2nd hand Wisper

[rustic]

Given the current economic climate etc....., I thought I'd take a punt in the second hand market for an electric bike. I just missed out on a second hand Wisper at the weekend on that well known internet auction site - Am I looking in the right places, or do any of you have any ideas (apart from Ebay & the classifiieds on Pedelecs) where I should be looking in order to find such a bike.

I'd appreciate any bright ideas . Many thanks, Rus.

 

[Mussels]

eBay seems to be the usual, but as usual with eBay there is a lot of chaff with the wheat.

 

[flecc]

And don't forget our classified ads in this site, there have been some very good bargains there as you'll see when looking back through:

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/classifieds/
.

 

[Bigbee]

You could ask Doug at Wisper whether hes got an ex-demo,a damaged box bike or some thing else thats cheaper.I dont like the sound of buying second hand electric bikes,especially.You havent a clue how it could of been treated,could be false economy imho.I nearly bougght a second and bike but was put off after reading on here.You never know the state of the battery,if its knackered the new Wisper ones are almost £500 to replace!

 

[stranger]

I took a chance and bought my Powabyke Shopper from that certain well known web-site. I was the only bidder too.

I think I was lucky.

Theres one on there now which I am sorely tempted to go after too.

It's non-functional but theres not exactly a rush for it--and I bet it's perfectly fixable.

Which reminds me. I haven't checked it's status today.

PS. Theres a goodly selection there at the moment.

 

[pl1974]

Rus - you must have been my competitor! Was it from the electric transport shop?

I bought it for the wife I'm picking it up on Thurs, but having a nervous wait.

I've been watching ebay for a few weeks, I think if you're prepared to travel a bit they seem to come up reasonably regularly.

Still not sure if its the right way to go, so dependant on the battery being good..

Paul

 

[rustic]

Thanks for all the replies.

It seems that Ebay & the classifieds section on here are the best bet for finding a second hand bike, but I think contacting David at Wisper is also a good shout.

I really would rather purchase a new model, but poor health over the past year has restricted my earnings & a punt in the second hand market makes the most fiscal sense at the moment, but there are of course risks / unexpected costs that can be encountered.

Paul - Sounds like we were bidding on the same bike. I hope it proves a good purchase for you both. The only reason I wasn't prepared to place a higher bid was because there were no photo's provided, I thought the description was pretty scant on detail & questions that I asked ETS about the bike were not answered! But never mind, I hope it proves a good ride for you .

 

[fcurran]

Given the current economic climate etc....., I thought I'd take a punt in the second hand market for an electric bike. I just missed out on a second hand Wisper at the weekend on that well known internet auction site - Am I looking in the right places, or do any of you have any ideas (apart from Ebay & the classifiieds on Pedelecs) where I should be looking in order to find such a bike.

I'd appreciate any bright ideas . Many thanks, Rus.

Hi Rus,

You could always look in AtoB magazine as they have a classified section at the back of the magazine. They may have a Wisper for sale in there. Good luck!

FrankC

 

[pl1974]

Rus - Looks like we may have both had a lucky escape.

Apparently the bike needs a new motor, controller and full rewiring.. ETS have offerred to carry out the work if I still want to buy it, but not too sure what to do now.

Gutted...

 

[rustic]

Rus - Looks like we may have both had a lucky escape.

Apparently the bike needs a new motor, controller and full rewiring.. ETS have offerred to carry out the work if I still want to buy it, but not too sure what to do now.

Gutted...

Sorry to hear that Paul - How much extra is that likely to set you back? Are you going to go ahead & get the work done?

 

[Wisper Bikes]

905se demonstrator

Hi Rustic

W do have a couple of demonstrators available. If you are interested please drop me a line on miall@aol.com available with full 2 year warranty.

All the best David

 

[pl1974]

Well, I've got the 2nd hand wisper mentioned at the start of this thread.

Electric Transport Shop carried out 'a total rewire' and replaced the motor and speed control for me. (free of charge I should add).

I've got several problems with the bike though:

1) The rear wheel spokes are loose, within a mile 3 spokes fell out and the wheel started to wobble. I'm going to attempt to build truing stand and tightened and straighten the wheel this weekend.

2) The bike has been derestricted (the removed loom is attached to the cycle rack) however I was finding that the power cut out when I was above 16 or 17mph - is that normal? I had to release the throttle before it would cut in again.

3) Pedelec doesn't work - ETS said that this model doesn't have Pedelec, but it does seem to have the sensor against the front sprocket and a cable going into the speed control 'box', just not connected

4) The brakes don't cut out the motor, it seems that there is a cable coming from the brake, but nothing at speed control end - hopefully just a wiring job.

Generally the bike is rather tatty, the wiring quality generall was quite poor with a lot of connectors missing and the wires 'stuffed' into the connector blocks with various 'spade' type connectors and lots of insulation tape.

I think its quite repairable and should make a good bike though, most concerning one is the motor cutting out.

Thanks,

Paul

 

[torrent99]

Hmmm I hate to say it, but it sounds like this may no longer really be a Wisper.

3) Pedelec doesn't work - ETS said that this model doesn't have Pedelec, but it does seem to have the sensor against the front sprocket and a cable going into the speed control 'box', just not connected

When, as an academic exercise, I looked at repacement controllers a month or so ago, I couldn't find one with a pedelec function. So it may have the sensor but the controller box may not have the electronics. Pedelec is a UK/European function and most replacement controllers are I suspect sold to the US which doesn't need a pedelec.

4) The brakes don't cut out the motor, it seems that there is a cable coming from the brake, but nothing at speed control end - hopefully just a wiring job.

Yes most likely a wiring job. The brake cut outs are simple switches (normally open) that are commoned together just outside the controller. A multimeter should track this down.

