Too many cables?

[Tsakis]

Yes, it is true! I finally ride my electrified Dahon Jetstream!!! Using an ezee kit paired with a 48v BMS battery.. The thing is amazing, a true beast, and I ll post a review as soon as I complete some details...

My main problem is though that I just can't hide all those cables!!! Especially the motor to controller cable is long and REALLY thick with a connection on it and it can't be concealed anywere!

Is it possible to just shorten some wires or I will seriouslly mess with it's waterproofness?

Any suggestions?

 

[kitchenman]

Nice one Tsakis. Well done that man.
Have a zoom in on this photo and you will see that Cytronex have used some plastic ducting which they were able to mould to the curvy beam of the Spirit. Very neat and affective (check out the rain test video if you haven'y already)
046 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

 

[banbury frank]

Hi

We use this to tidy up cable connections cut to length and cable tie each end totally waterproof and easy to open if to need to remove wheel for tire change

I would make the cables as short as possible less resistance better performance

Frank

 

[Cyclezee]

Yes, it is true! I finally ride my electrified Dahon Jetstream!!! Using an ezee kit paired with a 48v BMS battery.. The thing is amazing, a true beast, and I ll post a review as soon as I complete some details...

My main problem is though that I just can't hide all those cables!!! Especially the motor to controller cable is long and REALLY thick with a connection on it and it can't be concealed anywere!

Is it possible to just shorten some wires or I will seriouslly mess with it's waterproofness?

Any suggestions?

Firstly, well done Giannis,

This has been an epic journey in more than one respect, but we got there in the end.

I used DHL to ship the eZee kit and BMS battery from Milton Keynes to Athens. It went round Europe in circles for several days, MK to Birmingham (wrong depot), Birmingham to Gatwick, Gatwick to Brussels, Brussels to Eindhoven, Eindhoven to Budapest, from Budapest back to Brussels, then eventually to Athens.
I phoned DHL, but they could not tell me what had happened or why.
Then they billed extra charges because they claimed the parcel weighed 24Kg and not 15Kg, after more phone calls and emails, they refunded the additional charge and apologised. The explanation was they had weighed the wrong parcel.

As for the cable lengths, they can be shortened, but this needs to be done with great care as getting it wrong could be expensive. Some thing to bear in mind is if you ever want to remove the kit and fit it to another bike, you may need the extra cable length.
The alternative solution is to coil the excess cable and tuck it away neatly. In the example below, I used a bike tool kit case converted to a junction box with excess cable coiled inside.

 

[Cyclezee]

Hi

We use this to tidy up cable connections cut to length and cable tie each end totally waterproof and easy to open if to need to remove wheel for tire change

I would make the cables as short as possible less resistance better performance

Frank

Hi Frank,

Sorry, but you didn't say what you use

 

[banbury frank]

Hi not awake yet

Heat Shrink Tubing 40 mm x 5 metre Black Tube Sleeving on eBay (end time 26-Jul-11 12:17:42 BST)

Frank

 

[Tsakis]

Thank you everyone for the info... Tucking the cables somewhere is not an option, I doont have any room for a bag or something, it is a small bike...:-(
I guess I will try to cut those cables short... I am completely novice in cutting and reconnecting wires but I can ask help for it..

Should I be careful with something in particular in the process? What is the expensive damage you talked about John?
Any tips?

I am planning to cut the brake cutout cables, the throttle, cycle analyst and motor cable.. The latter seems to be the harder..

(ps: John can you pls measure the cable length of your right ezee bike throttle? It might fit afterall)

 

[Cyclezee]

Hi Giannis,

Please don't rush into cutting the cables and plan what you are going to do carefully, I would strongly advise getting expert help. Obviously the battery must be disconnected before attempting any alterations.
The expensive damage could occur if connections are remade incorrectly.

The only right hand throttle I have in stock at the moment is for a complete eZee bike, it is not the kit version, therefore the cable is only 10cm long. I will get you tha right hand kit version one in due course.

 

[TwoBikes]

Rather than cutting and reconnecting the cables, you could consider shortening them. By this I mean cutting them to the required length and replacing the connectors on the ends of the cut cable. Assuming the connectors are JST SM series (almost all ebikes use these), the housings are reusable once you've got the old pins or sockets out of them (it's much easier to remove the sockets than the pins). You'd have to check which connectors are remaining in place and buy the pins or sockets that complement them. You'll need a special crimp tool. These can be hideously expensive, but the one I use costs about £25:

HT-225D Full Cycle Ratchet Crimp Tool [33-100-0001] - £25.524 : TMB Electronics, A shop for less ordinary people

Crimp pins and sockets are available from Farnell:

JST (JAPAN SOLDERLESS TERMINALS)|BYM-001T-P0.6|CRIMP PIN, SM CONNECTOR | Farnell United Kingdom

JST (JAPAN SOLDERLESS TERMINALS)|BHF-001T-0.8BS|CRIMP SOCKET, SM | Farnell United Kingdom

Buy more than you need because the failure rate from incorrect use of the tool is quite high when you start out: these connectors are very small and fiddly.

For those needing the housings for the JST SM series connectors, Farnell do also stock these - in white. Black ones are more difficult to source - I got my JST SM connectors from Grin Technologies in Canada, and the housings they suppy are black.