# Commuting on a pedal assist electric bike



## Gibbyent (15 Dec 2009)

Having passed the 400 miles on my new bike I thought it may be of use to share my experience.

I have never been “athletic” however I have always cycle commuted when I can, mostly for the exercise.

About a year ago my offices moved from a 7.5 mile commute to a 12 mile commute with the extra miles on a busier route with more stressed drivers on it. After 9 months of commuting it got too much for me with the combination of tiredness and the stress of dealing with the aggressive, deliberately intimidating driving on the last few miles, I switched to commuting by car.

I then bought a E-motion City Deluxe 700 hoping to decrease the travel time on the commute and fatigue. I must say it has made a drastic difference to my commute, I am now looking forward to it rather than dreading it. It has cut about 15 minutes off the commute each way and I am less tired at the end of the week. 

The unexpected difference is in safety, because I am no longer struggling up hills or slow away from lights, I have noticed a lot less aggression and close passes from drivers.


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## hackbike 666 (15 Dec 2009)

I enjoyed riding aroung Karon and Patong Thailand on a pedal assist Kalkhoff it was very good one I got used to it.(I hired it there)

Only one thing was it was very heavy.

Oh yeah the bike was a Kalkhoff German bike.

What are the prices of electric bikes?


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## potsy (15 Dec 2009)

hackbike 666 said:


> I enjoyed riding aroung Karon and Patong Thailand on a pedal assist Kalkhoff it was very good one I got used to it.(I hired it there)
> 
> Only one thing was it was very heavy.
> 
> ...


Just looked at those Hackbike,£1200-1300 very nice though,hub gears,built in lights.
One question-how easy is it to get the rear wheel on and off for punc*u*e repair on electric bikes? A colleague of mine has a cheapo one and says it's 'a nightmare' so much so he has put a greentyre on it.
Just over 20kg for the bike with battery too.


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## Gibbyent (15 Dec 2009)

I paid about £1600 for mine, it has a crank motor so all the wheels and drive chain are standard bike parts. 
Looked at several models and they even had some to try at work as part of bike week. Tried a rear hub motor but it did look a nightmare to change.
My previous commuter bike was hub gear / brake and was a pain to change, which was why I didn't go hub geared with the electric bike.


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## trickletreat (15 Dec 2009)

If you have any questions re electric bikes, then Steve at Electricmountainbikes.com is a great guy. No pressure to buy and he does some great custom builds. Customer service is superb for a one man band.

Here are a couple of pics of my bike, fitted with a steel geared high torque Heinzmann hub motor. It is great when pulling a trailer, but take it off road on seriously steep tracks and you soon find out why he fits a break away cable to the battery pack! It will get you up stuff you would not believe possible, but then it was put together to deal with the North York Moors and Dalby Forest, where he is a guide/ instructor.


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## jimboalee (15 Dec 2009)

Ahem.

You're on an "Electrically-assisted pedal cycle".


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## MacB (15 Dec 2009)

the e-motion seems to come in two sizes only 49cm or 54cm, bit on the small side


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## Gibbyent (15 Dec 2009)

jimboalee said:


> Ahem.
> 
> You're on an "Electrically-assisted pedal cycle".




From one pedant to another "get a life"

It is a bike that electronically assists you pedalling


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## jimboalee (15 Dec 2009)

MacB said:


> the e-motion seems to come in two sizes only 49cm or 54cm, bit on the small side



Big lads ride 'proper' bikes.


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## Gibbyent (15 Dec 2009)

MacB said:


> the e-motion seems to come in two sizes only 49cm or 54cm, bit on the small side



The 49cm is plenty big enough for me but then my car has a ridiculously short bonnet.


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## trickletreat (15 Dec 2009)

jimboalee said:


> Big lads ride 'proper' bikes.



We are both in Solihull, the next time I pass you, shout hello..


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## jimboalee (15 Dec 2009)

The 'most sensible' electrically-assisted bicycle I have seen to date is the Schwinn World GSE.

It is a regular bike with the battery on the rear rack and the motor in the front hub.

The frame geometry is 'normal' and the electric-assist kit weighs 12lb.

The whole bike is lighter than my Apollo County 3 speed Sturmey commute bike 

From only a short distance, it cannot be seen as an 'electrically-assisted' cheat machine.


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## MacB (15 Dec 2009)

Gibbyent said:


> The 49cm is plenty big enough for me but then my car has a ridiculously short bonnet.




Hey, I'm not mocking and think they're a great idea, the sporty deluxe version is the same weight as my, leg power only, hub gear commuter. But that's a 60cm frame and I'm not especially big, two sizes just seemed a bit limiting.


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## trickletreat (15 Dec 2009)

MacB said:


> Hey, I'm not mocking and think they're a great idea, the sporty deluxe version is the same weight as my, leg power only, hub gear commuter. But that's a 60cm frame and I'm not especially big, two sizes just seemed a bit limiting.


Many different styles and sizes of bikes can be retro fitted with electric hubs, with either pedelec or throttle controlled E-bike kits.


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## jimboalee (15 Dec 2009)

I can mock cus I've been there and got the T shirt.

In a professional capacity only. Test rider for a group of engineers at a research establishment.

I had to dress like The Stig.


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## BentMikey (15 Dec 2009)

I'm not against electric bikes, but they're no use to me. They'd run out of range part way through my commute, leaving me with a 'kin heavy bicycle and a big hill to cycle up on my own.


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## levad (15 Dec 2009)

BM you could fit a dynamo to keep the battery charged up


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## Gibbyent (15 Dec 2009)

BM depends on your commute I quite often do the 12 miles to work on 1/5 of the battery and rarely manage to use more than 4/5 over 24 miles even when I am at my laziest.


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## hackbike 666 (16 Dec 2009)

potsy said:


> Just looked at those Hackbike,£1200-1300 very nice though,hub gears,built in lights.
> One question-how easy is it to get the rear wheel on and off for punc*u*e repair on electric bikes? A colleague of mine has a cheapo one and says it's 'a nightmare' so much so he has put a greentyre on it.
> Just over 20kg for the bike with battery too.



Didn't have a p*nct*re while I was out there so never had to worry about it.The bike weighed a ton though and very bulky.

It was hilly out there and I was surprised how easily I got up those hills considering I haven't been fully fit for a long time.I reckon I could use one of those on my commute if need be but I know that BM's commute is more hilly.


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## jimboalee (16 Dec 2009)

levad said:


> BM you could fit a dynamo to keep the battery charged up



More expensive electronics can accommodate 'regenerative braking', allowing the motor to become a generator on downhill freewheel parts of the journey; and at speeds over 15 mph.


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## hackbike 666 (17 Dec 2009)

jimboalee said:


> More expensive electronics can accommodate 'regenerative braking', allowing the motor to become a generator on downhill freewheel parts of the journey; and at speeds over 15 mph.



I can understand that,our trains have that fitted.


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