Phantom X Review

[dj31592]

o ok. I didn't realize that they are using a new battery design for the X2. From the pictures it does look like the 15-25 degree upward angled battery rack will alleviate some weight over the back wheel. Maybe a year or two down the road I'll end up upgrading too haha. Riding this bike has made me interested in buying an electric motorcycle in a few years though. There's nothing like the instantaneous torque you get with an electric motor. The second you attempt to accelerate you get the full force unlike conventional combustion engines.

 

[dj31592]

Prodeco still hasn't responded to my email --___-- . I sent another one one on Friday after calling and being told that the tech guy had left for the day. This is one of the major minuses when dealing with them. I haven't had the time to call them any other day because they close so early.

 

[Blackssr]

I also have a Phantom X. I have had the bike for about 3 months now. I have over 600 miles on it. My wife has the Stride 500. We are happy for the most part with the performance.( I weigh 205, the wife 120) I am in South Florida so no hills here. The 500 watt motors perform well enough for a Sunday outing at the beach or the park. We get about 25 miles or so with moderate speeds of 17 mph off of the 9.5 mah battery. I do have to adjust the front brakes alot the keep the annoying noise in check but other then that we have had no real issues at all with the bikes.

I did pick up on ebay an Ebike 24 volt Lee Iacocca bike for a do it yourself project. I was inspired by some of the members here and decided to build my own. I purchased an ebay 1000 watt kit from Yescomusa and made a 12S2P pack and can hit 32 Mph. Love that bike.
(14 miles @ 20-25 mph)

I have been to Prodeco three times in the last three months. They are very nice people but the delays are a part of life with them. I am glad that I am learning how to build my own ebike, but will continue to use the Prodecos until I am sure I will not have to walk home after a 12 mile ride with my DIY project.

 

[dj31592]

Haha. I know what you mean with the constant tweaking of the brakes. I replaced my front rotor a couple of days ago because it was warped, but I'm still getting that annoying chirping sound (albeit it is much less annoying than before). After further inspection I realized that the brake pads in the promax disc brakes are pretty loose and there is nothing I can really do to fix them. My rotors scrape against them unless I have the brake pads adjusted to perfection (which basically means me having to align the rotors in the center of disc brakes with pads being anywhere close to them from both sides), but I don't have enough breaking power when they are adjusted to not scrape against the pads. So I guess I have to deal....or replace the disc brakes all together if that will do anything. I'm not sure if this is an overall design flaw with the phantom x or a design flaw specifically with my bike, but it sucks that such an expensive bike has such a pretty trivial, yet annoying, brake problem. So for anyone else who owns a Phantom X, have you had issues with the disc brakes? Do the rotors rub against the brake pads while not braking? I really doubt I'm the only one with this problem.

 

[amberwolf]

It's probalby just the cheap Promax calipers. I have some of them, and some cheap noname ones, and some cheap Chinese-brand-name ones I forget the name of right now, and all of them are the same in their lack of adjustability, finickiness, and lack of braking power unless the pads are adjusted so close that they rub if the whole thing isn't exactly perfect. (this is on my CrazyBike2 custom-built semi-recumbent).

They are what they are--cheap.

OH, and it also makes a great deal of difference which levers are used. If the levers (or cable!) has flex or stretch, the brakes will take a lot more pull than they should, forcing you to adjust them closer to get full braking before the handle hits the bars. IF the lever is the wrong type, with the wrong pull ratio, they'll also ahve the same problem.


FWIW, most of my rim brakes work as well as the cheap disc, or sometimes better, when neither is kept perfectly adjusted before every ride, as long as the rim is true. If the disc are perfectly adjusted they seem to have slightly better braking but it can take an hour for me to fiddle with them enough to get them "right", then 10 minutes of riding will put them right back out of adjustment. Not worth the time; I keep them on there only because I don't have *good* disc calipers, and with the weight of CB2, I need more braking than rim alone can provide. (so I use both at the same time on the same wheel, and regen braking on the rear wheel).

 

[Jason27]

I thought prodeco bikes were made in USA. Just wondering what parts are made in the usa?

 

[Frog]

Prodeco said just a few days ago the one thing made by them in the US the back rim I think the front rim maybe as well. Other then that it's assembled in the USA from parts made over seas aka China. I've see the parts list from another member on here it's all from China.

 

[dj31592]

Thanks amberwolf. I've given up on adjusting the cheap brakes for only 30 minutes of noise free riding lol. Like you mentioned, it takes an hour or more to fix em just right, but they unadjust after a single ride. I dislike v-brakes mainly due to the fact that I constantly get caught out in the rain where I live and I can't really on their braking power when my rims are wet. But I must say that I didn't have to adjust the v brakes on my old bike nearly as often as I have to adjust the disc brakes on my Phantom X now.

 

[ZWolf]

I know most of the post on this subject are over a year old! But I wanted to comment on the China built items, for my first DIY bike, I bought a motor from Ampedbikes.com who imports custom motors from China. And I just got a Prodeco Phantom X2 bike and the motors are the same right down to the stickers on it. The only thing not the same was the level for the speed control, it has the power button added to it. Other then that, it is the same IMHO.

 

[docnjoj]

On the subject of disc brakes, an Avid BB7 on the front might be the best investment you could make on that Prodeco. You gotta stop!
otherDoc
edit: Oh yeah in keeping with the tone of this discussion, no I don't work for avid!

 

[Boukmn]

This may be a dumb question but I'll ask it:
How does the Phantom-X bike fair if it gets rained on??

If I leave it outside parked or if I am ever caught in the rian during a long ride, how do the electrical components fair if they get wet? I am most concered about the throttle, the battery (especially where the electrical connections behind the seat) and the motor case itself.

 

[Gfunk76]

I got my Phantom X soaked by the derecho that came through the DC area earlier this summer about two weeks after I got the bike. The only issue that I had with the electronics, was that the lame red light on the back of the battery turned on by itself, and stayed on. I ended up riding home in this crazy storm, and the electronics seemed to work fine. I took the battery off and let it dry out for a few days. The light eventually turned off by itself, and I've been riding it pretty much everyday with no issues. The light on the battery doesn't always work, but I use a blinky red light for night riding anyways. I think Prodeco should just do away with the battery light. It's not very bright... Basically useless for night riding, and just adds dead weight.

 

[Gfunk76]

Also, if I'm expecting rain, to be on the safe side, I place a garbage bag over the entire battery/controller assembly and hold it down with a bungee net. Seems to work fine.

I also recommend fenders if you don't have them already. Having a jet of water being sprayed on your face by the front tire kinda makes it hard to see the road