tanguy frame

HI,

I'm a competent mechanic, and an avid road rider.

I want an electric assist bike that I can use to go to the tennis club with a fully loaded tennis bag, then stop at the grocery store on the way home and carry 4 bags of groceries.

The total trip is less than 20 miles. Hills are moderate.

I've looked at the e-RAD 350 mid; $1700
https://www.eradkits.com/shop/e-rad-...-110mm/#review

and the Hill Topper; $900
https://www.electric-bike-kit.com/hill-topper.aspx

These are totally different solutions. If anybody has any experience, I'd be interested in hearing.

I also need to add racks to the rockhopper so I can carry grocery bags. I figure front and rear pannier carriers adapted for grocery bags, with the tennis bag thrown over the top of the rear rack.

Thank you!
Tanguy Frame

Joe Remi

You're on the right track with mid-drive, but I recommend a more powerful system for the mileage you'll be doing loaded down. This Luna 750w kit will get you out the door for about $1000k.

https://lunacycle.com/bafang-bbs02-mid-drive-kit/

You may have some issues with those old cantilever brakes handling the extra power and weight. If the posts will fit modern linear pull brakes this would be best; if not, you'll want to invest in fresh pads. In either case I recommend taking it easy at first and getting a feel for how braking works from higher speeds with the extra weight..it'll be a little different!

Doc_Wui

I own a BBS02 mid drive and also some bike conversions of the same caliber as a hilltopper. Fitted with panniers, and not needing to go very fast, either will carry groceries and go up moderate hills, but a mid drive has a lot more power for steeper hills.

The E-rads use the same Bafang motors as the BBS02/BBSHD from lunacycle, so you might as well see who gives you the best price, if you go that way. Luna had a BBS02/battery for $750, but but it's around $900 with charger and some odd/ends.

tanguy frame

I got the highest power hill topper on a black friday sale - couldn't resist the price point.
I'll build a wheel around the hub and give it a whirl - I still need to get a rack and paniers, looking for something cheap, quiet, light, and functional.

I'm also concerned about the brakes - I use Eagle Stop salmon pads, relatively new. I could look into converting to disk brakes later (would require a new frame probably, or at least a new fork, but I can get those).

Thanks for the feedback!

tanguy frame

or v brakes may work well enough for less work and $$$. thanks for the suggestion!

BobG

I never understood why folks think that e-bikes require stronger than normal brakes. I've been bike touring for decades with up to 35 pounds of camping gear descending mountains at well over 25 mph and conventional cantilevers have worked fine. I had side pulls on an older rig and they worked fine. Even a rear "U" brake on an '80s MTB and that worked fine. That same touring bike set up now as an around town e-bike has a motor/battery load of only 17 pounds and the same cantilevers handle that with no problem. I would think that an '80s MTB with cantilevers and good pads would be ideal for an e retro-fit.

Joe Remi

The answer is that what you consider "good enough" braking on a fully loaded touring bike was always a bit sketchy for some of us. Thing is, that sketchiness is livable for the occasional downhill run on a loaded tourer, but adding an e-kit means you're doing that kind of ride most of the time. I agree that v-brakes are strong enough for my BBS02-ed Rivendell Clem, but I'm not sure old cantis with old pads would do the business.

But this is irrelevant to the discussion anyway as the OP bought a Hilltopper. He'll be fine with new pads on old brakes.

tanguy frame

Yeah - my brakes are pretty good. If I have a problem, I'll go to V brakes. I'm not concerned. Now my problem is sourcing 13 gauge spokes. I need 27.8 and 219.3 lengths. I was going to cut myself some today, but the bike shop I work at lost the 13 gauge spoke dies

erbfarm

I just put a Bafang mid drive conversion kit on my 1993 Rockhopper and it's working great! Tons of power. I've got V-brakes on the bike and they stop fine. A rear rack makes it easy to carry two large panniers. I had an Xtracycle on the bike at one point and seeing how much power the 48v battery delivers, if I decide in the future to put the Xtracycle back on, the power assist would work great on that too. I got my kit from Luna Cycle, still having a sale for around $800. I did have the local e-bike shop do a few things for me (like drill another eyelet in the frame for mounting the battery so that I'd have 3 points of contact). And I also purchased a special more durable chain so in total I have about $900 into it so far. But worth it!!

Doc_Wui

Rim brakes are fine for a e-assist bike. If you built yourself an electric motorcycle that goes 2X faster, then you need better brakes.

Double butted Sapims 13G-14G are good for lower power motors. The 13G is a better fit the hub holes, and the 14G allows regular nipples for the rim. CHinese built wheels use 13G because they're cheaper.

chas58

They will be fine, with good pads and rims.

I've done touring on a fully loaded tandem with canti. That bike is a lot heavier and faster than anything we are discussing. Its only a problem if you overheat the rims.

Crappy brakes - canti, caliper, V, or disk, are dangerous. Any of those braking systems should be able to lock up a wheel and modulate well if done properly.

Old pads or cheap pads are a problem with any braking system.

chas58

So, you really need to answer how far and how fast you will go, and what (if any) power input you want to provide with your legs.

15mph is pretty easy, but power requirements go up exponentially with speed above that point (its rather linear below 15mph).

Something like your hilltopper would be fine, if it gives you the speed you want.

Joe Remi

I consider this a not insignificant problem. It won't come up with a Hilltopper, but fast, heavy ebikes (read, borderline illegal) can easily heat up a rim if you're gettin' on it for 20-or-so miles. For that application I would feel more confident with hydraulic discs.

2old

I'm sure that everybody rides differently so it's an individual decision, but my 33+ mph rear hub bike has "V"-brakes front and rear and I haven't had a problem with stopping. Weight of bike plus me is about 240 pounds.

chas58

True. Hydraulic disks are the way to go. But if you are going cable disk, you will do just as well with v-brakes and good pads.