UK Peeps! Help an ebike newbie out

Hey guys

Im interested in building my first ebike and I need help procuring the parts.

The bike I have chosen: https://www.halfords.com/bikes/mountain-bikes/kreativ-ht26-disc-mens-mountain-bike---50cm-437894.html?dwvar_437894_colour=Black%2FRed

What the bike will be used for: I won't need to go super fast, just 10mph max will do. But I do need to go up a few steep hills around where I live, so it needs to be powerful enough for that. I will use it for 2-4 miles per day.

So I'm thinking of buying a direct drive ebike conversion kit. 1000W rear wheel. I prefer frame battery or bottle battery.

I have a few questions:

1. I'm in the UK, so what's the best UK (or EU) website for quality conversion kits and batteries?
2. Do I need to put a torque arm on either side of the bike?

Sorry if something like this has been posted before or if I have posted in the wrong section!

Cheers.

Answer to question #2. YES

In order to answer your more general question, you need a motor with SOME power. In order to give a slightly more specific answer, two pieces of information are absolutely necessary:

First, when you say "steep", how high over how long? Use actual numbers in standard distance measurements, term like "fairly high" and "somewhat long" are not, AT ALL, useful.

Next, need to know the total load the bike will be carrying, as in, how large is your ass?

Without those two pieces of info, it is not possible to give anything other than a wild guess based only on the color of the wind today, so, get a 423 watt motor.

EbikeNoob900 said:

1. I'm in the UK, so what's the best UK (or EU) website for quality conversion kits and batteries?

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Besides asking here, also check the UK Pedelecs forum. Consider getting a mid-drive.

Hub motors are not the best option to ride uphill at 10 mph, unless their top speed is not much higher than that.

So, you need a very slow winding, very small wheel, and/or running low voltage. Not a common build, but possible with the proper components.

...or you build with a BB drive. That would let you climb slow because it can be geared as you wish, at any voltage, with any wheel size.

AngryBob said:

Answer to question #2. YES

In order to answer your more general question, you need a motor with SOME power. In order to give a slightly more specific answer, two pieces of information are absolutely necessary:

First, when you say "steep", how high over how long? Use actual numbers in standard distance measurements, term like "fairly high" and "somewhat long" are not, AT ALL, useful.

Next, need to know the total load the bike will be carrying, as in, how large is your ass?

Without those two pieces of info, it is not possible to give anything other than a wild guess based only on the color of the wind today, so, get a 423 watt motor.

Click to expand...

Hi. Thank you for responding!

Steepness: probably a 15 degree or 20 degree hills, I would guess.

In terms of distance, I would be travelling about a mile on those hills each day, in total.

Money is not an issue - I rather have a slightly over powered system than an under powered one.

Total load: my weight fluctuates a lot (story for another day) so I would say between 55 - 65kg.

Thanks!

EbikeNoob900 said:

Money is not an issue

Click to expand...

Then start with a better bike first!

SlowCo said:

EbikeNoob900 said:

Money is not an issue

Click to expand...

Then start with a better bike first!

Click to expand...

Thank you, very helpful reply! You deserve an award for that

/sarcasm.

EbikeNoob900 said:

Thank you, very helpful reply! You deserve an award for that

/sarcasm.

Click to expand...

No need to be sarcastic as I think you'll really regret buying a BSO (Bike Shaped Object) that will probably break down from human pedal power alone in under a 100 miles. Putting multiple times the wattage on that "bicycle" by adding an electric motor will probably end in tears or worse. Often you can find a much better second hand brand name bike for not much more money which will have much better components. I suspect in the next few months a lot of people who bought a decent bike for the summer found out it wasn't really their hobby and will want to sell it on. As the bike you'll buy will be the basis of your build please search for such a bike. And then get a mid drive system if you need to climb hills.

EbikeNoob900 said:

Steepness: probably a 15 degree or 20 degree hills, I would guess.

Click to expand...

Maybe use this tool to check the actual grade. 20 degrees is equal to 36.4% grade. The steepest recorded street in the world is in New Zealand, with a grade of 35%.
http://www.heywhatsthat.com/profiler.html

SlowCo said:

No need to be sarcastic as I think you'll really regret buying a BSO (Bike Shaped Object) that will probably break down from human pedal power alone in under a 100 miles. Putting multiple times the wattage on that "bicycle" by adding an electric motor will probably end in tears or worse. Often you can find a much better second hand brand name bike for not much more money which will have much better components.

Click to expand...

better components...such as?

I suspect in the next few months a lot of people who bought a decent bike for the summer found out it wasn't really their hobby and will want to sell it on. As the bike you'll buy will be the basis of your build please search for such a bike. And then get a mid drive system if you need to climb hills.

Click to expand...

So what type of bike is suitable then? Give some examples.

Also whats wrong with this bike specifically? Im getting very vague responses here.

E-HP said:

Maybe use this tool to check the actual grade. 20 degrees is equal to 36.4% grade. The steepest recorded street in the world is in New Zealand, with a grade of 35%.
http://www.heywhatsthat.com/profiler.html

Click to expand...

Thanks! Will check it out

As above.

If money isn't an issue any mid drive from a well established name will see you good.

Unless you have your heart set on building one buy off the shelf.

You'll also be able to take advantage of the cycle to work scheme or green commute initiative being from UK

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EbikeNoob900 said:

better components...such as?

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Better hubs, better crankset and gearset, better wheelset, better braking system. The parts on the bike you linked will be low quality, softer metals.

EbikeNoob900 said:

So what type of bike is suitable then? Give some examples.

Click to expand...

Any similarly shaped secondhand mtb, probably starting at around £400, with hydraulic disc brakes, imo. If you want to buy new, i'd recommend decathlon rather than halfords. Their bikes are usually better specced for the price.

EbikeNoob900 said:

Also whats wrong with this bike specifically? Im getting very vague responses here.

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The bike you linked is designed for casual occasional riding, for the cyclist to put no more than a couple of hundred of watts through. It won't do well when you motorize it and put 1000 watts through it.

It looks like a bike, and will probably perform like a bike for the first few weeks/months, but it's really a bike shaped object, BSO.

For riding 4 miles per day at 10mph, virtually any bike will do. Yiu don’t even need suspension. You never really shift much with a rear hub motor, so drive train components don’t matter much and aren’t critical like for a mid drive.
The caveat is that you don't know what grade the hills are and if you could figure that out, it’s likely a 1000w cheap hub will do what you need. I can climb the occasional short 20% with mine, and 10% is a non-issue. Just get a decent battery, and be willing to climb the hills a little faster, say above 12mph, and add statorade for insurance so you don’t overheat. Otherwise, just put the thing together and start having fun.
By the way, once you install the kit, there’s no way you’ll limit yourself to 4 miles per day, so think ahead and put most of your money toward a good battery.


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Hills are measured by RISE over RUN. Example - a 100 foot rise in a 1000 ft run would be a 10% slope.

4 miles, at 10 mph, with some hills, are you sure you really need a motor? Poor health or advanced age? I have both and would not need a motor for that, but I have been bicycling for 20 years.

Also check local laws about maximum wattage allowable, most of EU has pretty severe restrictions that would outlaw most kits used here.

Do you need to lift the bike at all, bus racks, trains, upstairs apartments, front porch steps, etc?