I’ve finally joined the world of E-Biking!
I want to share my experience of how I eventually managed to get here and also post this thread as a cautionary tale to all fellow ‘noobs’ like me currently thinking about but have not taken that first step.
I could have taken the easy route and just simply purchased a commercial bike, I know lots do and in some ways I wish I had….maybe I still will at a later date. Anyhow I found the commercial prices too steep for me as I only wanted a bike for occasional use and couldn’t justify £1200 ~ £1500 or more…if it was for a daily commute to work and something I had to depend on then the decision would have been simple...
So I decided to go DIY and convert my Hybrid Peugeot…I read loads here and on other forums…well , at least I thought I had read loads but I still made some fundamental mistakes. With hindsight I should have purchased a locally sourced kit, the Alien Bike kits being an obvious choice IMHO….in fact their bikes look good too! Hmmm… I digress, I started looking at Ebay and selected a Chinese seller who’s kit seemed to tick all the boxes….IE: 700C wheel, Pedelec, Throttle, Brakes, rear mounted with gears, controller etc etc.
I went for a 24v motor which was my first mistake but my thinking at the time was to use SLA’s and 24v is easy to arrange using them. My next mistake was to not realize that the motor was a direct drive type… Doh! This could mean problems as I need assistance for hill climbing….yes I know *now*!
The kit was duly paid for and shipped only to spend 3 weeks stuck in Chinese customs...I asked for my money back and the seller duly paid after a few email exchanges..The kit then turned up a few days later! So I will pay for the kit as is right and proper but only after I’ve factored in the repairs that I’ve had to go through as you will see below…
The Kit (do you recognize these parts? I do I’ve seen them in other posts and the motor is a Cohnis by the looks of it…it sure is heavy!
I inspected the parts and found my first (minor) problem:
That was easily fixed but this was more of concern:
The sharp edges of the hollow axle where starting to cut into the motor wires, so I needed to round them off with a file.
The 24v charger came with a USA plug and by the looks of it doesn’t meet EU or UK regulations! Best not to leave this unattended when charging as I have no idea how safe it is…
I want to share my experience of how I eventually managed to get here and also post this thread as a cautionary tale to all fellow ‘noobs’ like me currently thinking about but have not taken that first step.
I could have taken the easy route and just simply purchased a commercial bike, I know lots do and in some ways I wish I had….maybe I still will at a later date. Anyhow I found the commercial prices too steep for me as I only wanted a bike for occasional use and couldn’t justify £1200 ~ £1500 or more…if it was for a daily commute to work and something I had to depend on then the decision would have been simple...
So I decided to go DIY and convert my Hybrid Peugeot…I read loads here and on other forums…well , at least I thought I had read loads but I still made some fundamental mistakes. With hindsight I should have purchased a locally sourced kit, the Alien Bike kits being an obvious choice IMHO….in fact their bikes look good too! Hmmm… I digress, I started looking at Ebay and selected a Chinese seller who’s kit seemed to tick all the boxes….IE: 700C wheel, Pedelec, Throttle, Brakes, rear mounted with gears, controller etc etc.
I went for a 24v motor which was my first mistake but my thinking at the time was to use SLA’s and 24v is easy to arrange using them. My next mistake was to not realize that the motor was a direct drive type… Doh! This could mean problems as I need assistance for hill climbing….yes I know *now*!
The kit was duly paid for and shipped only to spend 3 weeks stuck in Chinese customs...I asked for my money back and the seller duly paid after a few email exchanges..The kit then turned up a few days later! So I will pay for the kit as is right and proper but only after I’ve factored in the repairs that I’ve had to go through as you will see below…
The Kit (do you recognize these parts? I do I’ve seen them in other posts and the motor is a Cohnis by the looks of it…it sure is heavy!
I inspected the parts and found my first (minor) problem:
That was easily fixed but this was more of concern:
The sharp edges of the hollow axle where starting to cut into the motor wires, so I needed to round them off with a file.
The 24v charger came with a USA plug and by the looks of it doesn’t meet EU or UK regulations! Best not to leave this unattended when charging as I have no idea how safe it is…