New bike or conversion? 28 Inch wheel.

[ClgyCyclist]

Complete noob to the ebike world here. First experience was renting a Pedego in San Diego and absolutely loved them. My wife needs one now. Bad joint pain means pedaling hurts, but the Pedego enabled her to ride 30 km's (yes Canadian here) without problem.

Unfortunately I'm looking at $4,000 for A pedego. Hence the foray into e-bike conversion kits.

One thing I've noticed is I can't seem to find a kit for a 28" wheel. Do I just look for a complete new bike for her? She likes the cruiser style, so I don't mind doing that. Currently she has a 17" Ladies Giant Cypress DX.

 

[wesnewell]

26" kits are the most common, but you can find ones for other wheel sizes fairly easy these days if you search. Here's one I found in minutes.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/HomCom-28-48V1000W-Rear-Wheel-Electric-Battery-Bicycle-Motor-Conversion-Kit-LCD-/141894115755

 

[dogman dan]

Modern 28" is a 700c rim. So if your tire says 700c on it, you are good. The better vendors offer the kits in all sizes, 16"-29" The brand new 27.5" may be hard to find though.

You don't have this on your wifes bike, but others might so...

If you have old school French 28", that is a weird size. You'd find that on a european bike over 40 years old. In that case, you'd have to get a vendor to do a custom lace job. You'd send the funny rim, and they'd do custom spokes and build your wheel. Very hard to find that tire these days.

Only 26" seems to be there on most of those very cheap kits, amazon or ebay. Nothing wrong with going cruiser, get her a new Electra Townie, put a rear motor kit on it, and she will love it. Or get a similar step through frame cruiser of other brand, sun for example. Even an old school Schwinn with 7 speeds will make her a great e bike. The weight won't matter, the motor will cancel it out. But a Townie still the best choice.

 

[twist]

I would use a Mid Drive Kit:

http://lunacycle.com/mid-drive-kits/

I have the BBSHD and am really happy with it.

It is easy to convert (good for beginners) ... the controller is inside the motor mount (so less cables/cleaner look) and the wheel size doesn't matter because you don't change anything on your wheels.

 

[Drunkskunk]

If her tire uses a fraction in the size, like 28" x 1-1/2", then you will have trouble finding a wheel or tire for her bike. If the bike uses a decimal, such as 28" x 1.5", then it's a standard 700C size rim, with a larger cruiser style tire instead of skinny road tires. A 700C kit is what you'll need, and those are plentiful.

You can convert a bike with quality parts for around $700-$1000 USD http://lunacycle.com/
You can shave a bit off that price going to Ebay, but I wouldn't, especially not for the battery, and especially if not if you're building for someone else, such as your wife.

 

[ClgyCyclist]

Modern 28" is a 700c rim. So if your tire says 700c on it, you are good. The better vendors offer the kits in all sizes, 16"-29" The brand new 27.5" may be hard to find though.

You don't have this on your wifes bike, but others might so...

If you have old school French 28", that is a weird size. You'd find that on a european bike over 40 years old. In that case, you'd have to get a vendor to do a custom lace job. You'd send the funny rim, and they'd do custom spokes and build your wheel. Very hard to find that tire these days.

Only 26" seems to be there on most of those very cheap kits, amazon or ebay. Nothing wrong with going cruiser, get her a new Electra Townie, put a rear motor kit on it, and she will love it. Or get a similar step through frame cruiser of other brand, sun for example. Even an old school Schwinn with 7 speeds will make her a great e bike. The weight won't matter, the motor will cancel it out. But a Townie still the best choice.

Thank you. Makes it a little more clear. Here is the wheel/tire on my wife's bike currently:

And the wheel:

Now I found a kit that I think might work: Here.. The wheel option they have is a "Wheel Type 700C Alex DM24 CNC". Will that replace my current wheel?

 

[dogman dan]

Yep. you have a 700c bike there. modern 28". Same rim or kit would also fit a 29er, if you ever decided to get one.

Lots of availability of good kits in 700c.

On the other hand, always in need of a good excuse to buy another bike.

 

[ClgyCyclist]

Yep. you have a 700c bike there. modern 28". Same rim or kit would also fit a 29er, if you ever decided to get one.

Lots of availability of good kits in 700c.

On the other hand, always in need of a good excuse to buy another bike.

Well this is almost where I'm at. It's for the wife of course...and by the time shipping and US-->CAD conversion is added, that kit will cost me around $1800 and I have to do all the leg work, and my wife still has a 10 year old bike.

Or for $2900 I can get her this: http://pedegoelectricbikes.ca/shop/step-thru-comfort-cruiser/

And it comes in pink!!

 

[dogman dan]

FWIW, the pedegos are one of the more solid ready to ride bikes out there. Prices seem high to some, but for what you get they are not.

 

[2old]

Down here in SoCal, Pedego has a great dealer network and reputation for quality. Their three year warranty on batteries is impressive. Only thing that is slightly unpleasant to me is the weight distribution, but that's less noticeable when in motion. Definitely not for off road IMO.

 

[dogman dan]

Most of the pedego line is cruiser, or commuter bikes. Nothing really wrong with a rack battery for them, long as the battery is light.

They do offer one off road model, and it's battery is a stick type built into the downtube.
http://pedegoelectricbikes.ca/shop/ridge-rider/

 

[USAEBIKECO]

If you have the skill and time its definitely better to build your own ebike. That way you know how to fix it if it ever breaks down. Plus its a lot less expensive. 8)