A Year and A Half With My Juggernaut, Here Is What I Have Learned

[DaveinMtAiry]

I can honestly say this is one of the best purchases I have ever made. Can't believe how much torque this bike delivers (750W motor), I can't believe the novelty has not worn off. But if I were to do it again I would make these changes.

Get the hydraulic brakes. I have little bike maintenance experience, I found I was constantly needing to adjust the cables or pads, literally every 3-4 rides, and that became a serious hassle. My bike store could not understand it either so I am having them install hydraulic brakes.

I really should have purchased the battery upgrade. The standard battery is rated I believe for up to 26 miles. That's obviously for a small person on flat surfaces, I'm the opposite of that. I probably get about 16-18 and at 15 MPH that's only a little over an hour of peddling. I am constantly monitoring my battery level and head back before I want to so I will have the power for the big climb back to our house.

The kick stand is adjustable from the back. I sure wish I had known this, the owner's manual says nothing about it and like a dumb ass I spent the first 6 months finding a rock or root to place the stand so the bike would not tip over.


Getting the pannier bags, thrown in by Roshan so he could close the sale, was great. I wasn't all that excited to have them at first but they are invaluable. I can ride up and pick up a small grocery list or simply store excess clothing and parts/tools.

One thing new owners should understand is this bike is HUGE, longer than a traditional bike and barely fits on my rack designed for ebikes. People think I'm on a small motorcycle at times. LOL.

 

[jangles]

Ha , kickstand ! That bikes frame is the same as the BTN AWD I have . It's a tall drink of water . I like mine too , getting ready to do some stuff to it .

 

[ElevenAD]

biggest mistake i made was also not getting the biggest battery lol
once i fixed that problem i loved the bike even more!

 

[DaveinMtAiry]

biggest mistake i made was also not getting the biggest battery lol
once i fixed that problem i loved the bike even more!

Yeah that was a total rookie mistake. I read "26 miles" and thought I'd never ride anywhere near that many miles at a time, thinking of my traditional bike days. Never occurred to me that this would only give me a little over an hour of pedaling in this hilly terrain. One day I'll get a bigger battery but probably wait for this one to start failing.

 

[DaveinMtAiry]

Second ride with my hydraulic brakes. I should have done this a year ago.

 

[Deafcat]

I learned some of those same lessons with my original Stunner LT. Nowadays I will always buy the biggest battery available for any ebike: besides the range increase it also means you'll have peak power for longer throughout the day.

As for the brakes, 2-piston tektro hydraulics I've found to be just fantastic. More expensive 4-piston brakes should probably just be reserved for folks who descend a lot of slopes etc. Also for heavier riders.

 

[DaveinMtAiry]

Not sure how many pistons my breaks have but I'm a big guy doing big slopes and they worked fine.

 

[John Thompson]

I just finished an expensive upgrade at my LBS to 4-piston SRAM brakes - should have opted for them from the start, based on my type of rides (10 miles up, 10 miles down) and my weight.

 

[jwt355]

I read This and had to laugh. I had these same conversations with myself so when I bought my Jug I paid for the extended Battery 21 ah and also the 4 piston hydraulic breaks. Glad I did. This made me realize it was a good decision.

 

[DaveinMtAiry]

I read This and had to laugh. I had these same conversations with myself so when I bought my Jug I paid for the extended Battery 21 ah and also the 4 piston hydraulic breaks. Glad I did. This made me realize it was a good decision.

This is kind of why I put this out there, for new perspective buyers who may find the info useful.

 

[reed scott]

Wondering what the price difference is between SRAM brakes and top of the line Tektro which are reputed to be very good these days.

 

[roshan]

Wondering what the price difference is between SRAM brakes and top of the line Tektro which are reputed to be very good these days.

SRAM have no e-bike cutoffs from factory. This can be a deal breaker for Ultra motored bikes as grabbing the brakes when the motor is in the middle of its revolution is bound to break something.

 

[John Thompson]

SRAM have no e-bike cutoffs from factory. This can be a deal breaker for Ultra motored bikes as grabbing the brakes when the motor is in the middle of its revolution is bound to break something.

I thought about that ... my rides are so binary - almost always either going up for half the ride or going down for the other half, I didn't think the lack of cutoffs would be an issue. So far it's been fine, but Roshan your post makes me realize I need to be extra careful. Like I said, I wish I had just gotten the four-pistons when I bought it from you to begin with.

 

[roshan]

I thought about that ... my rides are so binary - almost always either going up for half the ride or going down for the other half, I didn't think the lack of cutoffs would be an issue. So far it's been fine, but Roshan your post makes me realize I need to be extra careful. Like I said, I wish I had just gotten the four-pistons when I bought it from you to begin with.

Yeah, if you're careful, it'll be just fine. @Deafcat has built himself a small clutch that connects to the brake cutoffs. That would work great if you decide to get brakes that have no cutoffs.

 

[Deafcat]

Yeah, if you're careful, it'll be just fine. @Deafcat has built himself a small clutch that connects to the brake cutoffs. That would work great if you decide to get brakes that have no cutoffs.

Oh yea that's a good point! For front brake you could use whatever brake you like best then rely on the manual cutout.

It's really only the rear brake that needs to have integrated cutout, to prevent rear brake and assist being engaged at the same time (a terrible combination!).