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RadTrike Electric Tricycle

radpowerbikes.com

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Re: RadTrike Electric Tricycle

#121

Post by dohdhdaa »

UncleOxidant wrote: post #63
dohdhdaa wrote: post #52

I am a decently experienced NYC cyclist. Not Terry Barentsen or anything, but pretty decent at biking both in fitness terms and in practical urban NYC riding. The biggest problem with e-bikers, and general e-thing riders, as a population, is that they haven’t built the bike skills equivalent to the speed that they can go at. I can ride 20mph if I want to, but it took a long time for me to be able to do that. I had to…

What does 'salmon' mean here? The first time I read it above, I thought you meant 'slalom' but then you repeated 'salmon' several times so it seems deliberate.

Salmoning is going the wrong way. It’s ridiculous in NYC, especially on streets, a street going the other way is almost always one short block away.

Shoaling is cutting in line at lights. Inexperienced cyclists/e-whatever riders are notorious for this. It’s not dangerous but is very poor etiquette if you are not going to absolutely blow away the people you cut when the light goes green.

So, if you cut someone on a Citibike (local terrible heavy bike share bike) on your Specialized Tarmac SL7 in full kit, then, like, whatever. Not that bad. The Citibiker probably doesn’t even realize it’s rude.

But if you cut in front of kitted up people on road bikes on a Citibike, you better have some monster legs.

Anyways I notice this a lot with e-bikes recently. But the thing is that I am actually faster than them, despite riding a “regular” bike. So it’s very annoying.

And half the time they’re wearing AirPods and are just completely oblivious as they do this. Honestly the median Citibiker is not much better, but at least they only go like 8mph.

Re: RadTrike Electric Tricycle

#122

Post by dohdhdaa »

bityard wrote: post #71
UncleOxidant wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What does 'salmon' mean here? The first time I read it above, I thought you meant 'slalom' but then you repeated 'salmon' several times so it seems deliberate.

I want to know what it means to "shoal" on a bike. There are just too many marine references here.

http://bikesnobnyc.blogspot.com/2018/06/shoal-me-money.html?...

Re: RadTrike Electric Tricycle

#123

Post by steelframe »

nomel wrote: post #97
mgrthrow wrote: post #39

Electric bikes are an order of magnitude more efficient than cars and several times more efficient than bikes. (Measured as calories/electrical power). People who ride electric bikes still get the benefits of exercise (elevated heart rate, muscle use) though obviously less than regular biking. I ride mine year round in Seattle, it's incredible. I deliver cargo, go grocery shopping, visit the library. This should be t…

Where I am, it's illegal for bicyclists to ride on the sidewalk, so you're left with a couple of feet of space beyond the white line, in the unprotected shoulder, with a speed difference of around 30mph, and often a curb to make sure you eat it if you're pushed beyond. With the number of people I've seen weave into the shoulder, biking being the default would be a blood bath.

> biking being the default would be a blood bath

The theory I've heard is that cyclists being on the road is only a problem when it's the exception. When it's rare, motorists aren't expecting it and are driving in a way that doesn't accommodate it.

If cycling were "the default," motorist behavior would be very different because everyone would be expecting it.

Re: RadTrike Electric Tricycle

#124

Post by teruakohatu »

0xCMP wrote: post #111
Gigachad wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem with ebikes is they cost several thousand dollars and are impossible to secure against battery powered grinders. Cars are relatively hard to steal, and regular bikes are relatively cheap to replace. Escooters are so popular probably because it's so much easier to bring them inside and on elevators unlike this clunky trike.

Yup I suspect the same thing. I love electric longboards because they're even easier to keep by you at all times, but they're much less safe than an escooter.

When I see electric longboards in the city I am using astounded at the risky maneuvers done by the operators. While I am sure it is a lot of fun, the through of dealing with the serious inconvenience of a broken arm or wrist puts me well off.

The same can be said of the vastly-overpowered e-scooters that seem to be popular where I live (far larger than the usual Segway style e-scooters). All the speed of a small motorcycle (60 km/h+), with far less ability to brake or survive minor potholes.

Re: RadTrike Electric Tricycle

#125

Post by jandrese »

germinalphrase wrote: post #60
simfree wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Replacing the discs on each wheel is straightforward, and the warping your noticing might be due to pressure from the mounting screws that tie it to the rim of the bike. Have you tried loosening these, applying the brakes fully, and tightening the screws hand tight to center the brake disc and let it relax to flat? I think the future is dual hub motors with Regen braking. Having tried this on a brakeless bike and a m…

Brakeless bike? Are you able to emergency stop?

I assume "brakeless" means it energizes the motors in reverse when you pull the brake lever. Just no friction brakes. Not a system I would personally use, I don't trust electronics that much.

Re: RadTrike Electric Tricycle

#126

Post by JKCalhoun »

darzu wrote: post #35
jeffbee wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I usually recommend electric bikes from actual bike companies, like Specialized, because there won't be any weird surprises, you won't have to assemble it yourself, and it will last forever. But everyone I know, other than myself, has gone with a newer electric-only company like Rad or VanMoof. I assume price is the reason.

