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Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

jacquesmattheij.com

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Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#31

Post by ralusek »

TacticalCoder wrote: post #27

We really need a terminology to differentiate better between pedal-assist only e-bikes ("pedelec") and electric motorbikes. A "bicycle" that can accelerate without the need to pedal at all is an electric motorcycle, no matter if you put pedal on it or not. I see the two as totally different things: I've tried pedal-assist e-bike and they're great. But... Although I have nothing against motorbikes I'm not cool at all…

> I'm not cool at all with basically motorbikes getting a free pass because they're disguised as bicycles

Why? Seems like a pointless distinction in regards to any sort of rules. Surely where they're allowed to operate, for example, should be based on things like speed and weight, rather than "whether or not the operator is moving their legs in a circular motion."

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#32

Post by cassepipe »

I still remember the author of of the post for making pianojacq, a free in-browser piano learning helper software Yet another interesting project! I wish I had the knowledge to dive into making the same bike. How about a crowd funding effort to manufacture some more?

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#33

Post by jacquesm »

dQw4w9WgXcQ wrote: post #29
nousermane wrote: post #11

> S-Pedelec (...) top speed 45 kph (...) in many places you are forced to ride in traffic Yes. This is the way. Thank you, Dutch government. If somebody feels like wheezing an almost completely silent 200kg projectile, godspeed. But please gtfo from the urban bike paths, if at all possible.

All the speed of motorcycles without the sound awareness, what could possibly go wrong? My overall experience is that E-bike riders generally have decent cycling manners, it's the scooter and unicycle riders that seem to think they can just crank their walking speed up to 30mph and go everywhere a pedestrian would. I usually just give them a firm "heads up next time" when I get buzzed by an electric motor whine at 20…

Scooters are a plague (and this bike is classed as a scooter, unfortunately, so I'm lumped in with the worst), but a bigger danger is mobile phone use by cyclists. That's roughly 1/3rd of all the adults and 2/3rds of the teenagers here.

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#34

Post by jacquesm »

1-more wrote: post #23
jacquesm wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

About 35 to 36 Kg. Bike + rider is 105K, which is actually not that bad. Your typical parent+bike+two kids is a lot heavier, I've had my 'daddy bike' up to well over 130 Kg before one of the kids was old enough to ride by themselves. Full speed to stop is pretty good too, I did a couple of e-brakes to see how the change of weight and COG affected the bike. Stopping distance is a bit longer, it doesn't kick out when b…

haha I'm more than that on my road bike and I'm stopping with rim brakes. This is incredibly impressive work; congratulations! Can't wait to see the update. I suspect you're going to be just fine on water ingress based on what the inside of the package looks like.

The tricky spots are the front top where the cables run over the top of the pack, that's a perfect spot for water to seep in and at the very bottom where the spray from the wheels hits the bottom of the pack. Once it's properly sealed that won't be an issue though, but in this experimental phase I'm eyeing the skies carefully before a ride to make sure I won't end up being drenched. A couple of spatters it will definitely survive but a full-on Dutch-dunking could well be problematic.

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#35

Post by phreeza »

TacticalCoder wrote: post #27

We really need a terminology to differentiate better between pedal-assist only e-bikes ("pedelec") and electric motorbikes. A "bicycle" that can accelerate without the need to pedal at all is an electric motorcycle, no matter if you put pedal on it or not. I see the two as totally different things: I've tried pedal-assist e-bike and they're great. But... Although I have nothing against motorbikes I'm not cool at all…

The pedaling aspect is also not really what matters, because you can in principle reduce the load factor so much that the pedals also just become a fancy throttle, no?

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#37

Post by jacquesm »

phreeza wrote: post #35
TacticalCoder wrote: post #27

We really need a terminology to differentiate better between pedal-assist only e-bikes ("pedelec") and electric motorbikes. A "bicycle" that can accelerate without the need to pedal at all is an electric motorcycle, no matter if you put pedal on it or not. I see the two as totally different things: I've tried pedal-assist e-bike and they're great. But... Although I have nothing against motorbikes I'm not cool at all…

The pedaling aspect is also not really what matters, because you can in principle reduce the load factor so much that the pedals also just become a fancy throttle, no?

No, there is a direct relationship between the power exerted and the power the motor will add. There is a nifty torque sensor built into the cranks.

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#38

Post by twodave »

Awesome project Jacques! I saw a comment of yours on an article a day or two ago and was hoping to see this pop up soon.

I've found the most difficult thing about riding an e-bike is the other motorists have no idea how to react to you. You're not really a regular bicycle anymore due to your speed, but you're also not a motorcycle that deserves its own lane. I have at least one car turn in front of me almost every trip out just because they're misjudging my speed. I get honked and yelled at when on the road because folks get frustrated when I'm using the left-hand side of the right-turn lane as a bike path.

Sidewalks/bike paths tend to be a lot less safe in residential areas as well, since cars coming out of their driveways really don't expect an e-bike to come rolling through. I've learned to dramatically reduce speed in areas like this.

Aside from those things, I love it! I ride the e-bike whenever I'm going somewhere in range (I live in Florida so things tend to be spread out) and the weather permits. My bike gets about 80km which is more than enough for anyplace I want to go on a bicycle anyway.

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#39

Post by jacquesm »

TacticalCoder wrote: post #27

We really need a terminology to differentiate better between pedal-assist only e-bikes ("pedelec") and electric motorbikes. A "bicycle" that can accelerate without the need to pedal at all is an electric motorcycle, no matter if you put pedal on it or not. I see the two as totally different things: I've tried pedal-assist e-bike and they're great. But... Although I have nothing against motorbikes I'm not cool at all…

I come across modern Solexes with regularity on the bike lanes here, never seen one in traffic.
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