Which bike?

[Rach]

Hi all,
I'm hoping I may get some opinions to assist me in my choice. I have a single morning (tomorrow) to travel to a couple of dealers. I have been reading up endlessly over the last few days, but as with so many things like this - as soon as you've made your mind up you find another article which changes it again!
I have a mere 6 mile round trip to work, and the purchase of this bike is intended solely for that purpose (at least at this stage). I have a bad back hence the need for some assistance on bad days, and there is a VERY steep hill on the return leg. I don't know the gradient but it is a challenge even to walk up.
I'm happy to spend more money if the feeling is that it would be warranted. I've even considered the Khalkoff Agattu but wonder if that's going overboard? The Powabyke X6 and the Salisbury and the Windsor have also all caught my eye.
I have been using a moped until now, but it is deceased and I have to find my alternative transport asap
Any opinions/advice suited to my needs would be very gratefully received.
Rach

 

[Tiberius]

Rach,

Can you tell us more about the hill? This sounds like the critical factor; 6 miles range between charges should not be a problem.

How long is the hill? Can you get any idea of the gradient? Do you mean its difficult to walk up for everyone, or can some people stride up it?

Nick

 

[Rach]

Hi Nick,

I can't actually find any signs on the hill displaying it's gradient but it is steep enough for any fit young person to have to work at it (walking), It's even got a hand rail on a stretch of it for pedestrian assistance!
I would say it's about 3/10ths mile distance wise.
Rach

 

[torrent99]

Hi Nick,

I can't actually find any signs on the hill displaying it's gradient but it is steep enough for any fit young person to have to work at it (walking), It's even got a hand rail on a stretch of it for pedestrian assistance!
I would say it's about 3/10ths mile distance wise.
Rach

Rach,

There are SOME bikes that will get up such hills without a good chunk of human assistance. But most "legal" bikes will require that you pedal, probably quite a lot! Perhaps the Kalkhoff Agattu may, but I have no experience of that myself.

Could the moped do it?
Can you walk it? (It would make your choice of bikes much wider)

Cheers

Steve

 

[Tiberius]

OK, that doesn't sound like a trivial hill. It could be borderline for some hub motor bikes. We would really need a measurement of the gradient, or you could test a few bikes on it.

Are you looking for a bike that will go up it without assistance from you?

Nick

 

[flecc]

You can forget the Salisbury and Windsor for a steep hill Rach, they are low powered and not strong climbers.

Amongst hub motor bikes, the Powabyke X6 is a strong climber, but you will have to work too on a very steep hill, possibly quite hard. The small battery on this bike would not be a disadvantage on your short run.

The best bikes for very steep hills are those with motors that drive through the gears like the Kalkhoff Tasman or Agattu Small and XXL (not the Agattu F). They are a big investment though for such a short run, and they still require you to put in up to half of the effort required.
.

 

[Rach]

Having just been out, we reckon it's a 1 in 7 hill and it's 2/10ths of a mile - my moped did it at a painful 18mph groan.
I didn't anticipate any potential bike getting up under it's own steam, but I was hoping to manage it without turning purple and sliding off sideways by the time I hit the top.
I like the idea of getting some exercise out of it without having to rely entirely on my own efforts, but want to be able to fall back on a bit of assistance if my back's troubling me on any given day.

A new moped's starting to look appealing again......save me!

Rach

 

[torrent99]

Having just been out, we reckon it's a 1 in 7 hill and it's 2/10ths of a mile - my moped did it at a painful 18mph groan.
I didn't anticipate any potential bike getting up under it's own steam, but I was hoping to manage it without turning purple and sliding off sideways by the time I hit the top.
I like the idea of getting some exercise out of it without having to rely entirely on my own efforts, but want to be able to fall back on a bit of assistance if my back's troubling me on any given day.

A new moped's starting to look appealing again......save me!

Rach

All these bikes will give you assistance, just to different degrees. The question is, are you able/willing to make up the difference to get the bike up the hill!
If you are able to push the bike up the short section then you'll get all the benefits without so much expense.
But if you want guaranteed no effort getting up the hill then moped is the way to go.

