Santa Cruz Nomad refresh

[Nomadstealth]

Not a build from scratch , rather a rebuild with a few new parts that make a big difference . The biggest change is the battery . This is the battery I've been searching for at a reasonable price - smaller size , lighter weight , hard case , 52 volt , 50A continuous discharge , tested to EN62133-2-22017 , Samsung 21700 cells . It's dimensions are L 279mm (11") - W 89mm (3.5") - H 107mm (4.2") and weight is 2.9 Kg (6.4 lbs) including bracket . Very little voltage sag , which means a lot more range than my previous 36 volt battery of the same 508 Ah capacity .

While the battery change was happening I took off all of the parts that I'd previously made and either remade or modified them all and painted them in Hammertone black (yep , etch primed first) . The largest piece is the battery , controller and pump mount which also helps tidy the wiring and cabling up a lot . The other pieces are the display mount , controller wire cover and a couple of bits that bolt over the seat rails to keep the saddle bag away from the seat post clamp when the post is dropped .

I purchased a CYC 1 to 1 cable for the display (no throttle for me) and got rid of a plug that I don't use . The cable is listed for the Photon on their website but it fits the X1 Stealth plug and play and is a little bit shorter .

Oh , and check out the cranks I'm using , e*thirteen 160mm . They fit really well with the Stealth , I think they're better than the CYC cranks because they've got a more rounded profile and self extractors that work .

 

[Nomadstealth]

The largest piece is the battery , controller and pump mount which also helps tidy the wiring and cabling up a lot . The other pieces are the display mount , controller wire cover and a couple of bits that bolt over the seat rails to keep the saddle bag away from the seat post clamp when the post is dropped .

 

[neptronix]

Nice pocket rocket so far!

 

[Nomadstealth]

Two build threads in one .

Similar treatment for my Wife's Heckler , same 52 volt battery .

The Heckler was a tight squeeze for everything to work . The option I chose was to swing the motor down 40mm so that the battery could be fitted lower on the downtube . That way the full 170mm of fork travel was retained , it's close , really close . In some of the photos the spring has been removed from the forks and I've pushed them down good and hard . I'd be lucky to get a piece of paper between the battery and wheel . If I thought it was an issue I'd swap the 2.4" tire out for a 2.3" .

I added a piece of rectangular tubing and some 20 x 20mm angle to the battery mount bracket to support the motor . The motor now sits 130mm lower than the downtube , same as a Bafang HD , I'm happy with that . The battery mount bracket is supported by hose clamps top and bottom and there's 4 rivnuts into the frame , it's not going anywhere .

 

[Nomadstealth]

Motor support detail

 

[Nomadstealth]

The Heckler is now 100% complete . I’m happy with the way it looks . It’s as neat as I can get it . It shouldn’t draw attention for the wrong reasons .

 

[Nomadstealth]

Did a bit of fiddling around and fabricated a better way to mount the pump . As a bonus it hides the wiring that goes to the display more than before and it feels more solid .

 

[Nomadstealth]

A better photo showing the difference of the pump location change

 

[Nomadstealth]

Everything is going well on both bikes , voltage sag is minimal and range has been greatly improved with the 52 volt batteries . Motors , controllers and batteries are above chainring height so ground clearance isn't an issue on the groomed trails that we all ride on these days . The batteries are rock solid with no movement whatsoever and are nice and easy to remove .

The plan for both bikes was the same as always , even before the e-bike crackdowns that are happening in a lot of places , keep everything as simple and as neat as possible . I'm trying not to have the Back to the Future DeLorean look for both appearance and functionality . And , as you know , nothing screams possible illegal e-bike more than a bunch of messy wiring and a poorly finished DIY battery held on with cable ties and tape . We all know that my bikes are DIY kits , but our friends in law enforcement likely wouldn't . I'd say that they'd pay more attention to the afore mentioned wiring and battery , that and massive hub motors . Well , maybe more riding in a group down the wrong side of the road doing wheelies . Great to watch that happening mind you , the Police give a bit of a chase and then give up . I think they know they can't catch them now that they're riding even faster bikes since the crackdown . I don't want to get caught in the net so I fly under the radar , my bikes would technically be illegal because in race mode I can get assistance above 25 kilometers per hour (15.5MPH) . I think that's a sieze and crush offense .

