Need a suitable hub motor/wheel replacement for a Swytch kit

[franken]

Hi folks,

I've had my Swytch kit for a while now and it's generally been good, however there's something wrong with the hub motor and I'm out of warranty (I hear a weird high-pitched grinding, like some internal gears are slipping or something).

It seems they no longer sell spare parts like this directly on their site so I enquired about how much a replacement wheel & motor would cost, they quoted from 300 quid! This seems way overpriced to me. I'm trying to find a compatible hub motor with 700c wheel (preferably pre-built so I don't have to spend extra on a wheel and having it built around the motor). Does anyone know where I can order something compatible? I found this http://www.topbikekit.com/akm100h-36v350w-ebike-front-driving-hub-motor-36holes-with-2026inch700cc-wheel-rim-p-876.html which I think might work (the voltage, RPM and connector looks right). However this site ships from China and for some reason the cheapest delivery option is nearly 200 dollars! (so that's $300 before import duty and VAT). Plus I don't even know for sure it will work.

The UK seems to be a bit of a desert for these kinds of spare parts, it's quite frustrating. Does anyone have any cheaper alternatives? Also, are there things I should be looking out for when trying to find something compatible?

Thanks!

 

[Benjahmin]

Hold up chap ! Before you spend your hard earned, the symptoms you describe can often be caused by a bad electrical connection to the motor. Yes, I know it sounds convincingly mechanical and you are sure it's a bearing or broken gear or something - been there, denied it, then found a partially melted plug.
Check all/any connectors between the controller and the motor. Is there a multipin connector near the motor? If so check that it is FULLY home, there will probably be an alignment mark on it. Check the same plug (and any others) for any heat damage showing as blackening or distortion.
It is rare for hub motors to fail, chances are there's an easy fix to this. Can you put up a recording of the noise?

 

[matthewslack]

Hi folks,

I've had my Swytch kit for a while now and it's generally been good, however there's something wrong with the hub motor and I'm out of warranty (I hear a weird high-pitched grinding, like some internal gears are slipping or something).

It seems they no longer sell spare parts like this directly on their site so I enquired about how much a replacement wheel & motor would cost, they quoted from 300 quid! This seems way overpriced to me. I'm trying to find a compatible hub motor with 700c wheel (preferably pre-built so I don't have to spend extra on a wheel and having it built around the motor). Does anyone know where I can order something compatible? I found this http://www.topbikekit.com/akm100h-36v350w-ebike-front-driving-hub-motor-36holes-with-2026inch700cc-wheel-rim-p-876.html which I think might work (the voltage, RPM and connector looks right). However this site ships from China and for some reason the cheapest delivery option is nearly 200 dollars! (so that's $300 before import duty and VAT). Plus I don't even know for sure it will work.

The UK seems to be a bit of a desert for these kinds of spare parts, it's quite frustrating. Does anyone have any cheaper alternatives? Also, are there things I should be looking out for when trying to find something compatible?

Thanks!

...and how long was its warranty, how far out of it are you? Products that fail just out of warranty are often regarded as not being of sufficient quality etc by the courts, especially if quite expensive, so you may be able to talk Swytch into helping you out if it is a failed motor.

 

[franken]

Hold up chap ! Before you spend your hard earned, the symptoms you describe can often be caused by a bad electrical connection to the motor. Yes, I know it sounds convincingly mechanical and you are sure it's a bearing or broken gear or something - been there, denied it, then found a partially melted plug.
Check all/any connectors between the controller and the motor. Is there a multipin connector near the motor? If so check that it is FULLY home, there will probably be an alignment mark on it. Check the same plug (and any others) for any heat damage showing as blackening or distortion.
It is rare for hub motors to fail, chances are there's an easy fix to this. Can you put up a recording of the noise?

Hi, thanks for the tips. I will check however I don't think that's it. The problem happens in quite specific cases, like going up a hill and the motor is under strain. When I'm on the the flat or going downhill it doesn't happen. I'm not able to go out and get a recording any time soon, but if you imagine a piece of heavy furniture being moved sharply across a hard floor, that's the closest I can describe it as. In my mind it's as if the nylon gears in the hub are slipping or grinding, something like that.