2) The bike has been derestricted (the removed loom is attached to the cycle rack) however I was finding that the power cut out when I was above 16 or 17mph - is that normal? I had to release the throttle before it would cut in again.

That's a bit strange & worth asking ETS about.

So basically it sounds like you've got a 3rd party electronics fitted to Wisper mechanics. Not necessarily a bad thing, and I'm sure with a bit of work you'll end up with a really nice bike Good luck!

Cheers

Steve

 

[Mussels]

Well, I've got the 2nd hand wisper mentioned at the start of this thread.

Electric Transport Shop carried out 'a total rewire' and replaced the motor and speed control for me. (free of charge I should add).

I've got several problems with the bike though:

1) The rear wheel spokes are loose, within a mile 3 spokes fell out and the wheel started to wobble. I'm going to attempt to build truing stand and tightened and straighten the wheel this weekend.

The loose spokes should all be on the non drive side, i.e. the left hand side. Because of the dishing of the wheel most tension is in the drive side and loose spokes there could be a problem, on the non-drive side you should tighten them up so they don't feel loose but don't make them tight. Check them every few hundred miles and the front wheel as well.

2) The bike has been derestricted (the removed loom is attached to the cycle rack) however I was finding that the power cut out when I was above 16 or 17mph - is that normal? I had to release the throttle before it would cut in again.

This doesn't sound right, the speed is OK but it shouldn't cut out. If you hold the throttle on does it keep the speed around there or let you coast to a halt?

3) Pedelec doesn't work - ETS said that this model doesn't have Pedelec, but it does seem to have the sensor against the front sprocket and a cable going into the speed control 'box', just not connected

4) The brakes don't cut out the motor, it seems that there is a cable coming from the brake, but nothing at speed control end - hopefully just a wiring job.

Flecc mentioned the other day that this is a UK thing only so won't be a function of most controllers. It is a legal requirement in the UK though, personally I wouldn't be bothered about it.

Generally the bike is rather tatty, the wiring quality generall was quite poor with a lot of connectors missing and the wires 'stuffed' into the connector blocks with various 'spade' type connectors and lots of insulation tape.

I think its quite repairable and should make a good bike though, most concerning one is the motor cutting out.

Thanks,

Paul

It's probably OK but it is second hand and won't be perfect, sounds like you are quite prepared for that though.

 

[rooel]

pl1974

I hope you did not pay much for this secondhand Wisper. As supplied, it seems like a scrapyard price would have been appropriate, and not much more with such "repairs" as have been carried out.

If I had seen this thread sooner I would have suggested a new, cheaper but well reviewed, model, eg the Mistral, available on eBay from Inverkeithing, at £519, brand new, guaranteed, and delivered to your door.

 

[eddieo]

surely it must be a genuine wisper and under a year old? why else would ETS carry out expensive work for free

 

[pl1974]

Battery's dead now..

Hi,

Thanks for the responses.

Yes its a genuine wisper. All the parts are too, the controller has the wires etc. for pedelec, just seems not connected (see pic), same as the brakes, also some dodgy wiring.

I spent the afternoon truing and tightening the wheel - was surprisingly easy.

Unfortunatley I then put it back together ready for a test ride and no power!

It seems the battery is now not putting out any power, All I've done since I test rode it is give it a full charge. I tried it on the multimeter and nothing. Maybe thats why it had been cutting out before?

Anyway phoned ETS and they have said they will look at it, although not sure what that means, they said it was working when it left the shop (which to be fair it was..). They are 50 miles away so looking into posting it.

Seems it wasn't meant to be with this bike.. Still think other stuff is fixable, but if the battery is dead than thats a killer cost wise

Paul

 

[torrent99]

Hi,

Thanks for the responses.

Yes its a genuine wisper. All the parts are too, the controller has the wires etc. for pedelec, just seems not connected, same as the brakes, also some dodgy wiring.

I spent the afternoon truing and tightening the wheel - was surprisingly easy.

Unfortunatley I then put it back together ready for a test ride and no power!

It seems the battery is now not putting out any power, All I've done to i since I test rode it is give it a full charge. I tried it on the multimeter and nothing. Maybe thats why it had been cutting out before?

Anyway phoned ETS and they have said they will look at it, although not sure what that means, they said it was working when it left the shop (which to be fair it was..). They are 50 miles away so looking into posting it.

Seems it wasn't meant to be with this bike.. Still think other stuff is fixable, but if the battery is dead than thats a killer cost wise

Paul

Oh dear , you're not having much luck here are you?
What make of battery is it? (Sticker should be on side or bottom).
Fully charged my Lishen puts out 42V. Partially it's around 38/39V.

Perhaps its just the fuse that's gone?

 

[pl1974]

Hi,

Yes, it says Lishen on the sticker underneath.

I thought it was the fuse too, unfortunately its not, fuse is fine.

Paul

 

[torrent99]

Hi,

Yes, it says Lishen on the sticker underneath.

I thought it was the fuse too, unfortunately its not, fuse is fine.

Paul

If it's completely dead that's indicative of a broken connection/switch of some sort (i.e. fixable). The bike won't operate if the voltage is below a certain cutoff (31V I believe), so it's unlikely to flatten the battery completely (and if it did that'd really damage the cells) unless there's a BMS fault. Depending on your warranty situation you might want to open it up (4 screws) and check the cells. Best check that ETS won't fix it first though.

The charger socket isn't switched or fused so you might get a voltage out of there. I'm sure you don't need to be told but, be VERY careful poking around these batteries though, if you short them it can be very nasty.

BTW There's a wiring diagram for the 2007 905SE somewhere on the forum if you go searching...