In your opinion what would be the ultimate DIY ebike build for 2024?

ebike4healthandfitness

ebike4healthandfitness

100 kW
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May 19, 2012
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As some of you know I am huge fan of buying pre-built ebikes on sale. (Pick up one on sale during winter then sell around 16 months later for a very good price. Wash. Rinse. Repeat every year to maximize your ebike experience per dollar spent)

However, sometimes I like to tinker with that idea of building something with DIY parts to see how these processes compare.

So for 2024 I suppose my ultimate DIY build would include the upcoming Grin fat bike hub with 150 x 15mm spacing for use on the front:

endless-sphere.com

Nice! Very Nice! (Upcoming Grin 45mm Direct Drive motor)

So happy to see this one coming: https://ebikes.ca/shop/electric-bicycle-parts/motors/fat-all-axle-deposit.html I wonder what the right and left flange offset will be for 150mm front? Been wanting to see something that could make a dishless front wheel with disc brake for quite some time...
endless-sphere.com endless-sphere.com

This combined with the Bikee Bike lightest mid drive which promises 175mm Q factor when used with 68mm BB. (I am assuming this is the configuration that has both pedal spindles equal length from the frame center line)

lightest.bike

Lightest ebike kit

Lightest ebike motor is an innovative bicycle drivetrain which combines superior performance and lightweight design.
lightest.bike lightest.bike

So now you are saying....."Woah wait a minute? You want to combine 150mm x 15mm front hub with a 68mm BB shell?" Yes and I can achieve this by using a Jones Frame and Jones fork set (or complete Jones bike) which is optimized and time tested combination using 150mm x 15mm fork, 68mm BB shell mountain frame and 148mm x 12mm thru axle rear hub:

Jones Bicycles- The high performance Bicycle.

This Is the Only Bike You'll Ever Need
www.jonesbikes.com www.jonesbikes.com

As far as rims go I would go with the Ryde Andra 29er which we have (at large) previously agreed on as the ultimate ebike rim:

www.ryde.nl

Andra 29 R - Ryde

The heaviest rim in our range, the Andra 29 was developed to stand loads up to 150kg.
www.ryde.nl www.ryde.nl

As far as batteries go something from Grin would be my first choice.
 
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Hmmm i would wonder about the strength of that ebike cassette/freewheel being able to take 1200w of peak power from the lightest.. people have snapped those on pedal power in many a hub.

The 45mm wide motor would be way more than enough power for any ebike unless you're in it to make speed records. You won't be overheating it on hills... i can run 55mph up a ~7% grade with a 35mm leaf... you'd have a bigger motor than that!
 
neptronix said:
Hmmm i would wonder about the strength of that ebike cassette/freewheel being able to take 1200w of peak power from the lightest.. people have snapped those on pedal power in many a hub.
Click to expand...
That is a good question.

When you say snapped rear hub are you talking about the axle?

The regular Jones bikes list aluminum cassette body and aluminum 148mm x 12mm thru axle in their specifications, but the HD/e versions of the Jones bike lists chromoly steel cassette body and chromoly steel 148mm x 12mm thru axle:

jonesbikes.com

Jones Plus LWB HD/e Complete Bike

This Is the Only Bike You'll Ever Need
jonesbikes.com jonesbikes.com

jonesbikes.com

Jones LWB HD/e e-bike with BBSHD Motor V2

This Is the Only Bike You'll Ever Need
jonesbikes.com jonesbikes.com

Jones Spec. HD/e 36 hole, 148 mm x 12 mm Boost hub. Sealed Cartridge Bearings. Black. Like the front hub, this is a simple, durable hub. The axle and Shimano HG driver body are both made from chromoly steel for maximum stiffness and durability. The 4 freehub pawls and the ratchet teeth are larger than what’s found in most hubs adding to the overall strength. Canted flanges angle the spokes in toward the spoke holes in the rim, and the wide flange spacing makes for an extremely strong and stiff wheel. Cutaways in the flanges keep weight to a minimum. 4 sealed cartridge bearings. 6-bolt disk brake pattern.
Click to expand...
 
