Lectriceye
100 W
I have bent rear 700c wheel with 1500w hub motor. I am wondering if I can buy a new wheel, all spoked up, with casing and swap the motor? Who sells them, is the motor hard to change? Help please.
Buying a rear ebike wheel with casing only
- Thread starter Lectriceye
- Start date
DD or geared?
For DD, you can swap stators typically. I don't know of many companies that have ever offered the wheel + case part alone.
You want one that matches your DD though so that the axle diameters, spacing, etc are similar. A few millimeters of difference can turn into a big headache otherwise.
For DD, you can swap stators typically. I don't know of many companies that have ever offered the wheel + case part alone.
You want one that matches your DD though so that the axle diameters, spacing, etc are similar. A few millimeters of difference can turn into a big headache otherwise.
Not exactly sure what you’re asking, but one option is to buy a decent rim (as opposed to the crap that comes on prebuilt wheels), and the correct length spokes, and lace it yourself. You need to take careful measurements to determine the spoke lengths, but beyond that, it just takes watching a few videos, and taking your time.
gromike
10 kW
Yeah, it's not all that difficult to lace a motor into a rim. I used Grin's spoke calculator, ordered the spokes from them, and watched their video. Elbows out and single cross on 3 motor wheels to date. Haven't had a problem with the wheels, at least not yet.
And if you build your own, it'll probably be a better wheel than what comes on most hubmotors anyway...as long as you follow what others that know what they're doing show, and use the right spokes (14/15butted for most wheels, vs the 12g that usually get used in prebuilt hubmotor wheels.
There are also videos out there, and threads here, showing how to just swap the rim. If you can find the same rim you already have (same model and brand), or one with the same ERD as yours, *and* all the spokes you already have on your wheel are intact and not damaged, stretched, bent, etc., you can swap just the rim, using your existing motor and spokes. YOu'd just need the rim itself, and a nipple tool made for the size nipples you have. I dont' recommend reusing the spokes, especially for the overly-thick ones that usualy come on hubmotors, but I have done so a couple of times without problems for undamaged spokes (but I didn't use the wheels for all that long afterward), so it is possible to do so.
If you have to swap stators, you'll need to get the same motor/wheel you already have, from the same place yours came from, to be "certain" that the parts are swappable without any DIY machining, drilling, etc.
Many DD hubmotors are just clones of a few kinds, so there are many that are close enough to just swap parts between, but they don't all match up that close, and you won't know till you get the new one, and take them both apart, whether it's parts will match yours.
Geared hubmotors are a whole diferent story, and two that look very simliar on the outside can be very different inside, and have nothing from one fit the other. But at 1500W it's unlikely that yours is geared, it's probably DD.
If you can just get a motor wheel with the same properties (same winding version, same connector and wiring to the controller) as yours, you can just swap the whole motor and wheel instead, and save all that work and worry, as long as it is a typical DD hubmotor.
There are also videos out there, and threads here, showing how to just swap the rim. If you can find the same rim you already have (same model and brand), or one with the same ERD as yours, *and* all the spokes you already have on your wheel are intact and not damaged, stretched, bent, etc., you can swap just the rim, using your existing motor and spokes. YOu'd just need the rim itself, and a nipple tool made for the size nipples you have. I dont' recommend reusing the spokes, especially for the overly-thick ones that usualy come on hubmotors, but I have done so a couple of times without problems for undamaged spokes (but I didn't use the wheels for all that long afterward), so it is possible to do so.
If you have to swap stators, you'll need to get the same motor/wheel you already have, from the same place yours came from, to be "certain" that the parts are swappable without any DIY machining, drilling, etc.
Many DD hubmotors are just clones of a few kinds, so there are many that are close enough to just swap parts between, but they don't all match up that close, and you won't know till you get the new one, and take them both apart, whether it's parts will match yours.
Geared hubmotors are a whole diferent story, and two that look very simliar on the outside can be very different inside, and have nothing from one fit the other. But at 1500W it's unlikely that yours is geared, it's probably DD.
If you can just get a motor wheel with the same properties (same winding version, same connector and wiring to the controller) as yours, you can just swap the whole motor and wheel instead, and save all that work and worry, as long as it is a typical DD hubmotor.
Chalo
100 TW
For what it's worth, I find building up with a new rim and spokes to be a much easier and more pleasant job than opening up a direct drive motor and extracting the stator. Also much less opportunity for blood blisters or worse.
