Viking E Go (AKA Hopper) Battery

[paddyb]

I’ve just bit the bullet and won this auction on ebay:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/164953160986
Not sure if I got it for a fair price or not (someone on here paid £20 for one!) but there are not that many second-hand bikes available for delivery, so went for it.

I read a couple of threads on this forum about the bike and it seems to get the general thumbs up. I think it also goes under the name of Viking Hopper and there was a Tesco's rebadged version.

I went for this over another one as I was looking at as I saw some spec sheets which gave the battery as 36V, but I’ve now seen that there is a 24V version as well, and looking at the pics of the charger, it looks like that is what I have got:
https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/tvgAAOSwQE9g6bac/s-l1600.jpg

How much of a detriment is this? I’m not expecting massive performance at this price point, I just need a bit of assistance to get me up some gentle hills.

 

[vfr400]

How much of a detriment is this?

You'll be able to tell us soon if it is or isn't.

The Small wheels help when you only have 24v, but you're probably going to find the speed a bit low. There is something you can do to get a bit more power that doesn't cost anything, but that will compromise the range.

One thing to be careful of:
Those batteries are called frog batteries. They sit on a metal bracket, which is enclosed by plastic covers. It used to be a common problem that if you went over bumpy ground, the metal would bend, and the battery would sag down and break contact. You could bend it up again by hand with a good shove. Unfortunately, after a few times, the metal would crack and the problem would become worse unil the bracket completely detatches. A 24v battery only weighs 2/3 of a 36v one with the same number of amp-hours, so it shouldn't be as bad as some. Also, some manufacturers strengthened their brackets with extra welded pieces.

If you do get the sagging problem, add a couple of struts from the top of the sususpension unit to the two screws in the side of the pod under the battery to give it extra support.

The only other thing that I'd comment on is the useless brakes. They're fine when new, but soon deteriorate. As you're not particularly heavy, you might be alright.

Let us know how you get on with it. It's always nice to get objective reports, which will help others choose.

 

[paddyb]

Thanks for your reply.

Pretty sure it's going to be 24V. In pics the motor is darker in the 36V one. Can you tell from the charger though?

Do you think this is a better bet than the Halfords Apollo Phaze or the Violamart conversion kit I was looking at in the other thread? The smaller wheels should help a bit even if it's 24V?

Intrigued about how to increase power at the expense of range?

 

[vfr400]

Try it first to see if it has enough power.

24v has a 29.4v charger, 36v has a 42.0v one.

 

[paddyb]

Ok, it's a 24v then. I'll see how it performs, will probably be ok.

What do you reckon to this vs the Apollo Phaze or Voilemart kit I was looking at in this thread (which you contributed to):

UK compliant converter kit

I’ve been looking at converting my mountain bike to a peddle assist e bike. The main reason is to help me get up a couple of hills that are just a little bit too much for me as I have a minor health condition. I think torque rather than speed is more important, though the hills are not really...

www.pedelecs.co.uk

You seem to have a good idea of how to evaluate performance based on specs!

 

[vfr400]

These 24v bikes normally have 12A or 14A controllers. Power = volts x amps, so you get say 288 units of power. At 36v, that would be 432 units of power, but most 36v systems on cheap bikes are 14A or 15A, so say 504 power. There are some cheapish 36v bikes that have around 17 to 20A, so say 612 units of power, and then the kit from Woosh that runs with 48v and 17A, which is 816 power or about 3 times what your bike has.

The maximum speed that the motor can spin to is fixed in its design by how many turns of wire in the coils. The max speed also depends on voltage, so the same motor will spin twice as fast at 48v as at 24v.

To get more power from your motor, you have to increase the volts or the amps. To change the volts you need a different battery (expensive). To change the amps, you add solder to the shunt inside the controller. You have to do it the right way, so don't try and do it until it's explained to you. As I said, try your bike out first. You might like it.

 

[paddyb]

These 24v bikes normally have 12A or 14A controllers. Power = volts x amps, so you get say 288 units of power. At 36v, that would be 432 units of power, but most 36v systems on cheap bikes are 14A or 15A, so say 504 power. There are some cheapish 36v bikes that have around 17 to 20A, so say 612 units of power, and then the kit from Woosh that runs with 48v and 17A, which is 816 power or about 3 times what your bike has.

The maximum speed that the motor can spin to is fixed in its design by how many turns of wire in the coils. The max speed also depends on voltage, so the same motor will spin twice as fast at 48v as at 24v.

To get more power from your motor, you have to increase the volts or the amps. To change the volts you need a different battery (expensive). To change the amps, you add solder to the shunt inside the controller. You have to do it the right way, so don't try and do it until it's explained to you. As I said, try your bike out first. You might like it.

Thanks. Lots to take in!

There a pic of the controller in this thread (which you're also in!):

Replacing the controller for brushless motor on a Viking Ego - what part(s) do I need?

I would be grateful if anyone could help me identify appropriate replacement components to fix my pedelec. The bike is a Viking Ego-24. This model is sometimes also called a Hopper, or a Tesco Hopper. There's a photo of it below in case it has other names and it helps to identify it. It has a...

www.pedelecs.co.uk

12A

It's not sounding a particularly good spec on paper, but seems to get favourable mentions on this forum. Have e bikes gone up a lot in price recently? I've seen mentions of this bike selling for under £500 new when it came out , but £700 now. I just paid £400 for it (beating nine other bidders). One went recently on ebay for £400+£39 P&P, but I saw someone on this forum selling one for £175 a couple of years back. The other bike I was looking at the Apollo Phaze, was under £500 new in 2019, now £800!

 

[GSV3MiaC]

E-bike prices, indeed all bike prices, went stupid when lockdown started, and availability went out the window. They remain in short supply, and sell at a premium.

 

[paddyb]

Damn it, should have just waited another 48 hours until freedom day!

Somehow I don't think that will make much difference.

Re the issue you mentioned with the battery, one of the concerns I have about this bike is that it's not easy to install a pannier. Instead, I was thinking of adding a basket at the front, but I have a collapsable fishing chair that would wedge in quite well either above the battery or between the mudguard (with a bungee to hold it in place) and the battery. Would this help or hinder the battery bracket issue?

 

[vfr400]

The bike has suspension at the back, so you can't wedge anything in there.

 

[paddyb]

For various reasons, I decided not to go with the e Go Viking in the end.

The local seller with the Apollo Phaze offered to bring it around to me so I could try it out. First time on an e bike, I found it very easy to ride, tried it on a few hills and the difference was huge, I was whizzing up in 6th gear where I struggled to keep peddling in first before. It was only two years old with light use and came with the original paperwork, so felt like a good buy.

Will doubtless return to this forum with more questions about it at some point, but happy to have joined the Pedelec club!