ebike needed for work comute

[OxygenJames]

i have recently got a job in the city, about 5.5-6 miles each way from home and i have been spoilt for the last 10 years with my work location being at most 2 miles from home.

while the thought of the extra travelling initially worried me i then found out the train is only about 10 minutes being the stops. unfortunately the walk from station to work is then 15-20 minutes. also the train isnt that cheap and will only every get more expensive.

so, i thought about a moped/scooter but the insurance costs etc put me off. finally i found out about ebikes.

i tested the journey with a normal mountain bike yesterday, my first bike ride for about 20 years, and it took me 35 minutes. i actually enjoyed it as well although being so vunerable in the traffic was worrying after years being safe in a car.

my budget is max £1k but ideally well under to keep the wife happy.

my questions are these...

firstly, i will be aiming most likely for a folding bike as i dont think there is much bike parking/securing locations in the area around the new work location, what are my options? i found possibly the Volt Metro Black??

i worked out my average speed to be about 9mph on that journey, i know the ebike should be able to get up to 15.5mph but in the real world testing, should my average be faster, slower or comparative with the standard bike?

most of the folding bikes i have seen have smaller wheels, i think they are about bmx size rather than mountain bike size, will this cause any problems or have any benefits?

lastly, riding in the rain, general clothing etc. any suggestions such as ways of keeping dry, will i get sweaty, will my trousers and shirt be viable attire if i cant get changed at work i will have to ride in my standard work clothes. etc etc

any/all suggestions welcome

marc

I did a 12 mile commute on Friday accross almost solid London traffic (Wimbledon to Ealing) in the rain - I wore waterproof leggings my work shirt, Armani Jacket under a northface lined coat - used my super-doopa ebike (Burisch) - and did it in 45 minutes averaging 16mph. The week before I took my Oxygen ebike and did it in 55 minutes (the oxygen has a lower top speed obviously) - on neither occasion did I work up much of a sweat arriving relatively dry both from the rain and from within. I had to recharge the Burisch as it wont do 24 miles on one charge - the oxygen would easy do that on one charge so I did not have to take the charger with me that time.

Either way the only thing that would have done it any quicker would have been my Yamaha R1 - but for one or two reasons we wont go into thats not an option for a while.

Have fun.

 

[marc.knuckle]

cheers guys.

the main thing i was thinking with regards to 700c or 26" was that the motor and battery may struggle a bit more with the large wheel such as acceleration but would be able to go at a faster top speed to to the larger circumference or is that wrong?

if i bought your mark 2 kit with rear wheel 700c motor and i think you mention that other part i would need (dont know what it is that you mentioned further up the thread) what would be the overall cost if i fit it myself?

thanks for being patient and answering all these questions.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Look at my post about Tonaros on Ebay. Perfect for what you want.

 

[Cyclezee]

cheers guys.

the main thing i was thinking with regards to 700c or 26" was that the motor and battery may struggle a bit more with the large wheel such as acceleration but would be able to go at a faster top speed to to the larger circumference or is that wrong?

if i bought your mark 2 kit with rear wheel 700c motor and i think you mention that other part i would need (dont know what it is that you mentioned further up the thread) what would be the overall cost if i fit it myself?

thanks for being patient and answering all these questions.

Yes Marc, you are correct about the wheel size facts.

The eZee Mk2 700c rear kit with a 10Ah battery is £895 and £995 with a 14Ah battery, both include delivery, the only extra you would require is a Freewheel which are priced from £25 to £29.

Regards,

 

[103Alex1]

but for one or two reasons we wont go into thats not an option for a while

how elegantly put. lol

 

[OxygenJames]

how elegantly put. lol

Indeed. To be perhaps a little more accurate, it is still an option, but an option with the possibility of such severe consequences that one doesn't seriously entertain it as an option.

 

[marc.knuckle]

cheers guys.

@d8veh - thx mate, looking at the price of the tanaros, i think if i was to spend that much i could just add the ezee mark 2 kit to a bike and spend about the same.

@john - you say that the 700c rear mark 2 kit would equal approx £1k, would that be the same for the 26" rear kit?

i have started a shortlist and would like opinions regarding the list so far and also welcome additions to it, here it is so far...

1) whoosh sirocco 2 - pros = £700 cost, good battery and motor, apparently reliable company going from advice on here. cons = may not get much extra speed even if can deristrict
2) mark 2 ezee kit added to approx £300 MTB - pros = power as can be deristricted, select my own bike which should be more suitable to my needs and lighter. cons = cost upwards of £1300 (not good)
3) mark 2 ezee kit added to approx £300 HYBRID bike. pros and cons roughly same as above.
4) alien aurora kit added to approx £300 MTB - pros power as ALWAYS deristricted, again self-selected bike. cons - price more than whoosh but less than ezee kits with bikes.

again i would welcome added pros and cons to the above 4 options and also extra options to consider.

thanks again guys for all this help

 

[Cyclezee]

cheers guys.

@d8veh - thx mate, looking at the price of the tanaros, i think if i was to spend that much i could just add the ezee mark 2 kit to a bike and spend about the same.

@john - you say that the 700c rear mark 2 kit would equal approx £1k, would that be the same for the 26" rear kit?

i have started a shortlist and would like opinions regarding the list so far and also welcome additions to it, here it is so far...

