Dillenger Conversion Kit | 250w | 36v | 10Ah

CrudCatcher front guard is no good for me

It was slightly drizzling when I left home in the morning and torrential when I rode back home :eek:
Electricals coped AOK, no probs.

The front CrudCatcher mudguard however is no good.

It deflects the rain down low ok, but the moisture that is ejected forward from the top of the tyre turns 120 degrees
and is channelled by the airstream into my face.

Nowhere else, straight into my face. It's like the most imperfect water dispersal system you could design and does it at
most speeds and wind directions.


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The rear mudguard is AOK however.
 
BBP. Thanks for all the updates and all the pics.

Any wear on your fork axle mount, given no torque arm?

Is this mount steel or alloy (notice the rest of the forks are carbon)?
The 250W kits have the option of a torque arm for $21, but no pics. If they are the same simple design as my Solarbike, then this arm is not suitable for clearing the tube of my forks. Need an L-shaped torque arm.

How is the pulsing going? Last heard on March 1, that it happened on rare occassions. March 24, you mentioned system performing without problems, does that include the pulsing?

If you put the front wheel in the air, and spin it by hand, does it freewheel like an non-electric wheel?

On my Solarbike 200W units, when the hub hits the limit, I do NOT notice it, as there is no resistance (just like it is freewheeling). And the assistance seems to tail off gradually in the mid 30's. I thought yours was a similar geared hub, and you would not feel resistance. With the bigger direct hubs, you are suppose to feel some resistance when not powered.

Recently, I had similar issues to you, but with a Michelin Transworld Sprint 700 x 40C, and am going to try some baby powder on the bead. Previously, on another folded mtb tyre, tried detergent like you and it worked.
Motorcycle tyre fitters seem to use a substance on the bead that looks greasy. But one time, they put the bead on unevenly, and it caused the tyre to tank slap.

Like on your roadie, I have got (Zefal) full length mudguards with wire stays/supports on my hybrid and mtb. Put a rubber flap on the bottom of the front ones, which reduces a lot of the crud/water from hitting the crank/BB or battery. Reasonable for commuting, but hybrid ones get abused when going thru the mtb forest trails, as my shoes hit them when making sharp turns....not enough clearance.
 
Hi Merrystein,

No wear on lugs which are alloy. The forks are solid. They're designed to take a punishment so a 250w hub motor offers negligible further stress IMHO.

As for torque arm, it doesn't need one. There's a spacer / key that provides torque-resistance. The front axle isn't round, it's got flats diametrically opposed and the spacer keys into that as well as the fork lug slot.

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Pulsing was the loose battery mount connector. All sorted now.

Drive wheel freewheels as well as the disc brake rub will allow. I've changed pads and re-aligned the disc caliper and it still rubs.
I've yet to prise the pads apart yet. I'll try that next. The rear does the same.

Top speed is still 35-37kmh and requires appreciable effort to exceed that or a downhill gradient / strong tailwind.

There was a howling 30kt southerly all-day today and riding into it was uncomfortable because of the relative windspeed approaching 50-60kmh but thanks to electric muscles I got home and was still functional.

As for the front guard, I'm making a custom carbon one that extends forward to prevent the backwash at speed but remains low-profile unlike the ones on the market that look aerodynamically awkward.
 
Great to hear your pulsing issue has gone away completely.

Mine and a friend's discs rub on the pads too. Not enough friction to worry me yet. Usually try and centre the disc by adjusting the caliper position, but it still rubs at part of the disc rotation. Assume rubbing is either my worn hub bearings allowing the discs/wheel to wobble, or that the discs have a bit of a buckle/warp in it. From motorcycling experience, all my discs seem to get slight buckles in them over time.

Yeh, the electric assist is a godsent in strong headwinds =:)

My Solarbike front hub has the same spacer as in your pic, an axle with flat sides, and a torque arm. Solarbike recommend using a torque arm on alloy forks..."Highly recommended if the forks have been filed, motor power is above 200W, the forks are not strong or are alloy." http://www.solarbike.com.au/faq.php
The torque arm makes wheel extraction a bit more bothersome, and looks untidy with it's hose clamp around the fork leg.
It's extra peace of mind, even if I might not really need it.....suppose companies play it safe, and don't want freak accidents of the wheel dropping out of the fork due to snapped alloy fork lugs or wearing out the lug gap.
Noticed both my fork nuts came loose over time. Time to put some Locktite on them. Didn't want to tighten the nuts too much, in case I crossthreaded the flat sided axle.
 
