Commuter UK styleeee...yes its a cyclone

[Dingo2024]

Hey Dingo! its Dingo here, nah mark actually, I like your efficiency drive thing and that meter, gotta get one, also that rear carrier, I have a similar set up difference being a hub drive and although liking the look without a carrier that one on your bike is the type I'm after, able to handle saddle bags, where do you get it or should I try Ebay?

Hi Mark, the meter is the Cycle Analyst that many here on ES use...not cheap but I could not ride an ebike without one. Keeps an eye on the numbers as you ride and easy to use. Makes life sooooo much easier

The rear carrier is from Axiom....again mentioned on ES and supposed to hold up to 70kgs (although I have not tried it)

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=14335

http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/ ... LUK&cc=GBP

the panniers I ended up with are awsome...check link below about 3/4 down the page

FastRider LED Canvas Pannier with FLQC system


http://www.practicalcycles.com/userimages/procart24.htm .......I can post pics of them if your interested

this shop is also excellent......not sure what is available in OZ though?

Ian

[Dingo2024]

I have been able to get out on the bike most days this past week (sunny but a little windy!) and have improved on the 'to work efficiency figures' I will accept that this is about as good as it gets with my current setup (fat tyres / mudguards / rack / lights etc.) so I am now playing around with the riding position.........more to report on that later....but for now here are the CA pics from my 'best ride to date'..............this puts the bike in both the 40 mph and over 25 mile range club (but not at the same time)

Ian

[Dingo2024]

well chaps.......hit another milestone today ..........1000 miles

also been playing around with riding position for the last 2 weeks and it has certainly made a difference.
Here is what I did;

start out with the saddle the height you usually ride and mark the seat post with a pencil......every couple of rides raise the seat / post 1mm and remark with pencil....keep doing this until it starts to feel uncomfortable then go back down to the last pencil mark. I have 7mm more seat height now and it is much easier to ride......give it a try you never know..you might actually like it

anyway here are a couple of shots from today..........its now time to strip and check gearbox etc.

heres to the next 1000

Ian

[Dingo2024]

always looking for something to do........I changed the tyres on hte bike back to the Kojak slicks (26" X 2") that I started the build with to see if / how much difference rubber makes. Well all can say is QUITE A BIT. Been using the bike all week and it most definatey performs better (quicker with less rolling restistance) than the previous setup. Had some fun riding to work yesterday and this is what happend......a new speed record

here is the read out...the bar has now gone up a notch or two

Ian

[Dingo2024]

so I hit the 1000 mile point a month ago and checked the planetary gearbox for wear.............all good

whilst doing this I noticed the bearings in all 3 planet gears were quite loose and had been spinning ...good ol Locktite bearing hold to the rescue

once the bearings were secure I then decided to clean out all of the grease in the box and run it 'oil bath' (or at least try!)

after 3 weeks of use and 2 strip downs (to eliminate leaks) I can now say SUCCESS.......way hay

the noise from the drive train is now totally different (much quieter) and this combined with a new front chainring has resulted in around an 8% reduction in off load draw in gear at WOT

this may be the cure to the planetary gearbox problems with cyclones..........time will tell...I'll keep you posted

Ian

[Dingo2024]

to give figures / data to those interested..........

taken from CA with fully charged pack, no load, WOT (held for 60 seconds);

motor only (gearbox fitted) 196-208w with oil....sorry no figures with grease forgot

old chainring / grease in gearbox, all chains connected (wheel off ground);

1st gear 238-255w

8th gear 315-338w

new chainring / oil in gearbox (as above)

1st gear 219-227w

8th gear 292-306w

quite a difference!

Ian

[E-bike4life]

Hey thanks for posting. I have a lil 24v cyclone rig that I just finished. I like the swap for oil instead of grease in the gearbox. Did u use a seal on the main output shaft of the motor or does it not leak into the motor from that point?

The noise is pretty much the only thing that bothers me with this setup now.

I really like this mod beacause it increases performance and reduces gearbox noise:o

[M1k3]

Hi Dingo I dont suppose youve come across any exploded views of 1200w cyclone,or is it a pretty self explanetry strip down ?just got first ride on mine yesterday,

[Dingo2024]

Hey thanks for posting. I have a lil 24v cyclone rig that I just finished. I like the swap for oil instead of grease in the gearbox. Did u use a seal on the main output shaft of the motor or does it not leak into the motor from that point?

