Hello ES, I am a new member here, looking for advice on how to get the best off-road performance out of my 2005 Giant Team DH
I bought this bike barely used with a Tangent Ascent 3210 (3kw) preinstalled. It has been sitting dormant for around a year while I designed and 3d printed a battery mounting solution in my spare time. I am now satisfied with the battery mount, still needs a few more refinements to make it perfect, but I finally got it to the point where I could take the bike for a test ride.
1st test ride the bike was barely pushing 1700 watts at full throttle. I bought the Castle Link and Cycle Analyst programming cables and dug into the settings. Everything in the Castle Link looked ok, nothing that stood out as a potential issue. But, when I connected to the CA, I found that the max power was set to 1700w. So I upped the max power to 9,900w (as instructed by Dave's recommended settings) and I thought problem solved.
2nd test ride and I was able to get up to just over 2,300 watts and then suddenly the power to the wheel would cut off. Whenever I would release the throttle and try again the same thing would happen. It would start building power then cut off. Won't push over 2.3kw without cutting power. CA seemed fine. Now I'm thinking that maybe I missed something in the Castle settings, so I try to reconnect and it fails to recognize the ESC. The Castle Link app is detecting the usb programming cable but won't detect the controller. So now I'm suspicious that I might have a defected or damaged controller. I went through all the wiring and connections. Everything appears to be connected properly. I also removed and inspected the cycloidal reduction gear on the Tangent, everything appears to be in order with sufficient grease.
My goal is a light weight (sub 100 lbs), off-road, enduro ebike. I would like to be able to achieve at least 45 mph top speed and cruising speed around 30 mph. Range greater than 30 miles is a must (40 miles + would be ideal). Legality is not an issue as I will be riding this bike off-road only. I would prefer to keep functional pedals to help increase range and keep the mountain bike feel (and also just in case I over estimate my range and have to pedal home). The end product does not need to be totally silent, but it must be significantly quieter than a motorbike. Budget is not too much of a concern (maybe $5k-$6k max?) but I would like to stick with the Giant frame if possible.
The trails I want to ride this bike on are a mix of smooth hard pack dirt and rough rocky terrain with some hills.
So far I have built 4 bbshd hard tail bikes, 3 of which with Luna's "Ludicrous" controllers. They are set to 50 amps max w/ 52v pushing around 2.5kw max. I find the performance of the bbshd at 50 amps pretty decent, but my goal with this build is to step up to the next level in terms of power. I considered building a bbshd with a steel gear and an ASI controller at 72v, but unfortunately the Giant frame will not allow a bbshd to fit.
Now here's my dilemma... Should I get a replacement Castle controller and try to get the Tangent up to it's original full potential? Should I try a different controller and push my 3210 to it's limits? Or should I scrap the Tangent drive completely and go for something else? I'm beginning to doubt that the 3kw 3210 is going to give me the power that I'm after. I think a 6kw Tangent would probably be the sweet spot, but with Dave M.I.A., I'm a little hesitant to look for a used 3220 Tangent. I'm used to riding powerful motorcycles, both sport bikes and dirt bikes, so I want to feel some power and acceleration. I know that there are very powerful hub motors out there that can give me the power that I want, but I'm not sure that having that much weight in the real wheel is going to do well with rough rocky terrain. Maybe a cyc x1 pro? The Kranked Hyperdrive looks cool but seems pricey for only 2750 watts nominal. I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty and go for a DIY solution. I enjoy the hobby and would like to improve my skills and knowledge with this build.
Current Build;
2005 Giant Team DH - Complete Bike (Stock) - 26" Wheels
14s 22ah LiPo (2x 7s in series)
Cycle Analyst v3
Tangent Ascent w/ Astro 3210 (3kw)
Castle Creations Phoenix Edge HV80 (possibly malfunctioning)
Domino Twist Throttle
Thanks
I bought this bike barely used with a Tangent Ascent 3210 (3kw) preinstalled. It has been sitting dormant for around a year while I designed and 3d printed a battery mounting solution in my spare time. I am now satisfied with the battery mount, still needs a few more refinements to make it perfect, but I finally got it to the point where I could take the bike for a test ride.
1st test ride the bike was barely pushing 1700 watts at full throttle. I bought the Castle Link and Cycle Analyst programming cables and dug into the settings. Everything in the Castle Link looked ok, nothing that stood out as a potential issue. But, when I connected to the CA, I found that the max power was set to 1700w. So I upped the max power to 9,900w (as instructed by Dave's recommended settings) and I thought problem solved.
2nd test ride and I was able to get up to just over 2,300 watts and then suddenly the power to the wheel would cut off. Whenever I would release the throttle and try again the same thing would happen. It would start building power then cut off. Won't push over 2.3kw without cutting power. CA seemed fine. Now I'm thinking that maybe I missed something in the Castle settings, so I try to reconnect and it fails to recognize the ESC. The Castle Link app is detecting the usb programming cable but won't detect the controller. So now I'm suspicious that I might have a defected or damaged controller. I went through all the wiring and connections. Everything appears to be connected properly. I also removed and inspected the cycloidal reduction gear on the Tangent, everything appears to be in order with sufficient grease.
My goal is a light weight (sub 100 lbs), off-road, enduro ebike. I would like to be able to achieve at least 45 mph top speed and cruising speed around 30 mph. Range greater than 30 miles is a must (40 miles + would be ideal). Legality is not an issue as I will be riding this bike off-road only. I would prefer to keep functional pedals to help increase range and keep the mountain bike feel (and also just in case I over estimate my range and have to pedal home). The end product does not need to be totally silent, but it must be significantly quieter than a motorbike. Budget is not too much of a concern (maybe $5k-$6k max?) but I would like to stick with the Giant frame if possible.
The trails I want to ride this bike on are a mix of smooth hard pack dirt and rough rocky terrain with some hills.
So far I have built 4 bbshd hard tail bikes, 3 of which with Luna's "Ludicrous" controllers. They are set to 50 amps max w/ 52v pushing around 2.5kw max. I find the performance of the bbshd at 50 amps pretty decent, but my goal with this build is to step up to the next level in terms of power. I considered building a bbshd with a steel gear and an ASI controller at 72v, but unfortunately the Giant frame will not allow a bbshd to fit.
Now here's my dilemma... Should I get a replacement Castle controller and try to get the Tangent up to it's original full potential? Should I try a different controller and push my 3210 to it's limits? Or should I scrap the Tangent drive completely and go for something else? I'm beginning to doubt that the 3kw 3210 is going to give me the power that I'm after. I think a 6kw Tangent would probably be the sweet spot, but with Dave M.I.A., I'm a little hesitant to look for a used 3220 Tangent. I'm used to riding powerful motorcycles, both sport bikes and dirt bikes, so I want to feel some power and acceleration. I know that there are very powerful hub motors out there that can give me the power that I want, but I'm not sure that having that much weight in the real wheel is going to do well with rough rocky terrain. Maybe a cyc x1 pro? The Kranked Hyperdrive looks cool but seems pricey for only 2750 watts nominal. I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty and go for a DIY solution. I enjoy the hobby and would like to improve my skills and knowledge with this build.
Current Build;
2005 Giant Team DH - Complete Bike (Stock) - 26" Wheels
14s 22ah LiPo (2x 7s in series)
Cycle Analyst v3
Tangent Ascent w/ Astro 3210 (3kw)
Castle Creations Phoenix Edge HV80 (possibly malfunctioning)
Domino Twist Throttle
Thanks