BMSbattery have been trading for ages. I think I first used them in 2011. They're fine as a supplier. Just buy the motor from whoever is the cheapest, and make sure that you get the right speed.

 

That Planet X bike looks OK.

 

Basically, you can get your speed with a lower power, lightweight, streamlined bike or with a heavy, high power, unstealthy MTB type. When you go over 20 mph, air resistance/streamlining makes a big difference to how much power you need.

60 mile round trip on an e bike....Kudos but I'd never do it, it's a fair old distance. I HAD to commute 75 miles each way when we bought our house and I needed to find a new job. I slept in my Combo van 2 nights a week to ease the pressure. It's not just the fuel/petrol/eco thing it's about sanity and what is workable. That was in a van, kitted out for all eventualities and down to -25c and road closures.....good luck but this is too far in my opinion.

Hi everyone,

 

I'm thinking of getting an ebike conversion kit for commuting and would like some advice about which one would be the right one for me.

 

first I'll explain my current situation and what I'm hoping to achieve by building my own ebike.

 

I have quite a long commute, 30 miles each way with a couple of steep hills but mostly flat. I currently have a 2016 Haibike Sduro (with the speed limiter removed) and a car and alternate between the two. I would like to cycle more often but find that it takes too long (1 hour 20 to 2 hours depending on conditions and how lazy / tired I am feeling). I have a 36v 14.5AH battery on it.

 

My plan is to get a more powerful bike by adding a motor to an existing MTB and get it classified as a two wheeled vehicle so I can legally do 28mph on it (i'm based in the UK).

 

I would like to be doing 28mph for most of the journey and get my journey time down to just over an hour each way.

 

I'm generally drawn to the Bafang motors, either the BBSHD or BBS02(b). The BBS02 seems attractive because it's slightly lighter but would the BBSHD potentially get me there quicker? Does anyone know which one would be more efficient on that kind of journey? Would i need an enormous battery to do 30 miles in one hour? what would be the optimum sized chain ring for this kind of journey?

 

I'm also a bit unclear about how the pedals integrate with the motor on the Bafang. I'm happy to put in a decent amount of effort with the pedals if it means a quicker journey and a smaller battery. If i was doing top speed would I struggle to pedal fast enough to keep up with the motor? If so would a larger chain ring help to solve that problem? On my Haibike I find that at around 25mph the pedals can't keep up with the motor and I can't contribute much.

 

I'd also consider a hub motor if people thought that was more suitable for this kind of journey.

 

I've attached a diagram showing the elevation of the route taken from google maps.

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I'm finding the whole thing a bit bewildering.

 

Thanks![ATTACH type=full" alt="30966]30966[/ATTACH]

60miles range at 30mph is impossible. my bbshd (mtb, chunky tyres)will easily maintain 30+ mph on flat terrain. but the range from my 15ah 52v 30Q cells, maintaining that speed wld be maybe 16 miles max. cutting power to average 20 mph , can get 27 miles range.the biggest batteries ive seen are 28ah triangle packs. very expensive.

Also check out Andy Kirby on YouTube he’s importing Chinese emtb with the new befang motor, looks a nice bit of kit, think he’d got frame battery and motor then you add your own forks, wheels etc

The Aikema 128 hub is used by Wisper and I believe Juicy on their bikes.

20 miles is enough for keeping your sanity esp in conditions when it is cold and wet.

Someone like Kirstin may validate this as he cycles all year round to work not 20 miles but enough for his input.

My brother uses a dongled Steps bike and a Bosch S-ped for a 20 mile each way ride but limits it to about two rides a week, rest of time he uses a moped or car if really wet or cold.

60 mile round trip on an e bike....Kudos but I'd never do it, it's a fair old distance. I HAD to commute 75 miles each way when we bought our house and I needed to find a new job. I slept in my Combo van 2 nights a week to ease the pressure. It's not just the fuel/petrol/eco thing it's about sanity and what is workable. That was in a van, kitted out for all eventualities and down to -25c and road closures.....good luck but this is too far in my opinion.

