Powacycle Prague
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Salad Dodger
Guru
Hi Mugshot
I dont have experience of a Prague, but I have a Powacycle Salisbury and my wife has a Powacycle Windsor. From a look at specs on the website, it looks pretty much like the Prague is similar to the Windsor.
We have been pretty well pleased with our bikes. Wife's one had a bit of a problem to begin with, that the power would cut out intermittently. It went back to the shop, who very quickly traced it to the cutout switch linked to the front brake. (Both brakes have a cutout switch fitted so motor power stops as soon as you apply the brakes, but should start again as soon as you release the brakes and start pedalling again).
I would say that the bikes are "mid level" in overall quality. Some of the components are recognisably branded, but some are cheap generic Chinese ones. Some of the chrome is falling off after about 18 months, but nothing major has gone wrong. One of the pedals on my bike fell to bits quite quickly, but I just replaced them with some commuter style pedals from local shop. If you want a bike made completely of known brand name parts, expect to pay considerably more than the price of a Prague.....
Our bikes (and I imagine the Prague will be the same) only have 2 power settings - on or off. This is fine out on the open road, but in towns it can be a bit of a trial, cos as soon as you start pedalling the motor tries to propel you up to 15 miles per hour. Which is fine unless the rest of the traffic is only doing 8 or 10 miles per hour.... Posher bikes usually have more levels of assistance to choose from, which allows you to choose how much effort you put in, and uses the battery up more slowly. Which leads us to the question of "battery anxiety"
Dont believe what any manufacturer claims about range. Maybe a 6 stone whippet might manage to get the manufacturers claimed range out of an e-bike (and I am not referring to Powacycle products here, it's my generic observation about all e-bikes) by riding continuously around a flat track with no stopping and starting. But out in the real world, my wife and I, both about 16 stone people riding our e-bikes in an environment which includes some hills and some flat ground, with some stopping and starting, can expect just about 16 or 17 miles maximum out of fully charged batteries.
But that's still 16 or 17 miles which we wouldn't have cycled together without the e-bikes. I might have gone out on my own on my MTB, but for Mrs Salad to come with me, with her gammy knee and a slightly gammy hip, a pair of ebikes has been a great way to cycle together.
If the ebikes got nicked, would I buy 2 more Powacycles? I think Mrs Salad would very happily choose another Powacycle. It's reasonably priced, reasonably well put together and does all she wants it to do. For myself, I might be prepared to pay a bit more and choose a higher specced bike with more levels of assistance, so I could actually put in more effort myself, use motor power a little less, and thereby extend available range. But I ride more than Mrs Salad does.
Hope this helps. It's just my personal observations, but if you need to ask any more questions don't hesitate to PM me.....
I dont have experience of a Prague, but I have a Powacycle Salisbury and my wife has a Powacycle Windsor. From a look at specs on the website, it looks pretty much like the Prague is similar to the Windsor.
We have been pretty well pleased with our bikes. Wife's one had a bit of a problem to begin with, that the power would cut out intermittently. It went back to the shop, who very quickly traced it to the cutout switch linked to the front brake. (Both brakes have a cutout switch fitted so motor power stops as soon as you apply the brakes, but should start again as soon as you release the brakes and start pedalling again).
I would say that the bikes are "mid level" in overall quality. Some of the components are recognisably branded, but some are cheap generic Chinese ones. Some of the chrome is falling off after about 18 months, but nothing major has gone wrong. One of the pedals on my bike fell to bits quite quickly, but I just replaced them with some commuter style pedals from local shop. If you want a bike made completely of known brand name parts, expect to pay considerably more than the price of a Prague.....
Our bikes (and I imagine the Prague will be the same) only have 2 power settings - on or off. This is fine out on the open road, but in towns it can be a bit of a trial, cos as soon as you start pedalling the motor tries to propel you up to 15 miles per hour. Which is fine unless the rest of the traffic is only doing 8 or 10 miles per hour.... Posher bikes usually have more levels of assistance to choose from, which allows you to choose how much effort you put in, and uses the battery up more slowly. Which leads us to the question of "battery anxiety"
Dont believe what any manufacturer claims about range. Maybe a 6 stone whippet might manage to get the manufacturers claimed range out of an e-bike (and I am not referring to Powacycle products here, it's my generic observation about all e-bikes) by riding continuously around a flat track with no stopping and starting. But out in the real world, my wife and I, both about 16 stone people riding our e-bikes in an environment which includes some hills and some flat ground, with some stopping and starting, can expect just about 16 or 17 miles maximum out of fully charged batteries.
