10,000 Miles on a Kalkhoff Agattu with 18Ah Battery

[shep]

I have been away from this forum for quite a few years. We bought 2 Kalkhoff Agattu in May 2011 and since then we have covered over 10,000 miles on one bike and about 8500 miles on the other bike without any real problems apart from routine maintenance. Chains, Sprockets, Tyres and Brakes

The 18Ah Batteries are now over 6 years old and still original, and do not seem to have lost much capacity and still have plenty of punch.

We now do quite a lot of cycle touring so are looking at the options to upgrade. This is what we would like

1 The Range must be at least 50 to 60 miles and preferably on medium assist.
2 The bike must be very comfortable, and well made just like the Aggatu.
3 Fast charging of the batteries together with a small and easily carried battery charger

So any recommendations would really be appreciated, i have been out of the new electric bike scene for quite a while now, so need and would like to be brought up to speed !!! I notice that there are many more bikes available now than before, and the prices seem to have increased quite a bit as well.

Any advice gladly received !!!!

 

[Nealh]

Not cheap but quality Reise & Muller. The really expensive 6k models have twin 500wh batteries and Rolhoff belt drive.

 

[soundwave]

2 batts

 

[Crockers]

View attachment 20639 2 batts

But not a trekking road bike.

 

[oldtom]

We now do quite a lot of cycle touring so are looking at the options to upgrade

If you like your comfort, the German brands, including Kalkhoff, as well as the major Dutch brands, provide comfort in spades.

Nowadays, some of those Dutch EAPCs come with the Bosch motor in its various guises so things have moved on a bit in Holland where previously it seemed to be mainly the Ion drive of Sparta and Kuga with few other options available. That was fine except, outside of Holland, people have to endure things called hills and those heavy Dutch bikes didn't fare quite as well over that kind of terrain.

Even today though, Dutch-specced bikes tend to be quite heavy and may not be ideal for long touring work. Again, even the German bikes specced up for touring tend to be heavier than the general, hybrid bikes used mainly for local utility and leisure purposes.

Like you 'shep', I haven't kept abreast of all the latest developments in the world of electric bikes but I have noticed that most of the ones I like the look of have eye-watering price tags!

I'm sure some of the younger, knowledgeable contributors will provide some good pointers and perhaps indicate what to avoid.

Tom

 

[georgehenry]

Sounds like you already own the right bikes. The grass is not always greener as they say.

These bikes were from the days when the Kalkhoff bikes were the best ebikes available. If you can still get the bits and they are still working as they did when you bought them I would carry on with them.

 

[PatH]

Those early Kalkhoffs do seem to be bulletproof, I occasionally meet up with someone who has had one for 5 years and it's like new it really is. I had a go on it recently though and compared to my Sparta it felt really quite slow and sedate, a cruiser rather than than something nippy. Also there was a world of difference in the feel of riding with the mid motor.

Dunno why people think the Sparta ION is no good for hills, I've yet to be defeated by one yet and I live on the South Downs. Mine has a granny gear for when it's really steep and I've been down to that at 8mph on occasion but I suppose my 40Nm drive is a lot more able than the early 25Nm ones.

I hope I get to 10k Miles in another 2.5 years, I'm at nearly 4,000 now and going strong. Few months ago I read somewhere about battery conditioning and that the Sparta BMS will inject an extra boost of charge every 7 charges, so instead of unplugging when charged or charging before riding I started charging overnight and range has definitely improved, not quite at 100%, maybe 90%, not bad.

No one on this board seems to have a Sparta but I love mine I really do, from whizzing across London to picking through wooded tracks to touring the Isle of Wight it's done it all.

The rear drive feels as natural as a normal bicycle which for me is a vast benefit, and silent too, I'd replace it like for like in a heartbeat.