 

The thing is, I have the car and I sometimes stay at my girlfriend's in London so I'm not doing it day in day out.

 

The traffic in the SE is getting so bad now it would be good to use the bike more often especially if I need to travel in during rush 'hour' (which now lasts for about six hours every day). Also with the car I have to stay at work until at least 7pm even if I don't have much to do.

I'll maybe put a bid on the Planet X bike and see if I get it. I can always swap the bars for flat bars if I can't get used to them. I think the drop bars will be better for speed and efficiency.

 

Or maybe something like a Boardman hybrid if you can’t get used to the drop bars.

 

[ATTACH type=full" alt="31046]31046[/ATTACH]

I've noticed with the haibike, on the downhill bits if i get down into a more aerodynamic position then i can achieve more speed without pedalling than if i sit upright and pedal.

 

BMSbattery have been trading for ages. I think I first used them in 2011. They're fine as a supplier. Just buy the motor from whoever is the cheapest, and make sure that you get the right speed.

 

That Planet X bike looks OK.

 

Basically, you can get your speed with a lower power, lightweight, streamlined bike or with a heavy, high power, unstealthy MTB type. When you go over 20 mph, air resistance/streamlining makes a big difference to how much power you need.

60miles range at 30mph is impossible. my bbshd (mtb, chunky tyres)will easily maintain 30+ mph on flat terrain. but the range from my 15ah 52v 30Q cells, maintaining that speed wld be maybe 16 miles max. cutting power to average 20 mph , can get 27 miles range.the biggest batteries ive seen are 28ah triangle packs. very expensive.

I should have said that i can charge the battery at work so it's only 29miles each way.

btw, does anyone have experience with the bafang hub motors or know if they might be suitable?

Bafang hubs are generally reliable, I have a BPM & CST no major issues . Like wise the Yose no issues and made by Bafang Afaik.

You will need 48v and about 270/300 rpm winding code 10 or 11 for a sustained 20 - 24 mph.

For a middle-sized motor, the Q128 seems to be more reliable than the Bafang SWX02, but the larger Bafang motors (BPM and CST) are pretty good. Obviously, the bigger the motor, the more power they can handle. The Q128 punches above its weight because it has a higher reduction ratio.

I've noticed with the haibike, on the downhill bits if i get down into a more aerodynamic position then i can achieve more speed without pedalling than if i sit upright and pedal.

 

Et voila! Aerodynamics, you could do your commute on a bent (with e-assist).

 

- OK so you have to learn to ride a bike all over again...

- you don't need such a powerful motor so a BBS02 is plenty

- you will use maybe 6 Wh/km so a decent battery will get you there and back

- you will be more comfortable and that counts over long distances like that

I concur.

If you want miles, go lightweight. The XF07 is fantastic for it.

I gave up on the BBS02 for 2 years now.

I should have said that i can charge the battery at work so it's only 29miles each way.

then buy a bbshd with a 52v triangle battery of around 25ah + and you can have that 30mph speed all the way,ideal.the torqe the bbshd produces for hill climbing and acceleration is amazing.in hindsight i would never bother with anything else....if i could afford a large capacity battery.my 350w bbs01 prob wouldnt get much use ,but i can go 40 miles at max power on it ,with its two 36v (30ah) cheaper batteries.

Edited June 28, 20196 yr by minexplorer

I contacted Tony at Whoosh, he said the hub motors wouldn't stand up to doing 28mph for prolonged periods of time and that a bafang mid drive motor would be better.

 

I concur.

If you want miles, go lightweight. The XF07 is fantastic for it.

I gave up on the BBS02 for 2 years now.

I contacted Tony at Whoosh, he said the hub motors wouldn't stand up to doing 28mph for prolonged periods of time and that a bafang mid drive motor would be better.

The geared hub motors in my kits are not up to the job, but you can use much cheaper direct drive motors.

The internal gearbox is the weak link, they are made for 250W continuous use.

