Electric Bike

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KlangFool
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Electric Bike

Post by KlangFool »

Hi,

Has anyone bought an electric bike?? Given that I am getting older and I may need help to go further on a bike, an electric bike might fit the bill. One of my friend got two of his Smart e-bike on clearance for $600 each and he is very happy with his bikes.

I am asking any recommendation and things to watch out for. I lived in Northern Virginia. Just in case that this information is needed for the recommendation.

Thanks in advance...

KlangFool
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Andyrunner
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by Andyrunner »

I honestly have never heard of an electric bike before. Just for what is is worth: most quality bikes start at that price, so to add an electric componant to it, it should probably be a lot more than $600.
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BigFoot48
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by BigFoot48 »

I've noticed a few bikes with electric bike hubs when we ride. Looks like an easy modification for someone that wants some power assistance. A quick search found some at $220+: http://www.amazon.com/SainSpeed-Convers ... B00E56JY48
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LongerPrimer
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by LongerPrimer »

Few years ago I wanted an Ebike. Test rode some of them. I live on a 400ft elevation rise in 3 linear miles. The ebike crapped out at 2.5 miles. For $700-1500, buy a 49cc scooter which is much cheaper than an ebike.
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tyrion
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by tyrion »

I researched them fairly extensively last year and almost bought one for commuting, but with safety concerns and kid pickup responsibilities I decided it wasn't worth it.

My conclusions were:

SLA batteries are cheap but way too heavy. It would be unwieldy to pedal the bike if you have SLA batteries. The lithium batteries are lighter and you could presumably pedal the bike regularly with them, but they are expensive. For any sort of usable range you need lithium batteries.

There are direct drive and geared hubs. Direct drive means you pretty much need to always be running the bike in electric mode. Geared will let you coast/pedal, with some whirring noises and drag.

The 'pedal assist' style bikes are intriguing, but to go that route you need to buy the new bike. The E bikes come with marginal (heavy!) components.

Frame material - your best best is steel. It's the most forgiving and least prone to catastrophic failure.

If you're buying new, don't mind short range of less than 10 miles, and have a decent budget (for lithium batteries) - then I can see the use case. I expect it will ride like a beach cruiser but offer some electric boost.

But these are not bikes that are going to do well on any significant hills. For my use case - 15 miles each way, 15-20mph needed - there wasn't anything commercially worthwhile, and the parts (not including the bike itself) were $1200+.
Topic Author
KlangFool
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by KlangFool »

Andyrunner wrote:I honestly have never heard of an electric bike before. Just for what is is worth: most quality bikes start at that price, so to add an electric componant to it, it should probably be a lot more than $600.
Andyrunner,

The original price for those bikes are probably $1,500 to $2,000+ each. He bought the discontinued and clearance model. Aka, he got a hell of a bargain.

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joe8d
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by joe8d »

Harley Davidson now has an electric Harley in it's product line.
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wilked
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by wilked »

This is what you want

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S10GMfG2NMY

(my work is featured in :14 and :23) :-)
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munemaker
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by munemaker »

Harley is years away from having an electric motorcycle in their product line. There are other manufacturers offering them today though. Zero for one.
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MossySF
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by MossySF »

Electric bikes & electric scooters are used all the freaking time as primary transportation here in China. The only complaints I've heard is the batteries usually only last 3 years under heavy usage .. which at that point, they spend ~$26 to get a replacement battery.

Hard to say why experiences in the developed world are so much worse with e-bikes. Maybe it's the lack of local shops to do repairs or battery replacements?
michaelsieg
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by michaelsieg »

They are a huge growth segment in the European bike market. Electric bikes are more commonly used for daily commute and many people use them. The biketec flyer is a popular model in Switzerland - check the pictures out on the website, you could barely tell these are electrical bikes. http://www.flyer-bikes.com/startseite/
They are not like a moped/scooter, the electrical assist only kicks in when you pedal yourself, but people have much higher average speeds if they go on bike tours or live in areas with many hills.
The battery of these bikes is what makes them expensive, you want a bike with a good battery that lasts several hours before it needs recharging.
I was looking into these as well, but safety concerns about riding a bike to work daily here in the US, and the lack of protected bike lanes made me decide against it. But for a commute up to 10 miles with good bike lanes, they are a great, healthy and probably also less expensive option than driving a car.
Topic Author
KlangFool
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by KlangFool »

wilked wrote:This is what you want

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S10GMfG2NMY

(my work is featured in :14 and :23) :-)
wilked,

Very interesting idea...

