£1000-£1300 Budget Which Bike?

[Ed Cooper]

Hi all

So my budget is £1k, but I'll stretch to £1300 if that gets me decent hydraulic discs and tyres that I won't immediately have to bin.

I haven't cycled for years and I want to get an e-bike to get myself back into it. It will be mainly used for commuting around South London, with the normal commute being 5 miles each way, but I expect to use it to get around London, on perhaps 30 mile round trips at the most.

What I'm looking for is reliability, reasonably decent quality parts, I'm not looking for anything cutting edge.

Where I've got to so far is;

Woosh Karoo
No suspension, but cheap and light, 13Ah (unknown voltage 36?) 19Kg

CycloTricity Stealth 500W Dual Power Electric Bike
I like the idea of having a 500W mode available, could be good fun, worry about its durability on daily commute. 324Wh/540Wh 23Kg

Oxygen S-CROSS CB Hybrid Electric Bike - 10.4Ah
Appears to be a nice package 375Wh/22Kg

Kudos Arriba Electric Bike
Looks competent, has a torque sensor which sounds like a good thing, and also hydraulic brakes, are Bafeng motors any good? 375Wh/22Kg

Wisper 929 Torque 29er Electric Bike
All quality components that I can expect to last? 375Wh/23Kg

Any more I should be considering!?

 

[cyberdyne_systems]

Sounds like you've got a good list going there, I'm sure there are plenty of others that could go on it too...but where do you stop?

Are you planning to go and try any of these bikes as that will really 'tell' you which one you really like?

 

[Ed Cooper]

My plan is to go try some out, but my worry is that I'm not really going to know how good quality the parts are from just pedalling around...

Lets add

Halfords Carrera Crossfire-E Mens Electric Bike
Weight no idea, battery no idea, but seems lots of people like it, and easy support from a local Halfords.

 

[cyberdyne_systems]

Yes that has hydraulic brakes, I believe it's an 11ah battery, but one of the reviews on here found out, so have a look, not sure about the weight though

 

[Nealh]

Karoo is 36v and the hub is Bafang SWXO2.
Review link.
http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/threads/2016-woosh-karoo-hub-drive.23864/

Other bikes to look at Kudos Stealth/ Alamo.

Choice is a mixture of road style and mtb if you are not off roading then a road style/ hybrid may be best.
My choice of two would be the Wisper torque or Karoo.

I'm not a fan of Halfrauds, a work colleague took a mtb in to them for a work quotatation over a hundred quid to put it right. they quoted a new chain, front mech and cassette. In the end he left it with me and 30mins later all was ready to go the only thing needed was front and rear mech adjustments and brake block repositioning, a bit of chain lube and a test ride and it didn't miss a beat. 3 months on no issues.

 

[Electric Transport Shop]

We don't have many of those bikes in our stores but we do have the Wisper se models at £999. Unless you do your own bike maintenance you'll need to have somewhere local to help. Any bike you buy will need to be maintained. If relying on it to get to and from work having quick and local diagnosis and access to parts will be important. So it's not just about finding a good bike it's also about finding a good bike store too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Alan Quay]

Hi all

So my budget is £1k, but I'll stretch to £1300 if that gets me decent hydraulic discs and tyres that I won't immediately have to bin.

I haven't cycled for years and I want to get an e-bike to get myself back into it. It will be mainly used for commuting around South London, with the normal commute being 5 miles each way, but I expect to use it to get around London, on perhaps 30 mile round trips at the most.

What I'm looking for is reliability, reasonably decent quality parts, I'm not looking for anything cutting edge.

Where I've got to so far is;

Woosh Karoo
No suspension, but cheap and light, 13Ah (unknown voltage 36?) 19Kg

CycloTricity Stealth 500W Dual Power Electric Bike
I like the idea of having a 500W mode available, could be good fun, worry about its durability on daily commute. 324Wh/540Wh 23Kg

Oxygen S-CROSS CB Hybrid Electric Bike - 10.4Ah
Appears to be a nice package 375Wh/22Kg

Kudos Arriba Electric Bike
Looks competent, has a torque sensor which sounds like a good thing, and also hydraulic brakes, are Bafeng motors any good? 375Wh/22Kg

Wisper 929 Torque 29er Electric Bike
All quality components that I can expect to last? 375Wh/23Kg

Any more I should be considering!?

A word on Bafang motors. I've never used their crank drives, but I think I've used nearly every one of their hub drives at one time or another (not the newer swx02).

