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Ham Equity posted:It seems like with the hills, the distance, and my lack of fitness, e-bike is the way to go (even if I take light rail, I have hills at both ends), but I figured I'd start here and see what people can recommend, and any tips for commuting you'd have. I read through the OP, and it seems like a class 1 or class 2 would probably work for me; one concern is weight, since I'd be occasionally hauling this thing on public transit; how heavy are these things? I know batteries aren't light, is it possible to haul them around on light rail/get them into front-of-bus racks relatively easily? I bought my ebike because I was bike-curious (40, fat, hadn't ridden since uni) and knowing that it wasn't 100% on me sweating to get to work was a big help psychologically. I wouldn't get too caught up in the Class thing, a lot of bikes in the US are all three if you've got a screwdriver or your mfr has an app. If you're going to need to use transit for the middle, I would start by looking at their policies. I've heard some places refuse to carry ebikes on bus racks. Ebikes, unless you start looking at more sport focused models are pretty heavy. My cruiser with racks is nearly 75lbs and Aventon's folding Sinch 2 is apparently 66lbs. I wouldn't want to deal with lifting that while carrying clothes, lunch and laptop. There are lighter folding ebikes out there, but you're going to pay more for it. Unfortunately hills (power, battery capacity) + transit (low weight) are basically competing priorities. Might be worth checking if there are any ebike dealers in your area (or around the hills) so you can see what you're looking at in person.
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Jul 26, 2023 02:07
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Boys who love boys
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You can also do that 1 mile with a 2-wheel mini Segway. Like the smaller one that has a mini stick in the middle for your knees to hold for additional balance. They are powerful enough to climb hills. I am not going to suggest an electric unicycle heh. stephenthinkpad fucked around with this message at 02:17 on Jul 26, 2023 |
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Jul 26, 2023 02:15
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Going to go against the thread here and recommend that the OP uses this opportunity to splash out on a folding e-brompton
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Jul 26, 2023 02:21
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Sphyre posted:Going to go against the thread here and recommend that the OP uses this opportunity to splash out on a folding e-brompton I mean yeah, if you want an ebike you can easily carry on the Light Link during commute hours, this is your answer.
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Jul 26, 2023 02:24
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9CjBLIivlo
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Jul 26, 2023 02:28
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Sphyre posted:Going to go against the thread here and recommend that the OP uses this opportunity to splash out on a folding e-brompton
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Jul 26, 2023 02:28
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mystes posted:I'm not sure if you're serious or not but even with unlimited money, at only .75 miles at each end this seems like more trouble than it's worth to me I'm sure OP will find other reasons and excuses to ride it 
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Jul 26, 2023 02:32
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if they're not going to take it on the light rail they probably don't need a brompton then
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Jul 26, 2023 02:39
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But OP could take it on light rail sometimes, and bike their whole 6.5 mile commute other times! They can also use it to get other places that may or may not involve light rail! That's the flexibility that only Brompton gives you.
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Jul 26, 2023 02:50
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Or they could use an escooter to get to the light rail sometimes and a normal ebike other times, probably for much less money I'm sure bromptons are the best folding bikes, but it's probably still easier to take an escooter on the light rail
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Jul 26, 2023 02:51
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Yeah you can get a $1000 escooter that run much faster than an e-brompton.
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Jul 26, 2023 02:58
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I think a lot of the Brompton appeal is lost with the weight of a motor and battery.
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Jul 26, 2023 03:38
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Sphyre posted:Going to go against the thread here and recommend that the OP uses this opportunity to splash out on a folding e-brompton This seems like a troll, but even if it's not, unfortunately my fat rear end is well above the weight limit for those. monsterzero posted:I bought my ebike because I was bike-curious (40, fat, hadn't ridden since uni) and knowing that it wasn't 100% on me sweating to get to work was a big help psychologically. mystes posted:Or they could use an escooter to get to the light rail sometimes and a normal ebike other times, probably for much less money stephenthinkpad posted:Yeah you can get a $1000 escooter that run much faster than an e-brompton. If anyone has any ebike suggestions for the heftier among us (what did you wind up going with, monsterzero?), I'd appreciate it.
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Jul 26, 2023 04:37
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A lot of models are saying the weight limit is 400 pounds now, not 275 like it was when I got my own several years ago. Unsure if this is them giving less of a poo poo or if there has been scientific progress.
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Jul 26, 2023 05:07
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Ham Equity posted:This seems like a troll, but even if it's not, unfortunately my fat rear end is well above the weight limit for those. 50-55 lbs is right where most e-bikes land. Mine is 60-ish I think, but I can pop out the battery if I'm worried about the weight limit. I'm a big fan of G&O Cyclery in Greenwood if you're up that way.
