Advice for commuter with kid in SF

[farfromnoise]

Yet another request for advice. This time for a commuter with kid in San Francisco on a bike I already have.

I've got a Civia Twin City bike (details here: http://civiacycles.com/bikes/twin_city_step_over_derailleur/) and I believe the important details are: 4130 CroMoly steel down tube, chain stays and fork with hi-tensile steel top tubes. Welded rack. 30 lbs. 700c wheels. Linear pull brakes (NOT disc).

My commute is approximately 9 miles round trip. Mostly downhill on the way in, mostly uphill on the way home with at least 3 significant climbs that are a few blocks each. Significant for me means between 6% and 9% grade.

I'm about 200 lbs. My kid is just over 30 lbs (and getting bigger just to spite my lack of exercise). Kids seat is about 8 lbs. And I probably carry an additional 15-20 lbs of stuff. So with the bike it's about 280-290 lbs total.

I honestly don't care about speed but assume that anything that can get that much weight up some hills is going to be plenty fast. And I don't mind pedaling. I'm just trying to avoid needing a shower when I get home.

There's an outlet in my garage where I keep the bike and I plan to just charge it over night. Can't charge at work. And the kid is in a seat on the handlebars right now, but he needs to transfer to the back rack pretty soon so not sure how battery placement works.

I'm mechanically inclined (do my own maintenance on the bike as well as my dirt bike and street bike) but don't have a lot of time so something that's relatively easy to set up would be greatly appreciated.

As for budget, cheaper the better but still meets my needs. $500 would be great, but based on my research, that's not realistic. Under a grand? But even less would be better

Kid number 2 is on the way so I'm considering a cargo bike in my future. Ideally I could just transfer this solution on over if that happens. I assume that shouldn't be too big of deal. Just a heavier bike, right?

Thanks in advance.

Roger

 

[dogman dan]

Because of your location, the hills, the weight, mid drive for the win. The same Bafang mid drive can later on be moved to a longtail cargo bike.

9 miles round trip won't be hard, a 48v 10 ah battery should do er no problem. But a 15 ah would get less strain, and theoretically last longer. Certainly it would make longer trips possible. Go 48v, at times, you will need the extra power.

Stop worrying about the cost, spend $1500 if you must. It's soooo much cheaper than another car. Sure, it's hard to budget more, but much harder to budget cars.

 

[farfromnoise]

Thanks for the response. So something like this?:
http://lunacycle.com/motors/mid-drive-kits/bafang-mid-drive-and-parts/bafang-bbs02-750w-mid-drive-with-upgraded-3077-controller/

and then with the 48v, 13.5ah (I wasn't seeing 15 ah on that site) I'm up to $1000.

I know it's cheaper than a car but that's not what I'm comparing. It would be versus taking public transit, which does add up in a year. Nowhere near $1000 but obviously there are a lot of benefits to having your own transportation. And if I can really transfer it over to a cargo bike for hauling both kids, then that's a huge advantage for just getting around in general.

 

[wesnewell]

The tire size limitation of 38mm would make that bike totally unsuitable for me. My tires are almost twice that size at 62mm. A 10% grade is nothing for a $200 26" 48v 1000W DD kit. And I weigh 270 lbs. $700 will get you a bike, dd motor kit, and battery that will last years. But that mid drive will work great too until the drive train breaks.

 

[snowranger]

I live in SF also, and have been ebike commuting for over 8 years. My route is from the Sunset to the Financial District (16 miles round trip). First 6 years were with a clutched hub motor and the last two with the Bafang mid drive. The hub motor was good when the kids were under 10 but now that they are older and heavier, the mid drive is a better match. Also with the mid drive, you won't have to worry about taking on any hill. It's nice to get away from the horde of bikers by going past Twin Peaks.

There is more drive train maintenance (i.e. pinion and bull gears), but the battery requirements are less (fewer amps).

Feel free to come by and test ride my rig.

 

[farfromnoise]

Thanks again for the advice.

Thanks Snowranger. Good to hear from a local rider. I'm in Cole Valley and commute down to the Financial District. Do you really go Twin Peaks? That sounds crazy.
Sounds like a great setup. I've actually looked at the Yuba Mundo as a replacement some day. Do you have a picture you can share?

I'm new to this whole ebike world, could you explain the drive maintenance piece a little more? How often? What's involved? How expensive?

 

[999zip999]

Don't be scared go over and take a ride.

 

[dogman dan]

Looks like you are on the right track. Re public transit, I sometimes forget that works some places. Here in my small city, the bus runs once an hour. miss it by 2 min, you wait 58 min for the next one.

I beat the bus by 30 min every day for 5 years, doing a 15 mile one way commute. Between the walk, the wait (better show up good and early), and the bus coming once an hour, all bus trips take an hour and a half here. To go about 10 miles. :lol: Can damn near walk and beat that bus.

Once invested in a good cargo bike, it will last you many years. You'll buy tires, batteries, and some wearable parts of course. But even where you are, still cheaper than the bus or trolley. And FAR more convenient to go when and where you like.

 

[snowranger]

Thanks again for the advice.

Thanks Snowranger. Good to hear from a local rider. I'm in Cole Valley and commute down to the Financial District. Do you really go Twin Peaks? That sounds crazy.
Sounds like a great setup. I've actually looked at the Yuba Mundo as a replacement some day. Do you have a picture you can share?

I'm new to this whole ebike world, could you explain the drive maintenance piece a little more? How often? What's involved? How expensive?

Here is the link to my build. It is a Yuba Mundo


https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=64647

I have since replaced the Nuvinci with a simple derailleur system. Much cheaper and easier to maintain. The drive train parts are these. They tend to wear out over time.

http://www.greenbikekit.com/bafang-8fun-mid-crank-kit-bbs01-bbs02-iron-gear-replacement.html

http://www.greenbikekit.com/bafang-8fun-mid-crank-motor-clutch-for-replacement.html

Make sure you get the Yuba Mundo version with 9 mm rear dropouts. The 14 mm ones are a hassle to adapt wheels to.