Ezip24volt VS. 36vEvGlobal

[mikefish]

I have the 24v Ezip now, but I am considering switching to this:

http://slo.craigslist.org/bik/1489409135.html

and I was wondering if anyone here has ridden both, and could compare them in speed.

Im 70% positive im going to get this, but just wanted to know a bit more about them, good and bads!

thanks in advance!

 

[dogman dan]

In 36v those are great motors on the EV global. At 24v they are too slow and easily melted if overvolted much. The 36v motor is a sturdier and faster version. Great tourqe. The motor is pretty noisy though, at least at the faster speeds, and since it's a brushed motor it's less efficient than a brushless motor would be.

$400 is a decent price for the 36v version of this bike with everything working on it. The motor alone could sell for $350.

 

[TylerDurden]

The 24V Currie may be the loudest motor on the market. :lol:

 

[mikefish]

thanks Dogman, i guess I did not do my homework, I did not know it was brushed

this changes things a bit.

Ah, I just cant decide.

thanks for the info though!

 

[davespicer]

There is another possibility: running the eZip on 36 volts. I've just started doing that with mine, which is a walmart.com cheapie from a couple of years ago. Newer eZips have motor controllers which won't accept 36 volts. but older ones permit it. The motor will run hotter, which could damage it in some circumstances - the longer and harder it has to work on any given trip, the more risk. (Those motors can also be modified for better cooling if one has the mechanical skills.)

And the speed picks up markedly - just today I put a different freewheel on mine so that I'll be able to keep up with the motor when pedaling. Haven't tried it yet but I will tomorrow. And I haven't tackled the local hills yet either, but will report back when I do.

One more "and" - the eZip-type motors are also available in different voltages and wattage. It looks like a 450-watt, 36-volt motor would be a bolt-in replacement for my 250-watt, 24-volt one, and it runs at a higher speed just as my present motor now does. The difference is, the replacement motor is made to run at 36 volts and is also beefier to handle higher wattage, so it'd be less likely to overheat. I've asked here if anyone had tried that, but got no responses. I expect I'll go that route if/when my overvolted 24-volt motor fries.

It's hard to know how much detail to go into - there are lots of variables to consider when customizing stuff instead of just buying it off the shelf and using it as-is. And all three of our ebikes stayed "stock" for quite a while. But now the cheapest (and heaviest, and yes loudest) of them is screaming around on steroids, and another one will be going from 36 to 48 volts eventually. The "bug" has a way of biting

 

[mikefish]

hey davespicer!

yeah, i lurk at ecoforumz.com and there are a bunch of guys there that have the 36 volt upgrade to their Ezips.

I do want to go faster, but not at the cost of being louder. I have seen the 36 volt motors that are exact fits for the bike as well. however, i start to look at the money spent on that way, and i compare it to doing a hub motor kit. I think i would rather get my own kit on a better bike.

I still like my Ezip, but I would want some thing a bit more stealth and faster (just a touch).

besides a kit, the lazy side of me is looking at a few different bikes. Kinda like the 2010 Hebb ElectroGlide 500, the Trek 7200+, or the Pedego if it were on a mountain bike frame with front suspension. I even admit, a few of the "X-Treme" brand bikes look nice on ebay.

I have not been able to find any reviews on these bikes though. The Trek is just Bionx, but I would rather buy the PL500 kit and put it on a nice mountain bike instead of the way trek did it with the battery in the rear rack.

the nice thing about the Hebb is the 2 year warranty on the bike, and 1 year on the battery.

While typing this, i figured out my priorities for an ebike. Stealth and reliability are tops. At least front suspension, if it can go faster than 22mph thats great! and I want to be able to pedal along with it. oh, and i want some torque at the starts to help on my bad knees.

wow...ramble... :lol: :lol:

anyways, im done putting money into my ezip, its a good bike, just not want i really want!

 

[ecobon]

The 36V EVG tops out at around 17-18mph and as dogman stated is very loud at those speeds. It can be safely overvolted to 45-48V, but you run the risk of damaging the controller (the motor is very robust). The upside is that the Heinzmann brushed motor is probably one of the most durable motors on ebikes today (still--after 10 years).

The value in the EVG bike is in the battery pack and the frame. The plastic frame cover hides both the battery pack and the wires and gives the bike a very clean look. The solid frame construction was specifically made to handle the extra weight and torque of the ebike motor and battery. The low center of gravity of the battery pack placement on the frame allows for very good handling/safety.

The battery pack should be upgraded with newer battery technology. The Konions from the 36V Bosch Fatpacks fit nicely inside the the battery case (4-5 of them which will yield 36V 8.8-11.0AH). The charger inside the battery box actually has pots that can be adjusted to set the max charge voltage to 42V @2A so everything will work and look like the stock unit. The SLA charger does an adequate job of charging the LiMn cells which are known to stay balanced for many cycles. It's so nice to be able to charge the batteries on the bike or pull the battery pack out and use a simple 3-prong computer power cable to charge it anywhere.

Should you ever want to change to a faster brushless motor, you can sell the Heinzmann for at least a couple of hundred dollars. I can see a nice BMC 1000W geared motor, 14.4V 10AH booster battery Pack on rear rack (36V 11AH inside battery bay), front/rear disc brakes, and CLyte 72V Analog controller driving it all at insane speeds in the future when you're tired of 17mph.

 

[dogman dan]

I agree, the 36v heinsmann is a good motor, even if loud and brushed. Great tourqe for sure.

But I don't agree that they are durable in the 24v version. That one is less robust than the 36v version. I overvolted one, and stupidly left the temp sensor disconnected for a quick test ride. It was quick, all right, I totally melted the motor in less than 30 min. This was on a different controller, so I was overvolting and over amping the thing.

Later, I put another motor on 24v, but more amps, and had good results, with the temp sensor. As long as I used the sla's they would go dead before the motor got too hot, but when I went to nicads, I'd have the motor overheat every ride. But these were the 24v motors, the 36v one is supposed to be much more sturdy.

If I had the $400 avaliable, I'd buy a 36v EVG myself. Some of the parts can be sold for a lot, or just sell the motor and use the frame for a different build. It's a great frame. Putting the motor on a really good FS MTB frame is another good option, with some lifepo4, you'd have a good motor for climbing, but I'd monitor the temp of the axle stub on steep climbs. If you buy it, and part it out or something, keep ahold of the headlight, it's really a good one, and can run on any voltage from 24-48. The tailight is 36v only though.

 

[davespicer]

I do want to go faster, but not at the cost of being louder...
While typing this, i figured out my priorities for an ebike. Stealth and reliability are tops.

Ah... well, "louder" is certainly the cost of doing business with eZips! I do appreciate how much quieter the BL36 is on my Ross, and taking that to 48V is on my wish list once I get a torque arm (or two?) on it. If they were cars, the Ross would be like a nice older Volvo, maybe, while the eZip is this souped-up Neon with a loud exhaust. Two different animals.

I like 'em both, although for sophistication and stealth my wife's low-powered iZip (with a rear hub motor and NiMH batteries in the frame) easily beats the Ross. But it's good to figure out what you want... and this forum can be a great place to do some daydreaming/window shopping - until we get sucked in, of course

 

[Drunkskunk]

IMHO, the bike it's self may not be all that grand compared to a modern bike, but it's an Iacocca; A classic. Its the Model T of Ebikes. its not going to hold a candle to a 9C running a 36v Ping, but thats not why I would buy it, either.

50 years from now, one will be in a museum with a note about how the great smoking iron mastadons that roamed through the cities and suburbs of America were replaced by a more civilized form of transport. And this was the progenator of all that came after.