Tow Boogie

A remotely operated personal watercraft designed to tow a rider while foiling.

I built a Tow Boogie to make solo foil sessions possible — a compact and powerful craft that integrates mechanical, electrical, and control systems into one functional platform.

Building the Tow Boogie took a significant amount of time, effort, and cost to complete, but the result is a fully functional electric watercraft built entirely from raw materials and custom components. It remains a work in progress, with future updates aimed at improving performance, reliability, and usability.

Project Overview

Note: This video shows initial testing — the system is not running at full power yet. Foil setup - 60L board with an Armstrong, HA 880 cm² front wing, and FV 200 cm² rear stabilizer.

Skills Applied

Mechanical and electrical system integration
Embedded systems design (Heltec WiFi LoRa V3, Arduino IDE)
Wireless control and communication (LoRa)
Motor control (VESC Tool)
Custom water-cooling system design
Battery pack assembly (14s10P LG M50LT cells)
3D printing (PLA, PETG, ASA, and Nylon) and CAD modelling (Onshape and SolidWorks)
Mechanical and electrical fabrication

tow boogie top tow boogie side

Propulsion System

The Tow Boogie uses two counter-rotating Flipsky 6384 brushless motors, each rated for 2800 W continuous power and driven by Flipsky 75100 VESCs. To ensure reliable operation up to 150 A continuous, the VESCs are mounted to a 15 mm aluminum water-cooling block with routed internal channels. The PCBs are pressed firmly against the block using a custom 3D-printed jig with silicone molds for uniform compression, and thermal paste is applied to maximize heat transfer.

Electrical connections pass through sealed box connectors originally designed by HangLoose and modified by Jesse Wagnon. The motors are mounted in custom ASA-printed pods with integrated water intakes and through-holes for wiring, secured to the board with ¼-inch steel fasteners and a top clamping plate. Water enters the system through ram flow generated by the board’s forward motion, circulating through the cooling loop.

The propellers, printed from Easy Nylon and epoxy-coated for added strength, are based on a SpanMaxxing design that won an RCtestflight propeller competition. The geometry was scaled up for the Tow Boogie’s dual-motor setup, providing efficient thrust and balanced torque through counter-rotation.

motor pode water cooling top water cooling side

Battery Pack

The craft is powered by a 14s10P lithium-ion battery pack built with LG M50LT cells, chosen for their efficiency at low to medium discharge rates. The battery boasts a 48 Ah total capacity and supports a continuous discharge of 5000 W, managed by a Battery Management System (BMS) for temperature, voltage, and cell balancing.

The pack was assembled using 3D-printed cell holders for precise alignment and structural rigidity. Each cell is connected using 0.15 mm pure nickel strips, spot-welded for secure, low-resistance joints. To enable the use of lug connectors instead of soldered leads, 3 mm pure copper bus bars were fabricated and tapped with M3 threads to fasten the nickel strips, giving the pack a clean, modular design and simplifying discharge wiring.

Charging is handled through the BMS with a 5 A charger connected via an XT30 port, while discharge to the VESCs is managed through QS8 anti-spark connectors for safe, high-current operation. The completed pack is insulated and protected with fish paper, Kapton tape, and heat shrink, ensuring electrical isolation and mechanical durability.

Battery 1 Battery 2 Battery 3 Battery 4

Controller System

The custom handheld controller is built around the Heltec WiFi LoRa 32 (V3) and programmed through Arduino IDE, chosen for its long-range, low-latency communication, built-in OLED display, LiPo charging system, and LoRa transceiver — making it the ideal all-in-one platform for this project.

The controller supports differential steering and live speed and power telemetry. It communicates with the VESCs via UART, ensuring fast and reliable control response. Inputs are captured using two magnetic rotary encoders, which provide precise, drift-free feedback and can sense through the 3D-printed housing, simplifying waterproofing and improving reliability. A GPS module is also included to a allow for live speed telemetry.

For steering, I adapted Ludwig Bre’s helical torsion spring mechanism, which provides smooth, self-centring feedback.

Powered by a 3.7 V LiPo battery, the controller was 3D-printed from PLA and designed for expandability and accessibility. While still in testing, it performs its core functions well and will continue to evolve with additional features. All components are off-the-shelf, making the design easy to reproduce or modify.

Controller Controller 2

Fabrication & Assembly

The Tow Boogie (or Tow Stump) was built on a Catch Surf Stump surfboard, chosen for its rockered nose and improved performance in choppy water compared to the flat-nosed boogie boards that inspired the original design.

All electronics — including the battery and VESCs — are housed in a Pelican 1500 case for waterproofing and impact protection. Because the system’s balance point was uncertain before full assembly, the enclosure was made adjustable along the board, allowing the center of mass to be fine-tuned during testing. The case is secured with ratchet straps, providing a strong but removable mounting solution.

The motor pods are attached using ¼-inch steel bolts, ensuring rigidity under load. All external connectors were sealed with silicone or compression moulds, and cable glands were used for the water-cooling inlets and outlets to maintain watertight integrity.

For towing, I used a 1x1¼-inch steel angle with holes along its length. This allowed for the tow point to be adjusted forward or backward to fine-tune how the board handles under load. A stainless steel carabiner was attached to the end of the rod, which connected to the tow rope.

The motor positioning was decided based on other Tow Boogie builds shared on the foil.zone forum. In particular, I referenced JDUB’s build, which used a similar surfboard layout. Since the electronics enclosure can be repositioned, exact motor placement wasn’t critical, as thrust balance can be tuned by shifting the case. Keeping the motors close together was important to prevent roll instability and minimize pitching moments.

Throughout the build, I realized just how many specialized tools and materials were needed — every stage seemed to introduce a new challenge. Much of the process involved careful soldering, wiring, and assembling high-current connectors to ensure safe and reliable electrical performance. Every joint, crimp, and seal had to be precise to prevent water ingress or electrical faults. What began as a mechanical project quickly became an exercise in problem-solving and integration, learning new techniques as I went. By the end, I had not only gained strong practical fabrication skills but also a deep understanding of how to merge electronics and mechanics into a robust system that can perform in a harsh marine environment.