brent j
🧲 New user
In late 2024 I stripped my KTM and converted to BE.
I'm a fitter/turner and I've been riding for 55 years so the physical part of the conversion was easy, the electrical side was a steep and sometimes expensive learning curve.
I live in Darwin, the top end of Australia and being fairly isolated, local support and advice was lacking.
I stumbled across two guys in the US who had modified KTM Freeride E's to use aftermarket parts and since they were using a motor and controller I was considering I figured I was on the right track.
QS138 70 geared motors were available interstate and so was the EBMX X9000 along with a throttle and harness all from the same supplier.
Due to the shape of the KTM frame I needed a long narrow battery and after some searching, I settled on an EBMX 72v 57ah battery.
Then came learning about pre-charge and after some simple push button systems I settled on an auto unit from EV Power in WA. A lot of people ride the bike so it's easier to have an auto system rather than trying to explain all the time.
The bike had been road registered in the past as a petrol bike, and I wanted to have Rego again, so I worked with a local automotive engineer to get engineering approval for the mods and to ensure I met local and national rules.
The bike has turned out to be not only better than I expected but better than I had hoped. For me and what I want, it is quite simply the best motorcycle I have ever ridden.
In 15 months, it has covered 2000km with 95% of that being off road.
Sadly, it's sitting on a work stand at present awaiting a new battery due to and incorrectly sized voltage reducer that failed in a spectacular manner.
I have replaced the voltage reducer with a higher rated unit and installed an isolator and fuse in the feed to the VR.
An expensive lesson but it proves that ignorance is not bliss and it's so hard to know how good any advice you are given really is.
The photo was taken just before the new body panels were fitted, it looks a lot better now.
Cheers, Brent
I'm a fitter/turner and I've been riding for 55 years so the physical part of the conversion was easy, the electrical side was a steep and sometimes expensive learning curve.
I live in Darwin, the top end of Australia and being fairly isolated, local support and advice was lacking.
I stumbled across two guys in the US who had modified KTM Freeride E's to use aftermarket parts and since they were using a motor and controller I was considering I figured I was on the right track.
QS138 70 geared motors were available interstate and so was the EBMX X9000 along with a throttle and harness all from the same supplier.
Due to the shape of the KTM frame I needed a long narrow battery and after some searching, I settled on an EBMX 72v 57ah battery.
Then came learning about pre-charge and after some simple push button systems I settled on an auto unit from EV Power in WA. A lot of people ride the bike so it's easier to have an auto system rather than trying to explain all the time.
The bike had been road registered in the past as a petrol bike, and I wanted to have Rego again, so I worked with a local automotive engineer to get engineering approval for the mods and to ensure I met local and national rules.
The bike has turned out to be not only better than I expected but better than I had hoped. For me and what I want, it is quite simply the best motorcycle I have ever ridden.
In 15 months, it has covered 2000km with 95% of that being off road.
Sadly, it's sitting on a work stand at present awaiting a new battery due to and incorrectly sized voltage reducer that failed in a spectacular manner.
I have replaced the voltage reducer with a higher rated unit and installed an isolator and fuse in the feed to the VR.
An expensive lesson but it proves that ignorance is not bliss and it's so hard to know how good any advice you are given really is.
The photo was taken just before the new body panels were fitted, it looks a lot better now.
Cheers, Brent
Attachments
Last edited:
