Goodbye van, hello e-bike
- Thread starter iandg
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pclay
Veteran
@iandg looking good. Thats the colour I would have chosen too. I really want an e-bike, and I've spent hours looking at ebikes. I've never ridden one before. Does this bike take away the gradianet on a 5% incline? Im fed up of my 2 mile each way commute wearing office trousers and a shirt, and sweating for 20 minutes afterwards.
Is this your first time on an ebike, and was it a revelation?
Is this your first time on an ebike, and was it a revelation?
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Ming the Merciless
There is no mercy
Interesting rack on bike, only appears to be attached at seat stay?
pclay
Veteran
That was my thought too. Quite a few fully equiped bikes come with racks like this. What stops them rotating forwards/backwards?
If it's anything like my Cube eMTB, it's attached to the mudguard which is metal and fairly robust. At first thought that doesn't seem robust enough for a luggage load but most of the force is the vertical loading which goes straight down to the lugs, and the mudguard only needs to prevent rotation. Which given the location of the potential pivot, it should be able to do without getting too much loading.
OP
OP
iandg
Legendary Member
Yes and yes.
Went out today with a HRM on and never left the "moderate" zone (max 128 bpm). Climbing without getting out of breath.
First time I've been out for a long ride on an e-bike (my wife has one but only been up and down road after making adjustments).
Loved it, will make utility cycling so much easier with less fatigue.
OP
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iandg
Legendary Member
Yes, attached to the mudguard in 2 places.
OP
OP
iandg
Legendary Member
Yes, 55cm and I've flipped the stem. There's 79cm from centre bottom bracket to top of saddle and the drop to bars is about 6cm. This drop would be similar to drop on the set-up on other bars but PMR pain/fatigue manifests in my wrists and shoulders so I've now got bars at saddle height on my LHT and Cross-Check. I've ridden up to 20km and found it comfortable but started to feel pressure in my wrists towards the end of the ride.
Bar height was always going to be an issue with current bike design trends and why I usually custom build (this is only the second complete bike I've bought since 1973). I've ordered swept back riser bars (Ergotech City Cruiser with 4cm rise) and will swap out hydraulic lines and gear cable.
I looked closer at my Cube and the mudguards are actually plastic but underneath there's a curved metal piece in contact with the plastic running inside the mudguard from the 2 rack attachment points to where it attaches to the bridge. Looking on the website the racks seem to come with these bars. The rack certainly feels solid.
Sixmile
Guru
I couldn't resist the HoF offer and bought a Whyte Clifton E-bike a few weekends ago when the 20% extra off deal was on. Think it made the Clifton £1149. As you say, heck of a spec for that money. It arrived yesterday and whilst I haven't ridden it yet, I'm really impressed with what I've got for the money.
I already own a Whyte Portobello hybrid so I knew my size and knew what to expect from Whyte. The Portobello has definitely been one of best bikes I've ever owned pound for pound. Now though, I've got something that can do those work miles, trailer pulling, dog lugging and trips out without the need to get sweaty - unless desired.
OP
OP
iandg
Legendary Member
A couple of weeks and 8 rides totalling just over 200km done so far on the new ebike. It's only the second complete new bike I've had in 50 years (the last was a Saracen Tuff Trax in about 1990) all the others have been custom builds. So, no way that I wouldn't need to make changes to get a comfortable fit.
First swap was pedals, flats for SPD/flat. Then a bottle cage and pump from the spares box and a Gorix front carrier (to carry large grocery items) were fitted.
The saddle that came with the bike was comfortable enough but for long rides I wanted something my arse was more used to, so I fitted a leather Spa Nidd and attached a Carradice Bagman QR Expedition support, suitable for both my Barley and Nelson bags.
Despite flipping the stem the factory bars were still too low and put too much weight on my PMR affected shoulders and wrists. So I replaced them with Humpert Ergotech City Cruiser Bar with 40mm uplift and 30 something degree sweep back but this needed longer brake hoses (thanks to Cycletech Dumfries for this job). Success, more height at the front and a more upright position.
