If you’re into electric skateboarding, you’ve probably noticed the onslaught of “all-terrain” boards hitting the market these days.
These all-terrain (AT) boards are appealing because they can handle more road conditions than your average board with polyurethane wheels, but not by much.
But there’s a new type of board hitting the market — one that can truly go offroad. Today, we’re looking at Ecomobl’s M24 Pro — it’s an absolute beast, both in terms of specs and sheer physical presence.
Specs:
- Range: 40-50 km | 25-30 miles (Rider: 65kg)
- Max speed: 45-50 km/h | 27-30 mph
- Incline: 47%-55% Gradient
- Dimension: 46in x 19in x 12in
- Weight: 60-65 lbs
- Rider weight limit: 330 lbs
- Charge time: 4-6 hrs (with 5amp charger)
- Light: Head light, tail light, body lights
- Remote: Remote with screen
- Wheel size: 10” wheels
- Deck: 9 layer maple + 2 layer fiber glass
- Unique Suspension System: Good Shock Resistance
- Drive: All-Wheel Drive
- Battery: Samsung 40T 12S5P 20Ah
- Motor: 6382 Motor * 4
- Drivetrain: Planetary Gear Drive
- ESC: 60A x 2
- Brakes: Regenerative (Restore 22% of battery)
Let’s get one thing out of the way up front: this is not a commuter board, it’s a recreational vehicle like an ATV or a dirt bike. It’s something you put in the back of your truck or SUV, drive somewhere, and have a really good time.
And you’ll need that truck or SUV, because Ecomobl’s M24 Pro is 46-inches long, and I can tell you from experience that it will fit exactly into the back of a Ford Explorer with nary an inch to spare. But that’s the thing — you can’t put an ATV or a dirt bike in the back of an Uber XL. With the M24 Pro, that’s exactly what I did.
Sick ride
How is it to ride? In short: freaking sick. When you step up onto the M24 Pro, the first thing you notice is how tall it is — this board has ground clearance for days. The second thing you notice is the torque. It’s immediately clear that this board has been optimized to eat hills and obstacles for breakfast.
I can confirm that this board is basically an ATV for your feet.
The M24 Pro also sounds different from any other board. There’s a little bit of play in the suspension, which is totally normal, and the planetary gears in the wheels have their own unique sound that’s different from any other board I’ve ever ridden. It sounds a bit like a rickety pirate ship when you’re going slow, but once you speed up, you won’t notice that at all.
I took the M24 Pro to a local park and tried it out on some trails, and I can confirm that this board is basically an ATV for your feet. Not only can you breeze over huge tree roots, you can take huge forest hills and slopes without even blinking an eye. The suspension just eats everything.
One thing to keep in mind is the weight of the board itself. I tested the M24 Pro at peak fall here in New York, and the weight of the board had me sliding around a bit on the leaves. Of course, this is all relative; a normal board would just instantly lose traction and toss me on my ass. With the M24 Pro, you’ll notice the weight, but experienced riders will be able to feel out the momentum and not have much of an issue.
So we know the board has power (and surprisingly good handling considering its size), but what about durability? There’s no other way to say this; these suspension boards have way more part complexity than standard boards. The M24 Pro probably has hundreds of parts, where my Backfire Zealot has what? Fifty individual parts? It’s not even in the same league.
That being said, part of what makes the M24 Pro so heavy is the sheer beefiness of all the parts. The suspension arms and all the fittings are thick. Even the battery box is a chunky aluminum enclosure. Sure, it’s not the prettiest, but you can tell that the Ecomobl team did everything they could to make sure that the M24 Pro could take a beating.
Fun times
Right now, the M24 Pro costs $2,377, which is not cheap, but beats the pants off of the $4,649 Bajaboard G4X. There’s also the Propel X4S, which is a little cheaper at $2,299 (we’re using “sale” prices here because electric skateboards are always “on sale”). Each board has its pros and cons — the X4S uses four belt drives, for example, which is a lot of belts to keep track of — but they’re all made for people who are pioneering the brand new sport of offroad longboarding.
This board had me smiling from ear to ear.
The Ecomobl M24 Pro is not designed for me, a city dweller with limited access to the outdoors. This is for people who want to rip it up on the trails, and M24 Pro absolutely does that with power to spare. Plus, with a 960Wh battery, you can get out pretty darn far before having to recharge.
So while this board is a little bit too much for me personally, I’m hopeful that engineers start bringing independent suspension to smaller boards. Ecomobl is actually heading in that direction with the M24 , and Propel now has the Endeavor series. So whether it’s the M24 Pro or one of these new, smaller suspension boards, I have one thing to say: you absolutely have to try one. This board had me smiling from ear to ear.
