Conversion of a Bultaco Sherpa

Joined
Feb 7, 2021
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385
As my nickname indicates, I am planning to convert my
Bultaco Sherpa T350 (2-stroke, 1cylinder, 350 ccm).
For that purpose, I have ordered most of the stuff needed directly from China-
hopefully things will arrive here soon.

I am planning to report here about my build, and probably ask many questions...

For a start, I am showing the bike in its original state, and (until now only virtually) without the combustion engine:
BultacoMit+OhneMotor.jpg
 
That's a nice classic Bultaco with enough space for a mid motor, controller and battery pack to convert to electric :thumb:
Which components have you chosen and bought for the transformation to an EV?

There are some great threads here on E-S with conversions:
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=103800

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=109878

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=104514

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=108178

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=93931
 
Cool project and nice motorbike.
Following with interest your project.
One detail that I noticed, the bike has a rear rack (I suppose aftermarket), in order to improve its looks, if I were you I will get rid of it.
 
SlowCo said:
Which components have you chosen and bought for the transformation to an EV?

I have dropped my original idea to use a hub motor because I wasnt able to find one which had an axle long enough for my rear swing arm-I absolutely do not want to alter it, since it is part of the rare "Sammy Miller High Boy" frame of my Bultaco.

So I have ordered a QS mid motor, Kelly controller and some additional stuff from QS in China.

I will report when it arrived-FedEx tracing says it will arrive next week.
 
_GonZo_ said:
One detail that I noticed, the bike has a rear rack (I suppose aftermarket), in order to improve its looks, if I were you I will get rid of it.

This rear rack is my own construction-back in the 1990s, it held a box for my dog to sit on:
sherpamithund.jpg

I was using the Bultaco a lot for excursions in the Alps, and my dog was always with me. On the fast parts of the tracks she used to sit behind me, while she ran on her own paws in the slower, more difficult parts. We did quite a few cool tours together, even drove up to Mt.Chaberton (3136 m), when this was still possible:
alpen03.jpg
 
Elektrosherpa said:
I have dropped my original idea to use a hub motor because I wasnt able to find one which had an axle long enough for my rear swing arm-I absolutely do not want to alter it, since it is part of the rare "Sammy Miller High Boy" frame of my Bultaco.

So I have ordered a QS mid motor, Kelly controller and some additional stuff from QS in China.

I will report when it arrived-FedEx tracing says it will arrive next week.

I think it is a very good idea to go for a mid drive especially if you need to climb those long winding hills in the Alps! And what a great idea to convert this "two wheeled companion" of many years to EV for the future :thumb:

And please update this thread regularly with lots of photo's for us all to enjoy :mrgreen:

Good luck!
 
Today the parts from China should have arrived (thats what FedEx said).

But they are still in Shanghai- already lying there 8 days without moving, if I can trust FedEx's tracking page.

Today FedEx finally answered my email (after 48 hours instead of 24 hours, as they write on their page :lol: ):
Due to the Chinese New Year, and many parcels sent, it will still take some time...

I paid almost 200$ for that transport ... not amused... :evil:
 
SlowCo said:
I think it is a very good idea to go for a mid drive especially if you need to climb those long winding hills in the Alps! And what a great idea to convert this "two wheeled companion" of many years to EV for the future :thumb:

And please update this thread regularly with lots of photo's for us all to enjoy :mrgreen:

Good luck!

:bigthumb:
 
Today the parcel from QS China has arrived, finally...

And the questions arise.

First of all:
I got absolutely NO documentation.

I wanted to make the conversion with 48 V and ordered the components for that.
The Controller has a decal saying 40-90V, so this seems OK.
But on the motor is a print saying "72V-3000W".
Does this indicate the MAX Voltage possible, and I can use it also with only 48V, or did they send me a wrong motor??

Second:
There is a funny little cable thingy (see attachment)-is this meant to be the programming cable for the Kelly controller????
cable_2021-02-22.jpg
But what and how am I supposed to connect this?
It is neither USB nor RS232, thats for sure...
 
I wanted to make the conversion with 48 V and ordered the components for that.
The Controller has a decal saying 40-90V, so this seems OK.
But on the motor is a print saying "72V-3000W".
Does this indicate the MAX Voltage possible, and I can use it also with only 48V, or did they send me a wrong motor??

