Bye-bye Batribike Quartz Folder , hello Pro Rider Flare

RoadieRoger

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 8, 2010
720
196
Well not quite , it will be two Ebikes Roger , rather like two Jags John Prescott .For some time I have thought of replacing the Quartz Folder with something more powerful ( read faster ) to match my Brother``s Woosh Santana . Until now the Quartz has been 100% reliable for 8 years , only needing tyres , brake blocks and a battery re-cell with Jimmy . During this time I must have covered 5-6000 miles .
I rather like the integrated battery on the down tube after seeing the German NCM Milano 48V 13Ah Trekking bike . As this machine is no longer supplied in the UK, I searched for similar ones in the £1000-£1300 price range and came up with three . These are described as Hybrid / Trekking /Step Throughs ( who would want a cross bar at nearly 80 years of age ) ,namely the Edge Low Bar , West Hill Classic and the Byocycle Zest . While deciding on which one to go for two things happened . The first was the impending introduction of the EU Tariff on Chinese Ebikes which would mean substantial price increases and Halfords offering Electric Bike Test Rides , both these items of news appeared on this forum . The latter drew my attention to a Mid Motor Drive on their Carrera which I was keen to try to compare with the hub motor I was used to .
Then something else happened to make a new Ebike purchase more urgent , my Batribike`s rear wheel cracked, rendering it unrideable . Interim rides on my 25 year old GT Talera with 21 gears no suspension and lean forward straight bars were unpleasant . To cut a long story short I noticed a Pro Rider` Flare ` Ladies Step Through with a good Spec . and a Dapu 250 Mid Motor on Special Offer for £960 reduced from £1200 , bearing in mind that most Mid Motors are going for at least £1500 . I had never heard of Dapu , but the Torque figure quoted for their MD 250 Motor seemed like it would pull a Train , albeit in 1st gear ! Even though the Flare`s battery was in the `wrong` place I could not resist such a bargain .
I have now covered 100 miles in just over a week and can confirm it is a fantastic hill climber which is handy in the town of Barry where I live and cruises fast as well . I tend to try and ride economically to conserve battery power and select No. 4 from 6 Power Assistance levels and was still not quite managing to keep up with the 5 year old Woosh Santana which my Brother rides , which surprised me . All was revealed when he confided that he was riding on Full Assistance all the time . I covered 30 miles on the first charge mainly using the top 2 Power Assist Levels, but think I could improve on this without the aforesaid competition .
I have learned to start off on Power Assist level 0 or 1 in my Lane or confined spaces, as the initial acceleration of the high torque motor could easily catch you out .
I am pleased with my new Ebike , it is nicely finished in matt grey , well made with no rattles and is a quantum leap in performance over my Folder . Two negatives , they don`t give you a front light and I have not managed to find a 6km/hour walk assist . I found this feature handy on the Folder when the hill was so steep that it was easier to get off and walk rather than keep pedalling to maintain forward progress , very unlikely to happen with the Dapu Mid Motor unless I want to climb vertical walls .
Not much information is available on this machine , so if anyone is interested I will be happy to explain further .
 

Woosh

Trade Member
May 19, 2012
19,407
16,387
Southend on Sea
wooshbikes.co.uk

RoadieRoger

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 8, 2010
720
196
Thanks Woosh or is it Hattie ? I will try it . The Instructions that came with the bike were not relevant to my machine but I found that the Dawes Swift is virtually the same machine , except for hydraulic disc brakes, price either £1500 or £1600 depending on the Dealer . I downloaded the Instructions and they didn`t mention the walk assist either .
 

Nealh

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

RoadieRoger

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 8, 2010
720
196
Or /even Tony :rolleyes:.
Thanks Nealh and Tony for your suggestion but it didn`t work for me . I have Emailed DAPU at Pudong and asked for Instructions . The Controller is the DPLCD-K Model which is capable of controlling the front light which is not fitted to my Model and the 6 km/hr Walk Assist . The other functions are easy to work out .