Yescomusa.com 500 & 1000 watt 48v rear kit review

[mcintyretj]

Thanks Chalo, the Sunrace seems to be working ok, but, I have a Shimano as back-up. It good to have bike experts on the form.

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Friday was my last day of school until August 6th. This year I drove 3 times (75 miles) and biked 181 times (9200 miles). It did not rain much so I had no excuse. Still have the same 3 year old, 1000w hub motor (24000 total miles) but with the new rim. The controller is 5 years old and closing in on 40,000 total miles. The throttle is also more than 3 years old.

This year I stayed upright and did not have a flat the entire last semester (4700 miles). However, since March, my right ankle seems to be slightly swollen. The doctor took an xray and said it looked like arthritis, so, I have not been peddling as hard as I would like too.

For my last ride this year, I did the same route as the following few years, about 35 miles. Here are some photos:



























My odometer stopped working with about 2 weeks left of school. After playing with it for a day, It came back on but the miles had jumped from 33,200 miles to 37,200, so it is off by 4000 miles or so.





The samsung 22p pack was taken out of rotation at about 26000 miles but could have easily made it another year. The new samsung 25r pack has been waterproofed and the bluetooth BMS seems to be working great. The cells are in balance and I like that it does not sag much. My longest ride with this pack has been 49 miles.

I have a few projects plan for this summer and will report back later.

 

[miro13car]

the millage you write about 32000miles is for just one motor ?? ,
you wrote you bought new yescomusa for $230 right and
now I see on pics it is not same motor.
so finally this millage is for what electric drive ???

 

[mcintyretj]

Update 11/20/2018

miro13car, this is the original $230 1000w kit with lots of dirt. About 3.5 years of use and has 25,000+ miles on it. I have another kit with 2 years (16,000+ miles) on it as a back-up.

I have not been riding as much this year. I still have a swollen ankle and foot. Was seen by several specialists over the summer but never diagnosed, however, I was convinced to get surgery on a non related issue, so, I was grounded from riding (or lifting more than 10 pounds) in August. Started riding with the same 1000w bike in September, riding 2 or 3 days a week. I have worked 74 days and biked only 24 times which would be about 1200 miles by ebike and 2700 miles by car. Here is the bike a few weeks back. Still looks the same.





Purchased 4 tanks of gas in August, about $230.00, One day I might sit down and figure out if I have saved any money. Here are just 2 tanks:




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Got my first flat on my second week of riding.


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In October, the Neptune lite, Bluetooth BMS on my battery, stopped connecting to my phone. After reading the instructions, I decided to add the on-off connector. My Samsung 25r pack is actually bolted shut and taped. Had to open it up to connect the on-off switch. This did the trick and the BMS is working fine. It is still in almost perfect balance and usually charged to 62 volts. This BMS is working great.










Also, last year I purchased a cheap $150.00 dollar ebay kit similar to this one.


View attachment 7

I used it with my yescom 1000w controller and it seemed to run warm. However, this summer, I connected the entire kit on a bike and it worked much better. It did not heat up and was almost silent. It is currently my favorite bike to ride. My ebike friend says it is probably an analog controller. Also, I did not need to spread the dropouts.

View attachment 8

 

[mcintyretj]

Yesterday was my last day of work until August 5th. This year I commuted by car a lot more. I worked 184 days but only commuted by bike (1000w) about 80 days, or 4000 miles. This is the 4th straight year using this 1000w hub motor which has over 28,000 miles on it. The controller is 6 years old and has close to 44, 000 miles. I have been following the same routine and route on the last day of school for about 6 years. Here are some pics. They look a lot like last years.


Final charge in class, same samsung 25r pack as last year (12p x 15s).Have about 9k on this pack in 1.5 years 340 cycles



Still using the same charger set-upat work. Plugged it in in August, unplugged it yesterday and put away.



Stopping for a swim again.



Starting at the bike trail.



Lots of growth, hard to ride and see when it rains this much during the winter/spring.



Almost ran over this rattle snake. You see them a lot on a bike.



Stop at the water tower



Rose Hills view




Last part of the San Gabriel River. I ride on the actual river when there are other bikes and I want to ride faster than 20 mph.




