1st Bafang conversion -sense check

[polygon]

So I'm thinking of just buying all the kit for the conversion of my Genesis Vagabond soon. An upcoming commuting increase to 5 miles each way with nursery drop one way and some elevation gain the other means I'll probably need some help if I'm too avoid feeling knackered by the weekend.

So far my shopping list is as below:

• Bafang Bbs01b - probably from eBay Germany (I'm in the UK) can't see that it's loads cheaper from AliExpress, looking at about £315 for basis kit same battery.
• Greenlance 48v 13ah battery - will this play well with the 36V motor? £205 w/discount
• Hydro brake sensors - included in above kit
• SW102 display - included in above kit
• Gear shift sensor
• Programming cable
• Lockring tool so I can use my torque wrench
• Loctite 222
• Zip ties

I'm hoping I might be able to use my Middleburn cranks but I think the taper is quite short on the bafang.

Anything in missing, or hot tips on better places to buy? My budget is a little flexible but I've a few other bits to get like new tyres and bars so definitely as low as possible without regretting it later.

 

[soundwave]

Bafang Motors » Red Dragon Ebikes

reddragonebikes.co.uk

if you use the programming cable to push more amps you loose the warranty which is fair enough but more amps= more speed and less range.

cheap batts from china dont last long buy cheap buy twice

 

[polygon]

Bafang Motors » Red Dragon Ebikes

reddragonebikes.co.uk

cheap batts from china dont last long buy cheap buy twice

Do Greenlance fall in to this category? Definitely keen to not skimp on the battery or charger. Would also happily pay for a charger that shuts itself off when it's reached capacity if such a thing exists, although maybe this would encourage complacency from me.

I wonder if Red Dragon are local to me, they appear to be in Wales though I can't place exactly where.

 

[polygon]

The other thing that puzzles me is whether 2 water bottle bosses are enough for the battery mounting, assuming it fits in the frame in the right place.

 

[soundwave]

yeah there in wales and wont sell you a cheap naff batt in the first place as just not worth it sure it is a bit more money but any problems and will get sorted.

there is a custom batt builder in my sig but is very busy and not cheap, more for custom builds.

m8 has a bbshd maxed at 30 amps on the controller and his batt is held on with 2 bolts and some green lock tight stuff that needs 300c to remove it

 

[polygon]

Not sure I fully understand the amps thing, I'm not looking to go outside of EAPC spec as I'll be getting the sprog. Seen the high torque mod model from that Brighton company but I won't be pulling much weight uphill most of the time so I think stock BBS01B should do me most of the time, just aware I might want to tweak a few things.

 

[guerney]

• Bafang Bbs01b - probably from eBay Germany (I'm in the UK) can't see that it's loads cheaper from AliExpress, looking at about £315 for basis kit same battery.
• Greenlance 48v 13ah battery - will this play well with the 36V motor?

BBS01B controllers aren't dual voltage.

 

[soundwave]

48v controller needs a 48 amp batt same for 36 and 52 batt has to match the controllers voltage.

 

[saneagle]

So I'm thinking of just buying all the kit for the conversion of my Genesis Vagabond soon. An upcoming commuting increase to 5 miles each way with nursery drop one way and some elevation gain the other means I'll probably need some help if I'm too avoid feeling knackered by the weekend.

So far my shopping list is as below:

• Bafang Bbs01b - probably from eBay Germany (I'm in the UK) can't see that it's loads cheaper from AliExpress, looking at about £315 for basis kit same battery.
• Greenlance 48v 13ah battery - will this play well with the 36V motor? £205 w/discount
• Hydro brake sensors - included in above kit
• SW102 display - included in above kit
• Gear shift sensor
• Programming cable
• Lockring tool so I can use my torque wrench
• Loctite 222
• Zip ties

I'm hoping I might be able to use my Middleburn cranks but I think the taper is quite short on the bafang.

Anything in missing, or hot tips on better places to buy? My budget is a little flexible but I've a few other bits to get like new tyres and bars so definitely as low as possible without regretting it later.

