Cowardlyducks - E-BikeE builds

I started work on designing a clamping torque arm that I can bolt to the existing dropouts.

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I won't actually get the bolt on holes drilled like in the image above, but I added them so you get an idea of how it works against the dropout. I tried painstakingly measuring it all up to get the bolt on holes perfectly positioned when these are manufactured, but it was way to hard to get it right with all the curves and the left/right sides also seem to be slightly different shapes. So I will drill the bolt on holes myself once I get them.

Here's a shot of my battered and bruised dropouts for reference.
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You can see why I need to get some proper reinforcements down there, and why it's worth it for me to get these CNC'd properly even if it does end up costing me. The last 'prototypes' I got made like this cost me about $150 each. If anyone would like me to get some made for them also while I'm at it, shout out asap as I'm going to put my order in within the next few days. They would fit any axle up to 14mm and probably cost around $150 each as mentioned, but that could go down if more people are interested.

Cheers
 
Well, I happened to catch my torque block supplier just in time before they shipped out my other bulk order and managed to get the clamping torque arms for this bike made up for just $80USD with free shipping. A bargain considering the one off run and effective "prototype" status of these.
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I'm looking forward to no longer hearing the click of my axle rotating back/forth under acceleration to regen loads.

I also spray painted my rear stays/forks black:
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I would like to eventually paint all the other silver/chrome parts black also, but since I'm not dismantlement them at this stage, just this rear section will do for now.

I hate waiting on parts to finish a project like this. I'm still waiting on my silicone grease to arrive so I can slide the battery into the frame. Almost all other small tasks are now complete and that is the final piece of this puzzle. :roll:

Cheers
 
I've still been very slowly chipping away at the long to do list for this modification.
Recently I fully charged the pack for the first time via the bulk charger. It stayed mostly in balance, but on group of 6 cells did drift higher by about 0.02V. I think because I charged the same groups at separate times previously, the imbalance was just due to greater time for self discharge on the other groups of cells.

I also cut the screw previously used to hold the chain guide in place. For obvious reasons I could not re-insert it with the battery inside the frame, so I had hopped to epoxy the stub of the screw into the same hole. Now I realised I can't do that either or I might epoxy it to the battery, or block the battery from being inserted with a glob of epoxy. So instead I will epoxy it to the frame just next to the existing hole.

I had a go at drilling out the holes needed to mount my clamping torque blocks. Turns out I did not factor in the angle of the axle flats into my original design. The flats do not actually line up with the top to bottom profile of the drop-out meaning that the very top of the torque block was too far away from the top hole to even allow it to fit. Thankfully, due to a stuff up by the factory when I got them made, they are re-making them for me free of charge, based on my new dimensions.

I also, did as AW suggested, and stuck a piece of wood to the end of my battery. This should allow me to poke at it with a metal rod or similar to push it out of the frame if I ever need to.
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I'm still waiting on my silicone grease to arrive, and only really have a handful of things left to do...getting really tired of waiting for it. :roll:

Cheers
 
I threw some epoxy at my chain guard/guide problem, and I think it turned out ok.

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I used clear epoxy, so it's barely noticeable...not that I care that much on the underside anyway.
I think I'll leave the hole as is. It will help drain any water out if it every makes it's way inside the frame.

I'm still waiting on that silicone grease before I can slide the battery inside. I now have nothing else to do while I wait. :(

I've been re-thinking putting something along the battery so I can pull it back out. What ever it is would have to be very thin, and I would have to either put a layer of heatshrink over it (probably making the whole battery too thick) or have it stick to the battery somehow. It also has to be able to allow the grease to effectively lube the battery for sliding it in/out.
I currently have 2 layers of heat shrink.
I was thinking of using some tough gaffer (cloth) tape. I have some that is quite strong and would be thin enough and also has a good outer surface for the grease to act on, but it tears if you put from the side, like most cloth tapes...and I'm not 100% sure it would not tear if being used to pull out the battery if it was stuck.

Anyone have any other suggestions for something very thin that could be wrapped around the battery to help pull it out?

Cheers
 
Pallet straps. There's a bunch of kinds, but the ones you'd probably want are fiber type, looking kinda like the fiber-packed strapping tape but much denser fiber.

