Conversion kit opinions

[rusky]

Well, I'm back from redbridge. The Woosh people were extremely helpful & I had a decent ride on the blue Rascal.

The BBS01 is very quiet, the tyres made more noise than the motor! Riding the bike felt like riding any other bike although I didn't have time to test a hub motor but TBH, I wasn't that bothered as I'm convinced the BBS01 is the way to go.

I managed to get a decent speed under pedal assist & the thumb throttle made going uphill easy. It is necessary to get the correct gear on the rear as too high & the motor struggles & you lose speed.

Apparently, they are stocking a 500w version soon sometime between 6 weeks & November time but only for £10 more than the 350w.

 

[Nealh]

Must say a big thanks to Hatti and Woosh for today, Met Hatti,Helen,Tony and d8veh (pedelec guru and very clever but modest bike tinkerer). Trek was around but didn't get to say hello. Also had a couple of spins on the Rascal, one on just pas and then later with thumb throttle and pas. Although restricted( watched tony do that) I gave it a bit of wellie down hill and along one straight and pullled 35mph. Front hubs were to noisy for my likeing on the Big Bear and Ezee primo. If I was to buy new probably would go with scirroco cdl I quite like the ride and look of it for less than £800, however like Rusky I am going to go with the a BBS conversion on my 700c Norco, only thing is wether to wait and plump for the 500w kit. Decisions,decisions.

About 2pm a guy from wheelego.com turned up with an electric stand on unicycle except no pedals, this was powered by a 1300w motor and he says can acheive 12mph or so. acceleration and braking wa supplied by weight displacement forward or backward.

 

[rusky]

Tony told me the 500w was about 6 weeks away, Hattie was more conservative.

Didn't meet anyone else Shame as it would have been good to put a face to the name & thank D8veh & Trek for their input.

 

[jackhandy]

Front hubs were to noisy for my likeing on the Big Bear and Ezee primo. .

I suspect the difference in noise level was perceived, rather than actual:
A front motor sounds louder than a low-down mid, which sounds louder than a rear _ Until you're riding behind the bike in question, when the whole perceived loudness profile gets reversed

 

[Nealh]

Fitted my Norco hybrid with 18a BBS 01 today and went for a whiz around the block before it got to dark, WOW what a transformation ultra quite,quick and effortless. Upped the assist level from 3 to 5 in the adv settings though there are 9,set speed level to max and changed wheel size to700c.Thumb throttle very responsive which which will make longer distance journey's very enjoyable though may be not really needed as pedalling was easy and effortless. Easily got to 25mph in peddle mode and throttle upto 22. Bike has Hydraulic disc's so dismantled one cheapo brake lever and retrofitted one sensor lead for rear brake cut out , had already ordered some slighty bigger magnets however cut out worked with exsisting minute magnet. Lcd wouldn't fit very well on my handle bars so mounted it on a topeak extension T-bar Need to tidy up wiring behind seat post so will consider splicing and soldering to shorten later but for now will try and procure a controller box or small/med saddle bag to hide it in,also have Bangood lights to wire in as my next job. If I can manage it I will try and post some pics in the next few days.

 

[rusky]

I've been told that we can't afford it I'll wait till the credit card goes over then try again. After all, it's how I get to & from work.

If that's a no-go, I just won't tax her car next month & see how she likes it

 

[Nealh]

Pics of my E-Norco Indie hybid. Waiting for some slim wire boxes to come so I can hide wiring behind seat post and to mount rocker switch for Bangood lights also magnets not arrived yet for rear brake, small magnet does work the cut off as it is but is only in situ temporarily. Was a nice bike before but now I find it superb for commuting and on the road.I can quite happily plod along at 22 or about 27 - 29 on assist level 9 in top gear.

 

[rusky]

Looks good!

What's your commute like distance wise?

 

[Nealh]

Not far Rusky in total about 6 miles but I do rely on it daily also for generally riding around, the car is used occasionally and I only do abot 1200 pa in it. Now I have it up and running it will be good to go further a field, also so impressed have decided to find a doner mtb so I can fit a rear cst or bpm kit for some off road and trail riding for next year. Before the coversion I used to get quite puffed with to much excersion due to my asthma but now I can quite happily put in as little or as much effort as I like and still feel fresh.

 

[Nothing2SeeHere]

Need to tidy up wiring behind seat post so will consider splicing and soldering to shorten later but for now will try and procure a controller box or small/med saddle bag to hide it in,also have

Went to look at the cytronex bikes the other week. They use standard electrical plastic ducting (cable tied onto the frame) to hide the excess wiring. If you look at the downtube on google images of the Charge Grater you can see how its done. Would probably work nicely to tidy up your cables.

 

[Nealh]

Thought about the down tube origanlly N2SH, found the best route for BBS wiring was under the bracket and up behind the seat post and under the cross bar. If I can get hold of some grey conduit then I will try that.

 

[Cyclezee]

Thought about the down tube origanlly N2SH, found the best route for BBS wiring was under the bracket and up behind the seat post and under the cross bar. If I can get hold of some grey conduit then I will try that.

