The first and BEST Qulbix Raptor mid-drive build!

[recumpence]

The steel parts are at the powder coater. They will be done within the next few days. Also, my custom sprockets and power chain idlers are nearing completion at Rebel Gears. (Not cheap, but super custom)

I will show you pictures when I have them.

Matt

 

[Daim11]

Can't wait to see it Matt, I check the thread every day like it's the next episode of Game of Thrones or something. I've got the fever!

 

[recumpence]

Parts are back from the powder-coater. I chose "Safety" yellow. This color looks absolutely stunning against the matte black swingarm and brackets and even better against the carbon fiber panels.

I want to clean off the flashing around the holes before I post pics of it. I will post pictures tomorrow. I hope to have the swingarm, forks, handlebars, and various other bits installed tomorrow to get a good idea of the overall look of the bike.

Matt

 

[recumpence]

Here are a few pictures.

You can see the yellow is really stunning against the black steel parts and carbon fiber panels.

I am very glad I decided to extend the swing-arm. That added 2 inches, looks fine and, judging by the looks of it, will really help with the CG and stability.

When placed next to the Mountaincycle, you can see a few obvious things. First, the seat is way farther forward. That is partly because the Mountaincycle seat is actually too far back. The subframe is adjustable on the Mountaincycle and I plan on adjusting it forward a bit. Aside from that, I wanted the yellow bike to have a more forward bias to arrest some of the massive wheelie tendency it will have. Oh, the bike really needs a longer stem. This is one I had lying around. I will order a longer stem shortly. I will probably go with 35 to 50mm longer.

The wheelbase of my Mountaincycle is 45 inches. The yellow bike is 50.5 inches. That should be perfect for my needs. They bikes looks the same length in the photo. However, that is an optical illusion based on the longer bike being behind the shorter bike. I took a picture of the front tires so you can see that the yellow bike is actually nearly 6 inches longer (the rear tires are perfectly in line with each other).

You can see the wheel/tire combination looks pretty much spot on for this bike. Both tires are Kenda 24 X 2.5 inch. The rear wheel is a 2.5 inch wide Motoped rim. That widens the rear tire quite a bit compared with the 1 inch wide Sun Ringle front rim. These are massively strong wheels. I have no doubts about the durability of this bike.

One last item; the head tube angle is nearly identical on these two bikes. It will be interesting to see what twice the weight and twice the power does to the riding experience when comparing the two.

Matt

 

[LightningRods]

Cool Matt! We want motors!

 

[recumpence]

I know.

Actually, to be honest, I do not like this style frame with the battery box up high and the empty area under the front of the frame. So, the two motors and reduction system under the frame will balance out the look as well as lowering the CG.

It is really cool that our builds seem to be moving along at a similar pace.

I have to rebuild my motors (new rotors and changing them from Wye to Delta) and assemble the drive before I install it. I am torn between leaving the drive parts bare aluminum or anodizing them black. The bike is mostly black, so anodizing would seem the obvious choice. However, a third color focussed on one focal item really makes a bike look good.

Oh, I may order a couple custom extremely high RPM (14,000 to 15,000 RPM) 3215 motors for this bike. That would give a bit more power with less weight and a more snappy throttle feel. But, I already have these motors and they are allready too much power. Hmm, maybe I will sell these two motors and go for it? :wink:

One last thing; I am considering the name "Grizzly" for this bike. It seems fitting.

Matt

 

[Daim11]

That color combo looks really good Matt, thanks for the update and the photos!

 

[recumpence]

At this point, I can spend my time on the drive. I have to rebuild the motors, machine the jackshaft (multiple steps for this drive), weld the pulley hub to the jackshaft, do some final machining on the drive mount, and assemble the drive. That is the drive portion. After that, the packs need to be installed, all wiring done, controllers installed and programmed, and all chain management finished. I would say I have about 20 hours of work left.

Matt

 

[macribs]

Smashing colors you got there Matt, kind of takes my mind to another tire smoking yellow build you did :wink:

 

[recumpence]

Smashing colors you got there Matt, kind of takes my mind to another tire smoking yellow build you did :wink:

Not sure "Smashing" is a good word to attach to a self propelled vehicle, kind of like the GM "Impact" they renamed EV1 for this reason.

I am working on the drive unit today.

Oh, there will be a carbon fiber lower semi-enclosure under the drive unit to protect it in the snow. It will look very cool. It will be good to get the drive mounted to take up that huge empty space under the frame.

Matt

 

[DanGT86]

Its funny, where you see empty space, i see adequate ground clearance. Nice work. Love the 24" wheel choice too. I run 24" on a long travel dh frame and it really makes the bike feel more nimble. I think once there is a motor involved the rolling inertia of 26"-29" wheels is no longer needed. Cant wait for the vids of this bike in action.

 

[macribs]

Pretty sure he talks about the downtube, no need for big controllers there so the space remains empty unless he use that space for the davinci drive.

 

[LightningRods]

That's not an empty space. That's the "engine room". :-D

 

[recumpence]

I just got word that my custom rear sprockets and idler sprockets shipped Friday.

Today I got the jackshaft fabricated and the drive front plate modified for this application. I did some calculation on gear ratios and it looks like I have the proper drive pulleys and freewheel in stock for exactly what I am after [performance wise].

