36v 700w with 20ah LifePo4 good deal?

[eJay]

Hey guys
Found a pretty good deal on a hub motor and battery kit - comes in at about £420 minus any customs fees..

36v 700w E Bike DC HUB Motor F+36V 20AH LiFePO4 Battery on eBay (end time 31-Mar-11 08:33:18 BST)

Anyone see any problems (aside customer service/lack of support or warranty) with this kit? Its going on my trailer hauling bike (75kg loaded) to assist up hills and into the wind.

Also, how is the water resistance on ebikes in general and this type of kit in particular?

Thanks for any input guys
Jay

 

[aaannndddyyy]

I would call that high risk.
To many unknowns?
No feed back for this item, unknown seller, 2 mounts shipping time that means no PayPal protection
and as you say customer service/lack of support or warranty, high postage costs if things go wrong, could be a good deal or a nightmare.
Find out if the Battery is made up of prismatic of cylindrical cells.
also the voltage and amperage of each cell how many individual cells make up the pack.
Do you what to be the Guinea Pig? if yes let us no how you get on.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

I don't see any risk as long as you pay with Paypal because Paypal will give you your money back if there's any problems. It looks like a direct drive, which is no good if your battery goes flat. A better option would be the 350/500w Bafang BPM kit from BMSbattery, who offer the complete kit and battery for about £400. They appear to be a reliable supplier.

 

[NRG]

There's a risk in buying anything off EBay and from China, been there and got the T-shirt, the kit seems expensive as well, 300 for the kit, 120 for shipping (7~8weeks on the slow boat) and if you get caught for duty and VAT you'll be thinking you should have bought locally. BMS have a patchy reputation at best though many have bought from them with no issues there are reports of poor service and wrong products shipped in the past. Sometimes spending a bit more and sourcing a kit locally pays dividends in the end...just my 2p worth

 

[jefferson]

Hey guys
Found a pretty good deal on a hub motor and battery kit - comes in at about £420 minus any customs fees..

36v 700w E Bike DC HUB Motor F+36V 20AH LiFePO4 Battery on eBay (end time 31-Mar-11 08:33:18 BST)

Anyone see any problems (aside customer service/lack of support or warranty) with this kit? Its going on my trailer hauling bike (75kg loaded) to assist up hills and into the wind.

Also, how is the water resistance on ebikes in general and this type of kit in particular?

Thanks for any input guys
Jay

It's the unknown that you should be wary of here. There are over 100 companies in China who manufacture these kits, which one is it? The company on the E-bay advert are the suppliers/shippers of the kit, not the manufacturers. Stick with the well known trusted and contactable kits

 

[averhamdave]

I think the China risk is overstated but it is there. I import stuff direct from China for my business and haven't (as yet) had a problem.

That said I don't think it'll be good value for money the Bafung/BMS route would be the one for me.

Furthermore the direct drive aspect willnot be giving you the grunt you require for the application. All top speed and no pull.