This year I had to replace my front bag because the zipper broke. I got a slightly larger bag from amazon. I bolted a piece of screen frame to keep the bag from hitting the wires.



After about 4 years my throttle broke (hit a big rock, hand slipped). Replaced it with a throttle with less wires but used the same connectors. Just spliced the ground.







I am thrilled with the Neptune lite battery monitor. It is still working. So far I have not had to balance any of the cell groups and can check each cell groups voltage easily.






I will report on the some of the batteries that I built earlier in this thread, later this summer, along with some new packs. Might start a commuter thread if I get motivated.

 

[mcintyretj]

Battery update:

The 15s x 8p LG MJ1 pack I made 3 years ago had to be retired due to the last 2 parallel groups having way less capacity then the rest of the pack. I was getting less than 15 miles before my controller would shut off the pack (sag to 42 volts). For safety reasons (fire), I have this battery in an ammo can at 58 volts for when my power gets shut off.

Last summer I ordered 200 more Samsung 25r batteries for just over $500.00 shipped to my home. My first week of summer vacation I finally had time to assembled a 15s 6p 25r pack to replace the retired MJ1 pack. I also purchased another Neptune lite BMS. I am not an expert at assembling packs, but I like to get separation by using 2 layers of electric tape at each end of the battery and hot glue at the contact points Here is the sequence:
























I trimmed about 1.25 inches off the old MJ1 case, attached a hinge, added a 40 amp fuse, then bolted the case shut with the new battery inside. The bluetooth bms is a real time saver and it is easy to monitor temperature and balance.
The case and battery weigh in at 11 pounds (this is a 15ah pack on paper).






I also assembled a back-up solenoid spot welder in case Riba's welder stops working. An ebike friend has asked to borrow the welder a few times. Here is a short video on how I assembled my welder:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPtiwKFbtBw





Wanted to do a range test with the new pack so I charged it to 62.5 volts, mounted on the 500w bike, and a little over 27 miles later I was down to 53 volts. Probably could have done 5 or 6 more miles. This was on flat ground and at 75 degrees F. Here are some photos:

















Today I had some more free time so I pulled out the 7 year old Ping 48 volt, 15 Ah pack, charged it for a few hours (all the leds were on for 45 minutes), mounted it on the 500 watt bike, and did a range test. This was a similar route to the routes I took the first 5 years. A little over 27 miles later, the battery shut down. Here are some pictures:






















This battery is awesome! It is going back in an ammo can for power outages also.

The 4 year old samsung 22p pack is still doing well. I use it when I go somewhere far where my bike will be locked out of sight for a while. The 15s, 12p 25r pack has lost some capacity but can still get me 35+ miles. Both these packs are almost in perfect balance. All my packs are stored between 54-57 Volts. So far, I have not needed to balance these packs yet. The MJ1 pack was bad cells from the start. Plan to make a 1/2 fairing (handle bars and below) for next years commute. Should save me 13% and keep me warmer in cold winds. If it works, will report back.

 

[mcintyretj]

1000 watt bike update:

Looks like school is over for the year. I commuted by E-bike just under 100 days of the 140 day school year. 4800 miles total. This was the 5th year using this motor and 7th year using the controller. Here is the bike with all the same items as last year:






Since I have some down time, I plan to break out the 72 volt controller and try to safely shorten my commute when school starts up again. Also, I took the motorcycle knowledge test last time I visited the DMV because, like many people here, I study the motorcycle pages and dream of converting a motorcycle when I retire. I purchased all the motorcycle safety gear and started testing some candidates on Craig's list. Here are a few:









I settled on this little bike for a grand. Since it ran great, I though I would learn how to ride safely before committing to a big project. It is a 1985 Honda 450 Nighthawk. Will post in the motorcycle form when I start.

 

[amberwolf]

if it helps, there are some conversions you can look at for info:

https://www.google.com/search?q=honda+nighthawk+electric+conversion

they're not the exact same bike you have, but may be similar enough to have usable info.

 

[2old]

Not to derail, and I'll be excited to watch your progress, but I had a 1980 or so 400 that was a dream to ride back in the ICE days. I miss it like all of my motorcycles, but am reluctant to become a hood ornament.

