Tref from North Wales

Hi all,

I found the Pedelecs web site about a week ago and have been totally fascinated by it. I didn't realise that there was so much choice of bikes.

I am nearly 65 (end of this month) ,retired and have arthritis in my hip (will have to have replacement op soon). I live in a beautiful part of North Wales (St.Asaph) and enjoy cycling around the country roads as well as the cycle paths that are being created more and more.

After not cycling since last year I went out on my bike last week and thoroughly enjoyed it. I did about 16 miles but was totally exhausted with the pain from my hip which prompted me to find this site.

Since looking at e bikes I find I like the mountain bike style with a not so obvious battery. I quite like the look of the Burisch Synergy GT 250, Cyclotricity Stealth and Vita Uno 26 which are all in a similar price bracket. But the more I look, I'm starting to really like the BH Neo Cross. I know this bike is a lot more cash but I really like it. I'm only going to be riding for pleasure and not commuting so I would value your comments on my potential choices.

 

Best Regards

Tref.

They're all good. The Neo Cross has significantly more power, but it has a proprietary battery, which will be very expensive to replace when the time comes. Have a look at the Kudos Tornado which has much more common and cheaper electrical components. which are easier and cheaper to replace when the time comes. The Tornado has similar power to the Neo.

They're all good. The Neo Cross has significantly more power, but it has a proprietary battery, which will be very expensive to replace when the time comes. Have a look at the Kudos Tornado which has much more common and cheaper electrical components. which are easier and cheaper to replace when the time comes. The Tornado has similar power to the Neo.

Thanks for the input d8veh. I'll certainly have a look at the Tornado. There are not many e bike dealers in my neck of the woods so it's not easy to see these bikes in the flesh.

If you are ever Anglesey way on a weekend let me know and you can have a spin on my KTM Bosch Macina dual hs? I am female and 5"6' so maybe bike size will be too small but at least will give you an idea?

We are not close but we will be having some exciting announcements soon. This will include a discount circa 20% off RRP (actual discount to be officially confirmed soon) on new Bosch batteries if you need a new one within 4 years (limited to one per customer). Also any referrals earn the original customer and new customer £50 of accessories free (not new we mention this when people buy a bike).

 

We are also looking at an offer which covers customers for any consumables. This is easy to sort for local customers but we want to decide the best way for our non local customers.

 

By the way we have sold the BH Emotion Neo Cross and it is a nice bike the new model comes with a larger battery as well (12ah from memory). KTM with Panasonic hub drive is good as well, more powerful but same price range.

 

If range is more important a crank drive such as the Bosch would be a good choice.

 

Best advice is to try a few if possible.

 

Hope this helps

David

If you are ever Anglesey way on a weekend let me know and you can have a spin on my KTM Bosch Macina dual hs? I am female and 5"6' so maybe bike size will be too small but at least will give you an idea?

OK Wissy, I'll bear that in mind.

Diolch.

We are not close but we will be having some exciting announcements soon. This will include a discount circa 20% off RRP (actual discount to be officially confirmed soon) on new Bosch batteries if you need a new one within 4 years (limited to one per customer). Also any referrals earn the original customer and new customer £50 of accessories free (not new we mention this when people buy a bike).

 

We are also looking at an offer which covers customers for any consumables. This is easy to sort for local customers but we want to decide the best way for our non local customers.

 

By the way we have sold the BH Emotion Neo Cross and it is a nice bike the new model comes with a larger battery as well (12ah from memory). KTM with Panasonic hub drive is good as well, more powerful but same price range.

 

If range is more important a crank drive such as the Bosch would be a good choice.

 

Best advice is to try a few if possible.

 

Hope this helps

David

OK David, Thanks for the information and the advice. I'll have to try and have a look at some bikes when I get the chance.

No worries good luck finding your perfect bike whatever you choose

Thanks for the input d8veh. I'll certainly have a look at the Tornado. There are not many e bike dealers in my neck of the woods so it's not easy to see these bikes in the flesh.

 

Tref.... If you search the review section of this forum you will see a review of the Kudos Typhoon done by one of my Scottish customers, the Typhoon is a 29er version of the Tornado but shares most of the specification.

You are not well served by dealers in your area but if you think the Tornado is your bike selection,we will send a bike up on appro...if you don't like and it comes back in almost new condition we will reimburse...you only have to pay the return carriage.

KudosDave

Tref.... If you search the review section of this forum you will see a review of the Kudos Typhoon done by one of my Scottish customers, the Typhoon is a 29er version of the Tornado but shares most of the specification.

You are not well served by dealers in your area but if you think the Tornado is your bike selection,we will send a bike up on appro...if you don't like and it comes back in almost new condition we will reimburse...you only have to pay the return carriage.

KudosDave

OK Dave, I will have a look at the Typhoon review. Thanks for the offer of sending a bike on approval, that's something I would seriously consider. As you say, we don't have many dealers here.

After spending many many hours researching different bikes I'm coming to the conclusion that it really is very difficult to make the right decision.

If I wanted a bike mainly for commuting then it would probably make the choice slightly easier based on a fixed distance/range.

Because I want a bike solely for pleasure, which means I want to go wherever the mood takes me (within reason) maximum range then becomes more important. For this reason I am starting to favour the Volt Alpine x which has a 16ah battery.

Do you guys have any opinions on this reasoning (I'm sure you do) ?

 

Tref.

The bigger battery on the Alpine helps but a big motor does make a lot of difference because you have serious hills around St Asaph.

The Volt Alpine has 8-Fun 250W SWXK motor, the BH Neo and Kudos Tornado have a much bigger motor. At low speed and on hills, the BH Neo and Tornado deliver about 500W, they are much better at climbing hills.

You could use Woosh predictor to check power requirements for your surrounding hills:

http://wooshbikes.co.uk/clearway.php?postcode=ST ASAPH&recommend

 

The £1,399 Volt Alpine:

 

http://www.voltbikes.co.uk/images/electric-bikes-2013/alpine-electric-mountain-bike-lrg.jpg

 

The £1,095 Kudos Tornado:

 

http://www.kudoscycles.com/images/TornadoProduct1.JPG

The latest Volt Alpine X shows a march larger motor and higher price than the cooking Alpine. It looks pretty good to me, though expensive; however, the spec's pretty good, so the price is reasonable for what you get if you can afford it:

http://www.voltbikes.co.uk/alpine-x-electric-mountain-bike.php

I stand corrected - the £1,949 Alpine X also has 8-Fun BPM motor and is indeed very suitable for St Asaph. But why they put the rear wheel so far back? that's not very clever.

 

http://www.voltbikes.co.uk/images/electric-bikes/alpinex-white-electric-mountain.jpg

I stand corrected - the £1,949 Alpine X also has 8-Fun BPM motor and is indeed very suitable for St Asaph. But why they put the rear wheel so far back? that's not very clever.

 

http://www.voltbikes.co.uk/images/electric-bikes/alpinex-white-electric-mountain.jpg

Thanks d8veh and trex for your comments.

Trex I totally agree about the rear wheel position, it does tend to spoil the look of an otherwise nice looking bike. I suppose I will have to try and get down to London and have a look for myself. Would hate to order one then find that I really didn't like the look.

 

Tref.

the position of the controller box on the Alpine X is not very good either. It tends to collect water, either dripping down from the battery above or from surface water below, coming up and follow the wiring inside. The problem is, if the box is sealed then water inside cannot escape. Best to have controller and wiring higher up, avoiding water ingress altogether. Kudos Arriba has nearly as good components, at £1,295 seems to have better VFM.

the position of the controller box on the Alpine X is not very good either. It tends to collect water, either dripping down from the battery above or from surface water below, coming up and follow the wiring inside. The problem is, if the box is sealed then water inside cannot escape. Best to have controller and wiring higher up, avoiding water ingress altogether. Kudos Arriba has nearly as good components, at £1,295 seems to have better VFM.

OK trex, thanks for that. More things to consider. I really appreciate the advice and input that you guys give. I suppose you could never find the "perfect bike" all have their pros and cons. But sooner or later you have to go for it and hopefully (with the knowledge from you guys) make the choice that suits your needs.

