are really powerful and you can see that reflected in the Revel Kit’s performance specs.
Another benefit of the direct-drives is that you can throw whatever wheels you like onto it, customizing it even more. Plus, you don’t have to worry about belt maintenance.
But the most unique thing about the Revel is that you can get two of these kits, strap one to the back and the other to the front and make a 4WD electric skateboard! The remote is pre-loaded with the firmware to be able to handle this setup so it’s just a matter of buying them and installing them.
The Revel is my overall second favourite kit on this list and my favourite easy bolt-on kit.
Pairs Great With
Unlimited x Loaded
Assembly Difficulty
Specs
- Range: 7 miles / 11km (Solo), 13 miles / 21km (Cruiser & Race)
- Top Speed: 23mph / 37kmh (Solo & Cruiser), 26mph / 42kmh (Race)
- Hill Climb: 9º (Solo & Cruiser), 20º (Race)
- Battery: 90Wh 2.5Ah per pack. Air-travel certified
The Unlimited has got to be one of the simplest conversion kits you can get. But it’s probably one of the most expensive. But it’s still awesome.
Unlimited originally Kickstarted the Eon electric skateboard kit which was a super simple system made up of a battery pack connected to a motor inside a wheel which you slapped onto any old deck you had lying around.
More recently, Unlimited teamed up with Loaded to create a series of electric longboards together, but what I want to specifically talk about on this list is the Unlimited x Loaded electric skateboard conversion kits. Because that’s kinda why you’re here.
There are three different options, each with their own set of specs, so I’m just going to throw them into a table for you to make it easier to see the differences.
| Unlimited x Loaded Kit | Components | Range | Top Speed | Hill Climb | Price |
| Solo Kit | 1 battery, 1 motor | 7 miles | 23mph | 9º | Check on Amazon |
| Cruiser Kit | 2 batteries, 1 motor | 13 miles | 23mph | 9º | Check on Amazon |
| Race Kit | 2 batteries, 2 motors | 13 miles | 26mph | 20º | Check on Amazon |
All of the unlimited x loaded conversion kits are modular, so if in the future you decide you want to add an extra battery or a motor, it’s really easy to upgrade.
These are great for eskaters who want a nice and simple way of converting their current deck into an electric skateboard. Plus you can always rely on Loaded to create top-quality products.
Pairs Great With
Teamgee H3 DIY
Assembly Difficulty
Specs
- Range: 6 miles / 10km
- Top Speed: 16mph / 26kmh
- Hill Climb: 15%
The most affordable electric skateboard motor kit on this list is the Teamgee H3 DIY Kit. For under $250 you’ll have yourself a good little cruiser eboard.
All it takes to put it together is a few screws to connect the battery pack, rear trucks and front trucks to your deck and you’re good to go.
Once it’s assembled, the eboard will be ideal for beginners and young kids in their early teens because the performance specs are very manageable for someone with limited eskating experience.
Pairs Great With
Verreal F1 Kit
Assembly Difficulty
Specs
- Range: 11 miles / 17km
- Top Speed: 24mph / 40kmh
- Hill Climb: 25%
- Battery: 10S2P 4.0Ah 144Wh
The Verreal F1 DIY Kit is a great first step for someone looking to get into building their own DIY electric skateboard. It is a little more tricky to put together compared to some of the other kits on this list, but all the components it comes with are compatible with each other.
There’s loose wires, a naked battery, wheels, trucks, risers, nuts and bolts all ready for you to put the puzzle together to build your electric skateboard. It’s a fun project.
At the end of the build, you get an eboard that has great specs and performance. Verreal actually sells this exact kit already made up if you wanted to skip the build and go straight to riding. But where’s the fun in that? That’s why you’re here right?
Verreal V1S Kit
Assembly Difficulty
Specs
- Range: 11 miles / 17km
- Top Speed: 24mph / 40kmh
- Hill Climb: 25%
- Battery: 10S2P 4.0Ah 144Wh
Another electric skateboard kit from Verreal is the V1S DIY kit. They are the same price and offer the same performance specs.
The only difference is that on the F1, there was only one enclosure that housed the sec and battery together. The V1S DIY kit has two enclosures. One has the ESC at the back of the eboard to power the motors and the other has the battery which sits near the front of the eboard.
The tricky thing here is that there is a cable that runs between these two enclosures to connect the battery with the ESC.
If you buy the Verreal V1S complete deck, that cable is bored into the centre of the deck so that you can’t see it. You can do that too if you had the required tools to be able to do it, or you could run it along the bottom of the deck, but you’d need to make sure you created a cover so that you didn’t accidentally damage that wire.