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I've got one for ya. I'd like to see the e-trike project I took on for a disabled and heavyset buddy of mine get completed.
DIY only touches the title it seems, being how everything is one "customized from scratch" component to the next.
I believe I've bitten off more than I can chew with this one. So if anyone has any advice or expertise they'd like to contribute, it's greatly and graciously accepted!
To ensure the trike has enough power to pull him throughout this hilly town, I acquired a 110v DC 2.0 HP motor from a treadmill. ...still waiting to hear back from anyone about how to convert said motor over to use it.
Oh, and I took on the project "probono", so I'm having to use whatever I can find , sort of speak, and weld together myself.
Why would anyone take on such a project in the first place, not knowing if it can be done, you ask?
I asked myself too, and come up with the same argument... My heart is obviously bigger than my brain.
I can not accept that the trills and enjoyment of owning an ebike, not to mention the convenience and ease of what some would take for granted in our day to day, is subject to a certain criteria pertaining to a persons physical build or whether or not said person has bottomless pockets.
So here I am. Anyone care to contribute their expertise? ...I'm not one to throw in the towel, hell or high water, my friend will not be excluded from this upcoming ebike revolution hitting Podunk rural USA
 
I'd also use a hub motor, it's going to be a lot less work.
You can get a working hub motor kit for as low as $250.
 
I mean I think ultimate depends heavily on what you are trying to accomplish, ultimate at what? I do think the new 45mm grin motor has a lot of potential though although why you would want to put it in the front with a much less powerful mid drive for the rear I don't understand. I think the only reason you want that much power in the front is if you have at least that much in the rear and are using it in deep snow, soft sand, or mud.
 
I have Jones LWB HDe with a Bafang BBSHD. This is a great combo. Mine's setup to climb steep off-road hills but still has enough speed for me to get across town to my favorite bandit trails. The components on the prebuilt Jones LWB are very good where they need to be. The frame is designed to fit BBS_ _ motors so it shifts to all nine cogs well. I mounted the BBSHD from a previous too-small bike and taller BMX handlebars. I also installed the Jones Shrader tubeless valve stems and Stan's Tire Sealant. Going tubeless took twenty minutes and has been trouble free thanks to rims being pre-taped and the amazing 29er x 3.25 tires. The current Black Friday sale makes it even easier to get an ebike that is designed around a mid-drive but with no proprietary motor/battery/controller.

Front hub-drives are usually for making the cheapest simplest bike or for sloppy/ sandy conditions. In over a century of powered two-wheel cycles front-drive systems have sometimes existed but never got any wide acceptance for good reasons.

I like my Jones w/BBSHD but since the OP asked, my dream build for 2025 would be a rear hub-drive rated for around 5000 watts, 52-72 volt, good quality display, controller and battery.
 
You should should move this to a new thread, Most people won't see your question under this topic.

LD918W said:
I've got one for ya. I'd like to see the e-trike project I took on for a disabled and heavyset buddy of mine get completed.
DIY only touches the title it seems, being how everything is one "customized from scratch" component to the next.
I believe I've bitten off more than I can chew with this one. So if anyone has any advice or expertise they'd like to contribute, it's greatly and graciously accepted!
To ensure the trike has enough power to pull him throughout this hilly town, I acquired a 110v DC 2.0 HP motor from a treadmill. ...still waiting to hear back from anyone about how to convert said motor over to use it.
Oh, and I took on the project "probono", so I'm having to use whatever I can find , sort of speak, and weld together myself.
Why would anyone take on such a project in the first place, not knowing if it can be done, you ask?
I asked myself too, and come up with the same argument... My heart is obviously bigger than my brain.
I can not accept that the trills and enjoyment of owning an ebike, not to mention the convenience and ease of what some would take for granted in our day to day, is subject to a certain criteria pertaining to a persons physical build or whether or not said person has bottomless pockets.
So here I am. Anyone care to contribute their expertise? ...I'm not one to throw in the towel, hell or high water, my friend will not be excluded from this upcoming ebike revolution hitting Podunk rural USA
Click to expand...
 
