1st E-Bike advice

[ghouluk]

i do love that bike so much! its fantastic, and you don't even have to add for the money - but its great that you can!

 

[trex]

i do love that bike so much! its fantastic, and you don't even have to add for the money - but its great that you can!

You are talking about the Eiger with NuVinci right?

 

[Kudoscycles]

Thanks Tom....I don't think the derailleur system was designed to take the power of a crank drive plus the power of a strong rider....its asking a lot of the system to lift the chain when there is so much load on the chain....its ok on the flat, but downshifts on steep hills with max PAS (lets be honest thats when you would have max PAS) are not easy on the chain. You can make it all work by backing off the power before the shift but it needs a deft touch.
However,with the Nuvinci hub its all so easy....no need to back off and no horrible noises when you get it wrong.
With the current technology I won't specify another crank drive bike without using the Nuvinci hub...once you have ridden this combination you are hooked, it just feels a good engineering solution,without any compromises.
KudosDave

 

[ghouluk]

You are talking about the Eiger with NuVinci right?

I am - the one i rode at NEC really impressed me. I'd like to give one a proper try on one of my normal routes, but i'm not testing anything else until i finally get around to testing the haibike!

 

[nickc1976]

Hi all

I thought I would post an update on my search for a bike. Last week I was in London, and called in to a bike shop called Velorution which was not far from where I was staying in Euston. I tried a Momentum Upstart. This was a really nice bike, but not for me. It felt more like a road bike, built for speed in a high gear. I found the automatic gears a bit difficult to get used to, I like the option to change down a few gears in advance of something that I know is going to slow me down so I can easily accelerate off again. It kept changing up into the top gear earlier than I really wanted, and I just found it a bit difficult to ride on the city streets. Once I hit some open road though it was great.

When I got home I decided I'd done enough test rides and went ahead and ordered a Roodog Striker. Out of all the bikes I've ridden, I found it the most fun, and the most similar to bikes I normally ride, and it looks good too. I also found the company easy to deal with, they answered my emails straight away and were really helpful. The bike has arrived now, but I haven't had chance to get out on it yet so will do a review once I've put it through its paces on my commute.

 

[nickc1976]

First impressions - it looks good in the kitchen

 

[ElectricBikeConversions]

Hi Nick
That looks like a good choice - I'll be really interested to read your review if you get round to posting one.

We've just taken RooDog on as a supplier and will be doing our own reviews/test rides as and when we get them in the showroom - it will be good to compare your view with ours.

Andy

 

[Cricket]

Great looking bike. Never heard of Roodog and I thought I'd researched them all. Looking forward to reading your review if you can face taking it for a spin in this weather!

 

[Staffordshirehills]

How have you found the roodog? It looks great

 

[JKearton]

Ok so you want advice on RooDog, here we go.
I own the avatar, which looks totally different to the other bikes.

I warn you now, my pedals were cross threaded and fell off in the first month. the shop gladly fixed the issue and I was off on my way within the hour.
yesterday I got a puncture on the rear wheel. Trust me you do not wnat a rear wheel puncture on an ebike. 48 hours later the issue is resolved however I had to pay to get it fixed at a bike shop. the rear legs had closed inwards with the wheel out, this led to the axle unable to fit back in. this has been the most stressful 48 hours of my life so far.
! Please not the issue has only occurred on my bike so far and RooDog are investigating the issue !

However RooDog are a good company and very trustworthy. The bikes are of an outstanding quality and design. the bikes are easily transportable with the front quick release wheel off. I have the POD system fitted and it is a lifesaver for hills.

The avatar is the most expensive bike of their line up but it is a striking eye catching design and has led me into many conversations about the bike and the company. I have retrofitted a pannier rack to mine and it completes the bike. with the 40-60 mile range it is perfect for long trips ie touring. and with a charge time of 5 1/2 hours from dead it can be charged while you work

this is my first ebike and I have no plan on getting rid of it, ever.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

I warn you now, my pedals were cross threaded and fell off in the first month. the shop gladly fixed the issue and I was off on my way within the hour.
yesterday I got a puncture on the rear wheel. Trust me you do not wnat a rear wheel puncture on an ebike.

