Full suspension e bike

[Russ34]

Hi , I have built a retro hard tail e bike with a bafang 250w motor, which I love but I’d like to build a full suspension bike with a motor , I would use it for some technical stuff and trails , has anyone built one ? If so what motor did you use I’m trying to go for the smallest in size also I don’t want a down tube battery more like an in frame bag type ! Many thanks Russ

 

[AGS]

Mid drive motor is the best for a technical full suspension bike. Battery location and fitment is usually a problem with them and can affect handling. I opted to use a backpack battery.

Here’s my bike. It’s a retro full suspension Rockrider Fire with a BBSHD.

 

[Russ34]

Mid drive motor is the best for a technical full suspension bike. Battery location and fitment is usually a problem with them and can affect handling. I opted to use a backpack battery.

Here’s my bike. It’s a retro full suspension Rockrider Fire with a BBSHD.

View attachment 51728

That looks great , I’ve been looking at the tongsheng motor , what do you think of them ?

 

[Russ34]

Do you ride it without worrying about damaging the motor etc ?

 

[AGS]

I was concerned about damaging the motor so I made a bash guard to protect it. The downside is the motor doesn’t get any direct airflow for cooling. The upside is it doesn’t get caked in mud clogging up the cooling fins.

I don’t know much about the Tongshen motor. I prefer cadence to torque sensing.

 

[Oldie]

With regard to bash plates, perhaps you could use a louvre plate to provide reasonable protection plus some airflow?

 

[AGS]

I considered drilling some holes in it to provide some airflow, but that would just let all of the muck in to clog it up.

I’m going to keep an eye on it during the dry summer months to see if I have a temperature issue.

Here is a “clean” photo that shows a close up. The white things are pencil erasers hot glued to the motor casing to provide spacing and act as shock absorbers. And I used a couple of heavy duty cable ties to keep the bash guard in position.

Another tip is to use a front derailleur set up manually without a cable as a chain guide to stop the chain from falling off. Otherwise it still has a tendency to come off when trail riding even with good chain alignment because of all the bumping and jumping.

The other problem is the cable harness exits from underneath the motor and can easily get damaged if it’s grounded on a rock or tree stump. So that’s why I have an extended “tail” on my bash guard.