Front 700c eZee kit with 36V 14Ah LiMn eZee battery pack

[seaotter]

This is my first post here. I found lots of good information on this forum when I was planning my ebike/kit purchase, and I thought somebody else may find my experience helpful. My review will not be very technical since I don't really understand the technology, but I'll try to give an accurate description of the kit, how I use it and how well it works for me.

eZee kit:
400 watt internally geared eZee brushless hub motor laced in a double walled rim
20A motor controller, with 4 machine screws and washers
160mm Shimano disc rotor
Schwalbe Marathon Plus Reflex 700x38c tire
thumb throttle
connector housing, zip ties

Battery: 36V 14Ah LiMn eZee battery pack, with 4A aluminum charger

Accessories & hardware:
Cycle Analyst with speedometer cable
GRIN Front Torque Arm for mounting on forks with fender eyelets
2 spacer C washers
bag for eZee flat batteries
multi-brightness Cycle Lumenator 1000 Lumen ebike light, 15-100V input range
extension cable for Lumenator
0.6 Watt 8 LED waterproof rear ebike light with button, 12-100V input range
silicone tape

All of the above (except the tape) was bought at Grin in Vancouver http://www.ebikes.ca. I don't remember the prices but I'll look them up if I can find the receipt. I looked at the kit in the store before ordering, which was quite helpful in terms of helping me select the right bike and bike rack for the conversion. Ordering via web was really easy. I picked up the kit and paid the day after ordering, although I believe it was ready for pickup the same day. The disc rotor was missing, so I had to go back to pick it up. But I ended up going back to the store a few more times for the accessories, so it didn't really matter.

Bike and rack:
2010 Rocky Mountain Metropolis NRT http://www.bikes.com/main+en+01_102+METROPOLIS_NRT.html?BIKE=867&CATID=3&SCATID=27&Y=2010
Filzer PR‑4 Rear Pannier Rack http://www.mec.ca/AST/ShopMEC/Cycling/PanniersBagsRacks/PRD~5022-461/filzer-pr-4-rear-pannier-rack.jsp
2 Voilé 24" Ski Straps (for securing the battery to the rack) http://www.mec.ca/AST/ShopMEC/Snowsports/TrainingAccessories/PRD~4014-452/voile-24-ski-strap.jsp

 

[seaotter]

Kit installation:
Installation took me a long time. Not because it was particularly hard, but I started reading in the forum about front hub motors and aluminium forks. So I read everything I could find before installing the motor.

I also had to go back to ebikes.ca to buy two spacer C washers since my fork has the typical quick release "lawyer lips". I don't think the installation manual mentions the lawyer lips or the C washers. I also bought a 19mm wrench at the hardware store so I can tighten the wheel properly (after reading the thread Dropout Failure Experiements, and a call for Fork Donations). I thought I needed to file the dropouts because the axle fit was very tight but Justin said normally that's not necessary (again, check out the the dropout failure experiments thread).

The disc rotor is attached to the hub with 6 screws. I used Loctite 242, a low strength threadlocker.

The wheel came with a Marathon Plus Reflex tire, not Marathon like the ebikes website says. Marathon Plus is a better tire, very puncture resistant, and I decided to buy another Marathon Plus tire for the rear wheel.

The front disc brakes had to be adjusted after I tightened the wheel. I ended up not needing one of the spacer washers included in the kit.

When putting on the torque arm, refer to the photos here http://www.ebikes.ca/store/photos/TorqArmRev2.jpg
It's easy to install the torque arm backwards where it does more harm than good. The installation manual doesn't describe the torque arm installation. I had some trouble installing the torque arm because my disc brake calipers/fender strut setup. I ended up using a much longer screw in the fender eyelet.

I screwed the controller to the bike rack (underneath) using longer machine screws (metric), rubber washers and locking washers from the hardware store. The wide Filzer rack is perfect for the flat eZee battery. With the battery on top of the rack I can still hook panniers on the side rails. I found the long ski straps from Voile/MEC are the best way to attach the battery securely to the rack.

Connecting all the wires was easy (plug & play). All the connectors are different, so it is obvious how to connect them. Adam at Grin/ebikes.ca added another Anderson connector to the rear light so it plugs in between the battery and the motor cable. I bought a short extension cable from ebikes.ca to connect the Lumenator front light to the Cycle Analyst because I chose to mount the light down at the fork crown instead of on the handlebar.

 

[seaotter]

Riding conditions:
My main use for the bike is a 52km commute round trip. Total elevation gain is about 340m (round trip), max grade is 4%. Most of the trip is on roads, about 2km on gravel paths. I bought the electric kit to make the trip faster and a little less tiring, so I can ride every day. But I still pedal fairly hard and never use the motor without pedaling.

The combined weight of the bike, the kit with battery, a full pannier and myself is about 85kg. The Marathon Plus tires are for city use and medium width (35mm front, 38mm rear). I keep the tires well inflated (70-75psi).

Range and speed:
The 52km commute uses about 7.7Ah (out of 14Ah). The average speed for the round trip is 25 to 26kph. This is with limiting current draw and speed with the Cycle Analyst: current is limited to 10A and speed to 32kph. So with this setup and the terrain I am riding I could probably go over 80km on one charge. The motor kicks in when I accelerate at intersections and on the uphills. When it's flat I usually maintain 32kph or more without much assist.

 

[dnmun]

pictures! mileage is about right, 5 Wh/mile. duh, i should proof i guess. spell checker is not enuff.

so glad you found out about the C washer spacers. justin is so far in front of stuff that matters.

aluminum is subject to brittle fracture when it is stressed and the strain creates cracks inside the body of the aluminum dropout. that crack can grow and break off one side of the dropout if you torque the nut down on the tips of that forked tongue of the dropout where they stick out. so it is good you found out before tightening the nut down. once fractured by the nut, they are always fragile after that, even if a C washer is added later, the forks are always at risk after that.

 

[ohzee]

Great write up.. looking forward to some pictures of your new toy.

 

[SamTexas]

... mileage is about right, 15 Wh/mile.

How did you come up with that figure?

Range and speed:
The 52km commute uses just over 7Ah (out of 14Ah). The average speed for the round trip is 25 to 26kph.

This is great! Finally someone's reporting a similar energy consumption to mine. 36*7/52 = 4.85wh/km or 7.75wh/mile at 25.5kph (15.94mph).
Mine is 8.54wh/mi at an avg speed of 17mph.

 

[seaotter]

Usually I use 5.5Wh/km (based on Cycle Analyst), which I think is 8.8Wh/mile.

 

[SamTexas]

Yes. 5.5 wh/km is 8.8wh/mile. Same average speed of 25 to 26kph?

 

[seaotter]

Yes - last trip was 5.5Wh/km at just over 25km/h. I hope to have a slightly faster average speed once it's light on the return trip, maybe 27km/h. This would make the trip faster than by car, at least in afternoon rush hour.

 

[SamTexas]

... I hope to have a slightly faster average speed once it's light on the return trip, maybe 27km/h. This would make the trip faster than by car, at least in afternoon rush hour.

27kph would make it faster than by car? What city are you in?

 

[seaotter]

Vancouver BC. Short trips within the city are almost always faster by bike than by car, and during afternoon rush hour even longer trips (10+km) can be faster.