 

[franken]

...and how long was its warranty, how far out of it are you? Products that fail just out of warranty are often regarded as not being of sufficient quality etc by the courts, especially if quite expensive, so you may be able to talk Swytch into helping you out if it is a failed motor.

It's a 1st gen motor, made by Xiongda it says. So it's a good few years old now. For the hassle involved in pursuing such a claim, I'd rather just buy a new wheel (if it's not super expensive). Plus the rolling resistance of this hub is quite high, so it would be nice to have a new one.

 

[matthewslack]

It's a 1st gen motor, made by Xiongda it says. So it's a good few years old now. For the hassle involved in pursuing such a claim, I'd rather just buy a new wheel (if it's not super expensive). Plus the rolling resistance of this hub is quite high, so it would be nice to have a new one.

A few years of use is a reasonable Iifetime. There might be replacement gears available if you were minded to open it up and have a look. If you do, post pictures and someone might recognise the innards.

 

[franken]

A few years of use is a reasonable Iifetime. There might be replacement gears available if you were minded to open it up and have a look. If you do, post pictures and someone might recognise the innards.

I can do basic bike maintenance and I fitted the kit, but I think tinkering with the inside of the hub might be a bit beyond me. It kind of works as it is now, I'd rather not break it completely without a replacement on-hand.

 

[Nealh]

You have to be careful with the xiongda's as in the most part they are only small lightweight hubs, which model is it ?
Is it the ultra light ytw06 ?

One expects without opening it the nylon gears are slipping/worn.

Also some of the controllers used use specific programming as normal bog std ones don't work with them so it may be that one can't use any old hub either.

Unless you get the switch wheeled hub, one likely will only be able to buy a xiongda hub only so it will need to built up in a rim.

 

[franken]

You have to be careful with the xiongda's as in the most part they are only small lightweight hubs, which model is it ?
A ytw06 ?

One expects without opening it the nylon gears are slipping/worn.

Also some of the controllers used use specific programming as normal bog std ones don't work with them so it may be that one can't use any old hub either.

I can't really tell which model it is tbh, I looked at some pics of a YTW 06 and it looks similar, but who knows. Re. the controller, I've seen from some posts on here that Swytch are now using a different hub motor so I suspect their controller can cope with other types besides the Xiongda (I have the newer controller pack from Swytch now).

 

[peteb]

Hi Franken
Just wondering how you went with the replacement hub for the Swytch bike. I have had similar problems with my Swytch bike, ie motor makes horrible noise, sounds like it's trying to go backwards etc. However as Benjahmin says mine is actually an electrical problem to do with the handlebar mount shorting out somehow which causes wrong signals to go to the motor. Swytch sent me a replacement mount which fixed the problem, although 6 weeks later it started again with the added bonus of the motor cutting out while pedaling. So would be interested in knowing how you got on with the issue.
regards
pete

 

[franken]

Hi Franken
Just wondering how you went with the replacement hub for the Swytch bike. I have had similar problems with my Swytch bike, ie motor makes horrible noise, sounds like it's trying to go backwards etc. However as Benjahmin says mine is actually an electrical problem to do with the handlebar mount shorting out somehow which causes wrong signals to go to the motor. Swytch sent me a replacement mount which fixed the problem, although 6 weeks later it started again with the added bonus of the motor cutting out while pedaling. So would be interested in knowing how you got on with the issue.
regards
pete

Hi, I looked at a hub wheel from cyclotricity as it was reasonably priced but the torque wasn't great compared to the Swytch motor so I left that one. A couple of things happened, I contacted Swytch and they told me to make sure the big motor cable connection from the hub was fully seated. Lo and behold that resolved the issue initially. However, it's now having another issue, making a different noise.

In the end I ordered the new version of the Swytch kit which looks to have a better bracket (I got the early bird special for a big discount). If you're interested in that, this is my referral link: https://launch.swytchbike.com/?referral=SWY-08D607C-REF using it you get a discount and the LED display free. However, technically the referral program ended but it doesn't look like they've actually stopped it on the website yet (it may or may not work, I can't promise anything). I think they are running behind on processing all the orders which may be why it's still active.

