I am about to buy this bike, ES'ers rip it apart please.

RoadWrinkle

RoadWrinkle

100 W
Joined
Aug 22, 2013
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Location
Maui, Hawaii
Found this Japan design firm making this:ryoside3.jpgCLICK THE PIC
All the specs are here...http://www.vanguard-designs.com/bikes/item/ryo ....6061 aluminum butted tubings and a 4130 Cromoly straight blade fork.

I am thinking dual hub build, 48v15Ah triangle mount (bag) 30mph+. Please rip this bike to shreds and tell me what you think. Any obvious flaws? Pros/Cons? They will ship it to Hawaii for $1538 SGD (Singapore Dollar), or about $1250 US (so about $900 us for the bike itself). Harsh critiques welcome. :D
 
It's got the spec of a cheap bike, but the price of a mid-range bike (plus major shipping costs). For the difference, you get fatbike tire clearance and a cute frame. Nothing to argue with there, if you're into it. But do understand you are buying a cheap bike.

Me? I'd save up another couple hundred bucks and get an Origin8 Crawler instead, with nicer spec and a NuVinci hub. 'Course that would mean using a front hub motor or else a mid-drive. And it's not as cute.
 
Lebowski said:
Make sure it fits you because the frame size is really small
Click to expand...

Good point. But keep in mind those tires are probably about 73cm tall, which makes the frame look smaller than it is.
 
Know how to lace and true wheels? You will need to, or learn it, or you will have to send those rims to Holmes Hobby on the mainland to get it done. I bet the LBS looks at hubmotors and goes, get out of my shop.

Personally, I'd just get a surly. But it does look like a nice bike you could have stolen immediately. They'd steal a surly just as fast of course.
 
The rear dropouts would probably need reinforcing or modification to deal with the torque. The front, because it's cromo, should be solid with a single (or double) torque arm installed.

This would be a moot comment if you went mid-drive w/front hub motor. :wink:
 
I saw that bike a few days ago in another post. Its a great looking art bike, and when I saw the price, I started checking my bank account, wondering If I could aford it. But I spec'd it out and realized it has some flaws that would cost half again it's price to fix.

As Chalo points out, the parts group is substandard for the intended purpose. That might not matter in an Object d'Art that isn't intended for serious riding, but Fat Bikes are designed to be offroad juggernauts, Unstopable forces that conquor any pothole, tree, or mountian that doesn't have enough sense to get out of the bike's way. They need a parts group that can survive.

The wheels are 45mm, which means in a corner they will try to roll off the rim. 5mph might be too fast. They really need to be 80mm. Figure $150 per rim, then another $50 in spokes, rim tape, ect. Thats $400 total just to get the rim issue straightened out.

And then the tires. The Spiders are made by Innova, who also make the tires for Surly. What means the tire casing is fine, but those who've reviewed the tire make note of the bad traction when traction matters. A good set of Fat tires can run you well over $100, depending on what tread you choose. ~$100 a piece for Surly Larrys I'm burning through every few hundred miles So figure roughly $200 to fix the tire issue

And then those brakes. Promax. They might be worth a few cents at the recycler, or have some value to hold down napkins at a picknick on a breezy day. But they arent BB7s. If they can't even Stop sucking so hard, how can they ever Stop a bike? Figure $75 to 125 to get a set of new BB7.

And thats roughly $700 so far. We haven't ever touched on the other componants or the stand over herght issues.

Its an awesome looking bike, and a steel frame Fatbike makes me drool with the posabbilities. But its an art bike, and would never be any good to ride without a near total and expensive rebuild.

On the other hand, for the same price that Origin 8 comes with all the right parts plus a NuVinci 360 hub thats just begging for someone to build a mid drive. I'm thinking a GNG drive with that thing would be a Fat Bike wet dream.
 
I just saw a bike at probike in Hong Kong that I thought was a the Vangaurd in this post.
Actually it is a similar frame from a different bike brand, and no fat wheels.

Anyways, I thought this bike looked cheap (top pic).

That same bike brand "doppleganger' had one bike at the shop that looked like a promising 20" eBike platform (bottom pic).
 

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Thanks for the feedback and alternative suggestions everyone. The Vanguard bikes attraction for me is the frame and fat tire/wheels; want to get a suspension feel from the tires, never considered the handling issues presented by thick tires. The main drawback for me with a full suspension bike is that most come in smaller (BMX Style frames) which do not fit my frame well. :D
 
You could always replace the tires with Surly Black Floyd or Origin8 Captiv8er (3.5" tires are a better match for 45mm rims), and that might address any grip or handling issues. But those will not be the only components you have to change if you put real miles on the bike.
 
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