Big wheel vs Small wheel scooters - saftey

Hey guys, I am new here but there seems to be tons of good information here so I think I can get some help on my ideas.

So originally i started looking for a e-scooter based on what I was reading on the reddit pages reddit.com/r/ElectricScooters/.

They have great info there, but it seems like most of them talk about only the "small" and portable scooters with 8-10" wheels and such. I hear many issues regarding safety of the frames and such, but specifically due to the small tires, many of them have fallen simply due to small road hazards (Pebble, sidewalk crack differences, toads, etc) that a typical bike tire (16" +) would generally handle fine most of the time.

So this is the type of safety issue I would like to improve as much as possible.

So that leads me here and considering a new (for me) type of e-scooter.

So I have found the typical dogscooters with 16-20" wheels seem to be a perfect choice as a base to build and electrify!

I noticed pretty much exactly what I am thinking of setting up with this post here: https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=101796

I live in the US, so it is not easy to get these dogscooters such as pawtrekker, but I can probably order it and pay shipping.

First major questions:

1) Would everyone agree these larger wheels are generally much safer as far as road conditions? Up to what speed? I see many e-bikes here that easily do 40+ but prob with special tires. I dont think I will go 40 on this dog scooter but 25 or so would be great!

2) The smaller tire scooters such as the Dualtron models with 10" Motorcycle type tires do seem really stable. Would those have any other advantage on the road? Any better with torque from the motor?

3) It would seem to me that these dogscooters would be much better overall as long as someone did not need or care for the portability. For me, this is a fun commute scooter so I dont really need to put in a car or building.

Thanks for any advise....

For me, once you move above the convenient size and weight of the 8" scooters, you're probably best off just going to a normal bicycle with 26"+ wheels. I feel like the middle ground dogscooter is kind of the worst of both worlds - not very portable and not as safe as a normal bike. I guess the only useful part of it is if you prefer to stand on a platform rather than sit on a bike seat.

Thanks for the reply!!

So this is interesting... I figured the kick/dogscooter would be much safer than the 8" ones, and I also figured it was about the same or possibly even a bit safer than a e-bike?

Now, I have no idea if this is remotely true, so can you help me understand the technical reasons why a e-bike would be safer?
I guess the center of gravity wound be close to the same, and I was thinking if you need to bail off for any reasons, the kickscooter may be easier to do that? Again, I am 100% guessing based on what I can imagine, but lets discuss as maybe this is not true?

The good news is I am definitely planning to electrify either my 26" Specialized bike or my 27.5 MTB next, but wanted to start off simple with a small DIY Commute scooter first... :lol:

I have a monkey bike with 8" rims which rides fine even geared up to 75mph, but hitting a pot hole with smaller wheels can be brutal

banshee28 said:

Thanks for the reply!!

So this is interesting... I figured the kick/dogscooter would be much safer than the 8" ones, and I also figured it was about the same or possibly even a bit safer than a e-bike?

Now, I have no idea if this is remotely true, so can you help me understand the technical reasons why a e-bike would be safer?
I guess the center of gravity wound be close to the same, and I was thinking if you need to bail off for any reasons, the kickscooter may be easier to do that? Again, I am 100% guessing based on what I can imagine, but lets discuss as maybe this is not true?

The good news is I am definitely planning to electrify either my 26" Specialized bike or my 27.5 MTB next, but wanted to start off simple with a small DIY Commute scooter first... :lol:

Click to expand...

I'm not sure either. Scooters may be a bit easier to bail off of, but bikes give you more control over the vehicle since you have a seat you can grip and move the bike around with.