Author Topic: Is an E-Bike worth it?  (Read 31074 times)

Syonyk

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4610
    • Syonyk's Project Blog
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #50 on: January 03, 2017, 05:49:14 PM »
You can always put a geared rear hub in.

Someone I know built something with a BBS02 and a geared rear hub: https://syonyk.blogspot.com/2016/04/custom-mid-drive-ingress-hill-climber.html

The thing was quite impressive when the chain wasn't falling off...

zephyr911

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3619
  • Age: 45
  • Location: Northern Alabama
  • I'm just happy to be here. \m/ ^_^ \m/
    • Pinhook Development LLC
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #51 on: January 04, 2017, 12:50:21 PM »
I've been flip-flopping over this myself for a long time. My only bike is a shitty <$200 Wal-Mart road bike that is a bad candidate for a retrofit, and I'm not in a good place for tinkering lately (when I have time, I really just wanna work out or sleep). I've looked at everything from $599 to $2k complete builds and am having a hard time figuring out needed features vs. braggin' rights.

I only have a 10-mile commute, but parts are uber-rough - enough that it'd be a hard hour-long ride without the e-assist and I've talked myself out of riding the whole thing for 2 years now (facepunch). I'm really thinking fat tires and a motor will eliminate excuses, get me off my ass 3-5 days a week, and I'll still pedal most of it... does anyone have thoughts on an appropriate price/feature set?

I'm pretty sure I can afford what I need... I just don't want to waste money on more than I need.

FIreDrill

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1096
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #52 on: January 04, 2017, 01:45:49 PM »
I've been flip-flopping over this myself for a long time. My only bike is a shitty <$200 Wal-Mart road bike that is a bad candidate for a retrofit, and I'm not in a good place for tinkering lately (when I have time, I really just wanna work out or sleep). I've looked at everything from $599 to $2k complete builds and am having a hard time figuring out needed features vs. braggin' rights.

I only have a 10-mile commute, but parts are uber-rough - enough that it'd be a hard hour-long ride without the e-assist and I've talked myself out of riding the whole thing for 2 years now (facepunch). I'm really thinking fat tires and a motor will eliminate excuses, get me off my ass 3-5 days a week, and I'll still pedal most of it... does anyone have thoughts on an appropriate price/feature set?

I'm pretty sure I can afford what I need... I just don't want to waste money on more than I need.

It's hard to figure out exactly what you need.  I kinda wish I would have waited and built out a fat tire ebike that I could ride year round.  If your looking to build your own set up I would check bikesdirect.com and bikeisland.com for the bike and then lunacycle or em3ev for the battery/parts.

I had my bike built out and was able to ride for several months this summer. In those several months I put around 800 miles on it, talk about no excuses and a lot of fun :)

zephyr911

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3619
  • Age: 45
  • Location: Northern Alabama
  • I'm just happy to be here. \m/ ^_^ \m/
    • Pinhook Development LLC
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #53 on: January 04, 2017, 01:49:15 PM »

It's hard to figure out exactly what you need.  I kinda wish I would have waited and built out a fat tire ebike that I could ride year round.  If your looking to build your own set up I would check bikesdirect.com and bikeisland.com for the bike and then lunacycle or em3ev for the battery/parts.

I had my bike built out and was able to ride for several months this summer. In those several months I put around 800 miles on it, talk about no excuses and a lot of fun :)

I'm almost definitely going with a full build. I used to tinker a lot more, but I'm lucky to find time to take care of basic home stuff lately. Sprint to the finish, 6-9mos from FIRE while building 2 side gigs and managing a PT job.

I like what I see for $1500-2k, but am hesitant to buy sight unseen and there's jack shit in my town.

cacaoheart

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 147
  • Location: Raleigh, NC
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #54 on: January 05, 2017, 06:33:32 AM »
I like what I see for $1500-2k, but am hesitant to buy sight unseen and there's jack shit in my town.

Similar for me. I'm tempted by the RadWagon or RadRover but returns aren't accepted once the box is opened.

