Brompton conversion... would this Whoosh kit work?

Woosh

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May 19, 2012
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cost wise:
motor wheel + HL controller + cableset : £200
You can re use the LCD and battery.
 

DBrown67

Pedelecer
Feb 26, 2017
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cost wise:
motor wheel + HL controller + cableset : £200
You can re use the LCD and battery.
That's an estimate of your kit cost? Sounds reasonable to me. I'd need another LCD and carrier/cradle so the mtb can still be used. What about the crank sensor?
 

Woosh

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estimate is based on current exchange rate $1.30 for £1.
If you need a new LCD (to share the same battery between 2 bikes), it's £45.
The new cradle comes with the controller, you don't need to fork out more money for it.
a new pedal sensor costs £12.
 

DBrown67

Pedelecer
Feb 26, 2017
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estimate is based on current exchange rate $1.30 for £1.
If you need a new LCD (to share the same battery between 2 bikes), it's £45.
The new cradle comes with the controller, you don't need to fork out more money for it.
a new pedal sensor costs £12.
Is the motor the AKM-75 or the Q70? Does it fit the forks without spreading or grinding dropouts? Would I need torque arms? Does the cradle come with those little curved plastic mounts/fittings to help fixing to a round bar? Not fussed about a throttle (nowhere to put one on M bar anyway).

End of January you say? So long as everything is there for me to use existing battery/charger then I'm in for that price.
 

Woosh

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May 19, 2012
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Is the motor the AKM-75 or the Q70?
Q70 328RPM mounted to same size rim as the Brompton rim, internal Hall and speed sensor, 9-pin motor cable, stainless black spokes, fitted with 35-349 tyres, rim tape and innertube.

 

Woosh

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May 19, 2012
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Does it fit the forks without spreading or grinding dropouts? Would I need torque arms? Does the cradle come with those little curved plastic mounts/fittings to help fixing to a round bar? Not fussed about a throttle (nowhere to put one on M bar anyway).

End of January you say? So long as everything is there for me to use existing battery/charger then I'm in for that price.
no spreading, no grinding, no torque arms.
 

Teejay

Pedelecer
Jan 22, 2008
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NW London
Well, the electrifying Bromptons market seems to be hotting up. We've had Nano for years, now there's Swytch with Woosh in hot pursuit. If Swytch's prices double after this Friday then no doubt Woosh's kit will give them a run for their money.
I own a Nano Brompton and a delightful thing it is too. The conversion has transformed the utility of the bike for me. My trips often take me up Hampstead hill and it makes all the difference. I only wish it had a bit more, well, elan; mine runs out of puff at about 14 mph. My understanding is there is a limit to how much power that can be fed into the Nano motor.
However, what I want to ask is, why do they all persist in mounting the battery on the luggage block, thereby depriving the owner of the use of a Brompton bag? Alright, the clever Nano system mounts the battery in a bag - the price you pay is fiddling around plugging the adaptor in in the dark..
Surely the obvious place to put the battery is on top of the main frame tube, in front of the seat stem. For example, look at https://ecyclesblogspot.com/2017/06/brompton-electrica-mk2-650
Ok it's in Spanish but it shows it can be done. It baffles me why mode don't do it that way, or am I missing something?
 

DBrown67

Pedelecer
Feb 26, 2017
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The Swytch doesn't mount on luggage block does it? I saw it up on the handlebar.

Using the luggage block does make sense in that it keeps the weight low down and all Brompton users can do that easily. But I think that the best system would be to integrate the battery in the base of a bag that can still be used as a bag and quick released/recharged without having to empty said bag first. But that would make the bag very heavy and most users would hate that.

Kit designers also have to consider the aesthetics of the finished product. And with a Brompton that consideration is tenfold as it also includes the fold. Having an unseemly looking cradle stuck to the top of a folded Brommie just wouldn't do for most owners. It would be akin to a creased tweed jacket or a skew wiff dickie bow. Basically, an unmitigated.

Having owned the Woosh kit on my MTB (350W Bafang) for over a year now I've come to realise that speed is of little importance to me. Yes, it's nice of course. But even with the assistance I just amble along at about 10-12mph on the flat. I use level 4 assistance (out of 5) which means I can use the same ambling up rather steep hills. Does the trick for me. Cyclists are always overtaking me on my commute. It's extremely rare that I overtake anyone else, and when I do it's on a steepsih hill.

