Quick thumb throttle question

[Kenny'sID]

I've only used the thumb throttle with led power indicators and on/off switch and I want to go on the cheap with this bike.

I see several of these listed....

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Universal-7-8-Thumb-Throttle-Assembly-For-E-Bike-Electric-Bike-Scooter-3-Wires-/271905414999?hash=item3f4ed35f57:g:2oYAAOSw9N1Vgo0p&vxp=mtr

...but no mention of what voltage they cover, and some claim they are universal.

1) Am I to take from that, on a throttle only without indicator, they will all work with any voltage?

2) Is no power on switch needed for these, as in it's always ready and just pressing the throttle activates the power?

Thanks once again for all the help.

 

[mybike]

Yes.. Throttles do all voltages no problem there as the controller will take care of that.
When connected the power is always on to the throttle unless you put a on/off switch or a key switch so when you twist the throttle power will be supplied.
That is correct There is no power switch needed however I would recommend a on/off key switch or power on/off switch for safety.

 

[hedsik]

I understand you want to go on the cheap, but accidentally going wide open throttle on say, something more than 750watt is really asking for trouble.

 

[Kenny'sID]

Yes.. Throttles do all voltages no problem there as the controller will take care of that.
When connected the power is always on to the throttle unless you put a on/off switch or a key switch so when you twist the throttle power will be supplied.
That is correct There is no power switch needed however I would recommend a on/off key switch or power on/off switch for safety.

Ok, just what I needed to know.

And I agree, an on and off switch, or I'm even thinking a keyed throttle eventually. I just want to make sure all is well with this one, then will likely upgrade, Also, at the price for these throttles, won't hurt to have an extra for testing.

Thanks much.

 

[Kenny'sID]

I understand you want to go on the cheap, but accidentally going wide open throttle on say, something more than 750watt is really asking for trouble.

It's a 1000W. Are these throttles more susceptible to accidental wide open than most?

 

[d8veh]

All throttles work on 5v from the controller, so can be used with any voltage battery. If it has battery indicator LEDs, then there'll be a separate wire carrying battery voltage and the LEDs need to be matched to that voltage.

 

[Kenny'sID]

All throttles work on 5v from the controller, so can be used with any voltage battery. If it has battery indicator LEDs, then there'll be a separate wire carrying battery voltage and the LEDs need to be matched to that voltage.

Good to know. So just for testing purposes, or even full usage, just about any throttle can be used on anything, minus the battery indicator. That can come in handy....thanks

 

[hedsik]

I understand you want to go on the cheap, but accidentally going wide open throttle on say, something more than 750watt is really asking for trouble.

It's a 1000W. Are these throttles more susceptible to accidental wide open than most?

Unsure. I rely on the led indicator lights a lot.

 

[d8veh]

If you have a throttle with LEDs and or a switch, there will be 5, 6 or 7 wires - normally three for the throttle, two for the switch and one for the LEDs. You need to figure out which wire is which. You only need to connect the three throttle wires. The others are optional. You can connect a throttle with 36v LEDs to a 48v system, but the LEDs will be on all the time, and for a 48v one connected to a 36v one, they'll be off most of the time.

The three wires for the throttle, which are easy to identify on OP's link because it only has three are:
red = 5v
black = 0v (ground)
green = signal wire (1v -4v). Another common colour is white. Sometimes blue.

 

[Ykick]

I've bought several dirt cheap Wilderness Energy thumb throttles off eBay which use Red +5V, Yellow Gnd, Green Signal.

Took couple tries to figure out Yellow = gnd.

 

[d8veh]

I've bought several dirt cheap Wilderness Energy thumb throttles off eBay which use Red +5V, Yellow Gnd, Green Signal.

Took couple tries to figure out Yellow = gnd.

That's interesting. For some reason, the hidden wire brake switches have yellow as ground too.

 

[Kenny'sID]

If you have a throttle with LEDs and or a switch, there will be 5, 6 or 7 wires - normally three for the throttle, two for the switch and one for the LEDs. You need to figure out which wire is which. You only need to connect the three throttle wires. The others are optional. You can connect a throttle with 36v LEDs to a 48v system, but the LEDs will be on all the time, and for a 48v one connected to a 36v one, they'll be off most of the time.

The three wires for the throttle, which are easy to identify on OP's link because it only has three are:
red = 5v
black = 0v (ground)
green = signal wire (1v -4v). Another common colour is white. Sometimes blue.

Good, that narrows it down even more. Everything I ever wanted to know about throttles, but didn't know to ask.

The one that came with the kit, the one this is replacing, had 6 wires. All worked well with it but about 1/3 of the way through the twist, it dropped off to nothing. It seemed to get full throttle but would be nearly impossible to use that way....brand new too. I'll probably take it apart eventually to see if it's fixable, but really have no idea what to look for.

 

[Kenny'sID]

I've bought several dirt cheap Wilderness Energy thumb throttles off eBay which use Red +5V, Yellow Gnd, Green Signal.

Took couple tries to figure out Yellow = gnd.

Guess that means they work well enough...good...got it on order.

 

[Ykick]

I've bought several dirt cheap Wilderness Energy thumb throttles off eBay which use Red +5V, Yellow Gnd, Green Signal.

Took couple tries to figure out Yellow = gnd.

Guess that means they work well enough...good...got it on order.

They’re as good as any other basic 3-wire thumb throttle I’ve used. Hard to beat for $7 shipped. For that price keep several on hand because throttles are easily damaged by falling over or running into things.

