About to click buy. Am I missing anything, or doing something wrong?

Right, so I'm looking at upgrading my old touring bike with an ebike kit.

Here is the donor bike: https://i.ibb.co/DQXZGz6/IMG-20190428-131806.jpg I know cantilever brakes are not ideal, but I have Kool stop pads and they are set up very well and stop me easily even with a load on a downhill.

I have decided on a BBS02 750 from the following seller: http://www.pswpower.com/ven.php?cargo.2017-61-s29r 370 dollars.

I'm looking at this battery from the same seller; http://www.pswpower.com/ven.php?cargo.2019-7y-bu86 335 dollars.

I'm in the EU so the exchange rate to euro is good and this works out at a very good price compared to elsewhere, particularly given that this seller says they send it from Germany so there will be no taxes on import to my country.

Has anyone here used PSWPOWER?

I also need a gear sensor. Amy idea where I should get that? I see you can get brake sensors with magnets etc, is it possible to get one similar to the gear sensor and just have the cable from the brakes o have feed through it?

Because I have downtube shifters I don't think the battery will fit there. I'd also like to keep the bottle holder as I can only attach one to the frame. So, I was thinking of just having the battery in a pannier and running the cable from there. It would also ensure the battery stays dry.

I have some queries about the battery set up, do I have to buy connectors and solder stuff? No idea how to do this, so any tips would be appreciated.

Will I need extra wire to stretch it to the pannier?

Any hints tips or feedback is appreciated

dunno seller



gear sensor no big deal

stop pedaling or simply shift when

motor rpm winds up and watts go down

ebay likely source if you must



12ga wire and choose power connectors

many use app anderson power pole



you will not longer need front shifter

battery may fit

or use problem solving sunrace slm10 thumb shifter

due to motor you will not need to shift as much



assembled many similar bikes myself

suggest display with volt and power meter



decent starter choices imo

Can't say about the battery dealer. The real problem is the battery itself. I'll keep it short and just say I learned not to charge in my house or garage. Chances are you get no problems, its just the results of a really rare problem that sucks.

Mid drive a great choice for a road bike like that. Any decent dealer will sell you a battery that simply plugs into the kit you buy with it. If not, its not too hard to put a set of matching battery wire connectors on what you get. But again, it should not be needed to do that.

Mount the battery on the down tube, if designed for that. It should not interfere with the shifter cables. Move the bottle to the seat tube, secure it with two hose clamps.

That warning re the battery sounds ominous!

What should I look out for for one which won't, as you seem to imply, explode?

I'm in Ireland and I'm having difficulty sourcing one for a decent price that doesn't come from outside the EU. The one I linked has LG batteries which seems.decent?

if lg

if properly welded

if decent bms

likely good battery pack


many vendor dont lie

many suppliers do


basically gamble

unattended charging

do where can survive fire


good luck

Just because an item is advertised as having X brand of batteries inside does not necessary make it so. Even if the cells inside the pack look visually identical to what they're supposed to be, they very well may be counterfeit. Counterfeit 18650's are big business in China and are incredibly prevalent. As a layperson it can be nearly impossible to tell you've been duped until the pack fails or severely underperforms.

So I guess the lesson is to charge in the back garden away from the house by running an extension cord from the house

Scary!

John Hutton said:

So I guess the lesson is to charge in the back garden away from the house by running an extension cord from the house

Scary!

Click to expand...

Not necessarily a bad practice. Homes have burned.

I'd suggest having a pack built locally by a trusted pack builder, using cells sourced from a known legitimate source for best results. If that's not an option, just know you're rolling the dice.

That is a known good seller in the UK. The battery is a good one. One thing to check, are your rear dropouts vertical. This is essential as if they are the older slanted type the motor power will pull the wheel out of line easily. Your frame looks to be large enough to retain the downtube shifter with the battery in place.
A good quality branded battery and correct charger will be safe to use. For specials or advice, Jimmy at ebikebatteries.co.uk is the man to speak to, absolute expert and very helpful guy. Avoid unknown battery builders at all costs.
Eclipse Bikes in Newcastle upon Tyne do these kits and are a very good supplier for batteries. They supply the Bafang with high grade Aviation lubricant in the gears, carried out in their own workshop.
Brake upgrade, Magura hs series hydraulic rim brakes. Tyres Schwalbe Land Cruisers are good for your type of bike where tyre clearance may be a bit tight. Take a look at pedelecs uk for info and local chat. woosh bikes are worth a look , very helpful, nice to deal with and excellent back up.
Price is only one element of buying, service and backup is equally important unless you are expert in this stuff.
Check your local regulations on ebikes and remember if you are near the Border ,ebikes are still illegal in NI.
None of the above is relevant in the USA.

If they're a reputable seller who will stand behind the pack that they sell, all good. I won't question their integrity. However at the end of the day if they're just a retailer who are sourcing these packs directly from China, there are inherent risks. Sounds like they've got a decent reputation though, so those risks may or may not be minimal.

