Handsome hill climbers

[chubster]

Hello. My first thread.
I live just outside Bath and am surrounded by some serious hills. I am interested in getting a pedelec for myself and my wife that will enable us to tackle these hills without breaking sweat (I have a mountain bike for when i want a workout). I am very keen that these bikes look stylish too, with a discreet battery. I have been on a Sparta Ion and was impressed with the styling, gadgetry and comfort levels (although surprised at how heavy it was) but there weren't any hills nearby to check its climb performance. From your previous threads the Kalkhoff Pro-Connect seems the best bike around and it certainly looks slick too. Is the Sparta in the same league? Am I missing something? Thanks

 

[flecc]

Hello chubster, welcome. Despite it's undoubted quality and style, the Sparta is one of the weakest hill climbers of all. One reviewer remarked that it only had the ability to get itself up a steep hill (1 in 5), leaving the cyclist doing as much as if it were an unassisted bike. The reason for that is that it was originally designed in Holland for the Dutch market where there's no hills, and it didn't even have derailleur gears when it first arrived here, just being single speed and hopelessly unsuited to Britain. The derision that attracted resulted in the derailleur being added, plus the M gear name. I'd guess the M stands for a Dutch mountain.

The Pro Connect or any of the bikes with the Panasonic motor unit can climb just about anything as they drive through the rider gears, so as a hill steepens, you just change down as on a car. Therefore they are the best bikes for those formidable Bath hills. Best choose one with the high power option for your hilly area though, but all the Kalkhoff models have that.

You do have to pedal all the time with them as they are pedelecs, and you have to provide up to 50% of the power required, the motor doing the rest. They are lighter than the Sparta, the Pro Connect much lighter, and they have much longer range too.
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[chubster]

Thanks Flecc - that's certainly cleared that one up!!

 

[simonbarnett]

But stay tuned for when anyone sees a Kalkhoff delivered unless you want a step through.

 

[flecc]

I've just been assured that Kalkhoff supplies will all be by April in time for the Presteigne event.
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[chubster]

How does the swizzbee compare? Hardly discreet battery I know, but still quite stylish and whereas the Dutch have no hills, Switzerland is hilltastic .

 

[flecc]

How does the swizzbee compare? Hardly discreet battery I know, but still quite stylish and whereas the Dutch have no hills, Switzerland is hilltastic .

Strangely enough it's not a particularly good hill climber, just average, being designed for outright speed, not what you might expect from a Swiss bike. It's a rather odd machine, using a high mounted Heinzmann motor driving though a belt to one side of the rear wheel, the bike chain driving the derailleur on the other side. In between is a very clever and complex hub gear arrangement which sums the rider and motor power to good effect, and that's where much of the cost is. It is illegally fast here. That's the good side.

On the other hand, the Heinzmann motor, though well made is an old design and a bit noisy. With drive to both sides of the rear wheel, tyre and tube changes are likely to be unattractive jobs. Also, and rather oddly for a bike from a hilly area, it does have to be pedalled off the mark for the power to cut in. It's only a turn or two, but I wouldn't want to do that from a standstill uphill, and of course the price is extremely high. I certainly wouldn't choose it for your hills, though if you are a powerful rider it could be ok.

Although Switzerland is famously mountainous, the main road hills are well engineered with typically Swiss thoroughness and not particularly steep. Alpine passes in both Switzerland and France are typically between 7% and 10%, which your hills and mine put in the shade. Results from our penchant for spreading some tar onto a cart track and calling it a road, then expanding it over the years.
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[musicbooks]

Hello. My first thread.
I live just outside Bath and am surrounded by some serious hills. I am interested in getting a pedelec for myself and my wife that will enable us to tackle these hills without breaking sweat (I have a mountain bike for when i want a workout). I am very keen that these bikes look stylish too, with a discreet battery. I have been on a Sparta Ion and was impressed with the styling, gadgetry and comfort levels (although surprised at how heavy it was) but there weren't any hills nearby to check its climb performance. From your previous threads the Kalkhoff Pro-Connect seems the best bike around and it certainly looks slick too. Is the Sparta in the same league? Am I missing something? Thanks

Hi Chubster,
Welcome to the forum. I too live in Bath and I have done a lot of research on and off the forum on good hill climbers (for obvious reasons). A number of people including Flecc and Aldby to name but a couple have given me sound advice which you can track through my threads. In the end, I went for the 49cm Diamond Frame Agattu.. It would seem that the combination of the panasonic motor and the gearing is best available to deal with our hills. In fact, Flecc hasn't really recommended anything else that can cope. I am assuming here that you want to buy a pedelec (i.e. a bike that requires pedalling to operate the motor) . If you aren't that fussed, and don't mind a throttle based bike, then I'd go for the powabyke commuter.. e-bike/no pedalling required. It's heavier than the Agattu ( Something I had to take into account as I'll have to lumber it up a lot of steps at my house) but it is cheaper.. and the head office is in Bath so there's plenty of local after sales support. Frank is very helpful and they do free test rides. It's also worth noting too that Powabyke are going to launch 2 new models in 2008.. perhaps a bit more sporty and less like golf caddys!

So my first choice would be the Agattu or the Pro-connect.. with Powabike in second place. However, there have been some delays on delivery (I've been waiting since the beginning of Nov) but this problem is hopefully now resolved with my bike expected this week. I suggest you give 50cycles a ring and ask them directly. Ask for Scott or Tim and they are on 0844 800 5979. Then ring Powabike and ask for a test ride.

BW
musicbooks

 

[chubster]

Thanks all. Really useful advice - you've got a great network here.

 

[Burnsey]

I've just been assured that Kalkhoff supplies will all be by April in time for the Presteigne event.
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What date in April would that be Flecc?

 

[flecc]

What date in April would that be Flecc?

I didn't remember the Presteigne date, so took the statement at face value.

Having just looked it up, I see it's 17th and 18th May this year, so it seems April is an extra long month this year.

2008 is actually a leap year, but it seems it's leaping rather a lot this time.
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