Cube Reaction Hybrid HPA SL 500 (2017)

Deere John

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Apr 13, 2015
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The one with upside down fork is the Eagle, the top model in the line. I could have one of those even though they mounted the fork the wrong way :)
/btw: it has 1x12!

 
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Gravity casting is the cheapo method of casting aluminium. It means pour in molten aluminium into a mould. The mould is a box of sand. You make a pattern, then press it into the wet sand to make the mould. The moulding comes out rough, so has to have additional operations to get it suitable to be used in a bike like that, like fettling, linnishing and painting - basically smoothing out the surface. They're the post production steps that they mention. It's the lowest tech and cheapest way to get cast aluminium. We did that in school. That advertising is just bullsh!t hype. When they say that it takes it to the next level, they mean downwards.

Precision aluminium casting, like the motor parts are done by pressure die casting, but for that you need expensive machined metal moulds. That only works if you have enough quantity of parts to cover the cost of the moulds - say 10,000 - but the process is very quick and precise, so once it's all set up, the cost per part is minimal.

Typically for 0 to 100 parts, you'd use gravity casting and machining. For 100 to 10,000, lost wax casting, where you make a rubber mould from an original part, and cast wax replicas, which you then cast in plaster of paris, then heat it up to melt out the wax, which leaves a more precise mould than sand into which you pour the molten aluminium. 10,000plus = pressure die casting. I would have thought that they would have used the lost wax method for those parts.
 
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Deere John

Esteemed Pedelecer
Apr 13, 2015
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ok, d8veh, you crashed it! I have now reconsidered! :)

well, honestly I was into a store yesterday and tried the concept (same biketype but with Yamaha 80 Nm-motor). And I thought that it would be better having my trekking-bike as commuter and instead buy a more dedicated forrest-bike instead of doing some compromise again.

So... I was browsing all evening and... to make a long story short, I found a Haibike Fatsix 2016 at great discount so I ordered that instead! Think it will be awesome. No more compromising, and this what what I really wanted, so now it's done. Will be great fun to explore the terrain now.

 

Gubbins

Esteemed Pedelecer
I know the feeling of getting exactly what you want.. although I really liked the 3 emtb's I have owned, the giant road ebike is the one that falls onto the the exactly what I wanted category .
Hope you enjoy it as much as I do mine.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk
 

soundwave

Esteemed Pedelecer
May 23, 2015
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those tyres are 1.2kg and 70 quid each :eek: thats ten quid cheaper than a front sprocket lol
 

mab13

Pedelecer
Jun 23, 2015
153
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Peak District
ok, d8veh, you crashed it! I have now reconsidered! :)

well, honestly I was into a store yesterday and tried the concept (same biketype but with Yamaha 80 Nm-motor). And I thought that it would be better having my trekking-bike as commuter and instead buy a more dedicated forrest-bike instead of doing some compromise again.

So... I was browsing all evening and... to make a long story short, I found a Haibike Fatsix 2016 at great discount so I ordered that instead! Think it will be awesome. No more compromising, and this what what I really wanted, so now it's done. Will be great fun to explore the terrain now.

Great bike - enjoy it! :)
 
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RobF

Esteemed Pedelecer
Sep 22, 2012
4,732
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I am having a serious think about the bike in the OP.

For a couple of winters now I've come to realise my Rose is less than ideal on muddy cycle paths.

The Marathon Plus shallow tread tyres don't grip very well, and the close fitting mudguards will clog with, literally, a couple of leaves.

I like to keep the bike clean, and the Rose takes a lot of washing because it has lots of trekking stuff on it and many nooks and crannies.

The Cube with the faired-in motor would pick up less dirt and be easier to clean.

The battery tray sized down tube would act as a flinger, so all I would need at the front would be a short fender under the fork crown.

I now have a Garmin which means the neater Purion display is all I want.

A simple but useful point is the frame will take a bottle cage.

The plan would be to run the bike fairly naked, although it does have mounts for a carrier if I want to put on more road-orientated tyres and use it for longer distances in the better weather.

Another point in favour of a Cube is I have a Cube centre near me.

I paid them a visit and it seems I shall have to wait a few weeks.

The bikes with the new frame are not expected until early December.

I tried a few others for size, and it seems 18"/650b will suit.

Pleased about that because I am hoping to avoid 29ers.

No mountain biking reasons, it's just that 27.5" tyres are much handier than 29" which look too big to me.

A possible snag is the shop is not prepared to order an 18" HPA for stock, although they are getting some 17" and 19" 29er bikes.

So if I want an 18", I will more or less have to buy it sight unseen.

