Hello from the Lizard, Cornwall

[Crazyj]

Good afternoon all. Anyone else from the Lizard area of Cornwall?? I haven't ridden for a while. I have a Brompton which I used to use when I lived in a town, but I'm finding that it's not really suitable for the hills round here......

I don't have an e-bike yet, but am increasingly drawn to the 'look' and spec of bikes such as the Gazelle Grenoble C8/380hmb, the Raleigh Centros low step, and the Kalkhoff Image 5.B Move.

I like the more upright position and a comfy seat and suspension are important, as is a powerful motor and maintenance free (ish) componentry....

Does anyone have one of these bikes (or similar)? I'd love to hear anyone's thoughts on these bikes.

TIA

Jason

 

[Woosh]

how about converting your Brompton to electric?

 

[Fat Rat]

Hi welcome

 

[Crazyj]

how about converting your Brompton to electric?

Thanks for this. Yes, I'd initially considered one of the retro-fitted kits currently on the market. I wouldn't have the know-how to attempt to fit it myself so that rules out Swytch (relatively affordable I think) and leaves the likes of ARCC (pricey for a kit) and Nano (which in fairness I have only just found...).Thing is, I do like my Brompton but was ideally after something a bit sturdier now..

 

[Woosh]

if you can remove the bottom bracket then you can fit the kit. That's the most difficult step.
The rest is straightforward.

 

[Crazyj]

if you can remove the bottom bracket then you can fit the kit. That's the most difficult step.
The rest is straightforward.

Thanks - I've looked at all the reviews and I think the ARCC one appeals the most, for its apparent quality etc., but at that price I think I'd rather upgrade my bike to something bigger.

 

[Woosh]

how much do they charge for the kit?

 

[Crazyj]

how much do they charge for the kit?

I think it’s about £1800 fitted; they don’t supply the kit on a DIY basis.

ARCC Brompton eBikes | ARCC Brompton Cambridgeshire | ARCC pod

The ARCC Brompton Electric Bike: a folding eBike with a smart controller, long battery life and hill assist. Available for retrofitting on your favourite Brompton bike, our experts will carefully fit the British-engineered Intelligent Drive Pod at our Cambridge headquarters, boosting your folder...

www.arccbikes.com

 

[sjpt]

You haven't mentioned how far you want to ride, whether you want to do much off road (and if so what sort), and how fit you are. You have mentioned the other important thing; the hills, we can see there are quite a few. That all makes a big difference to best choice.

We've got an older (2016) step-through Motus hub, which does us very nicely. Mostly fairly small rides (longer ones on the tandem). The Motus does the hills here (Winchester) fine; might struggle a bit on the Lizard. I think the Centros has a slightly more powerful motor.

Check the https://www.bosch-ebike.com/en/service/range-assistant/ for range allowing for your hills and the assist you want the bike to put in. I'm sure you expect range to be less than any 'up to' figures you see, you may be surprised how much less it is.

Look at lower range bikes such as https://wooshbikes.co.uk/?santana-cd. Should be good on comfort and maintainability (in particular cost of maintenance which can be hefty on Bosch and similar bikes). I'm sure the ones you mentioned at the start are superior in various ways, but if you think on it maybe those superiorities are not be that important to you. (but then again, maybe they are, just a suggestion)

 

[Woosh]

I think it’s about £1800 fitted; they don’t supply the kit on a DIY basis.

if you think you would use your Brompton if it's electrified, may be worth wait a couple of weeks. I will start selling my kit for the Brompton for £529.
It comes with a 13AH small frog battery good for about 40 miles from a full charge.

 

[Crazyj]

You haven't mentioned how far you want to ride, whether you want to do much off road (and if so what sort), and how fit you are. You have mentioned the other important thing; the hills, we can see there are quite a few. That all makes a big difference to best choice.

We've got an older (2016) step-through Motus hub, which does us very nicely. Mostly fairly small rides (longer ones on the tandem). The Motus does the hills here (Winchester) fine; might struggle a bit on the Lizard. I think the Centros has a slightly more powerful motor.

Check the https://www.bosch-ebike.com/en/service/range-assistant/ for range allowing for your hills and the assist you want the bike to put in. I'm sure you expect range to be less than any 'up to' figures you see, you may be surprised how much less it is.

Look at lower range bikes such as https://wooshbikes.co.uk/?santana-cd. Should be good on comfort and maintainability (in particular cost of maintenance which can be hefty on Bosch and similar bikes). I'm sure the ones you mentioned at the start are superior in various ways, but if you think on it maybe those superiorities are not be that important to you. (but then again, maybe they are, just a suggestion)

Thanks for this, and for the links I'm intending to use the bike as much as I can during better weather. I'm retired so don't need it for work, it will be for leisure. Mainly road use, possibly some very light off road. Comfort and uphill performance are paramount. I'm in my early fifties and reasonably fit (plenty of walking around here sees to that) but the step through frame appeals. I have a 'buy once, buy right' approach to most things in life (doesn't always pan out that way, mind you!) and my perception, at least, of the bikes I am interested is that they appear to be quality products from the two oldest bike manufacturers going. I also like how they look, which has an obvious bearing. I like the hub gears (had them before). You make some valid points, and I've looked at the Woosh website; the bikes seem to represent excellent value and I'm impressed at the potential level of customer care should anything go wrong, or even just for advice. But, it would be nice to hear about the bikes I've mentioned from anyone who might have experience of one.

 

[Crazyj]

if you think you would use your Brompton if it's electrified, may be worth wait a couple of weeks. I will start selling my kit for the Brompton for £529.
It comes with a 13AH small frog battery good for about 40 miles from a full charge.

