Alien Gents Special II - Improvments and Modifications

[rustic]

Fantastic thread NRG - I hadn't spotted those earlier posts. So is there any of the original bike left then??!! Do you have any further 'tweaks' in mind?

How are you finding the range? I still haven't used mine consistently enough to get a clear picture of how far it will take me. I really fancy getting some kind of trailer that my daughter can sit in when riding off road. Other than the changes I made to the handlebars I've kept it pretty much as it was - although I am definitely tempted by that pedelec on/off switch you have fitted.

 

[NRG]

Hi Rustic,

No not much left LOL! I've managed to squeeze 28~30 miles out of it and with the pedelec now disabled I hope to get more. The Bike is quite easy to ride without power so I now turn the pedelec off on any down hill gradient and sometimes on the flat...

 

[onmebike]

Anyhow, I mounted the resistor at the pedelec sensor connector in the controller box, this was a bit tricky as the connectors are small and you do not want too much solder as it will lock the little spring connector up solid meaning you wont be able to plug it back together! So just a pin head size of solder is needed.... I cut the connector and stripped the wires from the new switch and attached them to the resistor and the pedelec connector....

Here's the resistor going in....

And here is the finished connector....

Does it work? Oh yes! Well at least on the stand....I've not been out on it yet but I don't think its going to cause any issues...

EDIT: Experimented with different resistors again and it seems you can use quite a large shunt resistor so I've now settled on 1K for just under 5mA draw, should be OK I think....

Hi, I've been looking at your modification with interest and having some basic electronic knowledge, wondered why you didn't simply switch the wire by withdrawing the wire's from the two mating side's of the connector and without removing the terminals extend these wire's up to the handlebar switch. This would isolate the circuit completely and similarly to your modification, no damage is done to original equipment.
The reason I'm asking is, shunting the voltage to ground through a resistor is actually putting a constant load on a circuit designed for momentary pulse's and may have some adverse effect over time on the device[possibly a 5volt regulator] providing the 4.9volts.
I am only guessing that the sensor is a dual magnetic loop and pulses at varying rate's depending on pedal speed in which case isolating any of the three wire's may have the desired effect.

 

[bode]

Hi, I've been looking at your modification with interest and having some basic electronic knowledge, wondered why you didn't simply switch the wire by withdrawing the wire's from the two mating side's of the connector and without removing the terminals extend these wire's up to the handlebar switch. This would isolate the circuit completely and similarly to your modification, no damage is done to original equipment.

That's pretty much what I did on my bike (different make) about six months ago, and it has worked perfectly since. It gives the option of various modes: pedalling only, pedelec, pedalling with throttle assistance, or throttle only. What I actually did was insert a very short piece of cable between the two connectors (with connectors of its own, naturally), with the pedelec wire being taken off to a switch on the handlebars.
I'm not sure why the extra complication in your method is needed?

 

[NRG]

Hi, I've been looking at your modification with interest and having some basic electronic knowledge, wondered why you didn't simply switch the wire by withdrawing the wire's from the two mating side's of the connector and without removing the terminals extend these wire's up to the handlebar switch. This would isolate the circuit completely and similarly to your modification, no damage is done to original equipment.
The reason I'm asking is, shunting the voltage to ground through a resistor is actually putting a constant load on a circuit designed for momentary pulse's and may have some adverse effect over time on the device[possibly a 5volt regulator] providing the 4.9volts.
I am only guessing that the sensor is a dual magnetic loop and pulses at varying rate's depending on pedal speed in which case isolating any of the three wire's may have the desired effect.

TBH I did consider this but came to the conclusion that shunt resistor was neater. The signal is not routed over an extra 2m (approx) of cable or via a switch. Also this way keeps the terminals intact and means I don't have to insulate and solder the two flying connections on the wire extension, probably neither here nor there.... The current draw is very low, I raised the Resistor to 1K from the initial 27R because of my concerns over current draw this dropped it to just under 5mA...a 2K2 resistor also works and will more than halve the current again. So far there's not been a problem.

I also have a cunning plan to improve the response of the pedelc by making it more progressive as crank speed increases....

 

[Stumpi]

Hi, I've been looking at your modification with interest and having some basic electronic knowledge, wondered why you didn't simply switch the wire by withdrawing the wire's from the two mating side's of the connector and without removing the terminals extend these wire's up to the handlebar switch. This would isolate the circuit completely and similarly to your modification, no damage is done to original equipment.

If I was going to use this method to have a switch. Which wire is the one to use? Black?

Stumpi

 

[NRG]

Black is the 0v or Gnd line, you could switch this one or the red one (+5v)...the one not to switch (ideally) is the signal wire as you would be routing the signal to the switch and back.

