bunch of questions about e-bikes

[Washingtondave]

i have been reading a lot about them, but don't have a place to test drive so i have lots of n00b questions. any insight would be appreciated.

what happens when the battery dies? does pedaling require more force due to the drag of the motor or do you essentially free wheel?


are some models quiet? or do they all make some amount of noise? I read in the other thread about limiting it to 60db conversation levels at 6' but are there "no noise at all" options?


are they theoretically more or less susceptible to theft? do you try to secure them in novel ways or pretty much the old bike chain method?


for the models with throttles, what is acceleration like if you don't pedal? i assume this varies with the make/model of course, but generally, how would you characterize it? instead of flattening a hill when pedaling, can you just run the throttle and still go up the hill? if you carry a lot of cargo (like say, 50-100lb), is it really noticeable or do the bikes have enough torque to make that seem minor?


i've seen one bike announced that puts power to both wheels. is that common?

I know this is an older thread. I just test rode Rad brand ebikes and loved it. We rented them for 10.00 an hour from a place in Wallace Idaho. We rode for 2 hours. 1 way for an hour up hill steady then back to town and road around town. I was extremely leary but am sold. Infact I ordered 2 when I got home. The rental place gave good tips about things that can break or fault. The assist alowed us to peddle with no effort up hills. When we returned they commented on how we didnt used hardly any battery.

 

[JD914]

I know this is an older thread. I just test rode Rad brand ebikes and loved it. We rented them for 10.00 an hour from a place in Wallace Idaho. We rode for 2 hours. 1 way for an hour up hill steady then back to town and road around town. I was extremely leary but am sold. Infact I ordered 2 when I got home. The rental place gave good tips about things that can break or fault. The assist alowed us to peddle with no effort up hills. When we returned they commented on how we didnt used hardly any battery.

I started looking around at e bikes and a friend recommended Rad bikes as well. She said she and her husband had done a ton of research and decided on them so I’ll be purchasing a pair of the Rad Missions for my wife and me ASAP!


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[Washingtondave]

Nice. There is a Rad forum also. Lots of good info.

 

[Martinjmpr]

Some of our camping friends have the Rad Mini folding bikes. They're very nice, well made and seem to have quality components.

Our Lectric E-bikes are a little on the cheap side. They're rather heavy (probably 60lbs with battery) and the bicycle components are not the highest quality. Then again, they were also $500/bike LESS than Rad. So, yes, you can get quality and light weight - as long as you're willing to pay for it.

We're approaching the end of our first year with our Lectric XP folding E-bikes. So far so good and I normally carry them in the back of my truck when we go camping. On the down side, folding bikes that weigh 60lbs are a bit of a PITA to move around and they occupy a lot of real estate in the truck bed. Fortunately, with just 2 of us (and the dog) we have room to spare. If we had more conventional, non-folding bikes we'd likely carry them inside our travel trailer as the trailer has a long "hallway" that can easily accommodate a couple of bicycles (we carried our non-electric bikes there before we got the Lectric XPs.)

We'll likely do another year with the Lectrics and then re-evaluate. It is handy being able to fold the bikes up but folding bikes are a compromise in terms of riding - a non-folding bike would be both lighter and also more pleasant to ride.

 

[Finatic Angler]

I just bought a trek power fly 4. It’s a pedal assist bike. I am very impressed with it.

unlike some of the other posts it is not terrible to pedal without power.

Definetly makes the ride easier but you still get in a nice workout.

 

[DirtWhiskey]

I'm a big fan of the mid drive bikes. They allow you to shift through your gears, hence climb hills and roll flats with much more efficiency. In fact I would say nowadays there is no excuse other than cost to go with a hub motor. Hub motors are single speed and don't allow you to stay within the torque curve of the motor. You hit hills, you make heat. With the newer Bafang Max mid drives, you can get a ripping bike (1500w yowza!) with real components and a 21ah 48v battery setup for less than $2500. I use mine instead of a motorcycle for hiking shuttles in Southern Utah. They are a hoot for evening fishing excursions from camp too. Big disadvantage is they are imenently stealable. You gotta lockem up good.

 

[skyfree]

E-bikes are evolving quickly and the newer e-mountain bikes are really impressive (but expensive). If you want to ride your bike on more challenging mountain bike trails, or plan to progress in that direction, I recommend going with a mainstream brand like Trek, $pecialized, Giant, Canyon, Commencal, Focus, Haibike, Cube, Scott, Pivot, or YT. These all compete against one-another and have the best technology. Rad and other more homespun manufacturers don't compete in that segment because they really can't. Try before you buy. Don't mail-order something you've never ridden. Compare different bikes before settling on one.

I really like what I'm seeing from Commencal, Canyon, and YT this year. I'm still on my 2017 Haibike which comes in at right around 50 lbs and can still hang with the newer bikes on the trail, but I would be looking at one of those if I was in the market today.

 

[workerdrone]

Rented one recently (Marin Nail Trail E1) and was really glad I did - it was fun to play around with for ½ day but it maxed out at 20mph and had the feeling of running into a wall there rather than just pedaling a suddenly 50 lb bike faster.

So it made me realize I ride over 20mph normally whenever possible (basically any downhills) and it's an annoying restriction.

I'd be really disappointed if I'd purchased it unless there was some hack to get around that.

I realize other bikes are in different classes and might not behave that way

 

[DirtWhiskey]

I would actually steer you away from the name brands. They are all wimpy in wattage about 250w. The Trek ones can push $6 to $10k! I think Luna Bikes are selling the best packages out there right now. They service and warranty everything too. And you can get up to 3hp with their ludicrous controllers baby! I'd check endless sphere and electricbike.com and do some research. Lots of great options out there now.

 

[skyfree]

I would actually steer you away from the name brands. They are all wimpy in wattage about 250w. The Trek ones can push $6 to $10k! I think Luna Bikes are selling the best packages out there right now. They service and warranty everything too. And you can get up to 3hp with their ludicrous controllers baby! I'd check endless sphere and electricbike.com and do some research. Lots of great options out there now.

I definitely get the attraction of the Luna machines, but they are a different beast than a class 1 e-bike which can be ridden legally on many more trails than a 3hp Luna.

 

[DirtWhiskey]

I definitely get the attraction of the Luna machines, but they are a different beast than a class 1 e-bike which can be ridden legally on many more trails than a 3hp Luna.

Yep. I pretty much use mine as an "ultralight motorcycle". I can cover rough roads three times as fast as my truck. I ride my Mnt bike on trails.

 

[Washingtondave]

i have had my Rad Rovers for a few weeks now. We really like them. Have front and rear racks , dog carrier and all. Still new but I am very pleased. I sold my atv's because they were to hard on my back. These allow us the versatility while exploring and traveling to different areas. We can ride without gas motor restrictions in certain areas.