E-bike dilemma - any recommendations

[dad_of_jon]

Hi all,

I've been tasked with finding a suitable bike for a relative to help them get around their land. Seeing as I cycle a lot and I'm regarded as being good with mechanical/electrical things I'm the go-to apparently
Whilst I normally enjoy hunting down a spec I can't quite get what I think will fit the bill.

Looking for a step through frame for someone from 5 foot 6 to 6 foot. Tyres at least 26 x 2 inch. Suitable for grass rolling hills and gravel paths, not MTB hard core off road tyres.
48V at least 500w motor with a Big battery as someone else might have to charge it up for them.
And a tidy gear set - not the shimano 7 speed entry level thumbshifter with tourney gears.

I had a test ride of these two bikes....

https://www.cyrusher.co.uk/products/kommoda-ebike
https://www.cyrusher.co.uk/products/kuattro-ebike

I had no problem with them but felt the smaller wheels made the bike feel less stable. This is not a great idea for the dodery old coot it's meant for. Did I just say that out aloud?

The other issue is I think fat tyres are a bit of overkill, but not a dealbreaker. The gearchange was rubbish though.

My bike is a Dawes Sonoran it has altus/acera drivetrain on it is much better drivetrain than on the cyrushers.

The closest I can come up with for the job so far is.....

https://uk.buybestgear.com/products...JtJ0uAFyK5dZD4YvOWLPx8n9OBiQd3MBoCVLEQAvD_BwE
If there was a version of the above with 2 inch wide or so tyres that would help the battery last even longer.

Would any of you peeps have any suggestions?

 

[jof]

Hmm, 20 inch wheels are a bit small for comfort on normal potholed roads, let alone off-road, but wheel size vs efficiency doesn't make a whole lot of difference. That's probably why they are big fat tyres.

Schwalbe do a good selection of tyres for semi off road & e-bikes, so it might just be a case of switching tyres if the rims are in an acceptable range.

Only thing my e-bike riding friends can come up with is get one with the motor on the main crank, not a hub motor.
And battery is main cost, so price goes up a lot if you want more range.

 

[dad_of_jon]

Hmm, 20 inch wheels are a bit small for comfort on normal potholed roads, let alone off-road, but wheel size vs efficiency doesn't make a whole lot of difference. That's probably why they are big fat tyres.

Schwalbe do a good selection of tyres for semi off road & e-bikes, so it might just be a case of switching tyres if the rims are in an acceptable range.

Only thing my e-bike riding friends can come up with is get one with the motor on the main crank, not a hub motor.
And battery is main cost, so price goes up a lot if you want more range.

Cheers for the reply. I know the fat tyres are heavier than thinner ones there seems to be a few kilos in it. The crank vs Hub motor in biking almost causes the same split opinion as our 30 or 60 min boil thread - I've only test ridden a rear hub motor and likewise never done a 60 min boil so I can't honestly say which I prefer I should try and get a crank motor test ride.

 

[dad_of_jon]

Well this came out and the order had been placed.
https://www.cyrusher.co.uk/products/trax-ebike
It does have some dropouts for a rear rack and mudguards, that will probably be my job

I have gone for this myself...

https://www.ceayabikes.com/en-gb/products/electric-bike-rx80-ceaya
And took it up Mountain Road from Garnswllt over the top to visit the windfarm on the top.

I've kept it legal but it can be unlocked.

A few things that I'd not really considered came to light. Whilst the motor cuts out as 15.5mph it's not killing my enjoyment. there's more energy needed to spin up (and slow) a big tyre so the motor does a great job of that. If I could compare it to a car it's more like a Grand Tourer. not suitable for the city. I cycle around 12mph with the motor off. only on the flat or light inclines.

My journey over the mountains was quicker than in my yoof because I had to get off the bike and push it uphill. now i'm doing over 12mph! uphill. Coming down does not require a motor or pedalling. so overall faster. Because of the heft of the bike and the fat tyres I felt safer as speed and applied brakes after I reached 25mph. Nowhere near the 45mph+ I reached on a racer in my yoof.

20 mile trip 60% battery left. So I reckon around 50 miles real battery range. the trick I suppose is to make sure you have enough battery for the tough hills as its not a bike (30kg+) you can cycle up slopes without the battery. The last 7 or so miles from home are flat so I can run out of charge before I get home. I cycled 5 or so mile on the way out today without using power.

P.S. the pull out of Garnswllt was every bit as scary as when I was 15..... google street view does not capture the drop you see on your left hand side

 

[dad_of_jon]

btw the manual was for the bike was pants but I have a link to programming the bike through the display. or if indeed you have an e-bike with an s2 or rebranded display like this....

