Help! Buying online help

[Davetaff]

Hi all, I'd really appreciate your help. I'm looking to buy a ebike but don't know what to do for the best. I want it for commuting but I need to go up a big hill to get to work. I don't want to be all sweaty when I get in so would like something with power. The route is off road so I would like something with decent power. I've tried a 750watt bike which was ideal, but not sure about the legalities. 250 watt sounds quite low in comparison. I'm 6 ft 2 inch and looking to spend no more than £1.2k. This bike looks good but not sure if it is legit good or not. I'm so sick of looking I will literally buy what someone in the know sends me a link to! Please help.

Paselec GS9 27.5

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[Davetaff]

Welcome to Custom Built eBikes

We can either convert your existing bike to an electric ebike, or supply the parts and advice so you can do it yourself. Less money, more performance.

custombuilt-ebikes.co.uk

Ledge, thanks

 

[StuartsProjects]

Seems some of the shops I can claim on my 'ride to work scheme' so will get it at a bit of a discount hopefully.

Does the 'ride to work scheme' only apply to UK legal eBikes ?

 

[Woosh]

Does the 'ride to work scheme' only apply to UK legal eBikes ?

in practice, yes.
the bike is sold not to you but to the company providing you with the voucher which you redeem for your bike.
The sale contract is thus between two companies. The bike is then rented to you for free by the scheme provider.
After a year, you can buy out the bike from the provider for a small sum.
In that context, I can't see any provider would entertain renting out an illegal bike.

 

[Davetaff]

I can't see any provider would entertain renting out an illegal bike.

Good point. I need a donor bike anyway so may be I can get that on the scheme and then turn it into an ebike. Will save me a bit of £

 

[Woosh]

Good point. I need a donor bike anyway so may be I can get that on the scheme and then turn it into an ebike. Will save me a bit of £

you need to spend about £1000 to get the savings.
Below £500, it's just not worth the hassle.
Using the schemes' vouchers, the tax savings is about 32%-35% depending on the scheme.
Check the list of retailers that give you all the benefits, they are usually the chain stores (Halfords, Evans).
Many retailers, including ourselves, add back the commission fees onto the cost of the goods. Commission on a £1000 voucher can be as much as 15% (Halfords) or as little as 5% (Green Commute Initiative). So your net savings may be 17%-30% on the cost of the goods, depending on the scheme.

 

[Davetaff]

Haven't had many responses from the custom build shops yet. Only this guy on ebay saying:-
"

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New message from: pi-power-ups (871)

If you go up to £1500 I can do you a orbea mx50 2021, I have a large frame almost new. Also could fit 750 befang motor with a 52v 14amp(I use 52v batteries as they are more reliable than 48volt also the power is always there) battery this setup will better than you want."

 

[Davetaff]

and the leon guys came back to me saying they have a moscow plus in 29". does anyone know any other good custom build people? Thanks

 

[Woosh]

New message from: pi-power-ups (871) If you go up to £1500 I can do you a orbea mx50 2021, I have a large frame almost new. Also could fit 750 befang motor with a 52v 14amp(I use 52v batteries as they are more reliable than 48volt also the power is always there) battery this setup will better than you want."

ask him which cells are inside his battery. Also, what guarantee he offers.

 

[stevenatleven]

and the leon guys came back to me saying they have a moscow plus in 29". does anyone know any other good custom build people? Thanks

I think the Moscow Plus would be a good solution. Its in budget, legal so you will probably qualify for the ride to work scheme. Personally one of my early builds was a das kit rear hub and it performed really well, I suspect it was a Bafang motor.
I also this year met a guy on the trails where i live with a Plus, he had done a few thousand miles on it and loved it. i tried it and thought it was a good ride with good equipment ie shimano/tektro.
It won't do 20 mph up hills but it will be a good fast commuter, the XCM fork will perform fine offroad and you can get on with your life rather than looking for unicorns

 

[Davetaff]

I think the Moscow Plus would be a good solution. rather than looking for unicorns

am I after a unicorn? I'm after a bike that will go up a smoothish pathed hill quickish for about 2 miles. If the moscow plus can do that after being derestricted, then I'm done. If not then it would be a waste of money.
The right bike would be life changing for me because I would get so much pleasure and improved fitness and mental health from riding into work. Though I get a lot of stress from wasting money and/or worrying about things going wrong and costing me a lot of money. My car is only worth about £1k because it stresses me so much to think I would have to spend loads on a new one.
I do really appreciate all your advice and would love to just move on, but I would need a bike that would do the job.

