What spares do you keep around

[dougnutz]

I commute daily and I'm now pretty much dependant on my Ebike. I am about to hit 1000 miles. I have been thinking alot lately about what sort of spares I should keep on hand and what I may want to carry with me. To me the weakest link seems to be the controller ot the battery bms. I'd love to hear from all you commuters out there as to what sort of spares you find yourself needing/using

 

[MattyCiii]

I commute by bike - not exclusively, but extensively. It isn't motorized (yet).

I realized long ago that I never want to miss a day riding due to mechanical failure. So I have a full spare bike! It's 90% identical to the first, with parts/mods going into place to make it a twin.

I carry with me two spare tubes, a patch kit, tool kit and first aid kit.

Making the jump to "E-" my bike, soon; I'll be watching this thread closely to see what I need to buy two of, apart from the obvious "everything" (to keep the two bikes in sync).
~Matt

 

[Ykick]

2qty bikes really is the best if you're going to rely on 'em for critical, daily transportation. You also get to experiment a bit more without as much worry by messing with your only daily rider. And if/when friends show up and want to go for a ride you have that covered as well.

I know it seems like an extreme luxury, especially for folks that haven't gotten into the game yet but fact is, 2 bikes can make a lot of sense and if you share your battery system(s) across them, not terribly expensive. And then you don't need to stock much if any spare parts.

 

[neptronix]

As i have lipo i keep an extra lipo pack handy just incase one cell dies.
For my MAC motor i will carry a set of spare gears & clutch.
Also, spare tube, and i am going to have a spare motor as well.
Also have a spare DC-DC converter, controller, switch etc.

We have ~6 months out of the year where there is no rain here. I will *not* lose out on a single day due to mechanical problems..

 

[MadRhino]

I have a spare of almost everything: Motor, controller, batteries, throttle, various brakes, rims, tires and tubes, fuses and connectors, bearings, suspension components, derailers, etc... Enough to quick fix my E-ride, and the four other bikes that I have.

The garage is almost a bike shop, and there is always some new components coming, to maintain the spare parts inventory or supplying planned upgrades.

Take today for an example: Changed front brake caliper and fixed a bag mounting bracket on one bike, rebuilt an old Judy fork on another one, installed the summer wheels on the Tricross racer. About 5 hours a week are spent maintaining and tuning the bikes.

 

[John in CR]

For a commuter I'd bypass the BMS or at least know how to bypass it in the event of a failure, taking the BMS out of the equation. If your controller doesn't run quite warm, then it's not an expected point of failure either. Learn how to bypass a throttle, so it can't leave you stuck, and then it boils down to bike stuff, and really just the tubes along with the stuff to change one. Ebikes are cheap enough that having a 2nd one always ready to go is within reason, especially if you foresee an occasional guest rider. The flipside of that is that a properly built ebike should be more dependable than a car, and few keep a 2nd car as backup.

 

[grindz145]

Depending on how high-performance your setup is, it might be nice to have a spare sensorless controller. I'm about to get an extra just to have with me just in case. Definately lots of tubes and tools for electrical stuff.

 

[dougnutz]

It surprises me how many people recommend a second bike. While I do like the idea of having a second it's a little cost prohibitive right now. My system is a kit from Ebikes.ca and it has performed flawlessly but it occures to me that all systems like this fail eventually. The question to me is what is likely to fail? The hub motors should last a while but the hall sensors occasionally die. Controllers are the brains of the operation, but are seem prone to heat issues, depending on performance level. In my case my battery bms is suppose to limit output to 20 amps and I have a 20 amp controller. It seems reasonable to have another controller on hand. But rather than keeping a couple hundred dollars in parts lying around it may just make the most sense to wait for a failure then express order a part.

I should have mentioned that I have been commuting by bike for 3 years, only recently converting to E-bike. As for parts I carry while commuting: one spare tube, a patch kit, bike fix-a-flat, electrical tape. A small first aid kit and some basic tools.This has served me well and seems in line with most peoples responses too.

 

[auraslip]

I just had a throttle fail. IMHO that's the weakest link.....
Order a back up from ebay for like $10

 

[Ykick]

As long as you're running stock power levels it's very unlikely anything will fail. Sure, halls, controllers, BMS, etc can die but trying to guess which only drives you crazy. It's a really just guess.

Parts' laying around would be the reason many of us build 2nd bikes. In practice the only times my "2nd bike" has actually been handy is/was because of flat tire(s) and one time my V brakes were acting funny. Just didn't have time to look into it, instead threw Lipo on the other bike and off to work...