 

[Nicks90]

Sorry only just seen this, if I had seen the thread before I would have recommended you check out the eco voltz eventer
https://www.ecovoltz.co.uk/e-bike/eco-voltz-eventer/Millions of the damn things motoring about at horse trials and yards and cope with pretty much everything off-road in the horsey circles

 

[dad_of_jon]

update: 630 miles to date. Cycle path to pub (pilot in mumbles for a couple of beerriff beers) very wet from railway inn to blackpill so decided to find an alternative route back.

oh dear ended up on a quiet lane I kid you not. It's called that in the clyne valley it soon ended up in leaves and mud as I passed one of the many old brickworks in the area. stunning scenery and then all of a sudden I popped up above the tree canopy to a crystal clear blue sky. This is the sort of experience you can't really replicate. (well you can but the wow factor will have gone on repeated occasions)

even with 4 inch knobbly tyres the back end was a bit squirrely in places. on my 'analogue' bike it would have been uncycle-able.

I now totally get the attraction of cycling off piste, even though it means having to clean the crud off the bike which is a task I detest.

I was so lost in the moment I didn't think of taking a pic.

Maybe next time when i'm a bit more blase about the view

Here's a stock pic of the trail I ended up on.

 

[Leon103]

update: 630 miles to date. Cycle path to pub (pilot in mumbles for a couple of beerriff beers) very wet from railway inn to blackpill so decided to find an alternative route back.

oh dear ended up on a quiet lane I kid you not. It's called that in the clyne valley it soon ended up in leaves and mud as I passed one of the many old brickworks in the area. stunning scenery and then all of a sudden I popped up above the tree canopy to a crystal clear blue sky. This is the sort of experience you can't really replicate. (well you can but the wow factor will have gone on repeated occasions)

even with 4 inch knobbly tyres the back end was a bit squirrely in places. on my 'analogue' bike it would have been uncycle-able.

I now totally get the attraction of cycling off piste, even though it means having to clean the crud off the bike which is a task I detest.

I was so lost in the moment I didn't think of taking a pic.

Maybe next time when i'm a bit more blase about the view

Here's a stock pic of the trail I ended up on.

View attachment 91492

Bike couldn't handle that???

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Bike couldn't handle that???

As he said he posted a stock picture which doesn't show how muddy the trail was on the day he rode it!

It's called that in the clyne valley it soon ended up in leaves and mud

even with 4 inch knobbly tyres the back end was a bit squirrely in places. on my 'analogue' bike it would have been uncycle-able.

Here's a stock pic of the trail I ended up on.

 

[MashBag]

I've been tasked with finding a suitable bike for a relative to help them get around their land. Seeing as I cycle a lot and I'm regarded as being good with mechanical/electrical things I'm the go-to apparently

Have you looked at the rad ebike range? I don't own one, but they always seem to hit the spot.

I think you have been given a confused "requirement" which might be causing some consternation. Who says it's got to be 48v & 26"? That's a bit like calling a cab and insisting it runs of petrol?. The requirement is the job of needs to perform surely?

 

[dad_of_jon]

Have you looked at the rad ebike range? I don't own one, but they always seem to hit the spot.

I think you have been given a confused "requirement" which might be causing some consternation. Who says it's got to be 48v & 26"? That's a bit like calling a cab and insisting it runs of petrol?. The requirement is the job of needs to perform surely?

Ah that was my doing as in wide tyres and the size of the cyclist. The 48V was also to get a more powerful motor. I have left the restrictions on for my relative for their safety even thought it's on private land. They can actually charge the battery up themselves which is a bonus.

The e-bike isn't really comparable to to a mountain bike some of the trails around where I live are a bit too tight to get my beastie along, its more of a comfort cruiser. It is however more capable than my hybrid. I did look at rad power but didn't tick all the boxes I had.

 

[MashBag]

Have you been given the job because it doesn't exist 'off the shelf' perhaps.
Is it, get close enough and then modify the specific bits?

Better might be too visit a couple of ebike shops - I have always found them very helpful and might even mod it for you, before delivery.

Where will it be charged?

 

[dad_of_jon]

coming up to 1100 miles on my bike relative has done just over 50!

This is my charge time to 100% calculator. it's not 100% accurate as charge rate slows as you get nearer full but it's pinned up in shed so I just have to measure the voltage quite easy now so if im at 60% and I want to charge to 80% That's 2:24 - 1:12 = 1:12. It's close enough to be useful, when I measure what the charged battery is in volts it's either on the money or .1v out.

 

[MashBag]

Missing summat.. Do you not store it charged?

 

[dad_of_jon]

Missing summat.. Do you not store it charged?

not fully charged as thats riskier.

 

[MashBag]

Righto. Get that.