Suppliers of Hub Kits - South African Distributor?

[jayc]

Hey everyone!

Very new to the whole E-Bike topic but after watching the "Who killed the electric car" documentary I started thinking about my own "EV". A electric car was a bit out of my scope at this point and so settled on a e-bike (So fanatastically awesome!!!). Now my dilemma is as follows...I am battling to find a supplier/dealership in South Africa that sells hub motor kits to convert my bike (Outside of South Africa there seems to be tons of distributors).I realise I could order it from the other side of the planet but I really want to see what I'm getting before I pay for it.It would also take forever and day to arrive.I have seen 2 local suppliers but the price tag on their kits is ludicrous! So my hopes here are perhaps one of our forum members (South African or not) would have a suggestion about where I can source a hub motor/kit in South Africa.Keeping in mind I dont really want to sell my house in order to be able to afford it either *grin*
There must be some suppliers around here that have these things at a decent price.Any ideas????

Thanks upfront

 

[jayc]

So I guess I'm out of luck on the hub motor and probably should look at the RC motor route and custom everything.In everyones opinion,does a RC build have any advantages over a hub motor in speed and power or in everyones experience do the hub motors out do RC builds.Which is more expensive.I would love to go about 60km/h.I weigh 70kg.Your thoughts?

 

[Drunkskunk]

No idea on anything local. We got plenty of members from Europe, Australia, Asia, some in the middle east, centrial and north America. But not many in Africa. you may be the only one here.

RC are great. but you need to just about be an engineer to build an RC motor powered bike. RC motors have more potential, but cost more to get that potential.

 

[jayc]

You mean to gear it down and proper controllers etc? What else besides hub motors and rc motors can someone use? I once saw someone use a starter motor but sheesh that was funny but obviously the wrong choice!

 

[Drunkskunk]

There are bottom bracket motors like the cyclone kits. center mounted drives like the stoke monkey, Left hand outboard drive setups like the Curie, and at any given time, there is usualy some friction drive on the market.

Then there's a whole world of possibilities with anything from power drills to electric lawnmower motors to electric wheelchair motors.

but the easiest, simpilist, and most durable solution is the hub motor.

 

[jayc]

Yeah fuel and toll roads are getting dammed expensive in SA so I want to use it to commute to and from the rail (like the subway in the UK but much smaller) It's going to need to be durable since it will be a commuter.Also aesthetics will play a roll hehe. I dis find one supplier of golden motor products here in SA and been pretty much banking on him but he said he will only get stock in about 2 weeks (shipping etc) I'm hoping he is reliable and doesn't back out last minute,then I'll have a problem at hand lol. I was looking at the HBS 48V kit pro 901 I think because I read here it's a faster motor than the magic pie.Hope I don't have any problems with it and that I could get about 55-60km/h out of it.going to source my own lithium bats.

 

[FMB42]

Welcome to ES jayc.

Here's a link that may interest you:

http://www.ecycles.co.za/

 

[jayc]

Thanks Fmb! I did call them and their starter kits start from about 857 US$.Isn't that a bit steep?

 

[dogman dan]

With battery, that's not really a bad price at all. We tend to agree that a pretty good commuter setup, good for 15-20 miles per charge costs at least a thou, plus the cost of the bike. Seems awfull steep, but with creative math we figure the "not putting miles on the car" savings make it break even in a single riding season of six months. Gas is of course, just the tip of the iceberg in what your car costs you. I fgure a mile on an ebike pays you about 50 cents, and costs you about 15. So you make 45 cents a mile by riding. That's based on US prices for cars, insurance, gas, repairs.

Back on the subject of where do I get it? The most respected ebike kit dealer in this continent ships worldwide all the time. http://www.ebikes.ca/

So that is one option where you can be assured that they won't sell you junk, or take your money and split. May be more expensive than an ebay seller from china, but Justin you can trust to deliver. Sells nothing but the best quality stuff, some of which he invented himself.

Before we get to advise on what kind of motor you ought to get, or battery selection, we need more info on the kind of ride, length, can you charge at work, can you take the bike on the train, etc etc. Perhaps if your distance is fairly short, you can get away with a lot cheaper ebikes, like the Currie 24v motors on the E-zip bikes sold at walmart in the US. About $500 for the whole thing, but less range and speed.

 

[FMB42]

jayc wrote:
"I did call them and their starter kits start from about 857 US$.Isn't that a bit steep?"

It depends...

What does the "starter kit" include?

A "starter kit" (i.e. less battery) can easily run between 400-650 USD (here in the U.S.).

