Brake Lever Switch Failure

[RschDev]

I ride an eZee iOmega cargo bike. It's an awesome ride, but lately I've run into some electrical problems. My left brake lever stopped signaling the CA when it's pulled. I took the lever apart and found that the electrical switch in the lever (it's a Five Star similar to the EbrakeWuxL sold by Grin) had become corroded and was no longer making reliable connections. I live in Florida - A place that is often wet and humid. Can anyone suggest a better brake lever with a switch that is better sealed against the weather?

Thanks,
Davie

 

[fechter]

I've seen some with hall effect switches and some with magnetic reed switches that can be totally sealed. Sorry I can't give any specific models as these were on already built bikes.

I have seen some add-on magnetic switches that can work with about any lever.

https://em3ev.com/shop/generic-ebrake-sensor/
https://lunacycle.com/bafang-hydraulic-and-disc-brake-sensors-e-brake-pair/

 

[amberwolf]

how about the Tripwire from Grin Tech http://ebikes.ca ?

FWIW, the hall based levers I had from WuXi on a Fusin kit were not sealed against anything any more than their mechanical switches were, and just as susceptible to corrosion, but worse they could stop working completely when wet (they triggered falsely or failed to trigger when just damp, while the mecahnical ones can work fine while actually wet, even fi they both can fail later from the corrosion).

 

[RschDev]

how about the Tripwire from Grin Tech http://ebikes.ca ?

FWIW, the hall based levers I had from WuXi on a Fusin kit were not sealed against anything any more than their mechanical switches were, and just as susceptible to corrosion, but worse they could stop working completely when wet (they triggered falsely or failed to trigger when just damp, while the mecahnical ones can work fine while actually wet, even fi they both can fail later from the corrosion).

Thanks - both to the inventor and to Grin for distributing these. I just ordered one via Amazon. A no-cost extra is that they use the same HIGO connector as the eZee iOmega, so it should be an easy fix. On the negative side, I have a set of hall effect switches also on order. Hello eBay.

 

[RschDev]

The TripWire arrived this morning and it's a really well made item. I'm gratified that the manufacture included the proper drill bit and not one but two screws so that you have an extra if you lose the first one. However, I have run into a problem. When I connect the TripWire to the Higo brake connector and pull the switch, the motor starts running and the CA display goes blank. I'm guessing that I'm missing something. This is on a eZee iOmega which seems to be pretty similar to other eZee bikes (same controller, same battery, same motor. The only thing not stock is the CA which I installed using the Grin instructions for the eZee Edgerunner (https://www.ebikes.ca/documents/EdgerunnerCAInstall.pdf).

In trouble shooting, I plugged in the wire from the old brake switch and played with shorting the wires to see what would happen. It's a three conductor cable with a 3 conductor Higo. When I shorted two of the wires, the motor started running. When I shorted another set, the brake indicator on the CA pulsed on and off. That's closer but still not the way it worked with the old switch. I don't have a wiring diagram or any documentation for the eZee bike so I'm doing discovery learning.

 

[RschDev]

Fixed the issue - The 3rd pin in the Higo connector on the iOmega is apparently connected to something (maybe ground?) that confuses the controller when connected. It was a cut, solder, and shrink wrap job.