LD918W said:
I've got one for ya. I'd like to see the e-trike project I took on for a disabled and heavyset buddy of mine get completed.
DIY only touches the title it seems, being how everything is one "customized from scratch" component to the next.
I believe I've bitten off more than I can chew with this one. So if anyone has any advice or expertise they'd like to contribute, it's greatly and graciously accepted!
To ensure the trike has enough power to pull him throughout this hilly town, I acquired a 110v DC 2.0 HP motor from a treadmill. ...still waiting to hear back from anyone about how to convert said motor over to use it.
Oh, and I took on the project "probono", so I'm having to use whatever I can find , sort of speak, and weld together myself.
Why would anyone take on such a project in the first place, not knowing if it can be done, you ask?
I asked myself too, and come up with the same argument... My heart is obviously bigger than my brain.
I can not accept that the trills and enjoyment of owning an ebike, not to mention the convenience and ease of what some would take for granted in our day to day, is subject to a certain criteria pertaining to a persons physical build or whether or not said person has bottomless pockets.
So here I am. Anyone care to contribute their expertise? ...I'm not one to throw in the towel, hell or high water, my friend will not be excluded from this upcoming ebike revolution hitting Podunk rural USA
Click to expand...
You're welcome to start your own thread about your build if you're looking for input.
 
An E- touring bike setup specifically to cover miles and miles everyday while carrying a significant loadout! Lots of battery capacity and load weight capacity.
 
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Giant Trance X (6" of travel front and rear) with BBS (or whatever Bafang is replacing it with this year). My 2006 Trek EX (4" of travel) with BBS02 has functioned well, but I could go faster off road with more travel.
 

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I want to do a custom Marino full suspension 4130 frame with beefy drop outs and BB rise to run 20" wheels. With one of those 180mm Mezzer forks that is on sale at Hayes right now. The idea is supermoto.

Also I swear their is some dream 2wd controller programming that is yet to be realized.
 
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gromike said:
To make your build easier go with an ebike specific motor. Do you really want a 110v battery?
Click to expand...
Yeah I guess I didn't think about that. Suppose it has to have the whole 110v to work huh. I figured there was some sort of step-up module I could use to make it work without having to have the actual 110v and it's weight
 
A-DamW said:
VESC based controllers can.
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For certain, but is the code there

I feel like with the right sensors, and some serious coding, 2wd bikes could open new worlds.

I don't know what it would feel like, but I imagine having power modulating intelligently between the wheels through the process of a turn could yield special results.
 
Too many holes in your question what do you want the bike for how much do you weigh how is the steepest hill how far do you want to go. Do you have a basketball donor frame for the project. Or do you want to buy something off the shelf
 
99zip99 said:
Too many holes in your question what do you want the bike for how much do you weigh how is the steepest hill how far do you want to go. Do you have a basketball donor frame for the project. Or do you want to buy something off the shelf
Click to expand...

It's whatever you think is the ultimate DIY build. It's open ended. See responses in posts #8,#10, #12,#13 and #14 for examples on how people answered the question.
 
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TlfT said:
For certain, but is the code there

I feel like with the right sensors, and some serious coding, 2wd bikes could open new worlds.

I don't know what it would feel like, but I imagine having power modulating intelligently between the wheels through the process of a turn could yield special results.
Click to expand...
Yes VESC currently supports 2WD traction control in addition to the obvious of controlling both motors with 1 throttle and adjusting the power levels individually, I use it on my 2WD fatbike and it works pretty well but it is somewhat rudimentary. Both motors and drivelines need to be identical and all it does is reduce power to a motor if it starts spinning faster than the other. As for how amazing the bike is, for what it's designed for it's pretty amazing but 2WD is only really useful for certain things. On most bikes it's a waste and will probably make the bike worse but a bike build for specific terrain it's a different story. Mine is a fat bike with the largest studded tires I could fit, tons of power pumped through two Bafang G062s and it just plows through snow like crazy. Like 8in+ of fresh snow up steep climbs no problem. Is that the type of special results you were looking for?
 
scianiac said:
Yes VESC currently supports 2WD traction control in addition to the obvious of controlling both motors with 1 throttle and adjusting the power levels individually, I use it on my 2WD fatbike and it works pretty well but it is somewhat rudimentary. Both motors and drivelines need to be identical and all it does is reduce power to a motor if it starts spinning faster than the other. As for how amazing the bike is, for what it's designed for it's pretty amazing but 2WD is only really useful for certain things. On most bikes it's a waste and will probably make the bike worse but a bike build for specific terrain it's a different story. Mine is a fat bike with the largest studded tires I could fit, tons of power pumped through two Bafang G062s and it just plows through snow like crazy. Like 8in+ of fresh snow up steep climbs no problem. Is that the type of special results you were looking for?
Click to expand...
How about some pictures of the bike or better yet, videos of it plowing through snow up steep trails?
 
