A rare piece of history - Swizzbee

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
Have PM'd you Kirstin.
 

KirstinS

Esteemed Pedelecer
Apr 5, 2011
3,224
899
Brighton
Nealh has just left my house with a shiny Swizzbee in car boot !

I'm genuinely delighted she has gone to a pedelec loving home and stayed within the forum community to boot.

Great to meet you Nealh, though the morning seems to have vanished in a puff of ebike chat. I had no idea we'd been gassing for so long [emoji3]
 

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,763
30,349
Nealh has just left my house with a shiny Swizzbee in car boot !

I'm genuinely delighted she has gone to a pedelec loving home and stayed within the forum community to boot.

Great to meet you Nealh, though the morning seems to have vanished in a puff of ebike chat. I had no idea we'd been gassing for so long [emoji3]
Well done Kirstin and congratulations Neal.
.
 
  • Like
Reactions: robdon and KirstinS

D8ve

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 30, 2013
2,142
1,294
Bristol
Thanks Neal, I'm not allowed +1 even though the desire was strong.
 
  • Like
Reactions: robdon

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
How time flies you are not wrong. Great to meet Kirstin and put a face to a name, funnily enough I have ridden past his posh new build estate several times. I'm very pleased to be the latest custodian of the Swizzbee and there are a couple little jobs on it that need doing but very minor, I say custodian because one day if funds and space allow K & I have come to an agreement that he has first refusal on Swizzy if it ever comes up for sale. Its not totally original as the front hdb has been changed over from a Magura to Shimano pus need to remember that breaking is reversed.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: flecc

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
Thanks Neal, I'm not allowed +1 even though the desire was strong.
It would have been +4 but I have to bin the Mosso frame as the derailleur has snapped at the drop out. So may look out for a HT mtb frame in the future as I have a spare kit free now.
 

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
Swizzbee update.
I have contacted Dreifels ag and have received a reply, the battery can be changed without problems and it is only the controller that is code locked. So the current 7s 10ah LG li-polymer is still going and my use is just for local riding, the on board charger is set to 41.5v max cell charge for 29.05v.
The bike has Scwalbe Marathons fitted so puncture resistance is pretty good and any tube repairs possible with out removing rear wheel. The rear wheel set up is very time consuming and too many bits to fiddle around with on the road.
The axle is a Sturmey 13/32 26tpi threaded and has a loose bush on one side and a fixed on the gates side that locates in the drop outs, then there are outer sealed bearings that are kept in situ by a bespoke flanged nut, the bearing inner dia acts as a sleeve to accept the nut. The bearing /
nut combo are held in a recess by a further outer fixing clamp held by 3 bolts, so not an easy quick fix on the road.
One of the rims must have been changed as they are not a pair and the front Magura Julie has also been changed to a Shimano BM447.
The rear mudguard has filament running through it to pick up the rear light contact, this was not in working order as it looks as if corrosion has set in and no voltage could be be determined with a dvm. So for now I have used some thin servo wire taped to the under side of the mudguard to get the continuity.
Pics;
7S BMS, a pair of shunts can be seen on the far right.
DSCF0040.JPG

A pair of shunts not on the controller but connected directly to the front of the battery/bms.
DSCF0044.JPG

Heinzman brushed motor 270w.
DSCF0047.JPG

Rear axle/drop out fitment.
DSCF0049.JPG

Dropout fitting components.
DSCF0052.JPG

Fitting sequence.
DSCF0054.JPG

Dropout axle bush.
DSCF0055.JPG
 
Last edited:

KirstinS

Esteemed Pedelecer
Apr 5, 2011
3,224
899
Brighton
Not sure how I feel about this

It's a bit like the Mrs S's cesarean , for the greater good but no-one wants to see their loved ones dismantled!

(Joking obviously Neal, fascinating stuff)
 

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
:) Big day for the Swizzbee and me today as it was time to collect the enclosure and new battery from Jimmy, 3 weeks since I left it with him so the bike has not been out :(.
The old 10ah polymer cells were a challenge to remove but have now been replaced with 3P 7S Boston Swing cells to give 15.9ah capacity though 4P would have fitted.
On arriving home the charger was plugged in and approx. 4.5hrs later the pack was done, with apprehension I connected the enclosure. Input the start sequence code and all was well, Swizzbee lives again and should be good for a few more years. All of the BMS an it's component parts were saved and reused, being LG electronics they are highly designed, spec'd and very intricate. Dreifels were good to their word and I was glad I contacted them before I decided to go about getting the battery changed.
 

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
Ride out late afternoon but had an issue with the cassette as some thing was sticking and the cassette didn't freewheel when not peddling so a strip down is needs this affected freewheeling when not peddling and had terrible chain and rear mech chatter.
Initial feeling is 3P 39a is not enough, battery sag was evident on the 5 light ignition sequence on the enclosure 4P would have been better at 52a .

Edit.
Forgot to say with the polymer I managed 24/25mph with some clog, this afternoon I did give it some clog as well and got 26.5 mph and also peaked out at 30 at one stage.
 
Last edited:
  • Informative
Reactions: flecc

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
The Swizbee at speed feels mega and handles very well so the battery is a work in progress to get it right.
My first option is to see if Jimmy can add another cell in parallel to each series first.

Otherwise another thought of process is the Vruzend kits should be on their way, I need to explore the option to see if I can use one of the kits to build a higher amp battery to fit the Swizzbee. The Boston 7S pack in series with a 3s battery could then be used in my panniers on the Oxydrive and BBS.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: anotherkiwi

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
Had another think about this whilst at work today, the Swizzbee is fitted with bespoke pannier rack that sits forward tight to the seat tube. So when my kits arrive I'm going to build a light 7s 40a or 50a pack to sit on the rack and run in parallel with the Boston pack, this will not only increase ah/range but also double the amp draw for the high current the system can demand. Sag should then be better, need to find a 7s BMS first.
 

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
Have added a 5p7s HE2 100a battery wired in parallel using the Vruzend kit, sag is minimal now and looks like I should be able to get 35 miles range and possibly up to a 100 o_O.
I have been tinkering again and removed the rear diff hub cleaned and lightly regreased it for a better ride, no longer does the cassette snag or catch and no judder/clatter from the derailleur. Some tinkering with derailleurs, new wires and adjustment to get things running very smoothly.
With out e - power the 50c runs effortlessly and I can say with 100% no drag what so ever as the brushed hub motor mid mounted has no effect on the wheel what so ever.
I can get to 16mph on my own steam without effort with the current gearing so a long ride is very feasible. Last night we had local scouts at the apiary so I rode 6 miles there and on the way back clocked a decent 37.5 mph down Pease Pottage hill to the K2 centre, I couldn't pedal any faster as the gearing had me spinning out. The handling and geometry of this bike is damn good with it being very nimble despite its heavy weight which must be about 28/30kg.
 
  • Like
Reactions: flecc and Gaz

anotherkiwi

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 26, 2015
7,845
5,785
The European Union
Sounds like it found a loving and caring home! :)
 
  • Agree
Reactions: flecc

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
67 miles today with the Swizzbee.

At the beach.
DSCF0850.JPG

In front of 'The Saint's' Jaguar.
DSCF0852.JPG

Bramber Castle's tower ruins.
DSCF0853.JPG
 
Last edited: