Any recommendations for a lightweight ebike conversion kit for road bikes?

K

Katrina92

New Member
Region
USA
Hey everyone!

I have a Scott Addict, and I've been considering converting it to an ebike, but I don't really want to buy a whole new Scott Addict eRIDE.

I recently started commuting to work by bike—it's about a 25-mile round trip through a pretty hilly area. After a while, my legs started struggling a bit, so I began considering adding some e-assist to help out on the climbs.

I'm looking for something similar to the Mahle X20. Its 23Nm of torque seems enough for me, and I love how lightweight and stealthy it is.

I mostly ride under my own power, so I don’t want a heavy setup that feels like a drag when the motor isn’t running.

I've looked around but haven’t found many conversion kits that match what I’m looking for. Does anyone know if there's a lightweight, stealthy kit out there that could work for my needs?

Thanks in advance!
 
I added a Swytch Kit to my son's Specialized Rockhopper 27.5. It added very little weight and performs well for a cadence sensor. Does not appear to add any rolling resistance with it powered off. Has limited range using the smallest batteries they sell so he carries a spare although they have bigger batteries now.
 
Unless you want to go with a cheap kit with major limitations (like Qiroll) it doesn't make much practical sense to kit a bike anymore. Really any of the kits have major limitations and compromises. Assuming you have a carbon fork the front motor Swytch kit might not be a good idea. The Bimotal is interesting but within a $700 of a new Scotts carbon ebike - out of curiosity I checked prices and found this

Scott Contessa Addict RC eRIDE5 E-Bike | Jenson USA

Scott Contessa Addict RC eRIDE 15 EBike Making Your Rides Last Longer Ebikes arent necessarily designed to make your rides easier. Theyre designed to make your 30mile ride turn into a 50mile ride and minor hill climbs turn into climbing tall mountains. An ebike is an opportunity to take your...
www.jensonusa.com www.jensonusa.com
55% discount at $2700 for a full carbon Scotts or $1700 for a more powerful but heavy Yamaha Wabash
You might want to save yourself the headache and potential disappointment of a conversion kit and just buy a heavily discounted new ebike.
 
I have two Tong Sheng TSDZ2 mid drives working on my bikes. One of them a Raleigh 12 speed from the 70's, but becomes a 6 speed because you lose the front derailleur, . It's a torque sensing system, so it feels much like a regular bike. Low pressure, no assist. More pressure, assist. Motor weighs around 8-9 pounds. Batteries are 4-12 lbs. I really like it subject to its limitations.

Pedaluma, a frequent poster and builder here, used to install them exclusively. Now I believe he is backing the Toseven DM02, which I haven't tried yet, but does sound like a better motor. He has posted some pics of his custom builds. Quite nice.

The Bafang BBS02 is stronger, bullet proof mid drive kit, but is cadence sensor. I have one of those too. Good to ride when I'm tired or lazy. . BBS02 on right. TSDZ2 on left,

P3150148.JPG


Should you buy or build? You can always get a working commercial ebike for less than retail costs of kits and batteries. Less true when looking at mid drives. In my case, I don't worry about it.

Some people like a small front motor like the Swytch on a light bike. The Swytch business model doesn't seem to fit an impulse buyer. You get on a waiting list and when they have enough orders to fill a container, they get a shipment. Competition is lower cost too..
 
Unfortunately, there aren't many kits that will work with a carbon framed road bike.
I have a Giant Defy Advanced Pro 0 and would love to add a small electric motor kit, but most kits won't work with my Defy's carbon frame
One kit that does show promise is the Skarper kit. Skarper.com
The downside is the price.
 
I hate to toot their horn,but for the money the I Mortor isn't bad it puts out 350 watts and its surprisngly strong its self contained battery is 7.8 ah I think you can get an extended range battery and you can also get a version that is controlled from your Iphone it was around $400 and it worked pretty dang good,the biggest disadvantage was the weight almost 10# bang for the buck was hard to beat,I think the best use for one of these would have been a steel framed trike( wish I would kept mine) now that that I am 2 wheeled phobic wish me luck on the "trikker" trike I need to finish-Kevin
 
 
Rás Cnoic said:
What about this system?

bimotal.com

Electrify Your Bike

Bimotal produces world-class electric powertrains to power bicycles, bikes, ebikes and other forms of multimodal transportation.
bimotal.com bimotal.com
Click to expand...
Thanks for the recommendation! Bimotal is innovative, especially with its quick-switch feature between e-assisted and analog rides.

