April 10, 20251 yr And what happens Matt when Katy hasn't the energy to continue when out on a ride ? TS mid drive don't have a speed switch. This is why try before you buy is so important. I may be wrong, but I think part of Katy's desire is that cycling has a therapeutic effect as well as being basic transport. A Bosch Performance CX in maximum assist with a cassette suitable for the gradients encountered does not required much effort from the rider: the assistance is I think 400%, so the rider is not doing very much. The 15 mile journey easily fits within range of even a 500Wh battery, and chances are the 30 mile round trip would be fine too. The therapeutic advantage is that although the rider is forced to do a little bit all the time, except downhill, it is small enough to be manageable even on a bad day, and there is the opportunity by changing mode to choose to work harder. You and others may well be right, but only Katy will know, and she risks missing out on a very positive assistance with her recovery.
April 10, 20251 yr Pedibal also do one with a legal throttle and a DVSA test certificate. It's quite light at only 19kg. They also do a 14 day try before you buy scheme, so if you don't like it, you can send it back (£30 by their courier). https://pedibal.com/products/pedibal-navigata-cite-folding-electric-bike?variant=55342417674622
April 10, 20251 yr She wants a bike that works like her present one, but is lighter and better balanced. I think she has an old Woosh Crusa. Read post #1 to see what her problem is. Yeah I did that originally, and thought I was giving info that would be helpful at least, or even that the suggestions were moved away from the general East Asian gas pipe special imports which are particularly heavy, and with the Crusa being 24kg, which is the weight of my full susser. So something alloy, and again as i said, weight reasonably low down, or at least balanced more than having everything at the back- the Brompton is weight on front wheel, battery weight at the back, or the Ribble, which is rear wheel weight, with the battery int he down tube As opposed to the majority of the suggestions which were not far off the Crusa format-battery rack, rear wheel motor, which i've found seems to over balance the bike that is only made worse when you add a pannier or two of shopping to it. Then the conversation turned to sensor type, which to my mind appeared to be more about academics or sensor type rather than what Katy actually asked for- that being the parameters of her needs You must admit you lot can go off in technical directions and possibly lose sight of what was actually asked for. On that note I fully admit to not really understanding the types. My two bikes are Bosch, with whatever that uses, but is an instant pick up, and the Bafang with its BB mounted sensor, both of which are ok on my now older and far less power/springiness legs. So from my scant experience of two types of sensor, I would think you either would need to have zero muscles in the legs, and i mean zero, or that Katy isnt quite understanding as to how much or little as the case is of what power is required to turn a set of pedals- keeping in mind of course that previously she rode the 50lb Crusa I know a rider with one leg who can ride fine, so to say they are having difficulty turning the pedals seem off to me and if you were in that bad a state a disability scooter would probably suit better I mean the mate is old and has one friggin leg, and still rides with a Bosch gen 4, so I cannot compute anyone with two legs being less able than that. I've also got acute tendonitis in both legs and vascular issues in the right, meaning less oxygenated blood circulating those muscles, which as you can imagine means i wont be doing the tour de France any time soon. I should also add i have asthma and copd Yet despite those disabilities can still ride ok
April 11, 20251 yr A legal trottle is ideal. What could be easier than throttling along? Tired of pedalling? Throttle until you can pedal again. Bear in mind your child trailer will add a fair bit of extra weight. Easier to move with a throttle. Edited April 11, 20251 yr by I893469365902345609348566
April 11, 20251 yr Having the weight distribution low and balanced front/back is important for lively riding, but less important for pootling/shopping. An extra consideration is if your arms are at all weak. A fit but weak armed friend found that having weight further back and a bit higher made the bike much easier to shift and to walk over pavement edges etc. She discovered this while we were standing on the pavement after after a successful test ride of a traditionally well-balanced bike and she had to shift the front of the bike quickly to get out of a passer-by's way. She ended with a Gazelle Orange with rack battery. This probably doesn't apply to OP, Katymac, but worth a thought. The weight and balance of the Orange may well be similar to the Crusa she has already ruled out.
