Battery prices

[rog_london]

Yes, I think there will be some higher costs for derailleur maintenance for those riders who use high power mode, and especially in hilly areas. However, none of the current bikes use 10 speed and 9 speed is a rarity, most e-bikes use up to 8 speed derailleurs.
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Ah, I think you may be in error there....

What about:

Kalkhoff Pro Connect S10 DL

...which will only set you back £3365.00 from 50 cycles!

Rog.

 

[flecc]

True, I did miss that one, but you may not have noticed that I ignore the illegal bikes Rog, that's the high speed S, off my radar.

Same goes for the threads about overpowered hub motors, pseudo mopeds etc.

I can't see the present free-for-all lasting, there'll be tears sooner or later.
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[rog_london]

True, I did miss that one, but you may not have noticed that I ignore the illegal bikes Rog, that's the high speed S, off my radar.

Same goes for the threads about overpowered hub motors, pseudo mopeds etc.

I can't see the present free-for-all lasting, there'll be tears sooner or later.
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I'm not condoning it either - just querying the dubious engineering. Also, while it's likely the owner of a legal recent Panasonic won't spend much time pedalling hard it's still likely that full power will be called upon part of the time, perhaps on hills.

I know most of us might be close to or perhaps a little past our sell-by dates, but there will be some younger and fitter riders out there who just aren't keen on the hills....

I look upon modern derailleurs with some suspicion at best. When they were four or six speed jobs you had a decent chain and the cogs weren't the thickness of bean tin lids - these 10-speed cassettes look like they ought to be in a watch, not on a bike.

Rog.

 

[stevebills]

True, I did miss that one, but you may not have noticed that I ignore the illegal bikes Rog, that's the high speed S, off my radar.

Same goes for the threads about overpowered hub motors, pseudo mopeds etc.

I can't see the present free-for-all lasting, there'll be tears sooner or later.
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I presume you wont be getting a Stealth Bomber in the near future then flecc

 

[indalo]

Flecc, thank you for that explanation of my Panasonic motor and drivetrain arrangement. I can't begin to imagine how powerful the latest system is but I find mine adequate for me as it is and I live with hills all around.

I shall probably add another ebike to my garage some time but I really don't know which bike I would have. One thing's for sure though; I couldn't abide any bike that makes noise under power. I'm afraid the Gazelle has spoiled me in that regard as it's virtually silent. The kits out there interest me as I have another bike which I enjoy riding and it would be eminently suitable for conversion.

I shan't be doing anything for a while though as the local Ben Casey/Dr Kildare is currently working on some health issues I have and I need to find out what the future is.....or even if I have a future! Might learn something next week when I see him. I ain't having one of those motorised chairs though!

As a final word on the battery, I echo what others have said about the improved performance in warm weather. A regular trip of mine which saw me down to 3 lights remaining during the colder months now shows 4 lights every time and I have actually just added another 8 miles and still 4 lights.

Thanks again for explaining the logic involved in Gazelle's marketing. I'm kind of sad that they have abandoned the Panasonic system in favour of front hub drives but if I want something along the same lines, there's always Kalkhoff, BH & others still advancing the cause.

Regards,
Indalo

 

[flecc]

I shan't be doing anything for a while though as the local Ben Casey/Dr Kildare is currently working on some health issues I have and I need to find out what the future is.....or even if I have a future! Might learn something next week when I see him. I ain't having one of those motorised chairs though!

Me too, hernia operation next monday, and on the pre-op check-up yesterday was informed from the ECG that I'd had a recent heart attack. I had kind of suspected it at the time, but having a high pain threshold probably helped to conceal the extent.

Great fun this getting old, never a dull moment!
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[JuicyBike]

Me too, hernia operation next monday, and on the pre-op check-up yesterday was informed from the ECG that I'd had a recent heart attack. I had kind of suspected it at the time, but having a high pain threshold probably helped to conceal the extent.

Great fun this getting old, never a dull moment!
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Take it easy Tony, and remember once senility kicks in, you'll remember none of this...

 

[flecc]

while it's likely the owner of a legal recent Panasonic won't spend much time pedalling hard it's still likely that full power will be called upon part of the time, perhaps on hills.

