Any one tried these ebike before?

[mvly]

Anyone tried these bike before? The security features makes this tempting. Also it seems more practical for going to the grocery store and what not. Maybe we can mode to go faster and farther.

Price for me is around $1.2k

Is this worth it?

http://www.hybikes.com/

 

[Ykick]

Are they selling an eBike or financing? LOL... I almost expected to see a salesman in Purina checkerboard slacks and Foster Grant sunglasses. Dumb website and little useful specs about the bike or battery. Usual 30 mile range nonsense while no mention of battery chemistry or capacity.

Cops will often see these things as a vespa style scooter so good luck remaining under radar. That is if it holds together. 'might be fine in China with 140lb average people but in this country? Seriously?

 

[nuevomexicano]

Anyone tried these bike before?...

Not this exact one. I looked at a couple here in town that look exactly the same but are sold under different names.

The security features makes this tempting...

Its no more secure than a bicycle. You still have to lock it up with a U lock to something or it'll be gone soon enough. Full blown, gas powered scooters get stolen all the time even though the forks are locked. The fact that this one is so ugly and slow might make it less desirable to steal. But it also might attract vandals for the same reason.

...Also it seems more practical for going to the grocery store and what not. Maybe we can mode to go faster and farther...

It looks harder to modify to me than an actual bicycle. Its as practical as any regular bicycle with a front basket and rear rack. Its less practical if you consider that the ergonomics make this slow and harder to pedal than to push while you walk. The ones I saw were significantly heavier than a similar powered bicycle. Finally, riding one of these on any of the bike trails in my area will get you harassed by the walkers, bikers and, often, police. People around here are rightfully on the look out for non-bicycle ever since a moped rider illegally on the bike trails ran over and killed a man.

Price for me is around $1.2k

Is this worth it?...

No.
Certainly not at that price since similar things are marked down below $800 in my town. Even if it wasn't over priced and it didn't have the fly-by-night ad and sales quality (lacking any info about motor, battery, etc...), you can still buy a iZip Zuma (geared motor, 36v10ah Li battery) for $1200 and get an actual warranty. It comes with a rear rack and you can buy a front basket at most any bike shop for less than $50.

 

[sk8norcal]

http://www.iloveebikes.com/ebike098.html
here, it says 36v or 48v sla

common moped style chinese ebike,
i do like the moped form, better ergonomics for not peddling,
batteries in the downtube.

http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=20160&hilit=china&start=15#p425383

[youtube]qFkKgXrvVso[/youtube]

[youtube]6Bq80Z_Eo48[/youtube]

 

[wesnewell]

For local shopping I put a 48V 500W DD motor on a 26" Schwinn Meridian trike. It'll do about 23mph with 14s lipo and has enough basket space in the basket to carry many times what you can get on a bike.

 

[amberwolf]

For that price, I could build a heck of a cargo bike. Do you have any fabrication equipment or skills? If so, you could modify a regular bike to have removable hard/locking panniers on it capable of carrying quite a lot of groceries or other cargo, and it would probably still be lighter and better-performing than that type of scooter-ebike (and get you harassed less).


Regarding security, people steal scooters, mopeds, and even motorcycles all the time by just having multiple people lift them up and onto trucks, and drive away. So you'd still ahve to lock it to something with a good lock, and even then it's only as secure as a minute or less away from it makes it in your area.

One thing to keep in mind about security is that the nicer something looks, the less likely it will be there when you come back, especially if it is secured less-well than something else on the same rack or area.

 

[rlhunt2]

I ran across this outfit while looking at Craigs List. I have no idea about the reputation . Maybe they are new but it looks like some pretty slick packaging.
They have 3 models. http://www.hybikes.com/