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Jul 26, 2023 05:18
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Nessus posted:A lot of models are saying the weight limit is 400 pounds now, not 275 like it was when I got my own several years ago. Unsure if this is them giving less of a poo poo or if there has been scientific progress. I had gone with that because I'm a big guy, it can handle people of my height and of my weight, and I have a "secure" area where I could leave it outside without hauling it up stairs. Whoops to that though, one of my neighbors decided to rent their place out on AirBnB and put a combo lock with a key inside on the security gate, someone got that open on 4th of July with a sledgehammer, got the key, and had a night covered by explosions to get my bike. I should be covered by renter's insurance but getting SFPD to create and allow you to have a copy of a police report you file takes at least 4 weeks normally so I've been on the bus again lately. fermun fucked around with this message at 05:31 on Jul 26, 2023 |
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Jul 26, 2023 05:25
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Hollismason posted:Yeah they only have the slightly more expensive Pace 500.3 but they only charge 100 dollars to put it together. I got my policy through All-State, who does my home insurance. It's actually from Markel, the same company that underwrites the Velosurance and seems to be the defacto ebike insurance these days. I pay $310 a year for full boat coverage on a $4k bike. Haven't had to actually use it yet and I hope I never will, but I'm generally pleased. tildes posted:Vanmoof bankrupt: https://www.gearpatrol.com/outdoors/a44535158/vanmoof-ebikes-bankruptcy/ Weird that they're bankrupt, I was in Amsterdam a few months back and the amount of Van Moofs there is astounding. Multiple parked on every street, I must have seen a few hundred just walking around town for 4 or 5 days. Not as ubiquitous as the black bikes but they're everywhere. Which makes sense because they're a Dutch company and all. Hollismason posted:Oh hey thanks for this information. I'm going tomorrow to test out the Aventon Pace 500.3 which if it works I'll end up buying. What is MUP? I bought a Hiplook D1000 from REI when it was on sale for ~$230. I don't know if it is or isn't overkill but apparently it's about as good as the marketing hype says it is so it helps alleviate my anxiety of parking my bike around town.
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Jul 26, 2023 15:18
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mystes posted:I don't think I would use any bike for .75 miles at both ends of a light rail commute. A scooter might make more sense for that. I definitely would, in that in almost all cases I'd much rather ride than walk. I used to bike the 0.25mi to the closest CVS to me. Obviously overhead adds up. I lived on the first floor in the apartment closet to the building entrance, so there was virtually 0 added effort to wheel my bike out. Similarly, it could be really tedious to store and lock your bike on the train. But if it added an extra minute each side of an hour ride, I'd (just personally) still take it. Ham Equity posted:This makes a lot of sense, thank you. Looking at it, local buses have a 50-55 pound weight limit, and since I'm going to guess a bike that can safely hold my weight is gonna be even heavier, probably gonna have to nix the "take it on buses" option. quote:If anyone has any ebike suggestions for the heftier among us (what did you wind up going with, monsterzero?), I'd appreciate it. https://www.ternbicycles.com/en/sup...0safe%20riding. QH is 51lbs, HSD 57. Weight limits 330 and 374, respectively. I wouldn't feel guilty about throwing either onto a city bus rack with a 55lbs limit. I would be concerned about having to do that all the time. I carry my Quick Haul with all accessories (probably 60lbs or so) up a big flight of stairs and it's a challenge. It has a walk assist mode, but I've never used it.
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Jul 26, 2023 19:33
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Ham Equity posted:I also tend to be a fairly confrontational pedestrian, in that I'm very disinclined to put up with bullshit from drivers; I will smack a car hard enough to hurt my hand on its side or hood if they take my right of way or block a crosswalk, I have hit cars that drive past in crosswalks I'm in, I will stand in front of a car that honks at me for crossing the street through a couple of light cycles just to extract a price from them. but also lord jesus how are you alive kimbo305 posted:I carry my Quick Haul with all accessories (probably 60lbs or so) up a big flight of stairs and it's a challenge. It has a walk assist mode, but I've never used it. mystes posted:I don't think I would use any bike for .75 miles at both ends of a light rail commute. A scooter might make more sense for that. But if this is the commute: Ham Equity posted:The commute itself is 6.5 miles of hills (Google Maps says 440' of ascent, 300' of descent on my way to work). Then literally any bike will do. evil_bunnY fucked around with this message at 19:46 on Jul 26, 2023 |
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Jul 26, 2023 19:40
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Barry posted:Weird that they're bankrupt, I was in Amsterdam a few months back and the amount of Van Moofs there is astounding. Multiple parked on every street, I must have seen a few hundred just walking around town for 4 or 5 days. Not as ubiquitous as the black bikes but they're everywhere. Which makes sense because they're a Dutch company and all. It sounds like the support costs were super high? But yeah, I would be curious to get a more detailed breakdown, it still seems pretty hard to understand.