I only have a 3.5 mile commute but my coworkers are very picky about someone being remotely sweaty, which is ironic given that as nurses we deal with so many smells each day from patients. When I was a nursing student biking to clinical I had 3 different nurses complain to 2 separate clinical instructors about me. Since I stopped biking I've had no complaints. I've considered joining the gym next to the hospital I work at and showering there prior to work, but then it really starts to take more time.

zephyr911

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3619
  • Age: 45
  • Location: Northern Alabama
  • I'm just happy to be here. \m/ ^_^ \m/
    • Pinhook Development LLC
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #55 on: January 05, 2017, 11:39:29 AM »
Similar for me. I'm tempted by the RadWagon or RadRover but returns aren't accepted once the box is opened.
After talking to the guy (bike shop guy) whose high-end custom build got me closer to buying my own, I'm looking at Luna Cycle bikes... $1799 up to many thousands, but I'd be at the low end of their range.
Quote
I only have a 3.5 mile commute but my coworkers are very picky about someone being remotely sweaty, which is ironic given that as nurses we deal with so many smells each day from patients. When I was a nursing student biking to clinical I had 3 different nurses complain to 2 separate clinical instructors about me. Since I stopped biking I've had no complaints. I've considered joining the gym next to the hospital I work at and showering there prior to work, but then it really starts to take more time.
People are so f'ing petty. Also, not a single shower or locker room at the hospital? That sucks....
My office building has a couple of "gyms" so we do have about three showers. Even with hundreds of us, there's never more than one in use.

zephyr911

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3619
  • Age: 45
  • Location: Northern Alabama
  • I'm just happy to be here. \m/ ^_^ \m/
    • Pinhook Development LLC
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #56 on: January 05, 2017, 01:08:43 PM »
This article was fun, and kinda helped refine my direction:
https://electricbike-blog.com/2016/03/05/how-to-buy-your-first-ebike-or-ebike-kit-and-not-get-punked/

And here's what I'm close to buying:
https://lunacycle.com/2016-luna-grit-220-road-ebike/

Reasons: components are all high-end, it's discounted nicely as a past-year build, and I've wanted a solid cross-type setup for years, even before I started looking at e-bikes. It has the specs recommended to me by the bike shop dude whose e-bike I tested, whereas the cheaper ones all have lower voltage, less power, smaller batteries, cheaper groupsets, etc. My searching says this bike retails for $850-1000 without the electric components and that I'd pay at least as much (plus time invested) if I sourced everything at retail prices and built it myself. Curious what fellow MMM'ers think.

FIreDrill

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1096
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #57 on: January 05, 2017, 01:31:41 PM »
And here's what I'm close to buying:
https://lunacycle.com/2016-luna-grit-220-road-ebike/

2k is still spendy but man that is a gorgeous set up....  I'm sure you would have a blast on it, seems like the perfect bike for your 10 mile commute.

Would you be able to charge at work in case you needed to?

zephyr911

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3619
  • Age: 45
  • Location: Northern Alabama
  • I'm just happy to be here. \m/ ^_^ \m/
    • Pinhook Development LLC
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #58 on: January 05, 2017, 01:58:12 PM »
And here's what I'm close to buying:
https://lunacycle.com/2016-luna-grit-220-road-ebike/

2k is still spendy but man that is a gorgeous set up....  I'm sure you would have a blast on it, seems like the perfect bike for your 10 mile commute.

Would you be able to charge at work in case you needed to?
Yeah, $2k is more than I originally planned on spending, but I've nearly concluded that the better components justify it, especially if it means I ride more and keep it longer.
Plus, it might get us closer to getting rid of one car, or putting one to use on Turo, etc.
I'm sure I could plug in by my cube or in an unused conference room if I had to, but I'm mostly concerned with time in the morning. If riding home with a dead pack after work takes me an hour, meh... really not a biggie. Regardless, this pack should easily take me there and back with charge to spare.

FIreDrill

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1096
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #59 on: January 05, 2017, 02:36:13 PM »
And here's what I'm close to buying:
https://lunacycle.com/2016-luna-grit-220-road-ebike/

2k is still spendy but man that is a gorgeous set up....  I'm sure you would have a blast on it, seems like the perfect bike for your 10 mile commute.

Would you be able to charge at work in case you needed to?
Yeah, $2k is more than I originally planned on spending, but I've nearly concluded that the better components justify it, especially if it means I ride more and keep it longer.
Plus, it might get us closer to getting rid of one car, or putting one to use on Turo, etc.
I'm sure I could plug in by my cube or in an unused conference room if I had to, but I'm mostly concerned with time in the morning. If riding home with a dead pack after work takes me an hour, meh... really not a biggie. Regardless, this pack should easily take me there and back with charge to spare.

