faphillips

Jerry I am a very satisfied user as well. I love this bike. In fact its my second (1st was stolen). I just dont use it AT ALL now so no point in keeping it. Francis

I contacted UPS for the cost of shipment. As I dont have an address for you I have assumed Athens but it will probably be more expensive anywhere elsein Greece. I had to guess at the size of the package and teh final weight (the size is more critical than the weight). The cost would be £155 based on a packed size of 700 x 700 x 450

Basil Am I correct in thinking you are in Greece? I think it would be very expensive for you. the bike ways 14.2 kg. If you add the battery and bag its up to 18.5kg and if you then add the battery charger, spares, smaller battery etc it will be over 21 kg without the weight of a packing case. I would prefer it to be collected personally. Regards Francis

This bicycle is for sale on Ebay. 7 day listing from 24 May 2010 (ends 31 May 20:21) Link: Brompton Electric Bicycle M2L 2008 - on eBay (end time 31-May-10 20:21:51 BST) Thanks for looking

I have a Brompton Nano - 2 speed Brompton with Nano Kit fitted by Tony Castles. In addition to the normal battery it also has a Bosch battery - from a power drill - for relatively short journeys which reduces weight significiantly and gives much greater space in the bag. The bike itself is effectively as new and completely unmarked, as is the Nano kit and has only been ridden for about 60 miles total. I have recently lost my job and whilst a bike may seem the answer to reduced circumstances I may have to sell it. My question is: Should I sell the Nano kit (Forks, Wheel & Tyre, Wiring, Batteries & chargers, Controller, Throttle and bag as a kit and sell the bike seperately or should I sell the bike complete as is. Thoughts would be much appreciated. Francis

Having taken part in the TDP on prevoisus occassions (Nano Brompton) I have come to realise that this isnt a fair race. OK so its some fun.....and I have always enjoyed it. This year there is to be a 'no pedal' race on the local GoKart track which is of course much more interesting, if potentially a little dull, although a much better indicator of real world performance (there will be cheating). This may turn out to be the real focus of manufacturer/dealer teams . The real event is as always the race through the streets of Presteigne on Sunday. Anyone who went last year will know that the "winners" were mostly bikes that were set up for motors to cut in ABOVE 15mph thus making the winners the bike manufacturer or dealer teams. Pedal power though counts a lot in this race and electric is just an enhancement. If you were there you will know that two bikes.. ney tripledems .. with children on the back, came fairly near the top... whats more they were so much fun! So is anyone up four a quadem(?) with hub power front and back (and maybe on the crank as well). The race is 1 hour and generally no more than 22 miles although if one is seriously quick it could be more miles. So who fancies a Quadem: A four seater with two (3?) powered hubs, at least 2 batteries (there is no limit) and some fun riders? I can start with me as a rider, some money (but probably not enough), more fun riders needed a quadem and some raw power, some batteries and a fairly serious controller. Please lets beat those manufatcurer/dealer teams this year and have some fun as well? There is very little time left so all suggestions welcome... Flecc where are you? First we need a Quadem (is there a better name?), then 2 large and powerful hub motors - or preferably wheels with hubmotors in, some fancy controllers, some huge batteries and some bodies in fancy dress? Who's up for it? we dont need to win (although that would be good). Cheating I think is probably fair as the differential between riders and machines has always been huge in the past and the dealer teams are very competitive and their machines are never street legal (IMHO i.e. this is only my opinion). Francis

Tony Castles has had the 80mm Tongxin motor for some time (more than a year) although I am not sure he has supplied it to customers (does he supply anything to customers now?) He reported that it gave largely comparable performance to the standard motor Whilst the motor will theoretically fit the Brompton forks it doesnt in fact fit and the forks still have to be widened. It is not the width at the spindle its the width further up. If the forks have to be widened - and its not just a case of stretching them - is it really worth going for the narrower motor? Francis

