Go-e On Wheel anyone tried it?

[Nixtoo]

Has anyone see or tried one of these? http://go-e.bike/en/shop/
It potentially looks great, but would really like to see how people find it in reality. The weight us very appealing, as that's the one downside of my current conversion.
Also put off by 8-10 week delivery!

 

[homemoz]

Well, I have one on order. Have asked for delivery to be in July so some time yet before it comes. Intention is to fit to a hybrid as an alternative to my electric folder & allow me to use the bike unpowered when I go out with my wife on her non-electric bike. I have signed up to the newsletter which is interesting and seems responsive to user feedback during trials, so I guess we will see.

 

[Nixtoo]

Fantastic, would you be willing to post a review once it arrives?

 

[Yamdude]

I'd also be very interested in reading a real world review of it...... if reviews are favourable about it, i may consider it for fitting to my road bike. I like the fact its small & unobtrusive and i keep both my standard wheels and gearing. Looks a simple fit as well.
Not sure whether 24V will have enough power and i would like a more streamline shaped battery rather than a bottle one. But i'll reserve judgement until i can get proper reviews of it.

 

[homemoz]

My first ebike was 24v & 180 watt motor. the bike for 7 years & never had a problem with lack of power even up pretty steep hills. The donor bike was a good quality lightweight bike which makes a difference. In the most recent newsletter the size of the battery casing has been reduced significantly for retail production which should make it more discreet. There are a lot of criticisms of these type of drives mainly resulting from Clive Sinclairs efforts with the Zeta, I think it was called. Technology has moved on somewhat from those days, so we'll see whether the problems have been ironed out. I certainly like the idea of a bike which can used either powered or unpowered depending on need.

 

[RobF]

My first ebike was 24v & 180 watt motor. the bike for 7 years & never had a problem with lack of power even up pretty steep hills. The donor bike was a good quality lightweight bike which makes a difference. In the most recent newsletter the size of the battery casing has been reduced significantly for retail production which should make it more discreet. There are a lot of criticisms of these type of drives mainly resulting from Clive Sinclairs efforts with the Zeta, I think it was called. Technology has moved on somewhat from those days, so we'll see whether the problems have been ironed out. I certainly like the idea of a bike which can used either powered or unpowered depending on need.

Well done for putting your money where your mouth is - it's the only way to discover if this friction drive works.

As you say, history is against it.

Tyre scuffing appears to be a big problem, so the tyre you ask it to drive is an important factor.

I think there may be some advice with the kit on the type of tread and profile best suited to the drive wheel.

 

[Yamdude]

My first ebike was 24v & 180 watt motor. the bike for 7 years & never had a problem with lack of power even up pretty steep hills. The donor bike was a good quality lightweight bike which makes a difference. In the most recent newsletter the size of the battery casing has been reduced significantly for retail production which should make it more discreet. There are a lot of criticisms of these type of drives mainly resulting from Clive Sinclairs efforts with the Zeta, I think it was called. Technology has moved on somewhat from those days, so we'll see whether the problems have been ironed out. I certainly like the idea of a bike which can used either powered or unpowered depending on need.

I have no experience of a 24V ebike system, having only rode 36V ones. I'm certainly hoping it would be powerful enough.
I will ignore all the previous bad rep about these systems for the time being. As you say tech moves on and what was once crap could become a great system to suit those like myself.
I have heard about the increased tyre wear rate..... although i'm not sure if this would bother me. With the amount of cycling/ebiking i do, tyres last me years and years. For me anyway, i cant see reduced tyre life being an issue.
Look forward to hearing your report about this system.

 

[anotherkiwi]

For me anyway, i cant see reduced tyre life being an issue.

Having ridden a Vélosolex for many years: yes it is an issue, these drives eat tyres for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The Solex tyres had a thick "drive" band and needed to be changed about every six months with daily use.

Go for a harder rubber compound with the smoothest rolling band you can find.

 

[flecc]

it more discreet. There are a lot of criticisms of these type of drives mainly resulting from Clive Sinclairs efforts with the Zeta,

Not just the Zeta, not even the Zeta, the problems of friction drive onto tyres were well known many decades before.

The Power Pak, the Zap, the Viking, the Velosolex and many others tried all the possible forms but they all have failings. In the main they either slip in the wet or shred tyres, and often both.

The technology makes no difference, the tyre is the weak link, not the roller drive. It's a yesterday solution and we've moved on to much better ways of powering a bike.
.

 

[trex]

as flecc said, we've moved on to much better ways of powering a bike.
where it's mounted, it practically exclude riding on muddy tracks.
it may suit if you are after a low assist bike but I wouldn't recommend it for anything else.

 

[Yamdude]

This latest system from Go-e may or may not have all of the same problems as previous incarnations of this system....... but no one on here knows for a fact either way yet. Which is why i'm reserving judgment.
Minds, like parachutes, work best when they're open.

 

[Yamdude]

Even if this system does turn out to be as problem related as before..... this thread will make a welcome change from tedious arguments about the legalities of Ebikes.
And for me, immeasurably more interesting.

 

[the_killjoy]

May be try combining the drive with a solid tyre.

 

[homemoz]

Well, I posted earlier about ordering go-e. Had an email yesterday saying there has been a manufacturing flaw with the motor unit & that production is delayed. I understand that about 60 units had been shipped with the problem. Anyway, have contacted them to cancel my order. Got an immediate refund, so no problem there. A bit disappointed but not altogether surprised. Not altogether given up - going to keep an eye on both Go-e & Add-e. If the Add-e website is to be believed they are doing pretty well with the kit so far. Both tyre wear & use in the wet is addressed in FAQ for Add-e & the information on the site is comprehensive to say the least. Less so for Go-e which is another reason I started to have my doubts.

