2016 Voltbike Mariner - My Honest Review

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Don’t let your fancy Digital voltmeter confuse you.

Analog voltmeters have an advantage when working with “power circuits”, as they aren’t so sensitive that they measure induced voltages such as those caused by broadcast radio or TV signals etc., etc. These voltages can be seen with an oscilloscope, and they can be quite large, but they are incapable of supplying much if anything in the way of current. Drain away a few milliamps, and this noise disappears.

Digital voltmeters are high impedance, meaning that they don’t place any load to speak of on the circuit being measured. Place such a meter on the end of an extension cord, along with an oscilloscope, and you will actually see that the meter is measuring the peak voltage on the cord, and some of that voltage is electrical noise. Place a 10,000 ohm resistor from the cord to ground, and the noise will disappear from the oscilloscope screen, and your voltmeter will now give you a more accurate reading of the true available voltage.

 

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Don’t let your fancy Digital voltmeter confuse you.

Analog voltmeters have an advantage when working with “power circuits”, as they aren’t so sensitive that they measure induced voltages such as those caused by broadcast radio or TV signals etc., etc. These voltages can be seen with an oscilloscope, and they can be quite large, but they are incapable of supplying much if anything in the way of current. Drain away a few milliamps, and this noise disappears.

Digital voltmeters are high impedance, meaning that they don’t place any load to speak of on the circuit being measured. Place such a meter on the end of an extension cord, along with an oscilloscope, and you will actually see that the meter is measuring the peak voltage on the cord, and some of that voltage is electrical noise. Place a 10,000 ohm resistor from the cord to ground, and the noise will disappear from the oscilloscope screen, and your voltmeter will now give you a more accurate reading of the true available voltage.

Thanks for this!

 

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EMP - Ebike Market Place

While I have no issues with my Mariner's battery, although lowering bike's tyres inflation pressure zaps the battery quickly so the Mariner could use a 52V battery in IMHO, nonetheless I've explored replacement battery options. My hope was find a company, located here in the USA, that not just sold high capacity - i.e.: 20ah - Silverfish style batteries, but could repair existing batteries as well. Some time ago, I contacted Luna Cycles inquiring about this. Their reply was that they had no plans to offer them. Recently I came across EMP, ebike market place, online. EMP not only can replace old battery packs, they sell a 48V 16ah Silver fish style ebike battery as well. At some point, I may reach out to them about either upgrading my battery or purchasing a new one. Stay Tuned!

 

[Cargo Bike Trailer Josh]

EMP - Ebike Market Place

While I have no issues with my Mariner's battery, although lowering bike's tyres inflation pressure zaps the battery quickly so the Mariner could use a 52V battery in IMHO, nonetheless I've explored replacement battery options. My hope was find a company, located here in the USA, that not just sold high capacity - i.e.: 20ah - Silverfish style batteries, but could repair existing batteries as well. Some time ago, I contacted Luna Cycles inquiring about this. Their reply was that they had no plans to offer them. Recently I came across EMP, ebike market place, online. EMP not only can replace old battery packs, they sell a 48V 16ah Silver fish style ebike battery as well. At some point, I may reach out to them about either upgrading my battery or purchasing a new one. Stay Tuned!

Great find! Thank you!

I found out the the controller in the latest version of the Voltbike Mariner can only handle up to a 15Ah battery.

 

[Cnugget]

Great find! Thank you!

I found out the the controller in the latest version of the Voltbike Mariner can only handle up to a 15Ah battery.

Care to elaborate?

 

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EMP Replied!

I'd reached out to EMP with some battery questions.

All of my questions pertained to silverfish type of battery as follow:
• Does EMP offer a 52V 20ah?
• Do they now or in the future offer a 48V 20ah battery?

Below is their reply:
"We are not able to fit that size battery inside of a silverfish case but we can do a 48/52v 12Ah. Where was you able to find a 48V20Ah batteries so I can take a look at them?"

I emailed the person a couple of 20ah battery links.

I'll post EMP's reply when I hear back

Stay Tuned!

 

[Cargo Bike Trailer Josh]

Care to elaborate?

Sure. I'm interested in upgrading to a higher Ah battery than originally came on my Voltbike Mariner (10.4 Ah). I asked George of Voltbike how much Ah can the controller handle and he said 15Ah. He does not recommend going over 15Ah.

 

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Sure. I'm interested in upgrading to a higher Ah battery than originally came on my Voltbike Mariner (10.4 Ah). I asked George of Voltbike how much Ah can the controller handle and he said 15Ah. He does not recommend going over 15Ah.

