Onewheel Lights Not Working? Recently the lights on my Onewheel started flickering, on and off, then shortly after that they started not working at all.
More than likely, the Ferrite Ring inside my Onewheel plus controller has caused my headlights to stop working. Time to crack open this Onewheel Plus Controller to confirm why our…
Onewheel Lights Are Not Working
What Is The Onewheel Ferrite Ring Rattle?
We had heard about the notorious Onewheel ferrite ring rattle before and figured it would only be a matter of time before I had to deal with it in house.
So what is the Onewheel Ferrite Ring Rattle? The Onewheel’s LED Headlight cable includes an unsecured ferrite ring inside the controller. As you ride the ferrite ring gets bumped and jostled. This movement inadvertently causes damage to the surrounding wires and plug connectors. Then, in turn, the headlights stop working.
Opening Up Our Onewheel Plus Controller
#Disclaimer. Opening Up Your Onewheel Controller Will Void The Warranty. There is always a possibility you could cause further damage and leave your Onewheel inoperable. Do your research and make your own decisions accordingly.
The warranty on this board has long since expired so we can ignore this sticker. Opening up the Onewheel controller takes a little finesse, using heat to soften the plug gasket is key!
So What Did We Find?
The actual problem was tricky to find. There were no easily noticeable problems. A closer inspection revealed a broken wire at the plug connector.
Now, How Do We Fix It?
Removing The Plug Terminal
I’m not going to lie, at first I was thinking, how TF am I going to fix this? Then, figuring, it’s broken anyway, tried prying with a scribe tool to see if we could get the terminal out. Somehow I managed to get it out without damaging the plug 🙌
Reconnecting The Wire
Wire strippers make it easy to strip back a small amount of insulation. Next, we pried open the crimped end of the terminal, then using pointy nose players and re-crimped it onto the wire.
Wrap With Heat Shrink Tubing
In an effort to make the repair last, we sleeved the join with Heat Shrink Tubing before clicking the terminal back into the plug assembly.
Re-Assembling
To hold it in place, the ferrite ring is sandwiched between some pieces of foam gasket. This will hopefully stop it from bouncing around inside the controller case.
No More Flickering Onewheel Lights
This project, while time-consuming, wasn’t actually that hard. If you have any prior electrical experience you should be able to tackle this no problem.
If the headlight cable is beyond repair, you can head over to One Stop Board Shop to get a new F- (F Minus) Shielded Headlight Replacement Cable. (use code: THESIDEWAYSMOVE for a 5% discount)
Now if your Onewheel Lights start flickering, hopefully, if you catch it early, you can repair yours and get your lights back up and running!
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The Sideways Movement – Onewheel Blog – thesidewaysmovement.com
George says
Hi, I have the same issue but I have changed the cable and the front light is still flickering. I think is the headlight itself. Need help!? Thank you in advance.
Kyle Wintle says
Any luck?
Devin Albrecht says
Ya I think the “cable being loose” as the source for a flickering headlight on an XR isn’t very common. I think the failure is internal to the light. I wish it was easier to find a replacement strip light to repair it.