Electric Bikes - Hello From Washington State / Electric Bike Question

Hi, I'm new to this forum so please forgive me if a similar question has been asked before.

I have 8 year old "BikeE" recumbent bike that is getting little use. I would like to convert it to electric. Here's my list of dumb questions:


* Can this be done by changing out the front wheel (16") only? I'd prefer to leave the rear wheel gearing/3-speed hub alone.

* With such a small front wheel for the hub-motor, can I still get a 20-25mph speed?

* If this is possible can anyone recommend a source for parts (motor, batteries, etc.) that would work best for this project?

Thanks in advance!
Steve

*yes, second item down
http://ebikes.ca/store/store_motors.php

*yes, I believe there is a calculator on their site to find out speeds.
http://ebikes.ca/simulator/

*yes
http://ebikes.ca
http://www.hightekbikes.com
http://www.e-bikekit.com
http://www.pingbattery.com
http://www.elitepowersolutions.com


To name a few

If you are in Washington you might not be too far from ebikes in vancouver.

I would use a front Crystalyte 404 hub motor on your BikeE, from ebikes.ca. I can get up to 27 mph on my old rebike, with the front motor. I think that would be a nice bike with that motor - and as you mentioned, best to keep the existing drive train. Putting both a motor and batteries on the back of that will not be well balanced. Reliable and fast. Especially if run with a sensorless controller, as you live in a wet area and Crystalytes are susceptible to Hall failures due to wetness...yopappamon has it right I think. You could get a "universal controller" which can run sensorless or sensored, from bmsbattery.com, but those aren't prewired for a cycleanalyst, so you would have to use a different meter. They are cheap though, around 35 dollars and should run excellently with the Crystalyte...

Thanks guys! This is just the type of information I was looking for. I'm actually on the east side of the state--much dryer than the west side :). Down side is that I'm farther from the bigger and better bike shops--such as that one in Vancouver :(. I sure appreciate all these suggestions--I wasn't quite sure where to go for advice, so this will help me get on the write path.
Steve

Eco speed makes a bike E electric motor. It appears to be a nicely designed system. Fast and powerfull.

I have a crystalyte hub in the 16" wheel with a 36V 9.6ah batt on my BoB trailer, even as a pusher trailer I can reach speeds of 25 to 30K up hills and thats pushing me on my trike.

More good info--thanks 15rms and Trikin'!

The thing I like the most about the Crystalyte, other than the lost cost is that it is extremely quiet...which makes a difference when I'm listening to my ebike stereo, from http://www.veloamp.com/ It might not be as "torquey" or lightweight as an ecospeed though. I'd also avoid the GoldenMotor 16" magic pie, unless it has an external controller.