I used to use them a lot for cargo straps, but my hands have grown unable to pull them tight enough without special tools, so now I just use regular crank-down cargo straps.

Any store that gets pallets of product will have these on "truck day", usually once or twice a week for big stores. Places that get large boxed products will have even more.

Mostly I used to save mine from my own workplace, but I would often get them from Home Depot or Lowe's just by asking if they had any they'd just cut off and tossed that day; they'd still be in the little trashcans around the store.
 
Thanks AW. Good suggestion, I'll keep an eye out for some if they show up before my grease arrives.

Failing that, I think it would actually work to just put some tape on the sides near the wires end as the second layer of heat shrink I did is not full length. A layer or 2 of tape at the very end should not be too thick, and still grip enough for pulling the battery out if it's only moderately stuck.

I think my replacement clamping torque arms are due to arrive this coming week, so that will give me something to do on this bike at least. :)

Cheers
 
So my thermal paste finally arrived...but now I'm not 100% sure it's not going to set/harden on me.
This is the stuff I bought:
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/331990670901
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But the only indication I have that it won't set is the title of the listing. Apart from that the tubes and boxes they came in are all in Chinese. Translating them doesn't help as they say nothing about the grease not setting.
So I've squeezed some out onto some cardboard to test if it will harden or set for the last few days. Hopefully it is still unset by the time I get around to putting the battery in. If it's not, I think I'll just use petroleum jelly. :roll: :lol:

I also received my revised clamping torque blocks. I've drilled the holes for one side. It took a lot of effort as I had to elongate one of the holes after I drilled it slightly in the wrong spot causing the clamping bolts to sit too low and hit the axle:
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Anyway, eventually I managed to correct it and here's the end result, which I'm pretty happy with:
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The other sides not so simple as the derailleur mount is in the way. I did already compensate for this in the clamp design which does fit, however the nut/bolt does not. So I've ordered a thin nut and shorter bolt which should get it to work.

I'm hopeful that I might be back up and running with this bike within the next few weeks. :) It's been a looooong time coming that's for sure.

Cheers
 
It happened the other day, but I've been flat out since, however....
THE BATTERY IS IN!!!

I ended up mixing the thermal paste with some silicone grease, and some...ahem...other...silicone based lube. :wink: :lol:
Since they were all silicone based, they mixed well and the resulting paste was both lubricating and sticky which worked perfectly.
I pre-lubed the insides of the frame using a curtain rod...one of the few things I have long enough...and liberally coated the sides and bottom of the battery.
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It was a two person job getting it in and it required one person to hold all the wires tight and flat against the bottom the frame, while the other helped ease the battery in without crushing/slicing the other persons fingers against the frame...not an easy task.
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Even with the lube, it was quite a tight fit and required quite a bit of force to get it in there.
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The last part could not be done by hand, so I re-employed the curtain rod for the last push to the end. :)
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I would post a photo showing the end result, but it's inside the frame...so a photo of the frame doesn't really show anything. :lol: But here's the only shot I could still take showing it is in fact in there.
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Re-mounting the rear fork/stays was not exactly easy with the battery in there, but I got it done eventually with a lot of patience and angled spanner contortions.
I wired up the secondary battery and controller, and installed new gear and brake cables. The charge port and balance wires are nested nicely in the gap just in front of the rear forks,
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The foam cover is just to prevent the balance plugs getting dirty or wet and can easily be slid down to access them.

I also painted the clamping torque blocks, and tightened everything up after getting some shorter bolts and half nuts in order to make it fit next to the derailleur mount.
Here's the clamping torque blocks in place and tighten up.
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As you can see, the non-drive side is an absolute mess. This is partly because I decided to re-use the original torque clamps that did not fit, as axle/wire cut preventing pieces so that if the bike is crashed or layed down onto that axle, those protruding pieces should take the force, not my wires and avoid them getting cut.
As for the stand, it's a whole other story, and I'm open to suggestions. I did order a new one, but the bolt was too big. The threads in the rear forks are mostly stripped, so I'm thinking I need a clamp on stand, but not sure I'll be able to find one that works at the funky angle of this bike. Any suggestions welcome.

