Qulbix Raptor ebike + frame kit

[ecruz]

Hi guys,

I was just trying to fit a bottom-bracket incl. crankset from race-face but i Looks like it is not wide enough to fit the raptor frame. The bottom-bracket is a Standard 83mm which fits the Frame well, but the crankset (especially the axle) seems not wide enough. Actually the crank is touching the Swinging arm (rear). Any suggestions or ideas what I should do else or what component I must buy? Thanks!

Kind regards
Lars

Ecruz just commented on this recently that his pedals/crankarms just clear the swingarm.

Could you take pictures of your crankset actually hitting the swingarm and is it on both sides?

How much more clearance do you need so the pedals do not hit the swingarm? I know that many bottom brackets come with 2.5mm spacers so you may be able to use these spacers to give you some extra clearance.

I must say it seems that ecruz, moonshine, Da-Ben, and even torque bikes all use truvativ bottom brackets and maybe truvativ cranks. These truvativ bottom brackets and cranks look to have a wider q-factor, by both the bottom bracket being wider and the pedals flare out more. From what I can see it may be the case that we may only be able to use wide q-factor cranks/bottom brackets. But again I have no idea just speaking from what I have seen works.

Truvativ bottom bracket looks to be wide.

hollowtech 2 bottom brackets look to be thinner

I had to use 4 spacers to clear the swing arm with my 83mm Chris King BB

 

[moonshine]

No prob Questionman! Overall I think she runs great. I need to adjust the seat height since I'm 5'7" on a good day. I've put the seat post on its lowest seeing but it's still to high for me. I also noticed that the further my seat goes back the more I notice hitting my knees/thigh against the seat mount

As for the pedals hitting the ground while turning,I think my sag is set too high. I also have another higher mounting point for the spring.

I'm also planning on switching over to a 19" pro wheel soon. So my 26" cromo will be on the market.

Any input on how to post videos?

 

[QuestionMan]

No prob Questionman! Overall I think she runs great. I need to adjust the seat height since I'm 5'7" on a good day. I've put the seat post on its lowest seeing but it's still to high for me. I also noticed that the further my seat goes back the more I notice hitting my knees/thigh against the seat mount

As for the pedals hitting the ground while turning,I think my sag is set too high. I also have another higher mounting point for the spring.

I'm also planning on switching over to a 19" pro wheel soon. So my 26" cromo will be on the market.

Any input on how to post videos?

moonshine, did you buy the motorcycle seat? At 5'7", that is what you should really be using. I think the raptor bicycle seat is too high, even at the lowest setting. When I lowered my cross country e-bike seat down after finally cutting my seat tube it was so much better riding it and I'm a few inches taller than you.

Would love to see some videos, do you have them on youtube?

 

[GCinDC]

moonshine dropped by yesterday to borrow a dremel to cut a hole for a centronix connnector to monitor cell balance:

we did a short vid. i'm 6'0" and you can see how tall it is when i straddle it...
[youtube]CkiyV6L-Rl4[/youtube]
i think he needs to up the throttle response a bit, and also configure the kelly so it's not so noisy. or is that to be expected?

the end got cut off, but he was saying he should have gotten the moto seat. can he install it or is too late?

 

[Da-Ben]

Yeah you can easily swap between moto and bicycle seat, i got them both.

 

[ecruz]

Yeah you can easily swap between moto and bicycle seat, i got them both.

Just 4 bolts!

 

[Rix]

Great vid, I wasn't giving the cromotor enough credit. That thing accelerates hard with a 26MTB. Would only get better with a 19, 18, or even 17MC wheel rim laced up.

Rick

 

[moonshine]

yea...so def should get the moto seat. Or modify the mount so it sits lower. As for the cromo...it's laced in a 26" large marge and has 3" kenda tires on it. OD is ~28". It's great for top speed, but since i'm in dc I need a smaller rim. Will be on the lookout for a 19" cromo. as for the throttle response...i set the kelly to 3/10 which i thought was pretty fast. I suppose i could set it to 1/10 and put it on TORQUE mode. i have it on SPEED mode. But i think the main culprit is switching over to a smaller wheel.

