Best Ebike for a Newb with Motocross and DH MTB Experience?!

Down2Mob

100 µW
Joined
Jan 19, 2018
Messages
8
Hello everyone and welcome! I have been doing a bunch of research which has led me here, and I am seeking opinions on what ebike/conversion will be best for me! I have a very nice Transition Dirtbag freeride mountain bike with solid components that I want to use. I am debating a BB kit like the Bafang, or a rear hub kit. I want something FAST. I have raced dirtbikes and rode downhill mountain bikes for years, so I can handle the power. Honestly, I would love to have an ebike that I can try to keep up with my buddies on dirtbikes - to a point, of course. The consumer in me wants to click "buy it now" on this 5000w ebike kit on amazon, but I am worried about the quality when it is clearly from China.

https://www.amazon.com/electric-conversion-programmable-sinewave-controller/dp/B01N7CV1SA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1516419963&sr=8-3&keywords=5000w+ebike

WHAT SHOULD I DO?! POINT ME IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION! I do not have a budget, I want this to be epic... Thanks!
 
It is about how you want to ride.

A BB drive will retain the bike feel, with its ability to jump and ride technical trails, achieving close to the same downhill speed that you are doing now.

A hub motor build can be much faster, and you can build single speed. It will be handling in between bicycle and motorcycle. No shifting, no crank work needed. It will climb better in trails than most motorcycles, if you feed it enough Amps. Yet downhill, nowhere close to the speed that you achieve with the bike now, and it won’t be good jumping more than 3 ft.

A big enough custom mid drive can beat them all, but requires good fabrication skills and bigger budget. It will be heavier, and riding very similar to motorcycles. Can be built a good jumper.
 
I forgot: don’t buy Amazon. After we know exactly what you decide to build, we will suggest the best places to buy and what you need to order.
 
What he said. The bike should be excellent for conversion.

My gut reaction is that you'd prefer 30-40 mph, so the big ass rear hub. Do some reading about torque plates here before you install one. A big enough motor like that will require two good torque arms on it.

It will ride a bit like a pig compared to before, but it will be fun to go fast up hills. And it will absolutely not be welcome on MTB trails in most places. Much less battery needed with the smaller motor. So you get lighter x2. But if you think about it, 90-125cc like performance at sub 100 pounds still rides damn sweet!

If you want that super good handling, and possibility of riding without pushback on MTB trails then a bike like mid drive will be your choice.

Bottom line, you might need two bikes. I did that, one bike is low power and light, and so far I can ride the local trails on it despite all the signs saying no. The big motor bike I ride on dirt roads, or my own self built bootleg trails, where a motorcycle is welcome.
 
Imo.

I had the same background as you.

I went with a tangent bolted to the strongest looking frame and swing arm I could find..... DH territory.

Good for some serious high speed but I don't actually use it for that. If I really want speed I take out the rc51, but the mc is boring compared to the single track buffoonery I have on the bike.

Next you want some decent batteries with highish capacity. I prefer to have it in a back pack compared to in the frame. The bike and motor are about 50lb and the back pack 16lb. I don't actually notice the back pack. But I'm sure I would notice the 65lb bike. There are times I need to lift the bike overhead or shove it under fallen trees.

....Other times I just need to be able to let the bike fly separately from me lol. Wouldn't want to risk the batteries doing that....
 
Let’s wait for confirmation of the purpose and priorities.

The OP said that he wants to keep up with friends on dirt bikes. Gassers I presume.

We need to know what are the dirt bikes, the terrain that they ride, the range that the OP is expecting. We all know that dirt bikes are not riding the single track MTB trails, and that most are not riding technical courses either. So before recommending some solutions that obviously can’t keep up with dirt bikes on forest roads, let’s wait for the OP to define priorities.
 
MadRhino said:
Let’s wait for confirmation of the purpose and priorities.

The OP said that he wants to keep up with friends on dirt bikes. Gassers I presume.

We need to know what are the dirt bikes, the terrain that they ride, the range that the OP is expecting. We all know that dirt bikes are not riding the single track MTB trails, and that most are not riding technical courses either. So before recommending some solutions that obviously can’t keep up with dirt bikes on forest roads, let’s wait for the OP to define priorities.
He will never keep up with gassers unless goes with a setup like toolman2

Since he didn't mention what else he wanted I stated what I use mine for.
 
12-C said:
He will never keep up with gassers unless goes with a setup like toolman2

Since he didn't mention what else he wanted I stated what I use mine for.
Yep, knowing what his options are, he might change his priorities.

Then, you might be surprised to know how many bikes on ES can compete with gassers.
 
"No Budget", ahh the magic words, this opens up a world of possibilities. Ship the bike off to Lightning Rods or Tangent, indicate what specific type of riding you wish to do, write a check, open the box when it's completed and instant bliss awaits you.

Or dig in and start reading older build threads on the forum here if you want to DIY, a person can glean a lot of information from these crazies that post up on here, guaranteed you'll go down a hundred different interesting rabbit holes in the process and likely end up with 5 different ebikes when you're done.
 