I also bought this cheap little battery meter to add as a simple battery gauge.
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I think I'll just stick it on top of the CA. I know it's not that accurate, but I like being able to get a rough feel for consumption at a quick glance...and it glows green, which is cool. :)

Still left to do is tidy up the mess of wiring, and secure the controller and 2S pack to the frame. I think I'll just use zip ties and duct tape as I haven't thought of a better way to do it yet.
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And after that I have to re-mount my solar panel and light...then I'm done...for now. :roll:

My next thing to tackle for this bike is the controller. I was very close to buying one of the new Grinfineon sinewave controllers the other day, but I would also have to buy a new CAV3 if I want to keep my cruise control, and I also didn't like the idea of loosing programming ability, but I think I might still get one at some stage...just gotta finish of some other projects first.

Cheers
 
markz said:
I like that design, would seem so simple to make yourself.
Wow, haven't seen those photo's for a while....bike hasn't looked like that for years. Yeah, your right though, it would seem simple to make yourself if you have the right tools, etc. If I had the right tools I would definitely give it a shot. :)

Alan B said:
Good job on the internal battery. Hope it never swells!
Thanks!
Yeah, I don't think it will swell since it's 18650 cells...I've never seen an 18650 swell. I'm only drawing low power (which I haven't even reached yet as I'm still easing in the first few cycles) and continuous draw is lower. Since I'm running 5P, each cell is only seeing low amps continuous which is well below the 10A these cells are rated for.

I've only managed to take the bike for one ride since finishing the battery install, but it's performing quite well.
The balance and handling, as expected, is much improved. My front wheel no longer pushes through corners and I can definitely feel it tracking much better.
Now that the bike weight is further forward, the front wheel no longer pogo sticks after hitting large bumps, but instead absorbs impacts nicely and the whole bike remains planted much better.

It's early day's but upping the voltage also seems to have greatly helped efficiency. I knew it would help, but I seem to have dropped from around 15-16WH/KM down to 13-14WH/KM and I haven't even put my solar panel back on yet. Once the solar panel goes back on I might even start seeing 12-13WH/KM as it makes for a more laminar air flow around my body.

Cheers
 
Wheazel said:
Very nice results. Are those consumption numbers cruising at 50km/h? Average speed?
How much power does it take to hold 50km/h?
Thanks!
Since this bike mostly cruises along shared bike paths, I don't often reach that kind of speed as it's simply unsafe or inconsiderate to do so. Typical cruising speed is low.

The other thing I forgot to mention is that the bike is no longer squirrelly/twitchy to steer. It seems the extra weight on the front wheel also eliminated that quirk which wasn't a problem for me as I've long gotten used to it, but something almost every person who tries the bike comments on.

Cheers
 
Hi guy's,

I'm overdue for a status update on this bike, especially considering I've been using it pretty heavily recently.

I've now got about 350km on the new battery and it's doing mostly well. I have noticed recently that it likes to sag quite badly under high load however.
I've only been chewing about 5-7AH most rides, and by the end of that it's down to 51-52V at rest or 3.65-3.7V per cell. This also seems low to me for a pack that's supposed to be 17.5AH total, but I do know that 18650's generally run at a lower voltage so could be ok. I guess I really need to run it all the way down at least once to know for sure what I'm dealing with for total pack capacity. Realistically I would be happy with anything over 15AH.

Aside from the battery breakin, I had my regen wires start shorting out intermittently the other day on the way to work. I tried fixing it on the side of the road and could only get it partially fixed with all the wires zip tied and squashed in the back end of the frame. The short was near the controller thankfully. It must have looked pretty funny with my head sloshing back and forth as my bike unpredictably engaged full regen randomly as I was cruising along. To fix it I had to disassemble all the connectors, remove the controller and rear 2S battery section and cut/resolder the shorting wires several times till I finally found the short. :roll:
I replaced all the zip ties with velcro straps now, so I can at least get to those wires easier from now on. :)
Having everything tucked away inside the frame is certainly very nice...when it works. But one does have to be prepared to pull everything out to fix any issues when they occur. Thankfully I was fully aware of this going into it and don't mind digging everything out again when it's called for.

