First build... Alot of questions

[BPF317]

First off, thanks for reading. I will try and give as much information up front to help with recommendations.

I am 6'5" tall at 235 lbs with a 34.5" inseam. I need a bike that is comfortable with mostly path riding and street commuting in mind (little off road use). I like the idea of a 29ER and have found the below link a good bike to start with

http://www.airbornebicycles.com/products/134-airborne-guardian-29er.aspx


The goal of this build would be a rear hub motor that can provide (all street riding requirements)
1. High top speeds of 25 - 35 mph
2. Ride distances of 15 - 20 miles with some mid grade power

Pedalling will be done little or not at all to achieve the above speeds.

So after spending 3 - 4 hours a night for the past week I have a basic build in mind. This build would be a purchased kit from http://www.conhismotor.com Please let me know what you think. All questions posted at the bottom of my post for easy access.



Main concern is using a 28" rear hub motor on this bike. Is that even possible or should I find a 26" and modify it?

Will I achieve my speed/distance requirements?

I can change or buy my controller/battery/motor somewhere else and not all in the same spot. Do your recommend a specific component or setup?

The BMS drop down had 3 options. I am guessing that it is something of an over clock feature that makes the battery preform or charge better. Is this correct?

Thanks again.

 

[DAND214]

Welcome to ES.
It would be a lot easier to help you if, we knew where you are located.

Why Conhis? There are lot better suppliers out there.

Dan

 

[BPF317]

Hey Dan. I am located in Washington state.

I dont have a supplier chosen yet. Conhis looked like they had an all in one stop shop. I would prefer to do business that didnt have a $375 shipping charge. So many suppliers and so many forums to read. I am here for all and any input on components and suppliers and make the best decision based of everyone's input. I just need to hit my speed/distance for the lowest price.

Thanks,
Brian

 

[wesnewell]

Welcome to ES****Do this before your first post or now (it's retroactive)*****
Please go to the User Control Panel, select Profile, and then enter your city, state/province, and country into the Location field (country minimum) and save it. Once done, your location will appear in every post so you won't have people asking where you are ever again. This will help people help you. Example: Wylie, TX, USA. or just USA, but country as a minimum, and country is the most important. There are many cities with the same name all over the world. Without knowing what country you are in it's hard to make any recommendations. Thank you.

 

[wesnewell]

If I were 6'5" I'd probably want a 29er too, but the reality is that 26" would be the cheaper choice since that's offers much better selection of kits, tires, etc. You can have this at your door in a few days. Top speed on 48V battery will be ~30 mph.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/48V1000W-Electric-Bicycle-LCD-Display-26-Front-Rear-Wheel-Motor-Kit-E-Bike-Hub-/291040998674
For 20 miles at top speed you'll need a 20ah battery. Slow to 20-25mph and you can do it on 15ah easy.

 

[BPF317]

Can I not run a 29ER with a rear 28" wheel? Wouldn't the larger wheel improve my top speed?

If I wanted to bump it passed 30 MPH would I be looking at a huge cost increase? What would I need to change to top it off at 35 MPH?

 

[BPF317]

What do you think of this all in one kit?
Can you change the battery to get better performance?

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=181239532949

 

[wesnewell]

Send a little time with this and see the difference wheel size can make. Especially on grades. the bigger the wheel, the less torque, which can really bite you on steep grades.
http://www.ebikes.ca/simulator/

 

[wesnewell]

What do you think of this all in one kit?
Can you change the battery to get better performance?

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=181239532949

The kit that comes with the bike is a front version. About the same price as the one I quoted. The bike is a $129 bike from Walmart, and the 4 9ah sla batteries are worth maybe $50 and will only get you 5 miles wot if that. that's $1100 for <$500 worth of stuff. And you don't want sla batteries anyway.
To answer your other question. If you go with a 15s 55.5V rc lipo pack, you can get 35 mph from the kit I quoted. Faster than that would require a 72V controller and higher voltage battery.

 

[BPF317]

Can you recommend a dealer for the LiPo pack? Why LiPo and not LiFePO4? Doesn't the PO4 last longer (higher cycles)?

 

[footloose]

Greenspark in NZ has had some good results with combo of Bafang BBS01 drive and old Raleigh DL-1 bike.
DL-1 is approximate equivalent of 29er in wheel size.
For info: http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=50104&start=1150

I've used the BBS02 (higher power version... I live in very hilly area) on a different bike. Great system. Am in the process of moving it to a DL-1.

BBS01/02 available in US from http://lectriccycles.com
Good vendor, very helpful.

 

[BPF317]

Yeah. I definitely want to stick with rear hub brushless.

I'm looking at a 9c now with a Lyen controller (18 fet?)

It just gets so confusing looking at all these different setups. I wish I could find an all in one kit and then purchase the battery and charger separate (or everything together).

 

[footloose]

Opinions will vary, but a good kit from a very reputable vendor in China with reasonable shipping charges:
http://em3ev.com/store/index.php?route=product/product&path=36&product_id=55
I have 10T version, good mix of torque and speed in 26" wheel.
You can order it built into 700c rim.
In the larger rim... you might want to look at the 12T version.
Mated with this battery from same vendor:
http://em3ev.com/store/index.php?route=product/product&path=35&product_id=158
Safe and reliable battery chemistry.

That combo has done me well for hundreds of miles so far.

 

[BPF317]

Footloose,
What type of weight/speed are you getting with that?