1) whoosh sirocco 2 - pros = £700 cost, good battery and motor, apparently reliable company going from advice on here. cons = may not get much extra speed even if can deristrict
2) mark 2 ezee kit added to approx £300 MTB - pros = power as can be deristricted, select my own bike which should be more suitable to my needs and lighter. cons = cost upwards of £1300 (not good)
3) mark 2 ezee kit added to approx £300 HYBRID bike. pros and cons roughly same as above.
4) alien aurora kit added to approx £300 MTB - pros power as ALWAYS deristricted, again self-selected bike. cons - price more than whoosh but less than ezee kits with bikes.

again i would welcome added pros and cons to the above 4 options and also extra options to consider.

thanks again guys for all this help

Hi Marc,

All the Mk2 eZee kits are the same price, front or rear, 20", 26" and 700c.

In the case of rear kits, you would need a Freewheel. We don't include one as standard because of the variation in number of gears, but thinking about, maybe we should just include one in the price if the customer lets us know what they want.

We are quite aware that eZee kits are not the cheapest on the market, nor are they the most expensive, however, we do believe that they are good quality, high torque, reliable and come with a 2 year warranty which makes them good value for money.

 

[marc.knuckle]

Thanks John.

Any other opinions that anyone has on the 4 above options? I could even try the aurora pre built by swapping the higher seat post for a standard one.

 

[103Alex1]

Indeed. To be perhaps a little more accurate, it is still an option, but an option with the possibility of such severe consequences that one doesn't seriously entertain it as an option.

.. how long left before the throttle can be revved again ?

 

[marc.knuckle]

hey guys.

one thing i have found out is that if i use a kit, the donor bike needs to have a locking ring on the crank or the pedel sensor wont fit on. how do i know if a bike i can only see online has it?

the donor bikes i have thought of getting if i go the kit route are -

carrera centos, carrera vengeance, carrera vulcan, voodoo bantu, mongoose tyax comp 2011 or mongoose tyax comp 2012.

any opinions on thes and does anyone know if a kit can be fitted due to that locking ring?

 

[Deleted member 4366]

The pedal sensor normally goes on the chain-wheel side,where the BB has a flange. You have to remove the whole BB, so you need the tool. If there's not enough room for it, you can get a 122mm one from Halfords for £9.99. The only thing that makes fitting the sensor tricky is non-square taper spindles, i.e. Octalink or Hollowtech cranks.

 

[marc.knuckle]

cheers d8veh, this is the sentence that is in their instructions

'The pedelec components can be fitted on either side of the bottom bracket. Remove the pedal crank and locking washer, then fit the pickup and bracket, then refit the locking washer'

do you have any opinions on the above bikes?

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Bikes with cheapo non-sealed bottom brackets have a locking ring on the left side, so you can put the pedal sensor on that side if you want. You can also unscrew the left side cartridge insert a few threads and use a locking ring to hold it in place with the pedal sensor clamped behind it, so lots of options. I have never found a bike that I couldn't fit a PAS to, but some take a bit more DIY.

I don't see a problem with any of those bikes, but you want one that's mainly black with a bit of red, or black and white with red striped tyres like on my Rocky Mountain to match the Oxygen kit for ultimate visual effect like the one in the adverts.

 

[marc.knuckle]

hey d8veh.

it it works i have decided on the mongoose tyax comp 2011 as it comes with mechanical discs rather than the hydrolic discs of the 2012.

also the 2011 has seperate brake levers to the shifters which is good so i wouldnt have to fit seperate shifters after replacing the brake levers with the alien aurora kit.

the only problem as you mentioned above is it comes with a sealed cartridge unit and no locking ring for the pedelec. you mention it is still possible but as i am not mechanically minded i cant picture what it is you mention as a solution. is there and guides or diagrams that you could point me towards to see what i'd have to do to get it sorted?

thanks, marc

 

[banbury frank]

Hi We use the Yst bottom bracket they come in different lengths they are meant to fit to bikes where the thread is damaged but they have a flange on both sides so sensor will fit

only in square taper fitting


YST 125mm Threadless Sealed Bearing Bottom Bracket | eBay

Frank

 

[marc.knuckle]

cheers frank, i dont suppose you have a diagram, guide or even better youtube video showing the fitting?

thanks, marc

 

[Deleted member 4366]

As I said before, you remove the two cranks with a crank puller; you remove the bottom bracket bearing/spindle assembly with BB tool; slide the BB over the pedal sensor; re-assemble the BB; slide on the magnet disk to the chain-wheel side; re-assemble the cranks/chainwheel. Simples!

If when you screw up the chainwheel, the magnet ring stops it from going fully home on the taper, or the magnet ring is pressed against the sensor, you disassemble everything and go and get the £10 Halfords BB. You won't know this until you try it.

Here's a sequence of photos that show how it goes. Clck on each photo to see the description about what's going on.
PAS pictures by d8veh - Photobucket

 

[marc.knuckle]

cheers d8veh

my father-in-law has taken a look at the pictures and agrees he should be able to sort it simply enough even though it goes over my head.

i guess what you are saying is that pretty much whatever the BB is like i can replace it easy enough with a halfords one that will work with the sensors.

 

[jazper53]

Woosh Sirocco 2, I have yet to see a review on this bike, which seems a little strange if it so popular. I admit the spec seems quite impressive. but it is better to find someone who has had hands on experience of the model, rather than obvious comercial generated hype.