Kit v New Bike

[lyme]

Just wondered how a kit such a Woosh or Yose compared power wise, torque etc with a manufacturers built bike eg Haibike, Specialized, Giant etc. A mate of mine is looking to purchase a F/S mountain ebike with one of the usual Bosch, Shimano or Yamaha motors around £2500/£3000 and I just wondered how it would compare to a self built ebike. After riding my Yose powered rear hub drive with 36v/16amp battery would I find one disappointing unless it was derestricted?

I am now looking at building a mountain bike, either hardtail or F/S and fitting a C/D kit as I have enjoyed building my current bike and I am now trying to learn as much as possible about the different types of kits and controllers etc and which is the best one to go for both bike and kit wise.

 

[Nealh]

The OEM mid drives you mention are Torque drive the power delivery is different, if you can apply good assistance they will multiply your effort better then a cadence drive.
As you have cadence drive (hub) maybe consider a torque drive system to compare the two for effort and power delivery.
Comparing bike systems then they have to be like for like power wise, watts and amps. Many will say their BBSHD is better then Bosch,Yam etc,etc though really not comparable as the former can out put twice the power of the latter.

Kit wise controller selection is mainly for hub motors Kunteng are the most user friendly for non oem items from China with a good range of differing models available for Voltage and amps. Another good maker is Luishi but you will mostly only see these on OEM bikes, Woosh have always favoured them. A shame they cannot be purchased as we do with KT stuff.
Ebay sell controller/lcd combos quite cheap but often they have lower amp ratings.
Brainpower or similar ones are available where configuration is a little bit trial and error. eps with pas settings.
The you get into wiring systems do go for waterproof style with Julet or with SM type connection the latter easy to change fittings and to diagnose an issue for kit building.

Mid drive kits to think of;
Bafang BBS 250- 1000w. Cadence drive.
Tongshen torque drive system.
Mxus, Xofo make a BBS clone.
GSM with or with out controller.
And a new player that Woosh are considering.

The choice is endless today with so much stuff available.

 

[Woosh]

Just wondered how a kit such a Woosh or Yose compared power wise, torque etc with a manufacturers built bike eg Haibike, Specialized, Giant etc. A mate of mine is looking to purchase a F/S mountain ebike with one of the usual Bosch, Shimano or Yamaha motors around £2500/£3000 and I just wondered how it would compare to a self built ebike. After riding my Yose powered rear hub drive with 36v/16amp battery would I find one disappointing unless it was derestricted?

I am now looking at building a mountain bike, either hardtail or F/S and fitting a C/D kit as I have enjoyed building my current bike and I am now trying to learn as much as possible about the different types of kits and controllers etc and which is the best one to go for both bike and kit wise.

For full-sussers, there is usually not enough space inside the triangle for a downtube battery.

 

[lyme]

I have seen a few F/S bikes built with a kit but as you say very often there is not enough room for the battery. Just trying to do a bit of research and see if it is possible to build.

 

[soundwave]

 

[lyme]

Listening to those two we should just buy a ready built bike then!

 

[Woosh]

I have seen a few F/S bikes built with a kit but as you say very often there is not enough room for the battery. Just trying to do a bit of research and see if it is possible to build.

you can use one of the tiny water bottle batteries but it's an expensive solution.

 

[Nealh]

Kits are for enthusiastic people who like to tinker as a hobby, if you have a bike then adding a kit can make sense.
The guy who spent 2k odd on a pedal bike then added the BBS, I don't really understand as a good OEM bikes are already available.
Full suss conversions do need thinking about if you have one as space for battery can be lacking.

 

[wheeliepete]

A custom built soft pack held in a frame back can be another option for a F/S battery, but you would need to talk to someone like Jimmy at insat Int. The rear shock mounting position varies wildly on F/S bikes as you will see, making some alot easier than others to convert. A vertical shock tends to leave a bigger triangle area. Also check the width of the front chain stay pivots as they can sometimes be too wide to allow fitment of a mid drive.

 

[Woosh]

A custom built soft pack

not a very safe option (crash damage, theft) plus not well protected against the weather compared to hard plastic cases.