I have two Greenlance batteries. Other forum members have bought them too. No problems reported so far. According to the spec, the cells are top quality. The batteries are CE marked from a UK supplier. Delivery is lightning fast. The guys at Greenlance are very accommodating and helpful. What more could you ask for?

 

[polygon]

BBS01B controllers aren't dual voltage.

Ok thanks for confirming. So they do a 16ah 36V battery for £250 so will probably go with that.

As far as I can see the BBS01B is only available in a 36V version.

 

[Benjahmin]

For some reason I can't find individual batteries on Greenlance site !
Was trying to find what the maximum current output is for the battery you spec. It needs to be around 25% more than the maximum current you program the controller to deliver, in order to not stress the battery.

 

[Peter.Bridge]

Ok thanks for confirming. So they do a 16ah 36V battery for £250 so will probably go with that.

As far as I can see the BBS01B is only available in a 36V version.

There is a BBS01ET that is 48v - Woosh have them

 

[saneagle]

For some reason I can't find individual batteries on Greenlance site !
Was trying to find what the maximum current output is for the battery you spec. It needs to be around 25% more than the maximum current you program the controller to deliver, in order to not stress the battery.

You click the top left battery labelled "electric bike battery buy now" on the shop page to see the individual batteries. In the details it says 30A BMS, which is fine for Polygon.

 

[polygon]

You click the top left battery labelled "electric bike battery buy now" on the shop page to see the individual batteries. In the details it says 30A BMS, which is fine for Polygon.

This one https://greenlance.co.uk/products/greenlance-e-bike-battery-samsung-electric-bike-battery-36v-16ah?variant=44352834896101

Edit: sorry replied to wrong post there.

Another newb question: it says 25-30 mile range, but presumably this isn't fully draining the battery? At what % should I be recharging?

 

[polygon]

There is a BBS01ET that is 48v - Woosh have them

That's actually not a bad price, about £170 more with a 15ah battery, but I'd also need the hydro brake switches on top.

Not sure if I'll need the extra 20nm on a day to day basis, but it might be handy to tackle some steeper hills to the north of Cardiff with child on the back occasionally.

 

[Nealh]

Sense say's buy a tsdz instead , the riding t is much better imv .

 

[polygon]

Sense say's buy a tsdz instead , the riding t is much better imv .

Better in what way? I must say torque sensing does appeal, but for my use case (i.e commuting where the end goal is to expend as little effort as possible for a relatively short distance) from what I have read, it might not actually be the best option. Plus, it's anecdotal, but I'm reading more stories of reliability issues with those than the Bafang.

 

[saneagle]

This one https://greenlance.co.uk/products/greenlance-e-bike-battery-samsung-electric-bike-battery-36v-16ah?variant=44352834896101

Edit: sorry replied to wrong post there.

Another newb question: it says 25-30 mile range, but presumably this isn't fully draining the battery? At what % should I be recharging?

There's no such thing as battery range on a pedal assisted bike. How far you can go depends on how hard you pedal, what sort of hills you have and how heavy you are. By way of an example, I set my bike to pedal assist level 5 and emptied the battery in 15 miles. I charged it up, then set my pedal assist to level 1 and it took 129 miles to empty the battery. Any statement that anybody makes about their range is pretty well meaningless unless they put it into context, but, even then, its always going to be subjective.

 

[saneagle]

That's actually not a bad price, about £170 more with a 15ah battery, but I'd also need the hydro brake switches on top.

And the gear sensor.

One thing to look out for is that you have the typical modern wide chainstays and small chainwheel. You should check whether there's enough clearance to get a crank-drive in on the right side. That's been a deal-breaker on other bikes.

 

[guerney]

Is the 48V BBS01ET controller programmable or locked? The 36V version isn't. At least one BBS02 controller has been reported to be locked on this forum (IIRC @peter.c's), to some extent, for controller current limit at least, also a BBSHD (IIRC @soundwave's mate's). A locked BBSXXX controller would be disappointing for the OP's use case.