Electric Bicycle
What?
Yes, I purchased an electric motor for my bicycle in order to facilitate me riding year-round. I figured this way I'd have no excuse to drive the car. I spent some time researching different options and decided that I would get an add-on kit for my current bicycle.The Kit
I got the US Pro Drive kit from Electric Vehicles Northwest, my local electric bike store. It is the 2000 year model, which has a little smaller motor mounting in the back than the 1999 model. I am currently not using it but I have installed it on both my Jamis Aurora touring bike and my Bridgestone CB-2 hybrid commuter.I bought a kit because I wanted to keep the bike that fit me and the all-in-one bikes either did not have the ability to go as far as I needed or only had 6 gears.
Do-it-yourself
One of the other options I explored was creating the motor and battery myself. I decided against this option because I thought that although I might end up with a faster bike, it would probably take longer to put together and not really save much money. I did find some information on creating your own motor, which I will post when I have time.
Performance
One of the key issues for me was top-speed. Since I am fit, I just wanted the motor to supplement my biking, not take it over. Electric-assisted bikes can go up to 20 miles per hour before the motor must stop helping according to Washington State Law (RCW 46.04). After that, the bike must be propelled only by gravity or the operator of the bike. The USPD kit goes about 16 mph without any assistance. While pedalling, it will go around 18 mph before the motor begins to top out. Up hills, it goes around 12 mph with moderate pedaling.
Pros
|
Cons
|
What could be improved?
I like the system in general--the thing I would improve would be the quality control on the parts. I had a malfunctioning battery pack that had a loose wire inside. Luckily, I purchased the kit from a store, so I was able to swap it out for no charge. I also had problems with the bolts on the spoke plate adapter sheering off. Since I had the professionals mount it, I haven't had any problems. Installation error? Probably, but the directions should at least indicate how tight to crank down on the bolts.
Motor
The motor is mounted on the rear hub. It attaches to the frame with its
own quick-release mechanism, enabling you to remove the wheel from the frame.
It's not exactly easy to remove, but at least it's possible if you need to
change the tires.
Battery
The battery mounts in the main triangle of the frame using a clever attachment
system. The battery locks to the frame (USPD provides a key) which makes
theft difficult.
Throttle
The throttle is shown here mounted on the handlebars. It is a spring-loaded
mechanism that you push with your thumb. EVsNW said that it should be
mounted on a straight surface, but as you can see, my handlebars are not
very straight. I was able to mount it on a curve with no major problems
as you can see in the picture.
Installation
My brother-in-law and I are shown here assembling the rear wheel. It took
around 4 hours to put the whole thing together. On the second round of
installation, I let the professionals at EVsNW do it. My
thought was that I wanted to know how it was put together so if there
were a problem I could fix it. After the first install though, I was
more than ready to let EVsNW take over.