New build - Electra Townie 7d

[yoyoman]

I picked up a Electra Townie for $200 yesterday. That's the most I have paid for a bike in a while, but finding a cruiser with front/rear hand brakes is not that easy. I hope I will ride this one often since there aren't many other bikes that would be more comfortable.

I haven't decided if I'll put a 9C or my Bionx on the bike yet. I will probably go with the 9C since I figure I'll keep the Bionx for another disc brake enabled bike.

The frame has a ridiculous amount of space for batteries, so I think I'll start with 3 stripped down Bosch fatpacks and eventually get to 48V lipo.

Hopefully I'll finish everything soon.

 

[Samd]

Sounds like a nice build. Whats the width of the rear dropouts please?

 

[nicobie]

Sounds like a nice build. Whats the width of the rear dropouts please?

Townie's dropouts are 135mm and stock have disc brakes in the front and v brakes in the rear.

I stuck 9 - 5 ah lipo batteries in the frame of my townie 21.

I think that they make excellent ebikes. Nice long wheelbase, very stable at speed.

 

[yoyoman]

I would say it's the standard width of a 9c wheel. I had to file the edges of the dropout for a better fit, but width wise, it's a perfect fit. I don't know off hand what that is ... 135mm?

 

[yoyoman]

Townie's dropouts are 135mm and stock have disc brakes in the front and v brakes in the rear.

My Townie is this one +/- some years. The 2011 7d at REI (http://www.rei.com/product/813223/electra-townie-7d-bike-2011) doesn't have front disc brakes

 

[yoyoman]

For this bike, I built the 9c wheel myself, but the wires from the motor are short, and I have to add an extension for it to reach the controller. For that, I have to scrounge together some connectors and wiring now. My other 9C wheel, which I bought as a full wheel, had all the proper connectors and the wiring was more than sufficient to reach the controller.

My Bionx bike, Crystalyte 408 (gohub kit), and Currie USPD bikes all came pretty much plug and go.

 

[itselectric]

I picked up a Electra Townie for $200 yesterday. That's the most I have paid for a bike in a while, but finding a cruiser with front/rear hand brakes is not that easy. I hope I will ride this one often since there aren't many other bikes that would be more comfortable.

I haven't decided if I'll put a 9C or my Bionx on the bike yet. I will probably go with the 9C since I figure I'll keep the Bionx for another disc brake enabled bike.

The frame has a ridiculous amount of space for batteries, so I think I'll start with 3 stripped down Bosch fatpacks and eventually get to 48V lipo.

Hopefully I'll finish everything soon.

I just finished one a few hours ago, that is the same model Electra Townie 7d, with the Bionx RRL kit

 

[docnjoj]

That is a nice looking bike! If only Bionx would use some proprietary parts many more of us would consider them as a fairly good option for our own bikes and trikes.
otherDoc

 

[yoyoman]

I failed at soldering some wiring extensions the other night, and so I may end up just putting my Bionx on this bike. Since I won't have disc brakes on the bike, having the regen braking will be a good addition to the v-brakes.

 

[yoyoman]

I finally finished everything last night. This is my 4th build, and this one took the longest since all the other ones had wiring matching the controller or were plug and go. I guess this one is also special since I laced the wheel myself. Since this is the first time I've ridden the 9C wheel, I'll have to do some spoke adjustments after they settle in.

I replaced the prior owner's ape hanger bars with a standard bent bar. I will probably look for a swept bend bar instead. I also replaced the brake handles with some Avid ones. I didn't get around to replacing the brakes yet. Oh, I do miss my disc brakes and suspension. Maybe I'll look for a replacement front fork with disc tabs. It'll probably be harder to find since the steerer tube is so long.

Next steps might be to mount my 3 Bosch fatpacks in the frame in a bag that hangs over the top tube. Maybe 2 batteries on one side, and the 3rd battery and controller on the other. That will balance the weight more, and then I can carry groceries in a pannier bag.