Newby retiree needs a boost on his 29er in the Tropics.

[wildlands1]

People, I'm 61 and feel I need to try these e-bikes, after many years as a hardcore cyclist. I now live in the central Philippines, where it's hot, humid, and the roads can be steep. I ride 90% cement roads and I have a nearly new Niner AIR-9 regular aluminum mountain bike. So I'm thinking of saving money by just adding either a mid-drive, or maybe a rear hub, motor. I think I want a relatively powerful set-up with long range, maybe a 48V-15+ah 500W motor and a 750W battery? I've been researching options this past week, and it's really confusing. My BB shell on the frame is 78mm and I currently run a triple crank and a 10speed cassette with 130mmrear hub spacing. I want a quality set-up since we don't have any dealers around here, and one that won't overheat. What say you?

 

[Keith Pegg]

I was in Japan 3 years + ago, hilly area and picked up a 29", I added a 1000w hub motor and 20amp 48 volt battery with a good controller and Cycle Annalist, it all works great, however on steep hills it will require some pedal power. Mid drive I am told works better??? 500 watt will give you a boost on the flat however on hills you may over heat?? I am a big man 260 Lbs I needed a lot. Am now in the states in a very flat area and ride a lot, If I don't pedal or do I never have problems. Good luck.

 

[wildlands1]

Oh, I DO want to pedal. It's for exercise here. I have a scooter and a dirt bike otherwise.

 

[John and Cecil]

52v 750w Tsdz2 mid drive is a nice option for under $400. the bbs02 is about $100 more and can be programmed to provide more power. the tsdz2 has a torque sensor and applies power according to how hard you pedal, the bbs02 applies power if you move the pedals. You might have to swap drive gears on the tsdz2 if you are going to be climbing brutal hills, the nylon stock gear can strip on some people.

with your weight and those steep hills you will need to pedal pretty hard. I find I have to peddle a bit with my tsdz2 when climbing 10% grades with 220lb rider weight at 8mph. You may want to consider a bbshd, that puts out even more power for climbing than the bbs02.

I would get a motor that can handle 52v batteries if possible, the extra power will be helpful. as for battery size you need to determine how much you will be using it. an example would be if you had the 750w motor and you wanted it for hill climbing only and planned to climb about an hour of hills at near full speed you would need 750wh of battery, which would be a 52v 15ah give or take (V x AH = WH).

Some people have gotten to use 2 chainrings with a mid drive but it is difficult and the chainline is often very poor. It is probably best to run only one chainring on your bike and use a wide ratio rear cassette.

Edit: Forget all that which I just typed, neither tsdz2 nor bbs02 will work with a 78mm bb as far as I know. I misread it as 68mm, are you sure you do not have a 68 or 73mm bb? Those are the very common sizes. A bbshd should be able to work with your bb if shimmed properly.

 

[ScooterMan101]

https://www.singletracks.com/blog/mtb-gear/aluminum-niner-air-9-bike/

I am seeing here that it has a PF 30 Bottom Bracket
and
148 mm rear dropout spacing . ( for boost size wheels/tires )

So
An off the shelf Mid-Drive like the BBSxx or TSDZ02, etc it not going to be easy to do , there is only one BB conversion from BB30/PF30 to threaded that I have been told works well enough, it is made by Praxis works in Santa Cruz , California.
Even then not sure the width of your frames BB Shell ?

So
Even though a Mid-Drive would be best, you can go up hills with a hub motor, just get the lowest speed/highest torque hub motor like the Mac 12T hub motor and lace the motor into a 27.5 or 26 inch rim . You can put a smaller wheel on the back , it is better for torque and going up hills, and gives you the added benefit of making the front end more of a Slack/Relaxed angle which is good the faster you go for street riding.
It is easy to make a Rear Hub motor that has 135 mm dropout spacing work with a bike frame with 148 mm dropout spacing , just use spacers .

* Note * All that I have written in the above paragraph applies only if your frame has the older style rear dropouts , it it has the modern through axle frame/wheel, then , well you are back at looking for a mid-drive .

Living in a Tropical area I would only get a e-bike kit that has the
" waterproof " connectors , also called HiGo . for all connections to the motor/battery/and display like the Cycle Analyst V3

If you do have a through axle rear then you will be better to get a
Cyclone Mid-Drive
or
A Lighting Rod's Mid or Big Block Mid-Drive ( Better Mounting than a cyclone and better components .
or
if you have allot of money a Tangent Mid-Drive

Then there are other mid-drives under development like one from PaulD and one from , Ecyclist, but those sadly are not quite ready to buy yet.

People, I'm 61 and feel I need to try these e-bikes, after many years as a hardcore cyclist. I now live in the central Philippines, where it's hot, humid, and the roads can be steep. I ride 90% cement roads and I have a nearly new Niner AIR-9 regular aluminum mountain bike. So I'm thinking of saving money by just adding either a mid-drive, or maybe a rear hub, motor. I think I want a relatively powerful set-up with long range, maybe a 48V-15+ah 500W motor and a 750W battery? I've been researching options this past week, and it's really confusing. My BB shell on the frame is 78mm and I currently run a triple crank and a 10speed cassette with 130mmrear hub spacing. I want a quality set-up since we don't have any dealers around here, and one that won't overheat. What say you?