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Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

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Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#431

Post by jacquesm »

Obi_Juan_Kenobi wrote: post #156
jacquesm wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I haven't, I didn't even know it existed!

You've been hacking and building an e-bike without knowing about the largest online forum for exactly that?

Thinking about this a bit longer: this is in a way a bit like saying 'you built a computer without knowing about hacker news?'. I don't particularly care about fora other than HN (and Twitter, but that's far more general than HN), I just like to tinker with stuff and that's a different thing every other week. I'm sure there is a piano forum, a lego forum, a forum for insomniacs and so on. But I'm not all that interested in those fora, I'll find my own way and when I get really stuck then I may go and see if there is something that can get me unstuck and if that's some forum somewhere I'll read it - likely without even noticing the domain - make some notes and move on again. I really don't need more sites that I have to visit regularly to keep up on some subject. I'm probably a-typical in that way but I have three or four sites that I use regularly and the rest is on an as-needed basis as the answer to a search query.

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#432

Post by jacquesm »

junker37 wrote: post #429
jacquesm wrote: post #425

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The second (to walk on the left) is actually the recommended way to walk when there is no footpath because you see the oncoming traffic and they see you. Which is much better than being hit in the back by something you never saw coming.

OP was referring to pedestrian/bike paths. I believe everyone should stay on the right. I agree, with car traffic, pedestrians should be on the left.

I realize: and that's why I wrote that, after all, bike paths also have faster traffic on them, notably scooters and those can be very quiet, especially e-scooters.

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#433

Post by smichel17 »

jacquesm wrote: post #170
nybble41 wrote: post #153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You're not really a regular bicycle anymore due to your speed… The top speed (with assist) for class 1 & 2 e-bikes is well within the speed range of a regular bicycle. 15 MPH is considered a reasonable average speed for beginners, and 18-22 MPG is not out of the question with training. I've ridden my own e-bike past 20 MPH with no assist on occasion, and being a foldable model designed for electric assist it has a…

I've tried driving over the top of the motor on this bike and it is almost impossible. I'm a pretty strong cyclist and I never managed more than 48 kph and that only very briefly. The drag is insane.

This is my biggest gripe with ebikes. On a regular bike, there's a nice curve where you can always push yourself a little more to get a little extra speed, tapering off a little as your speed becomes too high for your gears. On an ebike, you have the assist until you don't, and (especially in high power mode), the wall when exceeding the assist threshold is too extreme to be worth fighting.

I wish someone would make an ebike that gradually dials down the assist in the last 5-15kph (depending on max speed; my experience is mostly on a US class 3 bike that caps out at 45kph; I'd like it to gradually ease off starting at ~30kph).

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#434

Post by antisthenes »

m4x wrote: post #238
rjbwork wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have an e-bike and I disagree with your assertions. I'm a fat asthmatic and I have absolutely no problem maintaining 40kph for long stretches of time on my bike. The fastest I've done on it (on a large hill but still) is 42.7MPH (~68Kph). Average cruising speed on flat land can easily be 30-33mph(48-53kph). Not all e-bikes are capable of this, but they are certainly not some kind of rare expensive impossibility - m…

I'm curious - what ebike do you have that can easily cruise at 48-53 kph for extended periods? In most countries that would be far above the legal limits imposed on ebikes. As a result, the ebikes available for purchase are all limited to 25-32 kph max and typically have power limits of 250-300 W. Since ebikes are a lot heavier, exceeding 32 kph for more than a few seconds is generally very difficult. I don't think G…

> I'm curious - what ebike do you have that can easily cruise at 48-53 kph for extended periods?

Those speeds sound like bogus. I can maintain about 40kph on my ebike on a flat surface, but that requires pedaling in addition to the motor and is a fairly energetic exercise.

Also, pushing beyond 45kph, you really start to feel the air resistance and it becomes exponentially harder to go beyond 45kph for any long period of time, unless going downhill.