Don't forget the offset though, when the purpose of switching to high power is for the rider to take it easy, the reduction of pedal pressure on the system's torque sensor reduces the power. The 2 times is only 2 times what the torque sensor signals, not a fixed ratio.

I agree on derailleurs, I'm no fan of them and they've always offended my engineer's sensibilities. Dragging chains sideways across sprockets is just very bad practice, they almost deserve to break.
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[flecc]

Take it easy Tony, and remember once senility kicks in, you'll remember none of this...

True, but we don't miss what we can't remember!

There'll be no cycling for me for a little while from monday of course, just my usual walking.
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[morphix]

Do you know the size of the cells in your 5Ah pack? Ideally I would like to use LiFePO4 cells if I can make them fit due to the increased longevity over the LiMnO2 or LiNiCoMn types. However, they tend to be bigger for the same capacity and I need 8 in series intead of 7. I am getting on fine with my cheap BMSBattery battery at the moment. I keep it inside a padded camera bag (ideal if anyone needs a battery bag for soft celled battery) and then put this in a pannier. Obviously I would prefer to use a standard battery case if I could get cells to fit!

It just so happens, I unwrapped one (I bought two) to see how the cells looked

Each cell measures 130 (length) x 100 (width) x 6 (height) mm

When I asked for 5Ah cube shaped, I was told by the guy who makes these batteries in China that he can make different sizes or configuration and he doesn't charge any extra.

I'm having the same problem as yourself finding a suitable battery case as I wanted something in ABS plastic to protect the battery from rain and protect against fall or crash..even though it's fairly a small cube my battery (130 x 100 x 80 mm) , it's proving impossible to find an ABS plastic enclosure the right size! I did manage to find one on in China really cheap after much searching, ordered it, only to find seller had stopped selling them! Uphff.

 

[tangent]

Hi Morphix,

you would probably get your battery inside a Hama Sorento 100, e.g.

Hama Sorento 100 Bag - Black/Orange: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics

interior dimensions 145 X 75 X 105mm. I use the bigger Sorento 120, but my battery is larger than yours. A hard case may have some benefits but you do need to give these soft polymer cells space to expand.

Unfortuneately your cells would be of no use for my NiMH case. The entire battery must fit in a space no more than 60 X 90 X 230mm.

 

[morphix]

Hi Morphix,

you would probably get your battery inside a Hama Sorento 100, e.g.

Hama Sorento 100 Bag - Black/Orange: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics

interior dimensions 145 X 75 X 105mm. I use the bigger Sorento 120, but my battery is larger than yours. A hard case may have some benefits but you do need to give these soft polymer cells space to expand.

Unfortuneately your cells would be of no use for my NiMH case. The entire battery must fit in a space no more than 60 X 90 X 230mm.

Thanks for the suggestion I will keep it on my list incase nothing turns up in plastic..

How much room do you think the soft sells need to expand? I was planning to have a bit of extra room around them and put some foam in there to cushion them and insulate..also need a bit of space to mount mains socket.

If you had a 26v LiFePo4 maybe the soft cells would be different dimensions and much smaller? My battery is 36v..not sure how it works..I could find out for you from my seller if you like.

 

[tangent]

Hi Morphix, sorry I just don't know how much space to allow for expansion. Perhaps someone else on here can help out?

Cell width of 100mm and is just too big. 90mm is the maximum. Ideally the cells would be 7 X 90 X 115. I could then fit 16 of them in the space available. As I have said before though I think the space is a bit tight for LiFePO4 unless I am very lucky with cell size, or accept a lower capacity.

 

[morphix]

Hi Morphix, sorry I just don't know how much space to allow for expansion. Perhaps someone else on here can help out?

Cell width of 100mm and is just too big. 90mm is the maximum. Ideally the cells would be 7 X 90 X 115. I could then fit 16 of them in the space available. As I have said before though I think the space is a bit tight for LiFePO4 unless I am very lucky with cell size, or accept a lower capacity.

I sent an enquiry for you to my supplier stating your requirements, just to see if he can provide anything to fit your space.. I will get back to you when he replies and post you all the details if he can.. he's Chinese and English is poor