I took part as well on my Brompton Nano ( I was dressed completely in black with a Red Helmet). Not sure where I came but lapped Tony Castles on his Brompton Nano twice but he didnt pedal at all so not surprising. Tony's bike had the new narrow Tongxin motor and he tells me that it seems to have very similar performance to the standard motor although still needs special forks. It was great fun and it is diificult to get over the great atmosphere to those not there. I may well do it again next year. I am unsure whether many of the front runners had any assistance from their electric motors as the top 5 must have all been doing 30 mph - maybe faster. It was quite scary the speed they passed me at and in places the course was very narrow. There were 2 bikes made for 3 competing - with dad and 2 small children - and the speed they passed me at was scary (think they must have had deristricted motors) I pedalled furiously but with only 2 gears I cant actually go much faster than 17mph on the flat and I did about 17 miles during the hour. I dont normally pedal significantly and expected my legs to be killing me today but they are absolutely fine. It was interesting to note that whenever I left the bike unattended someone would pick it up to see how heavy it was (they should have looked in the bag as I was carrying a charger and a spare battery so it weighed more than normal). Followed 'John from Cambridge' for a while and he may even have lapped me but we didnt speak. Francis

I shall be there on my Nano Brompton (my sister lives in the centre of Presteigne) and the weather now (7pm Tuesday 13 May) looks quite good for the whole weekend Metcheck.com - Global Weather Forecasts - [updated on 13 May 2008 at 19:00] - Weather Feeds - Live Data - Long Range Weather Forecasts. Not intending to pedal much on the tour as its a good opportunity to find out just how many miles I can get from a 7 Ah Li Po battery without pedalling and if that runs out within the hour (unlikely)from my 2.6 Ah powertool battery as well. I'll probably come last but so what as I wouldnt come anywhere near the front even if I pedalled frantically as I only have 2 gears. See you there Francis

John are the problems you have reported with the Tongxin motor when used in a 16" wheel i.e. the Nano Brompton or in larger wheel bikes which it seems unsuited to? Francis

I am a Nano Brompton owner like Leonardo and he is of course correct in saying that the pedelec sensor is a low cost option on this bike. In spite of the problems that have been mentioned with some Tongxin controllers I am not aware that the Nano Brompton controller has been affected nor to my knowledge has it suffered problems with the motor. Tony Castles & Simon Mills probably have more experience with this motor and controller when used in a 16" wheel than anyone else in the UK. It is generally noted that this motor/controller is better suited to a smaller wheel. It is true that both Tony & Simon can be elusive and unresponsive by both email and by phone although having bought two kits from them over 3 months apart, which I paid for on collection I havent really had a problem and they have been a pleasure to deal with otherwise. Personally I cant see the point of the pedelec option on this particular bike. I doubt that there are many electric bikes out there that you would CHOOSE to ride sans battery. The drag offered by the motor is so low and the bike doesnt weigh a lot in any event that its hardly any different to a normal Brompton. Some days I dont use power at all. Then again on other days I dont pedal much either. The power is only available up to about 14 mph so if you are pedalling at more than that - which generally happens in any event on the flat - you dont get any assistance. It takes my 16 stone bulk plus papers and laptop up Ludgate Hill (without pedalling) at 9mph. If you've seen me and thought I was pedalling you are mistaken, I was just moving the pedals around so onlookers think I am a fat bugger with bionic legs and to disguise the fact that I am riding an electric bike (you wouldn know otherwise) The main advantage for me is acceleration away from the lights which is really important in Central London and pedelec isnt much good in that instance nor is it much good when riding down the very small gap between 2 lanes of London buses which you wouldnt dream of doing whilst pedalling but which you can do under throttle with your feet off the pedals. In my view the Nano Brompton is the only folding electric bike in its class. No other folding electric bike can be used on a daily basis in central London on buses, tubes and trains in the rush hour and stowed under your desk at work. The eZee Quando is an excelent bike (I know I had one) but cannot be used in the same situation and the same is true of most other electric folders. If you have need of what a Brompton offers - great ridability in the smallest lightest folded package - and you need electric assistance there isnt another bike to consider (in my far from humble opinion). Francis

