Voodoo Zobob E

[ejstubbs]

Thanks David and Neal, that sounds encouraging. One of the assistants in Halfords yesterday did mention the 10% British Cycling discount, with a sort of a nudge and a wink and an "I didn't tell you this". When I got home and checked their web site, the Ts & Cs for the British Cycling discount were the same as for the AA one ie can't be used in conjunction with another offer. If they've accepted the British Cycling one against already discounted bikes then that gives me some confidence.

How does the British Cycling discount work? For the AA one you have to print off a voucher which carries the "cannot be used..." condition, albeit in very small print. For the British Cycling one do you just flash them a membership card?

The other question in my mind after yesterday's test ride is the size of bike I should go for. The one I rode was the 18". They handed it over with the dropper post as low as it would go in the seat tube, which was obviously too low after just a few yards of pedalling. I stopped and raised it - I think the 7cm mark was showing - and that felt just right for pedalling, if a teenzy bit precarious mounting and dismounting. However, the sitting position felt a little too upright. I'm thinking that, given the amount that I raised the seatpost on the 18", then the 20" should be spot on, and have a fraction more reach in the top tube. The thing is that, after being saddled with a Trek 6500 many years ago which, while bang on according to the charts, always felt a bit too on the big size for me, I tend to prefer to err towards the smaller frame size when facing a choice. Ho hum, still a few things to think about...

 

[DavidWylie]

I just used my British cycling membership number add a few accessories and got the discount on them too. On my Voodoo I got 25% discount, but I was also buying 5 other bikes at the same time for my employees on the cycle to work scheme (I have done this for the last 3 years, couldn't manage to the away with having the E-Bike on the Cycle to work scheme though ) so the manager at my local Halfords is very forthcoming with discounts when I ask.

On the sizing, I am 5'9" and the 18 is perfect when I stand across the frame my man parts just touch the frame, a 20" would be too big and I'd get crushed nuts when I stand over the frame.

I have the dropper post set up perfect now, its about a inch out of the down tube, and then when fully extended its perfect hight. The riding position is a little more upright than my analogue Boardman FS Pro, but I kinda like that, of all the bikes I have owned over the years, this is the only one that I didn't have to spend ages messing with to get a comfy fit, set the bars, levers, and seat and I haven't touched it since, very comfy bike.

 

[ejstubbs]

Thanks again David for that extra info.

Can I just ask, without wanting to get too personal about it, what your inside leg measurement is? Mine is 34" and I definitely needed at least 2" of the dropper post showing on the 18" bike to be able to pedal efficiently.

I've compared the top tube length on the Zobop to my current MTB (Calibre Line 10, size L - 635mm), and to the eMTB I rented the other week (Trek Powerfly FS8 LT 21.5" - 662mm). My Line 10 feels spot on; the Trek felt a bit stretched out (as well as a bit too tall), with a lot of weight on my wrists which I think was due to the longer reach to the bars. The 18" Zobop E's top tube is 610mm whereas the 20" is 630mm, much closer to my Line 10. If the saddle height on the 20" isn't going to be too tippy-toes tall then I think that would be the size for me.

Can I also ask what charger you got with the Zobop? Halfords list the charge time as 7 hours, whereas other bikes with the same 500Wh Bosch battery quote a lot less than that. I assume this is the difference between the standard Bosch charger and the compact one. (I ask only out of interest: it's not a show-stopper if it comes with the slower charger. My legs were jelly after using up half the battery on the Trek in a half day at Glentress, I suspect a full battery's worth would take me more than 7 hours to recover from, never mind the battery!)

 

[DavidWylie]

I'm a bit of a shorty in the inside leg department 29" (short length jeans drag) so maybe your right on the 20" frame, I think with a 34" inside leg the 18" frame might be a little cramped. Friend of mine 6'4" and long legs wanted a blast on mine and said it was too small for him when he was done, he has a Boardman FS pro same as me but large 20" frame and that too big for me to stand a across, but he fits it fine ( Boardman very different geometry though )

The charger that comes with it is the lower powered 'compact charger' I think they have tried to save costs but still having fairly decent spec components, so the charger you get is the cheaper one. Having said that, I have never needed to charge the battery in any hurry, after a full day riding I just plug it in and let it do its thing for the 6 or 7 hours it takes. I have ridden the full loop of Rutland Water 24 miles twice one day 48 miles in total and the battery still showing 9 miles range when I was done. ( I don't think many of us need to be able to do more than 40 odd miles a day .. My internal battery ran out long before the bike battery was going to It only takes 7 hours empty to full, more often than not, I do 25 - 30 miles and still have 40-50% battery left so only takes a few hours to charge.

