I've been wanting an E-bike for a while and today I bit the bullet and ordered a lot of the bits I will need.
I am planning to make a bike that is very capable so that my average commute barely stresses anything electrical or mechanical.
I'm on the heavy side for a bicyclist so I have flat spotted a bunch of 700c rims and I would like to avoid bike butt if I can. Doing a long tail pushes the C.G. forward and more weight on the front wheel. My front wheels seem to do fine so this should just help the rear wheel some.
On the other hand, I want comfort and that means suspension fork to me. To that end, I looked at the budget options and wasn't very impressed. Nearly everything is 27.5" these days which probably makes sense for a mountain bike but I want cheap and common 26" to keep my head tube height low.
I formed a wish list and it was 26" with a through axle setup, good damping and a lock out to prevent bouncing when I'm pedaling hard. What I came up with was a Manitou Circus Expert "dirt jump" fork. It seems to be able to do rediculous jumps and even crashes without breaking. It should survive potholes and it has dampers and air springs that are a few steps above budget suspension forks.
The bad part is that it has a slightly oddball 110x20mm through axle but I found a DT Swiss front hub with all the features I want for only about $30 more than the 100x15mm I was thinking of initially. It also bumped me from 28 spokes to 32 so another $10-15 extra.
The fork was $210, the hub $90, the rim $32 and the spokes about $50. Not too bad and should be nearly indestructible.
For brakes, I figure panic stops are going to be what I need to design for. Hydraulic disks front and rear with 203mm rotors on both ends, that should give me good brake torque and rotor commonality to simplify spares. My calipers are Shimano Deore with organic pads but my disks are ok for metallics if I ever need to do big descents. I got some compatible Shimano levers with integrated shifters, my fingers are crossed that they'll work.
I know I'll need handlebars and grips but I started to look at the ergonomics and got a nice set of leather covered grips and set of cheap touring bars that have rise, sweep back and sweep down. I'll order a stem to fit once I've got the frame geometry figured out.
At the back I got a Sturmey Archer 3 speed IGH and I'm going to lace it to a 36 spoke 20" BMX rim. I found the hub on sale for about $80 with a coupon, $32 for spokes and nipples and $26 for the rim, dirt cheap, I'm building two, one spare/sidecar wheel.
One thing I saw on YouTube is a cheap BMX tubeless conversion. You build the wheel, add rim tape, then inflate a 16" tube that you install over the 20" rim, then slice it down the middle to turn it in to a rim strip with valve stem that hangs over the edge of the rim bead. Mount a decent tire with a strong bead, add tubeless tire sealant and you're done unless you want to trim the liner. The end result is a tire that is impossible to pinch flat, self seals punctures and you have to mess up a BMX trick to burp the tire, burping isn't a flat, you just lose air so add more and it's good as new.
I think I will try the tubeless conversion on the 20" BMX rear wheels and the 26" front wheel. It will be interesting to see how far I can go on them before I get a real flat.
For the rest of the pedal drivetrain, I have a Patterson two speed planetary geared crank. I'll be using KMC 510 chain and 1/8" sprockets. Since there will be no deraileurs, I can set up my chain line to be perfectly straight.
I also got a set of SPD/platform pedals so I can use regular shoes or clip in with bike shoes.
The final mechanical thing is a Cane Creek Thud Buster seat post. The 20" BMX tire at the rear should create some compliance at the rear of the bike, the Thud Buster adds some more under the seat. Hopefully the combination of my ass and a pothole won't be enough to flat spot a BMX rim (or my ass).
For electrical, I have ordered my 18650s and I'm trying to work up how I'll assemble my pack.
Next step is find a motor.
After that, design and build a frame, then get a Phaserunner, CA-V3 and strain gauge working together to make it a pedal assist mid drive kind of like the Cycle Stoker from Grin.
Hopefully the end result will be a bike that handles my commute without breaking a sweat or making me break a sweat, with around 100 mile range at 25-35 mph with pedal assist and 3,000 watts of power at my disposal just in case I really need to move quick. It should have a decent ride over potholes if I can't manage to avoid them all and it should be able to come to a quick stop if I get on the brakes hard.
