My intention was to build a light weight and nimble electric assist bike which has the range that opens possibilites other than the same 12.5 mile route to work. I need a motor for a push up hills and into the wind, more so than drag racing off the line. I'm a 'roadie' at heart, so suspension was not an option; I actually like feeling every crack in the road through rock hard, razor thin tires. It had to be portable enough to throw on the front racks of a municipal bus, or even to lift over the occasional chain link fence. I was aiming for a weight of forty-ish pounds, with a top assisted speed around twenty miles per hour, with a pedal-assisted range of twenty-plus miles.
My choice of donor bike was pretty simple: my five-year-old hybrid Schwinn Super Sport. It has all the light and fast qualities of a standard road bike, yet the flat bars and less vertical frame geometry make the ride more comfortable. Other than having to swap out the carbon fork for chromolly, the bike remains stock. I like the way all the gearing is dialed in, so I opted for a front wheel conversion. On past conversions I went with rear drive and had regrets.
I had a grand to spend on the total build. Light weight and torque for hills dictated a geared hub motor, but the Ezee kit was out of my price range. I opted for the Bafang 8fun 36v 10ah lithium battery kit. Since others on this forum seem to be having good luck with this motor at the factory recommended voltages, I hunted one down from Cycle9 and pulled the trigger.
Cycle9 was helpful in answering my questions, and I respect the policy stated on their websitre regarding striving for customer satisfaction. Since they seemed to be the only source in the U.S. for this kit who had one in stock, I took a gamble and ordered one.
First impressions of the kit: a beautiful little motor laced up to a strong rim, easy to carry battery, tiny controller with connections easy to mate. But, no instructions? I had to source instructions and pics regarding the drive direction of the wheel from European retailers' websites; I remember past Crystalyte kits I owned having a red arrow sticker on the hub, but this was not so on this motor. Installing a motor on the front was so much more simple: no derailer tweaking needed, and no grease covered hands.
The rack in which the battery is held was poorly welded and crooked, but it seemed sturdy enough for the eleven-pound battery. With a lot of prying and pulling, the rack at least became functional. There are two rails that run the length of the bottom of the battery which mate with two rails along the frame of the rack. This battery is the same name brand which Ezee kits include (Phylion 37v 10ah), so I felt justified having spent this much for a high quality battery which didn't require a toolbox or Tupperware container to enclose.
I used Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires on my previous e-bike, and I never had a flat since switching to these; they're bulletproof. The only drawback is that they are heavier than regular road tires. I opted for 25c width tires which I inflated to 110 lbs. The flat-guard strip and deap tread soften the ride a bit and give incredible traction.
The bike weighs 45 pounds, including the bike, motor, battery, rack, and rack bag. I weigh +- 155 pounds. So, 370 watt hours worth of battery pushing 200 pounds via a motor which is claimed to draw between 10 and 20 amp hours-per-mile should make for the ideal combo for my situation.
Sure enough, the bike performs as expected. The top speed fresh off the charger is 18 mph. The beauty of this motor is in the amount of torque it produces; it gives a perfect boost accelerating from a stop and climbing hills. With out-of-the-saddle style riding up hills, I'm able to climb steep grades at about 15 mph. I took the spring out of the thumb throttle and can use the bar ends for leverage while climbing, as well as crouching down low on the long stretches of flat road. For the stop and go areas, I just string a rubber band from the throttle to replace the spring. Ghetto, yes; but it works.
Exceeding my expectations is the range. My commute to work (the scenic route) consists of 18.75 miles of hills. It averages out to being down hill to work, and the reverse on my way home. I rode to work using power very conservatively, and the 1.8 amp charger took less than two hours to top off the battery. For my ride home, I relied heavily on the motor with the expectation of hitting the LVC on the 14% grade right before my house. This never happened. In fact, the green light on the throttle never even flickered. Charging took less than three hours after the ride. I pedaled the entire way for both commutes and felt the same level of exhaustion I would have felt at the end of the day had I taken my bike to work via the bus, then ridden home on the bike before intalling the kit.
Things I would do differently:
My first idea was to buy the kit without the battery, then pair it with the 36v 8ah lithium battery from ComcycleUSA. I could have saved $100 and four pounds of weight. Also, this battery could mount on the down tube and improve how the bike handles. But, I was concerned about range, plus the fact that ComcycleUSA has a store credit only return policy. Had the battery not fit on the bike, I would have been SOL for returning it.
If I was able to source only the motor, I could have purchased a compatible Infineon controller which has the six-pin connector and direct connect Cycleanalyst. This is not so much of a concern now that I've proven the reported range of the battery to be true.
