Reviews and Modifications of ebike model: XB-310Li

[SergeTruth]

The bmsbattery 24V LiFePO4 doesn't work - probably too little current (Amps). I've had this problem with LiFePO4 before - I've built LiFePO4 packs before, but they had very little Coloumbs, so they were pretty much useless. I have a lot of LiFePO4 cells laying around. Maybe I'll make a backup power supply for computers out of them.

I ordered the bmsbattery 36V 10AH Li-Po battery, like you, Stig. It works fine with the 24V controller, except the controller gets warm. I think it is possible to burn it out with heavy usage, so I might want to look into getting another controller.

The speed with 36V is nice, I estimate around 20mph - there is no real need to pedal anymore, except to get some load off the motor when going uphill.

The speed with 24V got clocked at 14mph by one of those school-zone speed radars. There is a frequent need to pedal.

24V is plenty when off-roading and fine for riding on side-walks. 36V is fine and 36V*10AH = 360WH, so more range overall, but 36V might be a little too fast to be safe on side-walks. Overvolting might kill the controller sooner also. As it is now, it is good to have both options. The batteries are light, so I can ride with both available.

 

[The Stig]

Thats great you can just unlock and take off the old 24V battery and switch it with the 36V battery! That would make this ebike worth a lot more. It probably still has the old current limit though, 14A. You could try shunt modding the controller but it would be advisable to improve the cooling somehow, better heatsinking of the fets or something. It is a 6Fet controller if I remember correctly.

I would discourage riding on the sidewalks and if you do its good to go nice and slow with less throttle.

 

[Bigmunch]

Hi,
Thanks for the great info, I just ordered one of the x-treme XB-300li's ( the non-folding model ) and I want to make sure that this is the correct battery that you purchased, as your original link does not go to that item. I am not sure if the 300li uses the same battery setup as the 310li.
Anyways, is this the battery you guys were talking about
?


http://www.bmsbattery.com/packs/162-36v-10ah-lithium-ion-alloy-shell-ebike-battery-pack.html
,
thanks,

Bigmunch

 

[The Stig]

It looks like they have different battery setups! post a picture of the 300Li so we can see compare!

That link is not the battery for the 310Li and I don't think its the one on 300Li.

 

[Bigmunch]

Here is a pic of the bike, I would think that there are many bikes using this same setup, but I have searched the internet for a battery upgrade and so far have come up empty.
The descriptions of the ebike say it uses a 24 volt 8ah battery which has 7 cells

http://urbanscooters.com/fhimage/indexshow.php?phto=XB-300Li


Hopefully you experts can guide me in the right direction.

PS, I just found this info on their online user manual, looks like it won't be that difficult:
"What’s Inside Your XB-300Li Battery
The Battery is composed seven-cell, 8 Amp-hour capacity
batteries in series, for a total capacity of 24 V, 8 Ah.
The component batteries are a standard, commercially
available size. Keep this in mind, however, should you
choose to service your battery.
1) The batteries are soldered into place. Replacing
batteries will require soldering equipment and
skills.
2) Batteries can be extremely dangerous. If allowed
to short-circuit, they can cause burns, create
blinding arcs, or explode, causing serious injury. If
you accept this risk, work slowly, and exercise
utmost care! Work with only one wire at one time."

 

[Bigmunch]

Searching around online I found this website , do you think I could adapt this setup to work ?

http://www.batteryspace.com/Customized-Polymer-Li-ion-Battery-29.6V-1050mAh-31-Wh-10A-rate.aspx

Let me know what you think,
Thanks in Advance ,
Todd in Florida, USA

 

[The Stig]

Searching around online I found this website , do you think I could adapt this setup to work ?

http://www.batteryspace.com/Customized-Polymer-Li-ion-Battery-29.6V-1050mAh-31-Wh-10A-rate.aspx

Let me know what you think,
Thanks in Advance ,
Todd in Florida, USA

Thats a tiny battery. If your bike has a similar controller to the one mine came in, this battery would not meet the power requirements. My controller had a 14A limit.
I would recommend you get some detailed pictures of the battery your bike comes with. Have a ruler with a scale in the pics. Then find a better battery that you can just swap. You might also need to swap the controller.

 

[Bigmunch]

Thanks, as soon as my 300li arrives I will post up some pics of the battery with some measurements.

