Help! E-Bike Converstion for an ethusastic idiot.

[Arashi]

Hello there, My name is Ara and I want to convert a bike.


Unfortunately I have no idea, what I'm doing. So i was hoping for a bit of help.

The situation is that I'm currently using a Wisper Electric bike of my brother's to go to and from work but I want to get my own, unfortunately I'm short on funds so I intended to get one through the Cycle to Work Scheme in my work place but the catch(es) is that a) It must be from Halfords for my work to help and the other catch (the real pain in the saddle) b) It must be £800 or less, which kind of ties my hands behind my back in terms of what i can and cannot get from Halfords, so I had the great and wise idea to use a conversion kit to turn a Regular mountain or Road Bike into an Electric Bike.

However as I stated above, I have no idea what I'm doing.

So I was hoping if someone who knew better (such as you fine gentlemen and women) would be so kind as to give me some idea of what might be the best bike to get and the most compatible conversion kit as £800 will go much, much further when applying it to a regular bike then a when looking for a electric bike.

Any and all help would be greatly appreciated.

Kind Regards
Arashi

 

[Woosh]

your Halfords cycle to work voucher is enough for the project. Halfords charge 15% commission on their voucher, so for the retailer, it's worth £850.
Allow about £100 for labour, you are left with £750 for the kit. That's a good budget.

For commuting, the basic choice is between mid motor (crank drive) and rear motor - they give the best traction for all weather riding.
The choice may ultimately be decided by the donor bike, how hilly where you live, commuting distance and whether you like torque sensor or cadence sensor.
Let us know more about you and the donor bike.

 

[Arashi]

So the scheme that my work put into place works in that I reserve the bike, my workplace then pays for it then, which is then taken from my wages over the course of either 6 months or 12 months.

I was considering the crank but I'm not sure of the difference between the feel of a mid motor or a motor in the rear wheel.

The journey to and from my work is about 6 miles one way with hills in both directions mostly tarmacced with some cobble and some pavement (for an A road leading to an off ramp for the motor way which I try to avoid). So and considering what I've just mentioned and that it's a permanent job the rear motor is probably a better way to go.

I'm unsure of the differences between the two sensors. I know I'll need between a 19" and a 20" frame, is there anything else that may be helpful info?

(My apologies if I do t respond for awhile I've got to head to bed now as I'm in work tonight)

 

[Arashi]

The donor bike is undecided as I'm unsure what would be the best to get.

 

[Woosh]

your 12 miles a day commute is perfect for bikes. Any e-bike will do that.
Your problem is how to use the cycle to work voucher most effectively.
I would say that the most effective is to ask some company like Halfords, Tredz, e-bikesdirect.co.uk which bike you can get. Keep their offers as the baseline.
Then work out how much you can top up the voucher with your own money.
I would make suggestions on the donor bike and kits.
If you want to buy one of my bikes for example, then I would suggest the Camino, you pay £199 on top of your voucher.

 

[Arashi]

So I checked with my work and they don't allow people to put money in on top of the 800 quid and the 10% discount. So I'm leaning towards conversion now.

While thinking about it and speaking to a friend he mentioned about using 2 hub motors 1 in the front and 1 in the back as I'm a little heavier then most (I weigh about 105-115kg so I'm just over some of the motor weight limits and just under some of the purpose built ebikes.

I was wondering how difficult it would be to setup 2 hub motors off 1 throttle? And if it would at all reduce the burden on the motors (meaning I could get ones with a weight limit of 100kg and the fact there was 2 would spread the weight out reducing the burden on them)

 

[Ocsid]

Why two motors, because if both could drive, the most obvious logic of having two, the installed power could easily take it over the legal power limit to use on highways/ cycleways open to the public, without insurance and certification.

Then there is the twist, would the employer want to be implicated in facilitating an illegal machine?

I would keep to something road legal, the options are there.

 

[Arashi]

I do intend to keep it road legal and limited to 15.5mph the reason I want awd is due to me being heavy. I experience about a 7 mph drop in the ebike I'm currently using to get to and from work when going uphill which means I'm spending more time travelling which considering how rainy my region can get isn't ideal so I want to build something I can truly get the full use out of and awd seems the best route and least complicated the more I look into it.

 

[Woosh]

You need specialist controller to run two motors. Far too complicated.

for your weight, I would suggest Decathlon Rockrider 540 and BBS01B crank drive conversion.

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/st-540-mountain-bike-grey-red-275-id_8500757.html
http://wooshbikes.co.uk/cart/#/product/uid-178-bbs01-17ah/bbs01b-cd-kit-with-175ah-36v-hl-battery
If you want to install the throttle that comes with this kit, you will also need the hydraulic brake sensors:
http://wooshbikes.co.uk/cart/#/product/uid-104-hdbs/pair-of-hydraulic-brake-sensors-for-bbs0102

 

[Benjahmin]

Two motors is definitely illegal, even if restricted to the speed limit.
I think you need to adjust your expectations a bit. Of course you will slow down going up hill, how much depends on how much effort you are prepared to put in. Most motors will pull you up a moderate hill (eventually) but at the cost of motor heat (wasted energy) and strain on the battery.
The difference between torque assist and pas is this. Torque assist measures how much effort you put in and gives you a percentage of this as motor assist. PAS detects when the peddles are rotating and turns the assist on at whatever level you have it set at. So, with the former, you always have to put effort into peddling to get assistance. With pas, after a hard days work, you can, if you wish, just ghost peddle and still get power.
Hub motors are pretty much bullet proof with no extra strain on the drive train - probably the best choice for reliable commuting.
Have a look at Woosh kits, especially the BPM motor, it's a high torque motor with the ability to get the larger person up hills.
Though you will need to know what gears you have before you make a motor choice. http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?hubkits
Woosh will guide you through the process and have great customer service.

 

[Nealh]

Two motors have been done though is illegal as undoubtedly the desired motor wattage will be above 250w. You need a good hub if going the hub route , a Xiongda two speed hub or a Bafang BPM or CST.