On a number of occasions, I'd asked @Voltbike George about offering higher Ah batteries. I mentioned to him that others, sold nearly identical, Mariner clones that had 20ah batteries. My suggestion to him was for Voltbike to offer a couple of battery options, which is inline with a number of retailers. I'm NOT attempting to disparage George, I understand he's very busy, however he never clearly stated his aversion.

Perhaps he should partner with a 3rd party - maybe EMP for the American market, some other for Canada - for replacement batteries, upgrades and repairs?

 

[Cnugget]

Sure. I'm interested in upgrading to a higher Ah battery than originally came on my Voltbike Mariner (10.4 Ah). I asked George of Voltbike how much Ah can the controller handle and he said 15Ah. He does not recommend going over 15Ah.

Thanks for the update.

 

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Two High Ah batteries

• 48V 20ah Panasonic Cells

• 48V 17ah Panasonic NCR18650B 3400mAh 18650 battery cells

 

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'nother Two High Ah Batteries

• 48V 30ah (CE ROTHS certificate, 2-year warranty, 18650 cells)

• 48V 17ah (CE ROTHS certificate, German manufactured, Panasonic NCR18650B cells)

The 30ah battery may be too good to be true?
Both manufacturers claim 15A continues discharge rate.
The German manufacturer, ENERprof, provides detailed battery info on their web site.

 

[Uphill]

Green Bike USA offers a 48v 13AH silverfish battery that looks IDENTICAL to the Mariner's, and when I was ordering my Mariner I worked out a deal with George to sell me the Mariner without a battery. I had done a bunch of research on whether the Mariner controller would work with it, and it looked like it was all systems go. Basically, you're adding a bigger fuel tank to your bike with a higher AH, so long as you stay within 48v. My wife ordered a Green Bike, and when it arrived I tried her battery on the Mariner. It was virtually identical until you got to the female plug fitting on the bottom, and then I found it was too shallow to accept and seat onto my Mariner's male plug. Damn, so close. Green Bike's battery was a Samsung. Mariner's is a Sanyo/Panasonic, which George had found more reliable at one point in time (he used to carry Samsung). If I was completely committed, I'm sure there is a way to convert either the battery or the male plug to be compatible, but I gave up. I wanted to actually start riding the bike, not get into a involved tinkering thing. So if you're excited about buying a better battery, they are out there, but you won't know for sure if it will actually work until you try to fit it onto your bike.
Now if you ARE into tinkering, I know you could make it work. But I relented and George sent me the battery. The funny thing is that after all this effort, after 200 miles of riding, I've never gone below 3 bars (out of 5). I ride mostly on trails, rather than cruising for long distances.

 

[zap016VOLTAGE]

Green Bike USA offers a 48v 13AH silverfish battery that looks IDENTICAL to the Mariner's, and when I was ordering my Mariner I worked out a deal with George to sell me the Mariner without a battery. I had done a bunch of research on whether the Mariner controller would work with it, and it looked like it was all systems go. Basically, you're adding a bigger fuel tank to your bike with a higher AH, so long as you stay within 48v. My wife ordered a Green Bike, and when it arrived I tried her battery on the Mariner. It was virtually identical until you got to the female plug fitting on the bottom, and then I found it was too shallow to accept and seat onto my Mariner's male plug. Damn, so close. Green Bike's battery was a Samsung. Mariner's is a Sanyo/Panasonic, which George had found more reliable at one point in time (he used to carry Samsung). If I was completely committed, I'm sure there is a way to convert either the battery or the male plug to be compatible, but I gave up. I wanted to actually start riding the bike, not get into a involved tinkering thing. So if you're excited about buying a better battery, they are out there, but you won't know for sure if it will actually work until you try to fit it onto your bike.
Now if you ARE into tinkering, I know you could make it work. But I relented and George sent me the battery. The funny thing is that after all this effort, after 200 miles of riding, I've never gone below 3 bars (out of 5). I ride mostly on trails, rather than cruising for long distances.

Good story!
Thank you for this.

