Leaf / leafmotor / leafbike high efficiency 1500w motor

Hey how are you guys contacting Leaf to ask questions? I emailed a question about the kit a few weeks ago and got no response. I see there's a link to 'ask a question' but it points to msn messenger, and apparently that service was shut down a year ago.
 
But I want to buy some extra spare parts with the purchase, and there's no way to add it into the purchase price until I talk with them..
 
In one case it took a couple days for a response, but once the conversation started, it was pretty much within 12 hours or so unless they had to do homework and consult the engineers.
 
I am interested in getting a 1500W Leaf motor in a 20" rim. Should I get just the hub and build the wheel myself, or is the quality pretty good? I'm leaning toward just getting the hub and finding some matching rims and building the wheels. Thanks for the feedback.
 
Lurkin said:
Get the hub and put it together with a quality rim and spokes.

+1
 
Allex said:
What rim(MTB) would you recommend. And where do you guys source your spokes?
You shouldn't need to ask as you already make the best rims Allex. ;)
http://www.alexrims.com/product.asp?sc=0&cat=25
These are E-bike specific rims.

I used a 20" DM24 to lace my recumbent commuter wheel.
P1070304.jpg

It's extremely strong, and I would take it off-road if the bike could handle it.

Spokes are 13/14g Sapim strong. I had to cut and re-thread them a few times to get the length right and they are still doing well.

This wheel has held up nicely for over 5000km and several bad crashes with just 2 minor true ups necessary.

Cheers
 
In a 26-inch tire outer diameter, 45-MPH , 72 km/h, is 582 RPMs.

If you subscribe to the position that unloaded Kv will be about 10% higher, then unloaded would be about 640 RPMs, and since an unfaired bicycle above 30 MPH would have significant wind resistance, maybe add another 5%, so...672 RPMS unloaded?

672 /77= a Kv of 8.7

That is halfway between the 5T and the 6T, maybe go for the slower 6T since we are talking about bicycles, and possibly restore some of the top speed with aero fairings?
 
72V with a 5T should hit about the maximum current handling you can eke out of this motor before heat-saturation. ~40-45 MPH on the flat with a 26" wheel. Do the math for smaller sizes.
 
sendler2112 said:
Will a 9 speed freewheel fit?
I see that my 9 speed chain should work fine with a 7 speed freewheel so I will just get a new shifter and run 7 speed in the rear.
.
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/speeds.html
.
 
That Sheldon Brown is awesome isnt it, I seem to find most of my info there. Here is a quote from the link you provided.

Chain As you go to more sprockets on the cassette, you need a narrower chain. However, using a chain one size NARROWER than standard rarely presents any problem. Thus, you can use a "9-speed" chain with a 7-speed or 8-speed system, or a "10-speed" chain with a 9-speed system. This is not the ideal approach -- shifting may not be quite as smooth -- but it's workable.

When I first read that I was confused, but its taking about the SIZE OF THE CHAIN, so 7 and 8 are the same sized chain with very minimal differences, so a 9 would work on 7/8. Thus 10 would work on 9.

What about upwards, 9 on 10, 7/8 on 9?
Terminology would have been put like this perhaps
However, using a chain one size LARGER or NARROWER than standard rarely presents any problem.
 
Cowardlyduck said:
liveforphysics said:
Lurkin said:
Get the hub and put it together with a quality rim and spokes.

+1
+2
I did this reusing my the rim and spokes from my Stealth supplied HS4065. Worked well as most of these DD hub motors have very similar spoke flange dimensions. :)

Cheers

Thanks for the feedback! I am interested in making a dual 20" 406 "Mid tail" bike. More or less like a Juiced Riders ODK, but with a triangle to carry the battery. I started another thread in the General Discussions section. If anyone could help me out over there (as not to hijack this thread), I am looking for some help with components (controller, battery/supplier) I'm leaning towards EM3EV for most things, but unsure on which to get.

Great discussion here on the Leaf motor, I would have never known about it if it wasn't for this thread. I'd like to thank Nep for throwing down his own $$$ and willingness to push these motors to their performance limits! Great thread and also the comparison to the Mac. I love this place.
 
spinningmagnets said:
I am interested in getting a 1500W Leaf motor in a 20" rim

For a rim that small, consider a 17-inch moped rim.


Why? I'm looking for a top speed of low 30's (MPH) and to cruise along around 25 Mph. I was under the impression that 20" wheels are stronger than an equivalent 26" or 700c. I thought the moped rims/tires were more for extreme power levels? I would prefer to stick to standard bicycle parts, but will keep an open mind :D
 
Putting a hub this diameter into a 20-inch bicycle rim will cause severe spoke angles. It will work, so no problem doing that. I just wanted to let you know that a 17-inch moped rim/tire is a similar size to a 20-inch bicycle, and it's worth considering.

Moped and motorcycle rims have angled nipple holes, so they can be laced with severe spoke angles without stressing the spoke. A 2-inch wide steel motorcycle rim is unnecessarily heavy, but...a fairly light aluminum single-wall moped rim about 1.6-inches wide will comfortably seat tires from 2.4 to 3.2-inches wide.

https://www.electricbike.com/moped-rims-tires-hubmotors/
 
spinningmagnets said:
Putting a hub this diameter into a 20-inch bicycle rim will cause severe spoke angles. It will work, so no problem doing that. I just wanted to let you know that a 17-inch moped rim/tire is a similar size to a 20-inch bicycle, and it's worth considering.

Moped and motorcycle rims have angled nipple holes, so they can be laced with severe spoke angles without stressing the spoke. A 2-inch wide steel motorcycle rim is unnecessarily heavy, but...a fairly light aluminum moped rim about 1.6-inches wide will comfortably seat tires from 2.4 to 3.2-inches wide.

https://www.electricbike.com/moped-rims-tires-hubmotors/
Good advice spinning magnets.
The reason I had to cut and rethread my spokes above was because I initially tried single cross, but could not get it to work as the spoke angle was too severe.

I would suggest radial lacing is a good option for a 20" rim in these diameter motors since the leverage on the spokes is reduced and the shorter spoke length reduces flexing. The 5000+km on mine is testament to it being a viable option, and I don't ride softly.

Cheers
 
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