jeremiahcp

Since I don't own a car (never have) I depend a lot on my bike to get around. I am considering getting an e-bike conversion kit to help cover long distances. I was hoping to get some insight into a few details about e-bikes from people more experienced with them. I just have a few questions.

First a few details of what I intend it for. My average commute is 32 miles. 16 miles there and 16 miles back. It will, for the most part, be flat terrain; maybe some slight rolling hills, and mostly paved roads. I am not really looking for the motor to help me up hills, I can handle that by myself, I am looking for it to help me cover the distance day in day out. Maybe help me keep my speed up to help curve the time and energy needed.

I really have little idea what to expect out of battery life, could someone tell me how many miles I should expect a single charge to last? And how long it would take to recharge? How about riding it on a dead battery: how much more difficult will that make peddling? I use my bike for everything, so it would be ideal for me to still be able to be able to ride the bike while the battery is dead. I know that a little extra weight can make a big difference over a long period of time.

Also, what is the difference between a back wheel hub and a front wheel hub? Is it practical to use both? How do they stand up to weather, such as rain and possibly snow?

350htrr

Here is some of my numbers with my BionX... https://www.bikeforums.net/electric-b...r-numbers.html

I can ride my bike like normal without using the system.
I can extend my range about 15% using re-gen.
I can re-charge full from practically dead battery in about 3.5Hrs
I don't have any downsides with the system as far as I am concerned...
I have had it for 3 years and now have 4,830.7 KMs on it and the wife just got hers this year and now has 1,230 KMs on it already and just loves it ...
I/we have just come back from a road trip 850KMs where we charged the batteries from our solar panel on our camper never needing to plug in anywhere...

chas58

First question you need to ask is what is your speed. Speed costs lots of money and weight (mostly batteries). That is going to determine your motor. 2[SUP]nd[/SUP]. Question you answered – distance. That is going to determine your battery.

If you charge at work, you can get a battery ½ the size.
I use 36v10ah, and that lasts me about an hour, or in my case about 25 miles.
I wanted light weight, so I got a very small motor and small lightish battery. In my case that is 9 lbs (making for a 30lb bike). Most e-bikes weigh over 50lbs.

Charging time: 4 hours (at 2 amps)
Dead battery: No problem for me, but if you have a 50lb bike you are riding up a hill, that is going to hurt. I ride fine without the battery and do it all of the time.

Using both front & rear hubs has been done, but doesn’t get you anything that you can’t get with less complexity with just one motor.

Most ebike kits seem to be fairly weather resistant. Any battery is going to perform less well in sub zero temperatures though.

Do a rear motor. Front motors can easily snap a front fork, and then you go down hard and bad with no front wheel at speed. Front motor does make some sense if you use a 250 watt motor on a steel fork, but other than that it doesn’t look like a good solution.

HoseaNol

Well I am planning long road trip on my bike so I think getting similar charging system will be very effective..

sculptingman

I built my own ebike using the Bafang 750 watt bottom Bracket motor and a Spot Ajax as the underlying bike. It runs a 48v 11ah battery...and because of the BB motor and the battery mounting on the downtube bottle bosses, its center of gravity is low and balanced, making the bike handle really well. Despite the big battery, the bike weighs in at 39 lbs...partly because I decided to go with a fully sprung brooks and a rack and a twin leg kickstand. ( the bike is so powerful... I don't even notice when I carry 40 lbs of griceries in the panniers )

the advantage of the BB drive is not only better weight distribution, it also enables you to have whatever kind of gearing on the rear wheel you prefer. An 8 cog freewheel? No problem... Single gear? Sure. For me, an 8 speed Alfine IGH is working well and giving me a clean chainline.
the Bafang has up to 9 pedal assist settings, and the range you can get is largely defined by how much assistance you need. It also has a throttle, so you can push full power on demand as needed ( for example, getting rolling again quickly after having to stop at a light )

depending on how you have the bike geared, the Bafang can run your bike up to 35 mph on level ground. Mine is not geared for top speed, but for best spread, as I live in an area with plenty of 20% grades to climb... Throttle alone it will go 28 in top gear on level terrain. With pedal input I easily get it up to 35 when I need to keep up with traffic riding in the middle of the lane.

But, generally, I find that I cruise at an average of 22-26 mph with pedal assist set at 4 or 5. Without the motor I would average between 14-18... So the electric conversion nearly doubles my average cutting travel time in half.
battery takes about 2-3 hours to fully recharge. And it even sports a USB port to charge my phone on the road.

all in all, the Bafang conversion I built has been one of the most satisfying expenditures I have ever made.

rogertc1

ANCHEER 26 inch Electric Bike for Adults, Commuting Ebike with 12.5ah/12.2ah Battery, 500W Motor Electric Mountain Bike, and Professional 21 Speed Gears. I got it for recreation. I have many cars and live in the cold snowbelt. Just a nice weather rider. Most for $700

Pop N Wood

Luna Cycle's rule of thumb is average 20 watt-hours per mile.

https://www.electricbike.com/watt-hours/

To get a rough idea about battery capacity just take the rated voltage times the battery amp-hour rating. Keep in mind to make your battery live a long time don't charge over 80% and never run it below 30%

As everyone notes this is highly dependent upon how you ride, where you ride, and how much of the battery you feel comfortable using

https://lunacycle.com/blog/ebike-bat...rs-watt-hours/