Not owned a bike for 12 years, lots of questions before I buy....

[mark taylor]

Hi All,

New poster but have been browsing for a while... I have a few questions, which I am struggling to find answers for.

About me: I am 34, 5,9" around 14.5 stone. Very unfit....

Use - As much as I would like to pretend the bike is going to be used for off road, the reality is it will be more likely on road commuting 9 miles to work (18 mile round trip). I would like the option of off road when my fitness improves.

Questions:
I have seen some fat ebikes. I don't believe there is any need for me to have one but I just like the look of the big tiers....

• https://wooshbikes.co.uk/?rio-ls
• https://voltbikes.co.uk/bigfoot-fat-tyre-electric-bike.php

1. Is there much difference between these bikes (except price)?
2. I prefer the look of the volt (I am not sure on the lower bar on the woosh), but there is no rack at the back, is this possible to add as I would need this for commuting to work?
3. what are the negatives of a fat ebike. From my basic view as it is battery assisted the bigger tires wont slow me down? This maybe a wrong view...
4. Are these bikes usable in the rain? (I live in north wales it rains a lot).
5. Are there any other options? I have seen a few on amazon but these seems to have 1000w motors which I believe is illegal in UK.

Another options I like the look of is the oxygen, however this does not come with a rear rack (again can this be added)

• http://www.oxygenbicycles.com/e-bikes/s-cross-mtb.

Lastly I have seen bikes by cyclotricity, which seem cheap and with a good battery. looking on post here they seem to have some issues. Should I stay clear?

I am new to this so if anyone has any other suggestions I would take them openly! Really I am looking for a sporty looking, comfortable, good range, not over priced (£2k-£2.2k max but would prefer less). Also that I can put a rack on the back to carry my work stuff (Small laptop and clothes).

Thanks for all the help!

 

[Nefarious]

I just bought a Focus eMTB and am absolutely loving it. The tires are sufficiently chunky and the whole package looks the dogs and rides beautifully. The link below shows one with £500 off in your price range...
https://www.jejamescycles.com/focus-bold2-29-ltd-10g-10-e-bike.html

 

[mark taylor]

thanks for the reply.

What is the benefit of the focus over say http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?rio-mtb

I despise the colour scheme on the woosh (can this be changed)?

 

[Trevormonty]

For your budget there a lot of choices for factory middrive hardtail MTBs. Checkout Cube, KTM, Merida, Trek, Gaint. To name a few.
A lot offer eMTBs with commuter kit which highly recommended. Lights, mudguards, kickstand and rack. Typically it is lower spec bikes but KTM will fit to any in their range. May even have choice of lights.
Budget for quality panniers and lock.

Airfork minimum for MTBing. Trek Powerfly 5 is good spec level to compare bikes against.

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Hi Mark, If you are going to ride nearly 100 miles a week on the road, you will be much better off with a thinner tyre, 2" max. The rolling resistance is lower and the handling is better. All the brands you mention make good bikes with thinner tyres. Fat bikes may look cool and on soft ground and snow they are amazing, but for day to day commuting you would be better off with a more standard size.

All the best, David

 

[JPGiant]

Check this one from Oxygen...
http://www.oxygenbicycles.com/e-bikes/s-cross-cb

 

[Nefarious]

thanks for the reply.

What is the benefit of the focus over say http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?rio-mtb

I despise the colour scheme on the woosh (can this be changed)?

I have no first-hand experience of Woosh and I am not going to disparage them but my personal impression is that they are more at the 'value for money' end of the market, whereas I would put Focus in the same category as the likes of Trek and Scott - big emphasis on quality, engineering and innovation. They have a very close developmental relationship with the likes of Shimano and Fazua. Take a look at some of the online sources re Focus, such as the Paralane2 road bike and the TEC power system and it gives you an idea of the company

 

[Wisper Bikes]

I wouldn't agree Nefarious, Woosh offer great value for money, they don't use cheap components associated with the cheap Chinese imports, and look after their customers very well, a lot better than the big brands I would guess.

Just because Woosh are a smaller business does not mean they are not as good or better than the huge, faceless multinationals.

We too are very close to Shimano and Fazua, indeed Fazua have bought one of our road bikes to take on their shows this year, but neither of those systems will be as good as a decent hub drive for the job the OP is wanting his bike for.

All the best, David

 

[Nefarious]

I wouldn't agree Nefarious, Woosh offer great value for money, they don't use cheap components associated with the cheap Chinese imports, and look after their customers very well, a lot better than the big brands I would guess.

Just because Woosh are a smaller business does not mean they are not as good or better than the huge, faceless multinationals.

We too are very close to Shimano and Fazua, indeed Fazua have bought one of our road bikes to take on their shows this year, but neither of those systems will be as good as a decent hub drive for the job the OP is wanting his bike for.

All the best, David

So we agree that they are value for money. I never said they used cheap components and I gave no opinion either way on the customer service of either brand

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Great, thanks for the clarification.

All the best, David

 

[mark taylor]

Thanks for the input,

So from what I can tell I am best off getting a hybrid bike, which would be either of the below?

http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?krieger - £1,229 for 15Ah battery

http://www.oxygenbicycles.com/e-bikes/s-cross-cb - £1,399 for 13Ah battery

Apart from the £180 price difference and smaller battery. Is there much difference with these bikes?

I see the oxygen has 21 gears vs 7 on the woosh, but is that necessary on an ebike?

Will the battery make much of a difference?

 

[mark taylor]

(sorry didn't realise could edit last comment)

is one bike going to be quicker than the other?

