June 20, 201411 yr Hi, I'm moving 20 miles away from where I work and I'd like to cycle there and back on an electric bike. Up to now I've been usng a Dawes Galaxy touring bike to cycle a maximum of 15 miles each way once a week from my current home in west London. I've also mixed bus travel with cycling so It's a more manageable 6 mile cycle each way. Now I'm moving out to Hemel I know that I could not do the 40 mile trip every day comfortably and sustainably. I also have to carry myself (15 stone 54 years old,long term cyclist so fairly fit) and a bike up 3 flights of stairs at either end (no lift).So, I've decided to invest in an electric bike to provide some assistance. It has to be as light as possible, use conventional cycle transmission (ie Shimano etc) So, here I am to get some help with deciding which one. Thanks, David. PS I've been looking at the Storck Multitask and that's all so far. Are there any better bikes than this? PPS I'm an Electronics tech by trade so don't be afraid to use technical terms if you need to, although I'm new to electric bikes.
June 20, 201411 yr The Ezee Torq is the ideal long-distance commuter. It's fast, comfortable and relaxing to ride. It has a big battery, strong motor and tall gearing; however, it's not very light, and if you've been looking at the Storck, I guess you're more into iphones than Samsungs, so you'll probably find it ugly. To complete 20 miles each way in all weathers, you'll need a battery with more capacity than 10aH, The bigger the battery, the higher the weight. You didn't say how fast you wanted to go, which can have a bearing on which bike is best. The other thing is whether you wan't a work-out from your ride to work or want to arrive fresh and smelling nice.
June 20, 201411 yr Author Thanks for your reply. Love Samsung and hate Iphones but it's nice if theres some form as well as function. I manage about 10 MPH on my Dawes so 15 MPH+ would be more than adequate. I want to do some of the work as thats one of the reasons I ride a bicycle for the exercise. But it would be great if I didn't have to work TOO hard. A removable battery would be great as I could carry the bike in stages.
June 20, 201411 yr Virtually all bikes have removable batteries. Can you get down to Bristol on Sunday? There'll be a lot of different bikes to try there. The sun is going to shine, so it should be a nice day out, but many roads will be closed in the centre, so think about where you're going to park.
June 20, 201411 yr Author Hi, I think the woosh big bear would be too heavy to carry up stairs. I can't attend the Bristol show as I have to do some packing for my move. Would the Kalkhoff Pro Connect Impulse 10G XT do the job? Not sure if a 50cm size will fit me though (6'2" tall 33 inside leg). Maybe the Kalkhoff Pro Connect Impulse Alfine 8G with 3 different sizes would be better? Anyone own one of these? Thanks.
June 20, 201411 yr If you are thinking of part commuting to Watford Junction I would wait before buying an ebike. They do have a bike storage facility at the station. Try out the routes first with your non ebike first. All routes will be very busy during peak times even the canal towpath along the Grand Union. One good thing is you will have the Nickey Line route on your doorstep. http://www.nickeyline.org/
June 20, 201411 yr Author I've got to commute from Bovingdon to Hillingdon near Uxbridge. I've got a motorcycle as my main form of transport but I want to continue cycling as I love it so much. I'll check out the nickeyline sometime, thanks. David
June 20, 201411 yr Author Just looking at the Ezee Torq. Looking good so far. Will report back later. David.
June 20, 201411 yr I've got to commute from Bovingdon to Hillingdon near Uxbridge. I've got a motorcycle as my main form of transport but I want to continue cycling as I love it so much. I'll check out the nickeyline sometime, thanks. David Same problem will apply with the country lanes from Bovingdon to Rickmansworth or Watford Met stations unfortunately, but plenty of good cycling opportunities around the Chiltens.
June 20, 201411 yr As no one else has commented I will just say that the Kalkhoff Pro Connect bikes are excellent commuting bikes and have many satisfied customers using them for this purpose and have done for a number of years. There are many other bikes available but few will have the all round quality, reliability and function of the Kalkhoff. They are perhaps not the prettiest looking bikes but this is a matter of personal taste.
June 20, 201411 yr Whilst you are in West London can I suggest that you visit Hampton Wick near Kingston. Within 200 metres you can visit 50 cycles and view the Kalkhoff range,also compare with the KTM range at the London Electric Bike Company. I particularly like the 2014 spec KTM e-Panasonic or the KTM 400 Sport models. With the length of commute you intend it is important that you test and select the correct bike. KudosDave
June 20, 201411 yr Hi, I'm moving 20 miles away from where I work and I'd like to cycle there and back on an electric bike. Up to now I've been usng a Dawes Galaxy touring bike to cycle a maximum of 15 miles each way once a week from my current home in west London. I've also mixed bus travel with cycling so It's a more manageable 6 mile cycle each way. Now I'm moving out to Hemel I know that I could not do the 40 mile trip every day comfortably and sustainably. I also have to carry myself (15 stone 54 years old,long term cyclist so fairly fit) and a bike up 3 flights of stairs at either end (no lift).So, I've decided to invest in an electric bike to provide some assistance. It has to be as light as possible, use conventional cycle transmission (ie Shimano etc) So, here I am to get some help with deciding which one. Thanks, David. PS I've been looking at the Storck Multitask and that's all so far. Are there any better bikes than this? PPS I'm an Electronics tech by trade so don't be afraid to use technical terms if you need to, although I'm new to electric bikes. Hi David,My biggest concern would be carrying the bike up three flights of stairs at each end of the journey.If you take the battery out that means two ascents at each end. Phew! Sounds like hard work to me. I'd certainly go for the lightest bike you can find.
