Delta Trike with BBS02

[Rassy]

Last month I purchased a used EZ-3 SX trike and added a Bafang 500W 48V crank drive to it. I'm using a 10AH 48V Ping LiFeP04 battery that I already had. The mechanical installation was straight forward. I removed the entire front derailleur so there are no chain guides up front. The rear 7 speed derailleur shifts to any gear and because of the long chain there are no chain issues.

I got this trike for two reasons. First, my brother that had a stroke 7 years ago now lives in Florida and none of my tadpole trikes work out very good for him when he visits. Following his stroke I purchased an EZ-3 SX trike for him which fits him good and he really likes and rides regularly. Also, my tadpole trikes either have no adjustment or very little adjustment to accommodate other visitors, whereas the EZ-3 has almost infinite seat adjustment.

I first stuck a C965 display on the trike, but the handlebars are too long and I couldn't place the control button near the end. My brother only has the use of one hand/arm so it was important to place the control button near the handgrip. So I installed a C963, which worked out great, except this unit does not display miles or MPH, only KM. I'll probably add an independent bike computer.

Edit: The battery sits in the ammo box on the back of the trike.

Edit: Those of you with sharp eyes will note that the C963 display is on the left side. My brother only has use of his right hand, so the rule will be he either picks no assist (he can pedal okay with his feet strapped to the pedals) or level 1 assist when stopped. On the right side, the brake lever is the standard one with the e-brake in it (The right brake lever has a parking brake). I also added one of the e-brake green buttons to the right side so he can temporally cut power.

 

[Nobuo]

it looks really beautiful and clean!

how much range do you get at 25mph?

so the rear axle move both rear wheels with some kind of differential?

 

[Rassy]

Thanks for the comments nobuo.

how much range do you get at 25mph?

No tests of range have been done and probably won't be since this isn't my primary ride. Also, I not only like cruising at about half that speed, but add some pedal input all the time. I'll probable set the max speed to about 15 MPH before my brother ever uses it. I set the Bafang system on my tadpole trike for a max of about 20mph for legal purposes.

so the rear axle move both rear wheels with some kind of differential?

No, these trikes and other EZ-3 models are set up with just the right rear wheel being driven. It works good on solid surfaces. I remember seeing comments in the forum years ago about using delta trikes as winter transportation when there is ice and snow and models that drive both rear wheels were needed.

 

[amberwolf]

FWIW, the rear axle unit I used on SB Cruiser drives only the left wheel, and when pedalling it during original tests before motorizing it, I found it harder to turn sharply left, by quite a bit, than right; I suspect it's similar for yours, only for sharp right turns instead. Part of my problem is likely gearing, as I only have one ratio, and it is low but not really super low (not low enough for me to pedal it without motor power for any distance without a lot of pain and distress).

Now I have motors on both rear wheels, and they also have the same issue, in that the motor on whichever side I'm turning sharply towards will be a lot harder to use for that than the one on the other side.

 

[Rassy]

Thanks AW. My first trike was the EZ-3 USX and I don't recall how sharp right hand corners affected it. I had steep hills and ended up equipping that trike with three hubies, one on the front wheel and two on a push trailer, with about 100 pounds of SLA in the trailer.

My Daughter-in-Law still has the trike with no trailer and the original WE BD36 on the front wheel using a 15AH 48V LiFeP04 battery. She loves it.

I do remember trying to pedal that trike, with no motors installed, up my 20% grade driveway. As long as I kept some speed up I could do it, but when going too slow the front end would just slide to the left during each power stroke, and you could definitely not start from a dead stop because the front end would just slide to the left.