I noticed it offers 750W of power and up to 50Nm of continuous torque, which seems more suited for MTB. I've read on forums that users of the Mahle X20 find its torque sufficient, so I'm wondering if the Bimotal might provide too much torque for a road bike.
 
Mahle was selling conversion kits from Switzerland in 2017. San Diego Ebike had them. Buy the time I saved up $2000 to buy one in 2018, they had been discontinued everywhere. China China China China China China China China. Or pedal yourself for 7 hours against a 38 mph headwind at 4 mph. My route gets no easier when the wind is up in my face.
As far as too much torque, some controllers use maximum watts to accelerate to the minimum required speed. Others ramp power up slowly. There is no telling which kind of controller you bought. I have had both. I pulled the crank pickup away from the crank for the ebikeling controller 2018, as 11 mph in PAS1 was too fast for both my rutted grass driveway and the 6" wide berm (in places) on State Rte 3. Also I hated being whacked in the back of the leg when I wound the pedal backwards to get a good start.
My bodaboda has a steel front fork. Will take 1300 w of torque. There was really no other mid drive stretch frame electric bike that would have fit 28" leg me in 2017. Yuba's electric bodaboda in 2017 had Bosch mid-drive, which required you to spin the armature with your feet if you wanted to ride without power. I ride without power whenever the wind is favorable. Old men need serious exercise, or their heart stops. Mid-drives delete the triple front sprocket, which I need to get 60 lb groceries up 15% grades, and also pedal faster than 2 mph on the flats. Also, I doubt if the required Bosch display would have lasted a year as much as it rains here. The ebikeling display certainly shorted out. With a throttle, I did not need the display. With the bike now aged 7 years, no replacement of parts will make the rear derailleur upshift in less than 10 minutes. Shifts up only after a sharp bump. Changing speeds for the wind (was 30 mph today) is front sprocket shift or not at all. Front hub motor allows a triple front sprocket. It is too cold yet to install the battery. It will freeze tonight, so battery lives under a heating pad in the garage.
 
Last edited:
twy said:
I added a Swytch Kit to my son's Specialized Rockhopper 27.5. It added very little weight and performs well for a cadence sensor. Does not appear to add any rolling resistance with it powered off. Has limited range using the smallest batteries they sell so he carries a spare although they have bigger batteries now.
Click to expand...
I've looked into Swytch myself and noticed their latest MAX+ product supports thru-axle frames. I'm curious, is the torque and range enough for your daily rides?
 
Again and again, people get hung up on weight until they ride a bunch of eBikes. I see it everyday. Yes, an electric guitar weighs more than an acoustic. So what? What rocks more? Prices have dropped on high quality eBikes at your local store with local service. Start there. I started a thread here on DM02 motor programing. This motor goes on almost any standard bike. Carbon requires a shaped rubber bushing between the motor and the down tube. No dealer 'updates' needed. You own and control the bike, not a big corporation that can 'update you' from 28 to 20 mph overnight. Hub-drives suck. Front hub-drives are the worst. Don't bother unless you have a motor in the middle that pulls chain through the shiftable gears and has a torque sensor that you can program for smoothness or the perk you want. A new Aventon Pace 500.3 is on sale near you at $200 off, for $1599 with a free second battery worth $500. It will be pro built and include a follow-up tune worth $125. You will also never call or trouble shoot with AI in China. Just go local.
 
EMGX said:
Unless you want to go with a cheap kit with major limitations (like Qiroll) it doesn't make much practical sense to kit a bike anymore. Really any of the kits have major limitations and compromises. Assuming you have a carbon fork the front motor Swytch kit might not be a good idea. The Bimotal is interesting but within a $700 of a new Scotts carbon ebike - out of curiosity I checked prices and found this