KlangFool
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bloom2708
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by bloom2708 »

wilked wrote:This is what you want

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S10GMfG2NMY

(my work is featured in :14 and :23) :-)
These look amazing. I've been watching them for quite a while. I almost pre-ordered one. I am waiting to see if they make it out of "pre-order" status.

I'd like it if the front and rear wheel and tire would match. Seems like it might be an interesting challenge to retro fit the zillions of types of current bikes. But I also like the idea of just buying the wheel and keeping the rest of your bicycle.
Faith20879
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by Faith20879 »

We saw several at Hudson Trail Outfitter's year-end clearance sale for $699. Thought long and hard about it but ended up not to for these reasons:

1. Ebikes are not allowed on multiple use trails in our local jurisdiction.
2. It weights a ton and I will no way be able to lift it on to a bus carrier in case of a summer torrential pour.
3. DH did not look the batteries fondly for the same reason michaelsieg alluded to.

Faith
jimkinny
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by jimkinny »

I used to ride a bike a lot, then knee surgery....

I met a guy several months ago who had several major knee surgeries. I stopped and talked to him because I noticed his electric bike. He let me take a ride and I was impressed.

I think it was this brand but not certain.
http://www.currietech.com/izip-electric-bikes/

I am not certain of the brand but in the 95% probability range. The motor could be disengaged with a switch on handlebar. In the "on" position, when starting from a standstill, the motor would engage after the 2nd-3rd pedal revolution and had a speed control so one could pedal with a lot of assistance or very little. It was very well constructed.

I will eventually get either a bike or scooter, likely electric but maybe a very small combustion engine in a scooter. I do not think I will go with a conversion kit, although for someone who likes to tinker and adjust things, this might be a nice option.

If you get one, please keep us posted on your experience.
jim
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KlangFool
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by KlangFool »

jimkinny wrote:I used to ride a bike a lot, then knee surgery....

I met a guy several months ago who had several major knee surgeries. I stopped and talked to him because I noticed his electric bike. He let me take a ride and I was impressed.


jim
jimkinny.

A) I am scheduled to get a demo / test drive at local bike shop. Look like it will be between $1,500 to $3,000.

B) My co-worker that bought the electric bike was recovering from heart and knee surgeries. Electric bike was a low stress method to keep him active.

http://optibike.com/all-models/pioneer-allroad/

C) This bike look tempting to me. But. I am 5'4". I am not sure that I can fit in this bike...

I will post when I have more information.

KlangFool
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Slowmaha
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by Slowmaha »

I've been researching ebikes for a couple years now. I test drove one last year in Virginia.. I think it was a Pedago but I can't remember. It had 1x, 2x, 3x pedal assist. I don't care who you are, you'll get the "ebike smile" when riding one of these puppies.

Problem is they are still too darn expensive and many still look dorky. Designs are getting MUCH better, however, and I suspect battery prices will eventually come down. Until then I wait.
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BigFoot48
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by BigFoot48 »

The idea of having an electric bike has risen to near the top of the stack of stuff to do for us as DW thinks it would help her get out with me on longer rides. The solution I'm looking at is the Hill Topper sold by Clean Republic (and via Amazon for a higher price). This is a front wheel replacement with an electric motor hub and would cost about $500 with a 10-mile battery. Their website: http://www.electric-bike-kit.com/index.aspx and a review: http://electricbikereview.com/clean-rep ... ll-topper/

They recommend a steel front fork but the DW bike has aluminum so I'm investigating that issue. They apparently have customers that are successfully using it with an aluminum fork but a catastrophic failure would not be good. I could deal with cracks develop over time with the eventually replacement with a steel fork, since such a replacement as part of the installation is the other alternative.

If we do this I'll post an update on the results.
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jdb
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Re: Electric Bike

Post by jdb »

munemaker wrote:Harley is years away from having an electric motorcycle in their product line. There are other manufacturers offering them today though. Zero for one.
Actually Harley is on 30 city tour right now showing off their electric motorcycle prototype. Hope that it goes into regular production. http://www.nwitimes.com/business/transp ... d6f89.html
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