GX on order

[mojoe]

I just ordered a GX yesterday. I expect it to ship today. I found a vendor who had the GX on sale (and in stock). Everyone else was asking full MSRP. I ordered a blue GX from here: https://www.gocyclemarine.com/product/gocycle-marine-gx/. I guess if you can afford a yacht, you can afford a Gocycle. Me, I'll have to be content with my kayak

I have another ebike that I will be selling. Pushing a 60 lb bike up three flights of steps is too much trouble. Also, wrestling it into and out of the truck wasn't easy, either. A bike carrier for ebikes is about $400, but you can't even buy one, due to Covid. Weight and size were the main reasons I was looking for a foldable.

After reading many reviews, and watching many YT videos, I was dissappointed to find that the vast majority of foldables were in the 50 lb range. Most of the lighter ones had 14-16 inch wheels, which I think are too small. One contender that has nice specs is the EVELO Dash, which is almost the same price as a GX. However, the Dash is about 51 lbs. I found a very few folders that were lighter and less money, but they all had issues that I didn't like. The Carbo looked nice, but reports of poor service put me off. Also, Carbo is a new startup, which makes me nervous about how long they will be in business.

After all my research, I decided that although expensive, the GX was what I wanted. The company has been around for some time, and the build quality is certainly there. I considered the GXi, but didn't feel the huge price difference was worth it, to me. The adjustable handlebar stem and larger battery would be nice. I'm not sure if the other bells and whistles would be worth it, though.

I did see the notice about the new G4 series that is due out soon. I decided not to wait for two reasons: who knows when you will be able to buy one; the price on the low-end model is $4000. Perhaps in a few years, I may upgrade if the new features are enough of an incentive. For now, $3k was more than I really wanted to spend on an ebike.

So, now I'm anxiously awaiting my GX. I'll report back after I've ridden it a bit.

 

[mojoe]

Just an update. So far, I am not impressed with how the vendor is handling my order. I was promised a call to confirm my order. No one called all day, so I called them about 4:30pm, their time. I got a callback, which just verbally confirmed my web order. Why was this necessary, if their website shop had all the information? Seems like a delaying tactic to me.

An hour later, I get a call to tell me that the cost of overnight shipping that the website charged me was incorrect ($50, which seemed normal). I was then quoted a shipping cost of almost $500, which is certainly wrong. I told them to ship it ground, which is free.

I was assured multiple times that it would ship today, and that I would get a tracking number. Hopefully, both points are true. If it wasn't for the fact that their price was $300 less than everyone else's, and they had the bike in stock (assuming I wasn't lied to), I would have cancelled the order, and gotten it elsewhere.

 

[PedalUma]

You will get tracking after the driver scans the label in one hour. Shipping by ground is normal for bikes. Just forget about the order for a few days and be happy when it arrives.

 

[mojoe]

I had my first ride on the GX today. I did a short 6 mile ride on a paved multi-use path that is mostly flat. Only a few hundred feet difference in elevation.

At first, I used the default "City" mode, but found that this bike is so easy to pedal on relatively flat ground, that I switched to "Eco" mode for most of the ride. I did get more of a workout, but at no time was I panting, or straining too hard pedalling. On the flat stretches, "Eco" mode doesn't kick in very often. This wasn't a problem, as I found it easy to pedal this bike w/o assist. I'll probably tweak "Eco" mode a bit, to make my own custom mode.

On moderate terrain, gear 1 was almost too low. It should be of more use on hills. I'll have to try the bike on more hilly terrain, which we have an abundance of around here. In gear 3, I got up to about 17 mph while pedalling at a decent cadence. I can see that you might want a 4th gear for going faster, without pedalling faster.

I didn't use the "Boost" button at all on this ride. I may use it on hills. There is one negative about the "Boost" button. It will not engage the motor unless you are moving at 4 mph or more. I'll have to see how big an issue this is when stopped on a hill. I asked Gocycle about this. They say that they did this on purpose, to not overtax the motor.

The only negative points so far are: the plastic swivel piece that is attached to the underside of the seat snapped into two pieces the first time I tried to swivel it, to stow the seat (Gocycle is sending me another); the two security Torx screws for the wheels were missing (Gocycle is also sending these); There is no easy way to attach a mirror to the handlebars (I read the post here about changing grips).

In my limited riding so far, I really like this bike. I'm 6'-1" and after adjusting the seat, it fits me just fine. The ride doesn't seem too harsh, even over speed bumps (I have 35 psi in the front, 40 psi in the rear). I briefly rode with no hands, and didn't notice any pulling to the right, as some earlier reviewers mentioned. Perhaps they fixed this issue.

Two really big pluses for me are the weight and the foldability. My previous ebike weighed over 60 lbs. Getting it up and down three flights of stairs at the apartment was a major struggle. When folded, I can carry the GX under one arm without too much effort (I'm over 60). Even with the seat attached in the riding position, I can fit this bike into the rear passenger area of my Xterra.

I very much like the ability to shift gears while stopped, without having to spin the pedals. I always hated that about derailleurs. My previous ebike had a derailleur, as did the 10-speed that I had years ago, so I am familiar with it. I prefer not having to deal with it.

One additional minor point: when folded, the bike isn't quite as easy to roll around as the videos show. It has a tendency for the wheels to separate, making it hard to steer. I don't know why Gocycle didn't use magnets to keep the wheels together. Maybe strong magnets would mess with the motor. The Velcro strap that is used to secure the wheels together is only for storage. It doesn't work when rolling. However, you can use the strap around the rear shock and the folded handlebars to hold everything together when rolling the bike.

 

[mojoe]

I had ordered Tannus Armor inserts for the GX. They arrived this afternoon, so I installed them. I couldn't believe how easy it was, compared to installing inserts on my previous ebike. The smaller and wider tires on the GX made it much easier. I didn't even have to remove the wheels.

As Tannus recommends, I did put 10 psi less in each tire. They feel as firm as they did this morning, without the inserts.

Hopefully, with the inserts, it will be a long time before I have to fix a flat. However, when that time comes, I can see that it will a breeze, compared to any previous bike I have owned.