Juicy Ticket Review

zerodrum

Finding my (electric) wheels
Nov 6, 2019
9
14
Reviewer: Zerodrum

Purchased From: Juicy

Purchase Price: 1549

Time Owned: two months

Local Terrain:
Hilly - see below

1573056863593.png
Juicy Ticket.
Not my own bike, but same make, model, colour.

A good looking, nicely designed bike which with a few minor changes could be an excellent buy.
Looks great. Good price. In my opinion better equipped than its nearest competitor at this price point - the Orbea Gain.
Arrived quickly by courier and well packaged.

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Strengths:

Great design, nice clean lines.
Relatively light (for an ebike) about the same weight as a steel frame bike.
Excellent assist levels.
Nice torquey motor
Good but not spectacular range - if you can afford it I strongly recommend you upgrade to the 10ah battery.
Excellent Tektro hydraulic brakes
8 speed Acera derailleur and shifter
Front light runs from the battery
No ugly battery in view
Ability to alter the assist settings to match your riding style
Rides very well with motor assist turned off
UK company (frame made in Portugal). It is nice to support a local product.
Currently supplied with mudguards and light(s)
Great boost - Especially on my commuting hill: just over a kilometer with a 70 metre change in level and a final one in five section near the top
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Weaknesses:
Almost every bolt needed tightening when received - including rear axle :-(
Rear brakes well out of adjustment and rubbing
No instant assist cutout when brakes applied
Handgrips
Tyres - harsh ride on the tyres supplied - I have changed to Schwalbe Marathon 38s and the ride is much improved (and less punctures)
Controller as supplied cuts assist at 16mph (good), but assist does not return until below 12mph .
No carrier mount points on rear stays ("34.9mm seat clamp with carrier mount" solved this)
Paint is fragile. Looks to be powder coated and no laquer top coat; the seat tube was scratched within days, so if you wish to protect the finish be very careful and/or invest in some frame protection/wrap.
Rear light. Why not power from the battery as for front light? The supplied part is still unused - I use my trusty moon comet(s).
No rear reflector.
Charging point has minimal weather protection.
Branding... not to my taste, and makes it more of a target for the tea leaves
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Summary:
Range and assist is good for my commute which is a 14 mile round trip with elevation change of approx 400ft up and down (each way). I have yet to test the maximum range of this bike on full assist mode.
Lowest assist setting was 50% with four further levels maxing out at 96%. I was much happier after changing this to 5% 35% 60% 80% and 96%...have set minimal boost for filtering through traffic, as it can be unnerving with motor coming in.
I have experienced the assist cutting out a few times. I am not quite sure of the cause. Juicy are replacing the controller under warranty, and also changing a brake leaver which had a stripped thread on the lever adjustment grub screw.
Internal battery will need to be replaced eventually. If, as intended, I use this on a daily basis, the battery will need replacing in two to three years. As it an internal battery, it will not be as straight forward as replacing the (external) batteries on other bikes.
If you buy from either of their two stores, or various resellers, I am sure they will set the bike up for you properly, otherwise have it checked over and set up at your local bike store (and get those tyres changed at the same time).
I believe the negatives can be rectified, so do not let that put you off buying what could be an excellent, great value for money, bike from a UK company.

I previously was riding a venerable Giant Lafree. Although it has taken some time to adjust to the change in the power delivery I am appreciating the extra "tailwind" the Juicy Ticket provides. have set lowest boost.
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Overall Rating (out of 10) : 8

32822
 

vfr400

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 12, 2011
9,822
3,985
Basildon
I tried one at the Bike Show and quite liked it. The torque sensor worked pretty well and much more proportional than the previous version.
 
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zerodrum

Finding my (electric) wheels
Nov 6, 2019
9
14
Positive feedback for after sales service from Juicy (and the Electric Bicycle Company in North London). Dropped bike off at nearest re-seller, the Electric Bicycle Company, and kudos to Colin who replaced the controller and kept me informed of progress. Replacement brake lever not in stock, but on order, so picked bike up (and will keep readjusting lever throw until it arrives).
 

zerodrum

Finding my (electric) wheels
Nov 6, 2019
9
14
I tried one at the Bike Show and quite liked it. The torque sensor worked pretty well and much more proportional than the previous version.
That is where I saw it. Torque sensor response is quite fast, and can be dialled back if preferred. Excellent on hills; some threads on pedelec suggest the aikema motor should overheat on steep inclines but I have found it to be very capable, and not hot to touch after an extended climb.
 

vfr400

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 12, 2011
9,822
3,985
Basildon
That is where I saw it. Torque sensor response is quite fast, and can be dialled back if preferred. Excellent on hills; some threads on pedelec suggest the aikema motor should overheat on steep inclines but I have found it to be very capable, and not hot to touch after an extended climb.
The high-speed version (328 rpm) overheats, but I never heard of your version (260 rpm) doing that. Aikema motors spin much faster internally, so you generally get better torque and efficiency for hill climbing than other types of hub motor.
 

