E-bikes for the masses - Could we convert the IKEA Sladda?

airsquid

100 µW
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Aug 11, 2017
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Think of this as theory crafting more than a practical plan. IKEA declared their commitment to sustainable commuting when they started carrying a flat-pack bicycle. (http://m.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/art/30326728/)

It's also a flat-pack bicycle.

Apparently it's neither terrible nor amazing (https://www.outsideonline.com/2177391/ikea-tries-out-bicycling-scene)
(http://gizmodo.com/building-the-ikea-bike-is-a-pain-worth-suffering-throug-1792804502) which makes me wonder if it could be made more amazing and a better commuter bike through judicious applications of technology.

Of course adding a motor means that even a simple 2-speed cruiser is more reasonable. There are some surprising and valuable features one looks for in e-bike commuters, like a carbon belt drive, internally geared hub, and front disc brake. The frame shape means you can't hide much of a battery in there, though.

Interesting idea? If you were theoretically tasked with making the Ikea Sladda into an e-bike, how would you go about it?
 
Front hub motor. easy. Flat pack cracks me up though, nearly all bikes ship that way. Pedals off, seat off if its wide, handlebars turned 90 degrees. Doesn't get any flatter than the length of the rear axle.
 
The ol' automatic 2-speed? Good to see more of those being produced (F&S, Fichtel and Sachs?). They are rare enough right now that nobody has published how much power they can take before breaking.

There was a kick-back version that required rim brakes instead of the normal coaster brake found on base-model frames. The benefit seemed to be that there was no shifter cable or shifter on the handlebars, very handy on flattish land, on a beach cruiser. The auto-shift version would still need rim brakes, but...I agree with dogman on this. Front hub, maybe a Xiongda 2-speed, or Q100H at 750W?

I like the low top-bar on this uni-gender frame, but...not much space for a common battery pack.
 
SRAM Automatix 2-speed hubs come in both coaster brake and freewheeling versions. I have the coaster brake version on one of my bikes, and I like it a lot. Mine switches to high gear at around 15mph.

The hub shifts when centrifugal force on a pair of flyweights overcomes the tension of a retaining spring. So the road speed at which the hub shifts depends on wheel diameter and the amount of tension the spring. You can modify the spring to adjust the shift RPM up or down, but it's not easy. The gear ratios are 1:1 and 1.37:1, which is a pretty big jump to make all at once.

The hub tends to shift to the upper gear when it's ridden on bumpy surfaces, even if it's not going fast enough to make the shift otherwise. It stays in high gear until RPM drops below the threshold and you stop applying pressure to the pedals.

I think the SRAM Automatix would be a great choice for a low powered mid-drive bike for a rider who's averse to shifting. In effect, you'd have one gear for accelerating from a stop and for climbs, and another gear for cruising.
 
It'll be more important to decide what 'For the masses' means to you. If the cheapest, most utilitarian bike is required, I suppose your choice is okay.

If it's gotta be someone people will WANT, keep looking. So Sunday I took a picture of this outside while the guy inside came running to to find out why I wanted a picture. So I at least got to find out it was over $2k and that he wasn't exactly militant about electrics. So if this is available, he'll take it. I don't blame him, it's nicely turned out.

Figure out how many you want to actually SELL and go from there.

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