RobF

The Thule rack is a quality item, but is more a platform rack than a pannier one, so may only suit a trunk bag. I'm not familiar with your bike, but there is universal advice for a bike without mounts. There are racks which use an elongated quick release skewer for the legs - not sure if there are any that cover through axles yet. The other alternative is P clips, putting the rack leg where the clip's bolt is. Achieving a strong enough grip on the bike's tubing may be difficult, so it may be a light duty solution. As regards the top mounting, you can get a seat post collar that has rack mounts machined into it. A money no object solution would be a Tailfin, which does now support through axles. https://www.tailfin.cc/product/pannier-racks/x-series-pannier-rack/ P clips which claim to suit pannier racks: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tortec-P-Clips-16mm/dp/B000P1ROBW/ref=pd_sbs_200_img_1/257-2202550-5115651?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B000P1ROBW&pd_rd_r=51fe53ff-a49b-4a6a-96e0-92798e1b7d72&pd_rd_w=15A3y&pd_rd_wg=XaQXw&pf_rd_p=e44592b5-e56d-44c2-a4f9-dbdc09b29395&pf_rd_r=TTVJGHFJ27H3STMC7SMN&psc=1&refRID=TTVJGHFJ27H3STMC7SMN Seatpost collar: https://www.amazon.co.uk/M-Wave-Seatpost-Clamp-Rack-Mounts/dp/B0775L5KTZ Kit for quick release skewer mounting: https://www.wiggle.co.uk/tubus-adapter-set-for-qr-axle-mounting/

You are starting commuting in the better weather, so your immediate needs may be very few. Good lights are always worth having, but will you use them before the clocks change in the autumn? Do you have luggage covered? You may want to carry stuff year round, so panniers or a rack bag would be a good idea for your birthday list. Commuting is hard use on all bicycle components and accessories. No point in buying cheap stuff that won't last. There are a handful of quality luggage makers, but the simplest recommendation is get something with Ortlieb written on it. Their stuff is genuinely waterproof, which very few bags are. You can google the obvious, but their relatively compact Sport Roller panniers have enough room for most commuters, but are not too big. If you only need to deploy one, put it on the off side of the bike. This gives you a bit more road presence from behind. https://www.rutlandcycling.com/accessories/bags-luggage/ortlieb-sport-roller-classic-ql21-25l-pannier-pair_304981

A Brompton would take your weight, and it's the most compact folding bike when folded. Kits are better than than the factory electric version, and slightly cheaper. Nano or Swytch - if you can get one. One of the smaller batteries, which aren't any bigger than a bag of sugar, should do a six mile round trip. You still need to ask yourself if a folder would be suitable. They are a benefit for more compact storage, but are still heavy and unwieldy lumps so not so clever if your flat is up flights of stairs.

Palm grips and bar ends may provide a partial quick fix. Bar ends are worth having because they enable a change of hand position - a weakness of all flat barred bikes. Ergon is the best make, but the cheaper alternatives do the job. Something like this: https://www.amazon.co.uk/MEETLOCKS-Handlebar-Ergonomic-Designed-Integrated/dp/B073PT748H?ref_=fsclp_pl_dp_3 Money no object? The Ergon cork grips on my Riese and Muller Charger are excellent. https://www.merlincycles.com/ergon-gp3-biokork-grips-bar-ends-54548.html

You ought to try a 1,000w hub bike first. The direct drive pancake motors are famously lacking in torque, so you might find it a great disappointment. They tend to be quiet, and fast once wound up, but will die on you when you reach an incline. Repurposing your Bosch battery might be difficult. The Bosch system is famously locked down, and the battery may need to shake hands with a Bosch motor and controller to work. But apart from the fact that 1,000w hub motors are rubbish and your battery won't work with one, I think you've come up with a great idea.

Buy a petrol moped, although even that might not hit '25-30mph comfortably' on hills.

Why on Earth 'capitol'? If you want to pick people up on grammar, you need to sharpen up yourself.

The water flies off the tyre just as it leaves the road as it rotates. Effectively, the spray aims straight for the motor and continues up along the downtube until its progress is impeded by the base of the mudguard. Bosch say the motor is splash proof, but plenty lunched bearings due to muddy water ingress. Yours may be better as it's the 2020 version. You will be protected by the wide downtube, but you will likely get wet feet in heavy rain. Some mountain bike handlebars are wider than they need to be for a trekking application. Nothing to stop you chopping an inch or two off both ends.

Dreadful cheap and nasty generic Chinese contraption. Avoid at all costs.

