Originally Posted by
Heat88
Is this why my electric bicycle doesn't have a front derailleur? Because it was built with Europe in mind? Or is it because its an electric bicycle so you barely need one gearbox let alone two?....
I was recently bequeathed an E bike-
https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/explore-eplus-3--2019
With the degree of assist provided, you don't need as many gears.
I can take off on gear 4 or 5 no problem whereas I'd go down to at least 2 without any assist. (you pretty much need level 1 assist to make up for a very heavy bike)
With my severe COPD, 3 miles in a day would wear me out. I did 10 a couple days ago with less distress and fewer used gears.
I re-geared it from an 11-36T 9 speed to a custom 14-30T. I can reach the 20 MPH cutoff with the 14 as I did with the previous 11 or 13T. That will also allow me to downshift a gear vs increasing the assist when the lungs complain.
I didn't need to, because of the assist, but I figure I'll be spreading the wear over 4-5 cogs vs 2-3?