simonsays

Certainly a good idea to back off when changing gear, especially when you've got so much torque available. It's not just the sprockets but the freehub is quite a cheap model not intended for ebikes and they fail quite easily. Ideally change down before hills, as that's when you're likely to overload the components.

I had a full-sus Marin MTB that cost £250 in suspension bearings 10 years ago, never again! Great fun though.

Depends what you expect and your previous experience I guess. You can't escape the bike's weight, so as standard, I found the bike crashes over the bumps (rather than skipping over as a light MTB might). The Big Bens I had have similar volume to the MTB ones, but I punctured early on and planned to go tubeless anyway (with the lower pressures you can use without fear of puncturing). You've certainly got options in big volume tyres, if you need a softer ride. The rims are quite wide.

Tubeless G-one left (the wheels are tubeless-ready) and Big-Bens right. G-ones are so comfy, I had to keep stopping to check they weren't flat.

Reaction has Schwalbe Smart Sams, my Kathmandu came with Big Bens. Much more roady.

The Kathmandu is quite a similar bike, made commuter-friendly for a bit more money. Slightly different frame. Adds lights, mudguards, rack etc. It's very nicely done too, I'm impressed by Cube. I got the Kathmandu Pro 625 on a cycle scheme for ~half price.

I'm using a Cube Kathmandu for my commute on a mix of roads, cycle paths, grass, gravel and rutted chalk trail. 25 miles each way. It's a hardtail and was bumpy on the original road tyres despite a spring seatpost. I've just changed to tubeless tyres, run a lower tyre pressure and it's superb. Schwalbe G-one in 47mm width.

You need an energy monitoring plug to tell for sure. But probably not. My Bosch charger doesn't. More significant is leaving your battery at 100%; this isn't helping battery cycle life at all. https://batteryuniversity.com/article/bu-808-how-to-prolong-lithium-based-batteries See Table 4: charging to less than 100% has a big impact on extending cycle life. Unless you need every last bit of capacity, avoid 100%. You can do this by using a timer plug, and estimating how long you need to charge for.

Really struggling to see where they've spent the extra £400 to be honest!

I got a "Kat" Hybrid Pro 625 in the controversial colour scheme a week ago - very impressed so far. I've commuted on a hybrid route; Ridgeway, small roads and tracks with some tarmac and cycle paths. Will be 200 miles by the time I get home this evening. What I really like are: -lights that work "just like a car" - very useful for road cycling even in daytime -the very capable solid feel that this bike will plough on through almost anything -the chainguard means that the drivetrain is staying remarkably clean, even in chalky mud and dust -high build quality I'm less than impressed with: -brakes: the "200" Shimano calipers aren't enough on a 48mph downhill -tyres punctured first time out, maybe sharp flint is a bit hard to stop; so tubeless have been ordered -the Intuvia display only gives 5 battery bars for state-of-charge, I'd like a percentage. -the 2A charger is stingey, for a £3k bike I'd expect at least the 4A version. I'm also not seeing any sign of the eMTB mode. The assistance mostly stays in Tour mode. I'm getting 80-90 miles range in very mixed use.

Thanks, that bag looks really useful. As I already have a rack time mount I'll see what similar options there are. Don't want to add any more weight than I have to!

Thanks that's good to know. Just the kind of tip I was hoping for!

Thanks, I've a 625Wh battery and todays ride suggests that'll do unless my fitness drops. Not sure I can fit a smaller powertube, the latch position in the frame is fixed for the longer 625.

I've done plenty of cycling, mainly road, for fitness rather than commuting. Use Zwift through winter to maintain fitness. At work we have showers and good bike parking so that's no issue. Hope to commute at least twice a week by bike, weather permitting. The route is either Ridgeway trail or a bit further by road. The Kathmandu has a "rack time" rack so I'm really choosing between a pannier or rack bag above the rack, for stuff I need to take to work. Today I did 45 miles on trails/road which used 2/5 bars so the bike is certainly very capable! Just hoping for fewer dog walkers at commuting times.

Just taken delivery of a Cube Kathmandu thanks to my employer's bike to work scheme. I've driven pure EV (cars) since 2016 so I'm no stranger to battery vehicles. Here for tips on the bike/Bosch drive systems, long distance commuting (20-25 miles) and luggage.