I added some Ergon anatomic grips and a mount for a Wahoo GPS. The control button on the top tube selects motor level and the colour of the surrounding LED gives an idea of battery range, but for detail you need to access a phone app. After a few rides I spotted a Pulsar One unit (online) which shows ride stats (distance, kph etc), shows battery level status and range and allows control of the motor from the bars. So I bought one and fitted it. The Wahoo Bluetooth interfered with ride stats so I swapped it for my Garmin Etrex.
Two punctures on the WTB Byways on Sunday's CTC Club Run so fitted some Schwalbe Land Cruisers (that were hanging in my cellar). Had to adjust the front mudguard to get more clearance and move the stay fixing up to the middle of the fork. Just need to trim the stays now.
The stated battery range is 80km. The club run plus out and back totalled 79km and the battery still has 36% charge and 42km range left. A lot more distance than specified by the manufacturer, but then I used a lot of 'no assist' on the ride. Very comfortable and great to ride, going to be a shock when I get back on the Surlys
First swap was pedals, flats for SPD/flat. Then a bottle cage and pump from the spares box and a Gorix front carrier (to carry large grocery items) were fitted.
The saddle that came with the bike was comfortable enough but for long rides I wanted something my arse was more used to, so I fitted a leather Spa Nidd and attached a Carradice Bagman QR Expedition support, suitable for both my Barley and Nelson bags.
Despite flipping the stem the factory bars were still too low and put too much weight on my PMR affected shoulders and wrists. So I replaced them with Humpert Ergotech City Cruiser Bar with 40mm uplift and 30 something degree sweep back but this needed longer brake hoses (thanks to Cycletech Dumfries for this job). Success, more height at the front and a more upright position.
I added some Ergon anatomic grips and a mount for a Wahoo GPS. The control button on the top tube selects motor level and the colour of the surrounding LED gives an idea of battery range, but for detail you need to access a phone app. After a few rides I spotted a Pulsar One unit (online) which shows ride stats (distance, kph etc), shows battery level status and range and allows control of the motor from the bars. So I bought one and fitted it. The Wahoo Bluetooth interfered with ride stats so I swapped it for my Garmin Etrex.
Two punctures on the WTB Byways on Sunday's CTC Club Run so fitted some Schwalbe Land Cruisers (that were hanging in my cellar). Had to adjust the front mudguard to get more clearance and move the stay fixing up to the middle of the fork. Just need to trim the stays now.
The stated battery range is 80km. The club run plus out and back totalled 79km and the battery still has 36% charge and 42km range left. A lot more distance than specified by the manufacturer, but then I used a lot of 'no assist' on the ride. Very comfortable and great to ride, going to be a shock when I get back on the Surlys
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Saracenlad
Über Member
Thanks very much for posting all of this. Glad you are enjoying the new bike. I am very tempted ; 80 at next birthday and am starting to suffer a bit on my bike; shortness of breath on any stiff climb etc. My recovery from a ride is also taking me longer. How do you find the bike without assist on a flat road with those tyres? Where did you get the front rack? Thanks again.
OP
OP
iandg
Legendary Member
It rides ok without assist, just like riding a non-electric heavy bike. I do notice drag when freewheeling at level 2 and 3 so just drop to no assist on long down hills. Did 18km today and only rode 33% on no assist. The flat coast road home was into a wind so I kept the motor on level 1. Even so with 67% of assist I only used 20% battery on an 18km ride. The land Cruisers have a nice flat central ridge so are not bad on road.
I found the Gorix rack on Amazon. Had to drill another hole in the top to get it level, was pretty close without but it just made me happier seeing the bubble on a spirit level sitting between the lines
Amazon product ASIN B0BPK7NH79View: https://www.amazon.co.uk/GORIX-Front-Carrier-Bicycle-GX-RACK/dp/B0BPK7NH79/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3F7U5G6CKQE10&keywords=gorix+front+rack&qid=1699472344&s=sports&sprefix=gorix+front+rack%2Csports%2C78&sr=1-1
