Alien Mens Special II

[rustic]

17 months as a member on Pedelecs & I have finally bought an electric bike!! As the title of this thread suggests, I opted for an Alien Special II. It's perhaps not the bike that I had dreamed of getting (Pro-connect, or Wisper), but all things considered I'm really happy with my decision & I can't wait for it to be delivered next week.

The main factors that influenced my purchase would be: The decent 21 inch frame size, the relatively good publicity & posts I've read on here over the past year & a half, the reasonably good spec, the Special II is also a neater looking bike than it's predecessor, the swift & informative response from the people at Alien & last but by no means least the £579 price tag - a very competitive price that wont break the bank & even if I were to change my mind in a few months / year I reckon I'd get a fair chunk of that back in resale.

That's about it really. I will post a review of the bike once I've spent a bit of time using it.

Rus.

 

[jerrysimon]

Well done Rus I am sure you will enjoy it when it arrives

Regards

Jerry

 

[fishingpaul]

Happy cycling rustic,it certainly looks great value for money you would probably find it hard to source parts and build a bike yourself at that price especially when a bafang motor is included,also alien seems to give good back up support from what ive seen.

 

[John Fleet]

It certainly seems great value for money; the discreet battery also appeals to me; it's a bit of pain getting the 'you're cheating' jibes when I'm out on my Wisper. I've emailed them though re. the unisex version to check if there's a MKII version of that one on the way as the design and frame size would be better for me.

If/when there is one I may well put my Wisper up for sale and take advantage of the Cycle to Work scheme. Shame they don't offer the big battery that comes with the Wisper but the price certainly is a steal!

 

[fishingpaul]

They may not be available on the cycle to work scheme,although if they were what an absolute bargain they would be.

 

[emissions-free]

I would agree that the Alien Ocean bikes are as good value as you can get in e bikes in the UK at present. The cost is just the sum of it's parts with a reasonable profit margin and probably couldn't be achieved by a bigger company due to their overheads and the fact that bigger companies generally have to be more profit driven than smaller operations.

I cannot see how you can go wrong with the Alien Ocean to be honest at this present time. The fact that they also have a good reputation for customer service gives me some joy to know that there is still room in the e bike industry for the smaller operation that is able to offer both good service and value for money. This can only help e bikes in the UK to become more acceptable to more of the population.

There's a place for the high end bikes and a place for the more budget conscious. It will not be long before the line between the 2 becomes less defined IMO.

 

[daniel.weck]

They may not be available on the cycle to work scheme,although if they were what an absolute bargain they would be.

- Cycle to Work Scheme

 

[fishingpaul]

- Cycle to Work Scheme

It is nice to find a decent lower priced bike available on the cycle to work scheme,most participating cycle shops seem way over budget for a decent bike.

 

[nin26]

It certainly seems great value for money; the discreet battery also appeals to me; it's a bit of pain getting the 'you're cheating' jibes when I'm out on my Wisper. I've emailed them though re. the unisex version to check if there's a MKII version of that one on the way as the design and frame size would be better for me.

If/when there is one I may well put my Wisper up for sale and take advantage of the Cycle to Work scheme. Shame they don't offer the big battery that comes with the Wisper but the price certainly is a steal!

Have you had a reply - I'd certanly be interested in a MKII version of the Unisex model!

 

[John Fleet]

Have you had a reply - I'd certanly be interested in a MKII version of the Unisex model!

Yep, got a very speedy response from Jim:

We recently introduced the enhanced spec on the Gents Special II and are
monitoring feedback from purchasers. If its positive (and it has been, so
far), we will incorporate the enhancements in our next batch of unisex
models. I can't tell you when this will happen as it will depend on how long
it takes us to sell our existing stock of unisex bikes but if you keep an
eye on the website you'll be able to find out when this will happen

.. so the bottom line seems to be that once existing stocks of the current unisex model are sold they'll introduce a MkII version incorporating the enhancements from the Gents model. So just a case of being patient!

 

[lessped]

Hi John got me one o them i am over the moon with mine i think for the money they is wicked innit ! .............. oh by the way i'm over 60 and asthmatic ....(groan) regards .T.J.

 

[rustic]

My bike arrived on Tuesday (See attached pic), my initial response is that I am very impressed with the quality of the bike, it's better than I had expected. I have only ridden it a short distance so far, but I'm impressed with the speed offered through the throttle & can really notice when the pedelec takes effect. I've had a few teething difficulties with setting up the bike, but Alien have been really impressive in their communication both before and after sale. Full review to follow when I've been out on a few longer rides, but the early signs are quite promising.

 

[NRG]

Nice one, still hankering after one of these...what's it like to ride without motor assistance?

 

[mapman]

rustic.

yes full review please,looks a good quality bike.

mapman

 

[rustic]

Nice one, still hankering after one of these...what's it like to ride without motor assistance?

I haven't actually tried it without power yet, I will give it a go tomorrow & let you know how I get on. I've been out again on it this evening, I do really love the bike, I think it's excellent value for money. I'm not sure whereabouts you live, but if you're anywhere near North Essex you'd be more than welcome to come over & try it out.

The only snag that I have with the bike at the moment is that I am 6' 5" tall and have to have the seat post raised up to the maximum height, this means that the seat is approximately 5 or 6 inches higher than the handlebars which I find puts way too much strain on my hands / wrists - The general guidance I've had is that it shouldn't really be any more than 2 inches or so difference, I've also had an operation on my spine and perhaps don't have the flexibility that I used to have, so ideally for me would like the seatpost to be level with the handlebars. For that reason I am going to take Jim at Aliens' advice & explore whether I can get a new set of handlebars & swapping over the controls.