# Electric Bike choice.



## dashanova (28 Nov 2013)

Right now I've got a hopper. Which i got because of ill health.
Anyway the hopper isn't much to look at, though it is a cracking little bike.

I'm planning getting a new bike soon, and wanted to see what others knew (or thought) about these ones.
Here are the links:-

This one looks great, good price, great battery, legal, great suspension and lightweight. Throttle for a quick take off.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Electric-...1323558496?pt=UK_Bikes_GL&hash=item3cd8190e60

Heard good things about this one. Good price, legal. Throttle.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Cyclamati...0961148001?pt=UK_Bikes_GL&hash=item43bea2c861

Heard good things about this one as well and it uses the same battery as the hopper which i have found to be a very reliable battery. Again, a great price and legal, plus throttle.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00BWUZNOU/ref=dra_a_cs_lb_hn_it_P1400_1000?tag=dradisplay0bb-21

I'm tempted, im really tempted! This one goes 30mph plus, but can only be used off road (i mainly ride off road anyway). Heavy bikes though, and i wonder if the tyres could handle all that weight after a long time.
http://www.alienbikes.co.uk/page13.htm

So this is just some chit chat about e bikes. Maybe you know some good ones you could share with me? 
Or maybe you could tell me about your current ebike and give a little review.

I'm so undecided right now as to which new ebike to get and exploring all options and best buys.


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## steveindenmark (14 Mar 2014)

Get a Tonaro Bighit and get it from Powerpedals.

Excellent bike and first class service.

http://www.powerpedals.co.uk/

Similar post.

http://www.cyclechat.net/threads/e-assist-for-a-bacchetta-giro-att-20.151688/

Steve


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## bobolicious (9 Aug 2015)

I remember 8 or 9 years ago I got my first e-bike. it was great. I don't drive so its my main source of transportation. and over the years I have learned how to fix and DIY electric bikes. They are becoming more and more popular. It all just depends on what you need it for and how skilled you are at fixing things. If you have lots of hills and a longer distance then I would suggest buying the parts online such as ebay an putting one together yourself. Now days they make it pretty simple, especially with the kits and such. If you want something that will go farther then your prebuilt one I suggest a mid drive. They go on your crank / pedal and it thrusts power as you pedal making hills a breeze to go up. Some also come with throttles on those. If you want to go faster and get allot more miles per single use then I suggest buying a rear hub motor and setting it up yourself. That's what I use. I have a 4,000 wat motor compared to a 500 wat that most prebuilt ones come as because of the speed laws. Mine will go 41 mph which can be nice at times but does not mean you have to go that fast. The bigger the batter Volt the faster your bike will go but also the bigger the Volt the farther you will be able to travel on a single battery charge. The prebuilt e-bikes usually get about 15-25 miles where as if you buy your own battery and build the bike yourself you can go over 100 miles on a single charge. It also comes down to cost. How much your willing to pay. A prebuilt bike usually runs about $1,000 and up for a halfway decent / average 20mph bike. If you build one yourself including buying the Bike / motor / battery / controller / throttle. your looking at more of $1500 and up. But it will have much more power and longer distances this way. I spent about $3,000 total and my bicycle will go 41 + mph and up to 35 miles on a single charge. Hope this helps.


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## Pale Rider (9 Aug 2015)

Things have moved on a bit since the OP posted in 2013.

As has the OP, who has not been back since then.


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## bobolicious (9 Aug 2015)

Yes, they are great and I also enjoy fixing them up and knowing I can turn a walmart bike into something that fly's down the road. Its even better to use it as your daily commute to and from store / work ect. without having to use main roads with all the traffic. I take side streats and dirt paths and sidewalks. No gas ever. not much hassles at all. Just a matter of plugging it in and charging it for 2 - 3 hours before you go anywhere. Another great use for them is when I go to big flea markets. Instead of walking all around I just ride all around slowly. I love riding them. They are reducing slowly in price. but I don't think as much as you would think because now everyone is starting to build there own. I Seen many companys make high end pre built ones for 10,000 and up which if you built it yourself for less then half that price. So building one yourself is the best way to go. Pluss you can know what speed you will get and get the bike you prefer. My first e-bike I got was nice but it was prebuilt and when I got it home it was to small for my stature. They tend to use smaller frames do to being cheaper I guess.


