A lot on my wish list!

[Lampini]

So.. not ridden a bike in 40 years. Need a folder as it has to be stashed in my boat - see avatar!
must be able to cope with towpath use and take a few puddles. Commute to work would be tracks and a long small hill. Would be mainly for getting back to wherever we’ve moved the boat onto - bout 20 miles max
I’d need it to charge through my inverter sometimes and it’s not a “pure sine wave” one. However it charges all laptops and phones happily inc my cordless hoover with lithium battery!
I would be very wobbly at first - anyone close to Hinckley, Leicestershire who could give any pointers?
Not like I want a lot here is it?

 

[vfr400]

You have to consider how much charge yo need to charge up an ebike battery with an inverter. A typical 10Ah 36v battery would take about 35Ah from a 12v one, so you'd need to run your motor for over an hour a day assuming that you have a 30 amp alternator.

Any folding electric bike will do the job.

 

[Lampini]

sorry, should have mentioned it is a 70a domestic alternator with a 600w inverter plus 650w of solar. Whenever we’re not cruising we get normal 230v from a shoreline.
Also will any old leccy bike cope with towpath use ok or should I look at fat tyres etc.. thanks for the reply chap!

 

[sjpt]

Towpaths vary a lot. When I commuted a towpath in Glasgow the important thing about the tyres was to be puncture resistant for glass (which at least is easier than puncture resistant for thorns (*)). I had fairly narrow tyres (1 1/4" or 32mm) and that was not an issue at all. Maybe the smaller tyres on a folder could do with being a bit wider as well; they nearly all are anyway.

Is the 20 miles one way or both, and can you charge at work? 40 miles on a single charge would be a challenge for lots of bikes; a lot of cheaper folders have batteries below 8aH/300wH. Beware of 'up to' claims in adverts; they assume flat good road surface, minimal assist, hard pumped tyres, no wind. Real world figures are typically 1/3 of 'up to' even with lowish (say 2/5) assist; and drop a lot more with full assist.

(*) Marathon Plus is the answer to glass and thorns.

 

[Lampini]

Towpaths vary a lot. When I commuted a towpath in Glasgow the important thing about the tyres was to be puncture resistant for glass (which at least is easier than puncture resistant for thorns (*)). I had fairly narrow tyres (1 1/4" or 32mm) and that was not an issue at all. Maybe the smaller tyres on a folder could do with being a bit wider as well; they nearly all are anyway.

Is the 20 miles one way or both, and can you charge at work? 40 miles on a single charge would be a challenge for lots of bikes; a lot of cheaper folders have batteries below 8aH/300wH. Beware of 'up to' claims in adverts; they assume flat good road surface, minimal assist, hard pumped tyres, no wind. Real world figures are typically 1/3 of 'up to' even with lowish (say 2/5) assist; and drop a lot more with full assist.

(*) Marathon Plus is the answer to glass and thorns.

lots of useful stuff here - thanks!
The 20 miles is a very liberal estimate for my commute with a diversion on the way home to see me old mum..
This is a very rural area so I recon thorns and big puddles and a bit of mud in the winter would be my biggest problem.
So glad I found this forum!

 

[vfr400]

Tow paths are a no-go when they decide to have fishing competitions on them.

 

[Nealh]

Tow paths are a no-go when they decide to have fishing competitions on them.

I don't think that would bother SW though.

Tyre wise for a folder fit the widest one can find that will fit the drop outs, for punctures use Marathon tyres as they are more resistant.

 

[Lampini]

Tow paths are a no-go when they decide to have fishing competitions on them.

Not leagally - fisherfolks cannot block a public path..

 

[vfr400]

Not leagally - fisherfolks cannot block a public path..

You guys obviously have never encountered one. All the anglers have been warned to clear the way when someone comes, but they'll be thinking of pedestrians rather than cyclists. The anglers use 20ft carbon fibre poles that completely overlap the path. They also have one or two spare ones across the path pointing the other way. They can't just wave their poles out the way. Instead, they have to dismantle them section by section, which takes about 20 second per pole. They're all very polite and helpful, but there's one every 20 ft or so for a mile or more, depending on the size of the competition. You will see that you'll make very slow progress.

 

[georgehenry]

I hear what you are saying VFR but the fishermen I encounter when I ride on the Tow Path of the River Wey for the 6 mile journey from Godalming to Guildford are much easier to get past than the ones you describe. A ring ring bell is a good idea for the pedestrians you may encounter.

 

[Lampini]

You guys obviously have never encountered one. All the anglers have been warned to clear the way when someone comes, but they'll be thinking of pedestrians rather than cyclists. The anglers use 20ft carbon fibre poles that completely overlap the path. They also have one or two spare ones across the path pointing the other way. They can't just wave their poles out the way. Instead, they have to dismantle them section by section, which takes about 20 second per pole. They're all very polite and helpful, but there's one every 20 ft or so for a mile or more, depending on the size of the competition. You will see that you'll make very slow progress.

It’s true, cyclists fare worse than my 20 ton steel boat does.. they hate us with a vengeance! there was a massive line of them on one of our boat trips, we just chugged very slowly through a Mexican wave type of thing of those massive carbon fibre things - if it wasn’t for the moaning, I’d have felt like the queen getting a salute!
“Bloody boats”
“If it weren’t for the bloody boats there would be no canal for you to fish in, dumbo!”

seriously tho, should anyone get hassle from fisherpersons blocking the towpath, contact
customer.services@canalrivertrust.org.uk
Or better still, via Twitter @CRTCcontactUs
They seem to respond much better to Twitter for some reason!
Hope this can be helpful to someone here, anglers are a PITA for us pedestrians too.. their club will be licenced by CRT so they DO have something to lose if they cause other canal users too many problems..
Am really liking the look of the Rambletta.. thinking of going on the waiting list for one .. ooh ..