Help with my first conversion kit.

[Az.]

Yes 26" 1988 Specialized Rockhopper but I will be fitting an updated front fork with disk brake.

36V250W 26"/28" Front E-Bike Conversion Kit + 36V15.6Ah HL Plus Batter

1.Technical Data and Packing list 2. Warm tips*Our package is equipped with an integrated sensor（as top left corner）. The original pedal sensor in kit isn't fit for Hollowtech II and Octalink. The brake levers are not fit for bike with hydraulic brake. Please carefully confirm the suitable...

www.yosepower.co.uk

£365 - not bad

This should be OK for you. I have 28" kit like this. Just make sure dropout size is right for your fork.
Eventually Email Woosh. Andy will make sure you get right kit for your bike.

If you consider riding off-road at some point, rear hub would be a better option.

 

[AGS]

Are you going to mount the motor on a telescopic fork? And if so what kind of dropout does it have?

 

[Nealh]

I give up.

The Kirby 250w kit is legal , one may have to think about the throttle option if it doesn't have a pedal first option but otherewise the kit is 250w and adheres to EPAC law.
The kit uses a KT controller so any speed nonsense spoken of is all governed by the setting in the LCD, even my KT controllers can be set to more the 15.5mph.
The controller is max 15a so pretty std KT stuff.

We are talking of the KIrby 250w kit and not their more powerful kits which are illegal wattage wise.

 

[thelarkbox]

Fwiw i bought and fitted a kit from yose-power last summer, the install was straight forward with just a niggle issue with my el-cheapo donor bike having a crank a tad too wide for the standard pas sensor shipped requiring a £10 replacement sensor .

I was initially disappointed with the 4mph limit on the throttle and 15.5 mph speed limit set and ordered a replacement KT controller to 'fix' these issues.. However by the time the controller arrived i had gotten used to the e-bike and the 'upgrade' now seems pointless.. so the controller went into ebike #2

I can recommend the yose-power kits and folk in here endorse woosh kits, so you have 2 to choose from.

 

[saneagle]

Just to let you now this kit is illegal. They write "PLEASE NOTE THIS KIT IS FOR OFF-ROAD USE ONLY"

... which is also untrue. This kit is illegal on road and off-road. I would stay away from Kirby if I were you.

Are you looking at the right kit? The one in the link is perfectly legal with the speed set to 15.5mph and the throttle set to be dependent on pedalling.

 

[saneagle]

Yes 26" 1988 Specialized Rockhopper but I will be fitting an updated front fork with disk brake.

A rear motor would be a lot better on a bike like that. In reply to an earlier post, the pedal assist function is extremely useful on an ebike. Just using a throttle sucks. It's not like a motorbike. Make sure that you fit the pedal sensor to get a relaxing ride. You will only understand why afterwards.

 

[Az.]

Are you looking at the right kit? The one in the link is perfectly legal with the speed set to 15.5mph and the throttle set to be dependent on pedalling.

All kits sold by Kirby have cut out speeds above legal 25km/h limit and as such they are sold as illegal. It should not be up to customers to dive deep into legal requirements and learn how to change settings. It is up to seller to ensure customers receive product which they can just install and use without fear of being prosecuted.

 

[TrebzUK]

A rear motor would be a lot better on a bike like that. In reply to an earlier post, the pedal assist function is extremely useful on an ebike. Just using a throttle sucks. It's not like a motorbike. Make sure that you fit the pedal sensor to get a relaxing ride. You will only understand why afterwards.

I am looking at the rear kits as well. I favoured the front kits as they are easier to fit and aren't reliant on anything specific other than a 100mm fork spacing. My old Rockhopper is a 6 speed cassette, not sure if that would fit the rear kits on the market, i'll have to check.

 

[saneagle]

All kits sold by Kirby have cut out speeds above legal 25km/h limit and as such they are sold as illegal. It should not be up to customers to dive deep into legal requirements and learn how to change settings. It is up to seller to ensure customers receive product which they can just install and use without fear of being prosecuted.

It's a kit, not an ebike. Do you know for a fact that ALL their kits are sent out without the speed set to 15.5mph?

 

[Az.]

Do you know for a fact that ALL their kits are sent out without the speed set to 15.5mph?

OK... aren't you bored being right all the time?
Found Swytch clone kit which looks legit and potentially TSDZ2B 250W... not sure why they advertise it for off-road only and with 40km/h speed.

 

[lenny]

"Kirby’s website claims riders can “easily” reach 40mph – although it warns the £899 kit is for off-road use only. "

Dad in pain 'every hour of the day' losing teen son in tragic e-bike accident

Richard Murray is calling for change after warning kits are being sold online to turn normal e-bikes into 'souped up death traps'

www.lancs.live

 

[TrebzUK]

What the hell has that got to do with me asking for help with a 250w UK legal bike kit? I'll be leaving this group now.

 

[lenny]

What the hell has that got to do with me asking for help with a 250w UK legal bike kit? I'll be leaving this group now.