 

[Stumpi]

Black= ground/0v
Red= +5v
Blue= switch

is that correct?

great thread btw

Enjoying my GS11 but the pedelec is just a little too easy, I want to be putting in a bit more effort

Stumpi

 

[NRG]

Blue/Green wire is the signal wire. Red is positive supply to sensor and black negative supply or 0v. So either switch the red or black wire.

 

[Stumpi]

Blue/Green wire is the signal wire. Red is positive supply to sensor and black negative supply or 0v. So either switch the red or black wire.

Many Thanks

 

[NRG]

Another modification! (At this rate I'll be asking Jim for development money )

The rear mudguard on my bike never fitted correctly from the 'factory' and Kalimbakey actually broke the end of his...well I found the problem.

I worked out that the rear mudguard, just above the reflector, is deformed... as if its been bent inwards so the curve of the guard doesn't follow the wheel correctly meaning the end of the guard is closer to the tyre than it should be.

In an earlier attempt to fix this I lowered the upper mounting point with a couple of nuts acting like a spacer, this helped but the problem was not completely solved so after a bit of head scratching I did this.

My fix was first to undo the rear stays and then to hold the guard in the correct position IE: bend the guard away from the tyre a touch whilst gently heating the area with a hair dryer... the plastic softens quickly so not much force is needed and the guard may form a few gentle ripples in it but it seems to work. The guard now follows the curve of the wheel better and has a more even gap around it. Result!

The spacer:

The problem, the guard bends in too much just above the rear reflector:

After:

 

[Kalimbakey]

Nice Work

Great detective work NRG, I must admit I did notice that misshapen, widened effect of the rear mudguard straight out of the box but chose to ignore it. Ah well, perhaps other Alien Gents Special II owners will be able to 'remold' it before they come to greif like me

 

[rustic]

Nice work NRG, though if you carry on at this rate you might have to put your own label on the bike as it will no longer be an Alien GSII

I hadn't really noticed the mishapen rear mudguard, now it has been pointed out I can see that mine has a similar 'defect', but not anywhere near the extent of the one you pictured. Mine has never interfered with my riding, did it cause interference with riding for you Kalimbikey?

I am just stripping out a recently purchased VW T4 van in order to convert it into a camper van, so have had little time for my Alien GS II of late, but am still loving it whenever I've had the chance to ride it.

 

[Kalimbakey]

Hi Rus, I was not aware of the misshapen mudguard interfering with riding the bike until I came to a grinding halt (it was my first run out though), I really do not know what happened.

I now have an SKS Commuter mudguard fitted on the rear, I must say the quality is far superior to the original mudguard with easy adjustment of the clearance between the mudguard and the tyre.

I went out again today without worrying about any problems that might ensue from going over a bump with the original mudguard, but that's a great bit of detective work from NRG for folks who have this bike with the original mudguard fitted.

 

[Stumpi]

I have disconnected the pedelec and just use the throttle. On the longer hills I get a wee bit of cramp in my hands so I've added this.

Scotolier Crampbuster

Its designed for motorcycles but works just as well, Fitted and adjusted in seconds costs about £7. You can use your thumb or just rest the palm of your hand on it.

 

[NRG]

Now that's neat! I could try somethiong like this on my Peugeot...I wanted to put the thumb throtle on the left but the gear shifters got in the way...with this I could transfer the throttle to the L/H side and operate the split part...albeit backwards...it may just work. Thanks!

 

[Kalimbakey]

I have disconnected the pedelec and just use the throttle.

There's definitely a feeling that the set up of the pedelec and throttle out of the box is missing something, I have opted for the addition of a switch to cut the pedelec in and out like some others have done, I tried it last weekend and it worked well. I can see how the throttle, if used for an extended period could cause cramp, nice solution Rus.

 

[Old Timer]

I have disconnected the pedelec and just use the throttle. On the longer hills I get a wee bit of cramp in my hands so I've added this.

Scotolier Crampbuster

Its designed for motorcycles but works just as well, Fitted and adjusted in seconds costs about £7. You can use your thumb or just rest the palm of your hand on it.

isthat the standard one?

 

[Old Timer]

Yeh! I think they are the standard ones, Thanks Stumpi.

Seeing as I use throttle on my alien bike conversion that should be a must have.

 

[Stumpi]

Yeh! I think they are the standard ones, Thanks Stumpi.

Seeing as I use throttle on my alien bike conversion that should be a must have.

Yea its the standard one. I bought it for one of my motorbikes but couldnt get on with it so it sat in the draw for a wee while. Found the pedelec a bit too easy with the alien and I like to put some exercise in myself. This works well for me as I can just "tickle" the throttle and take the edge of the hills.