Hyena's e-bike builds (now with HD video)

[Hyena]

Yeah left hand brake and I tried getting on that but it's all a bit snappy, I'm probably being overly cautious on the power so as to not flip over but tapping the brakes suddenly slams me back to earth too. As stated it's all a learning curve and doing long sustained wheelies is notsomething I've practised before, I mainly do short wheelies like these in my general riding for clearing obstacles etc.
As you said though Rix and Knoxie it's definately different on an ebike, I used to be able to wheelie well on a normal mtb.

 

[Hyena]

oops, nearly forot to post about the latest edition to my stable 8)

Oh snap



This bike was going to be for my wife but she's been a bit of a bitch lately and as you can see it's pretty similar in size to my fighter. A new seat post and handlebars (more for cosmetic reasons) and I'll be in business. The difference in the head tube geometry is pretty evident and even just sitting on it to test last night the steering felt really sharp and responsive. This is obviously to be expected with lighter forks, the steeper angle and also the extra movement with them being single crown.
I've thrown a H40 on there for now just to line the bikes up but will likely go with a mac motor. I'm tempted to make this a torque and speed monster like the fighter but I think I'll set this up to be more light and nimble and it'll be a solid 10kg less than my fighter. Side by side you can see it's much narrower than the fighter too.




Paul said it has space for 18S2P + wiring but I'm going to see if I can bump it up to 20S
My diamondback that he modded previously ended up being a bit tight for space as I wanted to keep the frame size to a bare minimum, which made battery installation a chore but once it's in it was fine. The evolution of his custom mods with this one learning from previous builds is evident and I'm very happy with it. Thanks Paul! (and condolences to everyone else subsequently who wanted it )
Next up, deciding what to do with the somewhat stark side profile of the bike. I'm tossing up whether to use carbon inserts like on the fighter or go with more factoryish looking stickers to try and make it look like an off the shelf product.

 

[full-throttle]

This bike was going to be for my wife but she's been a bit of a bitch lately and as you can see it's pretty similar in size to my fighter.

Yep, we all know you've been riding girl's bike

 

[litespeed]

It looks pretty petite by comparison. Good looking bike but I sure don't like the flexy feel of the single crown forks.

Looks like fun!

Tom

 

[Hyena]

Yep, we all know you've been riding girl's bike

Hah, you'll have to get John to start making stealth fighters in pink if you think they're girls bikes!
Actually I'm surprised we haven't seen one yet, surely there must be some girls getting around that are into such things.

Tom, what sort of forks and what style of riding have you felt flex in ? I've only ever had cheap single crowns and I'm not sure I'd be able to detect any flex over and above the intended suspension travel.
You think it looks petite ?? I wouldn't go that far. I actually think they're quite comparable minus the forks. I wonder how it'd go/look with a 26" front back on there. The rear swing arm won't accomodate a 26" rim apparently.

 

[remf]

Coincidentally the geometry reminds me of the leaked design study of the presumably forthcoming high-powered Optibike.



20S worth of torque will be gnarly. Even forgoing substantial runtime, sounds like it'll be worth it.

 

[litespeed]

I've only had cheaper end (read under 450 bux!) single crown forks also but I notice flex most with disk brakes and when most weight is on the front end like going down hill. With rim brakes it isn't as noticeable. Hitting the front brakes hard on pavement or hard pack and it will feel like to fork is rubber mounted. Same with having your weight on the front end going ove rough terrain. I've also always weighed over 200 lbs ( 91 kilo's for you metric thinking peeps!) and maybe being tall 6' 4" (1.9 meter....) puts my center of gravity high??? Bottom line is on the 4 single crown forks I've had vs the one set of duel crown there is no comparison.

I was only saying the bike looks petite "compared" to the fighter behind it. The seat and handle bar height and the length of the seat to the handle bars. Don't get me wrong I would have bought it in a moment given the chance.

Great score!

Tom

 

[pendragon8000]

That's the specialized from Paul? Well done Jay you must be happy with that. Obviously if you were wanting to go fast a less steep rake would be desirable for stability and could be achieved (slightly) with the larger wheel you were thinking of, also gyroscopic stability of larger wheel would increase handling at high speed. IMO carbon sides look rad but low profile bike ness with stickers would be my preference for a commuter.

Also I would be interested on your opinion about the fighter single pivot rear suspension vs the linkage suspension. Some report significant handling differences. Linkage feels smoother to me, single pivot is a bit bouncy...any thoughts?

