Keep the Schwinn or Replace it with .....?

[Mammalian04]

Hey Guys,

I have a couple of big bad Full Suspension bikes and Fat Bikes in the works but I need to build something simple and safe that my son's Wee-Ride seat can mount to.

I have been using my wife's Walmart Schwinn (no girl bike jokes) but I am having trouble working out where to put the battery and if I should upgrade the brakes to disks.

Should I find another place to mount a battery and buy some mechanical disks brakes or buy something else inexpensive and used with an open triangle and disk brakes already.

 

[Mammalian04]

Ok, sorry guys. I can't for the life of me figure out how to make all the pictures show up without having to click on it but you get the idea.

Thanks for the help!

 

[Drunkskunk]

At the speeds you would be going with a kid in front of you, rim brakes are superior to disk brakes. They offer better modulation for better performance at low speeds. If y6ou are looking to have the best brakes possable to fit on your bike, then keep what you have, and install KoolStop brake pads.

There aren't many full suspension bikes that could take a center battery like that. Most are high dollar. And since your kid will outgrow the seat in a year or two, you may not want to invest in a bike that may not be needed in a short time.
For that reason, I'd suggest mounting a rear rack. Depending on the battery weight, a seat post rack may be the best option. I've found the $19 Bell Seatpost Racks from places like Dick's are actually superior for ebikes compared to "better" seat post racks, as they are made of steel and can handle more weight.

 

[Mammalian04]

Thanks DrunkSkunk. That's really the direction is rather go anyway. Too many bicycles /eBikes around the house as it is.
I'll see if I can get a rear rack. More versatile than the tail rack maybe.

Thanks for the KoolStop recommendation too. I'll pickup a couple pair of their pads!

 

[motomech]

I don't know. I look at the pics and think the bike looks ok, but do you need to use a monster motor?

 

[Dauntless]

The two that don't appear are too big. Note the bottom one is 400x225, while the two that are only links are almost 1400x800.

 

[Mammalian04]

I don't know. I look at the pics and think the bike looks ok, but do you need to use a monster motor?

Honestly, I am not really sure what the motor is. It's a large diameter but actually pretty thin. Probably for the best with the radial lace. I have tried to find tech specs with the model number but came up empty. I was told it was a 9C but I can't find anything the matches it.

 

[Mammalian04]

The two that don't appear are too big. Note the bottom one is 400x225, while the two that are only links are almost 1400x800.

Thanks Dauntless. Not sure why as they were all resized together. I will mess with it more tomorrow when at the computer.

 

[dogman dan]

Might look into mounting the battery on the wee ride thing. It could remain on the bike even if you didn't take the kid on that trip.

But yeah, to use that EM3ev bag, you'll need to get a hard tail bike with more triangle space. Just another excuse to ride your bike to all the nearby garage sales.

For motorized outings with the kid, I'd be looking for a 7 speed beach cruiser.

 

[Mammalian04]

Thanks Dogman. Good idea, though I am a little nervous mounting the battery to my kids seat. I already stay up at night thinking about the fastest way to remove my kid (or the entire seat if something funny happens with the battery). Thinking about it more, I kind of like the idea of getting it out back on a rack so I am in between my kids and any potential fire (as remote as the possibility may be).

Regarding a beach cruiser, that would be cool for cruising around but I already have a similar build (Luna Cycle fat bike), but with a gigantic Lighting Rods big block motor on it. Again, my nightmares would be a runaway high powered motor with my kid strapped to the bike. This fat bike/cruiser may be the better option though as sometime next year, my new baby will be big enough to come along and I will need to mount a bigger seat somewhere for my 3 year old son. The Luna has an enclosed metal battery box so that helps with fire concerns and strong mounting points I could reinforce for a rear seat and 45 lbs 3 year old. For the rough state park trails we ride, the rigid frame isn't great but hopefully the fat bike wheels will help keep the ride quality near the crappy Schwinn suspension we have now. The wheel base on the Luna and ground clearance may be a problem on the trails but I'd just have to be more careful and selective in my routes (especially carrying 2 kids).

Hmm... Maybe I DON'T need another eBike, but rather a solution for mounting seats on the Luna.

I will probably still mount the motor on the Schwinn anyway because... why not have another eBike if I have the motor! :lol:

 

[Paderolis]

I use the WEE-Ride on my Trek 4300 HT, I bungy it to the rear rack when not in use. The battery pack (3 18.5V Lipo bricks in series) are is the triangle. It works well for me!

 

[Mammalian04]

Nice Paderolis. Do you find your chest hitting the back of your kid's helmet? Even at 6'2", I still bump my son's head a lot. I wondered if this would be even more pronounced for me on a more appropriately sized longer bike (my wife's bike is a small or medium frame so the riding position is more upright for me).

I see the R1 peaking out back there. I always liked the red rim stripe on black bikes. My R1 is on the other side of the red bike but you'd cry seeing it. Front end all torn up, again... Unfortunately, both bikes hardly get ridden on the road or the track anymore. Instead, free time spent riding with my son more often now so that is why I am thinking about upgrading the bike to eBike status.

I like the JBL speaker system you got there. Cool idea. Would make fore some cool cruising around with tunes (e.g. Old McDonald, Kanye, Wheels on the Bus, Zac Brown Band, Rafi, etc...). My random iPod mixes are "not so cool" anymore but the kids more than make up for that. :wink:

 

[Paderolis]

My chest does not hit his helmet while riding, this is probably because I drilled another hole in the support frame to position the Wee-Ride seat further forward. The R1 actually belongs to one of the salesmen here at my job; I have a 2008 Suzuki Hayabusa myself! It's got some scars, too! lol The JBL works really well, and produces excellent sound!

 

[Mammalian04]

Nice, thanks for the ideas!

My wife is a Busa fan. :wink:

 

[Paderolis]

Nice, thanks for the ideas!

My wife is a Busa fan. :wink:

Anytime!
Awesome!

 

[dogman dan]

Ha, of course you need another e bike. I was not thinking about putting a dangerous type battery near the kid. I was thinking it could be attached much closer to you, than to the kid.

I might misunderstand the type of kid carrier. I thought it was the one like a trailer, where the kid sits on a bike seat, and hangs on to handlebars. This all attaches at the bike seat post. So I was thinking battery mount on the trailers hitch arm, positioned exactly where a rear rack would normally be.

 

[Mammalian04]

Hey gents, just an update. I installed the little hub motor on the Schwinn. It looks pretty rough so I'll post up some photos after I clean up the wiring...

 

[Mammalian04]

Wired the bike back up but still need to resolve battery mounting.

 

[Mammalian04]

Installed a torque arm. Now I just need to install the rack to put the battery on. Seat post rack is not strong enough... I made little stand off brackets to get the bottom of rack to fit but the to is too far away from the stays and seat post. New parts on Wednesday to reach and we should be all good. Really, I ought to get a smaller battery though...

 

[dogman dan]

Make your rack strong with some bracing added between the mid point of the rack, and the seat tube. Bolt on the braces, drilling a hole right through the seat tube, and the seat post. After you adjust the height of course.


BMX handlebars to sit more upright and not bonk the kids head?

 

[Mammalian04]

Thanks for the photo Dogman!