Newbie in the process of Buying a Wisper

[banaltra]

Hey Guys,
In the process of buying a Wisper 905eco from the cycle to work scheme. The reasons I chose the Wisper was for build quality, quality of the motor and battery, good feedback from other owners, enjoying a lovely test drive, and finally the fantastic customer care and after care of the bike. Really excited about it after reading all the reviews on this site. Most of them being on the 905se. I decided to go for the eco. Some members on this site suggested making one or 2 upgrades on the 905eco/se. I wanted to stick with the v-brake system, but upgrade the pads, and was thinking after a few suggestions by members about upgrading the gears from 6 speed to the 7 speed with the mega-range 11-34t at the back and 42t at the front. This also seems to work for people using mtb's regularly for commuting who have reduced their gearing to single speed at the front. What are peoples opinions on this? Also, I wonder can the crank in the front be changed or is this connected to the electrical system in the bike?
Either way, I will cycle it as is for the next month. Its highly likely I'll just love it as is. My problem being I've done all the research, read all the reviews, and other than my test drive of the bike I haven't cycled it yet as I'm still waiting to complete the transaction from works end of things. I've decided to get rid of the daily driver too coz I have a very reliable 72 beetle that I can use just in case.
Another question, I fully intend to cycle in the elements, but how does it fair in snowy or icy conditions?

 

[Mussels]

Hi,
The chainring on the front can be changed fairly easily although I had some difficulty getting the chain to stay on after I did it. That might be because I went for a cheap chainring.
What the bike lacks is gear range rather than gears, if you can get the same range with 6 gears it may not be worth the money of upgrading. Some people like megarange but I found it was useless and effectively removed a useful gear from the bike. I much preferred changing the chainring to make the 7 gears as useful as possible.
Riding in ice and snow is possible if you get the right tyres, if you don't you'll fall off a lot. You still fall off with the right tyres but it's rare. I live in the south so my biggest problem is ice rather than snow, for that almost standard tyres with studs are best. They aren't much good in deeper snow where a thick tread is needed. If you get an aggressive tread with studs and ride it on normal roads then it won't last long. I find studs tend to fall out and personally I prefer the Continental winter tyres with micro studs but there's not much between them and Marathon Winters.

 

[banaltra]

Thanks a million mussels. Appreciate that advice. What range of gears would you suggest or have you tried any particular range yourself?
Not sure if I will end up cycling when the weather gets so bad that it'll be really icy/snowy, especially when the old beetle is brilliant in these conditions, but I'd rather not be a fair weather cyclist either. I feel I want to really commit commuting by bike, but don't want to be silly either. We'll just have to see but thanks for the advice on the tyres

 

[TylerD]

Hi banaltra, I have 4 year old Wisper 705 which I got 2nd hand . It has been one of my best ever purchases and if you get half as much pleasure from your 905 you'll be a happy man. Enjoy!

 

[banaltra]

Thanks Tyler. I'm ridiculously excited about it so can't wait to give it a go. Haven't even cycled it yet and I think I've persuaded my best friend to get one too (I'm tormenting people going on about it). Not that I want to have a matching bike with my bestie, but its such a good investment.
I think you right, well almost, I'll be a happy woman, hehe!

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Hi banaltra, I have 4 year old Wisper 705 which I got 2nd hand . It has been one of my best ever purchases and if you get half as much pleasure from your 905 you'll be a happy man. Enjoy!

Thanks Tyler, much appreciated!

Good luck with the eco Banaltra!

All the best

David

 

[TylerD]

I think you right, well almost, I'll be a happy woman, hehe!

Oops, sorry!

 

[Mussels]

Thanks a million mussels. Appreciate that advice. What range of gears would you suggest or have you tried any particular range yourself?

There's not a lot of choice for freewheels and mine was 7 speed so I'm not sure what your options are. Don't make the mistake I did and buy Suntours thinking all freewheels are standard, the Suntours ones are spaced differently. All other brands 'should' work and Ezee might be worth a look as they did a freewheel suited to electric bikes, I've not tried it myself though.

 

[banaltra]

Well I got my wisper on friday and absolutely love it. My local bike shop mechanic has serviced several electric bikes and is real impressed with this bike. My brother never had any interest in electric bikes and I couldn't get him off the bike he enjoyed it so much, and he is a fitness freak/rugby player. I have absolutely no complaints about this and I'm really loving it. So, the real test is when the commuting starts in all weather conditions and I've cycled a few hundred miles but for now I can safely say the first impressions of this bike are that I'm onto a winner with it. I might never change gear systems or anything because during my weekend cycling I didn't need any extra gears and the gear changes were smooth. I'll review the bike after 500 miles.

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Brilliant news Banalta!

Thanks so much for the business, happy Wispering!

All the best

David

 

[TylerD]

You'll need to get used to going around with a grin on your face banaltra, happy cycling!