New Bafang Crank-Drives

[sacko]

Link

Has anybody bought this?

..or had any communications with them?

 

[mikebikerad]

I was emailing this company back and forth for a week. Very responsive and reasonable. They offered me a kit via paypal payment and it was the same 440 USD price which they said "this is our rock bottom price". I didn't order from them, but went with another company that got it together faster for the same price. I am sort of regretting not going with general electronics battery ltd after reviewing my conversations.

 

[sacko]

Thanks for the info.

Where did you end up buying yours from if you don't mind me asking?

 

[mikebikerad]

CNE BIKES:
http://cnebikes.en.alibaba.com/product/1138773669-0/Bafang_Crank_MID_Mount_Motor_Kit_BBS_01_Electric_Bike_Conversion.html

The lead time was around 2 weeks (which seems to be the magic number) I will post an update if there is a delay.

 

[zaphod911]

mikebikerad,

im stoked to see what you think of it. Ive had my eyes on the GNGs for my next build, but i think this might be easier to pass as legal in Germany.

 

[lcrewse]

Just wanted to provide an update on the 750w systems. I've had some more time to use these and they have exceeded my expectations. The drive units are very smooth and quiet like the 350w ones, but with considerably more power. I have yet to get tall enough gearing but these will comfortably go more than 30mph. I have been able to get up to 37mph pedaling and with taller gearing I think even 40mph is possible in short bursts. Realistically, this drive unit is suited for speeds in the low 30s and below. I have been able to break several chains using a conventional derailleur system so I would recommend a high quality and strong drivetrain. I prefer to use these with a Nuvinci and have had great luck with this combo.

I have a sale thread at http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=50188 as I now have them in quantity in the US, ready to ship worldwide.

Below is a bike I had at Interbike with 750w drive system and Nuvinci hub.

[imgBlack Fat Bike Med.jpg[/img]

 

[--freeride--]

Nice fatbike! What frame is that, that you could fit the Bafang in?

 

[nukezero]

lcrewse - that looks really good. I may have to reconsider buying a kit from you now. I'm tempted to get the 48V 750w for myself. Will need to start saving some money for that. Love the battery mount especially.

 

[lcrewse]

Nice fatbike! What frame is that, that you could fit the Bafang in?

It's a modified Origin 8 Crawler. Going to be producing a fat frame to accommodate this exact drivetrain in the very near future and modified this bike to test everything out. There was cutting, grinding and welding involved in order to get it to fit. I also had to machine some adapters to be able to have a proper chainline and use a standard mountain chainring.

 

[wojtek]

subscribed

actually im looking for a very small motor that i could use as a generator to charge my battery while pedalling...

 

[--freeride--]

Nice fatbike! What frame is that, that you could fit the Bafang in?

It's a modified Origin 8 Crawler. Going to be producing a fat frame to accommodate this exact drivetrain in the very near future and modified this bike to test everything out. There was cutting, grinding and welding involved in order to get it to fit. I also had to machine some adapters to be able to have a proper chainline and use a standard mountain chainring.

Thanks, grinding, welding and some adapters, thats what i thought.

So the crankarms of the bbs01 are wide enough to go passt the wide chainstays of a fatbike without modifications?
Then it may be possible (again with grinding welding and some adapters) to build an Surly pugsley in your configuration


What is the Cadence of the 750W Unit like, the 250w 36V Unit seems to stay around 80-90rpm. Are the 48V units faster? I am used to pedal fast like 100-110rpm so that would be perfekt for me

 

[lcrewse]

Nice fatbike! What frame is that, that you could fit the Bafang in?

It's a modified Origin 8 Crawler. Going to be producing a fat frame to accommodate this exact drivetrain in the very near future and modified this bike to test everything out. There was cutting, grinding and welding involved in order to get it to fit. I also had to machine some adapters to be able to have a proper chainline and use a standard mountain chainring.

Thanks, grinding, welding and some adapters, thats what i thought.

So the crankarms of the bbs01 are wide enough to go passt the wide chainstays of a fatbike without modifications?
Then it may be possible (again with grinding welding and some adapters) to build an Surly pugsley in your configuration


What is the Cadence of the 750W Unit like, the 250w 36V Unit seems to stay around 80-90rpm. Are the 48V units faster? I am used to pedal fast like 100-110rpm so that would be perfekt for me

I did have to use some other crank arms that flare out a bit instead of the straight ones that come with the kit in order to clear the chainstays. It's definitely a tight fit on this frame. The cadence on the 48v 750w is faster than the 36v one when using throttle, at least 90rpm or so. It maintains a slower cadence when using PAS.