The only other outstanding issue I've currently got with the bike is a strange creaking noise that recently started. I managed to pinpoint it to the rear wheel axle on the left hand side. I haven't managed to take off the rear wheel as yet, but I did tighten all the clamping torque arm bolts, which hasn't seemed to help.
I've got a new rear tire (Schwalb Big Apple 20x 2.15) I'm going to put on in the next few weeks, so I'll have a closer look then. I'm a bit worried the rear axle might be on the way out though. In the 2 1/2 years since building and using this bike almost daily for commuting, I've never been able to permanently eliminate the axle 'clicking' back and forth from acceleration/regen. No matter what I've thrown at it from Grin torque arms to these recent clamping torque blocks I had custom made, the dam axle keeps clicking. I've recently began to wonder if it is not the axle after all, but could be the keyway of the stator against the axle inside the motor. This is just a cheap '1000W' Golden Motor (9C Clone) after all.

Looking ahead, I'm very keen to move on to a sinewave controller. I'm also keenly away of the square wave noise now that my other main Ebike (Stealth Fighter) runs on a perfectly silent Adaptto Mini-E.
I'm currently trying to decide between the Sinewave 25A Grinfineon and the FOC Sinewave Phaserunner.
The Phaserunner would be awesome, but there's a few catches:
-It's very $$$, and requires the extra programming cable, so ends up being about 2.5 x the price of the Grinfineon
-It would have to be mounted sideways to fit in the frame. This isn't a huge deal, but it might make things tricky for thermal dissipation and mounting.

On the other hand the Grinfineon:
-Is not FOC so not as efficient as the phaserunner and (maybe) not as quiet.
-Has a semi-strange regen setup I'm yet to get my head around. I would like to use a LH Thumb throttle for proportional regen which is possible with the phaserunner, but unclear if it's possible for the Grinfineon.
-Cannot be programmed. This is not such a huge deal as I can't see anything I would want to change anyway as long as it's coupled with a CAV3.

I'm currently leaning heavily towards the Grinfineon. In either case I need to get a CAV3 in order to retain my cruise control and get proportional regen braking. So it ends up being a pretty expensive move even with the Grinfineon once USD is converted to AUD for me. OTOH, one of the key aspects of me moving to the frame mounted battery was working with the lower capacity (compared to previously) and moving towards a more efficient setup overall. I also have long term plans to move to a more efficient motor, so a FOC controller would seem to make the most sense. Dam why is this so hard...that's why I'm putting it out there though. What do you guy's think?

Cheers
 
Took the BikeE out for a little exploratory ride today. Ended up at a substation. lol

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I find there is about a 25% increase in power consumption to maintain 100% speed compared to the cruising speed which is interesting as it's only a 15% speed difference. I guess that's what you get with the squared increase in aerodynamic drag with linear speed increases.

Cheers
 
Especially for pleasure. Being able to really see the view without neck, back or butt stress is amazing. All while sitting in a "lawn chair" position. It is a bit rougher on the bumps though.

However for commuting, higher speed, precision control, and maximal braking I find the Borg to be a better combination, for me at least, than the BikeE.
 
Ok, time for an update.

I've got my Grinfineon sinewave controller mounted and working now. My first day commuting on it was quite jarring as I had not wired up the motor hall sensors securely enough which resulted in the negative literally falling out the back of the connector causing the controller to run in sensorless mode.
A bit of stuffing around and today I have it running silently in sensored mode which is going to take some getting used to. It felt like I rode to work on a magic carpet with pedals. :)
You would think I would already be used to a silent controller from my Adaptto running Fighter, but somehow it feels quite different on the commuter as I'm quite used to the motor pitch corresponding to the feeling of acceleration and holding speed. Now I have no reference point for my rate of acceleration and cruising speed apart from the lateral forces, wind speed and kph readout of the CA (which is currently wrong).
So far I'm liking the Grinfineon as it offers nearly all the same features of my previous Infineon controller, plus it's sinewave. It also has variable regen braking which I'm still dialling in as it uses the throttle input combined with the brake cutoff to vary regen strength.

