Bruce Arnold
Well-Known Member
I've been enjoying the Scorpion. There are things I miss about the CCS but on the whole it was a good choice. Quick recap: the arthritis in my knees made it more difficult to get on and off the CCS so I wanted a step-through frame. Decided on the Scorpion, despite its variance from a standard diamond-frame bicycle. The only mods I've made were better pedals, the tall seat accessory, and I've put a rack bag on the rack.
As I said in another post, this thing works surprisingly well. I usually start out in 5th gear (out of 7), with PAS in either Eco or 1. I'm up to my usual cruising speed of 16 mph before I'm out of the driveway. I wish I had an 11T top gear, instead of the 14T, because it's hard for me to pedal fast enough to go over 18 mph. With the CCS, I could put it in 9th gear and pedal all the way up to 26 mph or more. Some of that is the effect of having 20 inch wheels instead of 29 inch, as well as the gearing. If I were to change two things about the Scorpion, it would be to have 24 inch wheels (wouldn't affect the look much but the top speed would improve) and an 8 or 9 gear cassette.
If I ghost pedal in S or R, then I can go about 24 mph on flat ground. This is okay, but I ride for exercise as much as anything, and ghost pedaling doesn't give much exercise. I'm pretty much never in that much of a hurry, though, so maxing out around 18 mph -- a comfortable 18 mph, not spinning like a madman -- is satisfactory. Still, on the CCS I had the choice to faster if I wanted to, and choices are good.
I miss the torque sensor on the CCS. Cadence sensing works okay; it's taken some getting used to. It's more like an on-off switch instead of the instant variation in power you can get from a torque sensor. But 90% of the time it's not an issue, so I don't regret it.
It is plenty nimble. I do have to be a bit more careful about pedal strike while going around corners, because these pedals are lower to begin with. No big deal, just saying is all.
I like the fat tires. I keep them between 25-35 psi. They are very comfortable and hold the road quite well. The full suspension is a joy. I can ride smoothly over rough pavement that would have had me up out of the seat on any other bike I've ever owned.
If you're over 5'8", get the tall seat accessory. I'm 5'10" and I don't get quite the leg extension I've always had on adjustable seats. It's close, though, and I'm happy with it. It's more of a pedal-forward geometry. Laid back. This works well with the handlebars -- the design is very well thought out. It's very nice to be able to put a foot down at stoplights -- all the way, flat-footed down -- instead of tippy-toeing or coming completely down off the seat (crotch perilously close to the top bar) as I had to do on the CCS. I like being able to keep my seat and still be stable when coming to a stop.
Getting on and off is a cinch, even with bum knees, which is how this whole thing started, so mission accomplished there. It took me a while to get used to the step-through approach, never having had one in all my 62 years of riding bikes, but I'm so glad.
I like the big front light. I'm so visible in daylight and it gives an awesome amount of light at night. Having the rear light wired to the battery and turn on when I turn on the headlight is a real plus. Having the brake light function is OK I guess. I have no clue whether it makes a difference in traffic. But why not?
The old CCS didn't have a trip meter so I'm glad to have one. I wish it was easier to work with -- you have to go pretty deep into the menus to re-set it -- and I wish it had tenths of a mile instead of just miles, but still it's better than not having one at all.
The seat is very comfortable for the first 10 miles. Then I start to miss my Cloud 9.
If I used the throttle more than I do, the R mode would probably be very welcome. I can go around 25 mph on throttle. But I like having an ebike; I don't really want an electric moped. So the R mode is irrelevant to me. If I was doing meal delivery, I'd be singing a different song!
Slap a Tall Seat on a HyperScorpion and you've got the bike that checks pretty much all of my boxes (except for the 24 inch wheels.) If only I could convince myself that it's worth another thousand bucks!
As I said in another post, this thing works surprisingly well. I usually start out in 5th gear (out of 7), with PAS in either Eco or 1. I'm up to my usual cruising speed of 16 mph before I'm out of the driveway. I wish I had an 11T top gear, instead of the 14T, because it's hard for me to pedal fast enough to go over 18 mph. With the CCS, I could put it in 9th gear and pedal all the way up to 26 mph or more. Some of that is the effect of having 20 inch wheels instead of 29 inch, as well as the gearing. If I were to change two things about the Scorpion, it would be to have 24 inch wheels (wouldn't affect the look much but the top speed would improve) and an 8 or 9 gear cassette.
If I ghost pedal in S or R, then I can go about 24 mph on flat ground. This is okay, but I ride for exercise as much as anything, and ghost pedaling doesn't give much exercise. I'm pretty much never in that much of a hurry, though, so maxing out around 18 mph -- a comfortable 18 mph, not spinning like a madman -- is satisfactory. Still, on the CCS I had the choice to faster if I wanted to, and choices are good.
I miss the torque sensor on the CCS. Cadence sensing works okay; it's taken some getting used to. It's more like an on-off switch instead of the instant variation in power you can get from a torque sensor. But 90% of the time it's not an issue, so I don't regret it.
It is plenty nimble. I do have to be a bit more careful about pedal strike while going around corners, because these pedals are lower to begin with. No big deal, just saying is all.
I like the fat tires. I keep them between 25-35 psi. They are very comfortable and hold the road quite well. The full suspension is a joy. I can ride smoothly over rough pavement that would have had me up out of the seat on any other bike I've ever owned.
If you're over 5'8", get the tall seat accessory. I'm 5'10" and I don't get quite the leg extension I've always had on adjustable seats. It's close, though, and I'm happy with it. It's more of a pedal-forward geometry. Laid back. This works well with the handlebars -- the design is very well thought out. It's very nice to be able to put a foot down at stoplights -- all the way, flat-footed down -- instead of tippy-toeing or coming completely down off the seat (crotch perilously close to the top bar) as I had to do on the CCS. I like being able to keep my seat and still be stable when coming to a stop.
Getting on and off is a cinch, even with bum knees, which is how this whole thing started, so mission accomplished there. It took me a while to get used to the step-through approach, never having had one in all my 62 years of riding bikes, but I'm so glad.
I like the big front light. I'm so visible in daylight and it gives an awesome amount of light at night. Having the rear light wired to the battery and turn on when I turn on the headlight is a real plus. Having the brake light function is OK I guess. I have no clue whether it makes a difference in traffic. But why not?
The old CCS didn't have a trip meter so I'm glad to have one. I wish it was easier to work with -- you have to go pretty deep into the menus to re-set it -- and I wish it had tenths of a mile instead of just miles, but still it's better than not having one at all.
The seat is very comfortable for the first 10 miles. Then I start to miss my Cloud 9.
If I used the throttle more than I do, the R mode would probably be very welcome. I can go around 25 mph on throttle. But I like having an ebike; I don't really want an electric moped. So the R mode is irrelevant to me. If I was doing meal delivery, I'd be singing a different song!
Slap a Tall Seat on a HyperScorpion and you've got the bike that checks pretty much all of my boxes (except for the 24 inch wheels.) If only I could convince myself that it's worth another thousand bucks!