They seem to be indicating that if you want 3kw output from the motor, you have to run it at 72 volts, and that this is the maximum. It's probably more like 1800 watts at 48 - 54 volts (which is a fully charged 48 volt battery).
 
I guess you bought a 138 70h, you can find some info here:
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=93627

I dont think there are any different windings for those motors, so you always get the same as far as I know.
Sure it will work at 48V, but with lower performance. I would rather go up than down in voltage. But around 72v nominal is often convenient, because there are many controllers available.

You probably has to get the manual etc. from kellys web page.
Dosent qs sell the motor and votol kits anymore?

My guess is that it is a bluetooth adapter in your picture.
 
Elektrosherpa said:
Today the parcel from QS China has arrived, finally...

And the questions arise.

First of all:
I got absolutely NO documentation.

I wanted to make the conversion with 48 V and ordered the components for that.
The Controller has a decal saying 40-90V, so this seems OK.
But on the motor is a print saying "72V-3000W".
Does this indicate the MAX Voltage possible, and I can use it also with only 48V, or did they send me a wrong motor??

Second:
There is a funny little cable thingy (see attachment)-is this meant to be the programming cable for the Kelly controller????
cable_2021-02-22.jpg
But what and how am I supposed to connect this?
It is neither USB nor RS232, thats for sure...

The funny little thingy is the bluetooth adapter so you can use a phone to program the controller.

As for the motor, don't bother with that, it'll work at any voltage, it's not even the maximum, these can even run at 144V, no problem.
I'd really recommend you to run at the highest possible voltage your controller allows for, higher voltage is better for everything. So in your case I'd go with at least 72V. More power, less losses= more better. :lol:
Wouldn't make much sense to have a high voltage controller and feed it with low voltage. BTW, what controller is it? there's no specs in this thread as to what exact motor/controller/battery you plan on using.
 
Thanks for all the answers.
So I suppose I have to look for an android phone app on the Kelly homepage for setting up the controller...

As you can see from my questions, I am an absolute beginner in e-motorbikes
(all I did until now was building two electric bicycles,
but this was using complete conversion sets including wheel/hub motor, controller etc).

So all I have is some basic understanding, but no detail knowledge at all.

The 48 V idea comes from the following thoughts:
Being an absolute beginner, and in order not to open too many difficult "construction sites" at once,
my idea was to start with assembling the drive components first,
using just a set of 4 simple lead batteries for testing.

Only then, if everything runs in a satisfying way,
I want to build a battery, maybe a bit stronger (60 or 72V).

As j bjork assumed, the Motor is a QS138 (that's what they wrote in the bill).
The controller is a Kelly KLS7245N .

In preparation of the purchase, I have asked the guy who answered my emails to QS (Robert Chen)
to make an offer for matching components - mainly controller, display, throttle, main contactor.

He said it will be easy to assemble, because the components would come with cables and plugs already.

This is the first disappointment-indeed there are cable ends with plugs, but those are not matching.
Neither the cable colors nor the plugs...

Only one 6 wire cable end plug of the controller fits the 6 wire cable end of the motor-
at least mechanically, but the cable colors do not match.
And one 4 wire cable end plug fits the programming cable thing.

The display doesn't even have a name. It looks like that:
Display-details.jpg

The throttle also is different from the ones I used on my bicycles-it has a 3 way switch and two plugs with 3 wires each:
Throttle.jpg
 
The three way switch on the throttle is probably to select 3 speed and/or power limits from the controller. I'd be wary of a 'matched set' that has mismatched connectors and wire colors.
 
Elektrosherpa said:
Thanks for all the answers.
So I suppose I have to look for an android phone app on the Kelly homepage for setting up the controller...

You have two choices here, either use the android app, or use the desktop PC app.
I would use the PC interface at first to set up everything since I'm more comfortable working on a comupter, but I guess that's a matter of preference. Did you also get the cable to connect it to the computer?


Elektrosherpa said:
As you can see from my questions, I am an absolute beginner in e-motorbikes

No worries, we all were beginners at some point :wink:


Elektrosherpa said:
The 48 V idea comes from the following thoughts:
Being an absolute beginner, and in order not to open too many difficult "construction sites" at once,
my idea was to start with assembling the drive components first,
using just a set of 4 simple lead batteries for testing.

