Considering this set-up. $300 Any thoughts?

I've been researching building an ebike for about a year now. I've built around 7 or 8 gas powered 2 and 4 stroke bikes and now have decided to go green. I've been looking at 48V and 1000-1500w kits. I'm 6'3" and 240lbs, so I figured in order to get 25-28mph, which is what I'm looking for, that was what I would need. I'll be using the bike as a commuter (about 8 miles to work each way). I came across this kit on Craiglist and it looked like a pretty good deal.The seller informed me he bought the bike it was on for the bike itself and wasn't interested in the ebike kit, so he decided to sell it. The previous owner told him he put about 400-500 miles on it.I just don't know what kind of performance I could expect fron this. Any thoughts on the kit would be appreciated, thanks.

Here's the ad in it's entirety with some pics. He is asking $300 for everything

Selling a used, high quality E bike conversion kit.
Most of the components are from Grin Technologies (ebikes.ca):
The motor is their Ezee 500 watt brushless motor. This is a front wheel motor, and is laced to a double-walled 700c rim. This setup can accommodate a disc or rim brake.
Control unit is the Cycle Analyst V3, which has ton of features. This particular setup has both a twist throttle and a THUN torque-sensing bottom bracket, two emergency brake cutoff switches, and Grin's 25A control unit that mounts on the seat-tube.
This kit retails for around $1000, as configured.

The battery is a Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) 15 Ah battery from Ping Batteries. LFP batteries have much more stable chemistry than other lithium ion batteries (i.e. won't explode). They are slightly heavier, but a worthy tradeoff for safety. This takes a special charger which is included. This battery retails for $423.

Check out ebikes.ca for more info and technical manuals.

The kit was taken from a functional bike, and I've labeled the plugs that were used for this setup.

It's a good deal, though you should consider the battery as "worthless junk" until proven otherwise by testing, since that's the most common dead thing in used kits (even when claimed to be fully functional--you can't really test it till you've got it on a bike).

At only 15Ah, and being LiFePO4, it's really only safe to call it a "15A" battery, meaning you probably wouldn't want to keep pulling more than 15A for too long; voltage will sag and cells will warm up. Pings are usually claimed as a 2C battery, but until it's tested it's safer to assume 1C.

Also, at only 15Ah, used, unknown condition, you could assume you get only 2/3 of that (to be safe), so call it 10Ah. If you ride faster it takes more power, and if you use the motor to do all the work, no pedalling, it could take up to 1Ah/mile depending on terrain and conditions and speed. The more stops and starts there are, the worse that gets. So you might get 10 miles of range out of it, in that "worst case" scenario.

It doesn't say what voltage any of the stuff is setup for, or what voltage the battery is. That's important to figure out the "wattage" and the wh/mile it might take. (ah/mile is not a great way to talk about range)

However, it's nto really a 1500w kit.

You could push the Ezee to 1000w peaks, but you probably wouldn't want to run it at that all the time. If it's kept cool enough it could handle it, but if not the heat builds up faster inside geared hubs than DD hubs, so can damage things if it gets hot enough.

As for whether it would go the speeds you want with the voltage you've got, you can take the general specs for the stuff the kit has and go to http://ebikes.ca/simulator, then see if it'll do what you want.

A larger diameter wheel goes faster for the same voltage/etc, but it sacrifices torque to do that. (so startups are slower, and hill climbing is harder).

A higher voltage goes faster for the same diameter/etc., but you'd need a different battery, and probably controller.

It's 36V battery, Controller is 36v -52v - Sorry forgot to put that in. Here is a link for the battery

http://www.pingbattery.com/36v-15ah-lithium-lifepo4-battery-pack/

For what it's worth, 25-28mph is not that great for extended periods on a normal bike. Bumps and holes are painful, wind noise diminishes your situational awareness, and you'll spend your attention scanning the surface for flaws instead of enjoying your ride. To really prosper at 28mph in other than short bursts, you need nice smooth pavement or else effective suspension of some kind. (Long wheelbase or really fat, low pressure tires could do the job.)