I am planning to make a bike that is very capable so that my average commute barely stresses anything electrical or mechanical.
I'm on the heavy side for a bicyclist so I have flat spotted a bunch of 700c rims and I would like to avoid bike butt if I can. Doing a long tail pushes the C.G. forward and more weight on the front wheel. My front wheels seem to do fine so this should just help the rear wheel some.
On the other hand, I want comfort and that means suspension fork to me. To that end, I looked at the budget options and wasn't very impressed. Nearly everything is 27.5" these days which probably makes sense for a mountain bike but I want cheap and common 26" to keep my head tube height low.
I formed a wish list and it was 26" with a through axle setup, good damping and a lock out to prevent bouncing when I'm pedaling hard. What I came up with was a Manitou Circus Expert "dirt jump" fork. It seems to be able to do rediculous jumps and even crashes without breaking. It should survive potholes and it has dampers and air springs that are a few steps above budget suspension forks.
The bad part is that it has a slightly oddball 110x20mm through axle but I found a DT Swiss front hub with all the features I want for only about $30 more than the 100x15mm I was thinking of initially. It also bumped me from 28 spokes to 32 so another $10-15 extra.
The fork was $210, the hub $90, the rim $32 and the spokes about $50. Not too bad and should be nearly indestructible.
For brakes, I figure panic stops are going to be what I need to design for. Hydraulic disks front and rear with 203mm rotors on both ends, that should give me good brake torque and rotor commonality to simplify spares. My calipers are Shimano Deore with organic pads but my disks are ok for metallics if I ever need to do big descents. I got some compatible Shimano levers with integrated shifters, my fingers are crossed that they'll work.
I know I'll need handlebars and grips but I started to look at the ergonomics and got a nice set of leather covered grips and set of cheap touring bars that have rise, sweep back and sweep down. I'll order a stem to fit once I've got the frame geometry figured out.
At the back I got a Sturmey Archer 3 speed IGH and I'm going to lace it to a 36 spoke 20" BMX rim. I found the hub on sale for about $80 with a coupon, $32 for spokes and nipples and $26 for the rim, dirt cheap, I'm building two, one spare/sidecar wheel.
One thing I saw on YouTube is a cheap BMX tubeless conversion. You build the wheel, add rim tape, then inflate a 16" tube that you install over the 20" rim, then slice it down the middle to turn it in to a rim strip with valve stem that hangs over the edge of the rim bead. Mount a decent tire with a strong bead, add tubeless tire sealant and you're done unless you want to trim the liner. The end result is a tire that is impossible to pinch flat, self seals punctures and you have to mess up a BMX trick to burp the tire, burping isn't a flat, you just lose air so add more and it's good as new.
I think I will try the tubeless conversion on the 20" BMX rear wheels and the 26" front wheel. It will be interesting to see how far I can go on them before I get a real flat.
For the rest of the pedal drivetrain, I have a Patterson two speed planetary geared crank. I'll be using KMC 510 chain and 1/8" sprockets. Since there will be no deraileurs, I can set up my chain line to be perfectly straight.
I also got a set of SPD/platform pedals so I can use regular shoes or clip in with bike shoes.
The final mechanical thing is a Cane Creek Thud Buster seat post. The 20" BMX tire at the rear should create some compliance at the rear of the bike, the Thud Buster adds some more under the seat. Hopefully the combination of my ass and a pothole won't be enough to flat spot a BMX rim (or my ass).
For electrical, I have ordered my 18650s and I'm trying to work up how I'll assemble my pack.
Next step is find a motor.
After that, design and build a frame, then get a Phaserunner, CA-V3 and strain gauge working together to make it a pedal assist mid drive kind of like the Cycle Stoker from Grin.
Hopefully the end result will be a bike that handles my commute without breaking a sweat or making me break a sweat, with around 100 mile range at 25-35 mph with pedal assist and 3,000 watts of power at my disposal just in case I really need to move quick. It should have a decent ride over potholes if I can't manage to avoid them all and it should be able to come to a quick stop if I get on the brakes hard.