Burning man cruiser kit, thoughts

[BurnerGurl]

Hi! I'm a lady looking to build a cruiser ebike for burning man this year.

I found this pretty cheap kit. The weight limit is 200lb for the kit. And I'm a solid 150lb as it is. The bike weight and battery will likely bring me up to 200lb. Cutting it close on the weight. I'm aiming for 5mph, so I don't need a lot of speed. Any advice?!

http://www.ebikekit.com/front-350-750w-e-bikekit-geared-motor/

Thanks!!! Any help would be appreciated!

 

[spinningmagnets]

Burning Man is pretty flat terrain, so I'd recommend a geared hub (like the one you linked to). Front hub is the easiest to install, and it immediately eliminates any conflicts with the pedaling system, since they are then completely separate. I'd get the biggest battery you could afford, so you will have lots of range between chargings...

Get at least one torque arm, and two is better (they don't wear out, and can be transferred to any future ebike)

 

[amberwolf]

Sorry I couldn't help.
More info (other Burning Man builds):
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/search.php?keywords=Burning+Man&terms=all&author=&sc=1&sf=firstpost&sk=t&sd=d&sr=topics&st=0&ch=300&t=0&submit=Search

Front hub is the easiest to install, and it immediately eliminates any conflicts with the pedaling system, since they are then completely separate.

It also gives you 2WD.

 

[mikebikerad]

That is probably a great option, what you linked to. Like amberwolf said, 2WD is going to be nice in the soft patches, and at a price like that you can afford to take it to BMAN. Plan on it making it through one year, and maybe a few more if you clean and lubricate everything really well afterwards, but the playa dust is REALLY tough on bikes, which you already know!

 

[dogman dan]

The 200 pound limit E-Bikekit suggests for that motor assumes you will be riding up some steep hill,, not pedaling, which hammers a motor that small.

But at the Burn, no problem,, it's flat,, you won't use more than 200 w to go 5 mph, likely a lot less. So it will be fine at the playa.

Order now though,, getting close to time, and you need to get the order in soon or it won't come in time. The shop gets backed up from time to time, because we build each orders wheel in house. It's not just grab a box, stick on a label, like many think.

 

[spinningmagnets]

I think you will be very happy with that kit, and...I also recommend a big battery for a second reason. If you later decide that you might want a "little bit more" power, you don't have to scrap the whole system, or sell the whole ebike and start over. Just get a rear motor of the same type, from the same vendor. That will give you two motors, but again, if the battery is too small, you wouldn't be able to have that as an option.

 

[Drunkskunk]

I had one of the pre-released versions of that kit from Ebikekit.com. While it's dieing now, it gave me like 8 years of loyal service. I've loved it.
It's under powered and underbuilt for steep hills, however, it would be perfect for riding around at burning man.
If you think you might be climbing hills later, get the 500w version. But for low hills and flat lands, it's perfect.

 

[dogman dan]

That front kit, the way it's priced on closeout,, you pay what it costs retail for the electronics of a regular kit. The controller, the display, wiring and throttle. Then you get that front motor essentially free.

This means buy the little motor now, then decide to upgrade to a larger motor later, it's costing you no more than a regular kit would have. It's also not hard to make other motors run on the EBK controller. So buy that upgrade motor later anywhere, we'll help you make it run on the EBK controller.