 

[Nomadstealth]

Back to the Future DeLorean look

 

[Nomadstealth]

I'm keeping this part on the same build thread because I re-purposed the old 36V batteries from both of the bikes . They're , of course , e-bike batteries and I'm sure that many others have wondered what they can do with batteries that are now un-needed but are too good to put on a shelf somewhere , unused , until they're finally re-cycled .

I decided that a 1 kWh power bank was the way to go . Parts used - 2 x BKS13614GB 36V 14Ah 504Wh Batteries , 1 x 36VDC to 240VAC 300 watt pure sine wave inverter , 1 x 36V dual battery connector (battery pack balance discharger) and 1 x 30A Surface Mount Waterproof DC Circuit Breaker .

The reason for the dual batteries , besides doubling the storage capacity , is that the initial draw from the inverters capacitors was too much for a single battery . The start up procedure is , make sure the circuit breaker is off (I use it as a master switch) , turn both batteries on , turn the master switch on and then turn the inverter on .

 

[99t4]

Very tidy workmanship, well executed.

 

[n00b]

Everything is going well on both bikes , voltage sag is minimal and range has been greatly improved with the 52 volt batteries . Motors , controllers and batteries are above chainring height so ground clearance isn't an issue on the groomed trails that we all ride on these days . The batteries are rock solid with no movement whatsoever and are nice and easy to remove .

The plan for both bikes was the same as always , even before the e-bike crackdowns that are happening in a lot of places , keep everything as simple and as neat as possible . I'm trying not to have the Back to the Future DeLorean look for both appearance and functionality . And , as you know , nothing screams possible illegal e-bike more than a bunch of messy wiring and a poorly finished DIY battery held on with cable ties and tape . We all know that my bikes are DIY kits , but our friends in law enforcement likely wouldn't . I'd say that they'd pay more attention to the afore mentioned wiring and battery , that and massive hub motors . Well , maybe more riding in a group down the wrong side of the road doing wheelies . Great to watch that happening mind you , the Police give a bit of a chase and then give up . I think they know they can't catch them now that they're riding even faster bikes since the crackdown . I don't want to get caught in the net so I fly under the radar , my bikes would technically be illegal because in race mode I can get assistance above 25 kilometers per hour (15.5MPH) . I think that's a sieze and crush offense .

I think you're unlikely to get hassled on that. Looks pretty low-key to me.
It took me some mistakes before I figured out to not let the battery clack around at all.
It's some Murphy's Law stuff about that.

 

[Nomadstealth]

Very tidy workmanship, well executed.

Thanks 99t4 , it did turn out rather well . 50% planning , 50% wow , how did I get that bit right .

 

[Nomadstealth]

I think you're unlikely to get hassled on that. Looks pretty low-key to me.
It took me some mistakes before I figured out to not let the battery clack around at all.
It's some Murphy's Law stuff about that.

Yeah , I'm with you , I think I'd have to be in the wrong place at the wrong time to get hassled . Anything that looks like a motorbike or is being ridden like a motorbike would attract a lot more attention than me pedalling past .

I'd say that nearly everyone has made battery fitting mistakes , how easy is it to look at the typical cradle and look at the water cage mounts , put two and two together and bolt it down . Two 5mm bolts on a round tube are never going to be enough to hold a battery in place , but we do it anyway .

 

[n00b]

Yeah , I'm with you , I think I'd have to be in the wrong place at the wrong time to get hassled . Anything that looks like a motorbike or is being ridden like a motorbike would attract a lot more attention than me pedalling past .

I'd say that nearly everyone has made battery fitting mistakes , how easy is it to look at the typical cradle and look at the water cage mounts , put two and two together and bolt it down . Two 5mm bolts on a round tube are never going to be enough to hold a battery in place , but we do it anyway .

I drilled through the tube and used nuts and bolts.
With the hand-torque-wrench.
That doesn't even click, just steady hand pressure.
Battery has 3 bolts holding it on, though. Could be 4 if I wanted.