Yeah that pack should get you at least 20 miles.  I can get about 55-60 miles with my 1.2kwh pack using mostly throttle....  The only thing i would suggest is trying to keep the charge between 10%-80%.  From all the research I've done if you charge to 80-90%, and don't let it drain below 10%, it will really help out with the total life of the pack.

cacaoheart

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 147
  • Location: Raleigh, NC
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #60 on: January 06, 2017, 06:03:44 PM »
And here's what I'm close to buying:
https://lunacycle.com/2016-luna-grit-220-road-ebike/

Very nice. I'm happy to see Luna Cycles making complete bikes. For my purposes, the Super Scooter is tempting: https://lunacycle.com/luna-super-scooter/

Laserjet3051

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 904
  • Age: 95
  • Location: Upper Peninsula (MI)
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #61 on: January 07, 2017, 12:04:23 PM »
And here's what I'm close to buying:
https://lunacycle.com/2016-luna-grit-220-road-ebike/

Very nice. I'm happy to see Luna Cycles making complete bikes. For my purposes, the Super Scooter is tempting: https://lunacycle.com/luna-super-scooter/

Intriguing bike, but it doesnt look they use local dealers to move product? After test riding several e-bikes i realize there is a MONUMENTAL difference between different e-bikes thus i would never buy 1 w/o first test riding it. Possible for the luna e-bike?

AlanStache

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3175
  • Age: 44
  • Location: South East Virginia
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #62 on: April 19, 2017, 10:25:54 AM »
hope no one minds the resurrection :-)

zephyr how have you been doing with the grid 220?

https://electricbike-blog.com/2016/03/05/how-to-buy-your-first-ebike-or-ebike-kit-and-not-get-punked/
Was a very good read.  It seems that ebikes even more than most things are very much get what you pay for. 

I work 6 miles from home and its basically flat with manageable traffic to ride in.  I have ridden my cross bike as much at 4 days per week here and there but is hard to maintain.  My area gets 4" of rain every month all year round and we can go a week with +30% chance of rain every day.  I will ride in cold but riding in rain just sucks (never mind the summer when it is stupid hot & humid at 7am).  An ebike wont make the rain go away :-)  It might make sense to put 100-200$ into my current bike for fenders/rack but then I would feel dumb going on a club ride with that extra gear (I only have one bike). 

On a financial level I really cant justify an ebike over my efficient car; I like riding to work it feels good and I like being part of the solution and not part of the car problem but 2000$ !?!?  Or get a used bike of CL and build up a system but that is still ~1500$ for a not-crap ride.  If I could ride an ebike to work in my office clothes it might be worth it but still rain/heat... and for that I would need a less aggressive ridding position and I am some what a road bike snob.

So yes I have become ensnared in the ebike rabbit hole.

If I am going to spend 'real money' I am half tempted to just get a motor cycle.

Tyson

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3025
  • Age: 52
  • Location: Denver, Colorado
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #63 on: April 19, 2017, 10:31:56 AM »
A low end ebike is better than no ebike at all.  Just get something inexpensive and use that. 

Me?  I already had an all-steel cruiser that I just popped off the front tire and put on a Clean Republic made front wheel with a motor in the hub.  Perfect?  No.  Usable and awesome?  Yes.

gimmi80

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 31
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #64 on: April 22, 2017, 06:28:53 AM »
Any feedback on the Populo e bike?
https://electricbikereview.com/populo/sport-electric-bike/

The bike looks nice. It does not seem to be super-powerful but, nowadays the 20mph limit is pretty much standard on pre-built.

gex

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 11
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #65 on: April 23, 2017, 01:09:03 PM »
The prices seem to have come down a lot in the past two years. I'm wondering how much cheaper they might be by next spring? My old steel frame Trek is fine for now, but would definitely like to upgrade when the prices are better.

Gumption

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 121
  • Location: HCOL
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #66 on: April 26, 2017, 08:25:31 AM »
28mile round trip? great opportunity to get fit.
beater off craigslist. learn to do your own maintenance.
i would suspect you'd regret buying and riding around on that puppy while you have a functioning body thats perfectly capable of riding 1 to 2 hours per day.

Syonyk

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4610
    • Syonyk's Project Blog
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #67 on: May 10, 2017, 09:27:35 AM »
28mile round trip? great opportunity to get fit.
beater off craigslist. learn to do your own maintenance.
i would suspect you'd regret buying and riding around on that puppy while you have a functioning body thats perfectly capable of riding 1 to 2 hours per day.

A problem with that observation is that not everyone really has the time to spend 2 hours a day riding - it's nice if you can do it, but a CA-spec pedal assist ebike cuts that down into just over an hour of commute, which isn't that much worse than car - and you can usually work it out so you sweat less on the way to work and can skip the shower.

