Custom length 9 core motor cable

[John Galvin]

Hi

I'm wondering if there's anywhere I can have a motor cable made up to a specific length, say around 20cm. I'd need female on one end, male on the other to connect the controller to the hub motor.
When I built my ebike four years ago, I cut the supplied cable and soldered it together. It's still working but it's the weak point of the conversion and I'd like to sort it properly.
The standard cables seem to be around 1m or longer. The reason I need a short cable is that it's a folder with 20" wheels.

TIA

 

[Nealh]

Two option I can think of;
Speak to Jimmy at Insat Intl/BGA reworking as he may be able to help you or speak to the good people at Woosh Bikes, Andy I believe is very skilful with these fiddly leads and is able to make up custom leads.

 

[danielrlee]

If you're not able to source a custom cable, you could just buy a standard cable pair, cut to length and solder the two parts together into a single extension.

 

[John Galvin]

Two option I can think of;
Speak to Jimmy at Insat Intl/BGA reworking as he may be able to help you or speak to the good people at Woosh Bikes, Andy I believe is very skilful with these fiddly leads and is able to make up custom leads.

Thanks - I'll try those two.

 

[John Galvin]

If you're not able to source a custom cable, you could just buy a standard cable pair, cut to length and solder the two parts together into a single extension.

Yes, I've done that but I feel it's a weak point on the bike. It flexes every time it's folded and though I don't fold it often, it's definitely something to be aware of. A custom lead would really do the job.

 

[danielrlee]

Yes, I've done that but I feel it's a weak point on the bike. It flexes every time it's folded and though I don't fold it often, it's definitely something to be aware of. A custom lead would really do the job.

Apologies, I had misread your post.

I'm not sure ordering a custom cable from somewhere would yield a different end result - they'd likely supply a cable that will be cut and soldered in some way.

The problem with molded connectors is that they can only be fabricated as a single 'waterproofed' piece at the time of manufacture. I suspect that unless you can source a mass-manufactured unit from somewhere, you're not going to be able to get one custom made. I would like to be proved wrong though, since it would be great to find a source for such custom cables.

 

[Woosh]

Hi John,
You can get something like this:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Motor-cable-with-9-pin-waterproof-connector-male-and-female-for-motor/32814558471.html

 

[anotherkiwi]

www.e-bike-technologies.de will make a cable to the length you specify. Do you have very deep pockets?

 

[John Galvin]

Hi John,
You can get something like this:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Motor-cable-with-9-pin-waterproof-connector-male-and-female-for-motor/32814558471.html

Thanks - that's the shortest one I've come across. Still a bit longer than I'd like unfortunately.

 

[harrys]

John, If the motor cable is a factory cable with the male pins, then I like running a longer cable with the female socket from the controller to the motor, making my solder joins inside the controller box. This has the advantage of simple twist joints inside the box, which are protected against flexing, etc.

Motors from BMSBattery ship with the longer cable which has the female connector on one end, while the other had rectangular Hall plug and bullets for the three phases, but I believe you can find it separately.

When I had to solder a 9 pin cable, I found it hard to join the phase wires. I was wishing for a small copper tube, but the metal core out of a crimp connector, with the plastic removed, makes for an easy solder join. The Hall's are small enough for simple twist joins. Everything gets shrink wrapped and add a plastic strip from a zip tie to keep the soldered part from .flexing. Still fits thru a 12mm nut.

 

[Green Motors Ltd]

Hi John,
try this link
https://www.ebike-solutions.com/en/shop/electronic-accessories/cables/

 

[John Galvin]

Hi John,
try this link
https://www.ebike-solutions.com/en/shop/electronic-accessories/cables/

Thank you!

I reckon that's exactly what I need. 30cm is a mite too long but I can fold the extra 10cm in the controller box easily enough.

I've been meaning to document my build in case it would be of any help to others so I'll get around to that in the next week or so.

 

[the_killjoy]

Why cannot rear hub motors come with a plug as standard, would make rear wheel removal so much easier?

Do any makes do it?

 

[Woosh]

Why cannot rear hub motors come with a plug as standard, would make rear wheel removal so much easier?

Do any makes do it?

most do, like in all the kits and bikes I sell.
It's just that if you buy on Aliexpress, the cables are longer than what you need because they have to cater for all combinations. You have to tell the factories what you want, they'll make the cables to the length you need.

 

[John Galvin]

Thanks for all the suggestions.
I ordered the shortest cable from ebike solutions and it's actually the perfect length. It's fitted to the bike now and I'm glad I went ahead as the original joined lead was showing signs of wear.
I'll find some time in the next week or so to write up the build process in case it's of use to anyone.