 

[SergeTruth]

I've been using the 36V battery a lot lately and it works great. In densely populated areas, pedaling makes it go too fast, so it's mostly riding on battery. The battery that comes with the bike (24V 10Ah) is too weak, but it's ok as a backup. The 36V battery is a must-have upgrade for this bike. The power indicators doesn't work properly (it's always on full), but the battery works great.

BMSBattery has changed their web site. Here is the battery I have:
http://www.bmsbattery.com/packs/17-36v-lithium-ion-little-frog-abs-shell-ebike-battery-pack.html

This one should also work:
http://www.bmsbattery.com/packs/168-36v-12ah-little-frog-li-ion-electric-bicycle-battery-pack.html

BEWARE: I have purchased their 24V LiFePO4 little frog battery and it DOES NOT WORK.
BEWARE http://www.bmsbattery.com/packs/16-24v-lithium-ion-little-frog-abs-shell-ebike-battery-pack.html BEWARE

The little frog batteries mount onto the bike without any modifications.

 

[Bigmunch]

I am going to have to search around for a solution, since the 300Li's battery is in a rectangular/Tube enclosure on the seatpost/frame. I sent this query to the x-treme tech via email:


I have an xb-300li on the way to me. My cousin offered me his xb-310 battery. I want to know if his xb-310 battery can work with my xb-300.
What would I need for it to be a back up for me? Do I need to purchase the dock parts? Will the controller on mine work with his battery? Please let me know. Thank you!

-

The tech's answer was short and sweet":
Subject: XB300Li

Posted by Gary (Staff)

Hello,

The batteries are not interchangeable between those 2 models.

Sorry,

Gary

 

[Bigmunch]

Well,
Had to refuse the first bike today when UPS showed up with a battered box with multiple holes in it, tools from the tool kit were strewn around the UPS freight truck and the front wheel was visible, a few spokes showed damage so I refused the shipment. My other bike arrives tomorrow, hopefully that one will be in one piece.

 

[The Stig]

Ouch thats unlucky. Sure you don't wanna take this chance to exchange it for the 310Li
My UPS guy was really good and encouraged me to open the box because it had a hole, and check everything in the middle of the street outside my former college

 

[The Stig]

XB-310Li owners and possibly other commuter ebikers, Check this out:


48V5Ah Li-Ion "Little Frog" EBike Battery Pack
http://bmsbattery.com/48v/324-36v-lithium-ion-little-frog-abs-shell-ebike-battery-pack.html

Packing list:
1. 1Pcs 48V5Ah Li-Ion NiCoMn Little Frog ABS shell ebike battery pack. Included 13s 6665143 cells, 1pcs 10A continuous discharge current smart BMS.
2. 1pcs Lithium Ion battery EMC-120 48V2A aluminium alloy shell charger.

Li-Ion NiCoMn Little Frog ABS Shell EBike Battery Pack Specification:
1. Normal Voltage:48Volts.
2. Dimension: 80mm X 150mm X 250mm.
3. Capacity: 5Ah.
4. Charge Current: 2Amps.
5. Maximal Continuous Discharge C-Rate: 10Amps(24V).
6. Maximal Discharge Current: 20Amps.
7. Overvoltage Protection: 85.6Volts.
8. Undervoltage Protection: 35.75Volts.
9. Lifecycle: 800Cycles.
10. Weight: 3.5Kg.
11. Chemical: Li-Ion NiCoMn.

EMC-120 Lithium Ion Alloy Shell Charger Specification:
1. AC Input Voltage: 90V~132V or 200V~264V.
2. Charge Voltage: 54.6Volts.
3. Charge Current: 2Amps.
4. AC Plug: Europen Standard or American Standard.
5. Power: 120Watts.

The pictures are very loosly tied to reality. The charger in the picture says 43.8V so its probably for the 36V version...? Charge voltage stated for this 48V version is 54.6V.
I wonder if we could find anyone whos bought one of these. I own the 36v10Ah version. I might tell a friend to by this one to power a cute 108.

 

[Racer_X]

Will 48v frog battery work with the stock XB-310Li controller?

 

[The Stig]

Will 48v frog battery work with the stock XB-310Li controller?

Doubt it. Although the 36V battery works with it. What are the caps rated at...

 

[eugenem]

Hi everybody.