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## Ed Phelan (11 Aug 2015)

E-bike prices seem pretty reasonable right now, although I can't say what they were like in 2013. I'll say that they've definitely come on leaps and bounds since we first saw them; much higher quality frames and kits, better battery life, and generally unobtrusive on the road. Also seems like one of the best ways to get people out of their cars more often.

I know that Kalkhoff make a good electric bike, all road legal and pretty damn good looking if you ask me; http://www.50cycles.com/electric-bikes.html

Bobolicious, I think the smaller frames are so the motors can generate enough power without a heavyweight frame weighing it down.


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## bobolicious (13 Aug 2015)

nice, Yes I do like those bikes on that link. Although they are priced way to high. My first e-bike as I stated above, I got many years ago like 8 years ago and it was priced at $1,999 which is usa dollars. I converted your prices from pound to usa and the lowest one was about 2,000 pound and they went up to 2,600 pound which is $2,900 usd. Also they don't give you certain facts about the bike which I don't like. My bike came with 5 levels of pedal assist / key start / battery monitor screen, throttle. and the motor was 750 wat, which at the time was the highest. Now days they use about 500 wats in most motors due to the fact of the speed regulations and don't see the need to make it go any higher. So for what I got back then compared to what you get now, I'm not so sure I would agree with the prices going down. You have to watch what kind of bike you buy. Company like to talk them up and say stuff that sounds good for their product but has no use to you. The parts that matter are the motor volts and the battery, the rest are just cosmetic. So that's why I think its better to build one yourself otherwise you are paying extra for a bike that looks pretty. My first e-bike was smaller frame but was extremely heavy so I don't think the reason for the small frame was to save on weight lol. But that being said Since I build my own electric bikes now days, I prefer the heavier frame bikes only because I go faster and want something that is solid and not going to fall apart on me.


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## ufkacbln (13 Aug 2015)

Some basics?

To use on the road it has to be legal 

200 W motor on a bicycle (250W on a tricycle or tandem)

In either case restricted to 15 mph

After that decide what you want to achieve

Some have throttles that act like a motorbike independent of the pedals, some have a throttle that only kicks in if pedalling above a certain speed and some have "assist"

In the latter case the hub reads the pedal input and subsidises

Each has its pros and cons

We chose pedal assist as it means the rider is still maintaining a level of fitness, but has the power when needed


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## bobolicious (13 Aug 2015)

Yes many choices to choose from. I have both pedal assist on my bike and throttle with strickly just the motor. I use the pedal assist when I want to ride slow and cruise around easier or if I have a big hill in town then its a big help and then I don't have to worry about slowing traffic down. and I still get my exercise in. I use my throttle for full on speed on back roads and other areas. Mine has 4,000 watt motor and with my average battery I can get just over 41 mph and I never had a problem with cops or any other issues. I had a cop stop at a red light tho and ask me about how fast it went. I told him it goes the speed limit lol. He got a kick out of that but just told me to be safe and get a helmet. They really don't care unless you are being stupid / reckless with it. But overall I would say it depends on the person and what they want to achieve like Cunobelin said. I would not recommend a elder person getting one that goes 60+ mph. If you decide you want one with pedal assist they make kits for them now days and its as simple as putting a direct drive motor on your crank / pedal. allot cheaper then buying a full on pre built one. and they look more nicer I think. Especially, say you already have a bike sitting around then you don't need a new bike just buy the kit / motor. The higher end motors are not only for speed but for torque. so that means if you buy a pre built bike you may not be able to make it up a steep hill as well as if you buy a do it yourself kit / motor.


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