Also going to look at more conventional alternatives for the bike I was converting - an 1980s Raleigh Wisp (mixte frame). Basic steel construction but lovely to ride. Was 5 speed - now converted to 6 (Megarange freewheel), 27" recently fitted alloy wheels. Aim is to keep it simple & as lightweight as possible. Ideally, to be able to use both with & without power as required which is where Go-e & Add-e both score. Any suggestions?

 

[Nixtoo]

The add-e looks interesting, quite pricey. If it was £200 cheaper I'd try one!

 

[fishingpaul]

Always keep an open mind,but let other people spend their cash before you spend your own.

 

[deepfraught]

The Go-E OnWheel is making progress through its Kickstarter backers.

Europe seems to be getting deliveries regardless of order or Batch 1/2 early bird possibly due to battery shipping compliance for other regions. I'm deducing this from the campaign comments on who has identified they have received theirs.

Sinclair Zeta was belt driven motor to roller, so history has changed.
I beta tested a domestic inventor's Commuter Booster project, that was an RC outrunner direct to wheel friction drive. Everything so far with Go-E is looking good for a quality product to exist long term, despite people's impatience.

With time passing a better battery has been bulk purchased, and they have leapfrogged Add-E by designing their own motor. It sounds like they were testing it at 800W, but Add-E is 600W max, so seems they are matching it with headroom for reliability.

I considered the Add-E earlier in 2014, but the cost and limitations of it made it a no-brainer to put that large chunk to a nice Bosch performance line geared hub rigid 29er commuter.

GoE Onwheel got my backing with the throttle option stretch goal in the campaign. Having used powerful friction drive, I liken it to a 2 stroke motorcycle relatively in legal electric hub and mid drive world.

Add-E controls were limited to bottle top, so to have power on demand, I'd have to go through on/off and startup delay. The components are still much like the GoE prototype, packaged handsomely but not developed technologically.

A nice light pedal bike that mostly doesn't use assistance, but has the friction drive ready on demand, is the best use case for friction IMO. The friction drive RC outrunner motor noise isn't a pleasant modern bicycle experience. I think that is fine as it moderates your use to minimum if you are a pedal bicycle enthusiast. Making the same trip speed but needing to not sweat for an appointment etc. during the day, but ready to ride to your 80% limit for fun on the way home. The Commuter Booster inherently named the scenarios it suits very well.

For the steel Schwinn example, a clutched geared hub will freewheel so you can have cheap simple quiet hub motor power on demand would be my choice.

My wishlist to replace the friction drive would be a small volume custom made fair weather light weight geared hub closer to a large dynamo but on higher voltage for low torque 10-25kph below average trip speed assistance that keeps sweat down and ballpark similar trip times, legal, and low battery consumption.

Current pedelec torque is really good for mountain users, my scenario for slight hill assist but generally just the feeling of a tail wind on demand, able to pedal regular trip times regardless of conditions... but the human is truly the primary drive.

 

[Spudy23]

Has anyone see or tried one of these? http://go-e.bike/en/shop/
It potentially looks great, but would really like to see how people find it in reality. The weight us very appealing, as that's the one downside of my current conversion.
Also put off by 8-10 week delivery!

I had one for about 2 months after 2 weeks I started to have problems with it. It didn't start or it did start but didn't move the wheel because the roller didn't make contact with the wheel. Also after 3 tires spent in 2 weeks and good few emails with monufacturer, I finally found the right distance between roller and wheel (it needs to be adjusted every week or so). Although they wasn't able to help me with my problems with the motor not working properly and refused to give me refund. And finally the motor burned while I was at work. Then they said that there were traces of salt on the motor( road salt as on every road during winter) and it was basically my fault. So if you can avoid them at all cost. I also spoke with one of their resellers here in Ireland and they stopped to selling them because by their words "everyone came back with some problems except maybe one". So that's my experience

Has anyone see or tried one of these? http://go-e.bike/en/shop/
It potentially looks great, but would really like to see how people find it in reality. The weight us very appealing, as that's the one downside of my current conversion.
Also put off by 8-10 week delivery!

 

[Spudy23]

This latest system from Go-e may or may not have all of the same problems as previous incarnations of this system....... but no one on here knows for a fact either way yet. Which is why i'm reserving judgment.
Minds, like parachutes, work best when they're open.

Has anyone see or tried one of these? http://go-e.bike/en/shop/

It potentially looks great, but would really like to see how people find it in reality. The weight us very appealing, as that's the one downside of my current conversion.

Also put off by 8-10 week delivery!

I had one for about 2 months after 2 weeks I started to have problems with it. It didn't start or it did start but didn't move the wheel because the roller didn't make contact with the wheel. Also after 3 tires spent in 2 weeks and good few emails with monufacturer, I finally found the right distance between roller and wheel (it needs to be adjusted every week or so). Although they wasn't able to help me with my problems with the motor not working properly and refused to give me refund. And finally the motor burned while I was at work. Then they said that there were traces of salt on the motor( road salt as on every road during winter) and it was basically my fault. So if you can avoid them at all cost. I also spoke with one of their resellers here in Ireland and they stopped to selling them because by their words "everyone came back with some problems except maybe one". So that's my experience

 

[SHAN]

Looks like a good idea. The down side is past experience of similar drive styles.
From my own previous experience, this type of drive works perfectly well in ideal conditions, but fails miserably in slush, and rain. In slush you get a build up of the stuff on the drive roller, and in the rain, on hill climbing, you get slippage. I found at the time Specialized Crossroads tyres worked best in rain. The drive unit is lightweight enough to be mounted higher up, away from the bottom bracket, where all the road crud that gets thrown. So I wonder why this hasn't been considered ? I'm sure in nice climates it'll be fine.