I'm a noob and I wanna go sensible speeds reliably

[dogman dan]

Nothing wrong with that bike. I was just trying to say don't pass up a great deal on a regular mtb that's very similar.

But now that you chose the biggest wheels, you might definitely consider the 10T. So you still have good hill performance, and take off from a stop more efficient. Use the speeds you want to go to base your choice of battery voltage, but with the 10t I would be going 48v.

 

[RLD70]

The shopping has started! Thanks for the schooling on mountain bikes and hybrids, I picked up a barely-used hybrid last night: http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-us/bikes/model/cypress.dx/9019/48868/
Very comfy, not too heavy. I'm a bit embarrased to own a Giant (like every man and his dog), but it was a great deal. Hopefully it won't protest too much as the electric parts get added!

Why would you be embarrassed to own a Giant? Ive had 3 Giant bikes and never had any issues with them along with Specialized and Trek. The next bike for me will be a Haro from another local bike shop who oddly enough is the same person that has sold me every bike with the exception of my blue Specialized before the current bike.

 

[andyshirley]

Spot on for gearing, in my opinion.

 

[andyshirley]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1000W-Motor-48V-10-5AH-Lithium-Ion-Battery-Electric-Bicycle-Conversion-
I've been using a kit from this seller. I had the 36v kit [10s] but I'm now running it at 12s[50v off the charger].

I think in hindsight I may have gone for 48v kit as linked above.

With the LCD PANEL for xtra 30usd you have 5 pas levels to choose from, it works great. You also set your maximum speed, maximum possible 40kmh. You could cheat that by putting in a smaller wheel diameter, but then the speedo and odo would be out.

The kit is a cnebikes kit............... possibly cheaper direct on alibaba.

It was a very fast turn around time.

The beauty of it is everything you need is from the same seller....... no buying bits from all over the place.

390569140067 Link playing up....... ebay item number.

I had a front wheel kit........... be carefull if you go for a rear kit, you probably wont be able to keep the 8 speeds.

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Luckys-Shop-and-Save?_trksid=p2047675.l2563

http://cnebikes.en.alibaba.com/?tracelog=store_top

 

[headwind]

Nothing wrong with that bike. I was just trying to say don't pass up a great deal on a regular mtb that's very similar.

But now that you chose the biggest wheels, you might definitely consider the 10T. So you still have good hill performance, and take off from a stop more efficient. Use the speeds you want to go to base your choice of battery voltage, but with the 10t I would be going 48v.

Thanks Dogman. Yep, I was also looking at MTBs, it just turned out the hybrid was the best deal I found. Indeed, 10T with 48v is a good combo on Kabbage's bike, so I'll just copy that!

Why would you be embarrassed to own a Giant?

Ahh, it was just a tongue-in-cheek comment, because in the past I've teased friends for following the masses and getting a Giant :wink: I'm definitely not knocking the bikes themselves!

The kit is a cnebikes kit............... possibly cheaper direct on alibaba.

It was a very fast turn around time.

The beauty of it is everything you need is from the same seller....... no buying bits from all over the place.

Sourcing it all through one supplier is very appealing. However, I'm leaning towards getting what I can through a local supplier, in case there's gremlins once it's installed. And it can be more finely tuned to my goals (eg 25A controller compared with the 20A that I assume the Ebay 1000W bikes run)

be carefull if you go for a rear kit, you probably wont be able to keep the 8 speeds

Thanks for the warning. But I've ridden kabbage's bike (which has the rear cassette locked out), and only using the front gears will also be fine for me.

 

[dogman dan]

8 speed rear shifter can work with standard 7 speed screw on freewheels. It won't index quite right on all 7, so set it so it runs smooth on the highest 3-4 gears. Then if you find someday you must use the lower gears, you can make a tiny adjustment to the barrel nut.

 

[headwind]

http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=50771

 

[chas58]

I like it!