lumenpdx
100 mW
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2015
- Messages
- 35
Hey! Been lurking around here for years, but last fall the itch really caught and I decided it was finally time to build up my own electric bike. I figure my friends and facebook feed can only put up with so many messy build details, so I'd put all the graphic stuff here. So excited! Where to start...
About Me
I'm an experienced bike mechanic and a fairly strong rider. Cycling is my prefered means of transportation here in Portland, Oregon. I've done a little bit of 3D design and 3D printing, and can usually hack up a piece of metal as needed with enough time and dremel cut-off wheels, but I'm not currently much of a metal fabricator. I hope to improve there. I'm a bit of a tech nerd, I'm a freelance web developer, an experienced computer tech, and an amature electrical engineering hobbyist at best. This will be my first electric bike build.
Build Goals
I don't need electrical help on a bike. My legs are plenty strong, and I enjoy using them. So this bike really needs to do more. It needs go faster, go further, and provide more utility than any conventional bike. It needs to be fun as hell, and look good while doing it. My primary objectives:
Urban transportation. This will be my primary option when I need to get across town quickly and don't feel like grabbing one of my analog bikes. I need to feel comfortable locking it up around town, and it should at least *look* like a bike and not attract too much attention from law enforcement.
Urban hauler. I sold my car, and have no particular love for those boring expensive boxes anyway. So when I need to haul something big or heavy, I need to get creative. This bike should be able to haul a sizeable load in pannier and strapped to the racks, and be up to the task of occasionally pulling several hundred pound trailers up moderate hills.
Festival party bike. Portland's pedalpalooza bike festival is a month of organized bike shinanigans. And each year Burning Man turns the Black Rock Desert into the most bicycle-dense city in the USA. This bike should provide a good platform for some good old fashion artsy burner shit. Strap propane poofers to the racks? Haul a thousand-watt sound system? A trailer-mounted mobile kitchen/bar? A sidecar? So many LED's it sends bystanders into epileptic seizures? Sure, why not!
Nerdy development platform. I want to improve my EE skills, as well as my microcontroller development and C programming skills. This bike should (and already has) provided tons of opportunity to explore. So many ideas...
Electric touring. While not a primary goal, I've done a fair bit of bicycle touring and wonder at the potential of adding some amps to that. I'm not willing to sacrifice any of the other goals to accommodate this, but it's an idea that I can't shrug off.
Technical Goals
After endlessly working my way through reviews, this message board, spec sheets, etc, here are the design goals I gave myself:
Torque and efficient low-speed performance. Pulling trailers and riding at festivals, this bike will likely spend some time pulling heavy loads at low speeds. I need it to do this all day, not just until the drivetrain overheats. This is a primary design goal, and an easy one to fall short on.
Speed. 35mph should do me. That's plenty fast enough on city streets. While I could easily build much faster, I'd rather focus my energy on sustainable torque and amuse myself with the best acceleration I can manage.
Range. The more the better! Adding watt hours to a battery pack has the quadruple benefit of increasing the maximum current output handling, decreasing the average C-rating the batteries see for reduced wear, decreases the average depth of discharge for reduced wear, and, you know, increases your maximum range. So ultimately the bike will get the most battery it can handle (within reason).
Pedaling. Because I like to actually pedal bikes. I want some gears and a drivetrain that doesn't suck. While I don't expect it to be fun, if for some reason I need to work my way home on pedal power alone, this bike should be manageable.
Redundancy. Because I prefer to be prepared and self sufficient, and hate the walk of shame due to bike failure. Also, the party doesn't stop just because one guy's bike isn't cooperating. So anything I can do to assure the bike keeps moving in the face of the unforscene is a good one.
Self contained. As an aspect of self sufficiency, I will have all charging hardware onboard the bike, and will generally ride with an extension cord and tool kit. It will eventually need locking panniers.
Size/Weight. I'm definitely favoring durability and utility over any specific goals. But it should be able to stuff into most places a regular bike can, if needed. Car hatches, truck beds, bus/train bike boxes, etc.
Did I mention it should look awesome? Because it should. Interesting, unique, and attractive. While I love the rolling science experiment as much as the next nerd, and think these e-moto builds are hella hot, what I'm building is a bike for the urban environment. I'll be striving to minimize the number of exposed components, wires, etc, and try to keep the most valuable bits hidden internally.