 

[Roflo]

Yep.....I believe this is Uphill that brought over his wife battery from her Green Bike to my house to try and see if it worked on my Mariner. It look absolutely identical to my battery as far as look and size. Even looking at them side by side they looked identical. When we placed it in the battery casing it slid down perfectly and looked like a match until we he those connection on the bottom. It seem like they should fit from eyeballing it but something was definitely not jiving with the battery connector. SOOOOOOO just because a battery you may see on a 3rd party site looks like it will work, we now have proof that chances are that it wont , even it the casing looks like a perfect match. Buyer Beware! That being said a longer life battery option would be awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[zap016VOLTAGE]

Yep.....I believe this is Uphill that brought over his wife battery from her Green Bike to my house to try and see if it worked on my Mariner. It look absolutely identical to my battery as far as look and size. Even looking at them side by side they looked identical. When we placed it in the battery casing it slid down perfectly and looked like a match until we he those connection on the bottom. It seem like they should fit from eyeballing it but something was definitely not jiving with the battery connector. SOOOOOOO just because a battery you may see on a 3rd party site looks like it will work, we now have proof that chances are that it wont , even it the casing looks like a perfect match. Buyer Beware! That being said a longer life battery option would be awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Good to know!
@Uphill experience might be the reason to utilize an EMP or similar company.
Some such service could upgrade an existing battery eliminating these issues.
Thank you for this!

 

[Archaeonic]

Staying Alive

I ridden bicycles most of my life and I've rode various motorcycles as well. I find riding, whether on a bicycle or motorbike an enjoyable pastime. The Mariner is such a cool bike, I wish I could spent the day riding - *hint* 20ah battery *hint* - it as with motorbikes. Just focusing on bicycles, unfortunately I've had a number of unpleasant encounters with cars. In the city where I live bicyclist often have to share the streets with cars. Riding motorbikes taught me to be alert, protect yourself and be visible. As a commuter, presented here are a couple items I never leave home without. The Mariner is such a visually unusual bike makes it standout with both drivers and pedestrians. An asset!

Torch Apparel Bicycle Helmet
I purchased a Torch T2 helmet for commuting. Nowadays, I only skateboard style helmets because of "full coverage" protection they afford. Ventilation is the least of my concerns. Understanding the need to make cyclist more visible their helmets incorporate both front and rear lights. The helmet fits snug do its front and rear straps
• Front & Rear LED Light Panels
• 4 Different Lighting Modes: Steady High, Steady Low, Flash Fast, Flash Slow
• Both Chin Strap and Back of the head Dial Adjuster
• USB Battery Charging
View attachment 11276 View attachment 11279 View attachment 11282 View attachment 11285 View attachment 11288

Unfortunately, there are an appreciable number of bad reviews over at Amazon of this otherwise extremely appealing product. Almost 30% of them are helpfully critical.
That's enough to scare this interested new Voltbike Mariner owner and fledgling eBike rider away

 

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Unfortunately, there are an appreciable number of bad reviews over at Amazon of this otherwise extremely appealing product. Almost 30% of them are helpfully critical.
That's enough to scare this interested new Voltbike Mariner owner and fledgling eBike rider away

Thank you for this @Archaeonic!

Because I'd purchased the my Torch Bicycle Helmet direct from the manufacturer, I therefore wasn't aware of its ratings on Amazon.
The helmet appealed to me because of its:
• Skate Board/Full Coverage design
• Polycarbonate shell
• Dial Fit Adjustment
• 360 degree lights.

Its Amazon rating is a bit of a surprise.

So far, I've had no issues with the helmet's functionality or manufacture.
I continue wearing it.
As most of my cycling is doing daylight hours, my only wish would be for the helmet's lights to be brighter (perhaps adjustable intensity).

 

[Claudio]

Does that 48V 17AH battery from amazon you linked really work on the voltbike mariner? how can it be 100% compatible? have you tried it?

thanks

 

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Does that 48V 17AH battery from amazon you linked really work on the voltbike mariner? how can it be 100% compatible? have you tried it?

thanks

Hi @Claudio

At this time, I have not purchased a new or upgraded my existing battery.
I'm still researching battery options.
Some people have posted their experiences here which is great.
We can learn from one another so I hope that people continue to post their experiences.
From what I've gathered, while silverfish battery's may appear identical, there differences with their bottom electrical connections.
The solution would be @Voltbike to offer a higher Ah battery.
Because they - @Voltbike - do not, my feeling would be to have a service such as (Link Removed - No Longer Exists) upgrade my existing battery.
EMP did tell me that they could do 16ah and they have asked that I provide them specs on higher Ah batteries.

Thank you.

 

[Claudio]

Well the mariner is on the way, I tracked it this morning... should be here next week. I just hope I made the right decision by buying the mariner vs the yukon!