Hi all, just introducing myself and bike. I live in the cotswolds and it has plenty of nice roads but you are always not far from a hill or gentle incline. I wanted an electric bike to get to work when I don't need the car without getting sweaty (only 4 miles) and possibly to get out to customers in a 10 mile radius. The electric assist to encourage me to use it more.
I ended up doing a conversion of my existing bike, a reasonable Trek around 8 years old in good condition. The conversion is an ebay special - a brushless 200W front wheel and 36V 20Ah LiFePo4 battery both direct from Hong Kong. I started with SLAs, they were cheap and pretty dreadful, but got me going. I've just fitted the new battery and it is heaps better - should get 30-40 miles no problem without pedaling and plenty more with (I usually pedal, but it is nice to be able to take a break). I also changed the front forks for some Powabyke suspension forks as they were a bit sturdier.
It also has custom lighting - a dc-dc converter to run rear leds and the fronts are 3x3W leds running on the 36v. The throttle is also custom - it is a rotary potentiometer to pre-set the speed and a push button to engage the motor, I find this easier than a throttle for the countryside runs as I just keep a finger lightly on the button to go. As I'm an electronics engineer I like to play!
I ended up doing a conversion of my existing bike, a reasonable Trek around 8 years old in good condition. The conversion is an ebay special - a brushless 200W front wheel and 36V 20Ah LiFePo4 battery both direct from Hong Kong. I started with SLAs, they were cheap and pretty dreadful, but got me going. I've just fitted the new battery and it is heaps better - should get 30-40 miles no problem without pedaling and plenty more with (I usually pedal, but it is nice to be able to take a break). I also changed the front forks for some Powabyke suspension forks as they were a bit sturdier.
It also has custom lighting - a dc-dc converter to run rear leds and the fronts are 3x3W leds running on the 36v. The throttle is also custom - it is a rotary potentiometer to pre-set the speed and a push button to engage the motor, I find this easier than a throttle for the countryside runs as I just keep a finger lightly on the button to go. As I'm an electronics engineer I like to play!