Sound like a good plan, but why not just add 2 more lead acid batteries and directly go for 72V?

Elektrosherpa said:
As j bjork assumed, the Motor is a QS138 (that's what they wrote in the bill).
The controller is a Kelly KLS7245N .

You could have used a much more powerful controller if you wanted to, but at least it should work and be reliable.
No problem to expect with this config.

Elektrosherpa said:
This is the first disappointment-indeed there are cable ends with plugs, but those are not matching.
Neither the cable colors nor the plugs...

Haha, yeah, classic China.
They always mess up with the small details. I guess you'll have to learn how to crimp connectors.
Believe it or not, this is actually a good thing. Those connectors are rubbish anyway, so it's a good opportunity to upgrade them right from the start and get waterproof ones.
One, if not the main cause of trouble in our machines is water going into the wiring, so I'd recommend you to purchase some good automotive waterproof connectors and properly rewire everything. Stuff like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Waterproof-Connectors-Electrical-Wire-1P-2P-3P-4P-5P-6P-Male-and-Female-Plug-/233208617442

Get a crimping tool like this one:
https://www.amazon.com/Qibaok-Ratcheting-0-5-1-5mm%C2%B2-Connectors-Terminals/dp/B07RZSSTSJ/ref=asc_df_B07RZSSTSJ/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=366281307321&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6965512623188247955&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9060325&hvtargid=pla-833633159924&psc=1&tag=&ref=&adgrpid=75985294253&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvadid=366281307321&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6965512623188247955&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9060325&hvtargid=pla-833633159924

And watch a few tutorials to see how to do it, this one's great:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgrA_6zFqqY

It's really not rocket science, don't be intimidated, take your time and do it properly.
If you're not sure about wire colors post clear pictures here and we'll help you.

Elektrosherpa said:
Only one 6 wire cable end plug of the controller fits the 6 wire cable end of the motor-
at least mechanically, but the cable colors do not match.

I guess this is the cable for the hall sensors of the motor. Please post pictures to make sure that everything is ok.

Elektrosherpa said:
And one 4 wire cable end plug fits the programming cable thing.

Ok

Elektrosherpa said:
The display doesn't even have a name. It looks like that:
Display-details.jpg

Let's keep the display for the end, first solve the essential stuff.

Elektrosherpa said:
The throttle also is different from the ones I used on my bicycles-it has a 3 way switch and two plugs with 3 wires each:
Throttle.jpg

The green/red/black plug is the throttle.
The other one is the three way switch, which allows you to switch between the three speed modes if you want.

The necessary things to run the motor are:
-Battery+ and - to the controller
-Ignition: from the battery positive to the ignition wire of the controller
-Throttle: the green/red/black wire
-Phase wires: the big yellow/blue/green cables of the motor, to be connected to the controller
-Hall sensors: the other, thinner cable that comes from the motor. Notice there should be two of them, one is actually a spare so that you can switch to it in case the first one fails

Once these are connected you'll be able to make the motor move under it's own power. All the other stuff is optional and can be connected later, just focus your attention onto what is really necessary.
 
And in order to help you to setup the controller here you have link to some videos I made about it with Kelly-KLS controllers:
This part one, and there is 3 parts:
https://youtu.be/A_si4IfU5so
[youtube]A_si4IfU5so[/youtube]
 
Thanks again for the replies.
I am beginning to understand a few things.

I have written to QS motors and they replied:
"We have matched the controller and motor already, so you just need to connect it and work, but if you need to adjust some datas in the controller"

I understand this so that I can connect the matching plugs of controller and motor regardless of the fact that their cable colors do not match at all. Here is a pic of what this looks like:
Controller-Motor-plugs-text.jpg

Meanwhile I have connected the 3 fat cables from the motor to the controller according to the colors given in the controller manual-it looks like that now:
Controller+cables-Text.jpg

What I am missing is the last contact on the controller, labelled "NC".
Is this what "Dui, ni shuo de dui" mentioned in his reply as "Ignition"?
But it is connected to "B+" on the controller by a metal strip.
Do I need 2 connections of battery "+" to the controller -
one to the contact labelled "B+" , and one to the connection labelled "NC"?