Woosh

Trade Member
May 19, 2012
19,407
16,387
Southend on Sea
wooshbikes.co.uk
still, the one used on those very light bikes, like my Woosh Faro, is the Aikema G85R which weighs only 1.7kgs. There is not a huge amount of magnets inside the motor.
When you compare hill climbing performance with its larger siblings:

G85R: 40NM max, 1:12.6 reduction ratio, 1.7kgs
G100R: 40NM max, 1:12.6 reduction ratio, 2kgs
G128R: 60NM max, 1:14.2 reduction ratio, 3kgs

The 128R is similar in performance compared to the Bafang SWX02 widely used in MTBs. 40NM max is OK for lightweight riders but for most of us, the 128R is a better choice.

BTW, I'll have the 85R in kits arriving in a couple of weeks if you fancy to make a 12kg e-bike yourself.
 
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zerodrum

Finding my (electric) wheels
Nov 6, 2019
9
14
Update after a few months and over 1000 miles of daily winter commuting:
Bicycle is going strong.
Added a Suntour NCX suspension seat post and Bioflex onGel seat to further smooth the many bumps and potholes.
Rearranged the hardware on the handlebars for better access to controls and also changed to comfort grips. Cabling is now less tidy but will see to that when the weather improves.
Range when on my hilly commute route is about 17/18 miles mostly on 30/60% boost and using top assists for accelerating from traffic lights and for the worst bits of my killer hill.
Outbound elevation166M
at 10MPH75WH
at 15MPH90WH
Inbound elevation179M
at 10MPH76WH
at 15MPH91WH
After controller adjustment, I am generally travelling between 14 & 20mph except for the steepest part of the commute where I drop to 10mph, so the energy requirements are somewhat greater than the above approximation from Whoosh bike's handy range calculator (https://wooshbikes.co.uk/clearway.php?).
I am convinced that the battery BMS has a very conservative low voltage threshold; the display still shows the last 31.5V battery bar when the motor cuts out. This is not necessarily a bad thing as the range is sufficient for my commute and this will help maximise the life of the battery pack. Check the range is sufficient for your needs, and then GET THE LARGER BATTERY.

All in all, after a few months of autumn and winter daily cycling, and having made a few adjustments, I am very pleased with my purchase and would recommend.
 
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zerodrum

Finding my (electric) wheels
Nov 6, 2019
9
14
What difference does this bike have to the woosh faro 8ah?
The Whoosh Faro was released a couple of months after I purchased my Juicy Ticket.

Specs are VERY similar.

Long range 17Ah externally mounted battery option on Whoosh.
10.4Ah internal battery option for Ticket.
Battery and controller on Whoosh is accessed from the head tube after removing the front forks and stem, Juicy accessed bottom of downtube adjacent to crank. although this is not considered something an average user would be messing with.
Juicy has high quality Samsung cells, Whoosh does not advertise battery manufacturer.
Juicy has torque sensor.

Whoosh comes with a carrier.
Juicy ticket has more colour options.
There is an open frame version of the Juicy Ticket.

I would have been tempted by the Faro if I had not already purchased the Ticket. Also, the new Van Moof S3 looks good value at £1800.

Ranges quoted are always optimistic, and I have found realistic ranges are about half what everyone quotes.... unless you ride on a flat smooth road, with very hard skinny tyres, on minimum assist, without any wind, and no braking or accelerating.

Hope this helps
 
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Reactions: Woosh

Woosh

Trade Member
May 19, 2012
19,407
16,387
Southend on Sea
wooshbikes.co.uk
the Faro's in frame 8AH battery is made with Samsung cells.
The external 17.5AH battery is made with Panasonic cells.
My original Faro had a torque sensor but after a year, I found that climbing hills is easier with cadence sensor so I changed the pedal sensor to cadence sensor in the current batch.
The bike is so easy to pedal that I ride quite often unassisted.

Faro with cadence sensor:



Faro with torque sensor:

 
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Sutty86

Pedelecer
Nov 6, 2017
114
14
37
Skipton
the Faro's in frame 8AH battery is made with Samsung cells.
The external 17.5AH battery is made with Panasonic cells.
My original Faro had a torque sensor but after a year, I found that climbing hills is easier with cadence sensor so I changed the pedal sensor to cadence sensor in the current batch.
The bike is so easy to pedal that I ride quite often unassisted.

Faro with cadence sensor:



Faro with torque sensor:

Thanks for the reply both of you,
The faro is more my budget and looking for something I could ride unassisted also!

I read on another post about in the future adding a battery , I can't afford that option at this moment in time.
Would it be an easy fit to had an connector?
Plug and play or would it be a return to base fit.

I'm 100kg just slightly over the recommended weight ,but losing weight everywhere
Lost 16kg since Xmas running
 
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Reactions: Woosh

Woosh

Trade Member
May 19, 2012
19,407
16,387
Southend on Sea
wooshbikes.co.uk
Lost 16kg since Xmas running
that's a good tip! forget the bike!

I read on another post about in the future adding a battery
Not with the current Faro. There is no spur for connecting the additional battery. When customers order with external battery, we simply build the bike with the HL controller and HL battery.
In the next revision, I'll try to add a spur with anti-surge so to enable an add-on battery.