The noise is pretty much the only thing that bothers me with this setup now.

I really like this mod beacause it increases performance and reduces gearbox noise:o

the main output shaft has a wiper seal (from what I remember) so not had a problem - although it was a concern to begin with. Also it is 'oil bath' (i.e. only a small amount of oil in the base of the gearbox) so below shaft height. There are 2 threaded holes which need to be blanked off (you can see the steel ring ger through them)- I used an allen bolt and sealed it in, also make sure the bearings are tight in the gears..........mine fell out (typical chineses tolerances lol) so had to be glued in

the other thing is be careful sealing the box.........use only a small amount of sealer around the out edge of the lip

Ian

[Dingo2024]

Hi Dingo I dont suppose youve come across any exploded views of 1200w cyclone,or is it a pretty self explanetry strip down ?just got first ride on mine yesterday,

Hi M1k3 and welcome to ES;

I dont have exploded veiws of the motor but it was pretty easy to take apart;

the gearbox is 4 bolts and the motor splits by removing the 4 screws under the box

hope you enjoyed the first outing, I love mine

any probs / q's get in touch

Ian

[M1k3]

Thanks Dingo , The cyclone never seems to get anyone excited on es so I wasnt sure what to expect,But I really am very pleased this was an offroad project really and it did not disapoint,On road with my 24" back wheel I can pedal in top (9 speed cassette) and seemed to keep with cars easily in a 30mph limit.only problem has been chain suck but will sort that ok.

[Dingo2024]

I thought 3 weeks and around 300 miles would be enough to 'shake this gearbox down' so went ahead and posted..............but guess what it wasn't

went to work today on the bike and dropped the chain whilst climbing a hill. replaced it, got to work and noticed a mass of oil around the gearbox.......cleaned it off and then rode home slowly. oil still comming out.....not sure what it is yet, but will strip it out tommorow and post pics

so..........please be careful if you are going to try this 'oil bath' mod........it's not 100% yet

Ian

[Dingo2024]

I spent yesterday afternoon sorting the box out...........or so I thought ! it turned out to be the gearbox casing which was cracked a while ago whilst trying to get the shaft and bearing out. sealed it up with jb weld type stuff and it worked ok; the problem was that the motor mount was catching the jb weld and cracked it. So...........cleaned everything up, put more jb on and then ground away the motor mount to clear......finished it off this morning to use for work (rushed out of the house)...got back to find a slight leak still from the casing....will try again tommorow with more grinder and dremmel action.....if that fails its a new box or at least casing

pictures will follow once sorted

btw........the ride this morning was the quietest yet also got the thermal cutout to kick in..........time for more thermal management me thinks

back soon,

Ian

[Dingo2024]

well the bike lives

got it done yesterday and used it for work today.........so far so good

here are a few pics

Ian

[Dingo2024]

more pics..............

once proven reliable it will be time for thermal grease on the motor mount and cosmetics stuff

then on to the real mods.........

Ian

[M1k3]

ooh er real mods! sounds intriguing !

[Dingo2024]

ooh er real mods! sounds intriguing !

I still think there is 'more to come' from the cyclone setup and plan on taking it further but my number 1 priority is reliablity and ease of use..............that said the rc setups are getting the bugs ironed out and I could become a convert.......time will tell

for now its stayed together for the past 3 days and I averaged 25.6 mph to work yesterday (my best yet) so not all bad

Ian

[M1k3]

my cyclone didnt get out to play today,stainless steel mounting bolts siezed due to nylock nuts,had to cut them off,was only trying to slacken off to fit new chain ,oh well will make new u bolts at work tomorrow,and will only use normal nuts n split washers from now on. Do you know if any other cyclone user has tried a different (smaller controller)

[Dingo2024]

my cyclone didnt get out to play today,stainless steel mounting bolts siezed due to nylock nuts,had to cut them off,was only trying to slacken off to fit new chain ,oh well will make new u bolts at work tomorrow,and will only use normal nuts n split washers from now on. Do you know if any other cyclone user has tried a different (smaller controller)