I was planning to use my universal power supply for some initial testing.
It can deliver 0-60V , but only 5A -
might this be enough for just seeing if the motor spins at all?

And as for the programming:
I haven't got a cable for hooking up the controller to the PC, only this bluetooth thing. :(

I have managed to install the app from the kelly homepage to my android smartphone (Samsung Galaxy M21 with Android 10),
but it looks really crappy (writings too large etc) - totally different from what I saw in "_GonZo_"'s video (PC version).
Additionally, during installation I got some warnings: it might not run properly since it was developped for an older version of Android.
If I use the android phone's bluetooth, I can't detect the controller, although I supplied it with 48 V at B+ and B- , and plugged in this bluetooth connector. Same with 60V.
It doesn't really look useful...

I also installed the windows version on a laptop with WinXP. But all it gives me is an error message because it cant find the controller.
 
Elektrosherpa said:
I understand this so that I can connect the matching plugs of controller and motor regardless of the fact that their cable colors do not match at all. Here is a pic of what this looks like:

We can't see anything on your picture, so I really cannot say.
Only thing that really matters on this plug is to have the red on the red and the black on the black.
The other colors are not important.

Elektrosherpa said:
Meanwhile I have connected the 3 fat cables from the motor to the controller according to the colors given in the controller manual-it looks like that now:
Controller+cables-Text.jpg

Ok, good.

Elektrosherpa said:
What I am missing is the last contact on the controller, labelled "NC".
Is this what "Dui, ni shuo de dui" mentioned in his reply as "Ignition"?

No, the ignition is usually a thin pink wire, labelled number 7. maybe known as pwr or something like that.

Elektrosherpa said:
But it is connected to "B+" on the controller by a metal strip.
Do I need 2 connections of battery "+" to the controller -

Absolutely never connect anything from battery + to battery - or controller -, or you'll end up in some giant fireball!!
Positive goes to positive, negative goes to negative. If you mix this up it's very likely you'll kill the controller and potentially get seriously injured.

Elektrosherpa said:
one to the contact labelled "B+" , and one to the connection labelled "NC"?

I'm not sure on your controller if you have to wire the positive cable from the battery to the NC port or to the B+ port.
Don't panic, there is no risk of connecting in either of these, it is just that if you wire it on the wrong one then it'll bypass the fuse/current sensor that you can see (this weird metallic strip thingy), making it useless.
I suppose it goes to the B+ connector, since it goes to B+ on mine.

Elektrosherpa said:
I was planning to use my universal power supply for some initial testing.
It can deliver 0-60V , but only 5A -
might this be enough for just seeing if the motor spins at all?

I'm not so sure.
I wouldn't attempt it with anything other than the battery, because if the power suppy isn't up to the task, then it might mess up your controller. You don't want the controller to get disconnected while programming, that might lead to its death.
So I suggest you to use a reliable battery instead, better safe than sorry.

Elektrosherpa said:
And as for the programming:
I haven't got a cable for hooking up the controller to the PC, only this bluetooth thing. :(

Ok, then Bluetooth it is.

Elektrosherpa said:
I have managed to install the app from the kelly homepage to my android smartphone (Samsung Galaxy M21 with Android 10),
but it looks really crappy (writings too large etc) - totally different from what I saw in "_GonZo_"'s video (PC version).
Additionally, during installation I got some warnings: it might not run properly since it was developped for an older version of Android.
If I use the android phone's bluetooth, I can't detect the controller, although I supplied it with 48 V at B+ and B- , and plugged in this bluetooth connector. Same with 60V.
It doesn't really look useful...

As said earlier, you need to connect the pwr wire for it to work (what I called the ignition). Needs to be pluged to the batteryB+, through a simple switch. This is this wire you'll activate later while turning the ignition key.

Did you download the manual for the controller?
 
Here is the manual for your controller:
https://kellycontroller.com/wp-content/uploads/kls-nm/KellyKLS-N-UserManualV2.7.pdf

EDITED, link was incorrect.
 
[/size]Thank you again for the reply :bigthumb:

Dui said:
We can't see anything on your picture, so I really cannot say.
Only thing that really matters on this plug is to have the red on the red and the black on the black.
The other colors are not important.