I mostly enjoy the ability to experiment more than I would if I only had one bike. And did I mention, already had enough parts "laying around" to build a 2nd bike??? And 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th...

 

[spinningmagnets]

I have heard of some riders drilling a second hole in the back rim so they can run two tubes in the back tire. The outer tube is inflated and the inner is not. If you get a flat, pull out the thorn/nail, etc...air up the inner second tube and away you go.

If something electrical fouls up, at least you can pedal if you want...if a tube is flat, you're walking no matter what.

 

[amberwolf]

Ditto on the spare bike. I have (currently) DayGlo Avenger and CrazyBIke2, though each is very different from the other, they are both cargo bikes. I also have in (seemingly eternal) progress a plain "commuter" that could be used just for going to work or wherever but won't do cargo without a trailer, and won't be long-range (very small battery).


Spares I actually carry with me? Not much. Theoretically a spare controller on CrazyBIke2, but for some reason it doesnt' work right now. Spare hose clamps to re-secure stuff that falls off :lol:, spare nuts and bolts for things, spare zip ties and some spare electrical tape. Don't seem to need spare tires and tubes since I use Slime and tire liners, for quite a long time now. STill carry patches and stuff, and a pump, but hpefully they'll dry rot before I need them.


Spares I keep at home? Spare batteries, cells, all sorts of parts, wattmeters, controllers, motors, etc. Just about any spare bicycle part I might need could be robbed off one of my other bikes or piles of parts, though it always seems the critical ones I don't actually have a spare of. Murphy is like that.

 

[dogman dan]

Spare complete bike if you can, including the battery. Right at the moment, I'm at an all time high. 6 complete and actually functioning ebikes in the garage at the moment. Sheesh I got it baaaaad.

Part of all this is having a couple bikes around I might trick my wife into riding, part of it is a few free motors I managed to score for reviews in years past.

I do have a complete second commuter set up for my wife. If I need it, I can raise the seat and still ride that day.

I have a fairly long commute, so a breakdown 10 or miles from home is a bitch. The bus can be taken, but for some reason 100% of my breakdowns happen after it just passed me. Won't be back for a full hour, can walk the damn thing home faster.

Here is what's in my pannier. Spare tube with slime in it. Superlight tool kit with most sizes of wrenches and allens, Crescent wrench for the hub nuts, Light plastic tire irons. Pump. Patch Kit including a few rags to clean off tons of slime. Chain breaker, and spoke wrench. Small roll of electric tape, small knife, a few scraps of 12 guage wire, and wire nuts.

A bit overkill for just a commute. The kit got bigger when I started doing day trips into places much further from any town.

Back to having spares around. A second sensorless controller can be nice, if you start having a halls issue. But as others said, a tame commuters bike rarely fails untill you cause it to. Like let the nuts get loose due to a poor install and spin the axle.

Second chargers are priceless though! I'd say the charger is the weakest link after the tube. Second batteries are great because you can go for twice the ride on the weekend when you have time.

 

[FMB42]

I'm planning on adding some spare spokes, or spoke sets to the above suggestions. Some spare axle nuts and flat/lock washers might be good to have on hand as well.

 

[Ykick]

Second chargers are priceless though! I'd say the charger is the weakest link after the tube. Second batteries are great because you can go for twice the ride on the weekend when you have time.

2nd charger - really good point. Handy if you wanna leave one at work or if something fries, etc. My Lipo setup has evolved to the point that I can run one very large capacity pack or split it up for local riding across two complete bikes.

I had a terrible run of spokes with one non-powered wheel because that bike/wheel was aquired used with a lot of miles already on it. The extra weight of the power system and my fat butt stressed the well-worn spokes on the un-powered wheel to the point I lost 7 spokes in one trip. That wheel went beyond taco'd (had to un-hitch the V brake to roll) but it made the 3-4mile trip home. Going very, very slowly of course.

That said, in +3,000 miles none of my hub motor wheels have given me any spoke trouble. Of course, some needed tensioning in the beginning but even that has subsided to practically nothing.

 

[Drunkskunk]

Spare Bike. it realy is the best way. Then you have a spare everything.

But All I cary with me is some tape, a pocket knife, and a cell phone.

Learning to bypass the BMS will get you home if a cell dies. If your controller doesn't get hot, It shouldn't give you any trouble. Knowing how to hotwire a throttle is good, but I've never had throttle issues in 10k miles or so.

