A2B Metro - www.ultramotor.com - Video Page4

[John in CR]

ET4041,

If you're in the US, then your employer can get a $20/month tax credit for providing a place for parking and charging your ebike. Then you both can come out ahead. An employer simply can't turn down something good for employees that also makes the company more money. We should make that one of the goals of the forum, to force change so no one can say "I can't charge my bike at work." anymore.

[Ypedal]

unless you happen to be a lumberjack

And ET, no worries about pedal/throttle .. just peg the throttle on full and pedal if and how much you need to in order to keep your speed up !

For a 36km trip, get 2 packs, one pack would do it with alot of pedaling but 2 packs will do it with ease and make them last a long time with shallower cycles.. !

[CraigT]

The A2B seems like a real bargain compared to this http://optibike.com Looks like a nice ride but not at $16000.00 for a EBIKE.
Dan

Hello Gents! My name is Craig, I work for Optibike (and have since the beginning..)

I like lurking on this forum to see what you guys are up to.... and I felt now is as good of time as any to join in the fun.

I wanted to comment about Dan's post quoted above by saying that Optibike has a model starting at $5995, and our most expensive bike is $11995. While I am not ruling out the posibility of a $16000 E-bike in the future, we do not have one now.

I also wanted to invite you to take a look at a blog posting I made a few weeks ago that compared the componentry of the $9995 Optibike 850xli and a similarly spec'd Trek at $6819.99. Its an interesting conversation point nonetheless, and I am interested to hear your feedback.

http://blog2.optibike.com/2010/04/29/what-does-a-non-electric-bike-with-optibike-similar-specs-cost/

Cheers my friends,

Craig Taber

[Ypedal]

Hello Craig !

Nice to see you on the forum, it would be an honor to own an optibike !! unfortunately it's way over my budget (only way i could afford this A2B was to get a used one and promise a full review for a break on the sticker price lol ).. Heck, i'd give you a flashing banner on the Ypedal projects page !! heh heh..

I checked your blog.. i like the idea of a 20ah pack in frame. might want to edit something tho..

Quote "The 22ah 36v battery used in the Optibike is the largest battery offered in an electric bicycle today. ... "

But the nice graph comparing it to nimh " http://optibike.com/images/stories/batt ... arison.jpg " shows a 19ah capacity, 20ah if you absolutely drain it flat.



I have to salute the use of a very high quality bike tho, ain't nothing like the ride of a high end bicycle, i ride my Norco Chaos for a few days and when i get on the lesser Mountaineer it's night and day, brakes, shifters, suspension, makes pedaling alot more enjoyable.

[solarx]

Questions that dont have answers yet:
Does the charger charge both internal and external batteries?

The same charger can charge both batteries, however you must charge them independently of each other (or at the same time with 2 chargers).
The rear pack has it's own socket and power button which turns blue when on.


(sorry for the low res)

[The Stig]

Well thanks for answering. That's kind of annoying I'll have to deal with double the chargers. I hope the batteries are at least wired in parallel for discharge...

[Ypedal]

Well thanks for answering. That's kind of annoying I'll have to deal with double the chargers. I hope the batteries are at least wired in parallel for discharge...

No, they are not in parallel, you use A then you switch to B.

And having 2 chargers is a good thing, if one fails you have a backup !.. also.. as the 2 batteries age, they will have different voltage profiles, A then B prevents a host of potential problems down the line.

[solarx]

Went for a ~20+ mile ride today all over town in no one direction on my metro. Ended up taking both batteries on the trip but did not burn either one down too far. Thank the deities for google maps on the andriod enabled phone or I would still be lost. I rode for a while on the primary battery then switched to the other. I ended up having to call it a day when my backpack could fit no more items and my belly was full.

Things I noticed.

* The ebike feels a bit more weighted down with the extra pack on the back, which actually made for a nicer ride on the bad roads with the full body suspension as long as you hit the bumps fast.
* Having a proper CA vs these 3 stop light leds would be quite helpful in me judging how far I can really go.
** A friend of mine in the Vancouver, BC area where the CA's are made told me about a new version they were working on that blows the existing one away a few months ago. But I've yet to see anything hit the market and he has no more inside info towards that topic. Holding out is hard.
* Getting my catseye speedometer adjusted for the wheel size has been tricky.
* Trying to figure out how to film my travels w/o getting myself killed is nearly impossible. How do you guys strap a camera to you and travel?
* The brakes need to be adjusted every week.
* The featues the bike provides by default make it hard to even consider buying another lower quality but faster ebike.
* Anybody that thinks you don't get exercise on an ebike is sadly mistaking. I ride harder and farther now then I ever did w/o a motor helping.
* Need/Want more power.

This bike is built so well that it really need's a much more powerful motor. Even 48V might not be enough. 48VDC@750 watt is what it seems like it should of been shipped with by default.
I want either a 72V Motor (overkill) or to run these batteries to they yeild 72V then step it back down via a switching power supply to something more reasonable which I can dump the AMP's into. Key thing I notice is I want to upgrade the motor w/o having to lug an area controller unit along thus giving up my space on the rear rack or backpack, as the whole idea for me is to transport myself and goods back home[NO CAR]. Any suggestions on motor + integrated controller are most welcome.

