oh, hi- I'm new here- lurking for a few months
small history-
riding e-bikes for about 5 years, mainly Currie-powered kits because I thought it prudent to wait for brushless motors and controllers to mature a bit.
However- I also got older and less able to ride a bike so I recently purchased an e-moto trike, as I was not able to do much of anything at the time. I purchased a trike (first week of Nov) because of balance issues and I wanted to NOT have to drive to the shops or check mail so I required a good (although not GREAT) cargo-capable machine.
I considered Workman but I neither liked their "add-on" electrics or the price of said "add-on". The E-Moto trike really is close to machine built with an electric-assist as a forethought, not a hindsight. Very clean build
I bought this trike over some others because it featured an aluminum frame (light? why yes it is, baring the steel basket and steel axle.) oh- and it's pretty well made, strong enough to hold me (235ibs of manliness-flab) + 4 gallons of tasty beverages along with some 10lbs of groceries, sundry tools, sunglasses, helmet (yet to wear it) gloves, ear protectors (just when did the police stop policing loud cars/trucks and especially the gray-haired Harley owners) and various bungee cards effortlessly (BIG basket-lol)
It comes (or came- as it appears I bought the last one in the states) with a six speed derailleur (needed for hills- Living on the coast of Oregon featuring many slopes- however the derailleur is a Shimano Tourny- cheap junk that I've yet to get adjusted beyond 4 gears (3-6 only- but usable as is probably needs yet another additional link (I already adding one) you'd think the chain provided would be LONGER than what was required to assemble the trike (which shipped almost completely disassembled)
9AH Li-ion battery (Panasonic-no idea about the chemistry)-the battery mount/connection and case are very nice and the BMS is built into the battery case- almost fool-proof... plug in the charger and wait for the red led to change to green. And I'm just the type of fool that needs proofing against.
Range has yet to be determined as I've only managed to discharge (wild-ass-guess) about 6 amps based on charging times going 12-18 miles round trip depending on which "slopes" I'm climbing/descending.
Big (read tiny) Powerful (read weak) 250 watt hub motor- geared (no idea about the ratio but the bike moves/accelerates plenty slow) it actually works OK- up to about a 12% grade but then NADA a few clunks then NOTHING from the motor- I can't provide much pedal effort so anything beyond the 12% is more than I can deal with. (see- 4 speed)
note-Because of the aluminum frame I think a 250W grared hub motor is just about right for this machine. Since the motor only uses 3 TINY connections (WTF VHS mini-DIN connector??) I'm assuming it is of the sensorless type system... the controller is nicely tucked away in it's own enclosure under the frame. Not visable- so no idea and I'm not about to tear tit open when the trike is currently WORKING and under warranty (90 days on electric, 10 years on frame (right)
I've had occasional discussions with the trikes' support dept and they've proven themselves to be utterly useless.
Screaming Speeds of up too 12 MPH!!!- if you've ever ridden a standard delta trike this can actually be scary fast- Some of the "slopes" descend me 25MPH or faster (if I dared but I don't) Brakes (front rim- rear band) are very effective- which is a GOOD thing.
But enuff of my carping- the throttle is available full time as is the pedelec system- no switching from one to the other as it's automatic depending if you are using the throttle with/without pedaling or pedaling only (handy, I've taken to mainly using the pedelec system.)
The bike (trike) has all sorts of empty space which begs to be filled with mid-drive components. So I'm currently receiving parts from various vendors (HK- HOOT! only took a week from their stateside warehouse... I chose batteries/chargers based on their LOCATION ahHa Ha HAHAHA)
but... that's another story not quite finished I have the freewheel, 5/8" adapters, some NEW SPARE CHAIN (see above) chain ring sprocket and a motor that shipped with some unknown sprocket -NOT the bicycle sprocket I'd ordered it with.
too be continued maybe... not likely in this thread.
