Advice needed on my first e-bike

[CXRAndy]

Belt drive. My Bafang mid drive conversion wears chains a lot faster than my non powered bikes and I have seen ads for special ebike chains so if your ebike of choice has an IGH definitely consider the belt drive option..

I've not experienced that myself. I have over 3000 miles on my Bafang motor.

Its how people ride e bikes I guess. I dont hammer the power, cycle at low cadences up steep hills.

 

[Gwylan]

Been using an E-Bike for the last 6 years, this is my second E-Bike . The first one got nicked. That's a warning too.

Buy a bike from the LBS that you trust. Also need to know that they know what they are doing
Need confidence in the manufacturer. Not least that they will last longer than the warranty.
Look for simplicity. Understand what the electronics do and don't do.

Range is a personal thing, gearing too. I've found 70km works for me. I have a second battery but that complicates life.

My second bike is a Cowboy. A Belgian brand that has had its fair share of challenges
My bike is a good, comfortable every day bike. At 16 kg you don't want to carry it far.
The killer is that the material of some of the components are under specced. Either to save weight or cost. Or the supplier was a bit tricky.

The whole bike needs your mobile phone to manage it. Repeated iterations of the App have generally been for the better.
But when you want to leave home and catch a train it can be a pain to suddenly have to fight to avoid an upgrade just then.

The consumption of the App can be a big challenge when the signal is bad, or your phone battery is running flat
There is a way of hot booting it. But that requires the keys and a degree of luck.
Also when the battery is flat it is a complete dead weight to propel, without the relief of gears.

I find the geometry comfortable to ride. Other plusses, for me, are a belt drive and no gears. Disc brakes are good too.
I added removable pedals, great for the train and small hotel rooms. A Slimstem simplifies life in compact spaces too.

Or you can buy the cheapest bike possible and hope...

 

[Mike Ayling]

I've not experienced that myself. I have over 3000 miles on my Bafang motor.

Its how people ride e bikes I guess. I dont hammer the power, cycle at low cadences up steep hills.

I do neither of those things.
Perhaps I should not buy cheap chains.

 

[Mike Ayling]

Been using an E-Bike for the last 6 years, this is my second E-Bike . The first one got nicked. That's a warning too.

Buy a bike from the LBS that you trust. Also need to know that they know what they are doing
Need confidence in the manufacturer. Not least that they will last longer than the warranty.
Look for simplicity. Understand what the electronics do and don't do.

Range is a personal thing, gearing too. I've found 70km works for me. I have a second battery but that complicates life.

My second bike is a Cowboy. A Belgian brand that has had its fair share of challenges
My bike is a good, comfortable every day bike. At 16 kg you don't want to carry it far.
The killer is that the material of some of the components are under specced. Either to save weight or cost. Or the supplier was a bit tricky.

The whole bike needs your mobile phone to manage it. Repeated iterations of the App have generally been for the better.
But when you want to leave home and catch a train it can be a pain to suddenly have to fight to avoid an upgrade just then.

The consumption of the App can be a big challenge when the signal is bad, or your phone battery is running flat
There is a way of hot booting it. But that requires the keys and a degree of luck.
Also when the battery is flat it is a complete dead weight to propel, without the relief of gears.

I find the geometry comfortable to ride. Other plusses, for me, are a belt drive and no gears. Disc brakes are good too.
I added removable pedals, great for the train and small hotel rooms. A Slimstem simplifies life in compact spaces too.

Or you can buy the cheapest bike possible and hope...

Riding by app is too much for this Luddite.
Also please give a link to your removable pedals.
Pedals on my bikes are removable using either a 15mm spanner or possibly an 8mm hex key and a lot of grunt.

 

[Gwylan]

Riding by app is too much for this Luddite.
Also please give a link to your removable pedals.
Pedals on my bikes are removable using either a 15mm spanner or possibly an 8mm hex key and a lot of grunt.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/26605775...ar=565913235102&widget_ver=artemis&media=MORE

Mine are similar, but don't seem to be available any more. They were also only £16.
Take a plastic bag to put them in when you've removed them.

 

[Mike Ayling]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/26605775...ar=565913235102&widget_ver=artemis&media=MORE

Mine are similar, but don't seem to be available any more. They were also only £16.
Take a plastic bag to put them in when you've removed them.

Thank you

 

[Dogtrousers]

MKS also make removable pedals with the brand name EZY.

Not a recommendation, I have no experience of them. I just know they exist.

 

[This Wreckage]

460wh battery is big, for comparision my Raleigh Motus is 24kg with Mid Drive and 400wh. I hang that at work by its front wheel in a similar stand and (touch wood) the front hasn't fallen off yet. At my best I'll do 50 miles on it with some pretty major hills. I will say it is a big bike, it's a large frame and would not fit in the space you've shown me.