 

[franken]

it started again with the added bonus of the motor cutting out while pedaling.

Btw I found this happened occasionally because the pedal sensor got knocked out of alignment. Using a zip tie between the pedal crank arm and the sensor disk helps to keep it in check.

 

[peterjd]

Hi, I haven't read all of this discussion so my comment may already have been made. I had similar sounding problems with my Swytch several years ago. Was solved (at least so far) by a replacement controller. Also have subsequently relocated the 10Ah battery (original and Yose replacement) to the rear for better weight distribution, without having any problems with intermittent connections (due to reduced power pack weight) at the handlebar mount.

 

[franken]

Also have subsequently relocated the 10Ah battery (original and Yose replacement) to the rear for better weight distribution, without having any problems with intermittent connections (due to reduced power pack weight) at the handlebar mount.

Hi, I'd be interested to know more about this. Can you share a photo and some more details about how you did that perhaps?

 

[peterjd]

Hi, I'd be interested to know more about this. Can you share a photo and some more details about how you did that perhaps?

I'll take some photos when I go out tomorrow morning. It's a mk 1 Swytch by the way - but I guess weight distribution would be much less of a problem with the recent Swytch re-incarnation because of reduced battery capacity but at the expense of range.

 

[franken]

I'll take some photos when I go out tomorrow morning. It's a mk 1 Swytch by the way - but I guess weight distribution would be much less of a problem with the recent Swytch re-incarnation because of reduced battery capacity but at the expense of range.

Ah ok thanks. I think the range is advertised as the same as it was before, they apparently switched to using higher capacity batteries in their newer packs (except for the "eco" version).

 

[peterjd]

Ah ok thanks. I think the range is advertised as the same as it was before, they apparently switched to using higher capacity batteries in their newer packs (except for the "eco" version).

The attached photos (sorry no time to edit) show what I've done. Extended the battery connection with low impedance audio speaker wire (enclosed in black spiral wrap) with appropriate (yellow) male and female connectors. Yose battery 'attached' to rear pannier rack with belts and bungy rubber (not shown). Works ok for me. PS Original battery developed fault in one string of 3 paralleled cells. Hope to repair - wip. Peter

 

[franken]

The attached photos (sorry no time to edit) show what I've done.

Very interesting thanks. I previously had an idea to add a range extender battery to my bike which I could set up with a switch, but the wiring aspect is a bit beyond me

 

[sjpt]

Very interesting thanks. I previously had an idea to add a range extender battery to my bike which I could set up with a switch, but the wiring aspect is a bit beyond me

There's quite a long thread somewhere (*) about various alternative ways to wire, but it is much simpler just to have two batteries and swap them as needed.

(*) https://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/threads/parallel-batteries-again.42650/

 

[peteb]

Hi, I looked at a hub wheel from cyclotricity as it was reasonably priced but the torque wasn't great compared to the Swytch motor so I left that one. A couple of things happened, I contacted Swytch and they told me to make sure the big motor cable connection from the hub was fully seated. Lo and behold that resolved the issue initially. However, it's now having another issue, making a different noise.

In the end I ordered the new version of the Swytch kit which looks to have a better bracket (I got the early bird special for a big discount). If you're interested in that, this is my referral link: https://launch.swytchbike.com/?referral=SWY-08D607C-REF using it you get a discount and the LED display free. However, technically the referral program ended but it doesn't look like they've actually stopped it on the website yet (it may or may not work, I can't promise anything). I think they are running behind on processing all the orders which may be why it's still active.

Hi Franken
Thanks for your quick reply and the link. I see someone else on this thread has had a similar problem with motor cutting out. Looked at your link for the new kit, apparently compatible with the older wheel. So 250 quid to upgrade to the new battery / controller pack. It's a rather small battery, even the larger one and I think it would be too small. When they say 30km I take that to realistically mean about 20. (I see you have been considering ways to extend the range.) I do like the idea of mounting the new battery pack in different places as I think the handlebar mount is not really up to the job on the old model, at least in my case. I have a pretty decent pannier bag on the back so I might look into extending the various wires to the rear and carrying the battery in the rear pannier.
Cheers Pete