Foldable e-bikes - which one to buy?

Jezmin

1 µW
Joined
Sep 1, 2019
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Here’s what I’m looking for and hoping the community can advise me on a trustworthy purchase:

- I live in SF so it needs to be able to make it up moderate hills, I can skip the steep ones.
- Primary use is commuting.
- I’d like at least 20 inch wheels, preference for no fat tires (I can budge for the right bike)
- As light weight as possible
- My commute is 30 mins / 6 miles
- I weigh 150 lbs
- Budget: under $2500

In the running are:
Sondors fold
Carbo
GreenBikeUSA

I love the GiFly but have only read negative reviews.

Thank you for any words of advice you offer!
 
Do you want to purchase an ebike that is a foldable, or do you you want a foldable bike that you install a kit yourself?

Probably best to buy a kit and install it on a good foldable bicycle.

Commuting on a foldable isnt the best idea in the world, especially when its a 20", so look into a 24" foldable, or better yet a 26" foldable.
For 26" the Montague Paratrooper look to be a good purchase, I know you could purchase just the frame a couple years ago.

Search results
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=56572&p=844228&hilit=foldable+bike+dahon#p843449
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=6572&p=99032&hilit=foldable+bike+dahon#p99032
 
Hi! Id be a bit worried about adding the kit myself so I’d rather buy an e-bike that is foldable. Do you think the one you recommended can make it up hills? I live in SF.
 
Jezmin said:
Here’s what I’m looking for and hoping the community can advise me on a trustworthy purchase:

- I live in SF so it needs to be able to make it up moderate hills, I can skip the steep ones.
- Primary use is commuting.
- I’d like at least 20 inch wheels, preference for no fat tires (I can budge for the right bike)
- As light weight as possible
- My commute is 30 mins / 6 miles
- I weigh 150 lbs
- Budget: under $2500

A guy I work with rides a MATE X (I think it's the X, I'll need to pay more attention) down to the BART station at the bottom of the hill, and he lives up on top. I rode my bike up a pretty direct route last Sunday, a little over 2 miles and climbing ~650 ft, pedaling pretty hard, and the motor was warm. I'm not sure what route he takes up, but there are definitely routes that I've ridden up on my non-e mountain bike in the past. Still, I'm impressed.

I remember when I was looking at it, he said it was heavy (and the X is fat tired), but it has full suspension, so that''s a plus. The 750 lists $200 north of your budget though.

Maybe the non-X version would work on something less steep.
 
need mid drive for steep hills

get to know ebike mechanic

local to you

hire to convert $300-$600 dahon

use bafang bbs02

300-750Wh battery pack(s)

$1500 parts

$ remains for labor
 
markz said:
Do you want to purchase an ebike that is a foldable, or do you you want a foldable bike that you install a kit yourself?

Probably best to buy a kit and install it on a good foldable bicycle.

Commuting on a foldable isnt the best idea in the world, especially when its a 20", so look into a 24" foldable, or better yet a 26" foldable.
For 26" the Montague Paratrooper look to be a good purchase, I know you could purchase just the frame a couple years ago.

Search results
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=56572&p=844228&hilit=foldable+bike+dahon#p843449
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=6572&p=99032&hilit=foldable+bike+dahon#p99032

I really love the suggestion of the Montague but can’t seem to find any reviews online of their e-bikes. Have you read any positive ones?
 
Montague Reviews

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=94425&p=1382591&hilit=Montague+paratrooper#p1382591

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=92921&p=1368167&hilit=Montague+paratrooper#p1368167

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=91448&p=1341011&hilit=Montague+paratrooper#p1341011
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=91448&p=1333184&hilit=Montague+paratrooper#p1333184

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=88546&p=1291778&hilit=Montague+paratrooper#p1291590

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=85976&p=1257808&hilit=Montague+paratrooper#p1257808

------------

Montague is a good choice.

As far as installing a kit yourself, its very easy to do. The main thing is to get the wheel already laced into motor. For a quality hub motor wheel already laced into a quality rim, using quality spokes. https://www.ebikes.ca/shop/electric-bicycle-parts/motors.html?limit=all out of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. No mid drives, just hub motors.

What you'd need, for the hills of SF, is a mid drive like the BBSHD. Buy from http://ebikessf.com/ since they are local to you!!!!! Big Bonus on no s/h fee's!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BBSHD - http://ebikessf.com/BBSHD $560usd
*Can buy your battery and charger there too!
 
Ask yourself first: Do I really need a folder?