 

[moonshine]

just bought a cromo v3 and a 19"x1.85 prowheel

http://www.prowheelracing.com/big-bike-rear-rim-1-85-x-19-blue/ GOT IT FOR $35 on ebay!!!! WOOHOO!!!!

 

[Rix]

just bought a cromo v3 and a 19"x1.85 prowheel

http://www.prowheelracing.com/big-bike-rear-rim-1-85-x-19-blue/ GOT IT FOR $35 on ebay!!!! WOOHOO!!!!

WOW! You stole that rim for 35 bucks. That's awesome. Yah the 19x1.85 should be about 1.5 pounds heavier than the 19x1.4. Running that rim on your cromo you should need spokes cut around 133mm. Add a mm or two if you have to have washers between the nipple and rim. This is provided that the cromo V3 still has a 244mm flange diameter like the V1 and v2 did.

Rick

 

[QuestionMan]

just bought a cromo v3 and a 19"x1.85 prowheel

http://www.prowheelracing.com/big-bike-rear-rim-1-85-x-19-blue/ GOT IT FOR $35 on ebay!!!! WOOHOO!!!!

WOW! You stole that rim for 35 bucks. That's awesome. Yah the 19x1.85 should be about 1.5 pounds heavier than the 19x1.4. Running that rim on your cromo you should need spokes cut around 133mm. Add a mm or two if you have to have washers between the nipple and rim. This is provided that the cromo V3 still has a 244mm flange diameter like the V1 and v2 did.

Rick

Rix, I forget why but I thought you preferred the 1.4 over the 1.85?

 

[Rix]

Qman, the 1.4 is lighter than the 1.85 by 1.5-2 pounds. I base this on the difference between my 18x1.4 and 18x1.85 rims. So I would give the edge to the the 1.4 wide for that reason. But if you look at Zombiess build thread for his new Greyborg bike frame, you will see that he is running 2.15x19 front and rear. Anyway no doubt that the 1.85 will work just fine.

Rick

 

[carsonwen]

Would it be possible to use 19" wheels front and back with the raptor from? or would the pedals not have enough clearance from ground?

 

[QuestionMan]

Would it be possible to use 19" wheels front and back with the raptor from? or would the pedals not have enough clearance from ground?

19" bicycle wheels or 19" motocross wheels?


This is just my opinion from research and recommendations. I never tried anything here!

19" motocross front and rear wheels you would probably be fine, but you're better using a 19" rear motocross wheel and a 26" bicycle wheel up front.


By using 26" bicycle up front you can keep the bike geometry the same by adjusting the shock height in the rear for the smaller 19" tire. This way you would keep the bike up higher for proper ground clearance.

Also a 19" motocross wheel and tire is heavy and not needed in the front.

 

[moonshine]

so i guess i'll be able to help answer this dilemma since i'm getting 19"x1.85 front and back.

 

[zombiess]

so i guess i'll be able to help answer this dilemma since i'm getting 19"x1.85 front and back.

I think you are going to love it. Once you go moped or MC rims/tires you get spoiled. The Shinko SR244 is a good dual sport tire that I've read is setup for around 60% street 40% dirt. It's the same tire I am running. I also have a set in 17" for another build. These damn ebike and parts are multiplying like rabbits.

Forget worry about the weight difference between bicycle and MC rims/tires, bicycle tires are weak sauce and over priced. Having 2-3 times better grip and not worrying about flats offsets the 7-10lbs weight difference. A 19" MC setup should put your tire diameter between 24.8-25.6" depending on tire choice. I believe the same Shinko SR244s I run can be had in a 2.5" width. My 2.75" tires on a 2.15" rim end up being 3.3" at the cross section, very fat. Running the narrower rim is a good idea, I got lucky everything fit on my setup, my front tire literally has around 5mm clearance at the widest tire/narrowest fork point. Looks killer though.