Even things like being able to accelerate harder off a light save time on an ebike vs a pedal bike.  When I was commuting on one, I ran the same route as a seriously hardcore recreational cyclist/commuter who held a bunch of records in the area.  I'm in decent biking shape, biked (pedal bike) to work for a while before figuring out the ebike thing, and the commute was significantly faster with the ebike.  The recreational guy was faster than me in the straights, but I absolutely destroyed him speed-wise up the hill we lived on (big, nasty, steep hill, and even though I could get up it manually, I was soaked in sweat for half an hour after getting home, and pretty cranky - not ideal).

I need to get something built up again.  I've got a bunch of parts, just... very few running ebikes.  Shoemaker's kids and all.  I've got a few BionX kits I need to get assembled for testing purposes - they're R&D hardware for me, but I eventually need to get them on something and figure out how to run them faster than rated speed (rural roads, nobody cares, and 30mph makes a big difference to me).

Frizhand

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 61
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #68 on: May 10, 2017, 11:39:51 AM »

jeromedawg

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 5174
  • Age: 2019
  • Location: Orange County, CA
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #69 on: May 10, 2017, 12:00:11 PM »
www.superpedestrian.com

Whoa this is awesome! I have a Trek 7700fx that I was using when I was [rarely] commuting to work. It was only a 6-7mile trip roundtrip but was fun (at least, up to the point that I got a flat lol). Now that I'm full-time WFH I don't ever ride the bike. It would be nice getting on it for groceries though and taking the little one(s) out. I'm interested in doing a conversion but this single wheel seems like it would make it all that much easier. Have any of you had experience attaching trailers and extra weight to your e-bikes? Does it cause any issues or complications like slowing things down too much, etc?

Syonyk

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4610
    • Syonyk's Project Blog
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #70 on: May 10, 2017, 12:04:10 PM »
That's one of those stupid f*cking "Wheels."

Let's put weird shaped batteries right around a hot motor, not let you fit gears on the rear (note all the pictures are single speed), give it an App(TM), and sell it to hipsters.

You get crap battery capacity, limited power, limited range, and an utterly unmaintainable system, for a nice price premium over the parts separately.

jeromedawg

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 5174
  • Age: 2019
  • Location: Orange County, CA
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #71 on: May 10, 2017, 12:14:09 PM »
That's one of those stupid f*cking "Wheels."

Let's put weird shaped batteries right around a hot motor, not let you fit gears on the rear (note all the pictures are single speed), give it an App(TM), and sell it to hipsters.

You get crap battery capacity, limited power, limited range, and an utterly unmaintainable system, for a nice price premium over the parts separately.

It seems like it's customizable for bikes with gears too: https://shop.superpedestrian.com/?_ga=2.45606244.1108915875.1494439863-1996114617.1494438938

Also, I don't think this thing is meant to 'drive' you - rather, it seems like it's primarily pedal-assist technology in a wheel vs a full-on motor. But yea, at that price point it's kind of insane - then again, are there many other pedal-assist wheel-only technologies out there? I've seen GeoOrbital but that looks even more ridiculous (and heavier) than this. I'm sure if you really wanted to you could paint the thing black so it's not *as* ugly :)

Syonyk

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4610
    • Syonyk's Project Blog
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #72 on: May 10, 2017, 12:20:09 PM »
Alright, that's fair - I didn't see that they had multi-speed support.

It's still an insane price for what it is, and I can guarantee that "fixing it" consists of "throwing it away and buying another."

I'm not a big fan of rim brakes only either.  But I've lived in hilly areas where I fry those in short order with the road grit.

You can buy a fully competent Rad Rover for the cost of a wheel - and it's a lot more maintainable.

jeromedawg

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 5174
  • Age: 2019
  • Location: Orange County, CA
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #73 on: May 10, 2017, 01:34:23 PM »
Alright, that's fair - I didn't see that they had multi-speed support.

It's still an insane price for what it is, and I can guarantee that "fixing it" consists of "throwing it away and buying another."

I'm not a big fan of rim brakes only either.  But I've lived in hilly areas where I fry those in short order with the road grit.

You can buy a fully competent Rad Rover for the cost of a wheel - and it's a lot more maintainable.

Yea, a 'fairer' price might be half the current price. And yea, not having disc brakes as an option is another issue - maybe they're working on a prototype for that. It would make sense as it seems it would be more of an integrated solution than relying on rim brakes, especially for the regenerative charging part.

