[Closed] Electric bike conversion kits

BionX seems quite good, although they are expensive - probably £1k to £2k depending on version and battery. They have a hub motor, battery pack (either rack or tube-mounted) and control panel.

It might be worth getting in touch with Ben Cooper at Kinetics (Glasgow). I think he's a dealer for BionX and possibly one or two alternatives.

I seem to remember a CTC article a few years ago where they compared a couple of bikes, including one with a BionX. I'm vague about the conclusions, but one was better for the experienced cyclist who just wanted a little bit of assistance from time to time, such as up hills, whereas the other was for people who weren't used to pedaling, and the motor would kick in more often when it noticed cadence was really low.

good info/advice on the pedelecs forum including legalities, self builds, sourcing parts etc

www.pedelecs.co.uk

BionX kits are pretty decent, but the company themelves are a nightmare to deal with, so I've now moved on to Go SwissDrive systems - better than BionX.

They're excellent kits, and I still do a few onto more unusual things like recumbents, but the cost of them isn't far off the starting price for a Bosch-equipped bike - the Bosch can't be retrofitted but it's another very good system.

I would as you said, just buy the real thing

[url= http://www.rutlandcycling.com/150629/products/giant-twist-lite-1-2014-womens-hybrid-bike.aspx?origin=pla&kwd=&currency=GBP&gclid=CMWhguSK48ECFYkKwwodIAYAEA ]Purpose built[/url]

I'd serious consider talking to Team Hybrid about their Falco motors: http://www.teamhybridebikes.com

I had a go on a folder fitted with one back in April, and was even more impressed than with the bion-x system. They should also be able to advise more generally on mobility, as I believe their main business is hand cycles and wheelchair conversions.

This review of a more unusual conversion is worth a read: https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=77833.0

Disclaimer: I have no connection with the company, other than a passing acquaintance with an employee.

but the cost of them isn't far off the starting price for a Bosch-equipped bike

Yep. Worth bearing in mind also that a bike built around a system (like Bosch) will also be built to cope better with the extra weight etc. I've had a go on a lot of the Haibike range, and they were really rather good. Rode like a normal, but heavy obviously, bike when not using the pedal assist. Turn it on, and it was excellent.

Double post

I've done a bit of research in to this. My findings include two main points:
1) Hub motors do not do hills well. You want a mid-drive (mounted at BB) for maximum effectiveness. Mid-drive can take advantage of gears.
2) The "best" mid-drive aftermarket unit goes by Bafang BBS02, but is hard to get in the UK and is also illegal for road use. However, the BBS01, its predecessor, is. The BBS01 is also regarded as an excellent aftermarket kit.

You can manufacture your own batteries for conversion kits, just get a load of 18650 cells and wire them up and house them correctly. This will probably be cheaper as you can order them in bulk from China quite easily, but it requires DIY of course.

But in all respects, get a mid-drive (crank driven) conversion kit as they are far superior for power output.

Edit to add: I think the BBS02 can be limited to 250W (making it road legal) through the controller, but I can't find anything concrete on that.

I'd make a couple of points from my 15+ years building and selling electric bikes:

- Hub motors can be excellent on hills, depends on the motor.

- Manufacturing your own is great, but perhaps not the best option to give to an elderly person who just wants to rider her bike, not tinker about with fussy electrics 😉

I would as you said, just buy the real thing

Sunstar system gets good reviews

Ben, where are based now?

826 Garscube Road - 6 doors along from Bike Love.

Cheers guys, it's definitely given me something to think about and plenty to look into.