I had some issues finding narrow street only tires in 19", but decided I wanted to go dual sport in the end since this is my demo bike. If you are looking for some tire choices check out treatland.tv
https://www.treatland.tv/new-puch-peugeot-motobecane-vespa-moped-parts-s/88.htm?searching=Y&sort=3&cat=88&f-tires%20%20%20wheels%20%20%20brakes=56&show=99&page=1&search=%2019

 

[moonshine]

i like the shinko 244's but i'm not sure how they'll look in the front as well...might be a bit overkill. Shinko 241 in the front? 244 rear. I'm genuinely concerned about the pedal height. I'm not sure how i'm gonna work this out...but i need to be able to put my feet on the ground. I'm working on the seatpost to get lower and a seat that will actually mount lower on the post. any suggestions?


check out this setup...19" front/rear (way beyond overkill for my bike, but still frickin sweet)
http://images.motorcycle-usa.com/PhotoGallerys/11-project-flat-track-2.jpg

 

[GCinDC]

I'm genuinely concerned about the pedal height.

maybe you can get shorter cranks, like this (from here):

sorry, i couldn't resist. :lol:

but i'm not sure how they'll look in the front as well...

probably like this!

from here.

 

[Rix]

so i guess i'll be able to help answer this dilemma since i'm getting 19"x1.85 front and back.

I think you are going to love it. Once you go moped or MC rims/tires you get spoiled. The Shinko SR244 is a good dual sport tire that I've read is setup for around 60% street 40% dirt. It's the same tire I am running. I also have a set in 17" for another build. These damn ebike and parts are multiplying like rabbits.

Forget worry about the weight difference between bicycle and MC rims/tires, bicycle tires are weak sauce and over priced. Having 2-3 times better grip and not worrying about flats offsets the 7-10lbs weight difference. A 19" MC setup should put your tire diameter between 24.8-25.6" depending on tire choice. I believe the same Shinko SR244s I run can be had in a 2.5" width. My 2.75" tires on a 2.15" rim end up being 3.3" at the cross section, very fat. Running the narrower rim is a good idea, I got lucky everything fit on my setup, my front tire literally has around 5mm clearance at the widest tire/narrowest fork point. Looks killer though.
I had some issues finding narrow street only tires in 19", but decided I wanted to go dual sport in the end since this is my demo bike. If you are looking for some tire choices check out treatland.tv
https://www.treatland.tv/new-puch-peugeot-motobecane-vespa-moped-parts-s/88.htm?searching=Y&sort=3&cat=88&f-tires%20%20%20wheels%20%20%20brakes=56&show=99&page=1&search=%2019

Yes, this is very true Zombiess, I have been preaching this for a while myself. Narrow (by MC standards) motorcycle tires are the best for Ebikes. Yes, the 10# weight gain is a miniscule of a price to pay for the increased toughness, traction, and SAFETY of running a MC tire over an MTB tire. So far, none of the people I have turned to running MC tires has switched back on their hi powered rigs. The general consensus is, the weight gain was well worth it.

19" motocross front and rear wheels you would probably be fine, but you're better using a 19" rear motocross wheel and a 26" bicycle wheel up front.

This is also true. I haven't tried this myself, but running a 19 MC on the rear with a 26MTB on the front would be the same as running a 24MTB on the rear and a 26MTB on the front in terms of geometry shifts. I know that works very well as my dad is running the 24/26 MTB combo on his MAC Power DH Ebike. Since his MAC is limited to 1500 watts, and top speed of 28MPH, and the bike only weighs 64 pounds, MTB tires and rims are adequate for him and he doesn't have an interest at this time of converting over to heavier longer lasting MC tires....Yet. Of course, pushing almost 70, my dad takes it slow and easy and the offroad trails in Idaho are butter smooth. For this reason, MTB tires work for my dad. For those looking at running a different size front and rear tire, here is a pic of my dad and his ebike running a Kenda 24x2.7 on the rear and a 26x2.5 maxxis on the front.

