Hi!
I've been lurking here sporadically for a year or two, but this is my first post. Please bear with me.
I'm looking for a safe, maintainable speed pedelec with as low a lifetime cost as possible. That's the important bit I guess.
Some less important bits, in random order...
To get to work, shop and friends a few times a week. I have some experience with 30km one way on a 25km/h ebike, and that tastes like more. My best client is over 60km away. I rented a local shop's dual battery bike to get a feel. No hills, but it took me an hour and 45 minutes. Batteries were nearly empty by the end of each leg though.
I'm absolutely allergic to manufacturers deciding what I can do with my things. I've heard horror stories about ebike batteries refusing to work because they need to be blessed by a mechanic or the manufacturer. Not with my bike. Forget it.
I've also heard and read a bit about absurdly strict EU rules. I'm fine with ignoring these as long as it's safe. As long as I don't get into expensive trouble with insurance or police.
My bicycle repair skills are limited, but a good friend has been tinkering with mechanical bikes since the age of six. He's very much willing to help on anything mechanical.
Electronics and software don't scare me. I enjoy them. I play with those all the time, as long as it's free software.
How would you tackle this? What type of motor would you use and why? Questions! Questions! Questions!
frugal
I've been lurking here sporadically for a year or two, but this is my first post. Please bear with me.
I'm looking for a safe, maintainable speed pedelec with as low a lifetime cost as possible. That's the important bit I guess.
Some less important bits, in random order...
To get to work, shop and friends a few times a week. I have some experience with 30km one way on a 25km/h ebike, and that tastes like more. My best client is over 60km away. I rented a local shop's dual battery bike to get a feel. No hills, but it took me an hour and 45 minutes. Batteries were nearly empty by the end of each leg though.
I'm absolutely allergic to manufacturers deciding what I can do with my things. I've heard horror stories about ebike batteries refusing to work because they need to be blessed by a mechanic or the manufacturer. Not with my bike. Forget it.
I've also heard and read a bit about absurdly strict EU rules. I'm fine with ignoring these as long as it's safe. As long as I don't get into expensive trouble with insurance or police.
My bicycle repair skills are limited, but a good friend has been tinkering with mechanical bikes since the age of six. He's very much willing to help on anything mechanical.
Electronics and software don't scare me. I enjoy them. I play with those all the time, as long as it's free software.
How would you tackle this? What type of motor would you use and why? Questions! Questions! Questions!
frugal