I noticed the Trek Powerfly has a 60mm stem, the voodoo stem is 45mm so the large frame won't be quite as stretched out for you as you think, the 45mm stem will bring the bars closer by a lot.

 

[DavidWylie]

Best upgrade by far, Hope brakes .. Stops now

 

[ejstubbs]

David, thanks again for the extra info. You're right that the Trek's longer stem would make a difference. I also noticed that Trek's own size guide for the Powerfly would put me bang in the range for the 19.5" frame, rather than the 21.5" one the rental shop gave me (perhaps they didn't have any of the smaller one available?) Looking again at the Line 10 specs, I notice that the top tube on the XL is 655mm. I did try that size in the shop and it felt wrong at the time. More evidence that the 630mm top tube on the 20" Zobop E should be right for me.

Thanks to the Wiggle bike sizing page I've discovered today that I have a "positive ape index". According to them what this means is that, if I'm on the boundary area between two frame sizes, then I should go for the larger one. Which seems to be another nudge towards the 20" frame.

Just have to sort out the money now!

EDIT: Just noticed that Halfords' "10% off all electric bikes over £1,500" promotion has now ended That complicates things somewhat...

 

[DavidWylie]

All Halfords bike managers have the authority to give discount, just say " ok I will have this today if you can give me a little discount " I'd ask for 20%, but that's just me, I love to haggle .. If not then Cycle republic are always keen and have said to me on more than one occasion that they will match any discount I can get elsewhere. I paid £2025 for mine so I got a really good deal.
I also take all my bikes boxed and build them myself so it saves them a little on time and manpower.

Hope you get one sorted soon and get out and enjoy this weather.

 

[ejstubbs]

Hi David (again) how complicated was it to build your Zobop E? Did it come with all the relevant documentation for the Bosch, Shimano and SRAM components?

I have built up a boxed bike before - and I upgraded from a triple to a compact the groupset on it earlier this year - so I know my way around a bike well enough with an allen key set and the appropriate Park tools. Just wondering whether the electric bits add any significant complication?

 

[DavidWylie]

Hi David (again) how complicated was it to build your Zobop E? Did it come with all the relevant documentation for the Bosch, Shimano and SRAM components?

I have built up a boxed bike before - and I upgraded from a triple to a compact the groupset on it earlier this year - so I know my way around a bike well enough with an allen key set and the appropriate Park tools. Just wondering whether the electric bits add any significant complication?

Sound like you have all the knowledge you need to build it.. Comes with extensive manual on Motor and battery and all the usual product info on the components But like all boxed bikes it’s just putting on bars, seat and front wheel then some wind in the tyres ... Worse case is you might have to index your gears .. nothing to do to motor or drive system .. half hour fiddling then your good to go

 

[ejstubbs]

Took advantage of Halfords' 10% off all bikes one day flash sale today. They were happy to give me a further 10% off the discounted price for my AA discount voucher, giving 19% discount. I paid the balance using Halfords e-gift cards which I can buy at 8% discount through my employer's benefits scheme and get delivered immediately by e-mail. Total discount: 25.48%. Not to be sneezed at, I think.

Picking it up this weekend. They've promised the battery will be charged!

 

[DavidWylie]

Took advantage of Halfords' 10% off all bikes one day flash sale today. They were happy to give me a further 10% off the discounted price for my AA discount voucher, giving 19% discount. I paid the balance using Halfords e-gift cards which I can buy at 8% discount through my employer's benefits scheme and get delivered immediately by e-mail. Total discount: 25.48%. Not to be sneezed at, I think.

Picking it up this weekend. They've promised the battery will be charged!

Sounds like you got a bargain there, if you are upfront enough to ask, Halfords hand out discounts all the time .. Enjoy the new bike, mine still makes me smile every time.

 

[ejstubbs]

Picked up the Zobop E today and went for wee stravaig. The 20" is a perfect fit Reach to the bars is spot on; seatpost could probably be raised a cm or two but that'll come with fine tuning.

