E-Bikes

[olbriar]

Anyone have any experience with or own an e-bike? I'm seriously considering buying one and looking for input. I was an avid rider years ago but hung up my helmet with time limiting the sport/recreation. Nearing retirement now it's becoming attractive once again. I'm not certain I have the legs to throw at the adventure at my age so the electric assisted bikes look very interesting as well as exciting. My son just bought one for himself and his wife and expect shipment next week. At least I'll have the opportunity to try one. There is no local dealer to shop and it's a great investment without having some hands on. Any input from this respected group would be appreciated.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

There are racks of the bastards all over most of Boston taking up walking/parking space.

I still haven't tried one yet. Sounds like a good idea but the fees can add up.

 

[bcrichster]

They are great if you can actually pedal too.. They'll get up to like 25-30mph on a flat, depending on your body weight. Be careful of the contacts when removing/installing the bigass battery pack, they tend to break easy and require replacements... Which can cost about as much as the whole bike itself. It's also been like 4yrs since I dealt with one (was a Schwinn) so maybe they've improved some stuff by now..

 

[Member2095118]

I knew a healthy lady of retirement age, 65, who electric pedalled 6 miles to work for 18 months at that time, 1 year ago, and still does I'm told .... and they're very reliable.
She used river tow paths most of the way to Kew Gardens in West London (she was a botanist / photographer / author) .

Can't remember the make of bik8 she had.

 

[olbriar]

I helped my son put the two he ordered together tonight. I must say that I was way wowed. I came home, ate dinner, got online, and ordered myself one. I went with a Juiced bike. A RipCurrent S. It has a 750W hub motor with a 52V 19.2Amp battery. It has a thumb throttle as well as cadence and torque assist. Five levels of assist and in sports mode it tops out at 28mph. It's a nine gear cassette with quick shift and has hydraulic disk brakes. It's a fat tire bike with four 4x26,5 tires. Air shock front fork, 1050 lumen light, and luggage rack included. The bike is just as pictured below except I opted for the high rise handlebar. It even has GPS built into the battery pack so you can track your trek via an android app. The bike makes my old Giant Iguana, even though it was a carbon bike, seem like the antique it is.

 

[mikedt]

E-bikes are a way of life for me. Especially when there's more people riding them than there are driving cars.

 

[olbriar]

They are just beginning to get popular in the states. I understand they are far more popular in the large metro areas. The city I live in is less than six square miles. It's near a much larger city with lots of cool bike paths to explore. I was more of the take to the country roads sort of rider. Most towns around here are within a 25 mile radius which made for a nice morning ride. I rarely took on more than a sixty mile loop and that was a quarter of a century ago I need a bit of help now or at least I will enjoy the trip more.

My oldest daughter lived in a burb of Phoenix, I was impressed how most of their roads had designated bike lanes. And very impressed with the amount of bike ways. I wish there were more bike accommodations here. Perhaps someday.

 

[Unforgiven]

What's the range on something like that (realizing that it depends on how much the idiot on the seat helps out )

 

[olbriar]

What's the range on something like that (realizing that it depends on how much the idiot on the seat helps out )

The numbers are all skewed to be attractive. They also vary greatly with the amount of work the rider supplies, wind, weight, surface, topography, etc. I weigh around 150 pounds and guessing I should be able to travel around 50 miles with no pedaling. I will know more when I ride it. Their chart shows 100 miles on flat terrain at ten mph at my weight. I'm sure that's not accurate.

 

[mikedt]

This is my neighbour's e-bike. Takes two adults, plus this one has a child seat fitted. Have one myself which is similar. Can do about 25mph.

No license or helmets required of course.

 

[Unforgiven]

This is my neighbour's e-bike. Takes two adults, plus this one has a child seat fitted. Have one myself which is similar. Can do about 25mph.
View attachment 141976

That is what we call a scooter here, and wouldn't be allowed where eBikes are.

 

[mikedt]

That is what we call a scooter here, and wouldn't be allowed where eBikes are.

And a "scooter" must have license plates, be registered with DMV, you must wear a helmet etc? Comes under same laws as motorcycles in the US?

In the UK it would be legal as an "electric bicycle" anywhere, provided it's designed for one person, restricted to 15mph, and must have pedals that can propel it, which many of them do. Although pedalling them is quite hard work if the battery is flat, and pretty much impossible with a child seat fitted at the front.

BTW it's segways and hoverboards that are illegal in the UK, because they don't have pedals, and are therefore not a "bicycle". But they're quite popular in China.

 

[MoodyBlues]

@olbriar do you mind if I slide something in here that's vaguely, remotely, kind of related to the topic, but not much?

When I started physical therapy after my long hospitalization, they had me on a stationary bike--with a video screen. Its menu let you choose from various games, which you played by pedalling. A few times I saw it as it was booting up: it was Linux! It gave the kernel version and some other info. It made me happy.

Now back to our regular programming...

 

[olbriar]

I've had the opportunity to ride my son's RipCurrent S a few times since I've ordered mine. The bike is engineered to make riding as easy or difficult as you are in the mood for. It's lowest assist level is called eco and basically compensates for the additional weight of the bike. The four levels above eco range from making riding easy to making you feel like Superman. The throttle can be employed at any time and makes leaving a dead stop to 20mph in the time you cross an intersection. You can peddle at the same time if you care and the torque sensor just adds to the take off speed. It's simply crazy fun to ride.
My bike is in transit today and due for a Tuesday delivery. There is some assembly to do and the battery pack has to be charged once received. I won't get to ride it until Wednesday. Trying to anticipate my needs, I took advantage of a local bike shop's closing and purchased a pump, helmet, lock, and multi tool kit. Today I ordered a cellphone holder and rear view mirror. There isn't a lot of extra real estate on the handlebar for today's order but I hope to mount the stuff somehow. I must have my cellphone in view.... there was no such thing when I was riding years ago. And being as I'm hard of hearing, a mirror to monitor rear approaching vehicles is a must.