But that's still 16 or 17 miles which we wouldn't have cycled together without the e-bikes. I might have gone out on my own on my MTB, but for Mrs Salad to come with me, with her gammy knee and a slightly gammy hip, a pair of ebikes has been a great way to cycle together.
If the ebikes got nicked, would I buy 2 more Powacycles? I think Mrs Salad would very happily choose another Powacycle. It's reasonably priced, reasonably well put together and does all she wants it to do. For myself, I might be prepared to pay a bit more and choose a higher specced bike with more levels of assistance, so I could actually put in more effort myself, use motor power a little less, and thereby extend available range. But I ride more than Mrs Salad does.
Hope this helps. It's just my personal observations, but if you need to ask any more questions don't hesitate to PM me.....
Pale Rider
Legendary Member
Looks like the Prague has a 24 volt battery and a 180 watt motor.
That spec is a bit last decade in ebike terms.
Most modern ebikes are 36 volt and 250 watts, which would give you a little extra power.
On t'other hand, Powacycles are known to be fairly reliable and good quality for what they are.
A step-through you could consider is a Woosh Santa Ana,
@Sara_H has one and has been pleased with it.
And it's a bit cheaper than a Powacycle.
http://wooshbikes.co.uk/electric-bikes/sant-ana/
That spec is a bit last decade in ebike terms.
Most modern ebikes are 36 volt and 250 watts, which would give you a little extra power.
On t'other hand, Powacycles are known to be fairly reliable and good quality for what they are.
A step-through you could consider is a Woosh Santa Ana,
@Sara_H has one and has been pleased with it.
And it's a bit cheaper than a Powacycle.
http://wooshbikes.co.uk/electric-bikes/sant-ana/
OP
OP
Mugshot
Cracking a solo.
Thanks for the replies guys, it's very much appreciated.
Salad Dodger that's a fantastic reply, thank you
I have been speaking to Sara, and I do like the look of the Sant Ana. The difficulty is that its a present for my wife and her inside leg is 27", it would appear that that limits my choices quite a lot.
Ive posted on pedelecs, but I'm greedy so I'm looking for as much real world experience as I can get
Salad Dodger that's a fantastic reply, thank you
I have been speaking to Sara, and I do like the look of the Sant Ana. The difficulty is that its a present for my wife and her inside leg is 27", it would appear that that limits my choices quite a lot.
Ive posted on pedelecs, but I'm greedy so I'm looking for as much real world experience as I can get
OP
OP
Mugshot
Cracking a solo.
Thought I'd update this thread.
Having received some very useful and helpful information from @Sara_H and Woosh bikes and also of course @Salad Dodger s great post above, I plumped for the Woosh Sant Ana CD for my wifes birthday which was this Sunday just gone.
Woosh changed the seat post and saddle for me to lower the whole thing and my wife is comfortable on it.
On Sunday we went out and did 16 miles and yesterday evening we did 12 miles. Due to health problems she would have been unable to do 3 miles previously and would have collapsed in a heap if she'd tried, but having the assist on the electric and the option to increase the help level when and if required meant that she not only could do the increased distance with ease but also had the confidence she could do it. We've done some hills and some long steady inclines and it's been coped with admirably.
Last night we rode into town which involves going up a hill which my wife said to me, when we reached the top, that she would never have thought she could have ridden a bike up.
So if you're finding it a struggle I wouldn't hesitate to recommend an ebike (I know it's very early days).
It's been about 4 years since my wife has been able to come for a bike ride with me, now she can again and everybody is happy.
Edit - @Salad Dodger reference the range on the battery. On the battery there is a charge level indicator and there is one on the trip commuter too, the indicator on the battery has 5 levels whereas the one on the trip computer has 4. The suggested potential milage is 60-70 miles, now as you say this would have to involve a perfect set of circumstances, however on the two rides done so far the battery indicator has dropped by 1 bar and the trip computer indicator hasn't dropped at all, so I'm pretty confident we can push things a little further
Having received some very useful and helpful information from @Sara_H and Woosh bikes and also of course @Salad Dodger s great post above, I plumped for the Woosh Sant Ana CD for my wifes birthday which was this Sunday just gone.
Woosh changed the seat post and saddle for me to lower the whole thing and my wife is comfortable on it.
