Adding a motor to a road bike

[marcuschmiel]

Hey,
I'm thinking of modifying my wife's road bike to give her a bit of a push. Is it realistic to build a decent eBike from an existing road bike? Correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems like rear hub drive would be the best option due to lower weight and less friction at higher speeds? The problem with that seems to be the pedal assist system. I would like the bike to feel "normal", not like a motorbike. Searching around the internet, I found Bafang h600, but it seems to only be available in bulk? Are there any kits that would be a good option?
Edit: here's a link to the bike: https://superiorbikes.eu/en/2017/road-race/road-elite/matte-black-highlight-yellow-black
The frame is aluminum. I also have no problem with rebuilding the rear wheel and tinkering with the bike.

 

[Dewey]

Check out Grin Tech of Vancouver, Canada. They sell a good selection of hub motors, and their own designed controllers and displays that work with bottom bracket torque pedal assist sensors, those will give you the most bicycle like feel to ride

 

[Saratoga Dave]

If she’s riding something like that, she ain’t no casual path pedaler. Before you go down that rabbit hole you might really want to have her go try out some real e-road bikes, mid drive as well as hub. There are big difffences in the way they feel, and someone who knows how to really ride that bike she has will appreciate those differences right away.

Now, all that said, there is a guy with a YouTube channel who put a front wheel motor on his lady friend’s bike a few years ago and it worked out terrific for them. Used to be The Road Biker, has changed it to Gerry Land, but here’s one of his videos:

Good luck either way, I wish I could get my wife to go for an ebike! Tried several different ones and she just remains intimidated by them.

 

[tomjasz]

Tried several different ones and she just remains intimidated by them.

The lovely in this house got over being intimidated with a one speed.

 

[EMGX]

If she’s riding something like that, she ain’t no casual path pedaler. Before you go down that rabbit hole you might really want to have her go try out some real e-road bikes, mid drive as well as hub. There are big difffences in the way they feel, and someone who knows how to really ride that bike she has will appreciate those differences right away.

Now, all that said, there is a guy with a YouTube channel who put a front wheel motor on his lady friend’s bike a few years ago and it worked out terrific for them. Used to be The Road Biker, has changed it to Gerry Land, but here’s one of his videos:

Good luck either way, I wish I could get my wife to go for an ebike! Tried several different ones and she just remains intimidated by them.

Here is an approachable bike that I put a front hub motor on. I bought the motor several years ago thinking I would ride to work once in a while but the motor/controller combination would stall out on the hills that I wanted assist for so it never got used except to trial on a few bikes. Even tried it on one of my wife's bikes for her but it didn't help her on hills either and just added weight to her bike which made things worse. For this latest try on her new Biria bike I used a KT 11a/22a controller and display with 5 levels of assist, crank cadence sensor, no throttle. Entirely different experience with the KT controller. Doesn't have a jerky kick in, power delivery is smooth and feels progressive, not quite as refined as my bike with a Yamaha PW-SE but still very good. She uses level 1 mostly, sometimes level 2 and only briefly level 3 on steeper grades. I took it for a 17 mile hilly ride on a very windy day along with someone else riding a road bike. I could pull away from him at any time on the hills or into the wind where he drafted me. After 24 miles of combined riding between my wife and me there was still 38.7 v reading on the 36v 15ah battery, and I don't think it was fully charged when we started the day.

BTW the road bike rider gave it a try on a hill he was sort of struggling on (like the guy in the video you posted), not his style bike but his comment regarding the overall experience was "brilliant".

 

[tomjasz]

Sweet frame!

 

[zzRider]

If she’s riding something like that, she ain’t no casual path pedaler. Before you go down that rabbit hole you might really want to have her go try out some real e-road bikes, mid drive as well as hub. There are big difffences in the way they feel, and someone who knows how to really ride that bike she has will appreciate those differences right away.

Now, all that said, there is a guy with a YouTube channel who put a front wheel motor on his lady friend’s bike a few years ago and it worked out terrific for them. Used to be The Road Biker, has changed it to Gerry Land, but here’s one of his videos:

Good luck either way, I wish I could get my wife to go for an ebike! Tried several different ones and she just remains intimidated by them.

Have you considered an electric trike for your wife? Here's what I did for my better half:

New to EBR Forum

Hi there. New to the electric bike scene--just converted my wife's Schwinn Meridian trike to front electric with a Voilamart 1000w 48v/13ah system. Left off the wimpy blue governor cables so the thing really flies, but it's a heavy 3-wheeler to begin with so it won't pull steep uphills, at...

electricbikereview.com

 

[Deacon Blues]

@marceuschmiel, I've been toying with the idea of turning a regular road bike into an e-road bike for a while.
Here's a company that I'm following: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/lightest-ebike-kit-your-bike-with-superpowers#/updates/all

For me, keeping the weight down on a road bike is very important. This mid-drive kit is very light and can be used with a small or large battery.
I don't plan on buying one until there has been some owner-testing.

If you want something sooner, going with a small rear hub motor from a company like Grin would be a good way to go. Grin sells first-class products, but they are not cheap.

 

[tomjasz]

they are not cheap.

But reliable and great support.

 

[EMGX]

@marceuschmiel, I've been toying with the idea of turning a regular road bike into an e-road bike for a while.
Here's a company that I'm following: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/lightest-ebike-kit-your-bike-with-superpowers#/updates/all

For me, keeping the weight down on a road bike is very important. This mid-drive kit is very light and can be used with a small or large battery.
I don't plan on buying one until there has been some owner-testing.