Nick The detail is here (N20cc): Maplin > 30A Schottky Barrier Rectifiers Afraid that I didnt understand your comment about only needing one and using the centre terminal as the common. Could you explain for an absolute simpleton please. many thanks Francis

I am currently using 2 different batteries on my Nano Brompton - 36v Li Po 7 Ah and a 36 v Li Ion 2.6Ah (Bosch powertool battery). I currently use one or the other but am considering using both together on longer runs and also considering using 2 Bosch batteries wired in parallel. The Bosch batteries recharge from empty to full in around 40 mins. A single battery gets me to work and back and weighs just over 1kg. Sometimes carrying a spare would be useful in case I want to take a detour. Yes I could stop and switch them over but I would rather have them both installed together just in case. I do not intend to alter the batteries or their circuitry because of potential charging issues but understand from suggestions some have allready made (many thanks) that I need to use Schottky Barrier Rectifiers so the batteries cannot discharge into each other. I therefore intend to incorporate these components into either the wiring or the battery holders and would be grateful for views on whether the wiring diargram below is correct or whether I am likelyto fry everything in sight. Does it matter which way round I connect to the outer terminals on the rectifiers. What's the middle terminal for? By building the rectifiers into the battery holders or wiring I want the flexibility to run with just one battery or 2 http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2084/2417974747_3b7d2f89dd_b.jpg Another alternative I guess we would be a switch to switch from one battery to the other. Would this need to be double pole? Can anyone recommend a switch for this purpose? Any help or suggestions would be very much appreciated. Francis

Reini Very interested in your project. Any chance of some pictures? Which charger do you use? Francis

Li Ping batteries from China on eBay: Bidding scam??? Jeremy thanks for the referral to Li Ping I have looked on ebay ping ping 227 and have sent him an email asking him to quote for the battery I want, however I looked through the bidding history for his batteries - including your own bids and it would appear that there may be some phantom bidders. Nearly every battery that he auctions recieves bids, that never win, from bidders with names that are always in the fromat ?**?. The item you bid on had 2 other bidders who have bid on other batteries but never win any, in spite of generally ending their bids about $5 below the final price. If you try and look at these bidders purchase history there isnt any even though they have star ratings. Very suspicious or perhaps there is an honest explanation. I have suggested to pingping 227 that he use Buy it Now pricing if he wants me to bid. Francis

Jeremy Much appreciated. Sounds like just what I need and I will contact Li Ping -is he on eBay as pingping227 ? I notice in your picture that the battery pack has 3 leads: pink, blue and black - why 3 leads. On my existing set up I use the same leads for discharge and charging using Neutric Speakon connectors which only have 2 leads. http://www.neutrik.com/client/neutrik/media/view500/Media_1560067473.jpg Could I do this with this setup because I want to try and have the same setup for all batteries so I have a choice. Regarding my question about doubling up my Bosch batteries does the attached illustration correctly show how these should be connected? Your help and assistance is very much appreciated. By the way the quality of your bike is excellent. Very impressed Thanks again Francis Battery Connections.pdf

I have been experimenting with various battery options on my Nano Brompton including the standard 36v 7 Ah Li Po battery and a much smaller Bosch 2.6 Ah 36 v Li Ion powertool battery. http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2224/2347580212_58d5f5bec9.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3061/2318622536_44da4254c2.jpg Both batteries take up too much room in the pannier bag, although I have also made a battery holder for the Bosch battery to go in the rear pocket. Sadly 2.6 Ah isnt quite enough for the range I require although I have considered mounting another battery in the other pocket which would presumably give me 5.2 Ah which is more than enough range. By the way can anyone tell me how I wire 2 batteries together so as to double the Ah but not the voltage - do I just join the 2 wires together at the controller? Do the batteries have to be equal size i.e. could I connect a 1.3 Ah and a 2.6 Ah? The Bosch batteries recharge in 40 minutes from flat which makes them quite attractive although they do have to be removed and inserted into the charger which is a little inconvenient. http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3100/2346774391_bc215ab3bd.jpg As this is a folding bike, battery options are also linked to luggage options and I have now concluded that what I actually need is a battery that will fit in a briefcase/laptop bag as well as a laptop and papers. The ideal shape size for such a battery might in fact be the shape & size of a small laptop. The standard Brompton front pannier bag isnt really large enough to do all of this, certainly not with a 7 Ah battery and isnt really suitable to take to meetings so I therefore intend to modify a laptop bag or briefcase to mount on the Bromptons luggage block (probably using the Brompton luggage frame) with all the wiring connnectors built in. Whilst I am a fairly competent DIYer I am not sure that making a battery is within my capability from the technical knowledge aspect and I therefore need some external assistance in the form of a company or specilaist who could do this for me. What I might also consider is having the existing 7Ah battery dismantled and reassembled into a new case although I dont know what cells are inside as the case is glued together. Alternatively a completely new battery of the right size, as light as possible of at least 5 Ah. Is this battery proposal feasible i.e. a large thin battery and is there a company/specialist I could ask to build it? Are there standard battery cases or does this have to be made? Any help much appreciated as always Thanks Francis

