Beemo
100 µW
Yeah..... I have only pushed my 11ah Battery 43kms on one charge, but i do have a few a few nasty hill climbs that beat up the efficient range I achieved on the flatter sections of my commute.
Sorry in advance for not putting this into a bike build post but I am amazed my small brain has navigated this far into this Blogging/forum/internet thingy without blowing up.
Thought it was time for a bit of Bike Porn from sunny Melbourne. My whip :wink: is not the sexiest rig, I know. But it has all the meat and potatoes I require. Its a CELL bikes 29er hardtail. The CELL brand is pure coincidence and the company do not make battery cells. They do however make bang for buck packaged bikes. This bike is now $549 Aus dollars but I got it 6 months ago for $449. It was the cheapest hydraulic braked (Tektro HDC330 Hydraulic Disc, 160mm Rear 180mm Front- Entry level but can slow down my heavy beast downhill in the rain effortlessly) 29er with Shimano Acera 9sp Rear Derailleur (good entry level solid clicking-easy to tinker with).
I chose a 29er hardtail because easily cheaper than dual suspension but still had the very functional front suspension for my urban riding (bunny hopping gutters; shortcuts over dirttracks; compliant on the the poor numb hands; but still solid on the long paved bike tracks and roads.) Secondly, this 29er frame has the modern geometry that keeps the centre of gravity low and the fork slack/angle ensures a feeling of stability at higher speeds i.e the bike is not twitchy. At 40kph + I tend to lean into a racing/aero dynamic position for extended periods ...so the geometry on 29er XC modern racing frame is very suitable for coupling to a Bafang mid cranker. I watched Keplers bike build carefully 'cos he was a local guy and he was riding the same bike paths as me and still enjoyed the fitness associated with riding. But my budget was not allowing me to get a quality dual suspension. The bike, the battery and the Bafang came in at less than $1500 Aus dollars. Pretty much plug and play. The CELL bike mechanic installed the Bafang for me too, he said it was 'too easy' and he had never done it before and needed minimal prompting from my memory from youtube videos.
Battery is slipped into a waterproof kayaking bag. I cut a small entry point into 'armpit' of the roll up sealing section to allow entry for the battery connection (cannot get wet in heavy downpour because armpit hole is tucked up into fold but can no longer be immersed under water). I then fabricated(smashed and bent) a piece of aluminium to act as a battery holder, using the bottle holder grommets for solid attachment. Then just oversized heavy duty load straps hold battery to frame. Still not happy with this arrangement but IT IS solid and easy to mount/dismount for charging. Will improve frame to lower battery even lower AND improve the securing system for better aesthetics. Its weird...people dont see battery, they say they think its another panier type bag located inside my frame.
I rode at first with stock bike knobby race tyres. The bike did not care about the fat tyres or the knobbies...it still flew. And the comfort from the fat tyre absorbing even the littlest bumps was a very plush ride! HOWEVER....when you are the fastest biker in the neighbourhood :lol: you tend to corner at inappropriate speeds and the knobbies lost their advantages and were unstable on paved surfaces. (oh...and I got flats twice in the first month...as you do on any bike). So I quickly moved to Kevlar slicks. Maxxis Gypsies are the current brand on bike because my LBS only had these when I desperately needed slicks. I have had excellent experience with Schwalbe Marathon Plus. But really it is up to the individual. The important thing is the higher rolling resistance and puncture proof experience to match your super human biking
I can now carve up the road and bike trail surfaces with these tyres at full throttle and full confidence.I have actually kept plastic cheap platform pedals (normally i ride clipless shimano spd). Why? you may ask! I fly into gradual corners at great speed. Normally you stop pedalling because accelerating through the appex of corners is for motor bikes not a push bike. I have eliminated the accelerator on my rig so I have the incredible urge to accelerate through all corners, which means i have to pedal. I actually get so low to the ground I sometimes scrape the pedal. Plastic will scrape off the plastic safely, not bite like metal. Probably just my quirky thing, but there it is.
Cheers all. Oh BTW. All this fun and I am greening my son's future to boot.
Then more when I know what I really need.
over gutters and smash rutted single track and it does an acceptable job.
