stuartmacg

I fitted the "Hafney new handlebar mirror". It was OK, but tended to move out of position over bumps (may just need tightened). However I broke it when I forgot about it while turning the bike upside down for wheel access. It did stick out and tend to get moved out of position when moving the bike in the shed. I was on holiday recently in Italy with a hired ebike which had a mirror which could fold back out of the way and return to its position, but don't know the make. That would be a good feature. Does anyone have a suggestion for a good mirror?

Bought a "Cube Touring Hybrid One 625 2024 Electric Bike" from Swinerton Cycles. Bit daunting to assemble, but local bike man too busy, so I did it. First go, I found the kevlar reinforced baloon tires do not have as much traction as my normal bike tires - going up a pavement ramp at an angle the front tire slid sideways and dumped me on the ground - nasty bruise, grazing etc. Next go, the back wheel inner tube deflated. Nothing visible or felt in the tire, but the inner had a point puncture. Today the first attempt at a proper cycle run - after around 5 miles the right pedal felt odd - dismounted and looked at it - it had unwound and then destroyed the thread in the aluminium shaft. I expect I had not tightened it enough - thought the different thread directions ensured self tightening? Had to walk back home. No idea how to get this fixed now. Nice bike though - even if the grey version I have looks a bit like a WW2 German motorbike.

I am trying to select a "sold secure" standard lock: " gold powered bike" aka "diamond push bike", for my new Cube ebike. I bought a Yale YUL3, but found that it is just slightly too large to fit within the frame (medium size, I expect the large frame version would take it), in any position. Only a few mm out, but good as a mile. The U would fit the space, but the holder holds it too far from the (either) bar. That's £26 down the drain :-(. Can anyone suggest a suitable alternative lock? Looking at the "FoldyLock Forever" - gold, not diamond, but recheck of insurance terms makes it OK, and lamp post lockable is a big plus (few caffe or pubs have bike bars) .

Thanks for all the answers folks. I have found www.ebike24.com can supply them to UK, though it says to expect 4 weeks delivery and the Bordo 6500KA I was looking at is around £50 dearer than the cheapest (same day delivery) local purchase (without key matching).

No I have not. I am looking to buy an Abus lock, manufactured to match my existing Abus key (for the Bosch motor), not to get a key. This is something they offer - takes about a week I understand - but I need a supplier to organize it. I suppose a locksmith might have the connections. I might try that if simpler solutions do not turn up, or simply give up. It would be convenient, but not that important.

No. The Bosch motor has an Abus key, and Abus can provide their locks manufactured for your (registered) key code. I just have not been able so far to find a supplier in UK who will get this done for me, and Abus does not deal directly with customers.

I would like to use the same key for my bike and an Abus bike lock - anyone know the best way to get an abus lock manufactured and delivered to UK, given the key code?

Finally selected and ordered: Cube Touring Hybrid One 625 2024 Electric Bike, from Winstanleys (good sale price) (same spec except bigger battery). The Kalkhoff in the right size disappeared from the on line sale, and anyway the Cube offering looks a better deal. Thanks all for advice and discussion.

I have looked at 48v TSDZ8 kit data on line briefly. It would take me some time to get familiar with the terms and evaluate. It would clearly be fun to do and a lot cheaper than buying a similar spec bike, but it sounds like the power output (>250W) and the availability of a throttle mode would make the result illegal on the road in the UK and EU.

A Kalkhoff Entice 3 move for £1999 looks similar? Bosch performance line smart 75 Nm, 9 gear ratios, disc brakes, all frame sizes, from vansprint.co.uk.

Interesting about the controller. I looked at some kits on Amazon, including Woosh. Looks like there could be trouble getting stuff to fit a given bike, and waterproofing things, and having it legal, and battery safety acceptance while touring ... I do have a spare push bike I could adapt. It has hub brakes and rear gears only, so a pedal driving torque sensing motor may be possible..

I sort of assumed there would be a practical stall threshold torque for a controlled motor system, with max current from the given battery at min reasonable rotation speed. Near that point the system would be non linear and the motor and control components would get hot, wasting power and risking damage. Otherwise what does the spec mean? Perhaps a rational decision is impossible with the limited information provided by suppliers on the many factors involved :-(. Just tried the scales, for the first time in years: 15 st 4 lb == 97 kg. So within the 130 kg total weight, but say 25% heavier (bike+rider) than a normal height moderately fit animal? e.g. a bike tested on 25% slope should be ok on 19% with me. I will be happy if I can take a 1:10 without walking.

Thanks for the info on touring. The Agutta uses the 50 Nm torque drive, surely the weakest is the 40 Nm, requiring the widest gear ratio for a given hill? The hill ability would depend on the lowest gear's ratio, rather than just the number of gears. I have read that some complain that the Agutta has low gearing making is slow on flat or down hill, so the steepest climb might be OK? I have no great desire for speed anyway, and don't mind walking when the gradient is silly. The Which review of the Verve+1, which uses the 40 Nm motor, said it started easily and ran up a 25% gradient. I have always used ordinary bikes, with rim brakes, and no trouble stopping - you just need to run them from time to time to dry them out when wet. The dominant weight/momentum component with an ebike is still me, not the 25kg bike (say 10 .. 15 kg more than my current bike), so does a rim brake really matter that much?

I see I can get a Kalkhoff Agattu 3.B Excite 2021 for £1900 delivered and mostly assembled. It is tempting, though possibly OTT for my expected usage. I think that you have to charge its battery with it in the bike? Can the 500 Wh be replaced with a 625 Wh battery when it dies? I am also bearing in mind the suggestions for much cheaper Chinese bikes, and the Trek Verve+1 with 500 Ah is still possible. What is the situation with touring with an ebike? Do hotels provide safe lock ups with charge points? Do you have to arrange that in advance, loosing spontaneity and the ability to stay put if it rains heavily etc.?