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Jul 26, 2023 20:19
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Yeah I'm sure there's a good reason beyond my anecdote of seeing a bunch of them in likely their single largest market, but I don't think they failed due to lack of sales. I see one in Chicago here and there too.
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Jul 26, 2023 22:07
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Safety Dance posted:50-55 lbs is right where most e-bikes land. Mine is 60-ish I think, but I can pop out the battery if I'm worried about the weight limit. kimbo305 posted:I definitely would, in that in almost all cases I'd much rather ride than walk. I used to bike the 0.25mi to the closest CVS to me. evil_bunnY posted:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uelA7KRLINA&t=8s evil_bunnY posted:Scooters are so much fun. A friend has a fully suspended hooligan-machine and carving that thing with Freddie King's Going Down blasting in your ears is such bliss. I know I've said "Seattle" multiple times, but we do get a bit of rain here, and I'm wondering if that's anything to be concerned about? I'm guessing not given the popularity of ebikes here. Also, is there an e-scooter thread somewhere?
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Jul 26, 2023 23:18
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I'll have to see if I want to invest in a 230 dollar ulock that's really expensive. I should be getting my bike in 2 weeks.
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Jul 26, 2023 23:45
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Ham Equity posted:I know I've said "Seattle" multiple times, but we do get a bit of rain here, and I'm wondering if that's anything to be concerned about? Fellow Seattle resident here. I don't think light rain is a big deal most of the time (fenders are a must, however), but in the winter months I'll often just take the bus rather than get soaked. I rode home (~5 miles) in sleet a couple times last winter because I misjudged the forecast, and that was goddamn miserable.
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Jul 27, 2023 00:24
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Ham Equity posted:I know I've said "Seattle" multiple times, but we do get a bit of rain here, and I'm wondering if that's anything to be concerned about? I'm guessing not given the popularity of ebikes here. Also, is there an e-scooter thread somewhere?
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Jul 27, 2023 00:27
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Helter Skelter posted:Fellow Seattle resident here. I don't think light rain is a big deal most of the time (fenders are a must, however), but in the winter months I'll often just take the bus rather than get soaked. I rode home (~5 miles) in sleet a couple times last winter because I misjudged the forecast, and that was goddamn miserable. I ride here year round and it's only possible with the ebike. If it's raining I'm covered head to toe in waterproof gear except for my eyes. When I get to home/work I strip off the outer waterproof layer, change shoes, and I'm good to go. If it were a regular bike I'd be drenched in sweat. I'll look like a crazy person if I have to stop for groceries or something though since I just leave the gear on. In some ways I prefer to ride in the rain since there are almost no other cyclists and way less pedestrians.
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Jul 27, 2023 00:29
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oXDemosthenesXo posted:I ride here year round and it's only possible with the ebike. If it's raining I'm covered head to toe in waterproof gear except for my eyes. When I get to home/work I strip off the outer waterproof layer, change shoes, and I'm good to go. If it were a regular bike I'd be drenched in sweat. Oh yeah, I was doing that in jeans and just carrying a change of clothes in my pack (which has a good rain cover itself). I should probably look into getting some actual rain gear for biking, lol. You're not kidding about the difference in traffic during the rain, though.
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Jul 27, 2023 00:35
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I rather ride in the rain than get stuck in the subway with the rest of the humanities. If the weather forecast predicts only 1 way of my commute is raining, I am talking the bike. I use those bike raincoat or hiking 3-layer jacket. They are all fine. Just wear a long bill baseball cap under your raincoat. NY gets so little snow in the winter nowadays it barely matters. Only bad condition I had last winter was the day after snow and the ground got very icy. Wear knee warmers to protect you from drops. Thats it.
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Jul 27, 2023 01:23
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evil_bunnY posted:Scooters are so much fun. Seconding this, arguably wrong thread but I love biking and my wife doesn't, but she was interested in trying an e-scooter, and now she uses it to commute 3.5 miles each way, and we can go out on trips together (me on e-bike with baby, her on scooter). We got a Segway Ninebot Max G30P, which is the Prius of scooters: efficient, well-built, not sexy, and generally great value. Also reasonably waterproof. I often default to the scooter myself for short trips.
