New Owner, cleaning and avoiding water Ingress?.

I’ve just got a GTX AT board and joined the forum just now, although I realise the board isn’t waterproof , do Evolve apply internal waterproofing to any of the power button / charge points. I’ve read a few posts and note a few folks have applied silicone around the battery box externally. I’m getting a little worried about taking it outside without consulting the weather forecast, have any of you guys been caught out in a rain shower without anything waterproof to put the board in?, also what if I accidentally went though an unseen puddle ?.
Is it also advisable to take the wheels off to clean mud off etc, the owners manual doesn’t really expand on these things enough , or if you can apply a certain amount of torque to nuts and bolts which would be good to find out.

 

Wayne C – Welcome to the forum. Yes checking the weather report is something I do before planning my day on my board. That way I don’t get caught in heavy rain on the board. If there is a chance of rain I take a large plastic bag with me folded up in my courier bag. There are a few threads that discuss this topic but nothing that is really “waterproof”. Here is one Bamboo GT Waterproof improvements. I have seen both sealants and an undercover velcroed to the bottom of the board to help. You should avoid puddles but going through an area that is wet isn’t a big deal if you go slowly and don’t splashing water into your component housing. If you get water into where the circuits are housed you risk toasting them. Not sure what you mean by “unseen puddle”, I know exactly where I am trying to go on the board. So it is much better to just walk the board through those areas and not risk damaging your board.

As for the wheels, yes you should take them off periodically to check your bearings and perform maintenance. It’s pretty much standard skateboard maintenance at that point. Depending on your riding style these boards can be a little rough on bearing especially if you are using the AT’s off road. Here is a video on cleaning bearings Hope this helps and enjoy the board.

 

Thanks for the reply, is there a list of torque settings for the wheel nuts and nuts on the deck itself, obv the amount of torque applied may have an impact on the wheel either being to slack and therefore wobble a bit, or to tight putting excess pressure on the bearing. It would be good to find out.
Interestingly I phoned the U.K. distributor and the chap gave me some good advice, he suggested that many people try waterproofing the battery case and they still get such boards in with water damage ( so how successful is waterproofing ). He also said that if the board does get splashed with water either through been caught in the rain or spray from a path you have to remove the battery box and dry inside of it as soon as you get home.

 

There probably is a torque setting (which I don’t know) but honestly with a little practice it isn’t needed. Here is what I do and this has served me well since everyone started using locking nuts on wheels. Often times after you have taken your wheel completely apart and then put it back together nothing is really tight until you bolt them down on the trucks. I bolt it down so the wheel stops rolling free, it still rolls it just has a little pressure from keeping it rolling freely. At that point everything is tight. From there back off the nut just a hair until the wheel rolls freely, works every time. There will be no wobble in the wheel and I haven’t had a wheel fall off in my 44 years of riding. It would take a lot of pressure to break bearings but it can be done. If you search this forum and others, people can get really picky about their bearings but after trying expensive ceramics and plain Jane bearings I settled in on Bone Reds. With you riding the AT setup get yourself a spare pair of bearings, you are going to need them sooner than later. As for the deck screws I take them out with an electric drill or screw driver but when I put them back in I use the manual setting and only hand tighten those, you don’t want to strip them. Good advice from the distributor.

 

Thanks For that xray, yes I thought so as well. I had contemplated applying the silicone (seems a good idea) myself, but what happens if water still wicks in down the netting over the Cabling?, I personally think no matter how much you try to deal with that area of the board, there will still be a high probability of moisture getting inside. With the cabling not being as static as the battery cover itself there would be no way of taking the board apart quickly. thinking the silicone is doing a good job may result in over complacency and water retention/less air to dry it out inside the compartment. I have also contemplated making my own neoprene gaskets which will offer some water resistance and also allow access to the board electronics to check such a mod is working well. I’m guessing there is no one size fits all solution to the water problem apart from avoiding it all together (shame the weather forecast for the next few weeks in the U.K. is rain and more rain!!). Thanks again though good advice, cheers.

 

They make their money, and that appears to be the priority at Evolve, not helping out customers. I've spent more than I care to admit on their toys. I wish I hadn't.

 

Just get some corrosion X and you can run your board in the bottom of a swimming pool if you want!