[Closed] E-Cargo bikes - who has one and what is good?

The GSD is good but expensive. But then again so are most of the competition. Moustache Lundi 20, Benno Boost, Bergamont, R&am etc.

There is the Radwagon - that looks pretty good but I have no idea how it rides or how reliable it is.

Maybe someone here has one.

We’ve a radwagon. Not done mega miles on it as our daughter isn’t old enough to go on it yet, but when I’ve not had her I don’t think I’ve taken the car anywhere within a 5 mile radius since about November.

We live on a hill and a lot of errands involve also going over the north downs, so a shopping errand by bike was pretty hard to do without getting hot and sweaty or taking ages. Now I can pop to the shops/bank/opticians/whatever at lunch if I’m working at home with no more thought and only a tiny bit more time than by car.

Basically I think it’s great and can’t wait to get more use out of it. Absolutely love the sit up and beg pose plus motor to let me nonchalantly cruise from errand to errand.

Kit notes so far:
- brakes are adequate. Something like some mt5s will be a likely upgrade when I start carrying a kid. If I lived somewhere flat I probably wouldn’t bother.
- I added the front basket. In retrospect I’d have the front rack I think, although that may change when I get round to finding a cheap cargo net somewhere.
- the basic light is be seen only at anything above waking pace.
- it doesn’t compact as much as a tern. You’re not going to put it in a car easily. It’s marginally longer than my Solaris tip to tip.
- normal panniers don’t fit. Keep meaning to get some tubing in the right size to make a secondary rail.

Cheers that's quite a decent endorsement

I love the GSD, would absolutely love to have one of those

I have an electrified Surly Big Dummy, like a big Big Easy. It’s ace, really like it. Perfect for errands with the kids or doing the shopping. It’s only really any good if you have all the extras though - mudguards, stand, kids seats, panniers, foot boards etc

I should say, you can definitely tell where the budget hasn’t gone, but everything seems pretty functional so far. And if it wears out I can buy a second and still be cheaper than a gsd...

My only real quibble with the spec (as opposed to considered upgrades) is that I wish they’d used a hub with a hg freehub rather than a screw on freewheel to allow for easier upgrades out of the spares box later, but that’s probably pretty niche for this bike.

Just make sure you have somewhere decent to store it.

I tried out the R&M packster 40, which is the shortest of their range, but on reflection it is much too long a bikey thing and not just riding it, but where the heck would i store such a thing. So keep in mind the longer the cargo bike, the harder you will find to keep it somewhere and might have to look at getting some expensive shed like thing.

Storage is not an issue

We had a loan of a Cube hybrid cargo at work last summer for 7 weeks. It was ace! I took it home numerous times and the kids loved it. It will easily take a full weeks shopping and carry the kids anywhere in comfort.
The trial was so successful the company has invested in 2 standard E bikes, 2 cargo hybrids and 2 cargo E trikes to trial😍

My son has been using a Riese & Müller Multicharger as his delivery bike for the last 4 months. He really likes it.Very good build quality and has a lot of well thought out extras.The only thing that messes up from time to time is the Bosch hub app that he uses to control it through his phone,but he hasa basic unit that he can plug in to the hub for emergencies. Good run/charge time and copes very well (loaded) with all the local hills.

Radwagon here in hilly Surrey. Used for school run with a 7 and 5 Yr old and pretty much all local shopping trips. Generally pretty good. Did put in some tube sealant as the tubes and tyres are semi proprietary and also changed the front brake to a cable actuated hydraulic.

Youngest is on the back on a qibbel junior which had to have a mounting plate bodged as the rails are too wide.

With an eggrider fitted, the hills are not a problem when the kids are on it.

those Radwagons look.... dare i say it... Rad!

I wish i had more sue for something like that, as it would be cool to own one.

I know it’s no help here, out was riding in the city last night and saw a Riesse and Muller Load and it looked awesome.

There are so many different types of cargo bike requirements. If I was you I’d have a chat to someone like Really Useful Bikes. They are really helpful IME.

(I went against better advice and bought a Kona Ute, hated it immediately and sold it after two rides at a big loss)

There’s an Argo Cargo kit on FB Marketplace at the minute? Could be an economical way forwards? Just put it on any bike/ebike or combine with a beater bike and motor-kit

Argo Cargo kit

How does that work? Website is a bit vague…

^
Argo Cargo assembly time-lapse

OP, OTOH what about buying a used Dutch Bakfiets and then retrofitting a new motor kit?

