Bike for heavy user

[Fat Rat]

I shan't be shying away from any rocks or rough stuff on the downs!

Good to hear

 

[Woosh]

It's an interesting idea, defo think you'd need to think of hardtail and full suss options though, which is a minefield in itself, first and foremost people would need to be confident the frame could stand up. Thers's also different frame geometries and the like to consider(wheel sizes 27.5/29 you are looking at these days, bolt though wheels, tapered headsets, type of forks and shocks people could fit etc etc etc, the new "boost" standard) those are definitely things you'd also need to research, it's been a fairly fast moving and complicated progression over the years and it'll continue changing. (it's all driven by performance enhancements, fashion and a willingness of the big companies to sell people new stuff every year I guess)

Would guess that there's also the point with bafang, is that it's not particularly well known here in the uk, the big ebike manufacturers are well know names, or have started to establish themselves as such I think.

For the tinkerer, possibly, but i don't know tbh, reason I've gone for the bbs02 is I know that it'll just plug into my bike and I'm good to go(well I'll need to make some slight mods, but I'll get it to work.) And that it's a cheap route into me getting myself a capable ebike. I'm also reasonably confident technically though and I'll make it work. I also won't mind pulling the motor apart in a few years time, and fixing it myself.

I guess ultimately it would come down to a price point thing, if they bought the frame/motor/battery etc then purchase all the other bits and bobs, how would that sit price wise compared to just buying a full bike. I suspect that could also be an issue, in that I'd think ebikes are perceived as more hi tec, so people might be less reluctant to going there own on it? (Range will become more important I reckon too, I've gone for an 850wh battery. I don't think the 500wh, where the market seems to be at is particularly enough. i can see modular batteries being a popular thing there, lighter bike for short routes, heavier bike for "epics")

Might be sounding overly negative there, dunno, just thinking out loud, hopefully it'll be useful to you.

I guess the market for something like that would really be in people that have bits and bobs of bikes lying around and then could then cobble it all together into an ebike on the cheap?

thank you seosamh1977 for taking time to answer me.
If you convert a good bike for going down, you probably have problems in two areas: how and where to securely bolt the battery to the frame and how to protect the crank drive motor because the only choice of motor is BBSes to get round the bolted through wheels.

 

[peter.c]

Great idea woosh I like the idea of a self build with the look of a professional build

 

[Fat Rat]

Great idea woosh I like the idea of a self build with the look of a professional build

It’s a good idea in theory
But the problem being a lot of the time nobody will have the components to finish the build without buying them
Now that’s where the problem lies because building bikes up isn’t cheap when you need components, for example a good set of forks is upwards of 600 pounds and that’s just the forks never mind wheel sets , gears ,brakes etc
And depending how far you go it could get pretty expensive compared to buying a complete bike
As parts in there nature for anything are more money than they should be.
I’ve built loads of bikes and allthou it allows just what you want spec wise it never works out as cheap as buying off the shelf
The way I see it buy the best you can and upgrade as you go with a complete bike as parts inevitably wear out and can be upgraded then
By the way Woosh I’m not trying to **** on your parade by any means it’s just how I see it .

 

[seosamh1977]

thank you seosamh1977 for taking time to answer me.
If you convert a good bike for going down, you probably have problems in two areas: how and where to securely bolt the battery to the frame and how to protect the crank drive motor because the only choice of motor is BBSes to get round the bolted through wheels.

Yeah, that's the 2 points are are foremost in my mind, how to protect the motor from rock strikes, I think I'll probably just cut up and old tyre and have that on as a bit of protection on the underside. And how to mount the battery, yeah agree there, 2 water bottle mounts aren't going to me enough for that, so not sure what I'm going to do, I'll wait till I get the base mount for it, then I'll figure out how to make that more robust, I've got a few idea on how to make it solid. (Not got yet, delivery is today.)

 

[Woosh]

By the way Woosh I’m not trying to **** on your parade by any means it’s just how I see it .

I am grateful for your views, really.
As one of the bikes I am looking at to add to our range this winter could be fitted with bolt through wheels, it occurs to me that we could sell the bike minus the wheelset, shocks, brakes and handlebars to save some money to those who would rather go downhill than uphill. If there is some business potential there, it may be worth investigating.

 

[Fat Rat]

I am grateful for your views, really.
As one of the bikes I am looking at to add to our range this winter could be fitted with bolt through wheels, it occurs to me that we could sell the bike minus the wheelset, shocks, brakes and handlebars to save some money to those who would rather go downhill than uphill. If there is some business potential there, it may be worth investigating.

It’s the retail price of the components you need to look at to see if it’s viable
That would be my ultimate worry
You have just quoted a fair chunk of change unless of course they have some if not all of the parts
You would also need to decide as you have mentioned what axles
You have to go boost 148 x 12mm on the frame to give the option of plus tyres I would have thought
It’s a tricky one but hope it’s viable because in theory it’s a good idea

 

[Woosh]

You have to go boost 148 x 12mm on the frame

that's the original specs, 27.5" boost for the frame.

 

[peter.c]

It may be just me but I could not bring myself to spend a couple of thousand on a ready made bike in one go. But I would buy a kit of parts and upgrade over time. Those who build or convert often start with a secondhand bike .Then struggle to find the parts in the uk and often end up buying through ebay from multiple suppliers many who are in china without knowing as the listing says item in the uk , some of my recent purchases the postage came to more than the item . at least woosh offers advice and customer service

 

[Fat Rat]

that's the original specs, 27.5" boost for the frame.

Brilliant that’s a good start frame wise then as plus tyres are bang up to date

 

[Fat Rat]

It may be just me but I could not bring myself to spend a couple of thousand on a ready made bike in one go. But I would buy a kit of parts and upgrade over time. Those who build or convert often start with a secondhand bike .

I have only ever built frame up builds as second bikes as I hate not being able to jump on a bike whenever I want
Point in case I’ve just bought a Scott eScale but would build another frame up for a project in a heart beat
But knowing full well the parts to build are generally a specific spec so very rarely do you find good second hand parts in good condition for example a set of forks with correct spec in good condition with a steerer that is long enough for the frame in question,
so I generally end up buying new because I want it built and ridden not sitting around in bits for months on the off chance they may turn up on a for sale site somewhere

 

[Woosh]

so I generally end up buying new because I want it built and ridden not sitting around in bits for months on the off chance they may turn up on a for sale site somewhere

I will of course sell the whole bike as a principal business line and I have to import extra parts for in and out of warranty service work any way, so it's an additional line supplying 2/3 of the bike to those who want better shocks, brakes, bars and wheels. I hope also to recruit friendly bike shops who'd like to use this kit as a base to hang nicer goodies to it.

 

[Fat Rat]

I will of course sell the whole bike as a principal business line and I have to import extra parts for in and out of warranty service work any way, so it's an additional line supplying 2/3 of the bike to those who want better shocks, brakes, bars and wheels. I hope also to recruit friendly bike shops who'd like to use this kit as a base to hang nicer goodies to it.

Now that would work well selling the frame to trade and they can kit it out as needed at the customers request .