Dengfu M09 Endruo/Freeride build log

litespeed said:
That is a fantastic looking bike!

I’m debating going to a store bought or possibly build a bike using the same mid drive. I have a 120 lbs Vector/MaxE/QS 205/20s15/motorcycle tired/8” travel/65 mph beast right now but find myself really wanting a nice 50/60lbs bike to ride.

Looks like you’d recommend that?

Tom

I need to do some serious riding before i can recommend the bike however i can tell you it is a good quality frame. If you are considering a manufacturer built e MTB, then definitely consider this frame.
 
mdwallace said:
Looks great! Like the color play. Ordered an X1 and I agree about the flat black. debating on how I'm going to dress it up. Where did you get your decal? And is that a 29 up front? I'd like to think that the Luna would be setup for Tubeless but the ad just said tubless ready. Not having my hopes up. Glad I ordered but its taking its time. We will see.

Thanks for that. The Decals were just from a local ebay supplier. Did the design just in Word. cost $7.00 per decal. Really easy to do.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/400mm-P...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649
 
Managed to get out for a 30km ride this afternoon. A mix of bike path and local single track. In general, very happy with the bike's performance.

The bike isn't particularly quick out on the bike paths. You need to work to stay above 40kph even on the highest power level. Single track is where the bike shines. Climbs like a billy goat. The grip from the 2.8" tires is amazing. Bike handles really well and has a nice balance between stability and the ability to change changes direction.

My little battery looks to be good for around 30km with a mix of bike path and single track. About what I was hoping for. Battery indicator on the display way saying 40% left at the end of the ride however checking the pack at cell level showed around 15% remaining. At least I have a baseline now.

Took the opportunity to take some better shots of the completed bike.
 

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Great design and execution; looks like you got exactly what you wanted.
 
Leeleeducati said:
Looks fantastic Kepler! Enjoy! How did you configure the Fox 36? Is it 27.5 or 29? 150? 160? I’m curious with the 2.8 and clearance.

Thanks for that.
I ended up going 27.5" plus and 150mm travel back and front.

The rear really does not fit any decent 29er tire so 27.5" is your only sensible option. The bike is built for 27.5" and even with a 50mm rim (outer measurement) and a really aggressive 2.8" tire, there is plenty of clearance. A 27.5" x 3" would fit fine on the rear of this bike.

I was really keen to go with a 29er setup up front and 150mm travel but Dengfu advised against it. After riding the bike, it is clear I could have got away with the 29er up front and still had a good riding position. What swayed me to go with the 27.5 150mm Fox 36 Factory Grip fork was simply price. I got a great deal on the fork paying only $1,000 AUD ($700 USD). Any Fox 36 Factory in a 29er was closer $1500 AUD so I decided to spend the money on Di2 electronic shifting instead.
 
Grantmac said:
What was the final weight? Have you gotten a throttle working?

Final weight tubeless and my 350 Whr battery is 21kg (46lb) Battery on its own is 2kg (4.4lb)

And now the answer to the big question (drum roll) "does the throttle work" Hell Yes!!

Works the same as other Bafang mid drive throttles I have tested. Level of throttle follows the assist level. It has that characteristic dead spot at the start of the throttle so the first 5% of throttle movement kills the PAS. After that, the throttle overrides the PAS. I dont mind that dead spot at the start. It can be useful to kill assist completely on a technical section of trail or it can be used like a clutch to take the strain off gear changes especially when running high assist.
 
That is a really fantastic weight but boy am I not pleased that the throttle issue is still there.
To my mind when I go full throttle I want maximum torque regardless of PAS setting.

I think this is because I rarely use much throttle unless I'm looking to clear an obstacle and at that point I need it all.
 
I have been looking for a manual on the display unit with no success so far. If anyone has an official manual for the display, please share.

However it turns out its not to hard to get to the setup and information menus.

To get to the setup and information menus first turn on the display by holding down the power button for a few seconds. Once the screen is powered up, press and hold both the plus and minus buttons for a few seconds.

You will be taken to this menu.

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With the setup menu highlighted, press the power button to enter that menu.

From there you will be presented with a whole bunch of sub menus which you can navigate too with the plus an minus buttons. All these settings are configurable. I wont go into each menu as they are quite self explanatory once you get into them.

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There is also an information menu to go through.

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These menus are advisory only and it doesn't look like these can be changed from the display
 

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have you tried bluetoothing to the display with the Bafang Go app, it may or may not be bluetooth enabled but you might be surprised.

From what I have been told, you cannot change settings (like wheel diameter etc) through the display, this requires reprogramming of the drive unit.. (if that's what you were looking for)

Andy
 
Tried the App and connection via bluetooth. No luck unfortunately.

Luckily I dont need to change wheel diameter. In the information menu it says wheel diameter is set to 28". This would have been a pain if I had gone with the 29er front wheel. Speedo on the display is reasonably accurate (compared with GPS).

I ended up changing a few things but mainly I just wanted to be able reset trip distance.
 
Is there an option to enable or disable throttle settings or is that something available only via the programming utility.
 
