Russell
1 MW
(or "96'er", whatever your preference )
Last fall in search of a bit more comfort I replaced my Raleigh 700C hybrid ebike with a rigid fork with a Jeep Comanche with a steel suspension fork. Wouldn’t you know it though the very day after buying the Jeep I found a nearly new Redline D440 1x8 for sale on craigslist. I had just sold my Kona Smoke 2-9 and was on the look out for a similar steel-framed bike that had the ability to run disc brakes, which the Kona could not. The two bikes arrived on the same day. I converted the Jeep bike to electric http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=34102 and have been riding it quite a bit this spring. I like it a lot but I wondered what to do about the Redline.
Recently I purchased a rear 36V/500W Bafang BPM for a good price from a fellow E-S member. It came laced into a 26” Alex DH-19 rim plus the seller threw in a matching front wheel. I’m thinking about buying a cheap full-suspension mountain bike to use the wheelset on but in the mean time I got it into my head last night to try this. The D440 has (700C) Alex DH-19 rims too so it seemed almost preordained
.
I pulled an all-nighter and converted the Redline from this;
To this;
I had to sacrifice the rear stay kickstand to mount the rear disc brake but otherwise the install went fine. I made a little torque arm out of two mini ta’s I got long ago with a 9C kit.
Since this was just going to be an experiment for ease of installation I bolted in a small Ecrazyman sensorless controller.
I normally use a trigger throttle but this time I tried something different as well, a right side thumb throttle mounted on the left side using a Minoura accessory mount.
I took the bike out for a quick spin this afternoon. First off the BPM is noisy compared to the smaller 250W GM Mini-Motor (Bafang) I’m used to on my other bike. Second, the ride is harsh on broken pavement and like my previous rigid fork bikes doesn’t take kindly to running up curb ramps at speed (which is why I bought the Jeep Comanche).
I rode just 9.9 miles at an average speed of 17.9 mph and used 165 wh. That’s at least 30% more than I use with my Jeep/Bafang 250W for a similar speed but I also couldn’t contribute as much pedal power today due to the gearing. The motor came with a 14-28 7-speed freewheel which when combined with a 36T front chainring meant I could only comfortably pedal up to around 19 mph. The throttle also was not as easy to regulate as my modified trigger throttle. Top speed with a fresh 12S LiPo 5Ah battery was perhaps 26 mph dropping to a max of 24 mph on the last flat stretch before home with the battery 70% depleted.
So what did I learn? Well...I’m going to return the D440 to original condition and keep it like that or perhaps sell it. I was thinking about buying another small front motor for it but that would make it redundant and I really do like the Jeep Comanche. I'll probably go back to plan 'A' and purchase a cheap full suspension bike like a GMC Topkick or maybe a 7-speed "Cruiser" type bike and install the BPM on it. 8)
-R
Last fall in search of a bit more comfort I replaced my Raleigh 700C hybrid ebike with a rigid fork with a Jeep Comanche with a steel suspension fork. Wouldn’t you know it though the very day after buying the Jeep I found a nearly new Redline D440 1x8 for sale on craigslist. I had just sold my Kona Smoke 2-9 and was on the look out for a similar steel-framed bike that had the ability to run disc brakes, which the Kona could not. The two bikes arrived on the same day. I converted the Jeep bike to electric http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=34102 and have been riding it quite a bit this spring. I like it a lot but I wondered what to do about the Redline.
Recently I purchased a rear 36V/500W Bafang BPM for a good price from a fellow E-S member. It came laced into a 26” Alex DH-19 rim plus the seller threw in a matching front wheel. I’m thinking about buying a cheap full-suspension mountain bike to use the wheelset on but in the mean time I got it into my head last night to try this. The D440 has (700C) Alex DH-19 rims too so it seemed almost preordained
.I pulled an all-nighter and converted the Redline from this;
To this;
I had to sacrifice the rear stay kickstand to mount the rear disc brake but otherwise the install went fine. I made a little torque arm out of two mini ta’s I got long ago with a 9C kit.
Since this was just going to be an experiment for ease of installation I bolted in a small Ecrazyman sensorless controller.
I normally use a trigger throttle but this time I tried something different as well, a right side thumb throttle mounted on the left side using a Minoura accessory mount.
I took the bike out for a quick spin this afternoon. First off the BPM is noisy compared to the smaller 250W GM Mini-Motor (Bafang) I’m used to on my other bike. Second, the ride is harsh on broken pavement and like my previous rigid fork bikes doesn’t take kindly to running up curb ramps at speed (which is why I bought the Jeep Comanche).
I rode just 9.9 miles at an average speed of 17.9 mph and used 165 wh. That’s at least 30% more than I use with my Jeep/Bafang 250W for a similar speed but I also couldn’t contribute as much pedal power today due to the gearing. The motor came with a 14-28 7-speed freewheel which when combined with a 36T front chainring meant I could only comfortably pedal up to around 19 mph. The throttle also was not as easy to regulate as my modified trigger throttle. Top speed with a fresh 12S LiPo 5Ah battery was perhaps 26 mph dropping to a max of 24 mph on the last flat stretch before home with the battery 70% depleted.
So what did I learn? Well...I’m going to return the D440 to original condition and keep it like that or perhaps sell it. I was thinking about buying another small front motor for it but that would make it redundant and I really do like the Jeep Comanche. I'll probably go back to plan 'A' and purchase a cheap full suspension bike like a GMC Topkick or maybe a 7-speed "Cruiser" type bike and install the BPM on it. 8)
-R