Most ebikes don't really come with the chainring size to go up to high speeds, unless modified with a giant 50+ size, which is more apt for racing road bikes (non-electric)

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#436

Post by antisthenes »

aftbit wrote: post #377
m4x wrote: post #238

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm curious - what ebike do you have that can easily cruise at 48-53 kph for extended periods? In most countries that would be far above the legal limits imposed on ebikes. As a result, the ebikes available for purchase are all limited to 25-32 kph max and typically have power limits of 250-300 W. Since ebikes are a lot heavier, exceeding 32 kph for more than a few seconds is generally very difficult. I don't think G…

Class 3 limits in the US (pedal assist only, no throttle allowed) are set at ~28 mph (~45 kph). Class 2 limit (throttle allowed) is ~25 mph (40 kph). I've also ridden some DIY'ed ebike conversions with unlocked controllers that'll happily hit 40 mph (65 kph) if you're feeling particularly suicidal that day.

I have a modified ebike with an unlocked controller.

Without commenting on safety, let me just say that 40mph is a fantasy, unless you're going down a VERY steep and long hill. It also requires you to be in a road racing bike position, or air resistance will flat out not let you go that fast (people are quite wide)

But my bike is otherwise stock. There is no extra power added to the stock Yamaha motor (250W rated, ~400W peak power). The only thing that is removed is the 28mph limiter.

The DIY conversions that let you go 40mph (I've seen the videos just as well) are more in the realm of electric mopeds and motorcycles than bikes, IMO.

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#437

Post by seanmcdirmid »

whimsicalism wrote: post #303
seanmcdirmid wrote: post #295

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In China, the rich drive while the poor make do with e-bikes. Yes, you wouldn't feel comfortable in those lanes, but people still need to live.

Oh I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing at all - just that it is definitely not the case that you can comfortably comingle normal bikes with those lanes.

There aren't many normal bikes left, or rather, they are becoming a luxury.

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#438

Post by jholman »

rjbwork wrote: post #291
user_7832 wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure why you would assume the author is being disingenuous. Your bike is almost certainly very different from the author's, and a more powerful motor is going to get you faster. Fun fact/side note - power requirements generally scale with the cube of speed due to rapidly increasing air drag, so going at 50km/h is much harder (and requires a much stronger motor) than going at 30km/h.

I specifically did not choose the word disingenuous. I asked him to be more ingenuous. His assertion was "there is absolutely no way you are going to sustain 40 Kph+ for anything but a very short period". I disagree, and I think minimizing the capabilities of these machines in the rhetoric is counterproductive to converting skeptics. In the US it's 100% legal to go 28MPH on them for as long as you can - which for me…

A side pedantry note, in the hopes that it's appreciated:

Usually "more ingenuous" would mean "more naive" or "more childlike" or "less capable of deceit", none of which seem to be what you intended.

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#439

Post by jacquesm »

scotty79 wrote: post #435
jacquesm wrote: post #362

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It adds about 7 kg.

That's super light for that kind of range!

Yes, that's what I figured. I was a bit concerned that the reduction in range from accelerating the extra mass would be a problem, but that's only about 6% change and once it's going there isn't any difference. It's a bit more cross wind sensitive though due to the enclosed area in the frame.

Re: Show HN: Long Range E-Bike

#440

Post by jacquesm »

93po wrote: post #416
bredren wrote: post #269

I built a stretch cruiser ebike out of parts, including a bafang / 8fun mid drive and 52v “shark” style battery. It does pedal assist and straight up throttle to danger in lickety-split. This is a cool project, however, I wouldn’t have gone this route because: It isn’t a great idea to lock up an ebike, but there are circumstances where you might want to and you’ll want to take the battery with you when you do. If you…

If the battery isn't easily removed then I would say it's probably just as safe to lock up this ebike as much as any other expensive bike. It'd be really hard to flip/fence with a custom battery like that though

Batteries are stolen more frequently than bikes!
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