Having now equipped my Brompton Nano so it will run on either the 7Ah Li Po battery it came with or a Bosch 36v 2.6 Ah powertool battery I am keen to undertake a comparative test. Some of you may recall that A to B managed 47.9 miles on a single charge of the 7 Ah battery which included some hills -although many readers have assumed the tester pedalled rather more than they should have, especially as the bike is so easy to pedal. The question is what is a fair way to test battery range? Should it be over a set course with no pedalling or should one pedal as well? If one pedals how can one be sure that the same pedal asistance was given to each battery? The alternative I gues is just to do my normal journey (it's the same every day) and run both batteries from full charge to flat. Suggestions appreciated. Another question regarding these batteries and the battery condition indicator. The twist grip throttle has 3 LEDs Green, Amber, Red. All 3 remain lit on the 7 Ah battery almost regardless of its state of charge - although I havent managed to run it flat yet. On hills, only the red LED remains alight. The Bosch battery on the other hand will only show all 3 LEDS lit at standstill and as soon as I ride off I am down to just 2 and after a couple of miles I am down to 1 whilst riding, even though 2 of the 3 battery's own LEDs reamain alight. Thus far I have only ridden about 4 miles on the Bosch battery and that reduced it from 3 of its own LEDs to 2. Why the different performance and xoe this suggest that the bosch battery isnt going to have the range I had hoped for (9 miles). Francis

The Brompton has 16" wheels and fairly good Torque. Its a very good hill climber but effectively if you dont pedal it wont go faster than 15 mph. I like the bike you linked to but I couldnt take that on a crowded comuter train whereas I can with the Brompton. http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2049/2317884787_529408f1c1.jpg Francis

The narrow Nano motor is I believe 76 mm wide. I dont have any details although I have handled it and weighed it. It weighs 2.08 kg without the wheel whereas the standard nano weighs 2.41kg. Diana at Tongxin will give you details I expect. The only advantage I can see of this motor is on a folding bike where the saving of c 300 mm in width is quite significant - the saving of 0.33 kg is also quite useful as well. I am told that it is c 20% less powerful however Simon Mills who is Tony Castles business partner said that on a short test run he didnt immediately notice any difference (on a Brompton) For what its worth this is my bike http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3056/2317813885_afe26e24ce_b.jpg This what the Bosch battery looks like compared to the standard battery and using it in the holder I made this morning I can get my laptop and papers in the bag as well. http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3039/2317815059_338a9c2482_m.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3061/2318622536_44da4254c2_m.jpg http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2368/2317814441_7fdca30545_m.jpg Francis

Jeremy You are overlooking the cost of a completely new widened front fork. Its not a DIY proposition on the Brompton. In fact the fork has to be un-brazed, the yolk cut and then re-brazed in a new position. The Brompton dropouts are c 72mm I believe whereas the Nano motor requires 100mm. There is a new narrow version of the Nano (Tongxin) motor that is just 76mm wide. It is of course less powerful. It still requires new forks because it not just about the width between dropouts but clearance for the motor. Tony Castles arranges all of the work and therefore his markup is not that great especially as he guarantees it as well. Francis

