Sunder
10 MW
I didn't think there would be one. More parts, greater general acceptance, used bikes to buy and modify, etc. At worst, I thought if they were mostly home made, one or two incidents would cause police to start cracking down on the obvious duct tape bikes. But since Covid, almost all increases are factory electrics, and I'd say now they've gone from about 20% of the bikes I see to over 90, maybe closer to 95%. Yup, only somewhere between 1 in 10 and 1 in 20 bikes are see are NOT electric.
So what's the down side? I brought my half finished project bike to the LBS this weekend. I usually do ALL servicing of the bike myself, but when I saw the list of tools required to install a centrelock disc brake, and fill then bleed the system, I thought it would be quicker and cheaper to pay them to do it. Unfortunately, they refused. They wouldn't work on any part of the electric bike, unless they were the ones that sold it. Could not budge them from it. Even suggested I could remove the rear wheel and battery mount, and it's just a normal bike with no rear wheel. Nope, would not budge.
I rang around a couple other LBSes, same story, won't service an electric bike - not even the non electric bits, unless it's one of theirs. The insurance companies must all have the same rules.
So now, I'm not sure if I should just swap out the rear wheel for a human powered spare, not tell them, and get them to do the job, or order all the tools, knowing I'll be changing disc rotors... Well the amount I'm riding into work lately, maybe once a decade?
What's everyone else's experience? Is this a purely Australian thing, or does nobody use LBSes here? (We are a pretty DIY forum).
So what's the down side? I brought my half finished project bike to the LBS this weekend. I usually do ALL servicing of the bike myself, but when I saw the list of tools required to install a centrelock disc brake, and fill then bleed the system, I thought it would be quicker and cheaper to pay them to do it. Unfortunately, they refused. They wouldn't work on any part of the electric bike, unless they were the ones that sold it. Could not budge them from it. Even suggested I could remove the rear wheel and battery mount, and it's just a normal bike with no rear wheel. Nope, would not budge.
I rang around a couple other LBSes, same story, won't service an electric bike - not even the non electric bits, unless it's one of theirs. The insurance companies must all have the same rules.
So now, I'm not sure if I should just swap out the rear wheel for a human powered spare, not tell them, and get them to do the job, or order all the tools, knowing I'll be changing disc rotors... Well the amount I'm riding into work lately, maybe once a decade?
What's everyone else's experience? Is this a purely Australian thing, or does nobody use LBSes here? (We are a pretty DIY forum).