I like that Tenways CGO800s but it is a belt drive which I'm aways a bit suspicious of. What are your mileage/key features you need from the bike?

Belt drive is the only kind for me - my current bike is belt drive and I love it. 50 miles with some big hills sounds sufficient for the kind of easy days out I do.

 

[This Wreckage]

Out of interest, why?

(Relax, I'm not a belt drive fanatic looking for a fight. I know nothing about them, and have no experience of them. I'm just curious. I always thought they were nice for utility bikes because they are clean and quiet, but do require some funny shenanigans in the frame to allow replacement.)

My current manual bike is belt drive; I've had it two years without a problem and I vastly prefer it.

 

[This Wreckage]

Only big for a lightweight bike. I consider 400Wh low.

Yes, it is. And that is my question: can I get away with a lighter ebike - just about?

 

[This Wreckage]

This is the issue. Remember, getting an e-bike on that hook will be a stuggle. Especially if it has a full rear mudguard, which means you can't just pull the rear brake, lift the front wheel until the bike is vertical and then lift. You'll have to lift it clear from about 20 degrees or the mudguard will break off. Have a look at the Kona bike that CDRAndy posted above and you'll see what I mean.

If that is an issue, a rear hub motor with battery on the rear carrier, will be your easiest option and a down-tube mounted battery paired with a mid motor, your worst option.

My current manual bike weighs about 19kg and I manage to hook it up in trains, as well as to store it vertically in my outhouse. So I'm looking to get an ebike that isn't a lot heavier. Mid drives can be at least 29kg.

 

[CXRAndy]

My current manual bike weighs about 19kg and I manage to hook it up in trains, as well as to store it vertically in my outhouse. So I'm looking to get an ebike that isn't a lot heavier. Mid drives can be at least 29kg.

That weight is probably a bit high, but not far off maybe 25kg. Unless you're lifting the bike completely off the ground(both wheels together) the weight will be greatly reduced hanging from a hook for instance

 

[wiggydiggy]

Belt drive is the only kind for me - my current bike is belt drive and I love it. 50 miles with some big hills sounds sufficient for the kind of easy days out I do.

I think 57 is the most I did, that had more undulating than steep hills and I was flashing for low battery as I got back.

My current manual bike weighs about 19kg and I manage to hook it up in trains, as well as to store it vertically in my outhouse. So I'm looking to get an ebike that isn't a lot heavier. Mid drives can be at least 29kg.

My mid drive is 24.8kg stock so 29kg seems a lot! Even with a 800wh battery I can't imagine anything but cargo bikes weighing that much.

 

[Dadam]

I know little about e-bikes, but if I was going that route I’d look at Woosh and Swytch. Both offer ‘conversion kits’, that could be used on your existing bike - and if you’re not needing the electrics, you can swap back to its original form.

No experience of Swytch but with conversion kits in general, I would consider how you want the controller to work and read some independent reviews, download manuals etc.

I converted a bike using the Woosh rear hub XF08 motor kit, which came with the Lishui controller. The kit was good quality and Woosh's aftersales support was exemplary. They sent out replacement/alternative parts FoC when it transpired I'd been sent the wrong ones and were very responsive on email. The motor was also very smooth and torquey while being UK legal.

However I did not like the way the controller worked. My other ebikes work so that the assist level varies the power delivery, but the levels all cut off at the UK motor limit 25 km/h. However on the Woosh kit only the level 5 cut off at that speed. The others cut off at speed steps under that, with around 3-4mph between them. This made it frustrating to ride on flat or gentle rise as your speed would settle to the level of whatever assist mode you were in.

The controller went back to Woosh for tests and they tried to get a firmware update but there wasn't one available and were forced to conclude it was designed to work that way, who knows why. I sold the kit on and put the bike back to standard. I later bought a Vado SL for commuting which was the main purpose of the kit bike.

I can only assume that most buyers get the throttle option and just leave it in the top mode, hence why Woosh were surprised it worked that way.

Based on a dataset of 1 I concluded that kits are a very cost effective option but there were too many compromises for me and I preferred paying more for better refinement.

 

[CXRAndy]

I thought that re kits the quality smoothness and how quiet they can be.

These are all crank based bikes not rear hub motors.

I've ridden a few of my friends bikes, Bosch and Greyp (Porsche) Both are smooth and quiet, cost £3k-8k in costs. But what I've found with Tongscheng and Bafang is. Tongscheng are almost as quiet and smooth, Bafang are far more agricultural with noisy drives.

The advantages are cost (£500 kit inc 750-900Whr battery) flexibility in battery capacity and voltages used. Various display options, no proprietary software blocking repairs or upgrades. Finally open software platform where you can reprogram the system to suit your own requirements, large forum based following