Looks interesting, although a bigger bike is really what I'm after. That said, I take it this is a DIY kit? Is it an easy fit? Can the battery be adapted to fit in a bag on the front?

 

[Woosh]

Looks interesting, although a bigger bike is really what I'm after. That said, I take it this is a DIY kit? Is it an easy fit?

yes, it's a diy kit.
The most difficult step is to fit the pedal sensor to the bottom bracket. To do that, you will have to remove the bottom bracket, hang the sensor on to the stationary bottom bracket cup and refit.
If you don't want to do this yourself, a local bike shop can do it in about 15 minutes.
pedal sensor:

The rest is easy and take about an hour.

Can the battery be adapted to fit in a bag on the front?

if you have a front bag, you should install the battery onto the seat post.

 

[Jonah]

Thanks for this, and for the links I'm intending to use the bike as much as I can during better weather. I'm retired so don't need it for work, it will be for leisure. Mainly road use, possibly some very light off road. Comfort and uphill performance are paramount. I'm in my early fifties and reasonably fit (plenty of walking around here sees to that) but the step through frame appeals. I have a 'buy once, buy right' approach to most things in life (doesn't always pan out that way, mind you!) and my perception, at least, of the bikes I am interested is that they appear to be quality products from the two oldest bike manufacturers going. I also like how they look, which has an obvious bearing. I like the hub gears (had them before). You make some valid points, and I've looked at the Woosh website; the bikes seem to represent excellent value and I'm impressed at the potential level of customer care should anything go wrong, or even just for advice. But, it would be nice to hear about the bikes I've mentioned from anyone who might have experience of one.

The 3 bikes you list are of a similar ilk. Raleigh are part of the Dutch Accell Group but previously part of the same group as Kalkhoff and Gazelle (now owned by Dutch company Pon Holdings). All tend to use much the same components and are of similar quality. They are sold as separate brands and bike shops tend to only have the franchise for one of these brands where they are sold and supported locally. If you have a local bike shop that sells ebikes, I would go with the brand they offer and they support. In the ebike world, R&M stand out as the premium manufacturer if you want to look for the absolute best but they cost up to double the brands above. If you choose Kalkhoff, make sure you only get a model with the Bosch motor. All major bike brands (eg Cannondale, Cube, Scott, Giant) now have ebike offerings and most will have upright style step-thru bikes in their catalogues. The soon to be available Wisper Wayfarer might also be just the sort of bike you’re looking for.

eRoad Project - Wisper Bikes

The Wisper Works eRoad range was first shown at Eurobike Germany in July 2018. We believe the Wisper Wolverine Carbon to be the very best eRoad Bike available anywhere in the world.

wisperbikes.com

 

[Crazyj]

The 3 bikes you list are of a similar ilk. Raleigh are part of the Dutch Accell Group but previously part of the same group as Kalkhoff and Gazelle (now owned by Dutch company Pon Holdings). All tend to use much the same components and are of similar quality. They are sold as separate brands and bike shops tend to only have the franchise for one of these brands where they are sold and supported locally. If you have a local bike shop that sells ebikes, I would go with the brand they offer and they support. In the ebike world, R&M stand out as the premium manufacturer if you want to look for the absolute best but they cost up to double the brands above. If you choose Kalkhoff, make sure you only get a model with the Bosch motor. All major bike brands (eg Cannondale, Cube, Scott, Giant) now have ebike offerings and most will have upright style step-thru bikes in their catalogues. The soon to be available Wisper Wayfarer might also be just the sort of bike you’re looking for.

eRoad Project - Wisper Bikes

The Wisper Works eRoad range was first shown at Eurobike Germany in July 2018. We believe the Wisper Wolverine Carbon to be the very best eRoad Bike available anywhere in the world.

wisperbikes.com

All very interesting, thank you. I have to confess to lusting after a Riese and Muller, but some of the prices are a bit daft for me to consider. That said, their ‘Swing’ range (ooer) starts at about the price of a top notch Gazelle Grenoble 380 .... the new Wisper Wayfarer looks good, but I’d like hub gears and ideally belt drive. Out of interest, how is your Brompton Swytch and how does it compare to the Sparticle?

 

[Jonah]

All very interesting, thank you. I have to confess to lusting after a Riese and Muller, but some of the prices are a bit daft for me to consider. That said, their ‘Swing’ range (ooer) starts at about the price of a top notch Gazelle Grenoble 380 .... the new Wisper Wayfarer looks good, but I’d like hub gears and ideally belt drive. Out of interest, how is your Brompton Swytch and how does it compare to the Sparticle?

Re the Brompton - chalk and cheese. The Sparticle kit was really heavy and turbo charged. Great in someways but detracted from the good things about the Brompton. The Swytch kit is very light and a neat solution with enough power for me. However, the controller packed in a couple of weeks ago and I’m currently waiting for a replacement.

 

[Lakester]

I’m just up the road from you, then: Breage. Just bought my eMTB for enjoying some more of the lovely tracks we have around here. I cycle round Godolphin, Carleen and take in some trails around Culdrose and down to Trelowarren and Tremayne Quay. Love walking from Helford around to St Anthony and Manaccan too. You probably see and hear me buzzing around overhead a lot during the week too
One of my more memorable rides down on the Lizard was a long meandering ride across Goonhilly Down, one I’m more likely to try again with an ebike!
I bought my Trek Powerfly on Friday from Bike Chain in Redruth, they’re very short of stock and I bought an ex-display. Cyclelogic (Giant) in Helston is well worth a visit if you haven’t already been in, they have a healthy stock supply as far as I gather from chatting to the owner the yesterday. They sell more brands than just Giant & Specialized too.
Had a very enjoyable ride yesterday from home out to Porthleven and around Loe Pool, bit busy at the Flora end, but lovely in the Degibna woods.