The gum walls do set the bike off well. As with most factory fit mudguards, the front is way too short to do a proper job. A long mudflap is what's required. Bodgeable from plastic wrapper waste, but there's a few neat factory made ones online. I see the bike is supplied with the lower output charger. You can't get a better charge than a slow trickle, but it will take a while to fully charge that big battery. https://rawmudflap.uk/

I worked in a garage in the 70s which did a lot of breakdowns from a nearby motorway. If it was a very hot day we could nearly guarantee to get a Hillman Imp or two which had overheated. Nearly always the cause was due to poor home bodger servicing. There was a cowl between the rear mounted radiator and the engine. Routinely, it would crack or be left off by someone who didn't know what they were doing or what it did. The car ran fine without - in all but the hottest weather. The often linked problem was the coolant. There was a belief at the time that anti-freeze was only for the winter. It wasn't, it played just as an important role in the summer as a corrosion inhibitor. So a combination of water in the radiator and the lack of the cowl led to overheating. The Imp ran fine year round if it was properly maintained. Coolant, or rather lack of corrosion inhibitor, was also a major contributor to the overheating problems of the Triumph Stag engine. But that's another story.

Both bikes use the ebikeMotion system, so you would expect both to perform similarly. It's possible Cannondale has its own software, but unlikely. Only a test ride will tell.

Brave move to launch a six quid magazine in today's market.

Yes, it is promising, and yes, we have seen it all before. But one day one of these laboratory batteries will come off. Looks like they are saying it could have a capacity about four times that of current batteries. That would be a genuine leap forward meaning a 500wh battery could be about a quarter of the size it is now. Or a current sized 500wh battery could be 2,000wh. I've long thought batteries are the weak point of ebikes. The motors, crank or hub, do a decent job, but battery range is always the elephant in the room.

I should have added that the smaller wheels mean a 28 would be lower than the same gear on a road bike. With that in mind, the Rembletta could get away with 44 at the front and a 34 or 36 at the back to achieve an acceptably low first gear.

I've seen car drivers been found not guilty of death by careless, and guilty at magistrates' court and not locked up. And guilty at crown and gone to prison, so there is a wide range. If the circumstances were identical, apart from the killer driver being in a car rather than on a bike, it's likely he would face the same charges. Cynics say most jurors are motorists, so they are reluctant to find any driver guilty if there's any possibility they can put it down to an accident. Particularly true in cases of death by careless. Death by dangerous is more clear cut because the driving is so bad even a car-centric juror would not approve of it.

I think he's spot on about the higher gears - mine runs out of ratios much above 15mph. Without riding the bike, I'd still suggest it could do with a lower bottom gear than a 28. It could be the motor is more pokey than a Bosch - quite a few are. But as a general point a low gear would be at least 1:1, which in this case means a 44 on the back. There's no doubt gearing on a 20" bike is a challenge, no matter how much money you have to throw at it.

No I haven't, I'm searching for your point. Although it appears all you want to do is make snippy remarks. Fine, carry on.

My AVE, which is a very similar design, has a 10 speed 11-34 on the back. The gear range is sufficient, but I wouldn't say it's too wide. A roadie cassette on a 20" wheel bike seems an odd choice to me.

Thanks. Yes, I would still be interested because it is my type of bike in lots of ways. As age takes hold I'm finding it increasingly difficult to get my leg over (ho-ho) a cross bar, so that's another factor. I would bash out a suitable review which you can use on the website like you did last time.

I recommend it because it would suit a short commute well. As I posted, if the OP thinks he might get into leisure riding your Faro would be a better bet. I think a lot of commuters only ride to work and are glad to get off the bike at the weekend.

'Five minutes' and 'a lot longer'. A Gtech is not suitable for my use, but the idea is to find one that suits the OP. If you fancy lending me a bike again, I'd pick your new Rambletta, which is certainly my type of bike. Particularly at this time of year when I'm still on generally shorter rides.

No, I don't know what your point is. You mention significant press coverage, but that's hardly relevant to any legal concerns. Lots of legally mundane cases get loads of press coverage if there's something else interesting in them. Caroline Flack is a good example. Slightly unusual in that the woman assaulted the man, but the offence itself was routine and trivial in terms of assaults. The courts are swamped with similar cases of low level domestic violence to such an extent that some courts have dedicated sitting days each week to deal with the volume.

I think the Gtech now has two assist levels. Your Faro may also be worth a look. Although I reckon the belt and simplicity of single speed makes the Gtech a better choice if the OP is only going to use the bike for his short commute.

He describes the slopes as only requiring medium assistance. The commute is very short, so he could use full power on a Gtech all the way, which might equate to medium assistance on 250w legal ebike. The Gtech is also light which means such assistance as you do get out of it feels greater than on a heavier bike. Provided the OP doesn't weigh 20 stone or more, the Gtech could suit very well.