SWX, BPM and CST. I have not broken one ever, and have abused them enormously. Pumping nearly 900w into 250w motors, over volting, making them pull two people up hill. Sometimes all at the same time.

I bought a batch of used SWX's a year or two ago, and built several bikes for me and mates. All still running.

You'll have no problems with a Bafang

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

 

[rmanalan]

A word on Bafang motors. I've never used their crank drives, but I think I've used nearly every one of their hub drives at one time or another (not the newer swx02).

SWX, BPM and CST. I have not broken one ever, and have abused them enormously. Pumping nearly 900w into 250w motors, over volting, making them pull two people up hill. Sometimes all at the same time.

I bought a batch of used SWX's a year or two ago, and built several bikes for me and mates. All still running.

You'll have no problems with a Bafang

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

Of the swx, bpm and cst which do you like best... Especially for hill climbing.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Hi Ed, I've been watching your thread with interest.

Do try out the Wisper 929Torque, it's £400 below its retail price. It is an old model and we have a couple left.

You get Tectro hydraulics, and Shimano Alivio 9 speed. It's a lot of bike for the money.

Our Torque bikes are excellent value for money generally, excellent equipment for a very reasonable price. The 929 is definitely worth trying.

We can arrange for a test ride practically anywhere in the UK.

Here's Nelson Piquet Jr with his!



All the best, David

 

[Crockers]

I have a Wisper albeit almost 3 years old now, can't fault it. Looks a wee bit old fashioned but never lets me down. Battery is ace. Also they hold lots of parts even when newer models are on sale they look after you.

Would I buy another? If they looked more modern with integrated batteries wouldn't hesitate.

 

[Alan Quay]

Of the swx, bpm and cst which do you like best... Especially for hill climbing.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My personal use means that I like the SWX best. I don't need/want much torque, and I run at 4A most of the time.

If I were commuting up steep hills I think I'd want to use the BPM/CST

 

[trex]

if you transit from push bikes to electrics then a crank drive or a light assist geared hub is a good choice. Your maximum budget of £1,300 excludes all the quality European made crank drives, only the Woosh Bali (http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?bali) would fall within £1,000 budget. Light assist best buy the moment: the GTech Sport and the Woosh Karoo.

 

[electrickery]

repeat of my post in other thread
"
I entered e biking with a cyclotricity revolver ..now in in its 4th year and approx. 2500 miles and still going strong.. taken a bit og maintenance.. 2 years later I built a Saracen tufftrax and ebc kit..rear hub drive..is slightly better components .. loving it .. if didn't have these and were in the market for a new bike for road and light track I would probably consider the batribike storm . test drove one and was very comfy with its basic rear suspension.. if I were onroad all the time the woosh karoo would be the one for me... just my thoughts"
regards

 

[Ed Cooper]

Thanks everyone for your very helpful responses.

I'm intrigued to find out more about the Oxygen S-CROSS MTB http://www.oxygenbicycles.com/e-bikes/s-cross-mtb

Can't find any reviews, and doesn't seem to be a dealer near me (South London). Anyone got any comments, I like how the battery is integrated into the frame.

I'm currently torn between getting a purely commuting bike and something that I can use at the weekends off the roads...

 

[LeighPing]

This is similar, but not the same. Obviously an older model of what you're looking at. Nice though.

 

[cyberdyne_systems]

I'm currently torn between getting a purely commuting bike and something that I can use at the weekends off the roads...

I thought I'd just get a bike for commuting, now I'm glad I got something that can at least ride cycle tracks and other mild off road places

 

[Ed Cooper]

I thought I'd just get a bike for commuting, now I'm glad I got something that can at least ride cycle tracks and other mild off road places

What did you get?

 

[soundwave]

300 more and you could get this.
http://justebikes.co.uk/products/bulls-twenty9-e-1-5/

 

[cyberdyne_systems]

What did you get?

I got an Eco Expedition, basically a Chinese made bike with fairly common components from the budget end of things

 

[electrickery]

Thanks everyone for your very helpful responses.

I'm intrigued to find out more about the Oxygen S-CROSS MTB http://www.oxygenbicycles.com/e-bikes/s-cross-mtb

Can't find any reviews, and doesn't seem to be a dealer near me (South London). Anyone got any comments, I like how the battery is integrated into the frame.

I'm currently torn between getting a purely commuting bike and something that I can use at the weekends off the roads...

that looks a nice bike and I think it would fit your dual reqirements perfectly..