On Sunday we went out and did 16 miles and yesterday evening we did 12 miles. Due to health problems she would have been unable to do 3 miles previously and would have collapsed in a heap if she'd tried, but having the assist on the electric and the option to increase the help level when and if required meant that she not only could do the increased distance with ease but also had the confidence she could do it. We've done some hills and some long steady inclines and it's been coped with admirably.
Last night we rode into town which involves going up a hill which my wife said to me, when we reached the top, that she would never have thought she could have ridden a bike up.
So if you're finding it a struggle I wouldn't hesitate to recommend an ebike (I know it's very early days).
It's been about 4 years since my wife has been able to come for a bike ride with me, now she can again and everybody is happy.
Edit - @Salad Dodger reference the range on the battery. On the battery there is a charge level indicator and there is one on the trip commuter too, the indicator on the battery has 5 levels whereas the one on the trip computer has 4. The suggested potential milage is 60-70 miles, now as you say this would have to involve a perfect set of circumstances, however on the two rides done so far the battery indicator has dropped by 1 bar and the trip computer indicator hasn't dropped at all, so I'm pretty confident we can push things a little further
Pale Rider
Legendary Member
I know you are curious about the range and may want to run the battery down to discover how far it will go.
No harm in doing that a couple of times, but in general terms the batteries are best charged after every ride, even if it's only a short one.
Battery range will inevitably decline over time, so having a bit in hand now is a good idea.
If the battery does 60 miles now, it might only do 40 in a couple of years - no problem if you don't want to go any further.
Keeping the battery topped up will slow that rate of decline.
No harm in doing that a couple of times, but in general terms the batteries are best charged after every ride, even if it's only a short one.
Battery range will inevitably decline over time, so having a bit in hand now is a good idea.
If the battery does 60 miles now, it might only do 40 in a couple of years - no problem if you don't want to go any further.
Keeping the battery topped up will slow that rate of decline.
Pale Rider
Legendary Member
Sorry, perhaps I didn't explain myself properly. The battery has been recharged after each ride. It was full at the start of each ride and by the end had dropped (according to the indicator on the battery) by one bar.
Nowt to apologise for
As another battery generalisation, you might find you get between 10-15 miles per blob indicator.
Some indicators are more linear than others and the last blob, in particular, often doesn't last as long.
Flattening the battery completely is not a good idea.
The battery management system on the bike will not let you do it, so will cut the motor not long after there's only one indicator remaining.
Sara_H
Guru
Thought I'd update this thread.
Having received some very useful and helpful information from @Sara_H and Woosh bikes and also of course @Salad Dodger s great post above, I plumped for the Woosh Sant Ana CD for my wifes birthday which was this Sunday just gone.
Woosh changed the seat post and saddle for me to lower the whole thing and my wife is comfortable on it.
On Sunday we went out and did 16 miles and yesterday evening we did 12 miles. Due to health problems she would have been unable to do 3 miles previously and would have collapsed in a heap if she'd tried, but having the assist on the electric and the option to increase the help level when and if required meant that she not only could do the increased distance with ease but also had the confidence she could do it. We've done some hills and some long steady inclines and it's been coped with admirably.
Last night we rode into town which involves going up a hill which my wife said to me, when we reached the top, that she would never have thought she could have ridden a bike up.
So if you're finding it a struggle I wouldn't hesitate to recommend an ebike (I know it's very early days).
It's been about 4 years since my wife has been able to come for a bike ride with me, now she can again and everybody is happy.
Edit - @Salad Dodger reference the range on the battery. On the battery there is a charge level indicator and there is one on the trip commuter too, the indicator on the battery has 5 levels whereas the one on the trip computer has 4. The suggested potential milage is 60-70 miles, now as you say this would have to involve a perfect set of circumstances, however on the two rides done so far the battery indicator has dropped by 1 bar and the trip computer indicator hasn't dropped at all, so I'm pretty confident we can push things a little further
Thats fantastic news that your wife has been able to enjoy riding again. I've found the experience of using a powered bike amazing, it gave me back a bit of freedom at a time when I was just too ill to ride my unpowered bike, and I'm certain that riding the powered bike regularly is helping me to regain my origional fitness more quickly.
My plan is to eventually go back to non powered biking for general duties, but probably keep the powered bike for commuting as it drops about 15 minutes off my ride home (because I generally have to walk up the hill, whereas I can ride up on the powered bike).
I really recomend the Woosh Bikes, not only do they compare very favourably on price to other similar speced bikes, the customer service is outstanding - both before and after sales. Glad you're happy with yours!