Finally, i received my frame. But i can see some imperfections on the surface it's a kind of discouloration but smooth in touch. can anybody comment on that because it is my first carbon frame - is it a failure or just unimportant thing?
 

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FirstIy, I dont think its a structural issue. However, I certainly wouldn't be too happy with those marks and would be asking Dengfu what they are going to do about it. My frame didn't have a mark on it so this is not normal.
 
Gave the bike a serious shake down at my local mountain bike park yesterday.

Mostly good things to report but there are some things I need to address on this bike.

Firstly, the ground clearance is not great. I had a couple of strikes on obstacles I normally roll over without an issue on my 2019 Stumpjumper. That being said the plastic bash plate held up which surprised me as the hits were quite hard. Secondly, I don't think the bike is slack enough. I found a few of my normal drop off's a little dicey a felt I was close going over the bars.

On a positive note, the frame is stiff and the suspension works really well whether you are bombing it down hill or climbing a steep assent.

I should have stayed with my gut feeling and gone with a 29er fork and 29er front wheel. Test fitted a 150mm 29er fork and wheel and i have to say, the bike felt much better. Lifted the ground clearance from 260mm to 280mm and slackened off the bike by a degree or 2.

I think I will actually go a 160mm 29er fork now that I understand the bike better. Anyway, a few shots with the 29er setup upfront. I really like the look and think it gives the bike a more aggressive stance.
 

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Good going Kepler on the fork swap out. You have a full one inch more ground clearance than I do with my set up running the stock 27.5 front and back.
I had also wondered about going with 170mm crank arms instead of the 175mm arms to help with pedal strike. I think the slacker angles you are now sporting will be better for riding steeper decents. Awesome! ....wayne
 
Kepler what can I say. Congratulations for your bike.

29er set for agressive DH, 27.5 set for flat, twisty singletracks rides. Don’t go crazy just keep both!
 
Amazing build!! Because I'm in California they wont sell me the same frame, I can only get the E05 or E06 do you have any thoughts?
 
Awesome build! I'm seriously thinking of pulling the trigger on this one.

If I wanted to do a budget build based on this frame, could i do a lot better on price vs Luna X1? Luna is sold out ATM anyways.

I don't really enjoy building bikes so much as riding them, so basically i would want to save at least $1000 to build myself...otherwise its not worth it and i'd rather just buy a built bike.

Would you mind PMing me the prices denfu quoted you?

I also might consider bringing in 5 or 10 units into Canada if the discount is steep enough and selling the remaining units as a sideline gig.
 
Frame was $800 USD and motor was $620 USD. Shipped separately at $70 USD ea to Australia. Standard price for anyone I think.

Up to you to do the math on the parts selection but watch out for all the little things that add up. The X1 is hard to beat but i think a 3K budget build is doable. Looking at a 3K budget, after frame, motor and battery, you will have around $1,000 to buy everything else.

My build was far from smart in regards to overall cost however I like to build and experiment so the extra cost was worth it to me.
 
I have now replaced the 27.5" 150mm travel Fox 36 Factory with 29'er 160mm travel Fox 36 ebike specific fork.

I am really happy with the combination of 29'er 2.6" up front and 27.5" 2.8" on the back. I now have the clearance I want and the additional head angle has not effected the handling much at all. I was concerned that this combo would "chopper" the bike out too much but again this has proven not to be an issue either. Climbing really steep and slow, the front wheel is still staying down and maintaining good steering control under these conditions. Other change I made was increasing the reach on the bike by going from a 45mm head stem to a 65mm head stem.

I think I just about have this bike dialed in now. 8)
 

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Nice ride Kepler, my parts collection has stared for my M600 build... got my drive but not sure if the throttle was supposed to be part of the kit or not? Looks like everything else was there including a bunch of little parts, a giant aluminum down tube and the aluminum weld-on motor mount which either won’t get used but no throttle? If you did get the throttle in the kit, could you please post a pic? Thanks!

The drive is a nice piece of work, I’m impressed with the detail, down to the cable protectors and that aluminum motor mount will be a nice decoration on my desk.
 
I think you can also run a 500wh and stay in 21kgs with little effort on saving weight on some components

Personally for my rides i will run this frame (if possible) with a 140/140 suspension, kashima 34 fork and 29er 2.4 ... again if the frame allow it ... with this setting and the 350w battery 20kgs is possible, thought
 
There have been concerns on how noisy the M600 Mid Drive is with metal gears. I must admit I was originally a little disappointed with the noise level of this drive especially when compared to say the BBS02 drive.

At first I did find the the drive annoying loud however the more I rode the bike, the less I noticed it. At first I was thinking I was just becoming more tolerant of the sound however I now think the sound level has reduced as the motor has broken in over the last 100km.

Anyway, I have put together a short video to demonstrate the sound level of the drive. You be the judge.

I will be looking to remove the side cover on this motor sometime this week firstly just to confirm that it has metal gears and secondly to assess how well the drive has been lubricated. Luna has reported the side cover is not so easy to remove. I am keen to see how hard the cover is to remove. If its straight forward, I will put together a short video on how to remove the cover.

[youtube]HWNdT-EpYhc[/youtube]
 
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