 

[DonB]

Sounds like you're in for a blast, enjoy my friend.

 

[olbriar]

Sounds like you're in for a blast, enjoy my friend.

I received an update from FedEx this morning saying the bike would be delivered today.. and it was. I put it together after work and the battery was charged by the time I got in from mowing Monday's lawns. Had to take it for a test ride. The thing will do 30 mph on a flat without much effort. What a blast! I can't wait for when I have some serious riding time to play.

 

[Unforgiven]

I can't wait for when I have some serious riding time to play.

No hands cruising along flying your drone I'm sure.

 

[DonB]

I received an update from FedEx this morning saying the bike would be delivered today.. and it was. I put it together after work and the battery was charged by the time I got in from mowing Monday's lawns. Had to take it for a test ride. The thing will do 30 mph on a flat without much effort. What a blast! I can't wait for when I have some serious riding time to play.

How heavy is the bike to pick up, just curious if it's easy to put in a SUV ??

Post picks of your baby all dressed up with your new accessories.

 

[olbriar]

How heavy is the bike to pick up, just curious if it's easy to put in a SUV ??

Post picks of your baby all dressed up with your new accessories.

I think the bike weighs 64 pounds Don. I don't remember if that is including the 12 pound battery.
I'm guessing it would be pretty awkward getting it into a SUV. I thought about sometime putting it in the back of my pickup... same deal.

 

[olbriar]

No riding today or last night. Rain and more rain which we don't need. I did ride Tuesday night. I meant to just take the RipCurrent for a little ride and test out my new mirror and cell holder. I had ample room to mount both and they worked great. One corner led to another and before I knew it, I had ridden 11 miles. I started the ride in a low assist mode and upped the assist as I rode along. Towards the end I was still peddling but I sure wan't working at it.

I don't like the bike lock I bought. I'll be looking for something better and easier to mount. I bought a water bottle and mount but there isn't anyplace to mount it. I did manage to mount the pump I bought and the old seat bag I salvaged off of my Iguana. I think I'll be looking at a backpack hydration system / storage system for the long rides I see in my future. I think that should fix me up until something breaks.

To give you some sort of idea what kind of fun I'm having, here is an entertaining YouTube of the bike in action. I have the same bike but haven't installed the rack and fenders. This is a video in 360. It's worth the watch on a mobile device just to swing around and view it from different viewpoints.

 

[olbriar]

What's the range on something like that (realizing that it depends on how much the idiot on the seat helps out )

I'm getting a feel for the range I can expect from a charge now. The battery started out at 54v and is now down to 50v. The recommended level to charge is factory set in the controller at 42v. I'm riding in sports mode which is full assist. I've used the throttle some to clear intersections. I'm riding along between 15 and 20 mph most the time. I push it a few times every ride. 32 mph on a flat without a great deal of effort. I coast down the hills for the most part. I've got 35 miles on the bike now. I've read that the battery drop is not a straight ratio (second half going faster than the first). I'm thinking somewhere between 60 and 70 miles per charge with my normal riding.

 

[Unforgiven]

That's impressive. I could easily run one to and from work with a little side trip in there.

 

[olbriar]

So far I've been riding in town. My little city is around ten square miles which is easily twice as large as it was when I was riding years ago. There is a lot of town that I've not seen from a bike seat so it's been a fun ride. Back in the day there wasn't much for sidewalks either for that matter so they have been fun to ride as well. Mostly I take to the roads. Speed limits vary from 30 to 45 mph so it's not like I'm entirely in the way. City riding includes stopping often making the start up a battery drain that I did not mention earlier. I'm anxious to take to the roads and put some real miles on the bike. I love riding but this is much better than that!

I thought I would add this. E bikes are very rare around here. I've seen one other in town. The looks this old man gets while screamin' down the road with very little effort is worth a mention.

 

[mikedt]

In my home city of Bristol, e-bikes are quite common these days. I had my first e-bike back in 2000, a Powabyke, and e-bikes were very uncommon in those days. Was always getting curious looks when riding it.

But here in Jinan, the things are more common than cars. In all shapes and sizes, like scooter, sports, etc.

I did see a bike the other day that had "Hybrid" on the side, and AFAIK had a small engine that was either for charging the battery, or was a motorbike with electric transmission. In Beijing and Shanghai they've banned motorcycles completely now. So what some peeps have done, they've tied petrol generators on the back of an e-bike or e-trike, along with a charger to keep them going all day. People doing meal deliveries, couriers, etc.

 

[olbriar]

I'm sure they will become more common here as well. Besides being a clean transportation, they are a lot of fun to ride. Right now they are rare enough that quality bikes are on the expensive up to prohibitive price range. Though there are a number of well established bike shops in town, none of them sell quality e-bikes. I expect that to change as time goes on and the popularity increases. And I expect the prices to become more reasonable as well. The company I purchased my bike from is pretty new to the market. They are selling a lot of bike for the money to get established. Their prices have increased $600 since the first of the year and I wouldn't be surprised if they continue to increase. They are still selling for less than their competition. It will take a lot more demand and more producers for the prices to fall... but they will.