Hey all, great forum....

SO I know very little about ebikes, and rearly would like some help here.

I basically cycle 2-3 miles to work and then back, 1 very steep hill, the rest flat road etc ...

I love the fitness side and won't be giving up my normal bike BUT a couple of days a week I want something a bit easier.... I think I've narrowed it down to the following and would love some input....

Freego raptor - can get one for £689

Greenedge Cs2 - £649

OR the Gtech ebike for £995

 

Will gears be better for going faster over the single speeds ?

 

Any help appreciated muchly

Thanks

Og

if you like the look of the Freego Raptor, may I suggest the Woosh Karoo:

 

http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?karoo

 

http://wooshbikes.co.uk/karoo/woosh-karoo.jpg

 

Tony

How about the Woosh Karoo

KudosDvae

It's a pity Freego no longer contribute on these forums. David from Amps had a big part in the Raptor design and no doubt would comment on what a bargain that price is.

Cheers fellas, another one on the list woosh ... Think I may ditch the Gtech ....

It's a pity Freego no longer contribute on these forums. David from Amps had a big part in the Raptor design and no doubt would comment on what a bargain that price is.

 

Yep,I think Freego would also have their comments on the Raptor.

KudosDave

The Raptor is light and simple for an ebike, but it is also light assist.

 

You will be doing a fair bit of pedalling up the steep hill on the commute.

 

That may suit you, so the Raptor could be a very good choice.

Looking objectively at the Raptor and the Karoo I do not have a preference. They are both bikes that do what it says on the lid. It depends on the users needs and wants. The Raptor is only 14kg and a blast to ride with or without power and has 15 miles of range with the single battery. Excellent geometry and super rigid frame and wheels allow it to fly. The Karoo does offer more gears and greater range. It is a bit more pricey and heavier. I have not ridden the Karoo so perhaps some could add their comments on its ride quality.

 

The only other considerations would be upkeep and maintenance, the Raptor wins with the single gear, simple caliper brakes (although the mechanical disc brakes are my preference) and ease of removing and fitting rear wheel when you have a flat. The next would be warranty followed by how close you are to the dealer if issues arise. A test ride on both is worth thousands of words here in the forum. Hope this helps

There is an 11 A version of the Raptor and for 199€ the brakes can be swapped for Magura hydraulics which are lighter than and just as powerful as mechanical disks.

Edited December 11, 201510 yr by anotherkiwi

anotherkiwi, on this type of frame, you either have cantilever brakes or disc brakes. Correct me if I am wrong, I don't think you can mount Magura rim brakes onto the bosses for cantilever.

The Karoo is vastly better equipped IMHO, the brakes on the Karoo are Avids on 180mm rotors that stop the bike with minimal effort.

Edited December 11, 201510 yr by trex

I basically cycle 2-3 miles to work and then back, 1 very steep hill, the rest flat road

Just how long and how steep is that hill?

2-3 miles is quite a short distance and you sound quite fit (dare I ask your size).

 

You originally asked after just 3 bikes, but if we knew where you lived then we might point you to somewhere you could actually test ride a range of bikes, which would be very wise...

sorry, I was wrong. You can fit Magura RT8c to replace cantilever.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/magura-rt8-c-hydraulic-road-brake-set/

 

http://www.bicycling.com/sites/bicycling.com/files/articles/2014/09/Magura-RT8c-calipers.jpg

Thanks for the correction I modified the price of the brake conversion for hydraulic cantis. There is a huge weight savings with hydraulics if you are aiming at staying below 15 kg. My next build will have hydraulic rim brakes saving unsprung weight in the front wheel and almost 1 kg in weight overall.

 

+ The stopping power is fabulous

- brake linings wear faster than disk pads

- rim wears instead of disk

 

Swapping out brake linings is easy and cheap - 3.95€ after 2000 km use for me this week on the back, the Maguras on the front are still good for another 500 km.

I do need a new front rim but the original one was a cheap Decathlon single wall rim and always on the list of "things to upgrade".

You are OK with fitting standard HB to you bike because you don't have a throttle. I helped speccing the Karoo. The Karoo has a throttle, therefore necessitates brake cutouts. Tektro make hydraulic e-brakes in China but not to fit cantis.

Hey guys, some excellent advice :-) , juicybike, in answer to your questions.... I am just under 6ft, 11.5 stone and fairly fit.

I am intending to carry on cycling on my normal bike 3 days of the week - I want an Ebike for the fun and ease for couple days or when rearly windy... the hill is very steep but only approx. 150 yds long and I can do easy enough on normal bike low gear... I'm quite tempted by the cs2 cos of the mountain type wheels / ability plus its throttle lever but I also like the freego and the karoo too now, I suppose the more the assist the better in terms of a difference to my normal bike.... ... I live near Felixstowe and don't think theres much about in way of dealers...

cheers og

Our local stockist in Felixstowe is Wilco at 31-39 Undercliff Rd West IP112AH, but they only have our Classic step-through. I can get a Sport LITE to them, but you'd need to have a look at that first and let me know if it's of interest.

 

Otherwise there's an electric bike shop in Dartford (a bit of a distance for you) who have a much wider range of brands available to try - might be well worth a visit.

 

Throttles are becoming rarer, but ours will still operate up to 15MPH until the law changes in January.

Woosh are in Southend so about 60ish miles ? So not all that far away .

It would be a no brainer to me to choose the Karoo over the Raptor....... The Raptor has too small a battery and i wouldn't want to go near any hills with a single speed.

I think the Karoo looks better as well..... but thats subjective.

sorry, I was wrong. You can fit Magura RT8c to replace cantilever.

 

Caliper.

i must admit the woosh Karoo is looking quite a draw for me... I did see a post on its top speed being able to be set via the lcd - one said 20-25kphs another said 31-40 kph ?? can anyone say for sure ?? quite like the idea (when on private land of course) being able to chose ....

i must admit the woosh Karoo is looking quite a draw for me.

 

Certainly for me that's the best Woosh so far. It'd be even better with some dual-pull calipers.

 

https://www.trpbrakes.com/category.php?productid=1200&catid=206

 

The Karoo has a throttle, therefore necessitates brake cutouts.

 

I'm not sure I'd feel safe without the reassurance of the cut-out switches, or have things improved whereby the power cuts instantly the second you ease off the pedals?

Edited December 11, 201510 yr by Artstu

My brake levers are still in the box with the throttle... Never had any problem in 2000 km.

My brake levers are still in the box with the throttle... Never had any problem in 2000 km.

 

How quickly does the assistance stop then? is there any delay?

artstu, I feel a bit protective towards the Karoo because I was involved with its development for a very long time. The new Ounce 245 crankset and semi slick 28mm tyres make riding the bike without power a pleasure, that's also something I wanted to see on Chinese bikes for a very long time. Until now, riding a Chinese bike without power is acceptable but cannot be described as a pleasure. The Avid brakes are definitively an improvement over Tektro Novela and the latter over Zoom. The pads are semi-metallic. Re cadence sensor: the motor dies down as soon as you slow down pedalling and cuts out about a second after you stop. When you start pedalling, the motor starts 90 degrees from starting point. Brake sensors on levers cut the power to the motor instantly, as soon as you blip the levers. The throttle is active on mode 0 on the LCD. Mode 1 to 6 are purely for pedelec. .

Edited December 12, 201510 yr by trex