I prefer the look of the oxygen, but to my untrained eye it looks to have a smaller battery and cost more?

Also - Is there anything else on this price range that compares with these?

 

[Nefarious]

my bike has 11 gears but so far I have only used numbers 3-11 and the range of gear ratios are great. I have seen comments elsewhere about struggling to find a gear that feels comfortable but no similar problems here. I suspect I will never use the really big cogs unless I run out of juice one day!! Haven't felt any need for more than that. I also carry a laptop, clothes etc every day and find a close-fitting rucksack perfectly acceptable uphill and down. I'd recommend trying it first before going down the pannier bag route - there are not many options that you can't fit a rack to afterwards if that's your final preference.

On the subject of those big nobbly tires, mine are 2.4" and I certainly don't feel slowed down by them. I can travel downhill just as fast as on my 10kg gravel bike and riding on the flat is very easy. Maybe the truly fat (fattie) tires are a different matter though

 

[Nealh]

Woosh is mail order only unless of course you can visit there premises in Southend, as mentioned back up/ CS is superb.

Trying/test riding a few differing types with drive motor, if you are not sure of bike to buy which kind of rules out Woosh.

Buying unseen ?
If you don't like or it doesn't fit right isn't easy to return esp if you have been out on a ride, the bike is then soiled/used and can't be resold as new.
They will however locate a LBS to look after your bike for you if you are not able to.

 

[Nefarious]

Woosh is mail order only unless of course you can visit there premises in Southend, as mentioned back up/ CS is superb.

Trying/test riding a few differing types with drive motor, if you are not sure of bike to buy which kind of rules out Woosh.

Buying unseen ?
If you don't like or it doesn't fit right isn't easy to return esp if you have been out on a ride, the bike is then soiled/used and can't be resold as new.
They will however locate a LBS to look after your bike for you if you are not able to.

This is what pushed me towards my LBS rather than mail-order. I would expect that the best mail-order firms would have great customer service, and they would maintain a direct relationship with the customer, as opposed to the big manufacturers where the relationship is with the dealer (who has a direct relationship with Mercedes Benz, other than Lewis Hamilton??). I understand that the mail-order firms often run events so that people can test-ride their bikes, though not sure whether they get together to allow you to compare brands

 

[mark taylor]

sorry what is LBS?

 

[Nefarious]

sorry what is LBS?

sorry mate! Local Bike Store - seems to be a popular abbreviation around here

 

[mark taylor]

Ha, it's my bad I really know nothing about bikes...

So I'm very confused now . I like the look of the oxygen MTB and it seems a rack can be put on back (although looks sold out).

How would the hybrid bikes perform on say a dirt trail through the park? Or is that a no go are they really just road bikes?

 

[Eagle]

mark taylor,

You are doing the right thing by doing your research ahead of purchase and not the other way round.

Both the Oxygen MTB and Woosh Krieger have decent hydraulic disc brakes which are better than the cable disc of the Oxygen CB.

Cassette/freewheel gearing:

Oxygen CB has 14T-34T, Woosh Krieger has 14T-34T, the Oxygen MTB has 11T-32T.

The higher-geared Oxygen MTB means that you will not be “pedalling air” (spinning out) at higher speeds compared to the other two. Spinning out is very frustrating on a low-geared bike. You want/are able to go faster but the low gears work against you.

I have no idea whether your intended route includes hills.
My local area in West Wales has plenty and contrary to the perceived wisdom that “an ebike only needs a small number of gears”, I would disagree for hilly terrain, especially with a fairly heavy rider.

I am really pleased that I chose a bike with 27 gears. I have had to resort to front chainwheel #2 on one particularly steep climb and I know of another local hill which is a cert for chainwheel #1.

https://road.cc/content/feature/213519-struggling-hills-if-you-need-lower-gears-make-climbing-easier-heres-how-get
https://coachlevi.com/cycling/complete-beginner-guide-to-bicycle-gears-shifting/

The Oxygen bikes gave rear hub motors whilst the Krieger is crank drive.

Hub motors are much gentler on the bike’s drivetrain and also kinder to the less fit rider who may be unable to keep up a good pedalling cadence, especially up a hill.

For commuting make sure that the bike is supplied with Schwalbe Marathon Plus SmartGuard tyres.

For comfortable commuting, I would also recommend the SUNTOUR Sp12-Ncx Seat Post (27 x 350) for the Oxygen MTB:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/SR-SUNTOUR-Sp12-Ncx-Seat-Posts/dp/B01HMXE8ZU?th=1&psc=1

NB You will need a shim/sleeve to fit this seatpost!
This ULTIMATE USE shim system allows you to fit a 27.2mm seat post into virtually any frame size. The shims are made to 100mm length and are longer than other shims on the market, giving your seat post much better support inside the frame.

Adapts from 27.2mm to 28.6mm:
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ultimate-use-sx-272mm-seat-post-shim/

How would the hybrid bikes perform on say a dirt trail through the park? Or is that a no go are they really just road bikes?
It depends on what tyres are fitted.

 

[mark taylor]

Thanks for the responses.

My commute from north wales to Chester is about 9 miles and I would say is 90 % flat, however, there are 3 steep inclines (and declines) back to back. (when I say steep there is no sign for the incline on the road, so probably not to bad for an experience rider).

So the Oxygen MTB sounds like a good choice just with different tyres.

Stupid questions but what does changing the seat post do? Wouldn't it be better to change the seat?

Also one final question (or not). The woosh rio ls - how does this compare to the oxygen MTB?

• https://wooshbikes.co.uk/?rio-ls