Another Total Newbie!

[bdc43]

Hi Guys (and Gals)!

I'm another total newbie who has decided to enter the wonderful (and fascinating) world of electric bikes. I've been doing some online research since last summer and I think and I'm ready to take the e-bike plunge. I already have a donor bike lined up, but the problem is I'm not sure if it can be converted. You see, it's a 1985 CCM Brutus 6-speed mountain bike and the frame is made out of high tension steel, meaning it's a bit on the heavy side (although quite sturdy). I haven't done the "magnet test" on the forks so I'm not sure if they are steel also or aluminum. I took some measurements but I'm not sure how accurate they are; in any case, here is the data:

Distance between rear forks (closest to the dropouts): 5 1/4"

Distance between front dropouts: 3 3/4"

Rims: 23"

According the http://www.ampedbikes.com, you need at least 5 3/8" between the dropouts for a rear hub kit, so it doesn't look like I'm missing much. I suppose I could try spreading the forks, unless there are other kits that could fit. I would prefer a rear kit for better hill climbing ability. To give you all a better idea of what I heave to work with, here are some pics of my bike ( let me know if they are not visible):

 

[bdc43]

Whoops!


I must have goofed somewhere...I see the pics aren't showing up, just the URLs. Could someone help me out on how to post pics to this forum?

Thanks!

Brian

 

[gestalt]

Use the "IMG" button above and paste the URL between the HTML commands i.e. "

 

[Lock]

Looks like you have to be careful w/the options on photobucket... this works:
(added spaces in "img" to disable the pic just to show the format)
[im g]http://i838.photobucket.com/albums/zz308/bchamb1967/bicycle007.jpg[/im g]

like this:

 

[bdc43]

Everyone,

Thanks for all your help! As you can see, the images re showing up fine now.

Brian

P.S. Moderator, feel free to move this thread to the "E-Bikes General Discussion" section. I started this thread in the E-Vehicles General Discussion" section by mistake.

 

[kartopla]

Hey buddy, nice bike. I'm no expert but I can tell you that the fork is steel. The 2 fork halves are brazed to the crown lug so it has to be steel. I think the bike would make a great ebike.

Good luck

 

[bdc43]

Kartopla, thanks for the compliment. It's just your run of the mill "el-cheapo Made In Taiwan" entry level mountain bike. I haven't ridden it in about 16 years so it needs a fair bit of cleaning and maintenance. I never used it as a commuter, mostly recreational riding and even then, mostly on paved roads (no off roading). Most of my rides were about 12 to 15 miles round trip 2 or 3 times a week during spring/summer. Amazingly, for a cheap bike, I never had any major breakdowns or even a flat tire; I only had the chain come off the gears a couple of times while shifting which was probably due to a lack of preventative maintenance on my part....I never cleaned the chain, or the even the cassette; just gave 'em a shot of grease every so often when they looked like they needed it. :lol:

 

[kartopla]

Throw on a simple hub motor, and some lipo's and your ready to ride. Well, talk is cheap ,right?

 

[grindz145]

Definately a front hub motor conversion would be easy, and with the steel fork you can be somewhat comfortable with it. Still the forks aren't massive so I wouldn't go any higher than a 500w hub motor, but that will probably take you as fast as you'd ever want to go on that frame anyway Throw a rear rack on with a bag for some lithium (perhaps lipo from hobby city or one of the 'PING' packs that are sold on ebay) and you'll be in business.

Good luck!