This is my first post . I am new to electric bikes , although I did have an electric trike about 10 years ago ,which I built myself . It was illegal ,being overweight and having no pedals . I have just bought an original powabyke off the internet for £85 . The previous owner said he bought it new about 2005 . It has a steel frame , no suspension , and lead acid batteries . I understand it still has the original batteries , which I will replace soon , although tests show a range of 13 miles without pedalling . Straight off the charger , the battery reads 39.2 volts , which is a bit low . Everything works , and it is fun to ride , and although heavy , I reckon I could pedal it 5 miles if the battery failed . I have a few questions .
1. I have heard that these bikes eventually fail due to gearbox issues , so I have partially stripped the hub , and filled the gearbox with fresh grease . I wanted to check the brushes , but it appears that the left side of the hub where the cables enter , is not removable . Are the brushes still available ? Anyone done a brush replacement on one of these ?
2 On the rear hub is a large round thing with wires attached . I am assuming this is a motion sensor . It has a torque arm which is not attached to anything . Should this attach to the frame with a clip ?
3.On the front axle , left hand side is a torque plate which is attached to the fork dropout with two screws . There is no such plate on the right hand end of the axle , although the screw holes exist . Should there be a torque plate on this side ?
4 The bike is old . would you recommend new lead acid batteries or something else ? The bike is used only for pleasure cruising , but a fairly long range is important to me . I hope someone can answer some of my questions .
1. I have heard that these bikes eventually fail due to gearbox issues , so I have partially stripped the hub , and filled the gearbox with fresh grease . I wanted to check the brushes , but it appears that the left side of the hub where the cables enter , is not removable . Are the brushes still available ? Anyone done a brush replacement on one of these ?
2 On the rear hub is a large round thing with wires attached . I am assuming this is a motion sensor . It has a torque arm which is not attached to anything . Should this attach to the frame with a clip ?
3.On the front axle , left hand side is a torque plate which is attached to the fork dropout with two screws . There is no such plate on the right hand end of the axle , although the screw holes exist . Should there be a torque plate on this side ?
4 The bike is old . would you recommend new lead acid batteries or something else ? The bike is used only for pleasure cruising , but a fairly long range is important to me . I hope someone can answer some of my questions .