This is the kit I have found to be, I think, best suited for me:

https://kirbebike.com/products/250w-ebike-conversion-kit?variant=43365620678809

 

[vidtek]

My 2 bob's worth. I was new to all bikes not having been on one for over 50 years after giving up on my beloved Yammy due to constant nagging by the lovely Jane. I knew nothing of the terminology and hadn't a clue what a bottom bracket was, let alone a crank.

This forum has been helpful to me, but it seems many replies here have been somewhat less than helpful.
As a first timer, I ordered a Sunbear from Whoosh. A front wheel motor with plenty of oomph, street legal but heavy as hell, and skittish on loose surfaces feeling not quite comfortable. I then tried a rear wheel Freego Eagle, street legal and a very comfortable more natural ride but sorely under-powered.

My next attempt was a self-build. I went to my local charity bike shop, Hope to cycle.
They gave me the keys to their back shed, and told me to find a suitable bike as a donor for conversion. I went through hundreds and eventually picked a Specialized Crossroads, circa 1980's which was a very light bike at about 15kg. Whoosh then supplied a mid-drive kit a TSDZ2 which was very easy to fit and I was able to chat to Andy on the 'phone to sort out my queries. I have now had this for three years and 2500 miles and am very satisfied with it. It has the most natural ride of any e-bike I have tried and it suits me best. The throttle is a big bone of contention here on the forums, and although the law is a pretty grey area here I would never ride an e-bike without one. It is a real safety feature for me, as setting off from a standing start especially on an incline, it enables me to start smoothly and safely instead of wobbling all over the road. The torque sensor feels very natural, cadence sensors are more jerky. The torque sensor requires more input from the rider, which suits me as I need the exercise.
Because it is a kit and on an old bike, the law is pretty well weighted with it probably being legal in this instance, but these things have yet to be properly tested in a court of law, but I take my safety seriously after having fallen off an ended up in A&E after hitting a lamp-post at 15mph. (Cat ran out in front of me in a narrow alley).
So that is my journey into e-bikes and I will keep this bike as long as it and I last.

Hope this helps.

 

[Deleted member 45125]

The kit as posted here is sold as 48v by default with the option to have the lower 36v at a lower price. As the kit is shown with the 48v by default i should expect it to work ok.

https://kirbebike.com/products/48v250w-ebike-conversion-kit?variant=43851302535321

I looked at all the front wheel kits and decided on Yosepower. I chose the 36v 15.6Ah battery with an integrated controller mounted on the battery carrier. I have fitted it to a folding bike just recently and it was straightforward.

 

[Deleted member 45125]

Fwiw i bought and fitted a kit from yose-power last summer, the install was straight forward with just a niggle issue with my el-cheapo donor bike having a crank a tad too wide for the standard pas sensor shipped requiring a £10 replacement sensor .

I was initially disappointed with the 4mph limit on the throttle and 15.5 mph speed limit set and ordered a replacement KT controller to 'fix' these issues.. However by the time the controller arrived i had gotten used to the e-bike and the 'upgrade' now seems pointless.. so the controller went into ebike #2

I can recommend the yose-power kits and folk in here endorse woosh kits, so you have 2 to choose from.

I took can agree with you re: Yosepower. I added the front wheel kit to a new folding model and there was not the 4mm spacing for the standard PAS sensor. I overcame this by grinding off just 3mm from the alloy crank. I am very pleased that I bought this kit and customer service is perfect.

 

[matthewslack]

What the hell has that got to do with me asking for help with a 250w UK legal bike kit? I'll be leaving this group now.

Sorry to see you go. Thread hijacking perhaps requires a bit more attention.

 

[lenny]

Sorry to see you go. Thread hijacking perhaps requires a bit more attention.

 

[Bonzo Banana]

Yes 26" 1988 Specialized Rockhopper but I will be fitting an updated front fork with disk brake.

I really can't see an issue with fitting a throttle only ebike kit to this bike. It was made well before the 2016 date when throttles weren't allowed. If stopped you can just claim you have had to replace ebike components as they failed and wore out. I can't see any realistic way this could be prosecuted for having a twist and go throttle as long as it keeps to 250W approx and 15.5mph max assistance speed.

The whole ebike legislation is a mess with 900W ebikes claiming to be 250W in fact every legal ebike claims to be 250W despite the huge difference in power with some pulling close to 900W going up hills. It's an unmanageable farce with such ridiculous legislation and almost impossible to police.

I searched for ebike prosecutions and I can only find reference to very over powered ebikes often heavy that assist beyond 15.5mph and ebikes without pedals.

 

[Az.]

before the 2016 date when throttles weren't allowed.

Were

The whole ebike legislation is a mess with 900W ebikes claiming to be 250W in fact every legal ebike claims to be 250W despite the huge difference in power with some pulling close to 900W going up hills.

I thought it has been explained to you many times, yet here we are again...