My prediction is that this motor will become more popular than the Wilderness and Crystalyte brushless direct drive motors, since it's so much more efficient and light, while giving comparable performance for most situations (especially at 48v). When used as a rear wheel drive, it's virtually invisible to the untrained eye.
My choice of donor bike was pretty simple: my five-year-old hybrid Schwinn Super Sport. It has all the light and fast qualities of a standard road bike, yet the flat bars and less vertical frame geometry make the ride more comfortable. Other than having to swap out the carbon fork for chromolly, the bike remains stock. I like the way all the gearing is dialed in, so I opted for a front wheel conversion. On past conversions I went with rear drive and had regrets.
I had a grand to spend on the total build. Light weight and torque for hills dictated a geared hub motor, but the Ezee kit was out of my price range. I opted for the Bafang 8fun 36v 10ah lithium battery kit. Since others on this forum seem to be having good luck with this motor at the factory recommended voltages, I hunted one down from Cycle9 and pulled the trigger.
Cycle9 was helpful in answering my questions, and I respect the policy stated on their websitre regarding striving for customer satisfaction. Since they seemed to be the only source in the U.S. for this kit who had one in stock, I took a gamble and ordered one.
First impressions of the kit: a beautiful little motor laced up to a strong rim, easy to carry battery, tiny controller with connections easy to mate. But, no instructions? I had to source instructions and pics regarding the drive direction of the wheel from European retailers' websites; I remember past Crystalyte kits I owned having a red arrow sticker on the hub, but this was not so on this motor. Installing a motor on the front was so much more simple: no derailer tweaking needed, and no grease covered hands.
The rack in which the battery is held was poorly welded and crooked, but it seemed sturdy enough for the eleven-pound battery. With a lot of prying and pulling, the rack at least became functional. There are two rails that run the length of the bottom of the battery which mate with two rails along the frame of the rack. This battery is the same name brand which Ezee kits include (Phylion 37v 10ah), so I felt justified having spent this much for a high quality battery which didn't require a toolbox or Tupperware container to enclose.
I used Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires on my previous e-bike, and I never had a flat since switching to these; they're bulletproof. The only drawback is that they are heavier than regular road tires. I opted for 25c width tires which I inflated to 110 lbs. The flat-guard strip and deap tread soften the ride a bit and give incredible traction.
The bike weighs 45 pounds, including the bike, motor, battery, rack, and rack bag. I weigh +- 155 pounds. So, 370 watt hours worth of battery pushing 200 pounds via a motor which is claimed to draw between 10 and 20 amp hours-per-mile should make for the ideal combo for my situation.
Sure enough, the bike performs as expected. The top speed fresh off the charger is 18 mph. The beauty of this motor is in the amount of torque it produces; it gives a perfect boost accelerating from a stop and climbing hills. With out-of-the-saddle style riding up hills, I'm able to climb steep grades at about 15 mph. I took the spring out of the thumb throttle and can use the bar ends for leverage while climbing, as well as crouching down low on the long stretches of flat road. For the stop and go areas, I just string a rubber band from the throttle to replace the spring. Ghetto, yes; but it works.
Exceeding my expectations is the range. My commute to work (the scenic route) consists of 18.75 miles of hills. It averages out to being down hill to work, and the reverse on my way home. I rode to work using power very conservatively, and the 1.8 amp charger took less than two hours to top off the battery. For my ride home, I relied heavily on the motor with the expectation of hitting the LVC on the 14% grade right before my house. This never happened. In fact, the green light on the throttle never even flickered. Charging took less than three hours after the ride. I pedaled the entire way for both commutes and felt the same level of exhaustion I would have felt at the end of the day had I taken my bike to work via the bus, then ridden home on the bike before intalling the kit.
Things I would do differently:
My first idea was to buy the kit without the battery, then pair it with the 36v 8ah lithium battery from ComcycleUSA. I could have saved $100 and four pounds of weight. Also, this battery could mount on the down tube and improve how the bike handles. But, I was concerned about range, plus the fact that ComcycleUSA has a store credit only return policy. Had the battery not fit on the bike, I would have been SOL for returning it.
If I was able to source only the motor, I could have purchased a compatible Infineon controller which has the six-pin connector and direct connect Cycleanalyst. This is not so much of a concern now that I've proven the reported range of the battery to be true.
My prediction is that this motor will become more popular than the Wilderness and Crystalyte brushless direct drive motors, since it's so much more efficient and light, while giving comparable performance for most situations (especially at 48v). When used as a rear wheel drive, it's virtually invisible to the untrained eye.
Yours is probably the cleanest install I've ever seen, I can't even see any tie-wraps! 