OK, here are two new pics, from the both sides of the plug (the only ones which mechanically match)
Controller-Motor-Plug-connected.jpg
So it looks like the three connections on one side are OK ( Purple and Black go to Red and Black, and Orange goes to White),
but on the other side Green goes to Green, while Blue and Yellow are interchanged...
Can this be OK ???


Dui said:
Did you download the manual for the controller?

Yes, sure.
But I don't find it enough "idiot proof" for me :D

I found there an info about this plug which I showed above, and it says:
KellyKLSManual-PlugPicture.JPG

So what I would call "orange" is called "RADDLE" here. This is a word I don't know.
Maybe they meant "ruddle"? (which is an old word meaning something like "red-ish"?

They tell me what the cables are meant for, but this does not tell me to which motor cable I have to connect them ...

Dui said:
Elektrosherpa said:
But it is connected to "B+" on the controller by a metal strip.
Do I need 2 connections of battery "+" to the controller -

Absolutely never connect anything from battery + to battery - or controller -, or you'll end up in some giant fireball!!
Positive goes to positive, negative goes to negative. If you mix this up it's very likely you'll kill the controller and potentially get seriously injured.
This is a misunderstanding, due to my text formatting. My sentence was continued in the next line. The "-" character here was not meant to be a MINUS, but a separator in the text.
My text was going:
Do I need 2 connections of "battery +" to the controller, one to the contact labelled "B+" , and one to the connection labelled "NC"?

But this is clear now, it seems I do not need to connect anything to this contact "NC". :wink:
 
_GonZo_ said:
Here is the manual for your controller:
https://kellycontroller.com/wp-content/uploads/ksl/KellyKSLUserManual.pdf

Thanks again :)

Hmm...

This is the 4th version of the manual now...

I have "KellyKLS-M-N-UserManualV2.5", KellyKLS-M-N-UserManualV2.6" , "KellyKLS-M-N-UserManualV2.7",
and now this one named: "KellyKSLUserManual"

What confuses me:
The wiring diagrams in those manuals are NOT equal- in the last one on my small list above (linked by "_GonZo_") it looks most clear to me ...
But on the other hand, my controller does not have any LEDs....

Maybe the wiring diagram shows also the places for some small electronic parts which came in the parcel from QS, and which I have not identified yet:
SmallParts.jpg

Could these be the the two items which I have marked red in the Manual page 8? :
ManualPage8.jpg
 
I say B+ cable attaches to NC. The port that goes into the controller is raised and has a red grommet. The screw has a witness mark on it so its tightened by Kelly already. The other bolt is probably loose and goes into a blind hole in the case ie NC
 
Elektrosherpa said:
OK, here are two new pics, from the both sides of the plug (the only ones which mechanically match)
Controller-Motor-Plug-connected.jpg
So it looks like the three connections on one side are OK ( Purple and Black go to Red and Black, and Orange goes to White),
but on the other side Green goes to Green, while Blue and Yellow are interchanged...
Can this be OK ???

Yes, should be no problem, from what I see on the pictures it seems all right.
the green, blue and yellow can be interchanged, it doesn't really matter since you'll do the motor calibration afterwards :)
If you inverted the wires then the motor will spin backwards, but you can change the motor rotating orientation in the software anyway so it's really nt an issue.


Elektrosherpa said:
So what I would call "orange" is called "RADDLE" here. This is a word I don't know.
Maybe they meant "ruddle"? (which is an old word meaning something like "red-ish"?

Yeah, that's the orange ish one. this is used to measure the internal temperature of your motor, some motors have it and some don't so good thing you have it (mine don't).



Elektrosherpa said:
But this is clear now, it seems I do not need to connect anything to this contact "NC". :wink:

As I said, could be NC or could be B+, it isn't really clear on your controller. I tend to agree with thoroughbred though, he made some good points, but can't be really sure.
It will work in either case, so at first it doesn't really matter since connecting it wrongly will only bypass this current sensor/fuse. so, if you just remove this fuse, then it'll be easy to figure it out: once the fuse is removed, the correct plug will be the one that doesn't work. I wanted to expain that yesterday but I can't find a way to make this explanation clear. There are lots of ways to figure out which plug to use but I really don't know how to explain by writing. All involve removing the fuse temporarily to figure out which plug is the right one.
Hopefully you get the idea...
 
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