It's only by riding a full sus bike around some of my familiar my local routes that I properly understood how well it works. Tree roots and other abrupt obstacles that normally give me a thump in the rear on my hardtail were dispatched with barely a bump It's been a bit breezy on and off today and occasionally I found myself pedalling in to a stiffish head wind. But today I had a motor! Head wind? What's a head wind?!!!

Terribly pleased with myself!

(One little niggle: Halfords couldn't find the documentation pack. The guy who built the bike up wasn't in today, so I've got to phone in tomorrow to see if he can find it. Assuming it does turn up, though: no harm, no foul.)

 

[Danpad]

Had the zobop e for about 3 weeks and have done 180 miles on it. Its a great bike however it emits a metallic rattle which appears to be coming from the motor around 16-18mph. Above or below that speed it’s fine. Halfords advised this is normal and the motor disengaging, does anyone else have this problem/noise

 

[STEVEMANFA]

From what I know different motors can make a different noise, they all cut out at about 15mph, I'd just use it because you will have warranty

 

[gavztheouch]

I went to Halfords this afternoon and had a shot of the voodoo hardtail Bizango. Had lots of fun bombing around the car park outside. Does anyone know what wattage the motor is? It didn't feel like it had a huge amount of power?

Is it possible to remove the 17mph limit?

Im trying to decide between a Bafang bbshd kit (1000W) and a Voodoo bike like this from Halfords if and when they come back on sale.

The Bafang will have more power and speed but the voodoo bikes look better integrated and useable. There is something to be said for a e bike that aint too powerful so you actually have to do some work.

 

[Nealh]

It will be 250w.

 

[ejstubbs]

View attachment 25625 Best upgrade by far, Hope brakes .. Stops now

Out of interest, which Hope brakes did you fit? (And was it just the front, or both?)

I've found (largely by accidentally embarking on a previously unexplored descent which turned out to be much longer and steeper than I had anticipated) that the OEM brakes tend to fade. I might be OK with just an upgrade to sintered pads (which would also mean upgrading the OEM resin-only discs) but it would be handy to know if there's a brake out there which a existing user can recommend.

 

[DavidWylie]

Out of interest, which Hope brakes did you fit? (And was it just the front, or both?)

I've found (largely by accidentally embarking on a previously unexplored descent which turned out to be much longer and steeper than I had anticipated) that the OEM brakes tend to fade. I might be OK with just an upgrade to sintered pads (which would also mean upgrading the OEM resin-only discs) but it would be handy to know if there's a brake out there which a existing user can recommend.

Full set front and rear ..
Yea the OEM brakes will are not suitable for sintered pads. I agree with you, I too found out on a particularly steep bit of road section near my house where I can get up to 40MPH the original brakes just not up to it and faded badly where I needed a pants change coming up to a junction and over shooting it!! .. But I am 15 stone so that dont help.

I have Hope Tech 3 with X2 callipers, the X2's are plenty good enough and no need to go to the expensive 4 pot callipers like E4/V4.

I have used these hope brakes on all my bikes and just give me so much more confidence haring down a hill. My son has the non electric Zobob and the purple brakes look great with the green, I went for orange so we didn't look sad riding together with matching colours

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/hope-tech-3-x2-disc-brake/rp-prod112988

 

[DavidWylie]

One thing to be aware of, front brake no problem, rear brake you are going to have to take the calliper off so you can re route the hose through the frame and then re-bleed the brakes (very easy on Hope brakes) or you could do what I did, leave the original hose in place and fit the Hope lever and calliper to that, less hassle trying to re-route the hose as that can be a nightmare.

 

[ejstubbs]

Before summoning up the courage to shell out ~£300 on new brakes, I decided to try sintered pads. I bagged a pair of 180mm Shimano RT66 discs for less than £12 from Amazon, of all places. Pads came from Noah and Theo. I took a bit of time to make sure they bedded in properly and I have to say that, with that process completed, they do seem to be a significant improvement. I now need to schedule in some outings with more testing descents to find out whether these will do the job, or if I need to go more upmarket.

Out of interest, does anyone know if the Wellgo "DMR clone" pedals are readily serviceable? They're problem-free so far but it would be nice to know whether some more thorough-going preventive maintenance can be performed than just a touch of lube at appropriate intervals. If not then proper DMRs could be on the shopping list if/when the Wellgos start to let go. (See what I did there?)