Nervagon's Directionless, and Doomed Build

[nervagon]

Change in direction for this build. I'm swapping out the Bikee Lightest kit for the CYC Photon.

Three main reasons for this change.

1. The Bikee Lightest motor is just too loud.
2. The Bikee Lightest motor is just too conspicuous looking as is, and...
3. I would have to mount the Bikee motor even further up the downtube to fit a larger chainring.
4. I don't like the feel of the Bikee torque sensing, and the Photon has the best there is.
5. North American authorized distributors and availability for the Photon.
6. Superior app/firmware experience for the Photon.

I want a stealthier bike, and need a bigger chainring, and it's time for a platform change.

 

[nervagon]

Goodbye forever, presta valves.



Drilling out my presta rims for schrader valves was one of the easiest bike mods ever. You can do it on a lunch break. From now on, any presta rims I end up with will get the same upgrade.

 

[nervagon]

Excellent. These new pirelli schrader TPUs are much better.

 

[nervagon]

The reduction gear housing has tons of clearance. And the 42T is a perfect fit. If I recall, the next jump up is 50T, and that ain’t happening on this bike without messing up my chainline.

 

[nervagon]

The industrial design and installation are excellent with the photon kit.

I love that they are using an ISIS axle with large, external bearings. The outboard bearings solve the biggest downside of the legacy ISIS bottom brackets. They all used tiny internal bearings that wore down quickly.

I would imagine the same recommendation to face your bottom bracket that applies to all outboard bearings would also apply here.

 

[amberwolf]

If I recall, the next jump up is 50T, and that ain’t happening on this bike without messing up my chainline.

But you only need a chainstay on one side, right?

 

[nervagon]

But you only need a chainstay on one side, right?

Haha, well the chainstay yoke on this frame is so overbuilt maybe you could get a way with deleting half.

 

[nervagon]

 

[nervagon]

Internal routing is always a pain, but worth it.

 

[chuyskywalker]

Internal routing is always a pain, but worth it.

I usually just given in to the nylon-wrap-zip-ties-everywhere devil when I'm faced with having to bleed a brake to route it through the frame.

 

[nervagon]

@chuyskywalker it was worth it.



Just axle, pedals and chain away from first ride on the Photon.

 

[nervagon]

I have a bike that I am finally happy with thanks to CYC. The ride experience on the Photon is comparable to an $8K factory-built ebike. The torque sensor is perfect right out of the box. The best I’ve ever experienced. The motor is quiet and inconspicuous. The bike blends in and doesn’t look immediately DIY, sketchy or illegal.

Taking it on a 20mi group ride today. Will report back.

 

[rhauff]

Looks really nice! I've liked that Photon since they introduced it, and if it would fit on my CF frame I'd probably installed one already.
Glad you got a setup you're happy with

 

[nervagon]

Well, shit, it looks like Kona is shutting down. I really love their bikes. Really hard times in the bike industry right now.

 

[nervagon]

Rear cam installed. My old Dift Ghost XL.

 

[Zambam]

View attachment 351471

Rear cam installed. My old Dift Ghost XL.

What's the main purpose of the camera? Also what battery is in the bag? You mentioned it before but I don't remember at the moment.

 

[chuyskywalker]

Rear cam installed. My old Dift Ghost XL.

Had two Ghost cameras for a while; both of them ended up dying way before they should have. This [moto dash cam + screen](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CJJB12WW) has been working pretty well on my recent build. Serves double duty as both dashcamera (front and rear) as well as rear-view mirror. And, since it's wired into the bike's 12v system, if the bike is on, it is on. Can't forget to charge it, or forget to turn it on.

 

[nervagon]

What's the main purpose of the camera? Also what battery is in the bag? You mentioned it before but I don't remember at the moment.

To record who killed me and then drove away. Whether in a car or on a bike, on US roads you need a cam. Pedestrian and cyclist deaths are rapidly rising in CA.

The battery is a bicycle motor works 21Ah pack.

 

[nervagon]

Had two Ghost cameras for a while; both of them ended up dying way before they should have. This [moto dash cam + screen](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CJJB12WW) has been working pretty well on my recent build. Serves double duty as both dashcamera (front and rear) as well as rear-view mirror. And, since it's wired into the bike's 12v system, if the bike is on, it is on. Can't forget to charge it, or forget to turn it on.

Well, the Drift cameras aren't the best, it's just what I have. The picture quality is good at lower speed, but at 28mph it starts to get blurry.

Here's a sample from the Drift Ghost XL with my arch-nemesis, a white Tesla with no front plate:



I treat any encounter with a white Tesla, the same as a swimmer being followed by a great white shark. A cybertruck on your tail is basically like being stalked by a Megalodon. The autopilot might confuse your blinking tail light as an emergency vehicle, and therefore steer directly into you at high speed.

 

[amberwolf]

The autopilot might confuse your blinking tail light as an emergency vehicle, and therefore steer directly into you at high speed.

Are they all programmed as hunter-seekers against official vehicles?

 

[nervagon]

"are we gonna have to cut that?"

 

[neptronix]

I really like your idea of a ridecam like that. Do any exist which could stream footage live to a server you privately control, or maybe a third party you trust?

Or is it that we don't have that and just hope the camera survives the crash?

If the latter, Maybe it'd be advisable to design something to protect the Camera in case of a crash. ( you got me thinking... )

 

[nervagon]

I really like your idea of a ridecam like that. Do any exist which could stream footage live to a server you privately control, or maybe a third party you trust?

Or is it that we don't have that and just hope the camera survives the crash?

If the latter, Maybe it'd be advisable to design something to protect the Camera in case of a crash. ( you got me thinking... )

Only the micro SD card needs to survive. And that is deep inside the camera. Most action cams, and bike cams are designed to be dropped.

 

[nervagon]

And you want a camera with a bright blinking record light so that responders/police notice it right away. When the camera is integrated into the tail light, it sure is clean and slick, but might go unnoticed by the cops moving your bike off the road before crime scene cleanup begins shoveling your lower intestines off the asphalt.

 

[neptronix]

Good points!