Raisedeyebrows said:
... likely end up with 5 different ebikes when you're done.

We all end up building many bikes when we have high requirements. We also end up spending much more money and time that we had planned.

Yet, it is getting better. With all the info on ES now, one who knows exactly what he wants can find the good receipt. But few have a clear view of their need before their first build.
 
Wow! I feel a very warm welcome to the forum, and thanks so much for all the detailed responses. This really gets the gears turning for me!

I should be more specific about my priorities:

1. I am building an RV that I will live in and travel for 6 months- a year and my #1 priority for this ebike is to have a good all around candidate for my adventures. A bike that I can ride discretely in the city and spots I might not be wanted, and I really would like to be able to do regular ol' mountain bike trails (realizing that some will not want the ebike on them). Also, I want this to be an emergency form of transportation if my home on wheels breaks down. So, longer range would be great, but I am honestly more concerned with performance and keeping the weight down, so range is a lower priority. (I can always pedal in an emergency) - so having a lighter bike that I can actually pedal is important

2. Keeping up with dirtbikes. Honestly, this is not a huge priority. In a perfect world, I want a bike that can do all of the above and keep up with my buddies on gassers, BUT, like I said I will be traveling, and will only be with them for limited periods of time. a 60mph top speed would be great, but also exposes more risk so realistically I would be good with a bike that did 40mph and couldn't "keep up" with dirtbikes everywhere.

3. Budget. Okay, saying "I have no budget" was kind of silly. I will rephrase - I want a quality ride that will last for many years to come, and I want to go fast. I am willing to pay a thousand or a few thousand on this project, and like I said I already have a built Freeride/DH bike that is ready to go. With that said, I want to build it myself so that I know how it works and how to fix it in the future. (Also just more rewarding and cheaper!)

4. Mid-drive vs. Hub drive.
From the sounds of what MadRhino said, I would want a hub drive, except when I hear that you wouldn't want to jump it much. I want to hit 20-30 foot booters at some point on this thing, and will be looking for lots of drops/jumps. So maybe a BB setup would be a better all around solution for me?

THANKS AGAIN, you guys rock, stoked to be on this forum!
 
Of course you are welcome.

From what you said, I can say that you are up for a BB drive, and it will be difficult to build it to your entire satisfaction within your budget.

A BBS HD is OK and easy to fit. You will want to add some options and mods. This will make it more than 1000$ but still, reasonable. The best guy to contact for this, is forum member Cellman who has an online store at em3ev.com. All required info is here on ES, for many had built with this conversion kit.

Once you have the virus, and more cash, you will want to build another one more complicated, with better performance and meeting the refined requirements of one who has ebike experience.

Good luck with your build. Take the time to make sure that you know and order everything that fits on your bike, and that you want to have.
 
Awesome, I can't wait. Over $1k is okay. I want it to be a beast. I am looking around and can only find 1000w BBS HD, is there a 3000watt or higher? That is the only other thing I am wondering. Wattage. From my brief research it seems I would want 3000-5200 watt. Any links to good kits? From there I think I just need to look at other builds to put together a parts list and like you said, make sure I have everything that will FIT my transition frame. It has a 73mm BB

Second note, I am debating a fat bike ebike, because riding on beaches sounds amazing. That's honestly the main reason, I have never ridden a fat bike though so not sure I would even like it.
 
I find my FS bike with Bafang BBSHD is very fun to ride both off-road and street riding too, not difficult at all to install, not extremely expensive and has been a pretty good introduction to ebikes for me. As far as the possibility of installing one on your cycle is concerned I found this tutorial written by Matt to be helpful:

https://www.empoweredcycles.com/blogs/news/101474694-bottom-bracket-standards-and-bafang-mid-drive-motors
 
Down2Mob said:
From my brief research it seems I would want 3000-5200 watt.

Yes, I know you will want more power. The BBSHD can drive more power with controller mod and better battery, but not as much as I would have suggested if you had the budget. I tried to keep close to 1000$, including the options and mod that I believe you will want.

Double your budget, and you will have a different solution. Make it 5000$ and yet another. :wink: Still, I believe you have to build and ride one before hitting the big button.
 
Got it! Good stuff. I have a tendency to want to go big right away to build something that will not outlive my needs. I am pretty set on getting the BBHD from bafang right now, you are good salesman! So with this setup and some mods, I can achieve 40+ mph? I might just have to pull the trigger real soon
 
Down2Mob said:
Got it! Good stuff. I have a tendency to want to go big right away to build something that will not outlive my needs. I am pretty set on getting the BBHD from bafang right now, you are good salesman! So with this setup and some mods, I can achieve 40+ mph? I might just have to pull the trigger real soon
Well, I am not selling it. I am into building with heavy hub motors.
I just believe that your requirements are better served with a BB drive.
I don’t know the top speed that is possible to achieve upgrading this kit. You will have to ask those who did. I know that some had worked a lot on them, using stronger chain and gears than bicycle, buying better controllers, using better batteries...

You will have to search building threads, to know all that can be done with that.

Good luck with your build. Post your experience when you’re done.
 
Back
Top