Hi all, I live in Mexico and have a Cannondale Trail 8 MTB with 29” wheels that I want to put a motor on. I will mainly use it for roads and smooth trails and not too concerned about a huge amount of power, speed or runtime. I basically want to find something with good value that I am able to buy in Mexico. So far a Bafang mid drive kit seems to be my only option but it’s a little pricy for what I want. Any other recommendations? TIA!
conversion kit
- Thread starter BenMex
- Start date
kevinmccune
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
try a "Quiroll" or other friction drive,the advantage,you don't have to butcher anything up and its easy to remove if you want a taste of power you can get a front drive self contained unit like an "I Mortor"( less than $300 from "Ali Express"-disadvantage weighs about 25#) easy on and off though,just might be your "gateway" to empower.
harryS
Well-Known Member
I can find the Bafang mid drive BBS02B kits shippng out of China for about $400=450 USD., I paid $550 for mine in 2015 from a US vendor (no battery), I think it's a good reliable and quite powerful ebike kit,
You could do worse. The Tong Sheng TSDZ2B mid drive ships out of China for under $300 USd, but is relatively low powered. I own two of them because they make for a low cost light weight package, but they are low power and not reliable. I'm a hobbyist, so I'm out there like I was this week, in freezing weather, figuring out why my pedal assist was intermitent on my hub motor bike. I don't mind it much if my TSDZ2's need to be re-lubed to keep running,
Speaking of hubmotors. those are options too, I don't care for the 1000Watt 12-14lb direct drive motors. Those are meant to be ridden with throttle at high speeds. Pedal assist is rude. Touch them and the bike takes off. I prefer the 250-500W geared hubmotors. WIth a good controller, pedal response allows you to ride slow if you wish. A rear hubmotor is a little more work to install, but safer.
You could do worse. The Tong Sheng TSDZ2B mid drive ships out of China for under $300 USd, but is relatively low powered. I own two of them because they make for a low cost light weight package, but they are low power and not reliable. I'm a hobbyist, so I'm out there like I was this week, in freezing weather, figuring out why my pedal assist was intermitent on my hub motor bike. I don't mind it much if my TSDZ2's need to be re-lubed to keep running,
Speaking of hubmotors. those are options too, I don't care for the 1000Watt 12-14lb direct drive motors. Those are meant to be ridden with throttle at high speeds. Pedal assist is rude. Touch them and the bike takes off. I prefer the 250-500W geared hubmotors. WIth a good controller, pedal response allows you to ride slow if you wish. A rear hubmotor is a little more work to install, but safer.
kevinmccune
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
nothing like experience,if I was serious about a hub motor conversion these days it would be "Grin -all axle".
Thanks for the info. Do I install the hub motor on my existing wheel or do they come in 29”? Also the battery seems to be as expensive as the motor here in Mexico, is that typical elsewhere? Since I’m not concerned about long runtimes I can get away with a small battery.
Thanks, I’ll definitely look into this option if I can find a good place to mount it and a small battery to power it.
gromike
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- City of Dreams
The BBS02 makes a great conversion, but you need to make sure it fits into the bottom bracket first (and figure out where to put the battery.) Outside of a heavy rear wheel, I really like a direct drive hub motor on the rear wheel. I have one that is torque sensing and with regen. It's a Grin kit, not an all-axle, but pricy nonetheless.
Lacing a wheel into an existing rim is relatively easy, thanks to Grin and their how-to-videos and spoke calculator.
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Lacing a wheel into an existing rim is relatively easy, thanks to Grin and their how-to-videos and spoke calculator.
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kevinmccune
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
I think both of these are self contained with 7 ah battery.
harryS
Well-Known Member
The problem with conversions is that if you come across a good deal, you can buy a finished ebike for less than the cost of a motor and battery My nephew just bought a 27" Vitesse Flare Gravel ebike with torque sensing rear hub motor for under $300 USD last month. I happened to see it, and it's a beautiful bike, He hopes he can get 16 mile range out of it riding in 0 C weather,
I wish I could find that deal in Mexico!
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