 

[footloose]

I weigh 185 lbs, bike is a solid old hardtail MTB, all-in weight with me is probably ~250 lbs.

It accelerates well and tops out a bit over 30mph.

Short write up of build and performance:
http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=50664

 

[wesnewell]

You can spend a little, or you can spend a lot. In general, the only difference is the price you pay. I'm a cheap sob that doesn't buy into hype. I paid $279 for my 48V 1000w kit 3 years ago and I've got over 10,000 miles on the motor now. I did want more power and speed, so I replaced the original controller and bought a 1500W controller I could run 100V on. I've never had a complaint that I recall with the kits I recommended. So take your pick. Most people here buy their rc lipo from the hobbyking warehouse in their country. I looked at lifepo4 when I started out but didn't buy into that hype either. Life cycles is way way over rated because it's based on <1C discharge rate and your bike will likely draw 3-4C. Ev en the cheapest lipo is rated for 20C. Love this.

 

[footloose]

In general, the only difference is the price you pay.

A buddy in the Dallas area got involved a couple years ago with someone who looked a lot like LiPo Girl.
They met at a "gentleman's club".
She was definitely 20C-rated while it lasted!
In the end, it did cost him his marriage / home / car / cash.

I respect LiPo. Terrific bang for the buck. But there are some hazards to be aware of.

 

[LockH]

You can spend a little, or you can spend a lot. In general, the only difference is the price you pay. I'm a cheap sob that doesn't buy into hype. I paid $279 for my 48V 1000w kit 3 years ago and I've got over 10,000 miles on the motor now. I did want more power and speed, so I replaced the original controller and bought a 1500W controller I could run 100V on. I've never had a complaint that I recall with the kits I recommended. So take your pick. Most people here buy their rc lipo from the hobbyking warehouse in their country. I looked at lifepo4 when I started out but didn't buy into that hype either. Life cycles is way way over rated because it's based on <1C discharge rate and your bike will likely draw 3-4C. Ev en the cheapest lipo is rated for 20C. Love this.

Strangely, I find myself attracted to the SLA-flavoured gal ebiker.
L

 

[footloose]

Lot to love there.
"Warm in the winter, shady in the summertime, that's what I like about that big gal of mine..."

 

[dogman dan]

I'm nearly there, to 35 years with my girl, who looked like the lifepo4 gal 35 years ago. She hasn't sagged as much as the sla girl yet though. 8)

Three guesses which chemistry is likely to be the lowest cost per mile. It also implies that it's the one you will be stuck with the longest too. :wink:

Right now, both my primary ride bikes, on and off road need the lico. So it's supergirl battery for me. My current plan is to budget for 10 ah more each year. That way I always have 20 or even 30 ah of it. 10 ah fresh, 10 ah in it's prime, 10 ah I can use sparingly when I must. This should get me 25 ah of real world capacity at all times. Enough for a 30 mile round trip at 20-25 mph on my frankenbike of a longtail. With battery, it's about 150 pounds of bike.

Supergirl Lico is great, but you gotta replace her often. After two years capacity drops pretty bad. I'm trying to spread out the replacement cost over two years. I am using the cheap 20c stuff, but I am not so fool I think it will perform well at 20c. Sags bad enough at 3c. I consider the 20c stuff to be 5c real world usable.

 

[wesnewell]

Can you send a link for the15s 55.5V rc lipo pack you suggested and a charger that will work?

Three of these in series is 15s, 5ah. 6 for 10ah, etc.
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=15008
http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=39666
To charge with an rc balance charger, parallel charge with any 6s charger. The higher the wattage, the faster the charge. Bulk charge using 3 battery medics to balance. Or install a BMS for single point charging.

 

[BPF317]

Ok. So tackling the battery because I am sure I am going to get a rear hub brushless 48v 1000w motor (hopefully a HS3540).

Here are some links. If you think I could find something better state side and something less expensive please let me know.

I like this form factor but I am not sure it has enough AH.
http://www.conhismotor.com/ProductShow.asp?id=297

This form factor looks good. Does it deliver enough power and is it a good battery?
http://www.conhismotor.com/ProductShow.asp?id=343

This battery seems to best the best for range and power output. Down side is no case (like the others and price) http://www.conhismotor.com/ProductShow.asp?id=145


What do you all think? I have no idea on what controller to use and how many fet's. Lyen controllers seem to get the best reviews.

Thanks,
Brian

 

[wesnewell]

Match the battery to the controller. The motor doesn't matter. If you get a 30A controller, you need a battery that will supply 30A, etc. The motor could be a 100W or 5000W. The battery feeds the controller, not the motor.

 

[BPF317]

So what do these settings mean when selecting a BMS for a LiFePO4 48v 25ah battery? Which I one should I select for the 48v 1000w motor?

 

[wesnewell]

The motor doesn't matter. If the controller is a 30A max controller, select the 30A or larger bms. If your controller is 40A select the 60A bms. If you don't know what the max amp rating of the controller is, guess, or ask the vendor to specify it. Most 48V 1000W kits won't have a controller of more than 30A. The 60A controller should be safe for all but the odd exception. The problem now is to make sure the actual batteries can supply the amps without stressing them. Here's an example. Let's say you have a 30A controller and you want to run a 10ah battery pack. You need a 30A bms and 3C batteries as 10ah times 3C equals 30A. It's that simple. 5ah of 20C rc lipo is rated for 100A (5x20). It's best to always have the battery more capable than you need. And that's not hard to do using rc lipo. That's one of many reasons I only use rc lipo and no bms.