There are several more small-time vendors out there who make these 'self-powered' wheels but they all start in the $1000 range. I could see the technology being useful either way but perhaps there's not enough popularity to drive the price down, yet.
« Last Edit: May 10, 2017, 01:38:59 PM by jeromedawg »

Syonyk

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4610
    • Syonyk's Project Blog
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #74 on: May 10, 2017, 01:47:09 PM »
No, it's a stupid way of doing an electric bike.

It puts batteries (which don't like to be hot) right in with motors and controllers (which get hot).  It puts mass down in the entirely unsprung wheel mass when there's no reason for it to be down there.

It optimizes for "the thing you do once" (install it) at the cost of "the things you would want to do regularly" (ride it, maintain it, keep it running forever).

There's no good reason to do it that way, and many very good reasons not to.

jeromedawg

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 5174
  • Age: 2019
  • Location: Orange County, CA
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #75 on: May 10, 2017, 01:55:44 PM »
No, it's a stupid way of doing an electric bike.

It puts batteries (which don't like to be hot) right in with motors and controllers (which get hot).  It puts mass down in the entirely unsprung wheel mass when there's no reason for it to be down there.

It optimizes for "the thing you do once" (install it) at the cost of "the things you would want to do regularly" (ride it, maintain it, keep it running forever).

There's no good reason to do it that way, and many very good reasons not to.

What do you think about this from the other thread? http://www.electric-bike-kit.com/

Seems like they've split everything out in terms of the battery not being integrated. And the motor is on the front wheel too. Seems like the same concept though - pedal-assist wheel.

Syonyk

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4610
    • Syonyk's Project Blog
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #76 on: May 10, 2017, 02:10:47 PM »
That's perfectly reasonable.  You shouldn't put more than about 250-300W through the front wheel or handling gets goofy, though.

As long as the motor and controller are separate from the battery, it's fine.  I just think cramming the battery in with heat generating motors and controllers, and increasing the unsprung weight significantly while you're at it, is stupid.  It looks cool, and keeps the lines of your single speed hipster bike clean.  Great.  Whatever.

Just remember, I make a lot of money fixing and repairing proprietary ebike systems for people.  I expect to see (and probably turn down) a bunch of these wheels in the next 5 years.  If they're using goofy circular batteries (at least some are), I can't repair them - I can't get the parts.

Rollin

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1230
  • Location: West-Central Florida - USA
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #77 on: May 10, 2017, 02:15:12 PM »
Glad you took the plunge and got the kit for an existing bike. I have had two e-bikes (a Big Dummy (sold) and an Xtracycle) and ride them thousands of miles. I'm ready to add a EM3 kit to the Bike Friday Haul-A-Day. I really don't drive much at all anymore. Meet for beer, ride the e-bike. Go to visit parents, ride the e-bike. Library, grocery, kids to school, you name it.

jeromedawg

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 5174
  • Age: 2019
  • Location: Orange County, CA
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #78 on: May 10, 2017, 02:19:45 PM »
That's perfectly reasonable.  You shouldn't put more than about 250-300W through the front wheel or handling gets goofy, though.

As long as the motor and controller are separate from the battery, it's fine.  I just think cramming the battery in with heat generating motors and controllers, and increasing the unsprung weight significantly while you're at it, is stupid.  It looks cool, and keeps the lines of your single speed hipster bike clean.  Great.  Whatever.

Just remember, I make a lot of money fixing and repairing proprietary ebike systems for people.  I expect to see (and probably turn down) a bunch of these wheels in the next 5 years.  If they're using goofy circular batteries (at least some are), I can't repair them - I can't get the parts.

What are some other DIY conversion systems you'd highly recommend?

Syonyk

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4610
    • Syonyk's Project Blog
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #79 on: May 10, 2017, 02:30:23 PM »
I really don't use kits - at this point, I'm picking out parts and controllers, building my own battery packs, etc.

BionX makes nice hardware, but you'll be contacting me at some point in the next decade about battery pack rebuilds, because their replacements are punishingly expensive (and, on the 48V systems, usually I can't help anyway because it's the battery controller board that dies).

47%MMM

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 53
  • Location: South Jersey
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #80 on: June 22, 2017, 11:55:25 AM »
I'm really in love with the radwagon and thinking about pulling the trigger but I have a more general question about ebikes, my garage is detached and my bike will be stored in it with all the associated issues with extreme heat and cold.

Has anyone had any issues with there batteries because of this?