Urbanpuma I can only assume that you have actually seen me riding my bike to address me in such a fashion (no offence taken). Sadly the picture of the green Titanium Brompton is the bike I had stolen in December. The insurance monies didn't run to replacing it with the Titanium bike so I now have a fairly standard Brompton. I did go for some weight saving and my bike ended up costing c £750 and it weighed 10.9kg as delivered. The bike now weighs 14.2 kg after fitting the Nano kit without the battery or bag. The standard Brompton Bag and 7Ah battery add another 4.51kg giving a total bike/bag/battery weight of 18.51kg. Interestingly the Titanium bike weighed 18.28 kg after conversion and the bike cost £987 so I definitely wouldn't go the Ti route again as that is a big cost for for such a small weight saving. I expect that the smaller 2.6 Ah Bosch battery, which I am making a holder for today, will when carried in the bag reduce the total weight to c 16.4 kg all up. I opted for the 2 speed version and I have no problem with this at all especially as it saved 0.63 kg over the standard 3 speed bike. I find it reasonably easy to carry the bike in my left hand with the battery and bag over my right shoulder and commute into London on the train every day. You will find details of the Nano here: Nano :: Bike Kits :: The Brompton - nano^TM The price of the kit excluding battery and bag is £362. The battery will set you back another £294 and the bag another c £80 - as much as some complete electric bikes. If you can cope with a battery range of only c 9 miles you could save some money and weight by fitting a Bosch 36 v battery directly to the luggage block as in the picture earlier in this thread. You will need to be fairly handy to make the carrier though. I will be posting a full review of my bike in due course and details of how I get on with the Bosch battery and the various holders I am making for it. If you bought a second hand bike and used the smaller battery mounted in the Brompton Bag I reckon you could do it for c £850 in total. If you buy a standard 3 speed Brompton and add the kit, the bag and the 7 Ah Li po battery it will cost you about £1,280. I would recommend the Schwalbe Marathon tyres. A £12 option with a 290 gram increase in weight but much better grip and really good puncture protection. Hope this helps Fat Francis

It's not just about the cost of the fuel (electricity). Aside from the cost of the bike you have to consider maintenance and more particularly the cost of replacing batteries. So much will depend on the battery type and how often you will need to recharge them and thus how often you may have to replace them Francis

kraeuterbutter Sadly I know very little about electricity and batteries and have not opened the Bosch 36 v battery to see what goes on inside. My reason for choosing this battery is that the creator of the Nano Brompton uses a similar, albeit slightly lower capacity battery (2 Ah) with good results. He has been getting around 7 or 8 miles range so if I get 9 miles I will be really pleased. I originally considered using the DeWalt 36v battery of which there is much written on the web, however a number of people suffered problems with the battery 'blowing' or certainly the internal fuse (10 Amp ?)doing so. This battery is also only rated at 33v I believe. Its a shame because I believe the cells are of really good quality. I am however reassured by your view that this battery will cope well with the Nano Brompton setup. Your input is appreciated. By the way I paid £64 for the battery plus postage (it was new) although generally they are more expensive. By the way the 2Ah and 2.6Ah weigh the same and have identical dimensions. I have included a picture of Tony Castles use of the 2Ah battery on his Brompton http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3183/2315083382_dfaf16c3d4.jpg Francis

Flecc As always thanks very much for your help. As you will see, I have now managed to edit my original post to include the photo. Feel free to remove these posts. The reason, by the way that I wanted to know how to do this is I have been working on an alternate battery option for my new Nano Brompton i.e. a 36v Bosch 2.6Ah powertool battery (1.24kg) that mounts both on the luggage block directly and also in one of the back pockets on the Brompton bag, thus leaving the main part of the bag free for my laptop and papers. Its been a struggle commuting with the battery bag over one shoulder, my laptop bag/briefcase over the other and the Brompton in my hand. Tony Castles has been using a 2Ah Bosch battery but only directly mounted on the luggage block and he isnt currently marketing the adapter so i have made my own. Thanks again Francis