That looks interesting but the weight savings vs a TSDZ2 isn't that much, only 2kg lighter and with the TSDZ2 you remove the stock bottom bracket cassette/crank assembly. On my most recent bike conversion the alloy triple chainring/spider/cranks and cartridge weighed over a kg so overall only <1kg difference for that bike. Not trivial but not a massive weight savings either. I wonder if they include the wt of the bracket in the motor wt, if not then there wouldn't likely be any wt savings.

 

[JRA]

As a long time rider of front hub motors on road bikes I like what the video suggests. A small geared front hub weighs about the same or less than any mid drive motor of the same wattage. The 8lbs, whole system, quoted in the video is not that bad and in line with the light weight systems available on "real" ebikes. Plus the fact that you can easily remove the front hub motor and replace it with the stock wheel and leave off the battery if you want to go back to stock.

What the video suggests but doesn't focus on is the fact that while the motor is on and the bike is assisted the woman is riding her cadence in her gear of choice, although it seems like she needed a bit more time in the saddle in general to master that equation in regards to climbing that hill in the big ring..... But the flip side of that is that with the constant momentum of the hub motor you have an easier time concentrating on your input unabated by the actual motor as in PAS and can work on your cadence/gear selection to terrain as well as your spin unaffected.

So yes you can convert that bike and If your needs are anything like the couple in the video I would go that route. Don't get any more battery than you think you will need and try not to place it on a rear rack....

 

[PedalUma]

I rode a trail this week single track with someone with a rack pack battery. The bike kept sliding sideways on corners. The smaller and lower the battery the better.
My suggestions:
Up the 28's to 32mm tires.
New longer cables and housings.
Stem riser.
Mid-drive with torque sensor.
Up the 55mm pads to 945's so going = stopping.
E-Bike chain.
Feminine saddle.

 

[EMGX]

As a long time rider of front hub motors on road bikes I like what the video suggests. A small geared front hub weighs about the same or less than any mid drive motor of the same wattage. The 8lbs, whole system, quoted in the video is not that bad and in line with the light weight systems available on "real" ebikes. Plus the fact that you can easily remove the front hub motor and replace it with the stock wheel and leave off the battery if you want to go back to stock.

What the video suggests but doesn't focus on is the fact that while the motor is on and the bike is assisted the woman is riding her cadence in her gear of choice, although it seems like she needed a bit more time in the saddle in general to master that equation in regards to climbing that hill in the big ring..... But the flip side of that is that with the constant momentum of the hub motor you have an easier time concentrating on your input unabated by the actual motor as in PAS and can work on your cadence/gear selection to terrain as well as your spin unaffected.

So yes you can convert that bike and If your needs are anything like the couple in the video I would go that route. Don't get any more battery than you think you will need and try not to place it on a rear rack....

OP wife's bike has an aluminum frame but might have a carbon fork which I don't think is compatible with a front hub motor.

 

[JRA]

OP wife's bike has an aluminum frame but might have a carbon fork which I don't think is compatible with a front hub motor.

I put over 2k on a BD Motobecane with a carbon front fork and a 1000w direct drive front hub motor with no issues. You just have to set it up with a solid torque arm connection and keep an eye on the axle nut torque, mainly because I also used regen which can loosen that aspect. Bike is now retired but not because of the fork.....

I built this bike up 5 yrs ago and rode it on all different types of terrain from the beaches of OR to the mining roads of Crested Butte. I still have a similarish bike with a 1000w Grin All-Axle that I need to get together but have been in no hurry as my eMTB has been sufficient for my Covid needs. If it wasn't for already owning that motor I would get a smaller one like the Bafang GX as I never use that many watts and run mainly with 500w peak as per my controller settings.

 

[indianajo]

That DD hub motor JRA used weighs 9 lb or so. I have one very like it, that I put away because it accelerates too slowly, uses too many watthours on hills, and drags unpowered.
The best least intrusive road bike system is the mahle geared hub motor. They are smaller in diameter than a sprocket. They come on cannondale & orbea road bikes. BTW, buying one of those bikes is the best way to get that motor-battery system. The bikes are only about $2300. I was trying to buy the naked kit for $2100 in 11/2017 and none of the 3 "US distributors" would answer my emails or phone calls. San Diego ebike had the kits (including battery) in the summer, and by the time I saved up $2100 that party was over. I bought a $189 DD rear hubmotor kit off ebay and a luna battery. Installed on bike left. DD was too heavy to roll bike out of garage. Replaced DD hubmotor with a $221 front geared hubmotor from ebikeling, and what they say about PAS is true. I hated it: too fast accelerating and too fast in level 1 for bad pavement. I ditched the PAS pickup & wiring. I use throttle only, only on days when the wind is >12 mph in my face or trips over 25 miles. You see my battery hung off the front, which doesn't swing with the handlebars because cargo bikes have fixed bosses in the frame for a front basket. With front motor, don't use electricity on wet or muddy steel, rock, wood bridge decks, or other places you might fall down. I don't. I walk the bike on the wet muddy steel plate in the construction zone, don't even pedal it.

 

[harryS]

@marceuschmiel, I've been toying with the idea of turning a regular road bike into an e-road bike for a while.
Here's a company that I'm following: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/lightest-ebike-kit-your-bike-with-superpowers#/updates/all

I've followed Bikee, also intrigued and decided they were overly expensive. I also felt the original design was goofy, with an exposed chain, Now they've raised a quarter million bucks to make a new case,and the above link says it's failing life testing.

Hmmm. Two guys at bikee vs a whole factory at bafang? I do like my BBS02.