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Jul 27, 2023 14:39
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Scooter is very handy. Yesterday I dropped off my car to the dealership for repair, took the scooter out of the car and rode to work. After work rode to dealership to pick up the car. Can't do that with an ebike. When I brought my scooter I looked for one with extra long range that can cover my entire commute round trip. It's a little heavy. I would recommend anyone shop for scooter now go for the lighter models that you can easily carry by yourself. And pay extra for the a battery swap model. That's the ideal spec for a scooter. Under 40 pounds/swapable battery/20-28mph max speed. edit, also folding handle bar! stephenthinkpad fucked around with this message at 16:11 on Jul 27, 2023 |
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Jul 27, 2023 15:12
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stephenthinkpad posted:Scooter is very handy. Yesterday I dropped off my car to the dealership for repair, took the scooter out of the car and rode to work. After work rode to dealership to pick up the car. That said scooters definitely win in terms of compactness, and it's presumably easier/faster to get them into/out of a car, and if you drive a sedan you would need a rack for a bike mystes fucked around with this message at 15:17 on Jul 27, 2023 |
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Jul 27, 2023 15:14
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The dream setup would be foldable backpack sized with swappable batteries compatible with your bike
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Jul 27, 2023 15:28
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Sentient Data posted:The dream setup would be foldable backpack sized with swappable batteries compatible with your bike
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Jul 27, 2023 15:30
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Sentient Data posted:The dream setup would be foldable backpack sized with swappable batteries compatible with your bike Thats actually a good kickstarter idea. Also adapter to output one 12v and 2 usb ports. This all goes back to the reusable micro sd cards and external batteries that the evil manufacturers don't want to give it to you.
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Jul 27, 2023 15:37
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stephenthinkpad posted:That's the ideal spec for a scooter. Under 40 pounds/swapable battery/20-28mph max speed. mystes posted:I have done exactly that with a normal bike so I don't see any reason why I couldn't have done it with an ebike
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Jul 27, 2023 15:59
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First trip report on the Tenways CGO600 Pro. Certainly a "normal bike" to ride compared to the Super73 ZX, but component-wise much better. Quiet motor, better brakes, better sensors and mode of sensing (Torque sensor). Also a better display. I need to adjust the seat ( and might change it to something more comfortable in the future) some for a better position, but other than that a comfortable bike. Very light and I found that I can easily pedal it at normal speeds without the assist, and PAS mode 1 is more than enough since the torque sensors provide all that's needed to get up to speed and then relax. With the the Super73 is basically game over if the battery runs out (and at the end it could suddenly go from 20% to turtle mode...). I was also pretty impressed with the packaging. Got a 15mm and 10mm spanner, some allen keys as well as a nicely finished manual. All in all, I'm impressed with it for the price. MrOnBicycle fucked around with this message at 17:39 on Jul 27, 2023 |
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Jul 27, 2023 17:08
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Is there any news of a front loading cargo ebike for the US market that doesn't cost a billion dollars? I want to live that cargo bike life but my dog is too big for a normal front basket or a longtail and I don't want to spend used car money on a bike.
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Jul 27, 2023 17:12
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Gangringo posted:Is there any news of a front loading cargo ebike for the US market that doesn't cost a billion dollars? I want to live that cargo bike life but my dog is too big for a normal front basket or a longtail and I don't want to spend used car money on a bike. Maybe used, but not really new. But even a used one around me is $3k+, so still potentially used car prices.
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Jul 27, 2023 17:35
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Gangringo posted:Is there any news of a front loading cargo ebike for the US market that doesn't cost a billion dollars? I want to live that cargo bike life but my dog is too big for a normal front basket or a longtail and I don't want to spend used car money on a bike. This is the cheapest Urban Arrow I could find: https://upway.co/products/urban-arrow-shorty-uai54 but that short cargo compartment may or may not work for your dog seating needs. e: if you want to roll the dice harder than you ever have before https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805236027262.html https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/LANDON-Cargo-Bike-Made-In-Taiwan_10000008997470.html That first one has the amusing setup of front wheel hub motor, which isn't a bad choice to retrofit a known working cargo bike with power. But I wonder how weird it must feel if the power delivery is jerky and the steering linkage is sloppy. kimbo305 fucked around with this message at 17:43 on Jul 27, 2023 |
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Jul 27, 2023 17:36
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Can you swap a motorcycle front fork and motorcycle rim/tire on an ebike? I have seen people installed motor tires to avoid flats. But the more I think about the DIY project, the more I think you should just put a giant milk crate on the rear rack and call it a day.
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Jul 27, 2023 17:41
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