Hi Merry, headwinds are a slight inconvenience now. Great isn't it!?!

With impeccable timing, the pulsing came back today. It's not the battery cradle connector, I cleaned the contacts and the battery frame is solidly fixed to the frame.
I rode with the twist throttle wide open in places to compensate.

I suspect the PAS sensor ring / hall -effect sensor might be the problem. If you drop a cog and pedal faster it seems to supply A STEADY STREAM | oops caps | of power
to the motor but change to top gear, cadence lowers and it pulses. This suggests a couple of magnets aren't "registering" accurately as the cranks rotate.

I'll clean up the magnets and inspect the hall-effect sensor and report back.

With the tyres I use on the bike they're unlikely to puncture so removal/ installation of the wheels isn't the hassle it might be so a torque arm probably isn't much of a detriment to utility if you run puncture-proof rubber.

The rear disc with new pads is no longer rubbing I suspect the virgin material on the new pads has been removed, the brake cylinders haven't compressed / conformed to match and there's now clearance.



Chris.
 
Pity about the pulsing.
Yeh, if it does not pulse on throttle, and only on pedelec mode, sounds like the sensor system. Maybe check the strength of each magnet.

See Dillenger are now including a split Removable PAS rotor with their kits. Pic on the page of system you bought.
It has 11 magnets as opposed to your 8. The more, the merrier....ie. no pulsing.
Also, they add "The sensor module mounts easily to the frame and the sensor articulates so that it can be positioned with ease to the correct proximity."

With my cycle computer, I had to mount the pickup/sensor pretty close to the magnet on the spoke. I see by your pics, that you mounted the sensor pretty close anyway.

The Solarbike kits have throttle only. No pulsing issues, and I like the throttle method.

For about 2 months, I had to take my front wheel off several times. Puncture, temp repair to spoke, then replace spoke, then change tyre. So the torque arm came off and on a bit.
 
Hi Merry,

I fixed the pulsing this am by cleaning the magnet ring and the sensor and slightly re-positioning the ring (likely the thing that had the most impact).
The power delivery is now silky smooth. I prefer PAS switching because my hands are free to steer and negotiate bumps. Twisting the throttle all the time for me is
awkward.

Thanks for the heads-up on the 11 magnet ring. It's likely I'll grab one and see if I can re-mount the hall sensor more effectively.

Chris.
 
Chris,
Good to hear :)
Just also noticed that Dillenger mention with the new RPAS:
"The sensor module mounts easily to the frame and the sensor articulates so that it can be positioned with ease to the correct proximity."
 
merrystein said:
Chris,
Good to hear :)
Just also noticed that Dillenger mention with the new RPAS:
"The sensor module mounts easily to the frame and the sensor articulates so that it can be positioned with ease to the correct proximity."

Correct.

Just received a message that the new shipment has arrived and their new address is........ Factory 3, 13 Olympic CCT Southport, QLD 4215.......... Easy off the gold coast highway.

I'v been invited and going there with cash and ask a ship load of questions about some alterations ;)
 
byebyepetrol said:
Tyre Wrestling
Tried to fit it again in the morning with detergent / warm water which normally works a treat but not this time.
Anyone else had trouble with a tyre not fitting properly?
I had the same problem, turned out the rim tape was too wide. Trimed the rim tape and then the bead seated correctly after some masaging. Just had to make sure the littl ruber 'whiskers' for seating were all free of the rim.
 
Thanks Jateureka,
Will investigate.

I need more watts. I got dragged off by a roadie on the way home. Not that I race on public roads, he was on the highway dicing with rush hour traffic and I was on a parallel bike path
cruising at 32-35kmh. He was 45kmh + and left me for dead. All this was naturally on the flat with a mild tail wind.

I expect when my battery pack gets a bit tired (1400km and counting, so far and it's still pretty energetic) I'll replace the cells with the latest and greatest and see an appreciable difference.

What the roadie I expect didn't do today was ride into town and back after lunch to pick up supplies. That's a 14km round trip in addition to the normal 16km out and back commute.