On my current bike (which rides a little harshly), I have gravitated towards 18mph as a cruise speed that works on both good and not-good street surfaces, keeps me from being too surprised by cars or car drivers surprised by me, isn't too noisy, and still gets me where I'm going in a timely fashion. I turn it up to the low 20s from time to time, mostly to deal with traffic, and I get close to 30 almost every time I leave my house by descending a small hill with no streets entering from the right.

I'm pretty sure that the Ezee kit won't cruise in the high 20s, regardless what bike you put it on. But that doesn't make it a poor bargain. Once you shut down the awful racket made by a stinking gas bike, you might find that you like the peace and quiet that exists below 20mph.

decksrx said:

It's 36V, Sorry forgot to put that in.

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Based on what I see on the Grin website, that's probably the 250 rpm version of the eZee (since it is in a 700c rim). If it is the 250rpm version, 36 volts will only get you to around 22 mph. But the good news is that it seems likely that the controller can work at battery voltages up to 52v. And a 48 volt or 52 volt battery will get you to the 25-28 mph range that you want.

BTW, the Grin site agrees with Amberwolf's assessment and describes this as a 500-1000 watt system. You probably don't want to send 1500 watts into that motor.

Seems to me that the system is a pretty good deal in general. But for your needs specifically, it has the problem of that 36 volt battery that won't get you the speeds that you want. Whether or not that's a big issue or not is something that only you can decide.

Good deal for sure, but that particular motor at that voltage will have you riding less than 20 mph some of the ride, as the battery drains you slow down.

You can get the speed you want, but my gut feeling is you will spend closer to a thou for it, mostly in the form of a bigger, and or more strong battery. The generic 1000w 48v kits with direct drive motors will do your 30 mph, and more if you put them on 72v later on.

Good kit, but just not really what you crave. You, I think, are headed quickly for the 40 mph club. So get a DD kit.

Do you have a bicycle in mind, for the kit? What do you use, for the 2 and 4 stroke gas powered builds?

Seems to me it would be useful experience. You can see what even this costs, new retail, and the bigger setup you probably want will be even more costly. A pretty rich pool to dip your toe in.

1500W = 2 HP. The DD (direct drive) configuration mentioned above is essentially in high gear all the time. Given your experience with motor powered bicycles, your size and your locality's apparently tolerant attitude, you might think about even more powerful options for an end goal.

The bike I'll be using is a Specialized Crossroads 29er. Front shocks and seat suspension, with a disc brake in the front, linear in back. The gas bikes I've built in the past were both 2 stroke and 4 stroke, from 50cc all the way up to a 212cc 4 stroke which could do 45-50mph
The reason I'm considering this kit is the relatively short money (he's asking $300 and it's been on CL for a month now) and the fact that it will allow me to test the waters of what an ebike can do. I live in New England, so I'll have maybe 3 months left to ride, and can then spend the off season deciding what upgrades I'll be looking for such as front, mid, rear drives and power options as well.

I think dogman dan had it right. If you want to jump in and play, you probably want to jump in and play with something more powerful and "hotrod-able". This is a very nice set-up for a commuter bike. You are probably going to be happier with a mid drive or a larger DD motor with either 52 or 72 volts and a more powerful controller.

Save your money and build in the off-season, not upgrade.

Get it if the battery charges to 43volts or 42.5v . Then go to craigslist and get an older cross bike with comoly frame and front forks.

From what I've read, and it makes plenty of sense to me, front drive and front suspensions do not play well together. Not for long anyway. Front drives need a solid fork. To my way of thinking the rear drives are a much sturdier option.

If serious about commuting, I would likely be looking for something in a rear drive. And if you plan on riding 25-28 mph for 8 miles at a crack (not just short bursts), I'd likely be on the hunt for a sturdier battery and motor.