April 11, 20251 yr For towing a trailer, a bike with small wheels would be better because a hub-motor gets more torque with them and the motor runs faster and more efficiently. With big wheels, it would probably run too slowly which would overheat it. A bike with big wheels would need a crank-motor, but nearly all such bikes use torque sensors, which are mainly not suitable. You can get strong hub-motors for big wheels that can tow OK, but they're going to be heavy. When you put all your desired criteria together, it's something that can be easily achieved. You can have everything, but not both big wheels and towing capability under the constraint of easy to pedal. You have to either give up on the idea of towing or child seat, or give up the big wheels.
April 11, 20251 yr Having the weight distribution low and balanced front/back is important for lively riding, but less important for pootling/shopping. An extra consideration is if your arms are at all weak. A fit but weak armed friend found that having weight further back and a bit higher made the bike much easier to shift and to walk over pavement edges etc. She discovered this while we were standing on the pavement after after a successful test ride of a traditionally well-balanced bike and she had to shift the front of the bike quickly to get out of a passer-by's way. She ended with a Gazelle Orange with rack battery. This probably doesn't apply to OP, Katymac, but worth a thought. The weight and balance of the Orange may well be similar to the Crusa she has already ruled out. The gazelle orange with front hub motor is even heavier than the crusa if memory serves well.
April 11, 20251 yr The gazelle orange with front hub motor is even heavier than the crusa if memory serves well. The Orange she got has Bosch crank drive. I think it was around 25kg with battery and all fittings. Anyway, not suggesting it for OP. p.s. I did try to suggest the Santana3 to the friend, I forget why she decided against it; probably that she really wanted hub gears (Danish and brought up that way!)
April 15, 20251 yr Fiido C11, €899, step-thru, hydraulic brakes, 499wh, 7sp, 55nm, 24.5kg with battery.. Fit rider from 155cm up (saddle height, Min seat height important, yes?) 4 test ride location in southern England https://eu.fiido.com/products/fiido-c11-electric-commuter There is a little Fiido, but v.small battery and tiny wheels the D3 Pro? Only 17.3kg. https://eu.fiido.com/products/fiido-d3-pro-mini-electric-bike Trailer Not Recommended though..mm Next model up, L3? They do sell child trailers , so some of their bikes presumably can pull them https://eu.fiido.com/products/ebike-kids-trailer https://eu.fiido.com/products/fiido-l3-long-range-electric-bike? Can be fitted with a T h r o t t l e, apparently.. (Now I've done it?) https://eu.fiido.com/blogs/news/fiido-l3-the-longest-lasting-e-bike-under-1500 Edited April 15, 20251 yr by MikelBikel
April 15, 20251 yr Cyrusher Rumble £999 48v, 18ah, cadence sensor, UK legal Saddle 33.1in high for 5ft 1in + riders 31.9kg with battery, Oops, too heavy?! https://www.cyrusher.co.uk/products/rumble
April 15, 20251 yr It's step thru but looks heavy.. 34kg, thought so, oops. But it does come in Pink! (I'll get my coat :-) ) Uk legal, 250w, 50nm, 48v, 13ah, min saddle height 82cm https://engwe-bikes-uk.com/collections/cargo/products/l20
April 21, 20251 yr Fiido C11, €899, step-thru, hydraulic brakes, 499wh, 7sp, 55nm, 24.5kg with battery.. Fit rider from 155cm up (saddle height, Min seat height important, yes?) 4 test ride location in southern England https://eu.fiido.com/products/fiido-c11-electric-commuter There is a little Fiido, but v.small battery and tiny wheels the D3 Pro? Only 17.3kg. https://eu.fiido.com/products/fiido-d3-pro-mini-electric-bike Trailer Not Recommended though..mm Next model up, L3? They do sell child trailers , so some of their bikes presumably can pull them https://eu.fiido.com/products/ebike-kids-trailer https://eu.fiido.com/products/fiido-l3-long-range-electric-bike? Can be fitted with a T h r o t t l e, apparently.. (Now I've done it?) https://eu.fiido.com/blogs/news/fiido-l3-the-longest-lasting-e-bike-under-1500 I personally would be very concerned about putting children in these trailers from the point of view of the dick head drivers and the dangerous roads especially in city’s. I have seen people using these stick to pavement riding. ( sensible choice in my opinion) I have not read all of the posts yet but for severe disability riding with a child being transported I think a non pedal form of e transport ie same technology bigger range with a speed on an e throttle up to 15MPH on a trike or cargo cart type vehicle with a proper tested child seat with some impact protection is what I would be looking at if I did not want to use a PIP supplied car. I have been looking at the cargo innovations coming along and think this area is well worth looking into for modern disability transport that can go faster that 4MPH
April 27, 2025Apr 27 My 2p Not everyone gets on with small wheels. They are fine for regular cyclists but can make a bike a bit more twitchy when peddling slowly. Most people get used to this but not everyone does. I think a legal throttle sounds a really good idea for Katy. It would help her getting started on slopes as there is a slight lag before assistance engages. Most lightweight bikes are unsuitable as they won't provide sufficient assistance - this rules out Mahle, Fazua, and Specialized systems. I would not worry too much about the trailer for now. Just focus on getting a bike that works for you.