If you’re the handy woodworky type then there are sometimes bargains to be had

We've got a box out front e cargo bike and it's brilliant. Kids go in, along with shopping and any other stuff, and they get the best seats, with a roof etc. Also great for just flinging stuff in.

Although expensive, the kit on Urban Arrows, R&M etc is a step up from radwagon, and with that comes proper reliability, performance, and robustness. They are the choice of bike delivery companies for a reason.

I'd recommend trying to get a shot of various things to see what suits. In edinburgh at least there are regular events for people wanting to try out cargo bikes, so worth keeping an eye out wherever you are.

A friend has a bike shop that sells various utility bikes, and sells quite a lot of Terns. They are much more like a normal bike than a box out front cargo bike (he also shifts quite a few of the raleigh / batavus cargo bikes).

That Argo thing looks interesting. Of course the first STW manoeuvre would be to replace the front brake with a hydraulic one and a connectamajig…

Is it longer than a normal bakfiets?

Go to A different gear and try a load out, I really liked the Harry Larry but it handled far more like a barge than a bike.

I do like the look of the Radwagon, theyre extremely keenly priced in todays market ,and they have a good reputation and have been around for a while.

They are heavy though, about 34kg.

Is it longer than a normal bakfiets?

Classic bakfiets generally come either long or short. Somewhere between 2 and 2.5m. Depending on what bike is used to convert then add 170cm to the length from your rear wheel to the middle of your cranks.

I've a Radwagon 4, and it is excellent for what I use it for - carrying 2 kids, age 5 and 3. I have a front rack with a large milk crate attached for carrying bits and bobs, so no need for panniers.

It's about a third of the price of all of the alternatives, so quite exceptional value. You can tell though where the savings have been made, as others have said - cheaper components, mechanical brakes, and hub drive is not as nice as mid-drive for sure, the assist comes in and out with a bit of a delay. I think they make some money on the accessories, some are a little overpriced for what they are.

The brakes are ok for me as I don't have any hills. I'm not sure about upgrading to hydraulic as there is a motor cut-out attached to the lever but cable actuated hydraulics might be a worthy upgrade.

It is extremely heavy. No issue when cycling, but a bit awkward when wheeling/maneuvering with kids on board, you do have to be careful. The weight of the load is distributed a little lower than a regular bike due to the small wheels, but still high enough.

The weight of the load is distributed a little lower than a regular bike due to the small wheels, but still high enough.

‘High enough’ for what though? I was under the impression that decent cargo bikes are designed to carry the load as lowly-slung as possible?

@prontomonto

Magura do an e bike version of the mt5 that has the electrickery. You need to make sure you get the right one of normally open vs normally closed.

‘High enough’ for what though? I was under the impression that decent cargo bikes are designed to carry the load as low-slung as possible?

Higher than a front loader cargo bike where the load is very low down, but lower than a longtail with full size wheels, like a Kona Ute.

I don't have much experience with a loaded front-loader. But with a longtail if you are not careful wheeling the bike, and you let it lean away from you, you can drop it, with kids onboard. I did it once. I'm more careful now and usually get the kids to hop off before maneuvers at a rack for example.

When you're riding, your own weight has the main influence on the centre of gravity, so the height of the load has less influence.

Magura do an e bike version of the mt5 that has the electrickery. You need to make sure you get the right one of normally open vs normally closed.

Thanks, wasn't aware of that.

But with a longtail if you are not careful wheeling the bike, and you let it lean away from you, you can drop it, with kids onboard.

Absolutely. Another reason why I ditched the Ute (the main reason actually) as I considered it dangerous/unfit for purpose, not just worryingly flexy!

I was wondering why you required a load to be ‘higher than’ in (say) a bakfiets (‘front-loader’?), or than in (say) a long-john or low-tail? I thought maybe for offroad purposes/ground-clearance or bad back inhibiting bending/lifting or somesuch?

Re cargo bikes in general I found an interesting infographic set of different cargo-bike configurations/archetypes

https://thenounproject.com/browse/collection-icon/cargobike-archetypes-35988/?p=1

Oh maybe I wasn't clear, I was saying the high load is one of the drawbacks of a longtail. You really don't notice while cycling though.

