Help a guy build his first e-bike.

[scotticeberg]

I'm finally ready to do it. I'm looking to build an e-bike. I'm kinda split between the Rear 36v SLA direct drive kit from Amped, or the same kit from Ebikekit. I've read through old posts and both companies seem reputable. I'd like to maybe even buy a crystalyte phoenix 2 cruiser, but am kinda confused there. The kit at electric rider, without hall sensors, is $1000ish. The kit from itselectric has hall sensors, and is quite a bit cheaper. Doesn't really make much sense to me. I figure either kit from ebike or amped will be something I can upgrade later, maybe get a ping battery. The lithium battery scene is confusing too....prices and wondering about quality, etc.


Here are the requirements for my initial build:

20mph min, 25 mph would be nice, but no faster.
10 miles on single charge, full throttle, no pedaling, minimal hills
Something I can upgrade..batteries...controller..etc.
A kit that will work with my current bike : http://salsacycles.com/bikes/casseroll_single/


My concerns with my bike are the semi-horizontal stainless dropouts, single-speed gearing, and 130 mm rear spacing. I'm willing to put the kit on the front wheel, if need be, but I would prefer the rear. I plan on using a torque arm either way.

The SLA batteries are going to ride behind me in a Croozer trailer. Any thoughts, concerns, grave warnings of impending doom?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Scott

 

[neptronix]

First off... forget SLA, they are junk. They have terrible voltage sag, they are super heavy and super bulky, and they do not last long at all.

electric rider is a bit overpriced in my opinion, but.. they do probably have the most complete and polished kit.
it's electric is a great vendor in my experience.

ping batteries are great, but don't get one that is too small. If you're going to run in the ~25mph zone, a ampedbikes/ebikekit/cell_man DD hub will do 20-25mph or so on 22amps, so a 15ah 36v ping would work for you.

Your bike has plenty of room for batteries in the center triangle, i would toss the idea of doing a trailer unless you need it for other reasons.

130mm rear can be dealt with, you have a steel frame so all you'd need to do is pinch it in just a little bit.
however, one problem you will quickly butt heads with is the lack of a front disc brake. With the added weight and speed, you will most certainly need better brakes.

You may want to consider a mountain bike for this use. There is a reason why most of us have gone that route

 

[scotticeberg]

Thanks for the info.

I'm kinda looking at using this frame as a temporary solution for the summer. It is my only bike, at the moment. I certainly want something with disc brakes, and a thicker tube-set. I will probably buy a Salsa Fargo frame this fall when prices drop. Instead of buying a new frame I may just add a new disc-fork, and different handlebars, to this current bike


Where the batteries go is not a big deal. I will, however, be pulling a trailer the majority of the time. I figure why not throw those heavy old batteries in there and preserve the feel of the bike without added weight? Also, it seems putting the batteries in the trailer would make it easier to switch back and forth between a normal bike, and an E-bike. When I upgrade to Lithium batteries I will more than likely throw them in the center triangle.

I agree that the rear spacing is not a huge deal. I could even get it cold-set, if I wanted to be really thorough.


I may have to go with the front hub kit, though, I really would prefer the rear hub kit. Anyone ever see a rear-hub kit on a bike with horizontal dropouts?
I've emailed both companies. They both got back to me really fast.

I guess I'm just stuck between the front hub kit, or the rear hub kit. What to do?

 

[morph999]

the bike you chose is more like a racing bike. Have you thought about adding a smaller motor and putting on some lipo...keeping the weight light and having a very fast bike that you can still pedal easily? There are other guys who have gone that route. The small motors are ones like bafang, cute, heinzmann, and a few others.

There are motors that are so small that you can't even tell that there is a motor on it.

 

[neptronix]

Having it drive like a normal bike = not very possible.

That Direct Drive motor adds 14 lbs.
It also adds notable resistance when pedaling unpowered.

If you want something that feels like a normal bike, you may want to contact cell_man on the forums for a MAC motor, he can put together a kit for ya.
I have it and love it. 20-29mph on 10S lipo = awesome. Seamless freewheeling with no drag = even better. 10lbs = the deal maker

 

[scotticeberg]

I'm leaning toward the sla geared front hub kit from ebikekit. If I can put the controller and batteries in the trailer I would only be adding about ten pounds to the bike, and most of it in a really good spot center of gravity wise(the front hub). Pulling weight in the trailer is no big deal as it doesn't affect handling like it would on top of a rear-rack.

I figure when I want to go on a weekend bike tour I can disconnect the trailer, and swap the front tire and hub with the non-electric hub that I use now. I'm not sure how simple swapping back and forth will be, but who knows.

In a few months I'll buy a separate frame, probably a clyte phoenix two and some lithium batteries, as well.


One thing for sure is I will have to put different handlebars on my current bike to accommodate a throttle.
If I order the thing and see that it is hopeless I'll just have to wait to get a frame too. I'm guess I'm will to take the risk.

 

[neptronix]

If it's a money thing, get the geared kit from cell_man ( same stuff from the same factory, at a lower cost ) and buy yourself a quality battery, one that you can reuse for the next setup.

That will cut about $150 out of the equation and allow you to put that towards the next purchase.
Or you could get the DD motor from him if weight isn't an issue. You said yo didn't want to go over 30mph, well.. you really wouldn't need a crystalyte to go under 30mph. That's like buying a Corvette and never revving it above 2000rpm

 

[scotticeberg]

Thanks. I found his website emissions free. I will check it out.

Ypdedal's "The Rant" has been very helpfull, as well.

 

[dogman dan]

For that bike, a frontie could be a good choice. Forget taking the wheel off though, you'd strip out the axle threads doing it much. You have to romp down pretty good on the nuts, or the motor leaves the forks. But it will ride fairly nice still, with a geared motor since you get an internal freewheel. It will be heavier, but still pedal decent.

 

[morph999]

you won't want to take the motor hub back off once you get it on. It's a bigger pain installing it than you probably realize. It can be done in an hour or so but the hubs are heavy and those dropouts aren't really designed for e-bikes so you don't want to be moving the hub motor in and out many times.