If you’re looking for a challenge and want to get your hands dirty, go for the V1S, otherwise, the F1 will pretty much get you the same end result but without all of the fiddling around.
Pairs Great With
Vestar DIY Kit
Assembly Difficulty
The Vestar DIY Kit is one of the more powerful electric skateboard conversion kits on this list.
For starters, it uses belt-drive motors which generally offer more acceleration and hill-climbing capabilities than hub motors. Another great bonus of belt-drives is that you can easily swap out the wheels to whatever wheels you like.
Like the last few, this kit is more of a DIY build. All the pieces come separately, but you can be sure that they are all compatible with each other which half the battle of DIY.
If you’ve got the time, it’s a great project which will result in a great product at the end.
Pairs Great With
WowGo Kit
Assembly Difficulty
Specs
- Range: 12 miles / 19km
- Top Speed: 23mph / 38kmh
- Hill Climb: 25%
- Battery: Samsung 20R 144Wh
- ESC: Hobbywing
The WowGo Electric Skateboard Kit is based off their popular WowGo 2S electric skateboard (which was actually my first ever eboard).
It comes in pieces leaving you with the fun challenge of putting it altogether. And at the end of it, you’ve got yourself a wicked eboard.
It also comes with a few extra accessories such as grip tape, a red tail-laight and a wall hook for storing your newly converted eboard on the wall.
This is a good project to get yourself familiar with all of the parts required to build a DIY electric skateboard while being confident that you’re going to get a decent quality eboard at the end of it without the worry of messing anything up too badly.
Pairs Great With:
Advantages of Electric Skateboard DIY Conversion Kits
If you’re like me, you’ve scrolled through Instagram frothing over all the epic DIY eskate builds people are putting together. Then you’ve done a google search on how to do it and landed on the eskate builder’s forum. You started reading the introduction threads for beginners and quickly realised that it is a shit ton of work to build something like this.
This is why DIY electric skateboard conversion kits are perfect for people like you and me. They’re our gateway drug.
It takes away all the trouble of researching the parts, making sure they are compatible and then sourcing them form all these different suppliers, but allows us to feel like we’re really building something and we’ll learn a lot about how an electric skateboard works along the way.
These kits come with all the parts (except a deck) that you need to build your eboard. And they all work together.
Another great reason to buy an electric skateboard kit is that it gives you the freedom to use any kind of deck you want. This really makes the end product an eboard that is unique and perfect for your style of riding.
Lastly, building stuff is damn fun. There’s a great sense of achievement after you put together your first electric skateboard build and take it for a test ride.
So get out there, build something unique, learn something new and have fun!
Things to Consider When Buying an Electric Skateboard Kit
Performance
Just like when buying a complete eboard, the first thing you want to consider before buying an eskate DIY Kit is the specs and performance of the final product.
Make sure the conversion kit is going to get you the top speed and range you want.
This is sometimes difficult to calculate for a fully DIY eboard because there are so many different factors that can affect this. The good thing about conversion kits is that all of the components have been tested with each other and so the performance specs should be defined by the manufacturer.
Component Quality
It’s really important to buy an electric skateboard kit that is made of good quality materials because you’re going to be putting it together yourself and if the thread on the screws is poor quality or the cables are thin and fragile, you’re going to have a hard time assembling it.
It’s not just the assembly that quality effects, it’s also the final ride experience. A poorly built eboard is a sure ticket to planting face-first into the pavement. Safety is super important when eskating so make sure you protect yourself by choosing quality first.
Assembly Difficulty
This really depends on how much effort you want to put into converting your electric skateboard.
There are some conversion kits that only require you to turn in a few screws before you can be off eskating, while others allow you to get your hands dirty with wiring, soldering, belt-drive assembly and all that good stuff.
There are also a few in-betweeners where all the wires are plug-and-play giving you a chance to see how it all fits together without all of the nitty-gritty.
Guidance and Support
This is a big one, maybe one of the most important if you haven’t had any experience with DIY and electronics before.
With DIY, it’s really easy to make mistakes causing you to fry something which will cost you more money to fix or replace.
So it’s important that the electric skateboard kit comes with detailed and easy-to-follow instructions so that you can be sure you’re putting it together correctly.
Cost-Effectiveness
The last thing to consider is if it’s cost-effective to convert your old deck into an electric skateboard rather than just buying one off the shelf.
A lot of the kits offered by companies are stripped down versions of an eboard they’re already selling, just that it doesn’t come with a deck. And sometimes the price is not cheap enough to warrant getting the kit.
But, if you’re doing it because you already have a sweet deck you want to use or if it’s the assembling of the deck that is the fun part, then I’d say, just forget about the cost! Go out there and enjoy yourself!
