compatible cycle2work donor bike for bafang

[MountainEgg]

Hi,
I have tried searching, but struggling to piece together the right information

I am looking for a DIY option for an all purpose bike. I live a few miles to 5* rated mountain trails, which I would like to take advantage off.
With lockdown, I have become less fit than my unfit body was before.. I was quite active before lockdown - but now I'm a couch potato!
Also, the idea of building my own, will give me something to do, rather than off the shelf bike.

As I live in quite a hilly area, I need all the help I can get from a power perspective (I also suffer from knee pain if things are to strenuous!)

I think a 48v 750w Bafang motor fits my needs for short term use. Maybe I can/should go smaller so I am at least putting some effort in?

However, I am struggling to work out a bike that would need the least amount of modding to work.
I also have Cycle2work vouchers (Halfords) which I can use - either for donor or kit - budget for bike would be about £500 cycle to work or £350 if elsewhere (I was looking at the Decathlon riverside as an option)
I was looking at the carrera range , but think I could build a better bike for the same money, or at least something equal for less.

anyone able to help with some pointers?

 

[vfr400]

There's no point at all in buying a new bike as a donor for conversion.

You can get used bikes for much less than the saving you'd get from using C2W vouchers, and probably a much more suitable bike.

From your decription, it's not at all clear to me what you want to use the bike for. Is it just for doing steep mountain trails, or is that just something you've dreamt up to justify having a 750w crank-motor? Please tell us more about it if you want specific advice.

Sorry to be blunt, but that's necessary to help you get what you need. It's best to be honest.

 

[MountainEgg]

Thanks - I prefer blunt.
Initially, I thought I would just get a hybrid bike, as I will be doing cycle paths to start.
Then I thought about the park & it's trails, which will give me something else if I get bored of cycling tarmac & its only 5 or 6 miles away... but I need to get to a level to get there first without breathing out of my arse
I need to get in shape! It is not about justifying power or speed. Just something that is 'one bike to do it all'.
I had considered waiting for the Carrera Subway to come back in stock if I was sticking to tarmac. So no problem with less oomph if that is best course & I am really not bothered about speed.

Ideally, I would like to spend as little as possible - but the C2W voucher out of salary is an option if needed, simply because I want something that should fit without much faffing around. Bikes local to me are £150+ 2nd hand (I can't travel due to lockdown) & I still would not know what would be a suitable bike & what wouldn't. I have tried searching for bike model + bafang to see if that particular model has been modded with ease previously & there is an instructables step by step guide for the rockrider... which as you can guess, uses the 750w!

 

[vfr400]

The motor system can fit to just about any bike with a conventional bottom bracket. it's only in recent years that all the weird bottom brackets have become popular. You don't need to spend a lot of money on a donor bike when you fit a motor like a BBS02. Any bike with disc brakes and a triangle frame would be OK. If you can, get one with a 1 1/8 steerer, which will give more options to upgrade the forks if you want to do more serious trails. Fancy gears give you no advantage. Cheap gears are very robust, which is what you need.

Many of the sellers of used bikes on Ebay offer to send them by currier, so just look through the listings to see what there is and get one approximately the right size.

Genesis Core Hardtail Mountain Bike | eBay

<p dir="ltr">Genesis Core Hardtail Mountain Bike. 19" aluminum frame. In good condition.<br> Rockshox Reba fork, Alexa Rims FD19, Schwalbe Nobby nic tyres, SLX groupset and hubs.<br> In good repair <br> and a great starter mountain bike at this price.<br> For collection from Blanefield nr...

www.ebay.co.uk

New one here:

Olympic Mountain Bike 26-inch 21-speed black and white | eBay

Pedal, foot support: PVC;. Gross net weight: 15/18.5. 1 x Mountain Bike(Need to assemble). Shift gear position: the first three and the back seven. 1 x Assemble Tool. Specification：. 1 x Riding Bag. Tires: rubber spoke wheels;.

www.ebay.co.uk

Forks on that one are steel. When you upgrade, they should be very useful for anyone on the forum that wants to fit a front motor.

 

[egroover]

That Genesis was an epic bargain, wonder what the catch was?

 

[MountainEgg]

Thanks for the input & links.
I have looked on Ebay & selling groups on facebook, etc. - so I think the Olympic is the only donor bike possible without spending more. Pickings are slim locally!
A kit with the linked Olympic would come in just under £800
Cheapest C2W Halfords Mountain bike would work out at £770 after salary sacrifice (30%ish off £1100)

So it kinda means a no brainer to self build....
I have found a bundled kit on aliexpress for around £600 (+/- £30 depending on LCD Controller)
with a choice of brake Lever or Sensor - I am guessing leaver is best choice for that bike?
I assume personal choice for controller? 860c SW102, 500c 750c - £50 difference between the 500c & 750c kit.

Would I need anything else? kit seems to come with tools, but only thing I think that is missing is a brake sensor?

Thanks again for the help

 

[vfr400]

The 750w motor requires a high discharge rate battery. Some of the bundled ones aren't very good.And any of the cheap ones are probably unsuitable too. Look at the battery listings. Any that say they can give 25 amps continuous (not maximum) will be OK. You can't get a quart out of a pint pot. The more power you want, the more it costs.

A crappy battery will work, and it'll put a smile on your face the first time you use it, but you won't be smiling so much when you come back on here in the not too distant future to ask why your battery keeps cutting out like the rest of them.

 

[MountainEgg]

THanks, I managed to get a Focus Whistler local as a donor

 

[vfr400]

THanks, I managed to get a Focus Whistler local as a donor

Is there enough room in the triangle for the battery? It looks a bit tight on some of them. Don't forget that you need room to slide it on and off.