Matt

 

[ElectricGod]

you wont mind if I permanently borrow this and then forget to return it will you?

Here are a few pictures.

You can see the yellow is really stunning against the black steel parts and carbon fiber panels.

I am very glad I decided to extend the swing-arm. That added 2 inches, looks fine and, judging by the looks of it, will really help with the CG and stability.

When placed next to the Mountaincycle, you can see a few obvious things. First, the seat is way farther forward. That is partly because the Mountaincycle seat is actually too far back. The subframe is adjustable on the Mountaincycle and I plan on adjusting it forward a bit. Aside from that, I wanted the yellow bike to have a more forward bias to arrest some of the massive wheelie tendency it will have. Oh, the bike really needs a longer stem. This is one I had lying around. I will order a longer stem shortly. I will probably go with 35 to 50mm longer.

The wheelbase of my Mountaincycle is 45 inches. The yellow bike is 50.5 inches. That should be perfect for my needs. They bikes looks the same length in the photo. However, that is an optical illusion based on the longer bike being behind the shorter bike. I took a picture of the front tires so you can see that the yellow bike is actually nearly 6 inches longer (the rear tires are perfectly in line with each other).

You can see the wheel/tire combination looks pretty much spot on for this bike. Both tires are Kenda 24 X 2.5 inch. The rear wheel is a 2.5 inch wide Motoped rim. That widens the rear tire quite a bit compared with the 1 inch wide Sun Ringle front rim. These are massively strong wheels. I have no doubts about the durability of this bike.

One last item; the head tube angle is nearly identical on these two bikes. It will be interesting to see what twice the weight and twice the power does to the riding experience when comparing the two.

Matt

 

[recumpence]

Some progress being made.

Today I accomplished the following;

-Installed the bare drive unit (without motors)
-Machine rear caliper mount
-Mount front brake (had to make spacers to allow the use of the large 225mm rotor)
-Mount rear brake
-Install pedals
-Install derailer
-Install longer stem (I also moved the seat back and, on my Mountain cycle, I moved the seat forward and installed a longer stem. Both bikes are very similar in layout now).

I spent alot of time on various details today. The tiny stuff really takes time and does not photograph well. But, up close, the details make all the difference.

This bike is turning out better looking than I expected.

Matt

 

[LightningRods]

Looking awesome Matt! You are so right about the little details. The one thing I dislike about complete builds is the time hole that you fall into at the end. Houses are the same.

 

[Daim11]

I gotta say Matt, e-bike just doesn't seem like a fitting description for this beauty + beast. She just looks bad to the bone! I mean it's not even done yet and I want one. So do the 127 other guys who have seen it. I can't wait to see her pulling some power wheelies!

 

[morati]

Just incredible work as always Matt. How long do you think you'll keep this one before putting it up for sale? I predict a bidding war, lol.

 

[recumpence]

Just incredible work as always Matt. How long do you think you'll keep this one before putting it up for sale? I predict a bidding war, lol.

It is for sale. I already have one customer who has spoken for it. He has not put down a deposit, however. So, it may be available.

As with most of my builds, I do not care if it sells or not. I do not need the money. I can keep it or build another. Either way its all good.

 

[Lenk42602]

matt,

impeccable. any info on that back rim? 36h? double wall? Eyelets? where can they be found?

Thanks,

len

 

[recumpence]

matt,

impeccable. any info on that back rim? 36h? double wall? Eyelets? where can they be found?

Thanks,

len

36 hole, double wall, no eyelets. It is a Motoped rear rim, 2.5 inches wide for 24 inch mountainbike tire.

Matt

 

[robocam]

Do you ever run into problems with the lower bottom bracket?

Another advantage of 29" wheels is that they can roll over larger obstacles or roll over obstacles with more ease. I've been wondering about 26" bikes though, so I'm about to build up a 26" bike to see if they're really more fun as some say. I keep seeing people say 26" bikes are more "flickable" than 29ers. I'm having trouble deciding between an all mountain 6" rear travel frame or a downhill frame with 8" of rear travel. The downhill frame would be heavier. I have a 180mm air fork that I plan to use.

...I run 24" on a long travel dh frame and it really makes the bike feel more nimble. I think once there is a motor involved the rolling inertia of 26"-29" wheels is no longer needed...

 

[recumpence]

Do you ever run into problems with the lower bottom bracket?

Another advantage of 29" wheels is that they can roll over larger obstacles or roll over obstacles with more ease. I've been wondering about 26" bikes though, so I'm about to build up a 26" bike to see if they're really more fun as some say. I keep seeing people say 26" bikes are more "flickable" than 29ers. I'm having trouble deciding between an all mountain 6" rear travel frame or a downhill frame with 8" of rear travel. The downhill frame would be heavier. I have a 180mm air fork that I plan to use.

...I run 24" on a long travel dh frame and it really makes the bike feel more nimble. I think once there is a motor involved the rolling inertia of 26"-29" wheels is no longer needed...

Big wheels are weaker and reduce space for mounting drive components.

Matt

 

[robocam]

That's why I get wider ones. Thankfully, I haven't had any trouble with my 29s yet. How do they reduce space for mounting drive components? Do you mean under the downtube?

...Big wheels are weaker and reduce space for mounting drive components.

Matt