 

[Rix]

I'm genuinely concerned about the pedal height.

maybe you can get shorter cranks, like this (from here):

sorry, i couldn't resist. :lol:

but i'm not sure how they'll look in the front as well...

probably like this!

from here.

GCinDC, those cranks in the top pic are short. I tossed the idea around of cutting and shorting the Vboxx cranks to a 150mm. I still may, I think going much shorter than that would remove my ability to productively pedal the machine under its own power though. Need a certain amount of leverage. On the bottom pic, what rims are you running with the 244s? They look like they could be 19x2.15s, but I cant tell for sure. Either way, looks tough as hell.

Rick

 

[GCinDC]

GCinDC, those cranks in the top pic are short.

yep. was a joke!

Qman, the 1.4 is lighter than the 1.85 by 1.5-2 pounds. I base this on the difference between my 18x1.4 and 18x1.85 rims.

got a link for any 19 x 1.4 MC rims? i couldn't find any... or 1.6?

 

[zombiess]

I am beginning to think that 10 years from now we as a group are going to be looked back on as major innovators of Ebikes. Much like the early mountain bikers and first full suspension bikes. Ebikes in general seem to be getting more popular and more mainstream manufacturer's are getting on board.

It might be a passing fad, but I don't think so due to how popular bikes are. Where I am at now bikes are not seen as exercise but as transportation. Many stores here have bike racks and bikes parked in them. I Aldo see alot of people riding long boards. We are close to the beach so that explains a lot of it,but bikes are very popular. Police don't even bother enforcing common bike traffic rules which is odd to me. So many dangerous riders you have to watch out for like the ones riding against traffic in the bike lane.

 

[RoughRider]

hey guys can anyone tell me what the weight of the bare frame(without swingarm) is?

Thanks...

 

[moonshine]

Zombiess,

I agree man. I thought it was gonna be a fad, but all these bike shops selling 2k road bikes are starting to get stromers in stock and start telling me how awesome they are. Little do they know...

 

[Rix]

GCinDC, those cranks in the top pic are short.

yep. was a joke!

Qman, the 1.4 is lighter than the 1.85 by 1.5-2 pounds. I base this on the difference between my 18x1.4 and 18x1.85 rims.

got a link for any 19 x 1.4 MC rims? i couldn't find any... or 1.6?

GCinDC, Check http://www.prowheelracing.com/yamaha-play-bike-front-rim-1-40-x-19-silver/ I have two of these rims and they are really awesome.

zombiess » Sat Oct 26, 2013 10:08 am
I am beginning to think that 10 years from now we as a group are going to be looked back on as major innovators of Ebikes. Much like the early mountain bikers and first full suspension bikes. Ebikes in general seem to be getting more popular and more mainstream manufacturer's are getting on board.
It might be a passing fad, but I don't think so due to how popular bikes are. Where I am at now bikes are not seen as exercise but as transportation. Many stores here have bike racks and bikes parked in them. I Aldo see alot of people riding long boards. We are close to the beach so that explains a lot of it,but bikes are very popular. Police don't even bother enforcing common bike traffic rules which is odd to me. So many dangerous riders you have to watch out for like the ones riding against traffic in the bike lane.

+1, I agree totally. Ebikes how been around sine Lee Iacocca had the SLA powered machines for sale back in the 60s (even though brief) had failed because running 2 or 3 12v MC batteries at a whopping 6AH of storage was HEAVY. I think we are still in the infancy of the modern Ebike because electric energy storage technology has evolved more in the last 15 years than it has in the prior 50 years before that. From my perspective, the guys that were doing this just 6 years ago are the old timers, even if they aren't old like me. Yah, 10 years from now, we will be the innovative old timers for sure.