I've a friend with an electric Specialized, and while his bike looks cooler my Rad is faster, half the price, with much better millage, and I can still hang it from the wall in my apt. One thing I've noticed is that pretty much every established bike company is placing the motor on the pedal crank, whereas Rad uses a much bigger (750w in my case) in-wheel hub motor. The acceleration with a hub motor is so much better…

I'm not a fan of hub motors. I don't like that much "sprung" weight on the wheel.

Re: RadTrike Electric Tricycle

#127

Post by gorgoiler »

qwertox wrote: post #75
googlryas wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yup, same. I bought my radwagon 4 in august, and then in early september was told I should not ride it. And maybe they will be ready to fix it in Feb/Mar, or maybe it will be later. If it was just me, I would risk it, but I bought it to ferry my kids on so I'm not going to do that. So we got to ride it for 4 weeks, and have had it sitting in our garage for the past 13 weeks, and it will probably be another 13 weeks u…

Hazard: The rim strip on the tires can be misaligned, causing the tube to pop and damage the tire. Additionally, the tires with a ribbed sidewall can unexpectedly go flat, risking serious injuries from loss of control and/or crash. This is something a beginner can repair. This is normal stuff for those who ride bikes and don't go to a shop for little repairs. Replacing a tube (and fixing it with a small vulcanizing k…

It’s quite dangerous doing work on the rear wheel. It takes a lot of equipment to get the bike into a stand (ramps, trestles) or on its back. The rear wheel has the motor in it and is very heavy.

Rad designed the drop outs nicely and there’s only a cable tie and a power cable to undo, but I had still had to use a rope as a winch to hold and then lower the wheel out of the frame.

If you’ve done a lot of bike work you’ll know about the danger of crushing your finger between the rear axle fastener and the derailleur body. Now imagine that with a 10lb wheel falling out of the rear dropouts. It’s a pretty dangerous job if you don’t take your time and do things safely and it made me really appreciate how easy it is by comparison to work on a simple, light, mechanical pedal bike.

Re: RadTrike Electric Tricycle

#128

Post by dsfyu404ed »

analog31 wrote: post #103
squarefoot wrote: post #84

Trikes with upfront single wheel are dangerous; I would any day take a bigger one that has two wheels upfront and is street legal in the EU to use in place of the car for longer trips. Health issues, many steep hills and the need to take highways rule e-bikes out completely. I'm in love with the Arcimoto Roadster which, high costs aside, sadly isn't street legal here.

Indeed, 3-wheeled all terrain vehicles were outlawed after there were a lot of injuries. An elderly gentleman in my locale made himself a trike with 3 wheels in front. He rode at less than a walking pace, but was out all the time. I made a mental note for if and when I can longer get around on two wheels.

>Indeed, 3-wheeled all terrain vehicles were outlawed after there were a lot of injuries.

I believe you meant to say "after a few injuries and a moral panic originating among demographics that don't tend to expose themselves (moreso their kids) to risk of injury very much."

Nobody cared when farmers had three wheelers. But at some point as they moves in from the rural areas to the exurbs and into the outer suburbs and a line was crossed and they went the way of lawn darts.

I wouldn't want a three wheeler as transportation but as entertainment or a utility vehicle they're fine, not stupid proof but fine.

Re: RadTrike Electric Tricycle

#129

Post by jeffbee »

JKCalhoun wrote: post #126
darzu wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've a friend with an electric Specialized, and while his bike looks cooler my Rad is faster, half the price, with much better millage, and I can still hang it from the wall in my apt. One thing I've noticed is that pretty much every established bike company is placing the motor on the pedal crank, whereas Rad uses a much bigger (750w in my case) in-wheel hub motor. The acceleration with a hub motor is so much better…

I'm not a fan of hub motors. I don't like that much "sprung" weight on the wheel.

The one thing they have going for them is true silence.

Re: RadTrike Electric Tricycle

#130

Post by gorgoiler »

dohdhdaa wrote: post #49
gorgoiler wrote: post #3

My 2021 radrunner plus has some serious defects. The charging port is prone to weather corrosion. Charging is a risky action that may or may not blow some very sensitive fuses. The mechanical disc brakes suck and are very hard to balance. The discs were supplied warped. I pretty much had to suck that up because of the misery of returning a faulty machine to an online bike company. The seat is a notorious bum numbing…

3000km seems ridiculous as the lifetime for a bicycle, and to make it worse an e-bike will be e-waste. That would mean it was trash in a year for my commute alone, and this is in NYC where commutes are pretty short. That doesn’t even account for recreational riding. That being said a puncture is just a normal bicycle problem. Does Rad offer tubeless compatible components? I’m guessing e-bikers may be less “normal bic…

Everything is 2x heavier and so everything needs two hands.

Changing a tube on my road bike is like flipping a pancake. Changing a tube on the RadRunner is like flipping a turkey.

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