Zeuser

I used to have a Strong GTS but the thing was just too heavy and not that great overall. I had a 2001 Gary Fisher X-Caliber laying around so I had it converted to an eBike.

This is the old Strong eBike:



The new eX-caliber :




Bionx 36V Li-Ion battery and the BLT 10W front light battery



Bionx controller with thumb throttle



Bionx 350W wheel motor with disc brake



I added a bike rack and custom fitted a taillight onto it



Also of note is the special semi offroad/paved surface tire. Agressive thread for offroading and a unbroken thread down the middle for road use.



The busy handlebar. From Left to right: Magellan Explorist 500 GPS , BLT 10W halogen light, Water bottle and Bionx controller.



These ergonomic handgrips rock!



I haven't had a chance to ride it yet since I dislocated my shoulder just last week. Once all healed up, I'm eager to take it out for a good spin. I also want to run some tests and get some numbers that I can use to compare the various features and real world results vs. the claimed results.

My friend rode it yesterday and he loved it. I practically had to pry him off the bike; not an easy task for someone with a shoulder that's still healing. LOL!

More information on my eX-caliber as the season progresses.

scottogo

Good! I'll look forward to reading your reports. And thanks for the pics.

East Hill

How much actual pedalling do you do versus using the motor? It's a pretty nifty outfit, regardless.

East Hill

Zeuser

The Bionx is built to pedal all the time. The principle is that it assists you in doing so. For example: In assist mode #1 it gives you 25% assist. That means that whatever energy you use to pedal, the biox adds on an extra 25%. So if you were pushing 10 lbs/ft of torque through pedaling alone, the actual output with a bionx would be 12.5lbs/ft.

Switch over to A4 and you get 300%. So again... 10 lbs/ft of torque of pedaling nets you a total output of 30 lbs/ft. A4 is meant for climbing impossibly steep hills.

Sure the bionx has a independant throttle switch but the battery won't last long on pure electric alone. Bionx was designed primarily as an assist system, not an electric scooter.

And if you want to workout? Use the regen system. Put it into G1 or G2 and the bike will be 25% or 75% harder to pedal that the same bike without a bionx. They don't recommend going over G2. The G4 mode, 300% regen, is nearly impossible to use. You'd probably go no more than 200ft before you would be totally exhausted.

East Hill

That's REALLY nifty. How much does the total bike weigh now?

East Hill

AndrewP

Pretty neat looking. Can you use the regenerative mode instead of the brakes?

Zeuser

East Hill: I'll weigh it when I get home. I estimate under 20 lbs. I think it's 9lbs for the motor and 8lbs for the battery. The rest is just the normal bike weight. The Bionx is one of the lightest useable systems I know of. Sure there are lighter, just not as useable.

Andrew: Yes! If you press the "-G" button and go to G4 (maximum regenerate) it'll stop the bike pretty fast. But the Bionx system comes with a magnetic brake switch (I'll take a pic of that and post it) so that just when you want to slow down you press the rear brake lever just a bit to engage the regen before the brake pad starts to rub.

But you have to start braking from further away since it doesn't convert the kenetic energy fast enough compared to using the real brakes.

But if you start eBraking early you can pull it down to a full stop on a flat surface. eBraking seems to be a lower level regen than G4. Probably G2. I'll have to run tests to find out exactly which regen mode the eBrake is using.

bac

A couple of things - first off great pix in your opening post! Secondly, I luv the fact that you are riding in the winter. You are going to fit in well here!

... Brad

olps

The bike looks fantastic! I was thinking about getting a Bionx system and set-up similar (for my hybrid). When you leave the bike or lock it up do you take the console/throttle or the battery off? Do you have a key to turn it on or do yo punch in a PIN number? Thanks alot! I'm really interested in how it works out for you as I'm contemplating a similar setup.

Zeuser

the console doesn't come off easily. If it's a short stop, i'll just turn on the alarm and lock the bike to a post or something. The battery is locked in place.

For a long stop, like work, i remove the battery and take it with me.

Craig

So, after a few months, how's it going?

RonH

Welcome Craig.

He's probably gone and won't be back. He's not a real cyclist riding that piece of crap. And he's only 38 years old.
I'm almost 63 and I don't need a motor. There are lots of "older" folks here who don't need a motor!

East Hill

Hi Craig, welcome to BF!

You might want to contact Zeuser via a PM--he is still here, as his profile indicates that the last time he stopped in to take a look at BF was on 10/19 .

East Hill

Craig

Just curious really. My wife has lupus and can't really enjoy bicycling with me or the kids, so I've wondered about an electric bike as an option for her, just for casual weekend rides and the like.

Zeuser

Actually I'm still biking but my visits to this forum are less frequent because... well... I'm out biking most of the time.

Zeuser

I leave the console/battery on the bike and just activate the alarm with my PIN. There's a key but that's not to turn off the Bionx, the key is just used to unlock the battery from its mounting rail.

The Bionx is great. When I first started using my eBike I was riding with assistance level 4 most of the time. Then I dropped down to level 3 and these days I ride with level 2 only and just use level 4 for climbing really steep hills.

It has worked out pretty well. I lost 2 inches on my waistline and 8lbs of weight.

Zeuser

Well the Bionx is mean to be cycled. Although you can use the thumb throttle only on the Bionx, it really is built to be mostly an assist system. But it does work just fine on the throttle only though with limited range.

You may want to consider more of an electric moped like eBike. They're really more like electric motorcycles with pedals added on for mostly legal reasons. You really wouldn't want to pedal those types of eBikes.