 

[flecc]

If it is 1 in 7 the Powabyke X6 will be ok with medium effort from you, but it won't tackle it solo. Fortunately 2/10ths of a mile isn't very long, 350 yards. I live up a 1 in 7 hill with handrails so I appreciate the problem.

For without help from you it's back to mopeds.

The key thing with legal e-bikes is that they are only electric assist bikes, rather than electric bikes.
.

 

[Rach]

Definitely not after no effort, but wanted to know if there was a bike that was good up hills but maybe fell short in other areas that wouldn't matter so much given the short distance. Thanks flecc for your advice - the Powabyke sounds as tho it could be an option.
As far as getting off and walking up the hill goes - if it comes to that I might just as well get an ordinary cycle for such a short commute.
The electric bike looked a good option due to the hill assistance combined with the fun aspect but maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree.

 

[Tiberius]

Rach,

That is by no means the steepest hill that an e-bike will go up, but you should be going for a higher power bike.

To go up that at 8 mph, you need 500 Watts and a wheel torque of 50 Nm (These are rough figures, depending on your weight and the wheel size.) If you add a little pedal power, then say 425 W and 43 Nm.

There are plenty of e-bikes that will do that, including hub motor bikes, but you are looking at the higher power, well sorted, end.

Nick

 

[fishingpaul]

Definitely not after no effort, but wanted to know if there was a bike that was good up hills but maybe fell short in other areas that wouldn't matter so much given the short distance. Thanks flecc for your advice - the Powabyke sounds as tho it could be an option.
As far as getting off and walking up the hill goes - if it comes to that I might just as well get an ordinary cycle for such a short commute.
The electric bike looked a good option due to the hill assistance combined with the fun aspect but maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree.

I think an electric bike could well be a good option for you,i can ride up my local hills feeling as though i have done a little exercise,on an ordinary cycle i would be in bits, one of the more powerfull bikes like powabyke, kalkhoff,ezee or wisper would probably be suitable for you, but i would reccomend that you try one before you buy.

 

[Rach]

An update on the hill for you all
I eventually plumped for a Synergie Mistral as I started to suffer from information overload combined with the collywobbles about the prospect of spending a fortune on a big mistake!!
Used it for work for the first time today and really enjoyed it - the test came on the hill at the start of the run home. I can see that the Mistral is probably not the best choice based on the hill alone. However, with some mighty huffing and puffing, I made it to the top in two sections. My dicky back is suffering mightily for it, but I enjoyed it and I would never have contemplated even attempting a hill like that on a normal bike.
I don't find 15mph fast enough on the straight, so I'm getting the benefit of giving it some welly myself - inevitably improving my fitness over the long term - I hope!
For me, it has encouraged me to get back on a bike when I would not otherwise have been able to manage it. With assistance available as and when I need it, I may even get back to a normal cycle. For now though, for the price, the Mistral I think has been a good buy.
Thanks to you all for your input, and I'll no doubt be permanently hovering on the site as I get sucked further into the ebike world

 

[Tiberius]

Hi Rach,

Congratulations on your purchase and welcome to the e-bike world. If you just managed the hill on your first trip with combined muscle and bike power, then you could say that you've got it exactly right. Your fitness will improve and the hill will get easier.

Nick

 

[JohnInStockie]

Yes many congratulations Rach on your purchase. Its a revelation isnt it

John

 

[dazzie]

Congratulations Rach, I have a Mistral too! With the throttle it will go to 18mph. Change the tyres for thinner ones as soon as you can - I fitted 1.35 wide schwalbe marathon pluses (for the comfort in knowing that you're unlikely to get a puncture) and the difference was incredible - no joking. I added over 1 mph to my average speed and took minutes off my trip time and the whole trip is a far more enjoyable experience.

Hopefully you'll find your fitness and ability to assist the bike increases as quickly as mine has, and you'll do that hill in one before long. Have fun!

Daz