Other price factors can include hub motor (watt) output, battery type (LifePo4, lead acid, etc), battery voltage and amp hour rating, and controller specifications and features (voltage, max amperage, selectable speed limit settings, etc), throttle type (thumb or twist types), and battery case/bag, etc, etc. Some kits even include a battery rack...

BTW, my first build (a new department store hard tail "MTB" w/ bargain priced ($200) ebikekit.com 400w geared hub kit, $7 fenders, and "left over" rear rack & battery bag ) ran me just under $900 US (which was about 3x the cost of my first brand new motorcycle (Yam LT1 100 Enduro) back in 1972.

 

[FMB42]

Forgot to say that the new MTB cost $75 and the (LifePo4 36v 10ah) battery was $425 USD.

 

[jayc]

Hmm I see both your points...some background info.I live in South Africa where the cost of transport seems ridiculous,we havnt start co2 tax or whatever u call it yet but it's coming.Cars are alot more expensive than in the states.Here is my plan.I live 18 miles from work so I plan to ride to the closest rail station 7 miles from home,take that for 10 miles and then ride the last mile to work on the bike,the train does cater for bikes so that shouldn't be a issue and I can charge it at work.Currently I'm paying almost 400 dollars on fuel but should be only paying 115 dollars if I take a ebike and that will be for the train.The kit looks like it's a 250w 36v system with lith bats.The golden motor supplier is alot cheaper but I'm gathering that's because it's rubbish?

 

[jayc]

Ps thanks for the comments.Ebikes are really in their infancy here so all suggestions are most definitely noted!

 

[dogman dan]

For a short ride like 8 miles, a 250 watt setup could be fine. Do you have the same ebike speed restrictions as Europe? 20 kph? Often the lower wattage kits have speed limited to those speeds. Here in the US, we have a lot higher speed limit, and then many of us run 48v, and go even faster. 25 mph is common here, but it takes more watts, and therefore bigger more expensive batteries.

If you want fast, the stuff at ebikes ca is going to do that.

 

[jayc]

The speed limit over here for a ebike is 21 mph aprox.Id like to got 37mph. Dont judge me,hahaha.They dont seem so strict over here in terms of bicycles.I have looked at ebikes.ca and look awesome,I will keep it in my sites when deciding.I noticed noone said anything about golden motor when i mentioned it.Too many fingers burnt?

 

[dogman dan]

GM's can be great motors.

But most of us in north america are patronizing a short list of trusted vendors on our continent. The 9 continent direct drive motors have been the choice for many of us. I simply don't have a trusted vendor to point you to for GM stuff. I haven't personally tested any GM stuff either, pushing any ideas of recomending it lower on the list for me.

The golden motor was avaliable on ebay a lot a few years ago, and many ES members got great results out of them, but came to prefer the trusted vendors products more in the last few years, vs ebayers with no customer support at all.

I know cost is a big issue, with the extra shipping and customs. But for sure, the 9 continent motor can be easily made to go 40 mph with 72v controller. Might be worth it to you to just go straight to GRIN, ebikes-ca. At 48v the stock 9c kit can go 25-27 mph. Much faster and you start to need the best brakes, huge gear chainrings, very strong frames, etc etc.

 

[jayc]

9continent you say? Hmmmm I saw them on ebikes.ca and they look brilliant but I just don't have the 450 $ excluding shipping.I wish I earned dollars lol! To be honest I think finances have already decided for me as the GM is about 360 $. Remember 1 dollar = 6.9 rand ouch lol. I guess what I was hoping for was finding most of the brands you guys have locally and at the same prices as the affordable GM, wishfully thinking lol I suppose I'm just damn lucky to even find a hub motor kit dealer in my town and at such a low price...I will say this though, that ebikes.ca really looks reliable an top quality! They even mention they have delivered to south Africa in the past! •comfort• lol When I save up enough for my next bike I'll most definitely use ebikes.ca so for now the only option financially is GM...2 questions, when I do upgrade from ebikes.ca which is the fastest kit for value of money,is it 9 continent? And secondly are there any recommendations on the GM kits, do's or dont's,best motors, get the battery from them or source my own,over volting a gm,best gm hub motor etc etc etc.any advice about it!!! I am all ears!

Lo

 

[FMB42]

You may want to start your GM search here:

http://www.goldenmotor.com/SMF/

I have a 500w 36v DD (direct drive) GM hub motor kit that I'm thinking of using on a future cruiser/retro build. However, I plan on using an Infineon 22amp controller rather than the GM supplied unit. This build will, btw, make use of an existing 36v 10ah LifePo4 battery that I also use on my first (MTB) build.

