Need guidance

newbie3244

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May 12, 2022
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Hello!

I want to build an ebike for road commute and off-road hills. I need it to be around 25-35mph, max range of about 20 miles, reliable, good torque for hills and relatively cheap (less than £1000). I'm 65kg, 5'10". Would this be a good frame to use? And can you give me some direction/advice in terms of which parts might be appropriate for such a build.

Cheers! :D
 
With fat tires and a small triangle that will limit the size of battery you can use, I wouldn't choose that bike. If you slow down and peddle more, you can get by with a smaller battery. If the off-road hills are steep and long, you will want to consider a mid-drive motor like the Bafang BBSHD. You can use the Grin motor simulator to estimate speed and range of the kit.

https://ebikes.ca/tools/simulator.h...rue&gear=1&tf=50&tr=11&batt=B5216_GA&axis=mph

BBSHD_MS.PNG
 
RunForTheHills said:
With fat tires and a small triangle that will limit the size of battery you can use, I wouldn't choose that bike. If you slow down and peddle more, you can get by with a smaller battery. If the off-road hills are steep and long, you will want to consider a mid-drive motor like the Bafang BBSHD. You can use the Grin motor simulator to estimate speed and range of the kit.

https://ebikes.ca/tools/simulator.h...rue&gear=1&tf=50&tr=11&batt=B5216_GA&axis=mph

BBSHD_MS.PNG

Super thanks for that link. Searching these forums a little while, it seems that everyone mounts the battery to their bike frame - besides the weight, what are the cons to carrying the battery in a backback - seems like a smart way to evade the attention of the police too, right?
 
newbie3244 said:
I want to build an ebike for commute and hills. I need it to be around 25-35mph,

Which is it? 35 mph takes twice as much power as 25 mph. That has implications for all the electrical parts, and the bike too.

reliable, good torque for hills and relatively cheap (less than £1000).

These three things together you just might be able to get for £1k. But not 35 mph as well. Maybe not even 25 mph.

Would this be a good frame to use?

No. That's a slow heavy pig of a bike, which will cost you probably 10 mph of top speed relative to a real bike. It's nasty-cheap, so parts will fail early and often. It won't be long before you have spent more fixing it than you would have by getting a decent quality bike. In the meantime you'll be riding discouraging garbage.

The sweet spot in terms of cost, reliability, and performance is a 48 volt direct drive hub motor kit installed on a good (bike shop quality) 26 inch wheeled bike. Not a fatbike. No rear suspension, and no front suspension if the motor is mounted in front.

As a noob, you'll save yourself a lot of backtracking and delays by getting a full kit of parts that are designed to work together. That probably will not include a battery.

Don't cheap out on a ready made battery, because it won't last. If you want to economize on the battery, look for a salvaged automotive module that you can use. Converting one for e-bike use isn't the simplest thing, so if you're not comfortable working with electrical and electronic components, pay what you have to and buy a plug and play battery from a reputable seller.

I don't know if Ebikeling sells into the UK at reasonable prices, but that's one supplier of okay quality, easy to install hub motor kits. Unit Pack Power is a borderline-suspicious battery seller with a fairly consistent sales record and reputation. Any seller priced below these two had better come with some trustworthy independent recommendations.
 
newbie3244 said:
Searching these forums a little while, it seems that everyone mounts the battery to their bike frame - besides the weight, what are the cons to carrying the battery in a backback - seems like a smart way to evade the attention of the police too, right?

Backpack batteries are uncomfortable, fatiguing, inconvenient to connect and disconnect, and wear-prone at the cable and plug.

Normal bike luggage that happens to contain a battery is not suspicious. A backpack with an electrical wire coming out of it is suspicious. A conspicuous battery pack mounted in the frame triangle is ugly and it interferes with normal pedaling.
 
newbie3244 said:
RunForTheHills said:
With fat tires and a small triangle that will limit the size of battery you can use, I wouldn't choose that bike. If you slow down and peddle more, you can get by with a smaller battery. If the off-road hills are steep and long, you will want to consider a mid-drive motor like the Bafang BBSHD. You can use the Grin motor simulator to estimate speed and range of the kit.

https://ebikes.ca/tools/simulator.h...rue&gear=1&tf=50&tr=11&batt=B5216_GA&axis=mph

BBSHD_MS.PNG

Super thanks for that link. Searching these forums a little while, it seems that everyone mounts the battery to their bike frame - besides the weight, what are the cons to carrying the battery in a backback - seems like a smart way to evade the attention of the police too, right?

I wouldn't want to carry a battery on my back. However, it has been done. See Chalo's post for all the reasons not to do this. In my area, I see more ebikes than non-ebikes these days. They are obviously ebikes and the police are not bothering them as long as they are riding safely and reasonably.
 
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