I've used a few but never bought one.
The urban arrows are great - very well made but quite long wheelbase.
Used a tern HSD which was great for shopping, moving tools, camping and so forth.
For commercial use, like moving parcels/making deliveries, I would go for a front loader.
It's also worth spending on good electrics e.g. Bosch.

Demo'd one of these, rides very nicely, lots of cargo / kid room but not super massive long. Tried it with weight in the back and the weight is low down as on 20" wheels.

There are a few UK dealers.

https://www.bicicapace.com/bikes/justlong/

Choose of frame design and then E or non E assist.

Or an E Circe Helios (I have a non assist)

Very flexible to set up for kid carry/cargo. Plus as they get older they can start to help pedal and there is even a triplet conversion!

https://www.circecycles.com/products/e-bike-2/

I've had my eBullitt for over a year now. Roughly 5000km.

I'm sold.

Living in town I've little use for a car day to day.

Don't have kids, but have been ferried around by the GF whilst not able to ride myself.

Long John (Front loader) bikes are much more stable thanks to the lower COG.

Long tails might be easier with kids, but are not much cop at transporting large, bulky items.

If you go for a long John, don't bother with suspension up front ala R&M.

Had a try with a couple of R&M bikes, but found them to be more sit up and beg style and the steerer tube had lots of play in it when braking due to the extra length of them.

There's a new xl bullitt available.

Are these bikes as expensive in places like Scandinavia or Holland where they’re commonly used?

Seems like there’s a gap in the market for a product that ordinary people could afford.

Long tails might be easier with kids, but are not much cop at transporting large, bulky items.

Surely longjohns/bakfiets (equipped with a box) are in most circumstances better and safer both for kids and for transporting bulky items?

Seems like there’s a gap in the market for a product that ordinary people could afford.

Not sure what an ordinary person is, but most people that I know think that I’m mad spending over £400 on a regular bicycle! In order for things like cargo bikes to be inexpensive I think they need either to be mass-produced and/or subsidised, or else an adaptation of an existing product (retrofit)

When you bring emerging tech like e-assist into the equation it gets even messier.

Surrounding culture has a lot to do with it too? Go to a Dutch bike shop you can buy an electric bakfiets with 40-60km range, complete with disc brakes, cargo/passenger box, removable battery, LCD screen and free raincover all for €2300

That’s about £2k? Simple rear wheel motor and tech means that it’s easily upgradable/future-proof. I don’t think that’s a lot of dosh.

low loader type bikes are ace for cargo but not so good for people, unless they're really long with seats built in, but then not as useful for cargo. longtails are better for carrying people but more faff for carrying cargo because there is no big flat surface

I've had all sorts of funny things on my longtail cargo bike though. 3 kids, adults, small trolley's worth of shopping, tables, chairs, pallets, wood, gas cylinder for the BBQ. Had a food processor and all the related gubbins on it the other day, that was rather rattley and noisy!

I have a medium width front rack on it but that rarely gets used to be honest

low loader type bikes are ace for cargo but not so good for people

I think that longjohns/bakfiets with box are ideal for either (small) passengers or a single adult passenger or cargo? Especially kids as they are lower to the ground, largely-enclosed and always in sight.

Good option for extra/awkward cargo items is removable box/seats?

OTOH I’m amazed at how confident many Dutch parents are when carrying their most precious of cargos up high :

It literally makes my teeth itch to watch 😬
*Edit ha thats exactly my Batavus town/cargo model in the thumbnail. Have only ever carried adults on the back.

@benp1

That’s some shopping list! I plan to get a longjohn or lowtail one day. Currently the trailer seems to be coping well though. Just need to fashion a centre kickstand. Had a full-sized upright Panasonic vaccum cleaner in it the other day, along with dinner. Here doing chores (trying to downsize/raise funds so have been posting a lot of stuff out) Feels very liberating (and fun) again to leave the car at home for post office, recycling, delivery runs etc. Not bad for £50 (used trailer) and you hardly notice it when in use, except (as you say) smaller items which clank around a bit. I use a big old beach towel to wrap/muffle smaller/lighter stuff just because rattles annoy me.

What about these?
https://www.christianiabikes.com/uk/