If you put 1,000W into it, the nylon cogs will melt in a few minutes. Direct drive motors don't have internal gearbox so they are much better suited to your target speed (28mph).

 

 

Even a Bafang BBS01B cannot run at 28mph for long.

You need a BBSHD for that speed.

The motor a bbshd will do it without a doubt ,but the biggest problem I see is the battery size capacity vs duration /reliability 25amps constant for one hour plus = dead cells quickly .

A life of probably months not years on a cheap battery even with top grade cells 10+ charges a week and drain ride till empty is not ideal for a long lifespan perhaps two packs.

Also if you go legal dvla etc have you looked into insurance on a conversion as it does not have type approval I have to agree a 50cc moped will be cheaper in the long run

Edited July 1, 20196 yr by peter.c

Hi Hilly, another thing to consider when deciding whether to go centre drive or hub motor is what type of wheel hub the donor bike is set up for (in terms of the frame). The Planet X London bike that you linked looks like it has a QR through axle on the front, but can’t see what is on the rear from the pictures. Centre drive looks like it would be easier to fit.

Looking at this from a different viewpoint

You want to cover a 30 mile commute (including 2 hills) & would like a top speed of 30mph.

What type of roads & traffic will you be facing?

If you are cycling in SE London, then the top speed is irrelevant, as its all stop/start & you do not have the acceleration nor stopping power of cars.

The alternative is side roads where you can maintain a higher average speed, but 30mph might be too fast for local traffic, used to cycles at 20-25mph.

I contacted Tony at Whoosh, he said the hub motors wouldn't stand up to doing 28mph for prolonged periods of time and that a bafang mid drive motor would be better.

That's absolutely not true. It makes no difference whether you have a hub or crank motor. You can get both that give enough power to drive a bike at 100mph. You just need to choose a motor that can sustain the speed you want.

 

What he means is that the hub-motors he sells won't stand up to continuous 28 mph.

The motor a bbshd will do it without a doubt ,but the biggest problem I see is the battery size capacity vs duration /reliability 25amps constant for one hour plus = dead cells quickly .

even with top grade cells 10+ charges a week and drain ride till empty is not ideal for a long lifespan

Regarding my post a short while ago on reduced capacity of my bbshd52v 30Q battery.ie 58.8v permanently down to 57.5v.

 

Do you think this is why after 1500 miles in a year that happened? Not just because it never got balanced.due to me not knowing it had to be switched on when charging. But the inevitable consequence of a bbshd s demand ,even with good high drain 30Q cells?

 

I wasnt hammering it continously on high PAS/throttle on rides , but i wld use it a lot in the early days.

 

These days im always on 1 & 2 out of 5 (carls special sauce) rarely give it any more except the steepest hills.

30Q has poor cycle life according to threads on ES from users who have cycle tested them and use them.

ES is known for power bikes with high current demand, a lot of diy packs are made, you have to read between the lines to see what spec they build and how many parallel cells.

Edited July 2, 20196 yr by Nealh

Battery tec is such that even if only one cell is off in a string the overall capacity drops we use simple a bms in most of our bike packs and are space/weight limited

The high spec bms that live monitor via blue tooth show more data but still cannot overcome that one duff cell out of many , even in the car and bus battery packs a few faulty cells needs a whole new battery cell our local bus company are to phase out the electric buses all 6 of them due to unforeseen cost

I have a 36v pack with a 100 cells it weighs a ton but the load is split over 10 strings

Looking at this from a different viewpoint

You want to cover a 30 mile commute (including 2 hills) & would like a top speed of 30mph.

What type of roads & traffic will you be facing?

If you are cycling in SE London, then the top speed is irrelevant, as its all stop/start & you do not have the acceleration nor stopping power of cars.

The alternative is side roads where you can maintain a higher average speed, but 30mph might be too fast for local traffic, used to cycles at 20-25mph.

 

Most of the ride is long straight roads with the occasional town. I work in willesden so only the last bit of the journey is urban and even then they're main roads.