needbikenow

hey everybody,just wanting to know if this can be done?my wife has ms so her distance is limited,i thought this would help her out a bit.her bike is a schwinn meridian trike,i know there are better kits out there but this is affordable,i wasnt sure how much control she would have with just a on\off switch thanks,scott

Sangesf

I thought the hill topper kit did come with a throttle?

needbikenow

if i read eveything correctly it just comes with velcro on/off button

Sangesf

Just looked at it, you're right..
Piece of crap for $400..
Email them and ask them if a throttle will work. ProbabLy not

15rms

That motor is so small it only has one speed. Real slow.

jethro56 

What you get for $400.
1.) $110 Motor
2.) $25 Controller
3.) $5 push button
4.) $75 battery pack

needbikenow

can u guys suggest somthing better for not to much more,ive done a lot of reading but so many choices its a little hard to decifer everything when your a newbie

Bontrager

It takes about 1 second for the motor to kick-in after you push the button, which can be placed comfortably anywhere. I'm sure with the right extra equipment or replacement of a controller you could convert it to a throttle. Part of the beauty of the kit is its simplicity.

@jethro56 - The hilltopper IMO is one of the easiest kits for a noob in e-biking to get into. Don't forget that for your $400 you get a complete wheel and a system that is easy to install (unless you have to grind your forks down -- see my review).

In my recent searching, I haven't found an easier/complete system for a noob to get into. Sure after you buy it and do tons of reading, etc, you realize you can source parts and electronics to put one together yourself but that's not the point of the Hill Topper.

@15rms - Not everyone wants to go 20 mph unassisted with a huge (or expensive) battery on their bike.

Marci

Yep, I only want it to get up the hills, or when the wind is blowing badly otherwise I will used my own power-I am out to get exercise to have it on the whole ride defeats that purpose. And yeah I am a bit of a noob. I only hit 20 mph down hill on cookie hill and its too fast for me. under 10 is fine.

cudak888 

Well, zombie thread or not, I have a psudo-helpful, partial answer for this - and even then, this relates to older Clean Republic-era Hilltoppers with 24V/250W 8FUN hubs; I can't speak of the current ones:

If you're willing to re-wire the system to work with an aftermarket 24V brushless motor controller, you're limited only by the functions of that controller. In other words, with enough DIY know-how and soldering, you can modify the Hilltopper to suit more than a few needs.

Case in point, I recently picked one of these up on eBay dirt cheap and converted it to pedal assist with a $10 (sometimes $26, depending on the supplier) 24V motor controller from Amazon and an aftermarket PAS sensor. That same controller has a connection for a throttle, but I don't know if said connection results in "constant on" or not. Didn't use the original battery either, so there's not really much of the Hilltopper left, but it did perfect on its maiden voyage today. Build thread: https://www.bikeforums.net/electric-...o-pedelec.html

Mind, the motor controller above is as basic as it gets. You can't adjust the amount of the assist from the PAS and there's no LCD. Others are more fully featured.

-Kurt

chas58

I like those little motors for assist. I would get a 36v controller and 36v battery though. 24 isn't gonna give you much...