Lycaon TRX Review – Riding the T-REX

When I made the decision to buy the Lycaon TRX I was coming from a place where I knew that I made the wrong choice the first time and only had one more shot to get it right. I started the search with the usual suspects, the Backfire Zealot, the MetroboardX, and the Evolve GTR. I knew what I wanted, to go further and faster for somewhere around 1000 USD. I wanted at least 120mm Cloudwheels and/or pneumatic tires for comfort and stability at higher speeds. I knew that I was going to have to ride on double kingpin trucks and I was really accepting of that.

Check out the TRX at Lycaon’s Website

Please note that this review is on the TRX 1.0 and not 2.0.

I really outgrew the first board that I bought. I was getting an average of nine to eleven miles, I could take the full pin acceleration, and I always wanted to go faster on the top end. My first board was an Ownboard W1as that had a hub drive system and I did a deck swap with a Landyachtz Switchblade. The MetroboardX met all the needs that I had but was well out of the budget. The Evolve GTR got ruled out because of the trigger-style remote. The Backfire Zealot was still on the table but I thought that it was going to feel more like a skateboard with motors whereas I wanted more of a last mile vehicle. I made a post about the Verreal RS on Reddit saying that it might be the way I should go with my purchase and got a message from a user telling me to check out the Lycaon TRX.

Why I bought the Lycaon TRX

The TRX was quickly added to the shortlist that I created while I saved money. The website boasted that it was using a 12s3p battery of 21700 cells yielding an impressive twenty-five miles of range and a top speed of twenty-eight miles per hour. The only wheels sold by Lycaon at the time were the 120mm Cloudwheels. The street wheels and pneumatic tires were still being developed.

The deck is one of the best pieces of the board. It is forty inches long and ten inches wide and really felt like it was more like a snowboard than a skateboard. The deck is solid carbon fiber and has a max capacity of 440 pounds. That is the highest that I have seen to this day. It was belt-driven and used a hobbywing ESC so I could expect smooth acceleration which I would need with the increase in power. There are many boards out there that claim similar stats as the Lycaon TRX but all of them fell short in one way or another. The WowGo AT2 did not go fast enough, the MetroboardX was way too much money, the Ownboard Carbon/ Bamboo was not as visually attractive, and the Evolve lost out due to the remote along with other safety concerns. The Verreal RS was the second choice for me. The only reason that I did not go for that board is because of how much it was going to cost to get the top spec battery. I also wanted a carbon fiber deck.

What the Lycaon TRX is about

Pros

• The battery
  • I have personally hit twenty-three miles on the battery and I was riding pretty quickly
  • It has a 12s3p configuration

• The acceleration
  • I would say that it is dangerous if you are not familiar with electric skateboards.
  • Twin 5255 170kv motors

• The ride
  • The comfort and stability of the ride is top notch using Cloudwheels and double kingpin trucks.
  • The “craveability” of the board is amazing
  • Stiff deck made of carbon fiber

• The cost
  • Coming in at 1019.00 USD with a discount code and fast shipping.

• Fast shipping
  • The Lycaon TRX arrived in ten days from my order date.

Cons

• The charging time is four to five hours.
• The top speed is limited to twenty-eight miles per hour.

How long did it take to get the TRX

The day that I bought my Lycaon TRX I made a speed run on my first board. I went out riding as fast and as hard as I could. The Switchblade made it nine point forty-one miles and the battery was empty. Luckily, I did not have to push to make it home. I made it to my savings goal of 1000.00 USD and even had a discount code for seventy dollars off the Lycaon TRX. This pretty much made fast shipping free. This would later become a catalyst in my review and an extra perk that I did not even think about. When I bought my Ownboard w1as Covid was slowing everything down and I got my board forty-seven days after purchase. The Lycaon TRX arrived at my house in ten days.

Early days with the Lycaon TRX

The first day that I received the TRX it had a decent amount of charge on it so I rode it about six miles. The main thing that I noticed was the acceleration. I knew that since the TRX has a hobbywing ESC, the acceleration would be smooth. I fully pinned the remote wheel and had to back off. I could not handle the immediate brute force that the motors put out. When I brought it

inside to charge I noticed that I would rather roll it then carry it. Weighing in at ten point two kilograms or almost twenty-two and a half pounds its size and shape can make for some interesting carrying techniques. The remote to the TRX is the second generation Hobbywing. It has a telemetry screen that tracks speed and distance in kilometers or miles.

