E Bicycle. I want one

[Queen]

For anyone worried about lifting the bike onto a rack, a motorcycle carrier could fix that, they tilt or come with small ramps for loading (some do both). It's spendy, but may be worth a look, here is an example:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EF3WHCC?psc=1

 

[GrayWhale]

Anyone have experience with them?   Where do you carry it?  How do you carry it?
How do you charge it?   What do you use it for? 

I had 4. 
Two iZip folding bikes ($400/each) ~60 lbs.  Fits in the trunk of a Civic, but heavy and awkward to lift up and then forward to drop into trunk....then removing. Unfolding and folding was also a PITA. The latches will break at the ends after a while, then you'd have to use pliers...then replace once the nubs breaks.  Only 1 speed, 20" tires.  15-16 mph.
One iRide folding bike. Similar to iZip, but like 30 lbs heavier. I hated this one and sold it fast. Just extremely heavy. 1-speed. $300/new.
One iZip Mongoose full sized. 7-speed. 17mph GPS verified on a school track. Still have this. 90-100 lbs. Battery dead. $300/new.
All of these bikes had the heavy, SLA batteries that weighed 40 lbs at least. They were the LOW END bikes as far as components goes...gears, brakes, etc...all cheapest stuff. Similar to buying an $80 new bike at Walmart. However, they are much thicker steel or whatever metal to account for the sudden torque created by the motor....so they wouldn't get sued or something should the bike break apart while riding. I'm 160 ish and these bikes can propel me from a full stop w/o pedaling and be used on all motor. Pedaling lessens batter drain. You can throttle a little or  full, etc. Recharging takes 5-8 hours.  Needs to be maintained else battery will need replacing.
Some reason, the price went up even for similar bikes and similar SLA batteries (just a little lighter/smaller).  I sold all 3 folding bikes, used, and made a profit of around $100-200 each.

They are fun, just might be difficult to recharge as a Vandweller w/o shore power.  I wouldn't want even a folded one in my van...it would waste too much room  as it's not that compact when folded. The tires also smells bad....that rubbery smell. On a bike hitch or even chained to the cargo carrier in the back, yes. I'm very athletic, but it's still nice to ride like a moped. Rode these in county parks, trails, Washington DC tourist areas, monuments, etc.... mostly on sidewalks of small to big cities and never had any problem. I don't like riding on the streets as I'm not that good of a cyclist and scared. It does stand out and people gawk at you. Motor noise his hardly noticeable. My city have laws against these on sidewalks and bike trails, parks, etc... but still never had a problem.

 

[mizjewels]

I have followed this topic with interest since the previous explosive thread on the subject.  I'm hoping some of you with experience can answer a question I have. I ride a 3 wheel b/c at times I am not steady on my feet and feel safer on 3 wheels. Plus, I have the benefit of big front and rear baskets for carrying both a furbaby and cargo at the same time. I likey that...and so does the furbaby. However I don't ride as much or as far as I'd like to because of hills and RA in the ankles and knees. Since I only live a 5 minute drive to work, I would love to be able to ride to work in pleasant weather. And of course being able to take the bike out long distances while leaving the camper parked is really attractive to sightseeing while out camping.

On ebay I found kits to motorize the front wheel only, which would work for my vintage 70's 3 wheeler. They are pretty inexpensive at around $150 and get decent reviews. However they don't include batteries or chargers. This is not my forte....I can read and follow directions well however, and have read there are youtube assembly videos. My biggest concern is buying the correct additional parts needed.

So this kit is here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/48V-Front-W...557095&hash=item339dd460b1:g:yp8AAOSwax5YprBW

And the batteries "I think I need" are here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-Pack-12V-...be&pid=100009&rk=1&rkt=2&sd=172307541124#rwid

Could someone possibly tell me if those batteries are correct? If so then I will start researching how to charge them.

Thanks!

 

[CautionToTheWind]

mizjewels, if you're on FB, there is a recumbent trike group I belong to...in fact here are some links I found from that group ( https://www.facebook.com/groups/436300886382371/ )

Links to electric assist: 

http://ridekick.com/
https://www.hawleyusa.com/Catalog/Search/?by=brand&brand=632&current=041413
http://www.go-swissdrive.com/en/advantages-of-a-rear-hub-motor/
http://terratrike.com/evo.php

Above links are for research purposes and not a validation for anyone's needs (price or practical). 

