stemil

Hi neptune the controller comes fitted with bullets and sockets, bullets on the input, sockets on the output. If you click on the photo I posted yesterday you should be able to see what's what. Space is tight enough that you want as much free space as possible when inserting the controller into the fairing, I think that using terminal blocks would make it a fair bit more awkward and potentially less secure.

mmm, not very elegant and space is quite limited in the controller housing to allow for lots of individual terminal blocks or even a multiple one. I crimp then solder the bullet connectors, but that's just me, belt and braces. Double female is good if you like soldering, not really needed though as twin wires fit OK into a single bullet.

e-mail sent.

Hi All, yes neptune your understanding of the motor wiring is correct. Russell, we have two Powabyke euros, when the controller burnt out on the blue one I ordered two sets of controllers and throttles, so if you like I will send you the the second unused set which you can have at cost + postage, about 20 quid all in, please let me know and I'll get it in the post on Monday and you can send a cheque off or pay by Paypal or something. I do not have access to the blue bike at present but going from memory the wiring on the new controller is like so- Positive from battery double wire to red new controller wire Negative from ignition switch to new controller black wire (I think from memory it is a switched negative, if not simply swap the wires over to the correct polarity) Connect the red and blue wires from the motor to the blue wire on the new controller Connect the green and yellow wires from the motor to the white wire on the new controller Cut the cable on your old throttle off long enough to sufficiently lengthen the wire on your new throttle, join this by soldering to your new throttle and shrink tube over each seperate wire to insulate, the colours match on the new throttle to the new controller, ie green/black/red but not on the cable you are using from your old throttle, so make a note of what goes where. Join the green/black/red throttle wires on the new controller to your newly extended throttle wire by the same method as above. The black and yellow wires on the new controller are for the brake cut off switch, not used on this bike and sorry I can't remember if they are connected or not to get the controller working, one of the two though. Finally, disconnect the two black wires fitted with the male and female connectors, this is a speed limiter feature on this controller apparently. Really to make a neat and secure job you will need to order some of those 3.9mm bullet connectors from ebay. I will send you some shrink tubing as well if you want the controller as I have loads knocking around. I have tried to make this as unconfusing as possible hence the constant reference to "new controller" etc, and also so that you can decide if this is a job for you or not. [ATTACH]3658.vB[/ATTACH]

There's quite a nice panel on ebay at the moment BTW, I don't know whether or not it is suitable for your model of Powabyke but would definately smarten things up- Item 170840866732

Hi Russell, The Motor cable doubles up above the connector located on the left fork, I do not have the bike to hand at the moment but going from memory red and blue = positive, yellow and green = negative. Roughly where are you located? Good luck.

Could I just add a note of caution, I enquired on this forum about motor controller suitability for my Powabyke, I was thinking about buying a massively overrated controller on the premise (so I thought at the time) that the motor would only draw as much power as it needed and being under stressed it would more than likely last longer also, a good plan you might think? This is the reply from D8VEH- Just to re-inforce what NRG said: You can't use a controller that's rated higher than your battery and motor. It will try to draw too much current from the battery, which will cause it to cut-out. If you uprate the battery to be able to provide the current, then it'll try and push the maximum current that it's rated for through the motor, which will cause the motor to get hot and eventually burn. The three components need to be matched. Generally, 200/250w motors can take a maximum of 20amps if you don't use full power for too long. A 10aH lithium battery can only give 10 amps continuously and perhaps 20 amps for a very short time. Any more than 20 amps and the BMS will cut the power. SLA batteries can give a bit more for a short time and Lipos can give a lot more. 800w at v36v equals about 25 amps from the battery - just about possible from good 15aH SLAs, but you'd need at least 15aH lithium batteries. The whole thread can be seen here- http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/electric-bicycles/10644-powabyke-motor-controller-suitability.html I am not an expert on this subject and other than consult those who are far more knowledgable than myself I do not have a clue who is right or wrong. But, surely a 32 AMP controller, apart from the physical size and the problems that are likely to occur even mounting it, is capable of pushing out 1150 + Watts. So hence my note of caution.

I have replaced the motor controller on a Powabyke Euro, you really need to use a unit of the correct rating, ie 36v 250 watts, I used this one- ebay item 220875379732 which works great. Unfortunately a std Powabyke throttle does not work with this unit, but ebay item 320795877868 does, the only downside being that the wires have to be extended as they are a bit on the short side, I used the original Powabyke throttle wire cut off long enough to rejoin if required. The wire colours on the new throttle match the colour on the new controller, which is handy. Connecting everything up can be made much easier with ebay item 170711501780, 3.9mm bullet connectors as they go straight on the connectors fitted to the motor controller. You will need to solder double wires from the motor and neg terminal to single connectors though, I also did not use the brake cut off switch as my bike did not have provision for it and I can't remember if you join the wires or not to get the controller to work, but it's one of the two and all fairly straightforward. The total cost being about 20 quid. I hope this saves you some grief.