In fact, I’m pleased to see ‘em still available which reminds me I better stock back up…

 

[d8veh]

The one that came with the kit, the one this is replacing, had 6 wires. All worked well with it but about 1/3 of the way through the twist, it dropped off to nothing. It seemed to get full throttle but would be nearly impossible to use that way....brand new too. I'll probably take it apart eventually to see if it's fixable, but really have no idea what to look for.

The six wire ones have an extra wire (green?) for the LEDs and two extra ones (yellow and brown?) for the switch.

Throttles have a hall sensor inside and two magnets. The magnets are often connected by a strip of soft iron. If you take both magnets away, the hall sensor gives middle voltage, i.e. about half throttle. The magnets are orientated the opposite way to each other N vs S. When you bring one magnet to the hall sensor, it pulls the voltage down to about 1.3v, which the controller sees as zero throttle. When you bring the other magnet to the hall sensor, it pulls the voltage up to about 3.7v, which the controller sees as full throttle.

From your symptoms, it could be that the magnets were slotted in in the same orientation instead of opposite, Alternatively, the high throttle magnet could be displaced.

 

[Kenny'sID]

I've bought several dirt cheap Wilderness Energy thumb throttles off eBay which use Red +5V, Yellow Gnd, Green Signal.

Took couple tries to figure out Yellow = gnd.

Guess that means they work well enough...good...got it on order.

They’re as good as any other basic 3-wire thumb throttle I’ve used. Hard to beat for $7 shipped. For that price keep several on hand because throttles are easily damaged by falling over or running into things.

In fact, I’m pleased to see ‘em still available which reminds me I better stock back up…

Agree...and since this build will usually be used withe trailer, plenty of space to keep one on hand...you never know.

 

[Kenny'sID]

The one that came with the kit, the one this is replacing, had 6 wires. All worked well with it but about 1/3 of the way through the twist, it dropped off to nothing. It seemed to get full throttle but would be nearly impossible to use that way....brand new too. I'll probably take it apart eventually to see if it's fixable, but really have no idea what to look for.

The six wire ones have an extra wire (green?) for the LEDs and two extra ones (yellow and brown?) for the switch.

Throttles have a hall sensor inside and two magnets. The magnets are often connected by a strip of soft iron. If you take both magnets away, the hall sensor gives middle voltage, i.e. about half throttle. The magnets are orientated the opposite way to each other N vs S. When you bring one magnet to the hall sensor, it pulls the voltage down to about 1.3v, which the controller sees as zero throttle. When you bring the other magnet to the hall sensor, it pulls the voltage up to about 3.7v, which the controller sees as full throttle.

From your symptoms, it could be that the magnets were slotted in in the same orientation instead of opposite, Alternatively, the high throttle magnet could be displaced.

Good stuff. Makes sense...sounds like a factory defect and now I have some idea of what to look for. I think that throttle by itself goes for about $20 so worth the look. Of course, I'll open a $2 throttle, not so much because it's cost effective to fix but sheer curiosity and the thrill of the fix can be a motivator in itself.

 

[Kenny'sID]

If you have a throttle with LEDs and or a switch, there will be 5, 6 or 7 wires - normally three for the throttle, two for the switch and one for the LEDs. You need to figure out which wire is which. You only need to connect the three throttle wires. The others are optional. You can connect a throttle with 36v LEDs to a 48v system, but the LEDs will be on all the time, and for a 48v one connected to a 36v one, they'll be off most of the time.

The three wires for the throttle, which are easy to identify on OP's link because it only has three are:
red = 5v
black = 0v (ground)
green = signal wire (1v -4v). Another common colour is white. Sometimes blue.

The Controller connector marked "throttle" has 3 wires...a red, blue and a black, and the Throttle wires as you say are red, green, and black. So red from controller, to red on throttle, black from controller to black on throttle, and that leaves a blue on the controller and a green on the throttle, Before I connect the green to the blue, I guess I need to be sure on what "signal" means. All seems to match up with what you are saying since you say the green wire is sometimes blue, and that would put blue with blue if that were the case, but just double checking.

The Halls and Phase wires are obvious, as are the Pos/neg to the controller, leaving just the red wire from controller marked as "lock cable" that on the last controller was the wire that turned the controller on and I assume still goes directly to the 48v positive on the battery? That red power on wire to 48v should probably have a switch added unless I just want to unplug everything when done riding. Is that all correct?

After burning up a controller, I'm real skittish about this but have always gotten good info from here, so I'll likely check here again with pics or whatever once hooked up and before I add power but just want to be certain I'm headed in the right direction at this point.

 

[d8veh]

You are correct in the way to connect the throttle.

The signal wire is the blue one joined to the green. Its voltage changes between about 2v and 4v dpending on the position of the throttle. The controller reads that voltage as a signal for how much speed to give.

I would say that you are correct about the thin red ignition (lock) wire. The only way to be certain is to open the controller and see where it goes. If it goes to one end of the big resistor/s, it's the ignition wire.

 

[Kenny'sID]

You are correct in the way to connect the throttle.

The signal wire is the blue one joined to the green. Its voltage changes between about 2v and 4v dpending on the position of the throttle. The controller reads that voltage as a signal for how much speed to give.

I would say that you are correct about the thin red ignition (lock) wire. The only way to be certain is to open the controller and see where it goes. If it goes to one end of the big resistor/s, it's the ignition wire.

Thanks so much D8...feel a lot less on edge about proceeding now. I just did a controller identical to this one on a twist/LED indicator throttle and for some reason the wire marked as lock was the ignition...verified here as well as from the seller, but with names as confusing as that, good to know how to verify it by tracing it out. I usually do OK with this Chinese English, but that still has me wondering. All I can figure is Lock means off for Off/On? Thanks again!