Springforward said:

That is a known good seller in the UK. The battery is a good one. One thing to check, are your rear dropouts vertical. This is essential as if they are the older slanted type the motor power will pull the wheel out of line easily. Your frame looks to be large enough to retain the downtube shifter with the battery in place.
A good quality branded battery and correct charger will be safe to use. For specials or advice, Jimmy at ebikebatteries.co.uk is the man to speak to, absolute expert and very helpful guy. Avoid unknown battery builders at all costs.
Eclipse Bikes in Newcastle upon Tyne do these kits and are a very good supplier for batteries. They supply the Bafang with high grade Aviation lubricant in the gears, carried out in their own workshop.
Brake upgrade, Magura hs series hydraulic rim brakes. Tyres Schwalbe Land Cruisers are good for your type of bike where tyre clearance may be a bit tight. Take a look at pedelecs uk for info and local chat. woosh bikes are worth a look , very helpful, nice to deal with and excellent back up.
Price is only one element of buying, service and backup is equally important unless you are expert in this stuff.
Check your local regulations on ebikes and remember if you are near the Border ,ebikes are still illegal in NI.
None of the above is relevant in the USA.

Click to expand...

Re the dropouts, this is them here: https://ibb.co/609rbnt what you mention re the wheel slipping may be a problem. Is there any way to fix this, I really want to use this frame.

Would something like this work?

https://surlybikes.com/parts/hurdy_gurdy

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0791/1071/products/92580362_600x600_3f811a3f-47e2-4914-aab9-d5b9616d544f_1200x.jpg?v=1528271652

I would not risk using a 750 watt motor on those dropouts, you would be relying on the wheel nut taking the full torque of the motor. The surly items are for using the dropouts with a fixed wheel. You would have to rely on the small thumb screw adjuster to hold the axle in place. To me it just looks inadequate for the job. Don't underestimate the torque of these motors ,in low gear climbs they can break a chain. You may get off with a 250 watt hub motor with good torque plates but I really would recommend another more suitable frame for a mid drive. Take a step back and do some research rather than spoil a good road bike. Send a pic to Woosh bikes for an opinion ,they will keep you right.

John Hutton said:

So I guess the lesson is to charge in the back garden away from the house by running an extension cord from the house

Scary!

Click to expand...

Still gotta be smart about this. A quick moving thunderstorm drowned one of my chargers last summer when I left it outside.

Take a look at Cytronex.com for an alternative method which may suit your frame.

Springforward said:

I would not risk using a 750 watt motor on those dropouts, you would be relying on the wheel nut taking the full torque of the motor. The surly items are for using the dropouts with a fixed wheel. You would have to rely on the small thumb screw adjuster to hold the axle in place. To me it just looks inadequate for the job. Don't underestimate the torque of these motors ,in low gear climbs they can break a chain. You may get off with a 250 watt hub motor with good torque plates but I really would recommend another more suitable frame for a mid drive. Take a step back and do some research rather than spoil a good road bike. Send a pic to Woosh bikes for an opinion ,they will keep you right.

Click to expand...

I'm not sure, I think a decent Shimano steel QR skewer, crank it super tight, coupled with the surly should work. This guy had success with it with a BBSHD: https://electricbike.com/forum/forum/main-forum/general-discussions/43631-chain-tugs-for-semi-horizontal-forward-facing-dropouts

I might give it a go, and if it doesn't work I can get another frame and put this one back to being a normal bike.

Theoretically, if it were a vertical drop out, the axel could be rotated loosing the nuts and the wheel could fall off the back! At least with this all it will do in a worst case scenario is slide forward and strip paint off the chainstay which I don't mind. (Painted the frame myself) likely all that would happen with my precautions listed above is that it would move forward and the would get loose and maybe fall off.

Right then, here is what I have ordered:

Motor and battery from PSWPOWER for a total of 653 Euro including delivery.

New quality rear quick release and surly hurdy gurdy (hopefully this will prevent any wheel slippage but we will see) for a total of 60 euro including delivery. This was a little expensive I thought.

I also ordered two brake sensors, a gear sensor and a programming cable for a total of 47 euro including delivery.

This brings my grand total to 760 euro.

I don't think this is too bad of a price. Will be interesting to see how it all comes together.

didnt see those dropouts before

not ideal but manageable

very tight axle should hold

or add something as a stop

to any forward movement

if its problem

So, all my stuff arrived and I'm in the process of installing.

Bit of a snag, the battery won't mount on the downtube in the normal orientation as the screw holes are too low down. I can turn it around at mount it the other way around. Is there any issue with mounting the battery the wrong way around?

John Hutton said:

So, all my stuff arrived and I'm in the process of installing.

Bit of a snag, the battery won't mount on the downtube in the normal orientation as the screw holes are too low down. I can turn it around at mount it the other way around. Is there any issue with mounting the battery the wrong way around?

Click to expand...

There's this solution:
https://www.ebikes.ca/shop/electric-bicycle-parts/battery-accessories/bottle-bob.html#

E-HP said:

John Hutton said:

So, all my stuff arrived and I'm in the process of installing.

Bit of a snag, the battery won't mount on the downtube in the normal orientation as the screw holes are too low down. I can turn it around at mount it the other way around. Is there any issue with mounting the battery the wrong way around?

Click to expand...

There's this solution:
https://www.ebikes.ca/shop/electric-bicycle-parts/battery-accessories/bottle-bob.html#

Click to expand...

Interesting!