 

[mcintyretj]

Update 5/21/2021

Still riding the 1000w bike to work when I am allowed. Only 19 times this year, about 1000 miles, because we were required to work from home (zoom) most of the year. Last Friday (5/14/2021) was my last ride. This was the same route as the last 5 years minus the swim. Here are some photos.








Everything is still the same: tires, bms, motor, controller...
The Neptune lite readout gets jumbled at time so I might have a loose connection.







Had 1 flat this year but was able to get home fine.





Last year I purchased a 1985 Honda CB450 for $1K with virtually no experience. I got my M1 and rode the bike to work in the carpool lane and really enjoyed the experience. Going 85 mph is a lot different than going 35 mph. I put about 4000 mile on it. My plan was to convert it to electric if the motor when bad. It never did. I ended up trading up to a 2012 Honda NC700x. If this bike goes bad I will consider converting it. Right now I am enjoying the 30 minute commute to work.





Gave the 500 watt bike away but it is still in use.

Looking for a used Zero S or DS that can do 50 miles at 80 mph. Have a friend with an 1982 Honda CB700 that he wants to give away. Might take him up on the offer.

 

[windtrader]

I've been following your posts here for quite some time and I thank you again for reporting back about the incredible amount of use you put on this equipment and the nearly flawless durability and reliability of the setup. I forgot how you regulated to charging, was there some mechanism to shutoff the charging when it reached a specified voltage or did you unplug manually?

And how did the last battery DIY pack hold up?

 

[mcintyretj]

Update 5/22/2022

Friday 5/20/2022 was my last commute for a while. This year I commuted a little less than 2 times each week on my 1000w bike, about 50 days total. This is around 2,500 miles. Of my 182 days of work, I commuted the about 120 days on my ICE motorcycle, 50 days by ebike, and about 12 times by car. Gas here in southern California is currently more than $6 per gallon so to fill the 14.9 gallon tank on my car cost close to $100.00, so commuting by ebike, just makes sense. Here are a few photos from my last day:


Still carry the 80 pound bike down the stairs every morning





Still have all the components from 9 years ago. Same volt meter, speedometer, water bottle holder and grips.






Been wearing cheap polaroid goggles in the morning to keep the cold wind out of my eyes. I put blue tape on the vent holes.



Been in the same classroom for 10+ years.



If anyone wants a free hang glider, I have a WW XC 142 behind my class. Tried to give it away on Craigslist and offer up with no luck. I used it with my students each year and it is still flyable. 1655 Stimson Ave. Hacienda Heights, 91745 CA. Contact me if you are interested




My staff showed up to wish me luck. After 31 years of teaching, I am throwing in the towel. This is my last commute.



This is the same route that I have done for 10 years on the last day of school.



























Still have no BMS in my 12p x 15s Samsung 25r battery pack but the Neptune lite is very accurate and the pack is in good enough balance so I do not worry.





The 1000w controller has been doing great for 9 years. I will add up the miles later. The 1000w hub motor (my 2nd) has been on for 6 of 7 years with at least 1 rim change. I will also have to add up the miles later. the $30 swap meet bike is holding up well. I have replaced a few components (derailleur, 3 sprocket clusters, pads, and brake wires) but nothing more than a typical mountain bike.

I have no plans to go back to work in the fall and lots of projects I would like to do. High on the list is an EV motorcycle. I plan to post more too.

 

[windtrader]

I've followed your posts for years and am very impressed that that hub motor and setup have performed reliably for thousands of miles. I got the same motor/wheel/electrical kit and it's holding up well too. Thanks again.

 

[windtrader]

My battery pack is done, bulged to the point it was scary and capacity dropped too low.

Was the best pack you ran with the 15s 12p? I have a 100 li-ion cells and working on what is the optimal config of the pack.

The 4 year old samsung 22p pack is still doing well. I use it when I go somewhere far where my bike will be locked out of sight for a while. The 15s, 12p 25r pack has lost some capacity but can still get me 35+ miles. Both these packs are almost in perfect balance. All my packs are stored between 54-57 Volts.