I finally got around to upgrading my rear brakes also. They were getting pretty bad and impossible to align so I bought some cheap Shimano rim brakes. So far they are doing much better and I can actually lock up the rear now which make me much more confident in emergency stopping ability. They also don't rub, which is a huge benefit as I think I was probably wasting in excess of 10% battery capacity with the previous brakes the rubbing was so bad.

I also moved my tool bag to the rear, tucked just under the tail end which results in a much cleaner looking bike and slightly lower centre of gravity.

I think I'm done with upgrades to this bike for a while now. Some time down the track I will change the motor over to a smaller/lighter DD, but that's a way off at this stage still.

Cheers
 
Looking good Cd's
...atleast you got braking power and a good quality controller from Justin.
Liking your in frame battery too. Good Stuff!

My braking is a front Avid bb5 that needs constant attention to bite, and my feet :oops: I got spare rotors and calipers around. Seeing as I am replacing some spokes, I should get around to it.

I'd have to agree with being 'Discrete' or as I like to call it 'Being Stealthy'
I am currently finding a way to have a hard case pannier, so I found a 8"Lx6.5"Wx8"H plastic pail square in nature, fits inside my basket I use as a pannier quite well. I will paint the white pail black and use two of them (one for each side). Not sure if you can do that with your e-bikE or not. I like to toss in a hoody or a rain jacket, my MW charger and some basic tools. The pails are a little on the small side, would have preferred like a 9x8x9 or something. There is a Kitchen Compost Pail thats 8.5"x9"x11" they have to order in. Tote boxes from Walmart and the like dont really cut it.

With all my riding, I pay attention to heads and eyes, not so much noise or talk because I have my tunes going in the head phones. But I am always looking all the time. I dont hide shit. Black hub motor, grey frame, rear rack w/cont, and the battery is covered with a black shopping cloth bag and is placed in the downtube (stem-seatpost) battery compartment where the old lead acids went. Ring the bell is something I should really be doing, but I dont. But they do hear me, I know that.
 
Thanks Mark.
Yeah, a rack with panniers is an option. I did actually have a rack on the rear before, but removed it when I went to the internal frame battery. I think if I were to go touring on this bike I would put the rack back on and load it up with extra batteries. I could easily fit a total of 3KWh on this bike for decent long range.
I've also considered removing the front solar panel to make things less obvious, but the bike itself is already pretty unusual so I don't think it would make much difference.
Definitely sort out the bell situation though! In Australia it's law to have a bell and ring it when approaching pedestrians. I try to always ring my bell, even for the pedestrians I pass every day at the same point. Strangely some people get really annoyed when I ring the bell, I think because they were already over to the side and think they didn't warrant a bell ring, but I still do anyway cause most people seem to appreciate it.

I've been slowly sorting out the settings on the CAv3 also.

I'm still loving the sinewave controllers silence.

Cheers
 
I havent used my CA-3 at all much, since I bought it. Wanted to wire up something so it could go dd and geared. Just wanna get rid of the weak bitch Conhismotor kit. MXUS (3K, 5K) is the way 4 me.

Will you be riding the thing in winter, if you get any snow, I dont know if AUS does, maybe southern regions?
 
Interesting that you say that about Conhismotor. I was actually thinking about getting one of their DD hubs. My current Golden motor is nice and solid, but a bit too large and heavy. The Conhismotor is the right diameter, just a little inefficient.
Why don't you like yours?

markz said:
Will you be riding the thing in winter, if you get any snow, I dont know if AUS does, maybe southern regions?
It's mid winter here in Aus right now and I'm still riding as I do every winter. I don't ride in the rain, and it rarely ever snows in the suburbs here in Canberra, but it does get down to -8C (17.6 farenheit) and I keep riding. The nice thing about the recumbent position is the air doesn't get channelled down my neck like on a normal bike. Also with the solar panel in front it deflects a lot of air around my torso so really only my hands, feet and face get cold on longer trips.
The battery does seem to suffer though. Lately it's sagging 4-5V under load, but I think that's also to do with the cells (only 5P) and series links (only 2X 7mm nickel + 20awg wire) more than the cold.

Cheers
 
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