I saw a used Zero motorcycle on Craigslist for $2600. It might be easier than trying to rebuild a bicycle.
Cheapest e-components for 55mph?
- Thread starter Tony01
- Start date
skeetab5780
1 MW
fechter said:
I've been watching for those for about 3 years, checking ebay/CL daily. Problem is they are never anywhere near New England
I've wanted one for so long but im not driving to FL or CA to get one, or shipping it that far
MadRhino
100 GW
Of course, buying a used motorcycle is cheaper than building a fast ebike. Yet, it is very different in all aspects. Even a moderate speed ebike is faster than any motorcycle to commute in dense city trafic. Ebikes can ride parks and mountain that are in urban area, while you need to load the MX in a pickup truck and go riding far from the city.
Our powerful ebikes, when they are stealth and silent, are so much better than any gasser. Even when they are not cheap to build, they are cheap to ride and give us freedom that motorcycles had long lost in the cities. There is a reason why my two motorcycles are rotting in a shed for the last 8 years. I would never go back to burning gas, and even if E-motorcycles were common, I’d wait for one that is able to compete with my ebikes in urban environment before buying.
Our powerful ebikes, when they are stealth and silent, are so much better than any gasser. Even when they are not cheap to build, they are cheap to ride and give us freedom that motorcycles had long lost in the cities. There is a reason why my two motorcycles are rotting in a shed for the last 8 years. I would never go back to burning gas, and even if E-motorcycles were common, I’d wait for one that is able to compete with my ebikes in urban environment before buying.
wturber
1 MW
MadRhino said:
Sure. But it's flipped around where I live (Fountain Hills, Scottsdale, Phoenix area). Traffic isn't that dense. Good e-bike routes are typically longer (less direct - about twice the time to traverse) than auto routes - especially if you consider routes legal for e-bikes. Nonetheless, I wouldn't even consider riding a motorcycle to work again. But I am enjoying the ebike.
Bottom line for me is that the ebike is a more pleasant experience overall and I get some healthy exercise tossed in as a bonus. About three miles from home last night I saw a gloriously bright meteorite light up the sky while blazing earthward glowing blue and green. It shook off some smaller fragments and disappeared as quickly as it appeared. But it was about 2-3 seconds of way cool spectacle. It would have been harder to notice and appreciate that in a car or on a motorcycle.
dogman dan
1 PW
Not sure I'd enjoy Phoenix commute on a motorcycle either. People drive for shit now, and some armor and air bags is good. The street was different in 1978.
NOTHING wrong with building a good fast e bike, if your needs make it a good fit. I only object if the need is long range, fast, and cheap. Short range, fast, and cheap is pretty easy, particularly for a mere 40 mph. But spend a bit on battery, decent brakes of any type, stiff frame to handle the battery weight, and you just tend to leave cheap behind.
FWIW, the 90 mph scooter is for recreational riding, not a commute. So I can easily avoid rush hour on my fun rides. It fit the cheap category perfect, paying $1800 for it. Cheaper than the cost of my electric cruiser. Looking at replacing it soon( it burned in my garage) on a budget of $2500 max.
But by no means, is that scooter anywhere near as good handling and agile, as a good, not so cheap, e bike. The reason to ride the scoot is primarily because the good street rides in the mountains involve a 200+ mile round trip. Emory pass is 100 miles to the top, and Cloudcroft/ Sunspot is 150 to the turn around. I can ride the hot, flatter, desert roads fine on the e cruiser. The gas is simply to extend my range to the mountains, particularly my beloved emory pass run. Emory pass is 20 miles of 8% grade, 15 mph posted curves. Before I was old enough to motorcycle, we took bikes and gravity raced it. Best road in New Mexico.
NOTHING wrong with building a good fast e bike, if your needs make it a good fit. I only object if the need is long range, fast, and cheap. Short range, fast, and cheap is pretty easy, particularly for a mere 40 mph. But spend a bit on battery, decent brakes of any type, stiff frame to handle the battery weight, and you just tend to leave cheap behind.
FWIW, the 90 mph scooter is for recreational riding, not a commute. So I can easily avoid rush hour on my fun rides. It fit the cheap category perfect, paying $1800 for it. Cheaper than the cost of my electric cruiser. Looking at replacing it soon( it burned in my garage) on a budget of $2500 max.
But by no means, is that scooter anywhere near as good handling and agile, as a good, not so cheap, e bike. The reason to ride the scoot is primarily because the good street rides in the mountains involve a 200+ mile round trip. Emory pass is 100 miles to the top, and Cloudcroft/ Sunspot is 150 to the turn around. I can ride the hot, flatter, desert roads fine on the e cruiser. The gas is simply to extend my range to the mountains, particularly my beloved emory pass run. Emory pass is 20 miles of 8% grade, 15 mph posted curves. Before I was old enough to motorcycle, we took bikes and gravity raced it. Best road in New Mexico.
Tony01
100 W
Thanks for all the effort everybody put into this thread. It didn’t go to waste. I’ve ordered a qs205 with the 19” moto rim, CAv3, and an ASI 4000w controller from Alan at ERT. Got a smokin deal. Still need to buy the battery and charger. Probably gonna go with multistars and meanwells. I looked up the controller specs and looks like it is capable of 400amps peak, so at 72v nominal that is 28kw. But will probably never use it all. I haven’t found a frame that I like yet, so I am going to build my own. Currently doing research on how to build it so that it is not dangerous on acceleration or braking. Mostly figuring out the rear suspension, because I want something like my gasser that is low to the ground, yet won’t run wide like an improperly setup bike coming out of a turn under power. The goal is to get another hub motor for the front in the future to run qs273 type power in a better balanced package. I would like to top out around 70-80mph now instead of only 60. You know, in case I wanna hop on the freeway for one exit 
Yesterday I rode my gasser over the hill to the beach along a windy mountain rd, 80 miles round trip with max speed 64mph... was floating the valves a quarter of the time and going deaf too. The bicycle tires were just fine, and so were my brakes. The cable end on my rear brake came off at the end of the trip going down the hill, but I had put the heatsink pads in my quad piston front caliper and it was enough to slow me down with the engine braking. After this long trip I think I have had enough. I don’t ride the bike for the sound any more, also I can live without the heat that gets generated around my legs, and all of its quirks. I just want a quiet sleeper now so that I don’t get noticed so much by every single person, biker, cop, whatever.
Once I figure out this anti squat, cg, pivot point stuff and draw it I’ll either farm out the tube bending and notching or just get the proper tools and build it myself. I did not expect to spend over $2000 on this project last year, however now I think I am getting away cheap for the performance I’m going to get.
Yesterday I rode my gasser over the hill to the beach along a windy mountain rd, 80 miles round trip with max speed 64mph... was floating the valves a quarter of the time and going deaf too. The bicycle tires were just fine, and so were my brakes. The cable end on my rear brake came off at the end of the trip going down the hill, but I had put the heatsink pads in my quad piston front caliper and it was enough to slow me down with the engine braking. After this long trip I think I have had enough. I don’t ride the bike for the sound any more, also I can live without the heat that gets generated around my legs, and all of its quirks. I just want a quiet sleeper now so that I don’t get noticed so much by every single person, biker, cop, whatever.
Once I figure out this anti squat, cg, pivot point stuff and draw it I’ll either farm out the tube bending and notching or just get the proper tools and build it myself. I did not expect to spend over $2000 on this project last year, however now I think I am getting away cheap for the performance I’m going to get.
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