What do you think of EW-475. I was looking to buy the xb-310li but it seems out of stock everywhere so I ended up purchasing the EW-475. Still waiting for delivery but judging by the photos and the specs it looks like xb-310li upgraded with a 36v battery. Can't find any reviews of it though. According to this http://visforvoltage.org/topics/electric-bicycle it is new and only came out in late March.

I am new to ebikes and was wondering what you think the speed and torque is going to be like in comparison to the xb-310li since this bike already comes with the upgraded battery.

Any thoughts and opinions would be appreciated.

 

[The Stig]

Well I'll be damned... Its the exact same thing only it comes at 36v and has fenders!!! I hope it has better brakes as well. I also strongly recommend the emoto Ridge 3.0 as a XB-310Li. The XB-310Li/EW-475 is for larger taller people.

Maybe the EW-475 can be upgraded to 48V! Get us some pictures of the inside of the controller when it comes! Specifically what the Caps are rated at.

 

[eugenem]

Will do. It should get here within a week. Any thoughts on performance and how you think it compares to the stock xb-310li since this one has a 36v battery? I was ready to buy the xb-310li and upgrade to a 36v right away based on the comments in this thread when I saw this bike. Hopefully this just means they did the upgrade for me.

 

[The Stig]

Hopefully they've changes more than just the battery! That would be pretty getto if they didn't upgrade at least the controller as well. I imagine the hardware would be upgraded too. Are there any other pictures/closeups of it?

 

[eugenem]

I don't have anything yet. I am still waiting for the bike and it should arrive next monday (5/16). I'll post pics when I get it.

http://www.high5scooters.com/productinfo/ew475.htm has quite a few pictures of it, but few useful closeups.

 

[The Stig]

Nice, it looks like a SIGnificant improvement from the old XB-310Li. Better parts all around. The wiring is better hidden. They use the updated battery mount. The old one didn't even come with folding pedals or fenders. It did have a good rack though. I'm anxious to see what controller this thing has.

 

[eugenem]

Just got the bike aaaand it's DOA

Called support and they think it's a blown fuse. Will replace it and hope it works after that. I'll take pics over the weekend and post them here.

Other than this, the bike looks very solid and well built.

 

[The Stig]

Have you done any testing? Battery voltage? Is the controller getting power?

 

[eugenem]

It was the fuse and the bike is up and running; however on the way to the radio shack, one of the pedals fell apart I put it together again but seem to have lost some bearings. No faith in the stock pedals so I think I'm going to look for new, better ones.

My impressions so far are based on my limited experience with ebikes. The torque seems surprisingly underwhelming compared to my wife's ezip trailz, $400 bike. That being said my top speed today with no pedaling and head wind was around 18mph, which seems to be pretty good and I look forward to testing it on a better day.

I hope I can improve the torque and increase the top speed with some modifications and I'm looking for any suggestions on how to do that. I will post the pics over the weekend.

 

[eugenem]

Sorry for the delay, the weather was terrible all week and I've had no chances to ride.

Here are a few pics of the bike. There were no identifying marks, stickers or anything else on the motor so I have no idea what it's capable of. I did not have a chance to take the controller housing apart to take pics of it but after searching for the manufacturer listed on it I found their listing for this controller:

http://njyl.en.alibaba.com/product/257825623-209510695/electric_bike_controller.html

The listing is for all three of their controllers (24, 36 and 48v). The one in this bike is a 36v.

The quality of the bike is surprisingly good. So far I have replaced a stock set with something more comfortable, It is clearly made for taller people. I am 6'1" and if the new seat was any higher I would not reach the pedals. The stock seat is smaller and will accommodate shorter riders. That being said I had to buy a stem extender because the handlebar was ridiculously low considering.

What kind of a lock are you using for the xb-310li? It has the same frame and I found that I cannot attach/store any standard U locks to it. There's just no space. What kind of a storage rack do you recommend?

Finally I would love to hear your thoughts about overvolting this bike. I am enjoying it but it is just too weak. There's way too little torque even when compared to my wife's ezip trailz and I would love a bit more speed. How much power do you think the motor can handle? Should a switch to a 48v battery and if so can the existing controller handle it? If not, what do you recommend? I would love something that would fit into the existing casing as I really like the clean look it has right now.

I am very new to this and only starting to get up to speed when it comes to amps, volts, etc Any help would be greatly appreciated.