 

[Woosh]

The right bike would be life changing for me because I would get so much pleasure and improved fitness and mental health from riding into work.

You are tall and slim and you want to keep your fitness.
How steep is the 2 mile hill that you mentioned?
We can help you calculate the power you need and how to get it on your budget.

 

[sjpt]

am I after a unicorn? I'm after a bike that will go up a smoothish pathed hill quickish for about 2 miles. If the moscow plus can do that after being derestricted, then I'm done. If not then it would be a waste of money.

Depends on your idea of quickish. I'd say that 15mph up a hill is quickish, others might disagree. If it can manage 15mph derestricted it will also manage it restricted; essentially derestriction removes the speed cutoff but does not increase power.

 

[Davetaff]

This was the bike I tried which flew up the hill in question. The guy said it was 750W. It went about 20mph (with me cycling also) up the hill which is what I want. What are the specific stats I am looking for in the bike? When people say a certain bike won't suit what I need, I don't actually know what they are basing that on. If I remove the speed limit of the Moscow plus, would it do 20mph up hill? The hill isn't hugely steep.
Thanks.

 

[Woosh]

When people say a certain bike won't suit what I need, I don't actually know what they are basing that on.

Mainly on weight and battery consumption.
you should try one of the Bosch bikes to understand why so many pedelecers love their German bikes.

 

[Davetaff]

Mainly on weight and battery consumption.
you should try one of the Bosch bikes to understand why so many pedelecers love their German bikes.

Can you be a bit more specific? i.e. >750W, >48V, >16ah <29kg.

Also, if I derestrict the Moscow, does that mean the Watt improves, or does it just remove the max speed?

Thanks.

 

[soundwave]

get the bafang mid drive as you can get the programming cable for 20 quid and download the software so you can set the power settings to what you want.

now if you want to bomb around going 30-40 mph this will nuke the battery life in the long run and there expensive so id keep it under 30mph.

to get more power you give the controller more amps that you can set in the software if you want but if the cells in the batt are crap and you try to pull 40 amps from it non stop it could explode.

 

[stevenatleven]

View attachment 43076
View attachment 43078

This was the bike I tried which flew up the hill in question. The guy said it was 750W. It went about 20mph (with me cycling also) up the hill which is what I want. What are the specific stats I am looking for in the bike? When people say a certain bike won't suit what I need, I don't actually know what they are basing that on. If I remove the speed limit of the Moscow plus, would it do 20mph up hill? The hill isn't hugely steep.
Thanks.

Right Dave, if this bike is what you want just get a kit list from the guy and put that on the donor bike of your choice, simples

 

[Woosh]

Can you be a bit more specific? i.e. >750W, >48V, >16ah <29kg.

Also, if I derestrict the Moscow, does that mean the Watt improves, or does it just remove the max speed?

Thanks.

the Watts are important but not that important in your case because all e-bikes, legal or not, can whisk a 13st rider up an 8% hill with ease. The main reason to buy a more performant bike is when you are overweight or when you live in a very hilly area like Penzance where you can find hills twice as steep.
The NCM Moscow Plus is a powerful bike, perfect if you weigh over 16 stone. If you increase the speed limit, the motor won't cut out at 15.5mph but typically, the motor starts to deliver less and less power when you ride over 16mph. Its power drops to nothing when you reach about 23-24mph. That's true for my bikes too. The reason it does that is because the motors are typically optimised for 15mph where it delivers maximum power. As you ride faster, an effect called back EMF causes the voltage across the coils to decrease until zero. google 'back EMF'. That is why for you, the NCM Moscow Plus is a good choice but not optimal because you want to preserve your fitness.
For high speed and keeping fit, Soundwave has the perfect bike but Bosch stopped people derestricting their bikes.
For your weight, there is no need to buy a heavy bike. 23kgs is about what you should aim for.

 

[vfr400]

View attachment 43076
View attachment 43078

This was the bike I tried which flew up the hill in question. The guy said it was 750W. It went about 20mph (with me cycling also) up the hill which is what I want. What are the specific stats I am looking for in the bike? When people say a certain bike won't suit what I need, I don't actually know what they are basing that on. If I remove the speed limit of the Moscow plus, would it do 20mph up hill? The hill isn't hugely steep.
Thanks.

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Get the gear sensor and the tool at the same time sold as a package that are shown lower down for £440.

 

[Davetaff]

Okay chaps, very close now. I found a local builder those going to do me a bike. He's suggest this. Anything glaringly wrong? Price okay? Keen to put my search to bed. Appreciate all your help.