About Me
I'm an experienced bike mechanic and a fairly strong rider. Cycling is my prefered means of transportation here in Portland, Oregon. I've done a little bit of 3D design and 3D printing, and can usually hack up a piece of metal as needed with enough time and dremel cut-off wheels, but I'm not currently much of a metal fabricator. I hope to improve there. I'm a bit of a tech nerd, I'm a freelance web developer, an experienced computer tech, and an amature electrical engineering hobbyist at best. This will be my first electric bike build.
Build Goals
I don't need electrical help on a bike. My legs are plenty strong, and I enjoy using them. So this bike really needs to do more. It needs go faster, go further, and provide more utility than any conventional bike. It needs to be fun as hell, and look good while doing it. My primary objectives:
Urban transportation. This will be my primary option when I need to get across town quickly and don't feel like grabbing one of my analog bikes. I need to feel comfortable locking it up around town, and it should at least *look* like a bike and not attract too much attention from law enforcement.
Urban hauler. I sold my car, and have no particular love for those boring expensive boxes anyway. So when I need to haul something big or heavy, I need to get creative. This bike should be able to haul a sizeable load in pannier and strapped to the racks, and be up to the task of occasionally pulling several hundred pound trailers up moderate hills.
Festival party bike. Portland's pedalpalooza bike festival is a month of organized bike shinanigans. And each year Burning Man turns the Black Rock Desert into the most bicycle-dense city in the USA. This bike should provide a good platform for some good old fashion artsy burner shit. Strap propane poofers to the racks? Haul a thousand-watt sound system? A trailer-mounted mobile kitchen/bar? A sidecar? So many LED's it sends bystanders into epileptic seizures? Sure, why not!
Nerdy development platform. I want to improve my EE skills, as well as my microcontroller development and C programming skills. This bike should (and already has) provided tons of opportunity to explore. So many ideas...
Electric touring. While not a primary goal, I've done a fair bit of bicycle touring and wonder at the potential of adding some amps to that. I'm not willing to sacrifice any of the other goals to accommodate this, but it's an idea that I can't shrug off.
Technical Goals
After endlessly working my way through reviews, this message board, spec sheets, etc, here are the design goals I gave myself:
Torque and efficient low-speed performance. Pulling trailers and riding at festivals, this bike will likely spend some time pulling heavy loads at low speeds. I need it to do this all day, not just until the drivetrain overheats. This is a primary design goal, and an easy one to fall short on.
Speed. 35mph should do me. That's plenty fast enough on city streets. While I could easily build much faster, I'd rather focus my energy on sustainable torque and amuse myself with the best acceleration I can manage.
Range. The more the better! Adding watt hours to a battery pack has the quadruple benefit of increasing the maximum current output handling, decreasing the average C-rating the batteries see for reduced wear, decreases the average depth of discharge for reduced wear, and, you know, increases your maximum range. So ultimately the bike will get the most battery it can handle (within reason).
Pedaling. Because I like to actually pedal bikes. I want some gears and a drivetrain that doesn't suck. While I don't expect it to be fun, if for some reason I need to work my way home on pedal power alone, this bike should be manageable.
Redundancy. Because I prefer to be prepared and self sufficient, and hate the walk of shame due to bike failure. Also, the party doesn't stop just because one guy's bike isn't cooperating. So anything I can do to assure the bike keeps moving in the face of the unforscene is a good one.
Self contained. As an aspect of self sufficiency, I will have all charging hardware onboard the bike, and will generally ride with an extension cord and tool kit. It will eventually need locking panniers.
Size/Weight. I'm definitely favoring durability and utility over any specific goals. But it should be able to stuff into most places a regular bike can, if needed. Car hatches, truck beds, bus/train bike boxes, etc.
Did I mention it should look awesome? Because it should. Interesting, unique, and attractive. While I love the rolling science experiment as much as the next nerd, and think these e-moto builds are hella hot, what I'm building is a bike for the urban environment. I'll be striving to minimize the number of exposed components, wires, etc, and try to keep the most valuable bits hidden internally.