I say 'more or less' because the guy in the shop said they wouldn't force me to take the bike if it really didn't fit - very kind of them.

https://www.cube.eu/uk/2017/e-bike-hardtail/reaction-hybrid/cube-reaction-hybrid-hpa-sl-500-rednflashorange-2017/
 
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Deere John

Esteemed Pedelecer
Apr 13, 2015
532
580
47
EU
I am having a serious think about the bike in the OP....
Cool, it looks like a seriously nice bike. Still unsure if I made the right choice not going for a 27.5". Also consider the Plus-size option with the SLT-model, could be nice, don't know. Have asked Cube about maxixum tyre size on the SL but no answer. About the size. Maybe you can try a similar Cube bike in 18" and see it feels good. A Cube centre nearby is sure a great benefit if something struggles with such an expensive bike :)
 

Gubbins

Esteemed Pedelecer
I am having a serious think about the bike in the OP.

For a couple of winters now I've come to realise my Rose is less than ideal on muddy cycle paths.

The Marathon Plus shallow tread tyres don't grip very well, and the close fitting mudguards will clog with, literally, a couple of leaves.

I like to keep the bike clean, and the Rose takes a lot of washing because it has lots of trekking stuff on it and many nooks and crannies.

The Cube with the faired-in motor would pick up less dirt and be easier to clean.

The battery tray sized down tube would act as a flinger, so all I would need at the front would be a short fender under the fork crown.

I now have a Garmin which means the neater Purion display is all I want.

A simple but useful point is the frame will take a bottle cage.

The plan would be to run the bike fairly naked, although it does have mounts for a carrier if I want to put on more road-orientated tyres and use it for longer distances in the better weather.

Another point in favour of a Cube is I have a Cube centre near me.

I paid them a visit and it seems I shall have to wait a few weeks.

The bikes with the new frame are not expected until early December.

I tried a few others for size, and it seems 18"/650b will suit.

Pleased about that because I am hoping to avoid 29ers.

No mountain biking reasons, it's just that 27.5" tyres are much handier than 29" which look too big to me.

A possible snag is the shop is not prepared to order an 18" HPA for stock, although they are getting some 17" and 19" 29er bikes.

So if I want an 18", I will more or less have to buy it sight unseen.

I say 'more or less' because the guy in the shop said they wouldn't force me to take the bike if it really didn't fit - very kind of them.

https://www.cube.eu/uk/2017/e-bike-hardtail/reaction-hybrid/cube-reaction-hybrid-hpa-sl-500-rednflashorange-2017/
Like the cage mount.. I am fed up with drinking from puddles.. which will get harder when they freeze up..

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk
 

RobF

Esteemed Pedelecer
Sep 22, 2012
4,732
2,312
Cool, it looks like a seriously nice bike. Still unsure if I made the right choice not going for a 27.5". Also consider the Plus-size option with the SLT-model, could be nice, don't know. Have asked Cube about maxixum tyre size on the SL but no answer. About the size. Maybe you can try a similar Cube bike in 18" and see it feels good. A Cube centre nearby is sure a great benefit if something struggles with such an expensive bike :)
Thanks.

I did try an 18" Cube ordinary MTB.

Of the 29er eMTBs, the 17" was too small, and the 19" was too big in terms of crossbar clearance.

I could get away with if, say, I borrowed one for a ride, but not permanently.

The unknown is the sizing of the new style frame.

The SLT is more than I want to pay, and I don't need Plus size tyres for muddy cycle paths.
 

RobF

Esteemed Pedelecer
Sep 22, 2012
4,732
2,312
Like the cage mount.. I am fed up with drinking from puddles.. which will get harder when they freeze up..

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk
Have you sold that battery yet?

If my Cube plan goes ahead I will want a spare at some point.
 

Altop1

Pedelecer
Oct 27, 2016
107
76
58
Lincolnshire
Hi has any body got a rough idea how many miles your getting on a 400w battery just wondering if the extra 200 pounds to get the 500 w is worth it .Also still wondering to save 350 pounds and buy of the net or a local dealer 5 miles away.
 

IR772

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 5, 2016
931
1,044
Leominster
On my Haibike Hardnine with 400 W battery,

23 hard miles with off road mud and steep hills-1st gear steep!

Using level 3 assistance leaves 8% at the end,
Using level 2 leaves 32%.

So for road work 30 miles easy either way I would guess.
 

Deere John

Esteemed Pedelecer
Apr 13, 2015
532
580
47
EU
I have the 500 Wh battery, don't know exactly how many miles I get, because of this reason:

I think it's good not to fully drain the batteries, but I like long rides also so I thought that it would be good to have a little over-capacity just to be safe. The battery might last longer which makes it a good investment in the long term. Have another bike also with 11 Ah-battery and that one is sometimes hard to not drain because of the low capacity and it has got noticable worse since I bought it.
 

soundwave

Esteemed Pedelecer
May 23, 2015
16,899
6,507
turbo dongle 500w 25 miles.
 

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