Motor clicks four times when the throttle is twisted, then nothing.

[SteveandBebe]

Yes, this little hub motor almost didn't make. Fortunately the people made it out in time, but not so for our worldly possessions. The ebike DIY kit was one of those casualties that really stings. If I had put it on the bike before the fire, but you can't go back, can you?. The pc board was scorched, but not consumed. I stripped the motor. I was careful to pry the stator carefully from the magnets. Not all gear pullers are created equal. Not to mention, of course the water damage. And that's everything soaked and smelling of wood smoke and wire insulation. the magnets in the rotor didn't seem to be damaged. I replaced the pc board and All the wiring. The hall sensors didn't want to cooperate at first. Now that they';re all embedded along with the board in a matrix combination of epoxy and silicone; nobody told me that when wet silicone adhesive is conductive. Yah, I don't try running current through the thing until all the epoxy and other material s are completely cured and inert and not still giving off fumes. which isn't all that much and it's pretty straightforward understanding the 3 phase principle.

But now the motor is obviously getting juice, but it doesn't to be able to take that next step and "turn all the way over" as would the rpms on a gas motor. This front hub motor has quite literally zero miles on it. Just you name it, this little motor's been through it. It's been dropped from a substantial height, it survived a fire and the fire department. It had it's electronics burned up, and now I'm hoping is it all worth the effort? I've worked my ass off, because not only did I have to use a loaner bike with a questionable ownership history. I've had set backs and freak accidents happen this year but I should be used to it by now. I'm hoping it's just out of phase with the magnets, which might be why the wheel doesn't spin, but only jerks and then sits there, telling me I did something wrong. What do you think? Am i beating a dead ebike here? I sure hope to return with a positive result. I splurged and bought an exclusive E-bike testing device. It took two months to arrive from China. Everyone better get their stuff from overseas before the Trump tariffs kick in. I'm relatively safe here in California, aren't I?

 

[neptronix]

I would bet your halls are toast. You can confirm it by trying to run the motor sensorless with something like a Phaserunner or VESC ( both good FOC controllers that can autodetect their way around most problems ).

 

[SteveandBebe]

Also how do I get my SW900 to work with an after market controller that doesn't have an obvious connection? There must be a way. I didn't even get a chance to use it one time!

 

[neptronix]

It would be really helpful to mention what components you're working with, what preceded the issue, etc.

Does the controller you're using have any documentation or support? if not, you're probably out of luck. Those aren't typically designed with anything other than stock bike functionality. You are extremely lucky if i'm wrong.

Would strongly recommend buying a controller with:
- documentation ( especially what wire goes to what )
- support
- features that you want ( such as the ability to hook up a screen )
- made by a company that's been around for more than a year, not a fly by night chinese company
- matching accessories so that you're not having to rewrite anything in the first place

 

[docw009]

Displays and controllers have to be from the same manufacturer, They have to have the same memory map to store the commends/data that is sent back and forth. The SW900 is especially tricky since it can come in multiple firmware versions for several manufacturers.

If the controller doesn't have a 5 pin connector, it probably doesn't support any displays,

 

[SteveandBebe]

Displays and controllers have to be from the same manufacturer, They have to have the same memory map to store the commends/data that is sent back and forth. The SW900 is especially tricky since it can come in multiple firmware versions for several manufacturers.

If the controller doesn't have a 5 pin connector, it probably doesn't support any displays,

I was afraid of that. No problem. I have speedometer/odometer redundancy. But it should still run the BLDC, right?

 

[s-petersen]

You could try switching the phases around, The tester says the hall sensors are good correct?

 

[MxusMick]

Maybe a " configuration" issue, if you pick the motor up and plug the white learning wire to itself for a second then unplug, you may be in luck.

 

[SteveandBebe]

Okay I am rewiring this bldc motor it fell over on the harness and the axle bit clean through the 9 motor wire harness with Juliet connector. This was a brand new cable. This the 2nd time this has happened. The end of the axle where the cable comes out needs to be more offset. The end is like a cookie cutter. It stabs onto anything. I was careless and it fell over. A rewire is the only option. Anyone else have this problem?

 

[d8veh]

Okay I am rewiring this bldc motor it fell over on the harness and the axle bit clean through the 9 motor wire harness with Juliet connector. This was a brand new cable. This the 2nd time this has happened. The end of the axle where the cable comes out needs to be more offset. The end is like a cookie cutter. It stabs onto anything. I was careless and it fell over. A rewire is the only option. Anyone else have this problem?

You can buy or make a cable protector. All you need is a strip of metal about 25mm wide and 2.5mm thick. Drill a 14mm hole in the end for the axle, then hammer it into a U-shape with enough gap to clear the axle when it's bolted behind the axle nut. I have seen such things for sale on Ebay and on some OEM bikes, but I don't have any links. I just looked in the Grin shop, but I didn't see any, which surprised me. I thought they used to sell them. If they don't, they should!

If anybody has a cable on the drive side, they can use a derailleur protector to cover it. Some of them work on both sides to protect the cable, like this one:

Temu | Explore the Latest Clothing, Beauty, Home, Jewelry & More

www.temu.com

 

[s-petersen]

I replaced that wire on a shipping damaged motor, I cut it off, and disassembled the motor, stripped and fed the wire back in , and soldered and spliced the wires in the hub.My axel had a plastic cap over the wires to slightly protect them

 

[amberwolf]

I replaced that wire on a shipping damaged motor, I cut it off, and disassembled the motor, stripped and fed the wire back in , and soldered and spliced the wires in the hub.

FWIW, its usually easier to open the motor *first* then pull the cable from inside the motor, then do the cutting and splicing, if you ever have to do it again.

Sometimes the damage is so extreme that the cable is too "large" to pull thru the axle or housing opening.

 

[amberwolf]

Okay I am rewiring this bldc motor it fell over on the harness and the axle bit clean through the 9 motor wire harness with Juliet connector. This was a brand new cable. This the 2nd time this has happened. The end of the axle where the cable comes out needs to be more offset. The end is like a cookie cutter. It stabs onto anything. I was careless and it fell over. A rewire is the only option. Anyone else have this problem?

It's very common.

If it's a rear motor the derailer protector previously mentioned should work well enough. They can even be used on some front motors if the forks have the right tabs to bolt racks / etc to.


There are a few places that sell brackets made specifically for the purpose, too, like ebikes.ca

U Bracket

U bracket with 10 wide mm notch for protecting motor wiring harness against impact.

ebikes.ca

If you like you can design your own, and if it's universal enough you could start yourself a motor cable protection racket.

 

[SteveandBebe]

Yah thanks. My first bike had a door spring. The cable fit nicely inside,protected by flexible steel sheath!