 

Tref.

...

I suppose you could never find the "perfect bike" all have their pros and cons. But sooner or later you have to go for it and hopefully (with the knowledge from you guys) make the choice that suits your needs.

 

Tref.

 

I was looking at ready made bikes about this time last year, found that the ones I like are too expensive so I bought an 8-Fun BBS01 and fitted it myself. It was dead easy, it took about an hour to fit the motor and another hour to fit the battery and wiring. The job was easy because I have hydraulic brakes on my bike, did not bother to fit brake sensors and throttle. The kit costs less than £500 direct from China and it is as near perfect for me (then) as anything I could buy for £2,000 and above. May be time for upgrade but still can't work out how. The good thing about the BBS01 is that the assistance seems to be proportional to your cadence, the faster you pedal, the more power you get. To climb hills, I simply increase the assist level from the LCD. It's not far off from the sensation you get riding Bosch bikes, maybe because Bosch bikes don't have brake sensors and throttle.

Edited April 4, 201411 yr by trex

Just to make life a tad more complicated, Tref:

Have you considered the Ezee bikes & kits from Cyclezee?

 

You could almost be describing me, except that my hip is merely playing-up as yet, but starting to be a nuisance

 

If you have a few minutes, have a look at my web site

 

www.cornish-alpine-ebikes.co.uk

 

The bikes Cyclezee sells have the same gutsy motor as the kit, which is not difficult to fit if you're of a handy disposition.

Edited April 4, 201411 yr by jackhandy

Hi Treff,

 

Another couple of bikes that may be of interest.

 

The eZee Torq Mk3

Full specification via this link

http://cyclezee.com/ezee-torq-mk3.html

The eZee Sprint 8

Full specification via this link

http://cyclezee.com/ezee-sprint-8.html

We've just published A to B's review of the 2014 Pro Connect i8. Not sure what your budget is, but this one is well worth considering for performance and long-term value

 

http://www.50cycles.com/electric-bikes/proconnect-commuter/pro_connect_impulse_alfine_8g.html

 

Under the Reviews and Ratings section

 

"The BMW of electric bikes... if you pose the question ‘Is this the best way of getting from A to B?’, the answer is likely to be ‘yes’ for many people and many journeys... this is probably one of the best all-round electric bikes you can buy. It goes further than just about anything else, with mountains of power at legal speeds."

 

If your budget doesn't stretch to one of these, as a Torq rider in the past, I'd recommend one of the eZees above.

I can vouch for the Ezee Torq. It's a very comfy bike. You could ride 50 miles in a day without even realising it. It's a perfect commuter and touring bike because it has plenty of torque and nice tall gearing for relaxed pedalling at speed, plus, it's easy to de-restrict for 20mph cruising, if that's what you want to do. Don't be put off by he looks of it.

 

The problem is that there's too many nice bikes these days, and new ones coming out all the time.

one more bike into the mix: the £849 Woosh Big Bear: BPM motor, 15AH battery.

 

http://wooshbikes.co.uk/bigbear/bigbear-white7-800.jpg

 

FenRam posted a thread about it yesterday.

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/threads/big-bear-by-woosh.17329/

If you choose a bike from us happy to match Kudos offer, simply reurn in good condition and just pay the costs for returning the bike. We will arrange return delivery if you are not happy with the bike.

 

Looking forward to hearing which bike you go for.

Just to make life a tad more complicated, Tref:

Have you considered the Ezee bikes & kits from Cyclezee?

 

You could almost be describing me, except that my hip is merely playing-up as yet, but starting to be a nuisance

 

If you have a few minutes, have a look at my web site

 

www.cornish-alpine-ebikes.co.uk

 

The bikes Cyclezee sells have the same gutsy motor as the kit, which is not difficult to fit if you're of a handy disposition.

Jackhandy, thanks for the input.

I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed your web site, very well done, informative and humorous in places.

It's made me think a kit may be an option, especially as I enjoy building things. I'm not fazed by the actual hands on work but not to familiar with the theory side of things.

Tref.