Is everyone taking their batteries off and on every day? This seems like a pain.

Thanks for everyone's input.

Syonyk

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4610
    • Syonyk's Project Blog
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #81 on: June 22, 2017, 04:51:39 PM »
Don't charge your battery below freezing.  If it's warm enough from the ride home, you're fine.  Charging below freezing causes lithium plating and permanent capacity loss.

You probably shouldn't charge it if the pack is over about 120F.  Let it cool off first.

radbog

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 1
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #82 on: June 29, 2017, 12:43:04 AM »
First post on this forum, but I have a RadBike and 250 miles in, I absolutely love it. I commute 21 miles over a steep hill and stop-and-go suburban traffic, and my commute has gone from ~55 miserable minutes to about 1h20m of actually enjoyable time on the bike. The RadWagon has no trouble managing the distance or going up hills, although I am definitely getting a good workout biking in, but am not sweaty by the time I get to work.

k-vette

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 263
    • Bolton Ebikes
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #83 on: July 10, 2017, 11:28:28 PM »
Just got my bike put back together.  Can't wait to start riding to work again instead of driving!

jamesbond007

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 754
  • Location: USA
  • One penny at a time.
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #84 on: July 11, 2017, 12:59:51 PM »
Built mine last week with a brand new Diamondback Trace hard tail ($340 shipped), BBS02 750W and Jumbo Shark 52V 17.5Ah from Luna. Cost me around $1700 total plus about 3 hrs of build time. The only think I did on my bikes up until this build was fix a flat. So yeah, I was able to build this bad boy easily. Been commuting to work (36 mile roundtrip) for the 4 days and I absolutely love it. Takes the same 1 hr as my car drive but I get some exercise with hard pedaling and also not stuck in traffic.

spaniard999

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 118
  • Age: 36
  • Location: Chicago, IL
    • Longing for Travel
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #85 on: July 11, 2017, 02:02:35 PM »
I had a post about how I was looking for a new bike and recommendations.
Seems like an eBike would fit my needs.
But I dont even have a bike to build on.
Which approach would get me in a ebike with the less amount of money spent?
Full commute is 18 miles. I live in Chicago, there are barely hills.
I saw this in amazon.

What about https://starkdrive.bike/
« Last Edit: July 11, 2017, 02:49:23 PM by aalferez »

jamesbond007

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 754
  • Location: USA
  • One penny at a time.
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #86 on: July 11, 2017, 03:05:56 PM »
I had a post about how I was looking for a new bike and recommendations.
Seems like an eBike would fit my needs.
But I dont even have a bike to build on.
Which approach would get me in a ebike with the less amount of money spent?
Full commute is 18 miles. I live in Chicago, there are barely hills.
I saw this in amazon.

What about https://starkdrive.bike/

What's your budget?

spaniard999

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 118
  • Age: 36
  • Location: Chicago, IL
    • Longing for Travel
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #87 on: July 11, 2017, 03:31:03 PM »
I had a post about how I was looking for a new bike and recommendations.
Seems like an eBike would fit my needs.
But I dont even have a bike to build on.
Which approach would get me in a ebike with the less amount of money spent?
Full commute is 18 miles. I live in Chicago, there are barely hills.
I saw this in amazon.

What about https://starkdrive.bike/

What's your budget?
If the bike is worth it, reliable, with long battery and fast charge, I wouldn't mind spending $1000

AlanStache

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3175
  • Age: 44
  • Location: South East Virginia
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #88 on: July 11, 2017, 04:19:34 PM »
I had a post about how I was looking for a new bike and recommendations.
Seems like an eBike would fit my needs.
But I dont even have a bike to build on.
Which approach would get me in a ebike with the less amount of money spent?
Full commute is 18 miles. I live in Chicago, there are barely hills.
I saw this in amazon.

What about https://starkdrive.bike/

What's your budget?
If the bike is worth it, reliable, with long battery and fast charge, I wouldn't mind spending $1000

There are a hand full of options for ebikes around 1k, including electrifying standard bikes.  Fair warning it becomes a rabbit hole :-)

https://electricbikereview.com/populo/sport-electric-bike/

Just Joe

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 6720
  • Location: In the middle....
  • Teach me something.
Re: Is an E-Bike worth it?
« Reply #89 on: March 28, 2018, 07:53:39 PM »
https://electricbike-blog.com

Just throwing another website out there that has useful info.

I'm riding an old Trek mtn bike with smooth tires and the BBSHD Lunacycle kit.