Regarding the gearbox shims, I see that there is a set on ebay at the moment and also some other stuff by the same seller - Item No 170840821252

Hi neptune, did you check out the condition of the gearbox damper pinion rubbers and plates? I have had to replace these twice now on each bike. They are apparently another unobtainable part.

I sent them an e-mail a couple of days ago, just awaiting a reply after the Bank Holiday. Looking at their range they still do a Lead/Acid 250w brushed motor Trike, so unless they have radically changed the design of the motor I can't see why they should not stock spare brushes? I'll update this when I know the spares situation.

Does anyone know where I can obtain some carbon brushes for a Powabyke Euro? The brushes are approximately 6mm sq and about 20mm long, I have just changed some but would like a spare set for our other Powabyke which I am sure are close to going as the bike is a year older than the ones I have just changed. Unfortunately I did not measure the exact size when changing them and foolishly binned the remnants so now I have nothing to measure. The electric transport shop tell me that they are a discontinued part and that their stock has been depleted. If this is the case are there any alternatives which fit or can be made to fit? And does anyone know the exact size so I can possibly find a suitable part from say a powertool for example? Many thanks for any help or advice and shame on Powabyke if they actually have been discontinued.

That makes perfect sence, thanks flecc.

I'm assuming it's because I don't have sufficient rights or post count or something, can anyone clarify?

Ditto to that.

Thanks for your replies, I shall give that a try d8veh.

For lead acid batteries to fail suddenly? By that I mean that they have good charge and range one minute then all of a sudden nothing. The batteries are about 2 years old and have given very good service up to now, I'm still getting 38v, but the moment any load is put on them the voltage drops down to under 4 volts. My experience in the past has been that they just get weaker and weaker then peter out.

For lead acid batteries to fail suddenly? By that I mean that they have good charge and range one minute then all of a sudden nothing. The batteries are about 2 years old and have given very good service up to now, I'm still getting 38v, but the moment any load is put on them the voltage drops down to under 4 volts. *Edit* Doggone it, just realised I have posted in the wrong section, can this be removed?

Sorry to hear about this, I hope you make a full and speedy recovery. Steve.

Hi, I don't know if you were actually planning to charge every 3-4 days but the quickest way to ruin a lead acid battery is to keep it in a discharged or partially discharged state, to get maximum life from them you should charge after every use.

Hi Chrissy, I have had that problem in the past, on exactly the same bike. I ended up soldering the connections directly to the board as I was told by an independent Powabyke repairer that it was how they repaired them. That was about 3 years ago but now the whole board has blown and as you say spares are no longer available. I am waiting for a new controller to arrive, which I hope will remedy the problem, unfortunately it's being sent from Hong Kong so could be a while yet. This is the controller- 36V 250W brush motor controller for Electric bicycle & scooter | eBay Cheap enough to take a risk. Good luck.

I am now begining to realise that I have vast gaps in my knowledge of this subject. My reasoning for going for an overly rated unit was that I thought the motor would only draw what current was required and that the higher rated unit would be more robust. I can now see that this is incorrect. There are some controllers on ebay which are much more suitable and as an added bonus less than half the price. I really need to bone up on this subject before diving in at the deep end which is what I tend to do. Cheers guys.

I really don't know the answer to that, but I'd sooner go for an overly rated unit. There's a Brown wire not clearly seen in the photo's which I can only assume is a brake cut-off, this clearly is a must have feature and unfortunately the bike does not have provision for this, can anyone explain how the cut-off works, does it ground out the brown wire?

Thanks for your prompt reply, the motor is the brush type. It has two wires.

Can anyone tell me if this ebay item would be suitable to replace a burnt out circuit board on an old 21 speed Powabyke Euro, the Powabyke is the type with the kettle lead going to the battery and the console on the handlebars with the push button pedal assist/power mode switch, the motor is on the front wheel. Unfortunately Powabyke tell me that the correct board is no longer available. This is the item -36V 36 Volt 800W Scooter Brush Motor Speed Controller | eBay Any help from the experts would be very much appreciated and if this one won't do the job if somebody could point me in the right direction that would be great. Regards. Steve.