Also consider using a battery purchased from a reputable "local" or "in Country" vendor in the event of any warranty "issues". Otherwise, consider going with a Ping battery (which has a very good reputation for both customer service and durability).

The point that I'm trying to stress here is that ebike batteries are often the single most expensive component of most builds and, as such, deserve careful selection.

 

[jayc]

In terms of the lith bats, fortunately my father used to own a battery centre and still has his contacts so I'm sure to make FULL use of them.

In terms of the motor,I'm looking at the pro kit 901 with the 1000 watt 48v HBS motor as I hear it's a better and faster motor than that of the magic pie?

 

[FMB42]

In terms of the lith bats, fortunately my father used to own a battery centre and still has his contacts so I'm sure to make FULL use of them.

You're "golden" in that case...

In terms of the motor,I'm looking at the pro kit 901 with the 1000 watt 48v HBS motor as I hear it's a better and faster motor than that of the magic pie?

I'd go with the pro kit 901 over the Magic Pie myself. I'm just not a fan of GM's Magic Pie "built into the hub" controller design philosophy...However, some people do fine with the Magic Pie by converting it to an external controller system.

 

[jayc]

Oh my word! These lithium batteries have just scared the living crap out of me!!! I read some posts about them and while some users report they not that unsafe,it's left a really anxious feeling for me! They seem so temptemental????
Btw here is one of the suppliers I can get my bats from,I plan to join the cells into serial strings of 13 bats to get 48v then put 6 of this strings together in parralel to get 12amps since each bat is only 2000mAH.They also have over charge protection but I doubt any modules to fit my arrangement.
Here is the site:
http://www.akita.co.za/Batteries/Li-ion.htm
Ps to get the South African Rand to dollar just devide the rand price by 6.9.

 

[FMB42]

Batteries, of all types, can be "unsafe".

I've been working with and/or using lead acid, NiCD, and NiMH batteries for decades w/out problems. I've also been using numerous Lipo batteries for the last 4 years without problems.

Lead acid and Lipos are often considered to be the most "dangerous" with NiCD, NiMH, and LifePo4s being the among the "safest" chemistry types.

The vast majority of battery types can be used safely as long as you follow the manufacturer's safety, handling, and charging guidelines.

Having said this, I would recommend that you consider an LifePo4 battery if you want the latest in performance and safety.

 

[Drunkskunk]

Oh my word! These lithium batteries have just scared the living crap out of me!!! I read some posts about them and while some users report they not that unsafe,it's left a really anxious feeling for me! They seem so temptemental????
Btw here is one of the suppliers I can get my bats from,I plan to join the cells into serial strings of 13 bats to get 48v then put 6 of this strings together in parralel to get 12amps since each bat is only 2000mAH.They also have over charge protection but I doubt any modules to fit my arrangement.
Here is the site:
http://www.akita.co.za/Batteries/Li-ion.htm
Ps to get the South African Rand to dollar just devide the rand price by 6.9.

The Lipo batteries aren't temptemental, but they do have more serious consiquinces when something goes wrong. its about like handling Gasoline. Safe as long as you handle it propperly.

Those cells are over priced. Try Hobbyking. Import cost may be $100 for you, but it will still be cheaper, and you'll get better batteries.

 

[Herrsprocket]

Hello JayC,

I just found this thread and I know of an e-assist company in South Africa that may help you fill your goals. I don't know if you are aware of this company or not, from your searches in the S African area.

The owners name is Wayne Dawson, the website is http://www.ebikesa.co.za/ . He has lamented to me on the prices of all goods and services in S Africa too, due to the high taxation that is levied upon all goods brought into the country. What cha gonna do? But Wayne is as honest as the day is long. Prices may be what they may, but at least you have someone who locally can technically assist you as well. He was selling the MAC 500 watt motors and controllers to go with them, stout stuff!

Regards,

Tom B

 

[jayc]

Hey Tom

Thanks for the heads up.I have seen their site before but I just cant remember if I have emailed them before.I have emailed Wayne regardless but if it is the same company Ive emailed in the past they gave me a qoute for 869$ as appossed to the 289$ for the golden motor (local dealer too).I dont think the golden motor kit includes the bats but even with them added to the price its still cheaper.However hear me out when I say this,I realise the ebikesa kits qaulity is probably worlds apart from the GM stuff but financially I just cant afford 869$ at the moment...Like you said watch ya going to do? hehe :lol: