Steep hill ahead (learning curve)!

[Cheapskate]

Hi from North Essex/Suffolk border. A medical condition requires the acquisition of an electrified bicycle after 40 years behind the wheel! One that, frankly requires as little effort as possible to give an armchair like ride to work (4 miles) and back. I am capable of working on/fixing/adapting anything electro-mechanical, but the modern cycle market is entirely new to me. So far spent the last 5 days devouring information from all sorts of sources about the various drive options, new/secondhand/kit options etc and still whittling it all down to discover my elusive dream ride!

 

[Nealh]

A hub bike with cadence sensing simple pedal rotation will be what you are after with 5 levels of power and a full working throttle, the only legal bike that fits the bill is a Wisper with DVSA certification.
With these bikes one can select max power assist and just gently ghost pedal to waft along then if needed use the throttle to help out more, if you have the DVSA certified bike then if you are stopped by the plod they can't touch you or your bike. The bike isn't registered with a plate but simply has the legal docs to say it has been tested and complies with UK laws.

Of course one can if they wish to, have a throttle on most bikes but depends if the local plod are active in stopping anyone deemed to be not pedalling.

 

[saneagle]

Hi from North Essex/Suffolk border. A medical condition requires the acquisition of an electrified bicycle after 40 years behind the wheel! One that, frankly requires as little effort as possible to give an armchair like ride to work (4 miles) and back. I am capable of working on/fixing/adapting anything electro-mechanical, but the modern cycle market is entirely new to me. So far spent the last 5 days devouring information from all sorts of sources about the various drive options, new/secondhand/kit options etc and still whittling it all down to discover my elusive dream ride!

If you want to have a go at converting a bike, here's some advice: You don't need a fancy expensive bike when you have anelectric motor in it. The cheap bikes work very well. What you need is a bike that's the right size for you, has disc brakes, a cross-bar type frame with enough room to put the battery in it, and ideally 7-speed gears. Bonus points for a steel frame. You can often get such bikes in good nick for around £150.

It's dead easy to it a conversion kit to such a bike. All you need is a couple of special tools to get the gears and cranks off that cost about a fiver for both. You will be master of your destiny with a bike like that. It'll last forever and spares will always be cheap and available. Total cost max £700.

 

[Cadence]

Fully agree with the above post. I have recently converted two bikes using Yosepower kits (they share a battery). First bike is a Forme hybrid - 700c wheels, 24 gears, aluminium frame. Second is a 1992 Giant steel framed GSR400 MTB - no suspension, 26" wheels, 21 gears. They were both cheap to buy. The Forme was ex-display at £200.00 and the Giant was hardly used and a bargain at £35.00.
Prior to going electric I had fitted both with smaller chainsets (42-34-24T) to give me better hill climbing ability. Fitting the kits has been a revelation. I'm finding that I only use the top three or four gears now and I could probably save some weight by substituting a single chainring. If I was converting a bike now I would definitely chose a 7 speed. I'd also be looking for a step-through "ladies bike" frame.
The Forme has a 250w. rear hub kit and the Giant has a 350w. rear hub kit. There is little difference between them, but the 250w. is restricted to the legal 15.5mph and the throttle only works as a 3-4mph walk assist. You can set the top speed on the 350w. (although I find 15-16 mph fast enough) and it is a "full throttle" - which is useful at times.
Fitting is really straightforward and there are online videos to study. It pays to take your time and make a neat job of it. The one drawback is that the 4-in-1 cables are much too long. I solved this by fitting rear pannier racks and running the excess cable up the back legs, secured with spiral wrap. If you have a frame that is too small to fit a battery you can fix it to the top of the rack. I've also fitted mudguards and wider tyres to both of them so they are now more like touring bikes. Yes, I've spent money on upgrading them (chains, brake pads etc.) but some of that was just because I like working on bikes. I changed the Giant's old cantilever brakes for v-brakes ( £20.00 decent second-hand Tektro's from ebay). You will need good brakes, but unless you are a speed demon you don't need discs.
They are versatile and can get up some quite steep hills locally. Canal towpaths and modest cycle trails are no problem. Of the two, it's been a bit of a surprise to find that I like the old steel framed Giant the best. It is very comfortable and the smaller wheels and slightly more powerful kit make it very agile.
After three years of returning to cycling I've been frankly amazed at the difference a low cost kit makes. I keep finding any old excuse just to get out and ride!

 

[Bonzo Banana]

This information from this very site shows that fitting a kit with a twist and go throttle is fine.

DfT: Pedal cycles converted to ‘twist and go’ exempt from type approval – Pedelecs – Electric Bike Community

www.pedelecs.co.uk

I've never heard of anyone being stopped for use of a throttle. They were legal to sell pre-built until 2016, legal to use now if a kit and legal to use if individually tested like the Wispa bike plus if none of that satisfies you, you can configure an ebike with very low gearing called ghost pedalling so as long as you are turning the cranks with your feet even with no resistance you can have a full function twist and go throttle. This is the least safe option though as there can be a small delay before the throttle operates which is not what you want in busy urban traffic but this is forced on us by the dire EU legislation which really we need to move away from and set our own ebike legislation which is more sensible and practical.

You get people riding what is pretty much a e-moped and all they do is ghost pedal and they don't have to get tax or insurance or wear a helmet. This sort of thing;

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[Cheapskate]

Fully agree with the above post. I have recently converted two bikes using Yosepower kits (they share a battery). First bike is a Forme hybrid - 700c wheels, 24 gears, aluminium frame. Second is a 1992 Giant steel framed GSR400 MTB - no suspension, 26" wheels, 21 gears. They were both cheap to buy. The Forme was ex-display at £200.00 and the Giant was hardly used and a bargain at £35.00.
Prior to going electric I had fitted both with smaller chainsets (42-34-24T) to give me better hill climbing ability. Fitting the kits has been a revelation. I'm finding that I only use the top three or four gears now and I could probably save some weight by substituting a single chainring. If I was converting a bike now I would definitely chose a 7 speed. I'd also be looking for a step-through "ladies bike" frame.
The Forme has a 250w. rear hub kit and the Giant has a 350w. rear hub kit. There is little difference between them, but the 250w. is restricted to the legal 15.5mph and the throttle only works as a 3-4mph walk assist. You can set the top speed on the 350w. (although I find 15-16 mph fast enough) and it is a "full throttle" - which is useful at times.
Fitting is really straightforward and there are online videos to study. It pays to take your time and make a neat job of it. The one drawback is that the 4-in-1 cables are much too long. I solved this by fitting rear pannier racks and running the excess cable up the back legs, secured with spiral wrap. If you have a frame that is too small to fit a battery you can fix it to the top of the rack. I've also fitted mudguards and wider tyres to both of them so they are now more like touring bikes. Yes, I've spent money on upgrading them (chains, brake pads etc.) but some of that was just because I like working on bikes. I changed the Giant's old cantilever brakes for v-brakes ( £20.00 decent second-hand Tektro's from ebay). You will need good brakes, but unless you are a speed demon you don't need discs.
They are versatile and can get up some quite steep hills locally. Canal towpaths and modest cycle trails are no problem. Of the two, it's been a bit of a surprise to find that I like the old steel framed Giant the best. It is very comfortable and the smaller wheels and slightly more powerful kit make it very agile.
After three years of returning to cycling I've been frankly amazed at the difference a low cost kit makes. I keep finding any old excuse just to get out and ride!

 

[Cheapskate]

Your comments regarding conversions chimes in with my lifelong belief that as no two people are the same, a tailored solution rather than a one size (doesn't) fit all is the sensible approach to every situations, and I appreciate your input, many thanks!