[OT] Electric Bikes

["Followup-To:" header set to rec.bicycles.tech.]

John Bailo said:

I'm thinking of buying an electric bike.

electric-electric-Open ↗
bikes.com/others.htm#U.%20S.%20Pro%20Drive

Maybe a Currie e-folder or ZAP bike.

www.zapworld.com

I would like to spend around $600 because I live in a high
crime zone, so I was thinking a folder so I could take it
inside with me, but at the same time my commute involves
ascending a large hill ( 6 grade, 3 miles ) down in the
morning, up in the afternoon so then I thought of a zap
mountain bike.

Any suggestions? Experiences?

Not any experiences, but those bikes seems a bit
dangerous/weak to me (very small weels, low top speed), more
like a toy and not something for regular useage. Why bother?
why not use a regular bike and get some exercise? Nice that
the down part is in the morning too, so that you don't need
to get sweaty when arriving for work. 3 miles / 6 grade is
not that long/steep, it should be possible to ride on a
regular bicycle.

My advice would be: do not bother. If you need something
else on two weels than a regular bicycle get a 125ccm or
something that is actually useful (and has enough power to
ascend that hill in a higher speed than walking/bicycling).

Erling

PS: I suppose the message fits better here than in some
linux advocacy group...

John Bailo said:

I'm thinking of buying an electric bike.

electric-electric-Open ↗
bikes.com/others.htm#U.%20S.%20Pro%20Drive

Maybe a Currie e-folder or ZAP bike.

www.zapworld.com

I would like to spend around $600 because I live in a high
crime zone, so I was thinking a folder so I could take it
inside with me, but at the same time my commute involves
ascending a large hill ( 6 grade, 3 miles ) down in the
morning, up in the afternoon so then I thought of a zap
mountain bike.

Any suggestions? Experiences?

I bought a Zap Bike to commute to work. I quickly got over
the novelty of the electric boost and bought a regular bike.
The batteries and motor are just not worth their weight.

I was worried about getting to work in a sweat, but that's
just not that big of a problem. And if it's really hot,
you'll sweat on an electric, too. The motor only does some
of the work, not all.

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by John Bailo
I'm thinking of buying an electric bike.

electric-electric-Open ↗
bikes.com/others.htm#U.%20S.%20Pro%20Drive

Maybe a Currie e-folder or ZAP bike.

www.zapworld.com

I would like to spend around $600 because I live in a high
crime zone, so I was thinking a folder so I could take it
inside with me, but at the same time my commute involves
ascending a large hill ( 6 grade, 3 miles ) down in the
morning, up in the afternoon so then I thought of a zap
mountain bike.

Any suggestions? Experiences?

There's also this place:

bestarscooter.comelectricbicycle.htmOpen ↗

Which has the /coolest/ looking bikes, but they don't seem
to have an e-store or US location...

--
W '04 <:> Open

Currie is not a great choice for small wheeled folders because the motor and gearing were designed for 26” wheels and the lower drive wheel rpm leaves you maxing at about 13 mph on a 20” wheel. There have been rumors Currie may be exiting the electric bike business to focus on their more profitable electric scooter business. Lashout and Synergy are two new Currie like entries in the $700-900 range apparently using Currie parts on full suspension mountain bikes, better bike quality and 600W motors, although Currie is upgrading likewise. You do have some extra chain friction when not using electrics from the left side chain drive has the freewheel located at the motor rather than hub.

Zap’s roller drive only works on hardtail bikes, is among the least efficient electric drives, and prone to slip on wet, particularly on uphill runs. But it is easy to add to a folder, and the roller drive produces the same speed independent of tire size. When not in use, you don’t have the extra rolling resistance with the disengaged roller drive spaced away from the wheel, and the DX is about 2 lbs lighter than the Curries, and of course has the regenerative braking feature.

Some of the Best models you showed have regenerative braking, there are a few US sellers on Ebay below the price range you mentioned.

Panasonic has a nice folder at about twice the price range you mentioned, and the Estelle Folders are also available for under $1000 at NYCEwheels.com, both available with light NiMH or NiCd batteries. Try also Evdeals.com and try EVSolutions.net for some Crystalite Hub Motors.

Electrics tend to be at their best in the 90+ temperatures since you can get circulating breeze without a lot of effort on a hot day. Also headwinds, since you have extra aero--drag-torque without pulling the extra mass uphill. You haven’t mentioned your distance, if you have more than 15 miles, the extra assist probably doesn’t make up for the extra weight you may be dragging after the batteries are dead.

Yahoo Groups Power Assist is one of the major discusion forums.