 

[Gab]

Hi How heavy is the 48v 11ah battery ? It has a nice shape and lots of capacity .

and also what is the max current available from the battery ? Can it be used on another type of ebike ?

 

[lcrewse]

Hi How heavy is the 48v 11ah battery ? It has a nice shape and lots of capacity .

and also what is the max current available from the battery ? Can it be used on another type of ebike ?

The battery on the bike is designed to be used with this system but can be used with a hub drive as well. Its designed for a 25A load but can output more current briefly. The weight of the 48v 11.6ah model is 7.1 lbs (7.7lbs with the mount). I have a very limited number of batteries as these are pre-production units so for now I'm only selling them with the drive units.

 

[cruiser0002]

Can you use your own crank set and front derailleur with the bbs01?

 

[lcrewse]

Can you use your own crank set and front derailleur with the bbs01?

These only have a single chainring so no need for a derailleur. You can't really use your own crankset because the chainring attaches to the motor unit and not the crank arm as on a traditional crankset.

 

[crossbreak]

Can you use your own crank set and front derailleur with the bbs01?

this is not possible with any middrive. Front derailleur are something special, too. Most times you wont need it anyway.

 

[cruiser0002]

this is not possible with any middrive. Front derailleur are something special, too. Most times you wont need it anyway.

Is this because the BBS01 does not use a standard chainring?

 

[lcrewse]

this is not possible with any middrive. Front derailleur are something special, too. Most times you wont need it anyway.

Is this because the BBS01 does not use a standard chainring?

It does use a non standard chainring, but the reason that mid drives in general can't use a standard crankset is that the chainring needs to freewheel separately from the crank arms. This allows the motor to drive the chainring without the rider having to pedal.

 

[cruiser0002]

this is not possible with any middrive. Front derailleur are something special, too. Most times you wont need it anyway.

Is this because the BBS01 does not use a standard chainring?

It does use a non standard chainring, but the reason that mid drives in general can't use a standard crankset is that the chainring needs to freewheel separately from the crank arms. This allows the motor to drive the chainring without the rider having to pedal.

Suppose the mid-drive system has dual freewheels so that either the motor or the rider can stop pedaling. What prevents the front derailleur from selecting gears if more than one is present?

 

[--freeride--]

On the BBS01 there is no space for a dual chainring. Itis not possible to run smaller sprockets than 46 with proper chainallignment. The secondary gear-stage is kind of where the sprocket should be and the sprocket is going around that. Anyway the motor is strong and If you want to go up steep hills get yourself a Sram XX1 rear detaileur with 42t in the back. But even with 34 or 36 in the back this Motor is good for Hillclimbing.

As the Sram XX1 is realy expensiv there are several possibilities to build your own Costom XX1 with a normal 10/1 rear cassette. You take out one of the smaller rings an add a 42t gib ring on the insight.

 

[crossbreak]

the 1000€ are not worth the 42T first gear IMO. You will hardly use it. The 10T gear will be waste within few miles if serious power is run through. The cassette at 250€ is a bit expensive to swap it after few miles

I can recommend the 12-36T CS-HG-61 cassette, really heavy (450g) but really durable. Works with virtually any derailleur.

 

[wojtek]

how loud is it comparing to cyclone and similar please?

 

[lcrewse]

how loud is it comparing to cyclone and similar please?

It is nothing like a cyclone when it comes to noise. In fact, it is equal to or quieter in my opinion than most geared hub motors.

 

[--freeride--]

the 1000€ are not worth the 42T first gear IMO. You will hardly use it. The 10T gear will be waste within few miles if serious power is run through. The cassette at 250€ is a bit expensive to swap it after few miles

I can recommend the 12-36T CS-HG-61 cassette, really heavy (450g) but really durable. Works with virtually any derailleur.

The 42t custom Chainring above is 50$. Thats a resonable price for a CNC-product.
I would be willing to pay that to get the better reduction.
You add it to your Cassette, thats it.

As it is 42t it will last very long! If you look after your chain.