Probably sick of these by now? Which bike...

[Shawnus]

Just moved to Somerset (Radstock area) from London. Used to 18 mile round trip but now on to a 25 miler with a few hills! The worst gradient is about 14% I think - but only for a very short distance. Others are around 6-8%. I tried the route today on my Specialized Allez but I couldn't make the steep hill and couldn't face the ride back.

As I'm now a student no special schemes for me so was looking at 800 mark - I don't mind putting some pedal in and I've been looking at the Woosh Santana or Sirrico-CDL's. Also the GreenEdge CS2 (although the 25-35 range makes me suspicious it's going to run out on me halfway back. Finally I was looking at the D-Cycle Delight 3 (last model on sale) but again - range and hill ability? Urgh - this is a whole new world.

Any advice very welcome - I'd love to get one for double the budget but with a wee one on the way no way my wife is letting me spend more than that.
Thanks pedelecers.

 

[Wingreen]

I can certainly recommend the Woosh Big Bear. £849.
http://www.wooshbikes.co.uk/?bigbear

I'm sure others with more knowledge and experience will also have suggestions. For what its worth, here's my "review":
http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/threads/woosh-big-bear-first-impressions.21917/

(And, no, I'm not on commission!)

 

[RoadieRoger]

A Woosh Santana would do you fine on that run . My Brother has had one for two and a half years , a good hill climber and much faster than my 20 in.Batribike Folder . Their replacement batteries are very reasonably priced too when compared with other Ebike Suppliers .

 

[Deleted member 4366]

What about converting your Allez with a BBS01 kit and a downtube battery? You would get the benefit of a much faster and more efficient bike than any that you can buy ready-made within your budget. I converted a Boardman with an Oxydrive kit. It was very easy to maintain speeds over 20 mph with or without the motor.

 

[Shawnus]

Would that work with the drop down handlebars? How is the boardman when you want to go non electric? Just whip the battery off?

 

[RobF]

There is a small amount of resistance from any hub motor.

Taking the battery off would reduce the weight, but there's still the weight of the motor, wiring and possibly a controller - if it's not in the battery.

Pedalling such a bike unpowered would be a bit like riding through treacle.

Converting a drop bar bike is possible, particularly if you are not bothered about a throttle.

Range is a piece of string question, but any ebike with a 10ah or larger battery ought to be able to handle 25 miles. given that you will be putting in some effort.

I've tried a couple of D Cycles and was quite impressed.

Good value at about £1K, some have recently been on sale for much less than that.

If you can get one for about £600, I can't see the point of messing around with a conversion.

 

[Shawnus]

I've tried a couple of D Cycles and was quite impressed.

Good value at about £1K, some have recently been on sale for much less than that.

If you can get one for about £600, I can't see the point of messing around with a conversion.

This is something I was thinking. Especially as this is my first electric bike - maybe I won't enjoy it? I have this perception without using the power it will be like riding a boris bike.


I have emailed e-bikes about the battery size on the D Cycles as they don't say. Some of the other models are only sporting 8.8ah though.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Pedalling such a bike unpowered would be a bit like riding through treacle.

Converting a drop bar bike is possible, particularly if you are not bothered about a throttle.

Jeez, where do you get this crap from? I thought people had given up trying to spread that myth years ago.

Here's a video of the bike I converted on the Gadget Show racing against a Volt electric bike. When you spin up the motor with the wheel off the ground and then cut the power, it spins forever, just like the wheel without the motor. When we go out for rides on it, we often ride half of say a 40 mile ride without power. You can notice the slight increase in weight when climbing hills, but the weight helps you go even faster downhill.

This conversion had straight handlebars. I did another one with drop bars. You fit the throttle to a handlebar extension like this. There's better more expensive ones as well:

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=321740824536&alt=web

If you want brake switches, you have to fit the inline cable type.

 

[Shawnus]

I feel intimidated converting a bike. So many kit options and battery considerations. If I went that route what would you recommend? I'm tall and heavy - once I'm cycling regular again I should lose a few extra kilos but I'm always going to be tall and heavy

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Fitting a kit is not that difficult, but you need some basic mechanical skills and tools. If you don't do your own bike maintenance, I wouldn't recommend it. What sort of skill level do you have?

 

[Shawnus]

I'm capable but terribly lazy.
I was looking at this : http://www.wooshbikes.co.uk/?cdkit I could fit that no problem.I need to check the bottom bracket on my bike though.

 

[RobF]

This is something I was thinking. Especially as this is my first electric bike - maybe I won't enjoy it? I have this perception without using the power it will be like riding a boris bike.


I have emailed e-bikes about the battery size on the D Cycles as they don't say. Some of the other models are only sporting 8.8ah though.

Like riding a Boris bike is a good analogy.