M1k3,

good luck with the U bolts...........as for the controller that is one of my next 'mods' ........unfortunately the one I am planning is 'bigger' than the original and not sure if I can create enough space for it to fit on the bike the other option is to 'mod' the stocker. Next week will be decision time.

not sure on a 'smaller' controller as my motor pulls 55amps regularly and thats quite an ask for a small unit

Ian

[Dingo2024]

well it looks like the gearbox is now oil tight

but there is a downside

I have hit the thermal over ride 3 times now (which shuts down the motor).........I think the blue sealant I used to assemble the motor / gearbox is not allowing the heat from the motor to transfer throught to the gearbox (as the motor is much hotter than the box..touch test) and it never was before

anyway I have idea to solve this

ending on a positive................

I did an efficiency run today to work and back (just over 20 miles) and this is what came out.........so I guess oil in the gearbox does make a difference!

Ian

[Dingo2024]

I have not cured the over heating problem but

the best efficiency yet.........no drafting cars or tucked in, just sensible riding and steady throttle useage

Ian

[Dingo2024]

its been a while........spent yesterday 'servicing' the bike

modded the battery box (as it was becomming loose and rattling on the bumps)

made a new tensioner for the chain (to take up slack now the front chainring is bedded in)

relubed the wiper rings on my front forks (should be done every few hours of riding on Fox forks) although this is my first time

and last but not least pulled the gearbox down.checked & cleaned everything (looks good) then refilled with gear oil

it now feels like a new bike again and I have just passed the 1700 mile mark

all good

Ian

[whereswally606]

Hi Ian, Have read your thread from start to finish, got to say, nice work. Im based just below manchester and have built my own scott ransom magic pie bike which is on ES here. Want to build a second bike and have lots of the parts, just bought two of the hua tong 72v controllers and an old ebike for conversion and am going to probo get a cyclone from the eclipse people you recommended, plus you solved another connumdurum which was where to buy andersons in the uk which had me stumped. Anyway im already a fan of your work so far. Would it be possible to do a meet and maybe had a go on each other bikes. Anyway please let me know and keep up the posts.

regards Andy

[Dingo2024]

Hi Ian, Have read your thread from start to finish, got to say, nice work. Im based just below manchester and have built my own scott ransom magic pie bike which is on ES here. Want to build a second bike and have lots of the parts, just bought two of the hua tong 72v controllers and an old ebike for conversion and am going to probo get a cyclone from the eclipse people you recommended, plus you solved another connumdurum which was where to buy andersons in the uk which had me stumped. Anyway im already a fan of your work so far. Would it be possible to do a meet and maybe had a go on each other bikes. Anyway please let me know and keep up the posts.

regards Andy

thanks for the kind words Andy, I have spent a lot of time on ES and it has been invaluable to my build getting to where it is now. Many have helped me out when I needed it and hopefully I can do the same (at least in a small way)
I would say I am a second stream adopter i.e. I neither have the time nor the knowledge to beta test as some do on here. What I have done has proven to both perform well (for me) and be reliable. Its going to be a hard act to follow....but I have a few ideas for build no.2 (unfortunately some of the parts are not available yet) beta testers huh !
Good luck with your builds (both current and future) and I will keep my posts going (on this build) for as long as I think they can be of assistance to people.

Ian

ps the meet sounds good...although I am pretty busy atm pm me and we can sort it

[Dingo2024]

thought it was time for an update

the bike is now up to 2200 miles travelled and has had the following replaced over the last 3 weeks due to wear and tear;

both drive chains (motor and pedal) both were pretty stretched
front sprocket (now Shimano 48tooth steel) as the last alloy one was really soft and the teeth wore quickly-time will tell if steel is more durable
rear sprocket (13t from a Brompton, as before) no wear noticed
replaced the stock rear axle nuts on the Nexus rear hub with North Shore Billet allen head nuts (way better)
the gearbox was pulled down; the Chinese bearings in the planetary gears were replaced with quality SKF (easy as they are skate board size) these were loctited in turned 180 degrees and deburred. As before gear oil was used and the box was sealed with loctite flange sealant.
this has worked well; however......
there does appear to be vibration comming through the right side pedal at certain motor speeds, with a 'scuffing noise from the gears in the box'
I will run it for a while and see if it settle down...maybe needs more gear oil

Ian