Building trike with 5 speed hub

I am thinking of building an e-trike from a Schwinn trike, and fitting it with a 5 speed hub driven by a non-hub motor for a small business pickup/delivery machine around town. It would have a tall (4 or 5 ft) light weight cargo box mounted in the rear to carry parts and clients computers. Maybe even a canopy over the driver. I'm thinking a 750w motor and two or three 20Ah LI batteries to power it. The 5 speed hub and non-hub drive seems to be the best method of carrying heavy loads and being able to climb some hilly roads without straining the drive train. And I have some differentials from small riding mowers that I might use so it actually has both rear wheels driven (although this would take some serious frame modifications).

The alternative would be a single wheel hub motor either front or rear, and I don't that that would give me the climbing power the trike would need.

Any thoughts?

If you make some sort of "cush drive" so it doesn't shock the gears inside, it'll probably work ok. Or if you just always make sure you take up any slack in the chain with pedals first, or very low throttle.

If the gears have a lot of lash, there is a chance that repeated applications of power especially under load could rip teeth out at their roots on the gears. This has happened to some 3-speed IGHs, at least one with a disassembly thread.


Same thing applies to shifting--the less you do that under load, the less risk of failure.

Some IGH's are better made; there's a number of threads about using them in middrives in one way or another, over the years, that discuss which woudl work better for this.

The SRAM Spectro P5 Cargo is the only 5-speed hub I'd consider for the trick you have in mind. But even then, I would put a minimum 2:1 reduction between hub and rear axle. By spinning the hub faster at a lower torque, you minimize the potential for problems. The more reduction you can use, the better.

A recent production Schwinn trike is one of the worst possible choices for this modification. A Worksman Mover is not too bad, but a pedicab trike would be better.

Wouldn't a open gear cluster (not sure if that's the right term) be a better and stronger solution?
And then get a BBSHD mid motor to go with it:
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=68110&start=50

Slow-co has a very interesting solution I did not think about. Going to have to look into that more....
I am afraid of the existing problem of torque on a standard shifter and chain set and rings. This seems to be an issue from what I have read about non-hub drives. And I would like to avoid it. That is why I looked at 5 speed hubs from China that can handle hi torque and eliminate the need to do chain shifting. The 5 speed hub has a lower and higher gear than the standard 3 speed hub. These are used in street pedal taxies that put lots of wear and tare on the hub. They are not cheap.

Regarding the differential.... What is needed is a brass bearing sleeve to reduce the 7/8 inch to the 1/2 that the bikes use. Then inside, a simple hole and pin will lock it to the gear. (as per original) Simple.

My question is do you think a workable 5 speed hub drive will work better than a standard hub drive as a daily work horse?

BTW I have an account where I deal with China retailers. I can get heavy duty 5 speed hub with extra long axles for a reasonable price. These are used in pedal and motorized 3 wheel transports and taxi's. I think they are pretty proven, if not cheap.

You probably don't need extra long anything. Measure the spacing across the jackshaft hub's dropouts, and get a hub that fits the spacing you have.

I assumed you were suggesting a five speed hub because it's narrower than more common seven and eight speed hubs, and therefore a better fit to your frame.

I found 5 speed hubs in China supply who make the 2 common hubs and they offer them with longer axles than what is normally available in the US so it will work with Schwinn frames. The standard hubs by Schmano and Sturmey-Archer available in the US have too short an axle to work in the Schwinn frame. But these same 3 and 5 speed hubs are available with longer axles. Just order it. And they are heavy duty designed for use with the pedal carts and taxies in that region.

@Chalo.... The problem is the Schwin frame does not even work with the standard 3 speed hub or a 5 speed hub. That is why I looked to my China retailers to find a 5 speed hub with extra long axles and heavy duty shifting. They are out there, just look.

Mark, AW mentioned how a mid-drive can put extra stress on the drive system. Because the PAS system on my BBS02 slowly ramps up the power whereas the throttle applies full power/torque almost immediately, I always pedal first and let the PAS system take up any slack before using the throttle.

Even though I don't use the throttle very much, This should help save the drive train. Even when riding via throttle only, I first pedal to engage the PAS system after shifting before hitting the throttle again.

My guess is that most of the reports about breaking things comes from hot rodders and off roaders that don't want to take the time to apply the power slowly. Also, when shifting the BBS02 under PAS a slight backwards nudge on the pedals will stop the power immediately, allowing you to make smooth shifts without waiting for the motor to stop on it's own.

Whether you use an IGH or a standard derailleur these practices should reduce the stress being applied by mid-drive systems.