I'm willing to trade my Agilent 34401A Digital Multimeter http://www.home.agilent.com/agilent/product.jspx?pn=34401A for the right motor.

[Toorbough ULL-Zeveigh]

The A2B seems like a real bargain compared to this http://optibike.com Looks like a nice ride but not at $16000.00 for a EBIKE.
Dan

Hello Gents! My name is Craig, I work for Optibike (and have since the beginning..)

I like lurking on this forum to see what you guys are up to.... and I felt now is as good of time as any to join in the fun.

I wanted to comment about Dan's post quoted above by saying that Optibike has a model starting at $5995, and our most expensive bike is $11995. While I am not ruling out the posibility of a $16000 E-bike in the future, we do not have one now.

I also wanted to invite you to take a look at a blog posting I made a few weeks ago that compared the componentry of the $9995 Optibike 850xli and a similarly spec'd Trek at $6819.99. Its an interesting conversation point nonetheless, and I am interested to hear your feedback.

http://blog2.optibike.com/2010/04/29/wh ... pecs-cost/

Cheers my friends,

Craig Taber

Optibike OB1
Limited Edition 24/yr.
Sold out for 2010.

OB1 Base Model MSRP $13,995 USD
Performance Package.+$ 995
Custom Paint............+$ 1,800
Extended Warranty....+$ 995

Total $17,785 USD


Shipping not included


http://optibike.com/optibike-ob1.html


>>Editorial comment deleted<<
facts speak for themself.






*** edit base price ***


Optibike 850R

850R Base Model MSRP $11,995 USD
Performance Package.+$ 995
Custom Paint............+$ 1,800
Commuter Package....+$ 495
Extended Warranty....+$ 995

Total $16,280 USD

http://optibike.com/Optibike-850R.html

The $13,995 OB-1 is hand assembled at the rate of 2/month all throughout 2010, even as CraigT. wrote:

our most expensive bike is $11995.

[CraigT]

Optibike OB1
Limited Edition 24/yr.
Sold out for 2010.

OB1 Base Model MSRP $13,995 USD
Performance Package.+$ 995
Custom Paint............+$ 1,800
Extended Warranty....+$ 995

Total $17,785 USD


Shipping not included


http://optibike.com/optibike-ob1.html


>>Editorial comment deleted<<
facts speak for themself.[/quote]

The OB1 comes with the custom paint job, Heavy Duty Package, and 3 year full warranty included. There is NOTHING else you can add to the OB1 to increase the price. The final price on our most expensive bike was $13,995, but the limited edition run of 24 sold out.

The page that you referenced is not linked to anywhere on the Optibike site (to my knowledge), since those bikes sold out before I finished the page. I guess I should take that page down...the attributes that you quoted in your post were just duplicated from the master page and never customized for the OB1- thanks for catching my mistake!!

Cheers,

Craig Taber

[northernmike]

Y, how is the bike?

I saw my first 3 in Toronto, we finally have a dealer here.

I really want one!

[Ypedal]

Everything is going great so far !

I'm at 700 kms, tires are holding up great but i'm tempted to change them for a better profile, wonder if i can find 3" hookworms somewhere.???

If this bike had feelings, it would hate me right about now, it's my submarine ! poor thing is getting used only on nasty days as i'm using the BMX / Chopper / RC bike on sunny forcasted days lol.. Proud to say i have not taken a cab in a long time, rain shit or shine i bike to work lately !

The rear brakes have needed adjusting, the arrangement of pulleys they setup to keep the chain straight kinda sucks, the lowest one to keep the kick stand clear is fine, but the top pulleys are useless as you shift thru the gears the chain comes out of the slot and ends up rubbing on the metal pin.. i've already ditched one of them.. about to rid myself of the other one, i see no need for it anyways.

Full charge to green light takes time, the bulk of the charge happens at 4 amps but the 4.20v tappering down to full charge takes an hour in itself, not a problem, just an observation.

[Ypedal]

I sold a few 20" rims to a forum member and this morning i had to bring a fairly large box to work, soooooo it was either take a cab ( 10$ ) or use the A2B as a cargo hauler !...

[AussieJester]

Pft...you could have saved a fortune and done it on a Chicago Electric Bike
theres plenty of room on the rear rack once you remove the plastic box the battery is...oooh, nevermind

Nice job YPedalMaN bet you got a few looks by motorists on the way to work

KiM

[The Stig]

Thats a pretty good way to load up the A2B. Where are your lights? or you don't ride at night?

I went for a ride around the city last night and twice people called out to me from their car asking about the A2B It gets a lot of attention around here.

[Ypedal]

Lol.. cars were giving me the wide berth, found that kinda nice, no elbow rubbing rear view mirrors..

Every day thing in China but rare sight over here to be loaded like that on a bicycle * apart from the bottle collecting bums..

The best part was walking thru the call centre at work, i got some very funny looks there !!!

