Brompton Nano - advice please

[themutiny]

Hi

Well my horrible commute has finally got to me. Hindhead tunnel, soaring price of fuel, economics and raging sciatica which is exacerbated greatly by the drive.

I had previously looked at bike/train commuting but my existing bikes will fall foul of the train companies cycle policies.

My company has now agreed to run the cycle to work scheme, and because we hold a full CCL we are not subject to the usual £1000 limit .

so - a couple of questions? Does the scheme cover the whole cost of the bike (via the electricwheel co) or just the bike bit.

Is a nano brompton the best bet. Which Brompton would be best, are the lighter models worth the extra (given that I'm pretty fit and won't need to carry it except between platforms). The actual cycle will be 9 miles each way, and if I'm crafty I can avoid any steep hills.

Any advice gratefully received.

Thanks,

Nick

 

[jerrysimon]

Quick reply Nick.

I assume you have seen my and Dan's posts here.

Your nine miles will be right on the boundaries using my battery config and you would have to have charging options at both ends or carry two batteries. Of course EWC's battery option would be fine, though heavier. If your using the train or carrying it any distance then the Tongxin/Nano config has to be the way to go. Even my M3L with the Tongxin is quite heavy after you have carried it more than a few hundred meters. The only way I can see to reduce the weight further is to go down the TI route, I have looked at it and the max you could save would be about 1-1.5kg which would both cost you another £3-400 pounds and restrict you to the dual gear Brompton with flat bars (a more stooped racey riding position) to take best advantage of the weight savings.

If your not restricted to £1000 with you cycle to work scheme it should be fine. If you are, then you usually buy the bike up to £1000 on the scheme and the companies like EWC then sell you the battery seperately.

Regards

Jerry

 

[mj8765]

Brompton Nano

Hi

We now offer the Nano Brompton with a 4Ah battery which fits in the rear small pocket of the brompton bag and only weighs 1.5kg and should give enough range for your commute and if it's a bit marginal - you could charge it midway.

We can build the nano into any Brompton including the titanium ones - but I don't think it's really worth all the extra money - you don't save that much weight. Better option is to go for a light bike to start with - M3L is what we recommend, as with the motor - you don't really need the extra gears and front bag means you dont really need the rack.

Anticipating Brompton's price rise (£60 from January) we bought a small number of bikes at the end of last year and so can still offer the complete bike at the moment for last years price - basically £1,385 (plus delivery) for bike, bag, battery and conversion, or £1,539 for the same but with the 10Ah battery. An extra charger would be £55.

We can supply through cyclescheme, we sell you the bike through the scheme for £1,000 and the battery to you personally (not in the scheme) for the remainder. If your company uses our paperwork - there is no charge - if using cyclescheme (or similar provider) who charge us 10% - we add £99 to the price to reflect their cost on us.

Get in touch if you need any more information

Martin
The Electric Wheel Company
Home page

 

[mj8765]

Link not working

Jerry

The link in your post doesn't seem to be working - or is it just me!

 

[themutiny]

Thanks guys

My Cytronex only has a 4 ah battery (albeit Nimh) and I like that config, if I need more I carry extra batteries.

What is the price And weight of a 4ah li-poly?

Thanks

Nick

 

[jerrysimon]

Jerry

The link in your post doesn't seem to be working - or is it just me!

Ok I updated the link so it works now

Regards

Jerry

 

[mj8765]

4Ah Battery

Our 4Ah weighs 1.5Kg and costs £200.

Martin
The Electric Wheel Company

 

[themutiny]

In the vernacular of Pa Larkin, sounds perfick.
Will be in touch soon.
Regards,
Nick

 

[jpfitzp]

Brompton nano with EWC

Hi there

I'm thinking of sending my M6R off for conversion. I have the front bag.

Should I ditch my rear rack? Never use it. Also if I sent the brompton bag to EWC with bike do they convert it so compatible to put battery in?

Nervous about sending my beloved off but think nano would be amazing!

JP

 

[jerrysimon]

JP welcome to the forum.

If your not using the rear rack then the only advantage would be that it makes it easier to wheel the Brompton in its folded condition. If its not used then I am not sure if the weight penalty is worth it. Why don't you leave it on until after the conversion and then see if you like it for wheeling or not ?

Re the front bag, I don't see any reason why EWC would not convert it providing its still in good shape. I am sure they will discuss it all with you if you phone them. Any of their batteries should sit nicely in the bottom of the bag.

The size of battery really depends on the type of distance your planning to commute/travel ?

Regards

Jerry

 

[jpfitzp]

Thanks

Hi jerry

Thanks will give them a call.

It's a 8 mile per day commute so nothing too spectacular.

So are all the brompton nano people quite satisfied with their ebikes? just need to check as could nearly buy another entire bike for price of the conversion!


Jp

 

[jerrysimon]

JP,

If you need portability then the Tongxin/Nano Brompton is probably as good as it gets.

The Tongxin motor is probably not as reliable as other more powerfull ones available but, they are both heavier and a lot more noisey. It does seem more reliable in smaller wheels though. The beauty of buying off EWC is you will of course have a 12 month guarantee.

I now have four of these motors and disassemble them swapping parts as I need to, but I guess that is only for the DIY enthuiasts.

I would go for the lightest battery to suit your distance you can especially if your carrying the Brompton/Bag any distance.

Regards

Jerry

 

[themutiny]

I know there have been reported reliability issues with the Tongxin Nano, but my experience with these motors via my Cytronex gives me a lot of confidence in the Brompton conversion. I run a high rpm motor in a 700c wheel. The only problem I ever encountered was with a controller, but it was my own fault for tackling a 20% hill with same. For everyday use they are great, and very quiet and unobtrusive

 

[jerrysimon]

The other trick to making these motors last longer IMHO is to not use it from a standing start on the flat and definately NOT on a hill i.e. make sure you do a few turns of the pedals first.

Not so important maybe if you have a pedelec solution, but important if like me you just use throttle.

As you say I think for a light, quiet and discrete motor they really can't be beaten. Not the most powerfull solution but as I say a very good fit in the right application.

Regards

Jerry

 

[themutiny]

Hi Jerry
Spot on advice. The Cytronex induction "speech" advises not to use below 5mph. With higher rpm motors this increases, in my case to 12mph!
And that's how I burnt out the controller. I simply couldn't maintain the necessary speed up said hill. I did manage 8mph, and I did make the top of the hill, but once crested, the controller PCB was toast.
We live and learn

 

[jerrysimon]

We live and learn

Its strange when I look back over the last year or so I have learnt so much about these motors, my DIY A123 batteries and bike maintenance in general. I guess given patience and time we all become experts in our own small field, where we chose to specialise in the area of ebikes.

Obviously the ebike field as a whole would require a long time to become expert in the many different areas.

Although for many the only way to go is to buy everything ready bulit, I am glad I chose to the DIY option. Its often frustrating and hard work to figure stuff out (I found wheel building the most challenging) and I guess its not for everyone, but I know that no matter what goes wrong with my EBrompton given time and thought I feel pretty confident that I can now fix it. I wouldn't claim to be able to fix all variants of ebikes, but in my area of the EBrompton I feel confident I could.


Regards

Jerry