 

[Rix]

Also I would be interested on your opinion about the fighter single pivot rear suspension vs the linkage suspension. Some report significant handling differences. Linkage feels smoother to me, single pivot is a bit bouncy...any thoughts?

To make single pivot suspensions work good, the shock needs to have wide range valving for rebound control. I am guessing that your single pivot experience "a bit bouncy" was due to the rebound being too fast. I would also bet that slowing down the rebound would have made a night and day difference with your single pivot experience. Only a couple of motorcycle manufactures still have linkageless suspension (KTM's PDS comes to mind) and can work great because of the control they are able to dial into the shock. Oddly enough, alot of bicycle suspension designs are more complex than gassers. The other thing I would like to add is single pivots are generally found on MTBs in the lower cost range. That means the suspension compments are also cheaper. I know this isn't always the case but a majority generalization.

Jay, thats a nice bike you built there. Is that an old Specialize enduro frame? Looks like it could be. I see your vented 4080 is on it. Good stuff. Cant wait to see it finished. Can tell from the pics, but did you change the frame dropouts as well?
Rick

 

[Hyena]

Oddly enough, alot of bicycle suspension designs are more complex than gassers.

It's about making them easier to pedal, less bob etc.
I know my fighter is a bastard to pedal on anything other than the dead flat. I've no lockout on the front or rear shocks and if you try and pedal hard the rear shock really soaks up all the power and it's more like riding a pogo stick. The spring is probably a touch on the soft side but overall for how I ride the bike it's good because I'd rather it soft and plush for belting over the rough stuff. And it actually feels quite similar to my little pit bike.

Jay, thats a nice bike you built there. Is that an old Specialize enduro frame?

I didn't actually build this one, it was made by timma2500 (Paul) who modded my old diamondback. He modded this one for his missus who has since bought a DH bike so he's going to weave his magic on that now too.
And yeah, it's an older specialized big hit.
This is Pauls original build thread which shows the building up of the bike.
http://www.endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=38799&start=15

I see your vented 4080 is on it

Just for comparison purposes, I wanted to line it up with the fighter straight away. I probably wont go with the4080 on this one, I want to keep the weight to a minimum and make it more light and nimble. It'll probably get a Mac @ 2.5kw or if that doesn't cut it I'll use a 9C at 4-5kw. Not as efficient but I'll be able to smash it off the line and ride it harder than the geared motor.

did you change the frame dropouts as well?

Yep, it has a custom pinching torque plate on one side. If I end up running higher power I'll use a grin TA on the other side.

 

[Rix]

Heyna
Wow, Paul can build a frame. Thats looks like it came from the factory. Many years ago I built horse trailers for american trailer mfg in Boise. I know a little about welding. Paul totally blows my act away. Thats correct about bicycle suspension being designed the way they are for minimizing or eliminating pedal induced feed back and power scavaging under hard mashing hill climbs. I could start a forum on the various MTB designs over the years and compare them to the evolution of gassers and tie up a dozen pages easily. I just didn't want to get that detailed. Sounds like my bomber and your fighter have the same characteristics for pedaling on the flat. As long as I am seated the bomber does surprisingly well for a 115 pound machine. but if I stand and pedal, it flat doesn't like it. The pedal induced bob sucks so much power out of my pedal stroke I can't pedal up hill, not even a little 5% grade for long. But lower gear seated pedaling works.

Rick

 

[Cowardlyduck]

We should probably switch this to the Stealth forum, but I also know what you mean about the pedal induced bob on the Fighter.

However...with my Fighter having a stock DNM rear shock, it has a quick flick switch to lock it out. I find it's relatively easy to pedal uphill with it locked out...that is anything up to about 15% grade. Anything above that and even my 32T rear freewheel can't help with the excess weight of the Fighter.

Cheers

 

[Hyena]

Yeah Rix very similar, my fighter is essentially a bomber, just smaller and lighter. And more powerful, and... ok it's not really like a bomber. haha

But that's what this new bike will be for, to bridge the gap between my bomber-ish fighter and a mtb. Something I can still zoom around on in the same fashion but be more nimble and pedallable if I so chose. I had a look at it last night and I think it's going to be difficult to fit much more than 18S2P in there. I *might* be able to squeeze it up to 20S but it'd make the wiring and charging a bit of a headache. Given it's a small frame and I'll be needing a seat post atleast a few inches long I might just make a small booster pack for it when so desired.

