Recent content by J Miller

The difference is that local, nearby repair shops or services exist near me for all those things. The nearest e-bike mechanic is over fifty miles away, and for a lot of people in the US I think that's the norm. And with proprietary systems like what Bosch is doing, you not only need an e-bike...

I'm assuming it's a front hub motor of some kind (hard to see it clearly). The motor is probably fine with higher voltage. The battery will probably need to be replaced (not sure if you could use a converter - I'm not an electronics expert). The unknown is the other electronics - you'll need...

My bike is DIY, but this bugs me regardless of bike type, and mechanical bikes are almost as bad about it. I hate having stuff scream brands at everyone around me. I like my bikes (electric and regular) to appear understated and unassuming, and hiding the brand can make it less tempting a...

Because I don't drive for medical reasons that are too personal to get into (and the same reasons apply to motorcycles / mopeds, so those are out). I already liked cycling, but electric gives me far greater range and mobility, especially in very hot or very cold weather, need to get somewhere...

Interesting! I'd only ever heard the 80+rpm number before, and always felt that was far too high for me. I didn't realize it was known that mountain bikers prefer a lower cadence - I always ride mountain or hybrid style bikes (never road bikes), and the 60-70rpm cadence has always felt much...

Isn't spinning out more a factor of too much torque at too low of a load rather than max power? I.e. so long as the torque was ramped up smoothly, I don't see it being an issue with the power level. You might still have issues with traction on slick surfaces but that's true of any front hub I'd...

My city is flat-ish, but I live right at the base where plains transition to mountains so all the grades are on the climb up just outside the city. The roads have to accommodate cars so they don't go past 10-12% for the most part, but they go on for miles and miles at 8-12%. There are other...

I've heard it called clown pedaling, and that's what it feels like. I hate it personally. To me if you're not pedaling to actually assist (whatever the reason), that's what throttles are for, and a big part of why I feel bikes should have both a throttle and PAS.

Personally I think a torque sensor, while not essential, is a significant upgrade over cadence-only, though it must be said that not all cadence-only sensors are created equal. A high quality immediate engagement cadence setup is a vast improvement over the laggy, jerky setups that are more...

I'm really glad I have the ability to hit 30mph on my DIY bike, even though 95% of the time I'm staying right at 20mph. You never know when you really want that burst of speed, usually due to someone else being stupid (be it biker, car, or pedestrian).

While a sufficiently well-made chain shouldn't be breaking even under motorized stress, I've had plenty of maintenance issues with my regular bike drivetrains - gear teeth wear out, chains stretch, crank bolt works loose, derailleur catching, etc. Particularly as I ride in all weather. In fact...

Rider: 180lbs (bike is ~60lbs, so 240-250lbs total) Bike: 1980s 26" chromoly Diamondback MTB with MX3006 hub + Phaserunner kit from Grin Tech Battery: 52v 6Ah Mighty Mini from Luna Cycles (30Q cells) Power: usually 50-300 watts typically, though I can go up to 1000w (capped to 20A for battery...

I realize I'm a bit late to this, but as someone who has no background in electronics I found the CAv3 to be relatively easy to setup (using it with one of Grin's own kits). Highly recommend using the USB programming cable and the provided software to configure it. There's little tooltips that...

I built my DIY bike using a Grin Tech kit and I have to agree - phaserunner + CAv3 + mx3006, and it feels amazing to ride - the only bike I demo'd that even came close to feeling this smooth and responsive was the Stromer line. It's almost eerily silent too. It handles hills surprisingly well -...

In my many years of riding regular bikes, I've had more issues with chain/crank/gears out on the road than I have nasty flats. Thick tires/tubes + sealant do wonders. Most of my flats are slow or the result of me screwing up the install (i.e. pinch), and happen at home not on the road. The tiny...