Don't have a video, only got a few chances to ride it last year since I finished it part way through the season and only had a temporary battery that wasn't really up to the task so with a better battery should have more power on tap. I do have a picture though, here it is after a ride in deep snow.

To stay on topic I think this bike is the ultimate bike for it's intended job but of course it's pretty terrible at most other things. It all depends, you need to first define what you want the bike to do before you can pick any parts to make it "ultimate". So for this bike the front wheel drive is very useful but I think for most other conditions it's a bad idea, the weight transfer makes it skip around and constantly engage the TC when on dirt and applying full power. You simply cannot apply very much power to the front wheel of a bike most of the time, in deep snow I can just because it takes so much power to climb over the snow and the large tires actually have a good amount of traction in snow but still up hills the rear does more work, on the flat the rear is riding in the packed snow of the front so it's more balanced or the opposite.

IMG_20240129_163038.jpg
 
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Nice! Do you carry the battery in a backpack? Truck it to start of the ride?

edit: How much snow have you gotten up there this year? I miss the snow and skiing. Too far from it. Used to get up 3 am, drive 6 hours, ski all day, drive back.
 
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scianiac said:
Don't have a video, only got a few chances to ride it last year since I finished it part way through the season and only had a temporary battery that wasn't really up to the task so with a better battery should have more power on tap. I do have a picture though, here it is after a ride in deep snow.

To stay on topic I think this bike is the ultimate bike for it's intended job but of course it's pretty terrible at most other things. It all depends, you need to first define what you want the bike to do before you can pick any parts to make it "ultimate". So for this bike the front wheel drive is very useful but I think for most other conditions it's a bad idea, the weight transfer makes it skip around and constantly engage the TC when on dirt and applying full power. You simply cannot apply very much power to the front wheel of a bike most of the time, in deep snow I can just because it takes so much power to climb over the snow and the large tires actually have a good amount of traction in snow but still up hills the rear does more work, on the flat the rear is riding in the packed snow of the front so it's more balanced or the opposite.

View attachment 363187
Click to expand...
I was on a diamond mine in Northern Angola (Equatorial Africa) in the rainy season, as in... let's just say I've never been frightened by rain before. More a country sized vertical river!

There's half a km of the most slippery mud you've ever experienced in every dip for months.
That's where I started thinking about 2WD bikes and how I eventually ended up on this forum.

I looked for a bike with 2WD and ASC online while there: 5000 USD put paid to that idea!
This here is nice!
'Ultimate' would have suspension and a VLR Bumblebee style onboard genset if you actually want to charge it in Africa.
 
Zambam said:
Nice! Do you carry the battery in a backpack? Truck it to start of the ride?

edit: How much snow have you gotten up there this year? I miss the snow and skiing. Too far from it. Used to get up 3 am, drive 6 hours, ski all day, drive back.
Click to expand...
That is just with the test battery which was the battery from a previous bike where it was in a backpack but here it's that black box strapped to the top tube, insulated with foam to keep it from getting too cold. Not really enough capacity for very long rides in deep snow and was struggling to put out the power the motors wanted, new battery is in construction but there may be another semi-temporary battery as the main one has gotten a little out of hand complexity wise but I want to have all the features, 12V output for the heated grips, battery heater with temp control, etc. So far got a few inches a couple of weeks ago, went for a nice ride but didn't push the bike much, mostly pedaled as my riding partner's fatbike doesn't have a motor yet. Bike still needs some things, have to switch the seat back if I can find the one I had on it, working on a suspension seat post, currently has two different brakes because the rear blew a seal or cracked a piston just from sitting so waiting on replacement pistons. Very much a work in progress. Now the snow is gone though so waiting for more!
 
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