Also, I've been very naughty

My fighter wasn't the only electric vehicle here, but it was certainly the most frowned upon one




Video up soon

 

[pendragon8000]

wohoho, lol YEEESSSSS Jay yor a bloody champion , im hanginging out for this next video woohoo!

 

[Hyena]

Heh it's not too spectacular and pretty quick for obvious reasons. That's the last time I lend my stealth fighter so someone, they turn around and do something like this! :lol:
Golf courses are pretty smooth so it doesn't really convey the feeling of speed, apparently the rider was doing 75km/hr and got air briefly over the mound near the end

[youtube]s093GUrsNaQ [/youtube]
Still uploading for 60 minutes from now

 

[pendragon8000]

mmm yes that rider that sounds just like you. must have had a wild time on those greens. great work

legend

 

[Hyena]

No other comments about an ebike on a golf course ? I'm surprised!
Maybe you're all disgusted in me. Err, I mean my friend

It was only a quick romp, but if that gate is always left unlocked (I sussed it out first as an exit before riding across the middle of the green) it'd be fun to return for a longer ride. I deliberately stayed out of everyones way so as to not attract attention but a staff member driving a watering truck spotted me as I bailed. As much as it would have been fun to stay longer buzz the golfers Armor would be needed for that one, I've seen good shots take down moving targets before! :lol:

 

[dan974]

maybe some of us are afraid of losing their youtube acccount just watching your vid's punk rider ! I already got my paypal restricted :lol: :lol: :lol:
you should put some iroquois hairs style on your helmet ! no burn no fun tear it on and get the fire shooting from the conservative in sockets =)

 

[Hyena]

aaaah Danny boy, yet another post translated into obscurity :lol:

 

[t3sla]

No other comments about an ebike on a golf course ? I'm surprised!
Maybe you're all disgusted in me. Err, I mean my friend

It was only a quick romp, but if that gate is always left unlocked (I sussed it out first as an exit before riding across the middle of the green) it'd be fun to return for a longer ride. I deliberately stayed out of everyones way so as to not attract attention but a staff member driving a watering truck spotted me as I bailed. As much as it would have been fun to stay longer buzz the golfers Armor would be needed for that one, I've seen good shots take down moving targets before! :lol:

You should go out there and grab some more balls.

A yo AJ, why didn't you crack that joke?

Hella slipping

:|

 

[pendragon8000]

aaaah Danny boy, yet another post translated into obscurity :lol:

lol

 

[GCinDC]

i love golf. it's the ultimate test. but i know it's hopeless to try to explain that to anyone... most people couldn't give a shit until that hit that one good shot, and that's like a drug. nah, the truth of the matter it's become an elitist ridiculously overpriced sport, played mostly by a$$holes. kinda odd, considering it started with sheep herders up along the coast challenging each other to hit a rock closer to that thar bush. fwiw, i think all courses should be totally natural, mown by rabbits and sheep with natural drainage, not phony carpets... cause these days most courses are environmental horrors.

that said... i could spend HOURS and HOURS riding my bike around courses! it's a shame there's rarely a good time to have a go at them in peace. middle of a weekday should be quiet time. weekends sure to be very busy...

this guy happens to be a pro golfer with some moto skills, though the putt scene is totally fake:
[youtube]6vyOAhP2QqM[/youtube]
edit: oh yeah, this is a funny one if you want to be an ahole:

 

[Kepler]

Conrats on the new purchase. That is such a nice frame. Its surprising how similar they look side by side.

Seeing this one is for the Misus, (yeah sure, I have heard that before. Do what ever it takes to get purchase approval through the director of finance ) I recon keep it light. Geared hub and about 600Wh of 18S is a good combo especially considering the frame should be a little lighter being all aluminium.

Also get the factory stickers for it too. That really finished off Timma's Red bike.

 

[deecanio]

Thumbs down on riding on the golf course from me i'm afraid, being a keen golfer as well as loving my ebike never the twain should meet imho.
if you were riding where you were supposed to ride and someone was cracking golf balls across you you'd be rightly miffed.
If no one elses interests are respected as a minimum, way to bring heat on yourself and your bike.

D

 

[pendragon8000]

Pop quizze:
Pink slips?
Crown motor?
Progress on specialized big hit?
Do you have a caddy yet, or a club bag trailer?