Thread: e-bikes ....Comments please.

Yeah Thanks Sleepy.

A brand new "Must Have" I never new existed.

That thing is cool.

CC

IMO an e-bike up to 200W is a bicycle and only has to conform to basic standards of brakes reflectors etc. A motor over 200W would require it to be a registerable vehicle, wouldn't ADR's apply?

As for purchasing e-bikes, I don't like the commercially available ones as they generally have too few gears to be able to ride then without battery power. 10AH is for riders around the flats, a couple of big hills will flatten it.

One of the guys I sometimes ride with is 87 years old and has a commercial e-bike, he gets around 50km out of a 12AH battery in the hills.

I bought a 200W rear wheel kit from China and installed it myself, did a bit of fiddling to get 7 speeds on the rear and kept the 3 speed front set. With a 36V 30AH lithium battery strapped to the carrier it lets me go out in the Adelaide Hills when I am feeling too feeble to ride the regular mountain bike. It does around 100km of hills with careful assistance use.

I like the sound of this one too. Sort of CVT arrangement.

ZOCO

I had an e-bike when I started out because I thought no way can I ride into the city from home... 12.5k

So, I started with an e-bike kit. I quickly found out that the extra setup time, tinkering time, charging time, and generally stuffing around time far outweighed the 5 minutes it saved me a day.

Because... the extra weight of the battery, motor etc largely offset the gains that the motor gave. Sure you had some extra oomph there but if you just got into it and rode the hills became easier pretty quickly.

Plus... I had a race with a couple of guys on road bikes and I realised they could beat me on my electric hybrid everywhere - on the flat, down hill... and even up the hills.

And then there is the quality of the average chinese e-bike. They are built to last no more than a couple of years and then be thrown away.

So, my take on it would be just man up and ride. If you can do it often the riding will be easier and before you know it you'll be fit as a fiddle.

IMHO ebikes are ok but only the better quality ones (like the Gazelle) which will last a long time and suit people who are getting about the place to appointments and the like. Handy.

Thanks Captain, I know you are right.(I can here my Doctor and Wife agreeing with you!)

I also know I am a lazy...

I only have 3 km to work and walk it most days. The reason I thought the ebike would be good is that I wouldn't work up a sweat and could "zip" home for lunch. (Bit too far to walk home for a one hour break! - for me anyway!)

Yes the quality is an issue that concerns me.

Not legal but the only E-Bike I'm interested in.

Stealth Electric Bikes Australia | Bomber | Electric Bike

That looks awesome!

Originally Posted by Sleepy

Thanks Captain, I know you are right.(I can here my Doctor and Wife agreeing with you!)

I also know I am a lazy...

I only have 3 km to work and walk it most days. The reason I thought the ebike would be good is that I wouldn't work up a sweat and could "zip" home for lunch. (Bit too far to walk home for a one hour break! - for me anyway!)

Yes the quality is an issue that concerns me.

Mate... for three K it's more trouble than it's worth!

Even if you were to average a sedate 20kph it would only take you 10 minutes. An electric bike would at most save you three minutes each way and it will take you way more than that in stuffing around. At that speed you should be able to do it and not get sweaty either and will certainly be able to do it in whatever clothes you have on.

Spend the money you had marked for your e-bike on a really nice conventional bike and it will be a joy to ride. Maybe one with internal gears for low maintenance.

Give it a whirl and then start taking the long way home and before you know it you won't look back. I started riding to work 18 months ago and I'm now down from 108 to 76! Wohooo! I can close the door on the Defender without shuffling left.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-AbPav5E5M"]Bicycle rush hour[/ame]