Just a warning to anybody that buys a bike in a box. I don't know if you did or not. I guess not. If you don't tighten the pedals enough when you put them on, the constant up and down movement in the thread damages it to the point that it strips. I doubt very much that yours was cross-threaded. You can't do them up if they are. I guarantee that yours were simply not tight enough. I hope it wasn't you that put the pedals on!

Fixing a puncture is dead easy. You don't have to take the wheel off. just pull the tyre off one side and hoik the tube out.

If anybody else finds that their drop-outs are too close, just stick in two sturdy pieces of wood (planks) and give them a big heave-ho apart. The frame will take a permanent set. It's dead easy to do. You can feel when it gives. I've done it loads of times.

 

[Staffordshirehills]

Ok so you want advice on RooDog, here we go.
I own the avatar, which looks totally different to the other bikes.

I warn you now, my pedals were cross threaded and fell off in the first month. the shop gladly fixed the issue and I was off on my way within the hour.
yesterday I got a puncture on the rear wheel. Trust me you do not wnat a rear wheel puncture on an ebike. 48 hours later the issue is resolved however I had to pay to get it fixed at a bike shop. the rear legs had closed inwards with the wheel out, this led to the axle unable to fit back in. this has been the most stressful 48 hours of my life so far.
! Please not the issue has only occurred on my bike so far and RooDog are investigating the issue !

However RooDog are a good company and very trustworthy. The bikes are of an outstanding quality and design. the bikes are easily transportable with the front quick release wheel off. I have the POD system fitted and it is a lifesaver for hills.

The avatar is the most expensive bike of their line up but it is a striking eye catching design and has led me into many conversations about the bike and the company. I have retrofitted a pannier rack to mine and it completes the bike. with the 40-60 mile range it is perfect for long trips ie touring. and with a charge time of 5 1/2 hours from dead it can be charged while you work

this is my first ebike and I have no plan on getting rid of it, ever.

 

[Staffordshirehills]

Thanks Jkearton,

It seems that you are impressed with the roodog, they certainly look good! I am looking forward to trying one hopefully. The other possibility is having my current bike converted. I will be seeking advice - it seems cyclotricity? have a good reputation.

 

[JKearton]

well the pedals weren't exactly cross threaded but had been put on the wrong side so that whilst pedalling hey unwound and eventually fell out the socket.

Make sure you put them on the correct sides

 

[jackhandy]

That cross-threads 'em, good & proper

I recently bought a 2nd hand mtb & the seller had fitted the pedals lefty_righty and managed to wind them in tight:
First time out, 1 came loose & it cost £50 for a new crankset.

 

[Bryan James]

Hi all

I'm doing some research for my first electric bike. I'll be using it for a 33 mile round trip to work, for which I expect to put in a decent amount of pedalling. I already cycle this route one day a week, nut want to do it more often and quicker.

So far I've done a test ride on 3 bikes:
Kudos Cobra - nice looking bike, and a nice ride, but I felt it was a little too easy to reach the top speed and the motor cut out
Batribike Granite - riding position wasn't as comfortable for me, battery pack on the back rattled noisily when going over bumps
Ave CH-Edition - a pleasure to ride, smooth and delivered power nicely and consistently, just not the right frame type for me.


I am looking at this:
http://www.roodog.co.uk/striker/
but I can't find much information on this company and wondered whether anyone had any experience of their bikes?

I'm also considering this:
CorCoach Bikes
and again am wondering if anyone has any experience of this company.

Or if anyone else has any other recommendations please let me know

Thanks

Hi Jackhandy
I see you've read my brief review of the Woosh Sant Ana CD. I'm referring to it here as it may be useful for other potential customers.
If others are interested it is in the general forum under Whoosh (spelled wrong) Sant Ana CD.