Hi Nealh,

I'm not sure if this is what you are looking for but you can get a sample for 99p
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/D-Line-30x15-TV-Cable-Tidy-Cover-Wire-Hide-Trunking-1m-1-25m-1-5m-All-Colours-/171180935762?pt=UK_DIY_Material_Electrical_Fittings_MJ&var=&hash=item27db2dca52

You can get it from various sources in different colours and different sizes.

 

[Nealh]

Thanks John, will have a look.

 

[Nealh]

I know this is Rusky's thread but have decide to keep it going as we are both on about BBS 01's, and it keeps the info in one place. Rode to my out apiary's in Balcombe village today approx 12.4 mile return journey up and down undulating roads with some decent inclines. Quite impressed with the CD had assist level at 7 and managed to keep above 10.5mph going up the inclines and wizzing down them at 28- 33, generally 22/23 along the flatish parts was very comfortable, with out to much effort or sweat managed the journey there in 26 mins and 23 mins on return which is more down hill.

 

[rusky]

What assist level did you use on the hills?

 

[Nealh]

redited my previous post as I forgot to include the 7.

 

[JohnWils]

I'm looking to convert one of my bikes, the candidates are: -

1. Marin muirwoods 29er, steel framed & cable operated disc brakes.
2. Voodoo Bantu, alu framed hardtail with hydraulic disc brakes.

The conversion kits I have in my shortlist in no particular order are: -

1. BBS001 from woosh
2. 8FUN rear wheel kit
3. One of the Dillenger rear wheel kits

I think the Marin is the one I would prefer to convert as it's got cable disc brakes so I can just replace the levers with whatever's in the kit but I'm open to your opinions.

I don't really want to buy from China as I would rather have the ease of buying from a UK supplier, no hassle with import duty & I'm impatient!

 

[JohnWils]

Here is my version, purchased a 15amp 8Fun Mid drive through Ali Express the Chinese equivalent of Ebay with no hassle, though I had to pay some import duty that was dealt with by the courier. I also purchased a bottle battery the same way. The job lot cost around £550 including delivery. I fitted this to an old mountain bike and upgraded the brake cables etc. The purpose was to use it on holidays in the South of France. The motor is smooth, quiet and very powerful and handles a total rider weight and panniers of 100 kg. We have used the walk assist to push the bike over sand on the beach and normal settings against strong winds up hill and down dale for distances of round trips 20 miles and still had plenty of battery capacity left. It has never overheated even when the temperature was in the 35 C range. The bike was reduced to a 6 speed derailleur but more than adequate. It really is an amazing feeling when we pass the lycra clad super fit guys with ease and no sweaty arm pits against their hoofing and puffing stand on pedals efforts, we are in our late 60's. To date the controller reads 550 miles and still as sweet as new. I set the controller with the 1-9 power option but rarely needed to use above 6 and this with light pedal assist makes for a very nice riding experience. Using 9 plus pedals and the thumb throttle gets the bike off to a flying start at traffic lights and hill starts. Hope this is of use to the undecided.

 

[rusky]

Thanks for the report, very well written. I'm just waiting for the time I'm actually allowed to buy it

 

[Spotty dog]

Hi to everyone my first post on here, just fitted a BBS 01 250w kit to my B Twin sport 1 bike, I converted it to a flat bar hybrid last year.The kit came from woosh bikes ltd I had the 15Ah square bottle battery kit, the Samsung 29E cells give good capacity and are a good match to the lower power motors.
This is a temp setup to check out gearing and how rapid fire gears and 9spd 11-32 cassette suited crank assist power.I also opted for the alcedoitalia 42T chainring this is dished to offer improved chainline.
The kit was a pretty easy install I had no problem installing motor into BB and spent a little extra time routing and using cable ties and insulation tape for a neat looking job.
To keep the lead conections protected I used a frame bag I had to route them and surplus cable into, and my toptube bag which holds my mobile phone cash and keys etc also hides and protects the conections from the display brake and throttle wires.
The motor is giving good assistance for pottering about modes 1 and 2 work well, I found on my local rides which have some pretty good hills I ended up using mode 3 and on big hills full throttle.This got me up hills I find really hard going at about 9 to 10mph so even the 250w kit delivers real assisance where I need it most.With tweaking of the wheel size settings it got me up to 25mph on the flat where normally my unfit legs fade away quite fast I kept going.
Only one of the brake levers is used on which I set the cable a bit slack, this allows a slight touch on the lever without braking to cut the motor for sweeter gear changes, full power gear shifts feel a bit too harsh on the drive train.
Despite using the dished chainring I do not feel happy using 1st and 2nd gear chain line is still not good and sounds noisy, so lowest gear I use is 3rd, at 45" this is to high for unassted riding.
When kit goes on my Surly I've decided to fit a Nuvinchi N360 hub the gear calculator on sheldon brown site says my 42/21 sprocket choices and large 3" tyres will give me a 28" to 100" gear range.This should be just about right for my rides and power the motor gives, also the chainline should not be an issue and improve it's working life.
I will also fit a speedict mercury to monitor battery use more accurately via my mobile phone, with the better gearing will see how it peforms, once motor is out of guarantee I may fit a 350w 18amp controller to up the power a bit.It should end up a well sorted e bike with decent range, first charge has given 28 miles riding mostly in power mode 3 it has droped one bar on the display screen but im not sure it's very accurate so need a multi meter to check the charge left in battery.