Cause they ride like sh*t at speed you know?
 
I never needed a folder, but now have two conversions that I would always keep. They are nice for the slower riding recreational rider. The pedal cadence gets too quick over 20 mph. They do ride hard, so full suspension is good, if you cannot be standing on the pedals.

Of the three you mention. My bias/thoughts are

Carbo -you can't buy one til the next container ship shows up. I like the concept, but the seatpost battery will be limited in capacity and perhaps hard to obtain if the owners goes elsewhere. Other bikes use that battery though.

Sondors - only see fat tire models on their website. I have a fat tire folder, but find it a bit heavy. Also, you'll rely on Sondors for the battery, but he'll be around for a while.

Greenbike - well, they use a commonly available battery, but it's dorky. Plenty of battery though.
 
I have and ride a Phantom X2 folder.
It is very heavy
It has very limited cargo capacity
I have only ever folded it once
The folding pedals are more dangerous than useful
It is not technically a fat-tire bike, but the tires are big

If you can dig a little deeper, a budget of $2k opens up some better options.
This one seems to fit your criteria: https://lunacycle.com/luna-folding-ebike/
Being a 9 speed mid drive, I don't think you could find a hill it couldn't climb
Since you are 6-7 hrs away from the dealer/builder you can take a road trip to get a test ride and if you like it, save on shipping.
 
luna mosso folder

similar to what i suggest

very fair price for everything



think best get to know

local ebike mech/tech

pre built eventually need work too
 
E-HP said:
A guy I work with rides a MATE X (I think it's the X, I'll need to pay more attention) down to the BART station at the bottom of the hill, and he lives up on top. I rode my bike up a pretty direct route last Sunday, a little over 2 miles and climbing ~650 ft, pedaling pretty hard, and the motor was warm. I'm not sure what route he takes up, but there are definitely routes that I've ridden up on my non-e mountain bike in the past. Still, I'm impressed.

I remember when I was looking at it, he said it was heavy (and the X is fat tired), but it has full suspension, so that''s a plus. The 750 lists $200 north of your budget though.

Maybe the non-X version would work on something less steep.

I checked out the guy’s Mate folder this morning and it’s actually not the “X” version, it’s the skinnier tired original version , so now I’m totally impressed. I’m going to talk to him to find out what route he takes up the hill now!

EDIT: He used a topo map to figure out a route that zig zags up the hill. He described the route and it's still a good climb, and shows that with careful route planning, you can do a lot with a little geared hub.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I have got the Tucano folding fat tire ebike (500W bafang rear hub, 48V). Untill now (about 1300km) no problems. I guess the battery will be the weakest part.
 
Many folks in SF use gearmotors successfully on those hills, which have a lot of torque and reasonable climbing ability. Especially in a smaller wheel.

Dual motored 2wd/awd ebikes glide up those steep hills without even getting warm. I built one with a rear DD hub and a front gearmotor, the Bonanza in my sig.

The BBS02 mid drive in a good folding bike works well. If you can find a Xootr Swift, it makes a great folding bike that uses standard components so you can mod it. They stopped making it not too long ago, there are quite a few of them around. They had an ebike model but probably didn't sell many and it probably isn't a good hill climber, I don't recall what motor setup it had.

There is a two speed medium sized gearmotor that climbs quite well and doesn't weigh down a folding bike too much. Luna sent me one for evaluation. It is not speedy in low gear but climbs quite if you want a small, light rig. Xiongda makes the motor and there are threads about it here. There's some questions about longevity, I haven't put enough miles on mine to really test it.

A DIY kit will generally outperform pre manufactured ebikes. There are many reasons for this. We recently compared a commercial to a similar DIY ebike. DIY will allow you to do things to reach your goals more effectively than the one-size-fits-all commercial market.

Best of luck with your project.
 
+1...Have a nice one...the best urban wheels...cannot believe demand was lowl, slapped a couple of good tires and a geared front and a seat knuckld and love it...have to figure a way to sneak around...I like anonymity.
 
I think you could do it w/ a geared hub motor. Having lived in S.F., I know that the route you take will be as important as the grade. You don't want to mix it up w/ the Muni buses unless you absolutely have to. If you don't absolutely need a folder, get a regular bike because folders are, as mentioned, unnecessarily heavy. If you're gonna carry extra weight, let it be in a bigger battery. Hopefully you will have off street parking for the bike? I could tell you horror stories about bike thefts in that city, but I guess you already know that.
 
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