Gears and Tyres

[Andy88]

Yes they are but why don't the chinese put togethers offer options for better tyres otherwise you are paying for the kendas but end up throwing them away and spending more money on the shwabes

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[Alan Quay]

Yes they are but why don't the chinese put togethers offer options for better tyres otherwise you are paying for the kendas but end up throwing them away.

That's what eBay is for.

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[Rohloffboy]

For tyre's look at the Travel Contact from Continental, superb tyre's fast rolling and have got me from Manchester to Annan in Scotland via the Lakes, without a puncture on a few occasions, I am sure they would be suitable for an Ebike.

Got my bike frame forks, bars, and isis crank set from Tilon in China X'ian Provence, back in 2003 and have used it fully loaded for camping tours, absolutely brilliant, frame cost around £300 but oh so well made to my Rohloff specific specifications (Sliding Drop-Out's).

It is sure to be an electric dream machine, when I get around to it!

 

[chris_n]

Quite.

Chris has missed the point - the Chinese bikes have original equipment specials, often Kendas, which are not too clever.

Pay £1,500+ and you will tend to get decent tyres, usually Schwalbe.

Having said that, the upgrade is only about £50.

I haven't missed the point. The Schwalbe tyres fitted as original equipment are usually rubbish. If you look on the Schwalbe website site you can see all of the variants starting from cheap heavy hard compounds to light fast Kevlar bead. The range of Racing Ralphs for instance is quite large there are 2 major lines, the performance line and the evolution line, the difference is night and day.

 

[Andy88]

It seems like everything else in this day and age have to really research everything and check the tyre site first prior to making an educated buying decision.

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[blackmagic5]

wheels, punctures be dealt with by any cycle shop or does the bike need to go back for repair to the manufacturer or dealer.

 

[Andy88]

From what I can ascertain if the wheels are standard apart from a hub motor any bike shop with repair facilities can handle wheels and tyres.

You can also get recovery insurance covering punctures etc as long as you are at least 1 mile from your home from £15 a year restricted to 3 call outs a year there is an £18 option for unlimited call outs.

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[Alan Quay]

wheels, punctures be dealt with by any cycle shop or does the bike need to go back for repair to the manufacturer or dealer.

From what I can ascertain if the wheels are standard apart from a hub motor any bike shop with repair facilities can handle wheels and tyres.

You can also get recovery insurance covering punctures etc as long as you are at least 1 mile from your home from £15 a year restricted to 3 call outs a year there is an £18 option for unlimited call outs.

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Chaps, you should learn to do this yourselves. It's not difficult, and should take no more than 10 mins. Worst case you'll need:

A 6" adjustable spanner
3 aluminium tyre levers
Puncture repair kit and/or spare tube.
A small pump.

You should find a way to carry this on the bike so it's always there when you need it.

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[Andy88]

If you are young and fit agree but if are older or disabled might not be so easy..

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[Andy88]

Repairing the puncture is only half the battle, the difficult part is ascertaining the cause and point of the puncture and in that case you may need a bowl of water and washing up liquid, not so easy to carry on a bike

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[Alan Quay]

Repairing the puncture is only half the battle, the difficult part is ascertaining the cause and point of the puncture and in that case you may need a bowl of water and washing up liquid, not so easy to carry on a bike

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Trust me, you don't need a bowl of water when you are out.

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[Andy88]

Not even if I'm thirsty alan?

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[chris_n]

You can usually hear where the puncture is a ferry putting some air into the tube, if not hold the tube close to your top lip and rotate it. I rarely repair punctures at the roadside, just stick a new tube in and blow up with a CO2 inflator, no effort required.
I don't have a hub motor which can mean that it is easier to repair than replace. If you do have to do a roadside repair use self adhesive patches rather than messing about with glue.

 

[Andy Bluenoes]

Touch wood i have not had a puncture yet...u hope thats because the slime is doing its job.
The thought of having a puncture on my 15 mile commute is quite daunting.
I carry a spare tube and tools for changing it...but cant say i look forward to the day it happens...no doubt it will be pitch black and peeing down ....

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[Trevormonty]

You can usually hear where the puncture is a ferry putting some air into the tube, if not hold the tube close to your top lip and rotate it. I rarely repair punctures at the roadside, just stick a new tube in and blow up with a CO2 inflator, no effort required.
I don't have a hub motor which can mean that it is easier to repair than replace. If you do have to do a roadside repair use self adhesive patches rather than messing about with glue.

Most import is find cause of puncture, remove tube so it stays lined up with tyre. Once leak is found go back to matching location on tyre and look or feel for hole. Sometimes it is a bit of glass imbedded in tyre which can be hard to locate and remove.

I always carry spare tube, don't muck around with patches on side of road but do carry them for that second puncture.
Recently tried one of the self adhesive patches, worked well but did develop slow leak after a week. Good for roadside repairs but maybe not permanent repairs.

 

[Warwick]

[QUOTE="RobF, post: 338564, member: 8935"

Cable operated discs - as on the Big Bear/Oxygen bikes for example - are rubbish.

The Oxygen S-cross MTB has hydraulic disc brakes. The S-cross C has cable brakes.[/QUOTE]
The cable disc front brake on my Woosh Sirocco CDL was terrible. However, not all cable disc brakes are like that. Avid BB7 cable disc brakes are superb and as good as any hydraulic brakes I've used. OK, they may need periodic cable adjustment, but they are easily maintained and never need bleeding.

 

[Nealh]

The Oxygen S-cross MTB has hydraulic disc brakes. The S-cross C has cable brakes.

The cable disc front brake on my Woosh Sirocco CDL was terrible. However, not all cable disc brakes are like that. Avid BB7 cable disc brakes are superb and as good as any hydraulic brakes I've used. OK, they may need periodic cable adjustment, but they are easily maintained and never need bleeding.[/QUOTE]

Slightly off topic a bit but HDB's once fitted don't need bleeding unless a line is pierced which is not likely. The only maintenance I have done with all my HDB's is change pads.

 

[Andy88]

I think a lot of us had cheap and badly adjusted kit as children, hence the memories of poor gear changing.

Basic Shimano gears - which most bikes on your shortlist have - shift fine but they do require occasional adjustment.

Original equipment tyres on these bikes are not the best, but can be changed for something decent for £30 to £50 a pair.

You will need to learn to fix punctures, an ebike is a heavy beast to push any distance.

The only difference with an ordinary bike is you will probably want to disconnect the motor wheel, which ought to be straightforward on a modern ebike.

You will also need to carry a spanner, because motor wheels are held on with nuts.

Stuff like this - if you are averse to it - is one reason for buying a more expensive bike.

A crank drive - motor in the bottom bracket - means the wheels can have quick release axles, and in any case the bike will already have decent tyres which are less likely to puncture.

Quality also applies to brakes.

Cable operated discs - as on the Big Bear/Oxygen bikes for example - are rubbish.

Many owners upgrade to hydraulics, which is fairly cheap and simple to do, but it's more bike fettling faff which you might not like.

A crank drive bike would already have decent hydraulic discs.

Downside is a crank drive bike will be around £1,750, possibly a bit less depending on spec or if you can find one on offer.

Having said that, the necessary upgrades on a Big Bear or Oxygen could cost £100 if you pay someone to do it.

I know what I'd do, but it's not my money.

What would you do Rob?

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