You can't beat electric muscles.

Chris.
 
Hi Chris, my dillenger kit is on its way for my 29er. Really enjoyed your write up here, thanks.

Did you ever remove the brake cut off cables that you decided not to use? My bike has hydraulic brakes so I won't be using that part of the kit. I'm also interested to use the removable pas they now have.

Rich
 
Hi Rich,
Glad you're taking the plunge, it's a solid kit.

Re: brake cut-off cables.
I haven't bothered to cut them off, just in case I need to pass the system on; to a bike that may need them.
They're tucked into the rest of the cables and hardly noticeable.

If I could cherry pick a bike for this set-up, I'd go carbon 29er, Schwalbe Marathon Green rubber, single front chainwheel 44T, 7 speed cluster, discs (latest Shimano XT)
and a 14.5AHr pack. I understand I can stuff more cells into the battery case that I have so if/when they expire I'll splash out on some high-quality 18650 cells.

Interested in what you think of the new PAS.

Chris.
 
Thanks for the reply Chris. I've got a giant talon 29er 1. The gearing is alivio 3x9 with a 44x11 top gear. I've put continental touring plus on with thorn resistant tubes and may put some slime in too. Just bought a 5 dollar frame bag thinking that that may help hide some of the cabling near the bars.

I commute 20ks each way on the talon and a carbon defy road bike but don't ride more than 2 maybe 3 times a week. The plan is this can help the legs do the additional days. The talon as my winter bike has mudguards and rack so I can carry stuff more easily. Bloke at work has a solarbike and loves it.

Looking at the dillenger kit it looks a great spec. I got wasted by an old guy (probably in his 70s) on an ebike going uphill last week so can't wait for some assistance...I'll let you know how the install goes. Due to arrive in about 10 days with the Easter break.
 
Kit installed-what a quality kit it is too...
Removable PAS took 30 mins, probably should have taken 3mins. I have a plastic cup around the bottom bracket that was stopping the rpas from spinning at times. Filed off about 0.5 mm from this and it's all good. Had some issues getting the battery to seat in the controller properly, tightened the 36v outlet on the battery and it seats fine now.
Wiring was nice and flexible to route. When testing before everything was cable tied I managed to pull some wires out of the controller-the ones from the LCD display. Sam emailed me a pic of how they are attached and after reattachment everything is working.
Front wheel spins at 37 with no load. Disc is rubbing slightly at the moment. I like the torque of the system. No hesitation recommending the kit if you are looking at 250w front hubs and the fantastic installation assistance, all by clear email with pics. Will report back after a few rides.
 
Hi Tats,
Congrats on the install. 37kmh no-load spin matches what mine can do.

Did you get the new type PAS; the one with the articulated hall sensor?

I'm getting one from Sam because my current one is problematic. It doesn't tolerate
any slight increase in the gap between sensor and magnets. It's "hair-trigger" sensitive
so much so that if a bit of grit gets in there and nudges the ring out a bit it stops working.

Hopefully the new one, mounted on the seat tube, will be free from dirt and have a closer magnet sensor gap.
 
Thanks for the feedback guys. Our communication problems should be all good now. We've settled into a new warehouse and we're just about to turn on our new call centre which will be there 5 days a week to take enquiries and deliver advice to new and existing customers. Apologies if we dropped the ball earlier in the year with a couple enquiries.

For those of you who are abroad from the Australian contingent, we've plunged into the global market with distribution points in the UK and USA

Check out:

http://www.dillengerelectricbikes.co.uk

http://www.dillengerelectricbikes.com

and our existing aussie website: http://www.dillenger.com.au

We're working on improving our kits and bikes (and service…) constantly and this thread has been very valuable to us.

Cheers,

Sam :mrgreen:
 
On a bit of a tangent; here's the first steps in making a carbon front guard for my bike.
Bear in mind I'm "making it up as I go along".

Spare front 26" with tyre inflated, 4 mm packing foam, then sacrificial inner tube then PVC electrical tape will give the best clearance IMHO.

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I had planned on making a tool from this; FYI a "tool" is the part that acts as the template that you make your final part from, but as it stands it's looking
smooth enough and stable enough that I may just do the lay-up directly on the tape. Naturally the tape has to be coated with a few layers of release wax.
 
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