GNG Cake - FS mid-drive build

[tln]

Concept is a full suspension bike that can easily manage the 10+% grades around me.

I started with Gary Fisher Cake 1 DLX I snagged off Craigslist a couple of weeks ago. I had a GNG kit
in my parts bin, it took a fair bit of cutting away the mounting bracket but eventually got it mounted.

I priced out a custom built battery but in the end I skipped several steps and just bought a 48v15Ah Calibike
battery. I took a under desk computer shelf and a few pipe and mounted the battery underneath the downtube.

The end result is a light (53 lbs) and well balanced bike. I'm riding with a very stiff front suspension because of the
battery placement, I might try that in the tiny triangle although it'll mean bow legged riding.



"Last thing" I really need to add is a volt meter. I've got a Sturmey Archer CS-RK3 to regain gear range on order, although
The current gears + GNG will get me up almost any paved hill, but I'd like to have enough gear range to ride myself up
the hills too

 

[tln]

I tackled the hardest hill, 1/2mi @ 15-20% grade today. The bike was struggling (so was I). Hopefully the 3*9 gears from the CS-RK3 will give me a chance to get decent cadence up that beast.

Speaking of which, the CS-RK3 arrive but without all the parts... like the shifter bar or a place for the shifter cable to come out of the hub. Luckily I bought from a place with actual customer service! New parts are on their way (so they say).



Here's a close up of the underside. I need to waterproof this...



Surprisingly to me, the battery box under the down tube is working pretty well, I don't think it'll move. I've only done a couple of dozen miles but the relatively wide battery and stiff front has been no issue at all, while having the weight low-down is great.

Cheap onboard volt/wattmeters are en route. When those arrive I can do actual rides without range anxiety

 

[tln]

Sadly, this build is not working out. Something has flexed and the motor chain now pops off under torque. Since I can't adjust the alignment, I'm throwing in the towel on using this GNG kit.

Time to see if a BBS02 will do the trick!

The bike shop couldn't put the CS-RK3 hub on because the bike didn't have enough cable stops... that might be a sign to find a new bike, too

 

[amberwolf]

Uh, and they couldn't just use a full-length cable housing instead?

Or add a clamp-on or bolt-on stop wherever it might be needed?

 

[tln]

The seat stay and chain stay are carbon fiber, so bolt-on is out. The profile is not round either, which is what all clamp-ons I found supported. I did find something that looked perfect, but its only for cable management... but it might be adapted somehow.



I'm happy with my voltmeter mount. That's a key switch on the side to turn on the controller.