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  1. H

    Bike with two gears and two chains

    How much energy did I have in those days!! Unbelievable. And quite a few of those miles were with a mate on the crossbar. That was a tortuous experience all round. SA hubs are hardly a secret though, so I guess they must have been dismissed for some reason. Maybe cost, maybe supply chain and...
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    Bike with two gears and two chains

    What’s wrong with 3-speed Sturmey-Archer hub gear? Absolutely reliable, even when thrashed to death, totally abused, with zero maintenance. As a teenager in the late 60s, I had a second-hand boneshaker and rode it hard everyday, everywhere, all weathers, to school and then paper-round six...
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    Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms

    No, I can’t find anything much at all. Maybe I’ve been had. Too much wishful thinking on my behalf. Apologies if that’s set any hares running, but what a damned shame! I’m not too unhappy though. My RadRunner-3 Plus is proving to be an excellent foundation for everything I want (some of that...
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    Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms

    I was referring to my RadRunner-Plus previously, with Rad’s regular Bafang hub motor, plus EggRider maxed at 19A. I believe Rad uses the same motor in all markets, just software limited according to local regs. I’m aware of the changes that can be made to motor characteristics with different...
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    Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms

    48v at 20A is 960w so yes, of course a hub motor with that kind of power will pull up most hills. That’s exactly what I’ve got and it works okay if you can take a decent run at it and keep the motor spinning. But if you have to stop for any reason, or even just slow to let another bike come...
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    Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms

    Of course Bosch mid-motors are reliable! They’ve been making them long enough, in large quantities, to have ironed out all the wrinkles long ago. And they’re not exactly complex, cutting-edge devices anyway - at least, not compared to your average car engine that is bewilderingly complex and...
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    Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms

    I agree with Bonzo B in post 19 - hub motors are better suited to the new and fast growing mainstream e-bike market. Cheap, efficient, reliable, and now I see Bafang has introduced a hub motor with integral 3-speed automatic gears (fitted to a new ADO model). That’s a game-changer. The next...
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    More Seizures

    The point I make is really that some problems are under our noses and easy to fix with the stroke of a Trumpian Sharpie. If only we had the political will to see it. Has nobody in government joined the dots between our crazy couriers, battery/bike thefts and house fires? It’s as obvious as night...
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    More Seizures

    I have great respect for the courier guys and gals who ride their ebikes in all weathers, at all hours. They have my sympathy, too. They barely earn a crust, just so we can have a warm pizza, but they’re victims of the gig economy that has very serious side-effects for all of ebiking. If e-bike...
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    DJI Drive system

    Guys, I’m aware of the law and its nuances.* Not sure why this thread has got side tracked when my only interest is to respond to the OP with support for another mid-motor brand provided it has a throttle option. I’m also uncomfortable about the power and speed of the DJI as presented in the...
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    DJI Drive system

    A torque sensor is nothing more than a throttle operated by your leg, and the main problem with that is it’s useless when your feet are on the ground. First and foremost, a throttle is a safety feature - for safe launching and low speed manoeuvring when you have either one foot down, or both. I...
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    DJI Drive system

    Off topic, but to be fair to Cyrusher they have an interesting range of models with unusual specs - like 20/26in fat tyre e-bikes with step-thru frames, full-suspension and powerful mid-motors plus throttle. Nice showroom, helpful staff, good coffee, and a great location for test rides. They are...
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    DJI Drive system

    This is not a quiz! The point I’m making is that mid-motor e-bikes with a throttle are very hard to find. In the UK, I’m only aware of Wisper and Cyrusher as mainstream brands. There may well be others but if so they’re pretty well hidden and can only account for a very small percentage of...
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    DJI Drive system

    Does it have a throttle option? AFAIK Bafang is the only mid-motor option with a throttle, which rules out 95% of mid-motor e-bikes for me. I’ve long been concerned about the controlling influence of Bosch’s dominant market share so any competition is good, but on the other hand the DJI’s...
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    TONIGHT 9pm: - E-Bikes: The Battle for Our Streets - Panorama

    All good stuff, but I have a hunch that a major cause of many (most?) battery problems is simply related to dropping the damn things. It’s so easily done and inevitably causes damage. Perhaps even worse is that the battery may well appear to work okay after taking a tumble. Until it doesn’t...
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    TONIGHT 9pm: - E-Bikes: The Battle for Our Streets - Panorama

    That’s great news! Why are you not shouting this from the rooftops? But what about the major players - Bosch, Giant, Specialized, Gazelle etc? As far as I can establish, none of the mainstream brands has adopted potting battery cells, with the notable exception of Rad Power Bikes.
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    TONIGHT 9pm: - E-Bikes: The Battle for Our Streets - Panorama

    For ebikes? Not like these Rad SafeShield batteries https://www.radpowerbikes.com/collections/replacement-parts/products/safe-shield-advanced-external-battery?variant=40295894417504
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    TONIGHT 9pm: - E-Bikes: The Battle for Our Streets - Panorama

    Hypothesis: delivery riders are a problem, and so are battery fires. Maybe we could kill two birds with one stone simply by fitting all batteries with ‘potted cells’. Potted cells are cheap and easy to manufacture and they’re commonly used in many automative applications but so far, I believe...
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    TONIGHT 9pm: - E-Bikes: The Battle for Our Streets - Panorama

    I kind of agree and maybe we should cut Adrian Chiles a bit of slack. He is definitely on our side and I for one am grateful that he didn’t mention battery fires! So let’s be honest, we definitely have a problem and the programme accurately reflected the increasingly negative public perception...
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    TONIGHT 9pm: - E-Bikes: The Battle for Our Streets - Panorama

    That’s a very handy summary, confirmed here by those who know. Thanks! Just for clarity, I also believe that it’s perfectly legal to have a throttle delivering max power above 4mph, provided the pedals are turning. After all, in this respect a throttle is no different to using the PAS buttons...