Lectriceye
100 W
Thanks for the info, I think I will try and source a compatible rim: 700c-26 holes-12 ga.- 31mm outside width-double wall.
Lectriceye
100 W
Thanks Chalo, I am now headed in the same direction
What hub motor is compatible with a 26 hole rim?
Lectriceye
100 W
OOPs, fat fingered that one, 36 holes.
Chalo
100 TW
Surely it's 36.
DO NOT use 12ga spokes. It's a mistake that will cost you time, money, and downtime for the bike. Use 14ga, or better 14-15ga butted, spokes with washers under the heads.
Just making sure since it sounded like the next step was going to be hitting the Buy button.
Spokes aren’t cheap, so making a measuring mistake could double the cost if you need to reorder the correct sizes (you don’t save money lacing your own wheel, you just get superior quality). I’d start studying this video to get an idea of the measurements you’ll need to take in order to determine the correct spoke length. You’ll need the rim in hand to get all of the measurements needed, but you can get started.
Lectriceye
100 W
The wheel is almost new, and the spokes are undamaged, I planned to reuse the existing spokes. What's wrong with 12 ga spokes?
Lectriceye
100 W
The spoke diameter is 2.6mm; according to my chart, that would be 12ga, correct?
hillslayer@
100 W
Any rim not specifically designed for a hub motor is probably 14 gauge which can be used with 14 g spokes and washers on the hub side.
Only thing I'm studying in that video is how to be as cool as that guy. Sideburns!
You simply need to search on “spokes”, with username “Chalo”
Search results for query: Spokes
endless-sphere.com
Lectriceye
100 W
Thanks for all your replies. I bought a new 700c rim and I am in the process of lacing it on. My first attempt, so I am going slow, 1/3 done and so far so good.
Lectriceye
100 W
The only problem I am having is with the nipple heads and driver tools, they are crap. The nipple isn't rocket science, and I can't understand why they didn't make the hear a flat Phillips with a hole in the middle, duh.
gromike
10 kW
Someone here ground down a #1 philips bit to do just that. I just used a flat bit on a powered screw driver.
Once you know what you're doing lacing a wheel becomes a pleasant evening task. Bringing the spokes up to tension and truing the rim seems to take the most time.
Once you know what you're doing lacing a wheel becomes a pleasant evening task. Bringing the spokes up to tension and truing the rim seems to take the most time.
Lectriceye
100 W
Thanks for the reply, I came to the same conclusion about the flat blade.
Chalo
100 TW
The tools I use when wheelbuilding would be expensive to acquire for only one or a few builds, but very worth it for making lots and lots of wheels.
Here's what I use for initial assembly, in either store-bought or homemade version, a Mulfinger nipple loading tool. If I were building only a few wheels ever, I'd still want to make a homemade one out of some 2.5mm to 1/8" rod by grinding a shallow taper and then shortening it to the correct depth:
Then to take up slack and get every spoke to its same starting point, I use a Problem Solvers Holy Driver. To use, you cut a piece of the next thinner gauge spoke as an adjustable length tip, so the tool kicks out at the same depth every time:
Then to take the spokes up to modest tension, I use a Park Tool SW-0 key, which is the most handy shape and size I've come across yet. This is the spoke wrench I'd use if I only had one:
Then to get the spokes good and tight without damaging the nipples, I use a DT Swiss spoke key, lightly modified to soften the grip edges and make engaging the nipple easier:
For a truing stand, I invariably use some version of the Park Tool TS-2 or TS-2.2, because that's what all the bike shops have around. I've never actually owned my own personal truing stand.
Here's what I use for initial assembly, in either store-bought or homemade version, a Mulfinger nipple loading tool. If I were building only a few wheels ever, I'd still want to make a homemade one out of some 2.5mm to 1/8" rod by grinding a shallow taper and then shortening it to the correct depth:
Then to take the spokes up to modest tension, I use a Park Tool SW-0 key, which is the most handy shape and size I've come across yet. This is the spoke wrench I'd use if I only had one:
Then to get the spokes good and tight without damaging the nipples, I use a DT Swiss spoke key, lightly modified to soften the grip edges and make engaging the nipple easier:
For a truing stand, I invariably use some version of the Park Tool TS-2 or TS-2.2, because that's what all the bike shops have around. I've never actually owned my own personal truing stand.
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