Scott Contessa Addict RC eRIDE5 E-Bike | Jenson USA

Scott Contessa Addict RC eRIDE 15 EBike Making Your Rides Last Longer Ebikes arent necessarily designed to make your rides easier. Theyre designed to make your 30mile ride turn into a 50mile ride and minor hill climbs turn into climbing tall mountains. An ebike is an opportunity to take your...
www.jensonusa.com www.jensonusa.com
55% discount at $2700 for a full carbon Scotts or $1700 for a more powerful but heavy Yamaha Wabash
You might want to save yourself the headache and potential disappointment of a conversion kit and just buy a heavily discounted new ebike.
Click to expand...
Totally tempting, that price!
 
harryS said:
I have two Tong Sheng TSDZ2 mid drives working on my bikes. One of them a Raleigh 12 speed from the 70's, but becomes a 6 speed because you lose the front derailleur, . It's a torque sensing system, so it feels much like a regular bike. Low pressure, no assist. More pressure, assist. Motor weighs around 8-9 pounds. Batteries are 4-12 lbs. I really like it subject to its limitations.

Pedaluma, a frequent poster and builder here, used to install them exclusively. Now I believe he is backing the Toseven DM02, which I haven't tried yet, but does sound like a better motor. He has posted some pics of his custom builds. Quite nice.

The Bafang BBS02 is stronger, bullet proof mid drive kit, but is cadence sensor. I have one of those too. Good to ride when I'm tired or lazy. . BBS02 on right. TSDZ2 on left,

View attachment 190903

Should you buy or build? You can always get a working commercial ebike for less than retail costs of kits and batteries. Less true when looking at mid drives. In my case, I don't worry about it.

Some people like a small front motor like the Swytch on a light bike. The Swytch business model doesn't seem to fit an impulse buyer. You get on a waiting list and when they have enough orders to fill a container, they get a shipment. Competition is lower cost too..
Click to expand...
I'm curious where's the battery on that left bike?
 
Katrina92 said:
I'm curious where's the battery on that left bike?
Click to expand...
On the better conversions the battery is hidden, and wires are through frame with no zip ties, zero, and the motor is in the middle. If you zoom this bike you will see a wire from the 'water bottle' to the motor. With no tangle of wires or connectors at the handlebar. With a front basket, with a bouquet, you do not see any wires. Now you can see on 4mm to the display at the left grip at the steertube. Looks like a bike. Yet blows past $6400 bikes with brand names. In other words it smokes SL Vados on a daily basis and looks like a casual sheep on vacation. No spandex required.

1742529457523.jpeg
 
EMGX said:
This is somewhat interesting if it fits your bike and you want to take the chance (I wouldn't): 12mm thru axle 142mm width/OLD, built in controller, cell phone app display/control. Motor weighs ~5 pounds plus whatever 36v battery weight.

Click to expand...
Nice👍
I guess you're not a fan of those modded kits, so maybe not into it, right🤔
 
It's more that I have much experience with the compromises and limitations of conversions. I got into it initially for my wife to try to keep her biking. I live and ride in a very hilly/mountainous area (I live on a mountain). Ridiculous but I have two TSDZ2 mid drives (500w 36v and 750w 48v), two front hub motors (36v 250w), one rear hub motor (48v 500w), as well as a Qiroll friction motor, and tried them on 7 or 8 different bikes. I also have a 5 year old gravel BH Yamaha PW-SE proprietary mid drive. Virtually all of the bikes including the BH weigh in at 40+ pounds which is (really) heavy if you're used to riding a light bike like your Scott. I've ridden my bikes thousands of miles including some touring so I have a decent amount of experience. With the current deeply discounted prices on ebikes, in most cases, it seems to make more sense to buy a UL listed, properly engineered, warranted, name brand proprietary bike rather than try to cobble together something oneself. The 26 pound Scott Contessa at $2700 looks like an awesome deal for what it is, certainly more refined than any DIY conversion and probably more of a pleasure to ride by a long shot.

That said you should do what suits you. The Swytch thru axle looks like a reasonable option. I've never ridden one but a 80 year old neighbor rides a Swytch front motor conversion up and down our neighborhood road which gains 400 feet in 1 mile, mostly in two 20+degree sections. He does work pretty hard and says that his battery only lasts one or two trips up the road. I saw a couple Swytch equipped bikes riding around Crater Lake on the car free days and they seemed to be doing very well. A lot of people make similar intitial posts as yours then never follow up on what they ultimately choose and how it works out for them. It'd be interesting if you do follow up.
 
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