 

[tx2sturgis]

Mizjewels...

I'm hope someone will chime in to help, but I believe those batteries are too limited to provide much power.

Small SLA batteries like that have a pretty high internal resistance, and they are heavy.

They work fine for low current applications, but a bike motor than needs a burst of power and 750 or 1000 watts will probably be too much for them.

The wheel, now that does look interesting, I have a bicycle with suspension that I might order one for...

I'm thinking a 48v lithium battery and charger might be the way to go...lets hope someone who knows gets in here to help us.

 

[tx2sturgis]

I found something that might work for mine, I think the rectangular one would work in the basket for the trike:


http://www.ebay.com/itm/48V-20AH-Li...118513&hash=item4d4bb9e3cc:g:UpcAAOSwm8VUuxOH



http://www.ebay.com/itm/48V20AH-Lif...id=100005&rk=4&rkt=6&mehot=pp&sd=331982955468

 

[mizjewels]

@CautionToTheWind - Thank you so much for all those links. Unfortunately my trike is just a regular 'ole grandma trike - not a recumbent. Hence the need for the front wheel to be the one with the motor. And truth be told - all those links are way out of my price range.

@tx2sturgis - Thanks for the info. I sure do hope you're wrong though! As those batteries you posted are way out of my price range as well. Shucks I got all excited thinking I might actually be able to afford this!

So I often see batteries like this one https://tucson.craigslist.org/rvs/6197398965.html come up on CL. I usually see more AGM types often in Phoenix. I would be willing to travel to save several hundred bucks on batteries. Would something along these lines be more appropriate? I usually see reconditioned AGMs for between $75-90, but none showing up today.

 

[tx2sturgis]

The wheelmotor you posted needs 48 volts and the typical automotive battery is only 12v...so its not going to work.

Depending on the room in your basket you MIGHT (and I emphasize that) be able use 4 lawn-tractor type batteries in series...but the weight is going to be substantial and the basket will be full of batteries.

Maybe there are 24v or 12v e-bike wheelmotors...I have not looked.

 

[StarEcho]

Same thing for me (except the Baja Bug), I want a Townie Go! but at $2600 it's just too spendy.  It would be awesome on a rear rack though, set up camp and take the e-bike to the store or to just visit around the campsite.

I have the non-E version of this bike (just called a Townie), I love it but there are days when pedaling distance isn't always possible.

I was actually thinking about getting the non e version of the Townie and adding the UrbanX wheel I linked to in the second post of this thread.  It would be loads less expensive than the Townie Go, but give the same if not better results.  Something to think about.  That way you could use the bike you already have but just take the front wheel off and replace it with the UrbanX wheel.  Then you can go back to non ebike when/if you want.

 

[Kathleen]

3 am [font=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]waffle house visit half drunk have been some of my best memories ... [/font]

LOVE your signature!! I'm sure hopin' for that! :angel:

 

[SoulRaven]

The Radbike looks great, with an extra battery I could make my trips to the VA at a more leisurely pace. If (and I doubt this would happen) the VA cops would allow me to park it in the employees lot near my Dr.'s office, I could walk instead of dragging my scooter there. Worth checking.

 

[DLTooley]

imagine touring the country on like an e-trike with comfy seat, lightweight fairings and a solar panel roof pulling a little aluminum trailer with lithiums, tiny gas generator, solar roof, and your camping gear.

A little trailer with a solar canopy!

 

[DLTooley]

Two recommendations I have for parts are Luna Cycles for batteries and Golden Motor for direct drive hubs. (Luna Cycles  carries Golden Motor Hubs)

There are three different types of ebike motors:
Direct drive: A very simple electromagnetic motor with no moving parts -VERY RELIABLE. This is what my bike has, you can tell by the huge pancake style hub. Typically these come in 500 watt and 1000 watt versions. I recommend the 500 watt as the 1000 watt has the potential to rip out of the bike mounts due to too much torque.