AJ.. lmao.. uhhh.. i'll refrain from commenting heh...

[solarx]

Lol.. cars were giving me the wide berth, found that kinda nice, no elbow rubbing rear view mirrors..

I have been getting more agressive in my riding on my metro, vs staying off in the side lane I'm started taking the middle of the lane in areas where I feel less safe riding.
<rant>I had a guy in an AT&T car cut off last week while I was going full speed fwd and he jumped in front of me making a right, only to decide at the last second it was me or him and kept going fwd. "man I felt like hitting him with my bike lock" but best I could do was give him the view of my middle finger. </rant>
Overall I'm thinking a set of panniers will aid in making us more visable to drivers. (the existing upright riding stance helps)

Have you made any new progress towards 48V+ metro?

[zap]

I have been getting more agressive in my riding on my metro, vs staying off in the side lane I'm started taking the middle of the lane in areas where I feel less safe riding.

Ditto me.
I still hang to the right but I watch my rear view mirror intensely and if a vehicle hasn't moved over by the time they're 50' behind me, I will swing to the middle of the lane just to make sure they know I'm there.
I've had way too many too close to my elbow for comfort.

When I have the trailer pushing me I notice they give a much wider berth.

[rossasaurus]

Regarding a couple earlier posts...I think you guys have it covered, but wanted to mention that the Metro 2ndary battery cable uses just the two power wires.
I'm an A2B dealer, and bought an extra cable to have around in case I wanted to try other types of packs on the Metros or Velocitis.
I think that connector is their own, but correct me if I'm wrong there.

Also, on the Excel, a post seemed to miss the point with one battery dumping into the other IDEP; the front(in-frame) pack is optimized for high power, and capable of high discharge(and recharge) rates, while the rear pack is high energy, high energy density, for greater range. Two different chemistries and/or configurations. A brilliant plan, and one we'll see more and more of. I'm waiting for the three-tier systems...super-cap, high-power pack, high-energy pack, which would probably be a BLAST!, so to speak.


BTW, the Excel prototype(if it exists) was a fun steed indeed.
Really liked having the beautiful display.

R

[northernmike]

Also, on the Excel, a post seemed to miss the point with one battery dumping into the other IDEP; the front(in-frame) pack is optimized for high power, and capable of high discharge(and recharge) rates, while the rear pack is high energy, high energy density, for greater range. Two different chemistries and/or configurations.

R

Hunh?

What's your understanding of the difference between "power" and "energy" in terms of cell performance? Internal resistance (C-rate) v.s. Wh/liter, Wh/Kg?

I thought they were both the same Sanyo 18650 cells? (A+B packs)

More details please!

[Ypedal]

Invited a few friends over tonight for a group ride, " Bring your helmets, i have the rest covered " ..

Charged up the BMX, the Chopper and the A2B , my friend G is used to being on 2 wheels, has a motorcycle and is used to my toys so i gave him the chopper, i took the BMX as it requires the 18 lbs backpack and not the best brakes but i'm used to it.. I gave M the A2B, she has a bicycle and this was her first bicycle / e-bike ride of the year so i figured the A2B would be a good bet as it's easy to ride and not too fast..

I had her go around the yard a few times to make sure she had her ballance and understood how to operate the brakes and throttle, lowered the seat for her, and we set off..

To avoid busy traffic i headed for the off-road trails. nice and slow 10 to 20km/h stuff, taking our time and enjoying the afternoon ( hot, 27 celcius today, and windy.. ) all was going very well..

[Ypedal]

Notice the " WAS " going very well lol...

The squeemish among you should not scroll down...




.....







Seriously................


there is blood in the picture.










..













still reading ?..








..






ok.. so here it is.

The the trail is loose sand and very small gravel, it's a walking trail mostly and doubles as a bicycle path across town.. up, down, round and round, get to a point in the trail that has a sharp hill followed by a turn at the bottom.. So i stopped and explained to remain on the brakes and not allow the bike to get going too fast because you won't make the turn at the end.. i go first to show how it's done

Then as i get to the bottom and negotiate the turn i hear a familiar gravel sound that only happens when you lock up a wheel and skid.. followed by a *insert bad words.. * .. i turn around to see M face planting for home base head first type slide..

I imediately drop the BMX and run over, M stands up so it's not too serious.. phew.. i pick up the bike and set it on the stand while she dusts herself off, slightly shaken but not stirred..

Bruised knee and elbow....

[Ypedal]

Cleaned up pretty good.. chicks dig battle scars... right ?

She's a trooper tho, we kept on going ( this was 10 minutes into the ride.. ) the pace was slow as she had the jitters for a bit but overcame and kept on going.

[Ypedal]

Sandy Says " Always Wear a Helmet and Gloves !!! "

[marty]

Sorry to see the blood. Hope she heals fast. Ride safe!

Copy from http://www.ultramotor.com web site:
The A2B motor can assist you up to a top speed of 20mph without pedaling (depending on rider weight and terrain)
As far as I know the controller is inside the hub motor. Does any one know what limits this bike to 20 MPH? How would one bypass what ever is limiting the speed?