 

[FMB42]

I agree Ykick.

I've yet to have any problems with my hub motor wheel spokes (I might still attempt to purchase a few just in case). However, I've broken a number of spokes on non-hub motor wheels (on both MTBs and motorcycles). This was mostly on the rear wheels IIRC.

 

[joe tomten]

Spare bike,

I'm down to a single registered car - priority to wife and kid's homeschool activities/scheduling.

So the spare bike (even if non electric) allows me to get to and from work - without having to (mis)diagnose the problem "right now".

I've been 'saved' by:
spare charger
spare battery (bms failure)
spoke wrench (broken spoke)
pocket knife (cut phase wires when turned axle shorted them and I had to haul the rest of the way to work).

But most of my issues are with wire connections which need a calmer perspective to troubleshoot than when I'm already late for . . .

 

[dougnutz]

What is the cause of the broken spokes? I've put litterally thousands of miles on my bike before adding the electric kit. Is There some issue with the added weight? Or maybe because the thrust is higher and the spokes are shorter?

The spare charger does seem like a really good idea. I usually top up the batteries at work. I can make it to work and home on a single charge (16 miles round trip) but my battery is kind of small so I always feel better when I top it up

 

[Ykick]

What is the cause of the broken spokes?

In my case,'seemed like high mileage, coupled with additional weight plus extra speed dealt the final blows. Note - this was on my front hub powered bike so we're talking about an non-electric rear wheel.

I popped a bunch of 'em doing a very tight turn in dense traffic while standing on the pedals. So, there were many forces at work in that moment - angle, pedal torque from sprocket, etc. They broke at the hub but you could see significant wear at the elbow of unbroken spokes.

Now that I think about it, I had been warned earlier when a couple rear spokes broke and I chose to replace 'em with parts I scavenged from the no longer used front wheel. If I had simply replaced the wheel at that time I would've probably never had the much more severe failure a few weeks later.

But, I believe it's a reliability mistake to use cheap wheels/spokes for any length of time. All the added weight and higher average speed demands a quality eyelet rim built by somebody who knows what they're doing - Holmes or LBS for example.

My normal commute is 4mi each way with the luxury of the only spare I need carry is an MTA card. My latest SuperV is so light and easy to schlep on subway, but I haven't had to yet...

 

[joe tomten]

Cheap spokes that came with the crystalyte motors. Rear wheel. Pot hole hits.

And then cheap replacements, (from electricrider).

now that i have better spokes, (though 12 gauge instead of the 13) no more broken spokes, so far.

Spoke wrench allows enough adjustment so that the fattie hookworms stop rubbing so bad. Then I can get home after a broken spoke.

 

[MadRhino]

What is the cause of the broken spokes?

Metal fatigue, often caused by uneven tension. Not enough tension also cause metal fatigue. Best insurance against breaking spokes, is to maintain a stiff true wheel with even tension. Then, lacing patterns are another factor, but most E-bike wheels are laced single cross because of short spokes. Good lacing pattern, stiffness, and even tension, can make cheap spokes last; while the best spokes won't last on a bad wheel job.

 

[FMB42]

Ya, cheap spokes, and the extra weight/loads we put on our e-bikes can result in spoke failure.

I also feel that some hub motor wheel spoke failures can be traced to the excessive spoke angle that large diameter motor hubs require. This, coupled with rims that are not designed for such spoke angles, can often result in "bowed" or "bent" spokes. This, evidently, can cause spoke failure (especially where the spoke meets the nipple).

 

[miuan]

On my commuter I only carry basic tools, stuff to remove / tighten wheel nuts, a tube and a set of tyre levers. The electric part of bike has never given me any trouble in almost 2000 miles of operation, mainly because I run 2 hub motors. Having a redundant circuit that always takes you home feels as good as the torque of two 2807 motors under my butt.
As for battery, I'd never run anything but BMS-less lipo with a simple switchable circuit breaker + low voltage buzzers + battery medics for occasional balancing . No BMS to fear of, and the lipo cells are so strong. You really can't go wrong unless you neglect them.

 

[fifthmass]

Normally just a spare inner tube, fuse, and zip ties, plus tools and pump.

For long trip requiring a recharge at end I bring an extra charger, extra (20amp) controller, extra (old but functional) throttle, plus the stuff above. The extra electronics I keep in a single bag that I can throw in a pannier.

For long trips I also have a wiring harness where I can charge at a 4.5 amp rate by paralleling the second charger.

regards,
Bill