Riding an ebike unpowered, particularly a hub motor one where there is always some drag, is like riding a very heavy bike.

But why would you want to ride an ebike unpowered?

It's possible to avoid having to do so by planning your journeys and making sure you have sufficient charge in the battery.

If something goes wrong with the electrics, you could still ride the bike, but I would regard that as a 'get you home' measure.

You are right that some D Cycles have the 8.8ah battery.

That will be a bit tight for your proposed use.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Bloody hell, he's at it again. Which hub motors hve you ridden that had drag from the motor? Please name them.

I've ridden just about every type of hub-motor nd crank-drive bike, and I can't say that I've ever experienced any that anyone would notice, except the big direct drive motors, which are not very common on OEM bikes.

 

[RobF]

There was a small amount of drag from the motor on my Brompton Nano.

I've also noticed it on some of the hub bikes I've tried, albeit only briefly.

Drag from a hub motor is a simple matter of fact.

No amount of posting/derision from you will change that.

 

[trex]

That many have something to do with the special friction clutch on your Nano. Most hub and crank motors use one way sprag ball bearing for clutch.
I always thought of drag as a result of an imperfect clutch on geared motors (hub or crank). With a crank motor, you can move the bike back and forth without feeling any drag whatsoever. With a hub motor, you will feel a large drag when moving the bike backward because the clutch will engage the hub motor when spinning backward.
Drag is only noticeable if one of the ball bearings becomes notchy.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

The brakes were probably badly adjusted on your Brompton.

Drag on hub-motors is not a matter of fact. It's a matter of fiction, like this video shows. Unlike this one, many motors have the clutch between the motor and the side-plate, so the only things that rotate when freewheeling are the hub and wheel-bearings, exactly the same as a bike without a motor, so there would be even les drag than this one, which has had about 7 years of development since this version. It's a basic common or garden Bafang SWX.

 

[Alan Quay]

The brakes were probably badly adjusted on your Brompton.

Drag on hub-motors is not a matter of fact. It's a matter of fiction....

....and friction.

 

[RobF]

The brakes were probably badly adjusted on your Brompton.

Drag on hub-motors is not a matter of fact. It's a matter of fiction, like this video shows. Unlike this one, motors have the clutch between the motor and the side-plate, so the only things that rotate when freewheeling ard the hub and wheel-bearings, exactly the same as a bike wihout a motor, so there would be even les drag than this one, which has had about 7 years of development since this version. It's a basic vommon or garden Bafang SWX.

The vid looks convincing, but so were my test rides - to me.

Could it be that some hub motors acquire some resistance due to general wear and tear?

Trex appears to suggest so upthread.

Either way, it's fair to tell the OP cycling an ebike unpowered is harder than an ordinary bike, even if that's solely due to the weight of the motor.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

DRag from motors is an illusion. People don't realise how much help they're getting from it. They switch off the power thinking it will be easy to pedal, but they quickly slow down because they can't provide the power themselves. They interpret it as drag. Also, some people try lightweight efficient bikes in an attempt to be able to complete their journeys. When that doesn't work, they try an electric bike, which is often an MTB type with MTB tyres. When they try that without power, they find out how much more difficult it is to pedal compared to their lightweight thin-tyred bike, so, again, they get the illusion of drag from the motor. Then you add to that those that have dragging brakes, who are convinced by the illusioned that they've experienced the same drag instead of sorting out their problems. Finally, there's the very rare occasion when people experience a stuck clutch, which truly does give a small amount of drag.This is how the myth spreads. I'm off now to look for those triangular UFOs that have been seen flying around Telford.

 

[appyarry]

Like riding a Boris bike is a good analogy.

Riding an ebike unpowered, particularly a hub motor one where there is always some drag, is like riding a very heavy bike.

But why would you want to ride an ebike unpowered?

It's possible to avoid having to do so by planning your journeys and making sure you have sufficient charge in the battery.

If something goes wrong with the electrics, you could still ride the bike, but I would regard that as a 'get you home' measure.

You are right that some D Cycles have the 8.8ah battery.

That will be a bit tight for your proposed use.

I have a Kalkhoff from 50 Cycles and it IS NOT like riding a boris bike when I don't have the battery turned on.
When I ride, most of the time I don't have it turned on, downhill and on the flat I don't need the assist, it is only if it is a strong headwind or I'm going uphill I turn the assist on.

People should try these bikes before they decide. If you are in South East Kent and want to try mine, you are welcome! Everyone who has tried my bike is amazed at the power and ease with which it rides with and without the power. I have, since buying my bike converted a Pashley Trike with a Bafung BBS01 250 and it is such fun, the grandchildren are always on it when we stop when out on a ride and the youngest (6) was getting tired cycling into the wind and rain the other day so I put her on the basket over the rear wheels and I carried her bike and we cycled back to the van, she loved it