UKH

Hi all,

my old dear has been suffering some debilitating health issues over the last few years and has not been able to enjoy trips out on the bike with my old man as they used to love to do. There is some light at the end of the recovery tunnel for her and to help her along I wanted to get her a conversion kit for her bike so she could venture out a little - e-bikes being a little out of budget at the minute.

Has anyone got any experience or recommendations along these lines?

Cheers,

LP 

In reply to LP:

I bought 2 motors and batteries from Eclipse bikes.

http://eclipsebikes.com/

Had them for about 18 months and covered about 1500 kim’s, mostly road but also off road, mtb trails,etc.

In reply to LP:

Cytronex electric front wheel gets a good review here https://ebiketips.road.cc/content/reviews/electric-conversion-kits/cytronex...

Under serious consideration in the face of another winter of long distance cycle commuting....

In reply to nniff:

Pedalling keeps you warm tho!

In reply to balmybaldwin:

It's the last 8 miles of it that's uphill and into the prevailing wind that I could use a little help on.  The other 12 is fine.    Going the other way is fine - mostly flat or downhill with the wind behind me.  40 miles a day, every day, 200 sets of traffic/pedestrian lights.  The temptation at this time of year is to drive the first/last six miles so a little electric hand on my back would be good, especially as over the past two weeks I've had more soakings than during all of lats years.

In reply to nniff:

That is a good distance for daily commuting!

CB

In reply to LP:

I have bought and fitted 2 of the kits from Dillinger. Not the cheapest but very good.

Kit 1 is my commuting to work bike. it’s a Carrera Crossfire 2 and fitted up with the ‘off road’ kit, rear wheel motor. I use this for 8 mile a day commute to work and back and it has done over a year and over a 1000 miles with no problems at all. when the wind is against you and it’s tipping down at 05.00 when I leave for work, it takes the pain away. with the motor, battery and rider altogether it makes a heavy bike and pinch flats can be a problem on the back wheel and these are a pain to repair due to the motor wiring. I have learnt my lesson though and have good quality tyres and keep the pressure high.

Kit 2 is on my wife’s bike (crossfire again, lady version) This one is Dillingers ‘street legal’ kit. This is a front wheel motor and it works much better that I thought it would and comparable to my rear wheel motor on the other bike. This was bought so wife can come out with me when I’m on my road bike, she can match me on long rides and climbs now. Much easier to fit and not had any problems sine we had it back in May. 

Both the Dillinger kits come with Hall effect sensors which is far batter than having to change brake levers as many brake levers have integrated gear shifters. Because of the extra speed and weight of these ebikes you do really need disc brakes. Both of these kits have the ‘throttle’ thumb switch on the handlebars. These are fun at first to wizz around without peddling but it drains the battery very quickly. Better for rider and battery to use the ‘pedal assist’ which gives me an average speed of 15-18 mph which is plenty. wind or hills you can either increase the assist setting or just have your speed reduced. Been the best money I’ve spent on modern ‘tech’ in years!

In reply to baron:

which one? any issues? recommended? i'm thinking of bafang 250 mid-drive

In reply to wilkie14c:

big reduction on that front wheel kit atm but still double what i was thinking of paying for a 36v 250w wheel +battery. why the premium price?

In reply to malk:

I bought the bafang 350 mid drive because at the time eclipse didn’t have any 250s in stock. The 250 would be fine for most uses, unless you’re an off road demon.

The 350 isn’t street legal although you’d have to go looking for the stamp on the motor to know the difference.

You’ll find both motor and battery cheaper on eBay but I wanted a UK company in case there were any issues.

The motors were easy to fit but you have to make sure that the single chainring will clear the bike’s chain stays.

Fitting the battery can be an issue due to their size.

We’ve got 15amp batteries which are quite large.

On my wife’s full suspension bike we had to fit a rear rack on which the battery sits.

My Halfords hardtail has the battery located inside the frames triangle.

Wiring the motor and battery just takes a bit of patience and a lot of cable ties.

We’ve covered over 1500 kms in 18 months, all types of terrain, all weathers including submerging one motor in a very deep puddle.

No issues soo far, best thing we’ve bought in years.

The pedelecs forum has a wealth of knowledge and advice.

In reply to malk:

Good support, connectors that fit each other, genuine samsung 25r batteries, quality of components (rim, spokes, battery cradle etc)

In reply to baron:

thanks for that useful info. no chainline issues/need to replace kit chainring then? most people seem to dispense with the throttle and just use the power assist. same with you?

In reply to malk:

No chain line issues on either of our bikes.

We have throttles fitted (illegal) but hardly ever use them.

They are handy if you ever have to start peddling half way up a very steep hill.

A quick push on the throttle gives you enough impetus to begin peddling.

You’d quickly deplete your battery if you use it too much.

In reply to wilkie14c:

They also mean that the bike is not street legal, in the sense that it no longer qualifies as a pedelec, which can be ridden uninsured and unregistered just like an ordinary bicycle.  With the throttle it counts as an electric motorcycle or moped, which means that it has to be registered (which in turn means that it must be approved for use on the road*), VED paid where applicable, and the rider must have third party insurance at a minimum.

If you see someone whizzing along on an electric bicycle without putting any effort through the pedals then their bike probably isn't street legal.  (Unless they're freewheeling downhill, of course.)  That is a lot easier to spot than the rating plate on the motor, as mentioned by baron.

https://www.gov.uk/electric-bike-rules

https://www.cyclinguk.org/cyclists-library/regulations/eapc-regulations

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/product-news/electric-bikes-uk-law-23497...

https://www.pedelecs.co.uk/electric-bike-guides/uk-electric-bike-law/

* https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-approval

In reply to LP:thanks for the very detailed replies! Most appreciated ! I'll get shopping this weekend. Thanks again.

In reply to LP:

my lbs is offering ebike conversion for £600. it looke a decent job.

In reply to LP:

Converted my hybrid with a 36V 350W rear hub motor. Absolutely love it! Use it for so many more trips to the wall or local shops I would've normally used the car for.

https://www.atmparts.eu/p24_eu/eshop/en/2W/hub/BAFANG

Edit: Just realised you started this thread last month. Hope you've got it sorted.

In reply to LP:

Wealth of knowledge/advice on here: https://ebiketips.road.cc/

For my tuppence worth, front wheel motors seem to be the easiest conversion, but can have traction issues up hills, as the weight is mainly over the back wheel, and can make the steering a bit heavy and affect handling.

Equally, rear wheel kits are trickier to install, but better overall.

In reply to LastBoyScout:

I agree. I also went for the rear hub as it's a bit more stealthy. The hub is pretty much the same size as the rear gears so from the side you can't really tell it's an eBike.

Front wheel drive can be good on fat bikes though on snow/sand when the benefit of 2 wheel drive can shine.

Mid-drive is good on mountain bikes since the extra weight is in the middle of the bike or if you want A LOT of power. Hub motors over 1kW aren't great.