The day came for the full review of the board, and I could not have been more excited. The top speed is twenty-eight miles per hour and at the time I had never touched that speed. I was only able to ride ten miles on the deck swapped w1as and with the TRX I got twenty miles of range. The carbon fiber deck plus Cloudwheels is simply amazing and such a game changer. Much to my surprise the double kingpin trucks that were on the board were set very tight straight out of the box. I found it to be stable at high speeds with the bushings that are on the board. I thought that was some added value of my purchase and still have not changed them out for name brand bushings. The carbon fiber deck was extremely stable being a drop through and drop deck.

I did the first ten-mile loop of my test and there was still plenty of battery for me to continue riding. I could feel the range anxiety fading with each passing mile on the board. The acceleration of the board was even stronger than I thought from my previous test and lasted all throughout the battery’s life.

When all was said and done I was extremely pleased with my decision on buying the LycaonTRX.

The board rides like a dream on really any paved surface, hit a top speed of twenty-eight miles per hour, and got me twenty miles of riding.

I started putting the board through some other tests such as going off road with it and seeing how fast I could kill the battery by riding as hard as I could. I was pleasantly surprised on both of these tests. The TRX with 120mm Cloudwheels will handle light offroading but I would wait for the pneumatic tires that are coming out and the lowest range that I was able to hit was eighteen miles. That was an insane run that I would not recommend doing on a daily basis. I usually get twenty to twenty-three miles with mixed riding. The double kingpin trucks are also something that surprised me. They are a little over a foot long. That makes the ride extremely comfortable at numerous speeds. The craveability of the TRX is insanely good as well. I like to stay around fifteen miles per hour on a slow day and even take it up to twenty miles per hour, still carving, if I need more adrenaline. Once I pass twenty miles per hour I can still carve and mainly enjoy doing pulls from ten miles per hour to twenty-eight miles per hour.

After the New Wore Off

Now that I have 680 miles on the board I do have some complaints. The charging time of four to five hours is the worst. I get to ride one battery life a day, and then risk overcharging because I do not have a window to watch it. I would like to see this number come down with a stronger wall charger.

The charger that comes in the box is a two point five amp charger. There are still no pneumatic tires from Lycaon as well. The top speed of the board is fast however I would have liked to go thiry. The Swift, Lycaons new board, will hit thirty-one miles per hour. I am excited to see what they do with the TRX this year and can not wait to upgrade mine when the time comes.

Is This The Board for You?

It is my belief that if you are an experienced skateboarder and are looking to get into electric skateboarding you are going to have to spend around a thousand on a board in order to get the satisfaction that you are looking for. There are cheaper options out there that might do the trick for a little while. In the end, you will outgrow something like that. The TRX is a great buy for 1000.00 USD. The range and power that the board has is simply amazing and thrilling even to this day 680 miles later. The quality of the board is very high and the carbon fiber is very nice. It does come with some minor flaws like the charging time and the fact that there are no pneumatic wheels yet but I am told that Lycaon is working on this. I would also like to see this board get the smart power on function being a hobbywing ESC.

What is it like dealing with Lycaon? – the customer service

I have never experienced any issues with my TRX. Lycaon has a warehouse in California so I do not think that the customer service would be bad to deal with. I do know that the heads of the company have a Facebook group and post regularly. They have always answered my questions in a timely manner. Dealing with them feels like dealing with a small company that just wants to make the customer happy. I have heard of one situation where the customer wanted the deck to be replaced and Lycaon honored that. I would have to say that the service is top notch.

Verdict

I think that the Lycaon TRX has its place in the electric skateboard world and for the money I dont think that you can beat it. I still have days where the pro mode of the Lycaon TRX is too much for me. My wife loves this board for the Cloudwheels and its agility. She rode the TRX once and will not ride anything else now. The new TRX 2.0 is on the horizon and I am excited for it. I do not see myself getting rid of this board for another one. I did sticker bomb the board and change the grip tape but that was just to make it feel more like my board. I have reached 680 miles since late October when I got the board and I have not had one single issue. I do not think that this is the end all be all board that I thought it was going to be however it will be among my collection for years to come.

Check out the TRX at Lycaon’s Website

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