I have been researching ebikes for awhile, and from reading, it seemed a front shock was always desirable due to the speeds that they can attain, no? I upgraded the shocks on the Specialized to a Rockshox and added a disc brake. The other reason this kit appealed to me is that when I do switch to a different set up, I can transfer this one to my wifes bike. I contacted the seller and the battery did charge to 43V,which is a good sign. After seeing what retail is on this kit and battery, just seems like a no-brainer to not grab it.

Oh yea, front suspension is great. You'll get no argument from me on that. It's just I've been led to believe they don't do well when it comes to handling the torque (and the weight?) of a hub motor.

decksrx said:

I have been researching ebikes for awhile, and from reading, it seemed a front shock was always desirable due to the speeds that they can attain, no? I upgraded the shocks on the Specialized to a Rockshox and added a disc brake. The other reason this kit appealed to me is that when I do switch to a different set up, I can transfer this one to my wifes bike. I contacted the seller and the battery did charge to 43V,which is a good sign. After seeing what retail is on this kit and battery, just seems like a no-brainer to not grab it.

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Sure. If you have a secondary project that can use the parts, sure - why not? It's a good value. I think it would make a very satisfying commuter, general purpose e-bike for a lot of people - probably the majority of people.

AHicks said:

Oh yea, front suspension is great. You'll get no argument from me on that. It's just I've been led to believe they don't do well when it comes to handling the torque (and the weight?) of a hub motor.

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It is a geared hub that isn't quite as heavy and hence less of an issue.

AHicks said:

To my way of thinking the rear drives are a much sturdier option.

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Except that they put the inherently weaker hub motor wheel in the position that gets the most punishment.

If you do buy it, because its a front motor, put it on a bike with a non shock fork. Yes, you can put it on a shock fork, but many will not fit, others can fail, and the cheap steel pogo stick shock is not much better than no shock.

I don't think we need to tell you much about what bike, going fast, etc. You have gone fast on a bike, and you know what it is to go 30 + mph for many miles. But if you do get it wrong putting a front motor on a shock fork, its a trip to the dentist for new teeth, or maybe new collarbones.

I'm not saying don't buy it, I'm just saying if you do, its already on its max power, if 48v.( around 1000w) Pushing those type motors harder cooks them fairly quick. So its not really modifiable to go much faster than 28 mph.


If you do put it on a shock fork, you need 2 c washers and two torque arms. That was in the kit originally, so you should have it.

Often the shock rubs the motor and just wont fit. Other times it fits, but when you put on power the shock binds, so you have to let off the throttle when you see a bump coming. In nearly all cases, front shocks wear out premature when you run motors on them. I have run about 10,000 miles with front motor on shock forks myself, and have had all the problems. I had a reason for doing it, but that reason ended, and so did the front motors, as soon as I could.

FWIW, the good bits of the kit, like the CA, are close to worth the 300. Its just not the right controller and hub for what you are surely going to want. Like you said, a cheap way to get the toe in, and you will be spending $200 on a CA later anyway, if not two or three of em.

This kit, another 3000w grin controller, and big DD rear motor, and you can go fast, with a completely different 72v battery. So its a start. But on a bike that fast, the thun will be no use to you, you won't be pedaling, just like the fast gas bike.

It is a great kit for a 25 mph commute pedaling the whole way, with silence. But somehow I don't see that as your need.

dogman dan said:

I have run about 10,000 miles with front motor on shock forks myself, and have had all the problems.

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How much power in the motor? Does PAS vs throttle make a difference, would it help to leave the throttle in the box? (Aside from the question of what the O.P. may or may not want.)

I was just wondering, can a 12v battery be added to this set-up to bring it to 48v? This is the link for the battery:

http://www.pingbattery.com/36v-15ah-lithium-lifepo4-battery-pack/

So what did you end up doing you gas motor bike building convert? I hope you ended up with thag kit man what a steal of a deal for quality parts.