Electric MTB

[P4ulie]

I'm still at work so been using the bike daily for the commute & with the weather being stunning the long way home up & over the downs. It turns what would be a pretty taxing journey (20 miles of South Downs hills) for a not particularly fit, middle aged biker into great fun.

[crofty]

IMG_20200421_151330817.jpg (198.03 KiB) Viewed 2939 times

Home builds are a great way to go and usually cost less than a grand. I bought a new Carrera in a Halfords sale for about 300 quid and a 350w hub motor from China, fantastic climber. 17.5 Ah battery loads of range for my 100kg.
Been a godsend during the lockdown

[Bart1]

I did the Bafang BBS01 crank drive a few weeks back on my old Specialized - loving it and out every day

Specialized.jpg


The frame shape did present a challenge and I couldn't fit the conventional battery, but the seat-post mounting is working fine, and you don't notice the weight as much as expected - with full suspension and electric you tend to sit more anyway.

This bike has fairly long travel and even the seat mounting only leaves a few mm clearance at full compression. The forks also mean the front wheel goes close to the frame at full travel.

It is an absolute joy travelling at 15 or so mph average in total silence, it will be interesting to see how my enthusiasm is once I can use the motorised versions again, but this has opened up whole new riding areas and I expect I will want to continue....

Looking good, yes the battery placement can be an issue on a full suspension mtb. What size battery have you used ? Mine is a 17aH and to be honest with the rides I currently do I could easily go down in size. Since doing my conversion it has spurred me onto do more even cycling and recently bought a acoustic road bike.
Emtb's are great for opening up more legal trails and so far everyone has been polite and friendly, many do not even know there is a motor on the bike.

One thing I have noticed and read about the Bafang motor is how quiet it is. EMBN recently did a video on noise levels on "proper" emtb's and they all seemed noisier.

My kit came from here, but there are others
http://eclipsebikes.com/index.php?cPath ... 50937aa63a

[Thedktor]

My Kit came from Woosh, not the cheapest but will provide a proper warranty, and technical backup.

The battery is known as a "Frog" presumably to do with it's shape, and is 13Ah. I would estimate range at perhaps 40 miles max, and have gone as far as 32 miles with some left - it would be nice to have a little more really.

Of note note though, and this is not unusual with these things, after about 10 miles/25% you notice a little less power, after 20 miles/50% there is a definite drop, say to 2/3 power available.

It's not a biggie, and like any cycling trip it is a good idea to plan your route to go up in elevation on the way out, and into the wind if possible. Then the ride home is much more pleasant

[PaulinBont]

Very hilly here in my part of Wales; 20 miles range up and down very steep terrain on full assist and I'm overweight and unfit! 100 miles on flat cycle paths in Eco mode; Cube with 500w battery.

[Thedktor]

Very hilly here in my part of Wales; 20 miles range up and down very steep terrain on full assist and I'm overweight and unfit! 100 miles on flat cycle paths in Eco mode; Cube with 500w battery.

Sounds about right, hopefully soon battery technology will get much better!

My battery would be approx 500Wh based on Ah x volts, recently did 40 miles on "normal" but the last 10 miles or so it felt quite weak...

Noise - generally a product of torque/power of the motor. My Bafang developed a noticeable whine after several hundred miles, a quick google for advice and the answer is to stuff fresh grease into the secondary gear - its back to being virtually inaudible again

[garyboy]

`secondary gear` .. is that the derailleur external gears .. or do you mean inside the motor cover ??

[jasext]

Thought i'd join the gang

[garyboy]

Don't forget the lycra pics, Jase

[garyboy]

PS ... where is ktm Jon … ? … I know he loves bicycles too