May 14, 2025May 14 Author Got a bit distracted by health stuff sorry Back on it!! [mention=6303]Woosh[/mention] Waaaay back when on this thread you posted on this thread about an islabike janice & Gospade mid drive motor https://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/threads/looking-for-help-on-which-bike-to-buy.34670/?view=date#post-501087 I wasn't ready to buy at the time & then I've had all that crap with my fazua and my brother You have probably suggested it multiple times but I didn't listen- I'm a bit like that, sorry So reality has kicked in and I can't have what I want So, there are a few Janice's (& an ejanice) available on ebay/marketplace (joni is prettier but rarer there is only a large frame currently on sale) How realistic is it?
May 14, 2025May 14 How realistic is it? I still have the Gospade somewhere in my warehouse but we haven't continued with that project. The Tongsheng TSDZ8 is probably the nicest crank drive kit we have now, also, the Tongsheng 85TS is a rear hub, very lightweight, excellent kit that is easiest to fit too. https://wooshbikes.co.uk/?tsdz https://wooshbikes.co.uk/?85TS
May 14, 2025May 14 the Tongsheng 85TS is a rear hub, very lightweight, excellent kit that is easiest to fit too. https://wooshbikes.co.uk/?85TS How heavy is that kit ? about 6.5 kg ? Add in a facebook marketplace 26" hardtail https://www.facebook.com/share/1Rie72LF1N/ less than 20kg in total
May 14, 2025May 14 How heavy is that kit ? about 6.5 kg ? Yes, it's about 6kgs with a 36V 20AH downtube battery in stock. I will have the 85TS kit with rack battery end June.
May 14, 2025May 14 Would that work like the crusa? I think it has a torque sensor, so you would probably want to install the throttle as well as per the Woosh page "Please note that with torque sensor, the motor output is proportional to your pedalling. You have to pedal harder when climbing a hill. If you have some physical issue, add the throttle kit."
May 15, 2025May 15 Hi I have a brand new Raleigh Array Step Through not used . And I am building a new Arrary with stripped out Suntours system. Planning a Bafang Rear Drive hub choice of Two with 48V HL Battery with 17amp KT Controller and screen . EX Display bikes unused but may have the odd mark or scuff post pictures later of the step through . Step Through I think would be good for disabled riders but the Array in the picture is low to solid bike but I have already stripped out the Suntours components
May 22, 2025May 22 Author OK I am now pretty set on buying a lightweight stepthrough/low step (god they are hard to find) and adding a motor My favourite is an Islabike Joni, followed by an Islabike Janis However I can't find a Joni in my size! I've been having lovely conversations with a bike shop in "Scotland" who will sell me one but can only give me a photo from a magazine I didn't fall for that!
May 22, 2025May 22 Author You guys have all been amazing so far - do you want to hear more planning/building in the future or shall i wait till I have a bike that works?
May 22, 2025May 22 Always both interesting and useful to hear real world experiences, all the way from research/choice to riding experience, so post without limits! The Isla models you mention look somewhat delicate in frame design to me. Not much meat in the bottom of the step on the Joni, and rather slender upper member(s) on the Janis. I'd be staying away from the more powerful conversion kits with those bikes.
June 17, 2025Jun 17 Author Apart from the "can't afford it anymore" but What's wrong (for me) with this one https://www.cube.eu/uk-en/cube-kathmandu-hybrid-c-62-slt-400x-stellar-n-origanogreen/812911
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