As soon as Woosh take delivery of their kits in January I'm in for one. The only minor complication for me is that I intend to reuse the HL battery I already have for the MTB so I can swap between them. The cradle for this is rather large and may look unseemly on the back of the front stem or atop the main frame. But I don't care about that as either way doesn't compromise the fold. Just got to watch cable routing.
 

Teejay

Pedelecer
Jan 22, 2008
74
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NW London
Interesting Woosh's reply to my post seems to be gone today. My reply to it would be it's fine if you want a small bag for a Tablet or knick knacks, but my suggestion leaves you free to use any bag Brompton or others provide, just as on a standard Brommie.
To answer DBrown67's post, if you look at Swytch's site they do now offer luggage block mounting as well as the handlebar option. In my view the latter is inelegant. Unfortunately, the link I offered doesn't seem to work, so you cant see what it looks like. They use a slimline shark battery that fits under the saddle when folded. It doesn't affect the fold at all, though an extended or telescopic seatpost would probably be needed. I need that on a Brommie anyway to pedal comfortably and I'm not particularly tall or long legged.
My experience with my Nano is the extra weight on the luggage block makes swinging the forks and wheel round a bit more difficult and it's a bit more likely to become unhooked when carrying the bike folded. Aesthetics are in the eye of the beholder I suppose.
You're right though, I await looking at Woosh's design with interest.
 
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Woosh

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vfr400

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 12, 2011
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Well, the electrifying Bromptons market seems to be hotting up. We've had Nano for years, now there's Swytch with Woosh in hot pursuit. If Swytch's prices double after this Friday then no doubt Woosh's kit will give them a run for their money.
I own a Nano Brompton and a delightful thing it is too. The conversion has transformed the utility of the bike for me. My trips often take me up Hampstead hill and it makes all the difference. I only wish it had a bit more, well, elan; mine runs out of puff at about 14 mph. My understanding is there is a limit to how much power that can be fed into the Nano motor.
The Nano kits I've seen use the Bafang SWXK5 motor that can handle a lot more power than what the controller in the Nano kit gives. If you want more speed, swap the controller and battery for 48v ones, which will give you 30% more power and 19 mph without unduly stressing the motor.
 

Woosh

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May 19, 2012
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If you want more speed, swap the controller and battery for 48v ones, which will give you 30% more power and 19 mph without unduly stressing the motor.
I am curious, why do you advise people how to go over the speed limit even when nobody asks for it?
 

Woosh

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You need to get off your high horse. I didn't advise him to go over the speed limit anywhere.
you may not have done it consciously but you did say:

If you want more speed, swap the controller and battery for 48v ones, which will give you 30% more power and 19 mph without unduly stressing the motor.
 

vfr400

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Jun 12, 2011
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you may not have done it consciously but you did say:
The motor on my bike can give power to around 26mph with is 48v battery, but it's limited to 15.5 mph, the same as yours. Am I therefore by your logic encouraging myself to set it to power the motor over the legal assist limit?
 

Woosh

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I am not talking about how fast your bike can go, but I'd like to see any post regarding riding faster than speed limit to be posted in the appropriate section, speed pedelecs, of the forum.
There is no high horse, just respect for the administrators and readers.
 
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Teejay

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Jan 22, 2008
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I thought the Nano kit used the Tongxin Nano motor, which a search on this site gives the advice they don't take kindly to extra current or over volting. Does anyone know when (or if?) they changed to the Bafang?
 
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vfr400

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I'd like to see any post regarding riding faster than speed limit to be posted in the appropriate section, speed pedelecs, of the forum.
There's lots of things that we'd all like. Don't be selfish!
My post did not suggest that the guy should ride his bike faster than the legal limit anyway; however, if he runs with 48v, he can get his bike up to the legal limit, which he can't at the moment.
 

Woosh

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May 19, 2012
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I did underline the 19mph from your post, but seriously, there is space for posting about higher speed on this forum. We should stick to the rules.
I have to, so why don't you?
 

vfr400

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Jun 12, 2011
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I have to, so why don't you?
I do stick to the rules. There is no rule that you can't write 19mph in this section of the forum. If you think there is, you can report it to admin and ask them to delete my post or move the entire thread.