Are Taiwanese Cyclone E-bikes ok ?

[Chris Sutton]

Hi, I have been looking at some Chinese off-road E-bikes like for instance this one (at the top of the page)....

http://www.cyclone-tw.com/order-ebikes.htm

(Mid drive)

$ 1998 USD 1800-3000W 36-72V Slim Boy e-bike 18 speeds, with 20ah 72V 5C Lifepo4 2.5A 72V charger, Top speed 100km/h when use 72V battery range up to 75km ( SRAM bicycle parts)

Are they reliable ? Any good ?


I've also been looking at Hi-Power Cycles in New York....

http://www.hi-powercycles.com/high-performance-e-bikes/

Obviously Hi-Power Cycles are more expensive but do you think they would be worth the extra expense ? Would the components and bike overall be better quality ? Or would i just be paying more for no reason ?

Just one other query, is a mid - drive motor better or worse than a rear hub motor (built into the rear wheel) ??

Thanks

 

[Drunkskunk]

Are they reliable ? Any good ?

That depends on what you mean by "reliable". Yes. It's going to break down. You can't put 3000 watts through a bike's drive chain designed to handle 1 human power, about 200-400w, and expect it to be reliable. That's not a bike built for simple reliable transportation.
Any good? Well, it's not bad. Their design has merit, and Cyclone has been building some good, though crude, ebike parts for a long time. That they put all the parts together in a package is interesting.

I've also been looking at Hi-Power Cycles in New York....
Would the components and bike overall be better quality ?

Yes, sort of. They don't have anything directly comparable. And they aren't the same kind of business. HPC buys random parts and builds a line of bikes from those parts. Cyclone is an OEM; they make their own parts. HPC probably offer a more polished, novice usable ebike.

Just one other query, is a mid - drive motor better or worse than a rear hub motor (built into the rear wheel) ??
Thanks

That really depends on what you want to do with it. There is no such thing as "Best", just different tools for different jobs. Both have strong points and weak points.

 

[rsilvers]

I just had to learn all of this myself, and I see now why people could not decide what was best for me.

There are cheap mid-drives like the BBS02 but they have issues - no torque sensing and clunky shifting. You can fix the shifting by either getting a rear hub that has internal gears and can shift under power, or by getting a $100 shift sensor, or possibly by using the left brake as a clutch with a HWBS.

The Bosch mid-drive is well liked, but it is a Pedlec system. If you want to pedal for exercise or because it is required by law, then great. If you want a throttle and want to go fast and have an electric moped, then it seems people are happier with hub motors.

Mid-drive is better for crazy steep very long hills or San Francisco hills, but there are hub motors that can handle most hills as long as you are not on them for more than about three minutes and/or are pedaling to help.

 

[overhauledped]

Dont get the 3kw and under kits. most of them have nylon gears which will eventually fail. If you are going to buy anything from them, buy their 6kw-8kw models w/steel gears. Just plug in your power limits via cycle analyst and your good to go. The 6~8kw kits feel extremely solid. All you need is a bike built of high quality steel and heavy duty construction Like ruff-cycles, firebikes, choppers-us. Do not buy or ride on any cyclone offered frames they are of poor build quality and have structural flaws

Torque's Immense and motorcycle like, the motors virtually silent besides chain chatter, Bike pulls hard like some sort of ultra quiet train to 50-60mph and could put out +20kw spike power if you had the power supply.

sas battery tech gets better over the next 5-7 years youll be able to pop it off your bike and slap it into any light motorcycle chassis (180lbs and under), put in the latest battery tech and your motor wont skip a beat or be overwhelmed

A Low stress life will equal an even longer then normal life on these components. Yes a bigger motor will be a bit more hungry but it also wont have nearly as many instances where it will have been pushed outside or close to its peak output over the course of its life, if any.

 

[2old]

HPC is in CA; if you're interested in an approximately $6K HPC bike, check ottodog's review of his unit.