June 20, 201411 yr the Proconnect Xion X27 weighs only 24kgs including 15.5AH battery and djsb is a big guy. The Ezee bike is heftier though.
June 20, 201411 yr the Proconnect Xion X27 weighs only 24kgs including 15.5AH battery and djsb is a big guy. The Ezee bike is heftier though. Did you really say ONLY 24kg! Up three flights of stairs at each end of a 20 mile commute! Rather him than me!
June 20, 201411 yr he hasn't much choice: 15AH battery is needed for his 40 mile commute, that excludes all the light bikes. One way to get a lighter bike with the same range is to get Woosh to fit their CST kit to a nice bike like the Cube Aim SL26, total cost about £1,050. Total weight: about 20kgs http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/cube-aim-sl-26-hardtail-bike-2014/rp-prod114094 http://www.cube.eu/fileadmin/2014/cccc/bike/hardtail/stages/501001-aimsl26blackred_light.jpg http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/conversion-kits/rear-cst-kit/
June 21, 201411 yr Author The stairs at my new place can be done in three sections (1 set of steps then rest etc). The stairs at work are temporary whilst a new lift is being fitted so it's not as bad as it seems. I suppose I'd have to develop a way of wheeling the bike up on it's rear wheel. I'm going to make a shortlist and visit a few retailers maybe in August/September. The Kalkhoff range are on my shortlist.
June 21, 201411 yr he hasn't much choice: 15AH battery is needed for his 40 mile commute, that excludes all the light bikes. One way to get a lighter bike with the same range is to get Woosh to fit their CST kit to a nice bike like the Cube Aim SL26, total cost about £1,050. Total weight: about 20kgs http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/cube-aim-sl-26-hardtail-bike-2014/rp-prod114094 http://www.cube.eu/fileadmin/2014/cccc/bike/hardtail/stages/501001-aimsl26blackred_light.jpg http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/conversion-kits/rear-cst-kit/ Much as I love ebikes, if I was a fit cyclist with a 20 mile commute with three flights of stairs to carry the bike up each end, I think I'd go for an 8kg road bike and pedal!
June 21, 201411 yr Much as I love ebikes, if I was a fit cyclist with a 20 mile commute with three flights of stairs to carry the bike up each end, I think I'd go for an 8kg road bike and pedal! This with a BBS01or Q100 and light weight battery.
June 21, 201411 yr Author I don't know how much my Dawes Galaxy weighs but it's fairly light. I'm not adverse to doing a conversion if it means I can optimise everything. More to think about. Whats a BBS01or Q100?
June 21, 201411 yr BBS01 http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?cdkit Q100 http://www.bmsbattery.com/ebike-kits/331-250w350w-q-85100sx-motor-e-bike-kit.html MXUS CST: http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/conversion-kits/rear-cst-kit/ at £499, the last one (mxus XF08C CST) is the cheapest conversion with 15AH battery. I rode the test bike at Woosh last weekend, the whole bike (Specialized + kit) is very light for a fast e-bike, about 19kgs, thanks to the battery with SDI 2900mAH cells. A bit noisier than my BBS01. Edited June 21, 201411 yr by trex
June 21, 201411 yr Djsb....from memory I think all the KTM commuter models are low 20 KGs in weight. London Electric Bike Company have one left BH Emotion Neo Race,it's a lovely looking bike and weighs 19kgs. It's also very close in performance to a non assisted bike,a very fast e-bike,I think LEBC have one left on special offer at 1999.00. The battery is quick removeable My Kudos Secret weighs 18 KGs,I wouldn't want to carry a bike weighing much more than that up flights of stairs KudosDave
June 21, 201411 yr Author Pity you can't get a bike with S & S Torque coupling http://www.bobjacksoncycles.co.uk/ss.php Then I could split the bike in half and carry it up one half at a time. Are ther any custom electric bike builders out there who can also do frames as well? Otherwise I will have to lock my bicycle to my motorcycles outside. I love my bicycle and don't want to leave it out in the rain. I'd bring them all indoors if I could.
June 21, 201411 yr Djsb....how about the M1 Secede split frame bike. M1-sport technic.de.....I looked at the M1 range at the 2013 Eurobike....the bike is hub drive and German engineered....read into that expensive. We were offered the UK distributorship for M1 bikes but the market has not yet matured to spend £5k plus on electric bikes. The bike has SRAM gears,Carbon frame and powerful hub drive. Interesting bike KudosDave
June 21, 201411 yr Author I've just sent an email to Kinetics in Glasgow to ask about the feasibility of converting my Galaxy to electric and fitting a Torque coupling (something I've wanted to do for a while anyway). I await their reply with interest.
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