A skateboard that floats on magnets sounds like science fiction, but Colin Furze has actually built one — and it steers.

Inventor Colin Furze stands on the Magboard, a skateboard that levitates yet still steers. Credit: Colin Furze/YouTube

The British inventor’s latest creation, the “Magboard,” looks like a longboard split into two decks. The lower deck holds the trucks and wheels, while the upper deck — where the rider stands — hovers above it, suspended by the repulsive force of neodymium magnets. Each magnet pair delivers more than 500 kilograms of pull force, enough to keep the rider aloft without any mechanical springs or dampers.

If magnets can smooth cracked concrete, what else could they carry? Credit: Colin Furze/YouTube

The idea didn’t come from Furze himself. A YouTube comment from Don Brown, co-founder of the skate shoe brand Etnies, asked if Furze could adapt his earlier “Magnet Bike” suspension system to skateboard trucks. That challenge led to seven or eight prototypes before Furze arrived at a board that not only levitates but also turns like a conventional longboard.

Frictionless suspension, no springs. Credit: Colin Furze/YouTube


Floating wasn’t the hard part. Furze says the first prototype achieved lift within three minutes. The real battle was stability. Without guidance, the top deck wobbled uncontrollably. He experimented with pins, bearings, hinges, and even brake cables before settling on square tubes with bearings inside 3D‑printed sleeves. This setup allows vertical movement with minimal friction while transmitting the rider’s foot rotation down to the trucks.

The board itself is built from two layers of 12‑millimeter polycarbonate, chosen because a single sheet flexed too much under load. The magnets are 100 x 30‑millimeter discs, the same ones used in his mountain bike project. When riding, Furze describes the sensation as “like frictionless… it genuinely feels like an air cushion.” To demonstrate, he strapped a glass of water to both a regular longboard and the Magboard, then rode across grooved concrete. The water sloshed in the standard board but barely rippled on the magnetic one.

Limitations remain. The Magboard is heavy, performs best on smooth surfaces, and rules out tricks like ollies or flips. Its raised center of gravity also makes it less forgiving than a normal skateboard. But it solves a problem that has plagued other hoverboard attempts: freedom of movement. Designs using copper plates or superconducting rails can levitate, but they tie the rider to a fixed platform. Furze’s board goes wherever the rider goes. “Unlike a hoverboard, which has no connection to anything, this works, and you can steer it,” he explains.

“It genuinely feels like an air cushion,” Furze says mid‑ride. Credit: Colin Furze/YouTube


The implications extend beyond skateboarding. A suspension system with no mechanical contact means no friction wear, potentially offering huge advantages for urban transport. Imagine electric scooters gliding over cracked asphalt or cobblestones with magnet-based damping that never degrades. Furze himself admits the design isn’t finished and has asked his community for ideas to eliminate the remaining mechanical elements. But the principle is clear: bouncing on magnetism feels different, and it works.



Sometimes engineering progress doesn’t come from polished labs or corporate R&D budgets. It comes from a wild idea in a YouTube comment, tested in a backyard workshop, and pushed until it rides. The Magboard may never replace skateboards in the park, but it hints at a future where frictionless suspension could reshape how we move through cities.

Sources: New Atlas, Colin Furze/YouTube