Jazzist

Hi Tim, What size frame is best for a 5'11" rider?

Makes me wonder.. Hydraulic rim brakes... WHY? Can't save much coin. Have Avid Juicy 5 IIRC on my MTB, even bleeding them is easy with the kit. Think I've bled them and changed the pads once in years. BTW don't touch the discs to see how warm they get after a decent stop.. Leaves your fingertips on the disc! ☺ Wonder if I get could get 50 cycles to promise that they won't leave me up shit creek like that guy with the unavailable rims if I were to purchase one of their bikes.

Ouch. Didn't think of that... Good reason to go with a bike with disc brakes. So this http://www.50cycles.com/electric-bikes/proconnect-commuter/pro_connect_impulse_10g_xt.html Instead of this http://www.50cycles.com/electric-bikes/proconnect-commuter/pro_connect_impulse_alfine_8g.html

Looking at the £2k ish bikes the Kalkhoff impulse 2 looks like the highest spec system on paper especially with its 70Nm torque and 600W battery. To get close on torque with Bosch you need performance line.. Most competitors are active line. Also looking across the brands it's difficult to keep it under £2k, you jump to £2.5k seemingly easily. With the smaller battery you'd think they'd be cheaper than a 600W bike, the spare 400W batteries are allot cheaper (£800 vs £550). Some of the non Kalkhoff look allot sexier on screen but other than that... Unless they were a much better fit why would you? I don't want to only look at one supplier and one brand. What am I missing? Are KTM , haibike tourer etc. using otherwise better parts to justify their price. Eg looking at a kalkhoff pro commuter you might compare it to the Haibike xDuro Trekking SL Gents 2014 but that is still on the classic motor from what I can see and is considerably more expensive. Going down in price confuses further there are a million and one ebike manufacturers offering £1k machines. It's OK trying lots and buying the one you get on with best but you still want good value price vs paper spec. Hmm!

Wonder if you can fit a kit to a Bike Friday Tikit? There's also this which might be OK for limited use http://www.beatbikes.com

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/events/redbridge-e-bike-test-day-sunday-18th-may.10/ Pity it's so far away but looks good!

The branded bike components are more likely to be found in your LBS than unbranded OEM parts eg brakes but you can likely interchange to a more expensive part if you had to. You're saying that with cheapo motor and battery there is more scope for swapping for a range of cheapo parts that might be found on eBay etc (not likely in the lbs) whereas with Bosch, impulse, etc the fittings on the frame will only fit the specific motor? If you've spent £2k on a 2014 Bosch bike then you probably don't want the ability to swap out the motor for something Chinese, you're going to want it repaired to the same, superior, spec. Someone looking for a relatively expensive commuting solution probably doesn't care that someone can make there own battery pack for a DIY bike (if that was the case they'd DIY and not be looking at expensive stock bikes?)? Who is to say which is the most reliable but it's hard to suggest the Chinese bike is MORE reliable, how's that possible vs better quality parts? I'm new to ebikes and like the look of Kalkhoff and KTM (maybe others the choice is crazy), very hard to compare.. I wonder what the difference is, say, between the quality of a £2k machine from both companies? Eg hubs, rims, other parts, etc.? There is a bewildering amount of choice it's hard to even draw up a shortlist to go and look at some!!