Geared drive: A much smaller pancake motor that has gears to multiply the torque, makes for a compact and stealthy hub, these types on the rear of a bike are not very noticeable and an be hidden by your panniers/bags, if you disguise your battery also people will not know you are on an ebike. The cheaper commercial bikes all use geared hubs.  They are less reliable than the direct drives due to plastic reduction gears, but I personally did not have a problem with the one I had. These just look like fat bike hubs. Normally 350 watt (This is the minimum you would want).

Mid drive: These are an external motor that blts on near the bottom bracket of the bike, some work and mechanical skills to install, an absolute must if you consistently ride up very steep hills or mountain bike type offroading.  This is an external motor that is driven thru you chain drive so you can shift gears just like a manual transmission on a car.  Very powerful. This type will wear out your driveline much faster (think applying 4x the power a human can thru your driveline). Normally 750 to 1000 watt.


There are a lot more ebikes around than you think, most are not noticeable, they are very popular with the retiree crowd.  People who previously could no longer ride bikes due to surgeries, health problems or injuries are now riding again thanks to ebikes.

BTW SONDORS EBIKES ARE ONLY $500 THEY ARE AN EXCEPTIONAL DEAL! A GOOD WAY TO TEST THE WATERS!

There is a trade off of the simplicity of a direct drive and the lower gear ratios available for hill climbing on a geared or mid-drive.  Durability and repair-ability of the geared units is improving.

Sondors is a kickstarter campaign that has had multiple appearances, last I checked the price had gone up, but was still very good.  Luna also makes a mid-drive conversion kit, with a battery in the 1k range.

20 mph seems to be the emerging standard for street use. 

Batteries I've looked at are 36-54 volts, I've not seen a solar charge option yet.  The batteries are not large, but they are spendy.

 

[Ballenxj]

These are nice, but have got to be some of the most expensive ones I've found. 

https://vintageelectricbikes.com/pages/store

 

[jonsun]

Im not sure why they arent using lithium motorcycle batteries yet. Those are down to about $100-150.

http://shoraipower.com/lfx18l2-bs06-p98

 

[CityWoman]

There is a fulltimer who blogs about his Evolo e-bike. He has a separate page about it on his blog here: https://strollingamok.wordpress.com/the-evelo-pack-mule/ and you can also do a tag search for his posts about it.

 

[CautionToTheWind]

Im not sure why they arent using lithium motorcycle batteries yet. Those are down to about $100-150.

Yesterday I came across the "fat tire electric scooter." The more I research e-bikes, e-motoring is exploding right now.

bardo- I wonder what the Zero Motorcycle has as a battery? I looked for 5 minutes on Mr. Google, no luck. http://www.zeromotorcycles.com/zero-s/sr.php

 

[jonsun]

IDK theres a doc on netflix about running at Isle of Man a few years back. It looked like they were running a custom made bank.

 

[tripper]

Im not sure why they arent using lithium motorcycle batteries yet. Those are down to about $100-150.

http://shoraipower.com/lfx18l2-bs06-p98

It takes 36-48 volt to power most e motors decently. which would be 3 or 4 of those motorcycle batteries (12v). That is comparable to just buying a custom ebike battery cost wise and not as good a setup; most good ebike batteries have a good battery management system built in that balances the batteries and keeps them from being discharged or charged too much.

 

[tripper]

There is a trade off of the simplicity of a direct drive and the lower gear ratios available for hill climbing on a geared or mid-drive.  Durability and repair-ability of the geared units is improving.

Sondors is a kickstarter campaign that has had multiple appearances, last I checked the price had gone up, but was still very good.  Luna also makes a mid-drive conversion kit, with a battery in the 1k range.

20 mph seems to be the emerging standard for street use. 

Batteries I've looked at are 36-54 volts, I've not seen a solar charge option yet.  The batteries are not large, but they are spendy.

For solar charging you just use the 120v charger through an inverter. I have a huge ebike battery charger and on MAX it pulls 300 watts but it does allow me to set it at a much lower charging rate, like 60 watts, which would work for small solar systems.