Any Yukon Commuters?

[Barry S]

Currently living on O'ahu and have been commuting 8 miles each way into Honolulu on my Trek FX 7.2 fitness bike for the past 2 years due to economic necessity (one-car family) and to preserve my sanity (Honolulu ranks 8th for most traffic-congested city). The terrible roads here have taken a toll on my bike: 3 flats and 3 broken spokes so far. However, I can still beat the city bus home and I never sit in traffic.

Having well exceeded membership age for AARP, my daily bike commute isn't getting any easier and ebike could help keep me in the game longer and hopefully make it more enjoyable. I was looking at the usual fare of commuter ebikes and knew I needed a strong geared hub motor for some of the hills on my route. The last mile home is an average 5% grade ascent, which makes for a great descent going to work (40.8 mph coasting record to date). I was looking at the Prodecotech Phantom XR and more recently Juiced Bikes CrossCurrent S, but then I started reading about commuters using fat-tire ebikes.

To make a long story short, the Yukon 750 Limited has made it to the top of my shopping list due to pricing, rider reviews and the quick response I've received from George Krastev to my questions. Now, I'd like to hear back from any Yukon 750 commuters out there to get their feedback and hear of their personal experiences and whether or not they would buy the bike again.

 

[SuperGoop]

I don’t think the Yukon 750 will make a good commuter bike, IMO. It is too heavy, and the fat tires make locking it up on bike racks difficult. I have the “Limited” version with fenders and rack, and it is 70+ lbs with cargo, pannier, etc.

It may also standout too much on bike racks. You may need 2 locks, or one big lock because of the fat tires.

I also have the Voltbike Urban, which may work for you as a commuter bike and it is only US$1,059. It is much lighter, smaller, and stealthy. I think the new version is around 47 lbs.

 

[Barry S]

@SuperGoop Thanks for the feedback. Locking the bike up will not be an issue because anyone that locks their bike outdoors in Honolulu may as well leave the key in the lock because it will be gone before the saddle cools off. The high cost of living in "Paradise" results in a very high property crime rate. My current bike is parked indoors at home and then inside my company's secure first-floor IT office at work. I looked at the Urban, but I'm not confident that it's small frame would hold up on our roads and it didn't look comfortable to ride 16 miles a day. Do you think the Urban would do better than the Elegant?

 

[Andy_in_CA]

If you have some good climbs you might want to look at a mid drive. I have a Cross Current S and I love it. My commute is 11 miles with some slight grades, and the rear hub (geared) does a decent job but its not where this bike excels. if i slow down or stop on a hill then start again, the motor is definitely being pushed to hard and I have to gear down and take is slow. Its good in flat outs and cruising at higher speeds.

The mid drives will do better for you on the hills especially if you need to start and stop on a grade.

I would try and test drive a mid drive if you can but 5% grade doesn't sound too bad.

my .02

Andy

 

[Barry S]

@Andy_in_CA Did you buy your Cross Current S through a dealer or online? If the latter, I'm curious what kind of shape it arrived in and if you experienced any quality control issues. As for a mid-drive ebike, I really didn't look too close at those since it seemed like any mid-drive was easily over $2k, and then there's the whole tension on the chain issue. If the rear hub goes out on an ebike you can still pedal it home. Perhaps I'll revisit some mid-drives.

 

[Andy_in_CA]

Good points on the mid drives.

I got lucky and got one from a LBS when the first shipment came in...

I think these are awesome bikes at a price that is amazing... considering all you get.

I would buy a CCS again. I have about 300 miles on mine since September.

 

[mrgold35]

I don't have a Volt bike; but, I've been using my his/her Radrovers for over a year for work commuting the 13 miles round trip (4900ft to 5400ft) and fun rides with around 3500 miles between them. The Volt and Rad would ride and feel pretty much 90%-95% identical with slight differences. I'm 6'3" and +270lbs with my Rad coming in at +70lbs with rack, rack bag, accessories, tools, etc... I would recommend a suspension seat post like Suntour, Thudbuster, or Bodyfloat for any bike you decide upon (unless it has a rear suspension). You might have to play with the PSI from 15-30 or change out for more urban tires if you are +90% paved roads for a smoother and less noisy ride. I do the same thing of keeping my rover in the garage at home and storing in my server room at work during the day (to recharge battery also).

I really enjoy the flexibility of the 4" fat tires to transition from paved roads, uneven road surfaces, sidewalks, dirt lots, soft-to-hard trails, and sandy conditions without missing a beat. I would just be stuck on paved roads and hard packed trails with any other urban ebike. The fat tires do really help smooth out the ride on dirt trails or 20-22 mph road speeds (along with front suspension and suspension seat post). Because of the 4" fat tires, I find trail riding is at least 10X more fun compared to just riding straight down paved bike paths for fun rides. I just like having the option of taking a detour down a dirt path or making my own path with the 4" fat tires. The 4" fat tires will be overkill if you are strictly an urban rider because the extra width of the fat tires mostly make contact with ground on softer terrain leaving just the center 1-2 inches of the tread taking most of wear on paved roads.

The fat tire bike is also a great conversation starter at work, bike trails, and stop lights. I wouldn't change a thing and would purchase a fat tire ebike again for the way I like to ride.

 

[rich c]

A plus tire bike would be easier to handle inside a building. Something with a 2.4" tire. Still wonderful on gravel, dirt, or rough urban streets, but much less rolling resistance and weight.

 

[Barry S]

@mrgold35 Thanks for sharing how you use your Rad Rover. The Rad Rover and Voltbike Yukon have been my two top fat-tire bikes all along, but the Yukon eventually bumped the Rover out of the running when Rad Bikes wanted $400 for shipping versus $120 from Volt. That $280 difference buys a lot of aftermarket accessories like a suspension seat post and quieter road tires. On that note, can anyone recommend a quieter fat-tire bike for primarily asphalt road travel? I've seen another commuter with a fat-tire bike along my route a few times, but we seem to always be at opposite corners of a large busy intersection so I can't stop him to get his opinion. I also can't tell if he's riding an ebike or not.

@rich c Any recommendations on a "plus tire bike?"

 

[mrgold35]

I switched to 120 tpi Vee8 tires after my Kenda wore down after 800 miles. The Vee8 have a very good balance between paved road riding, hard packed trail, wet riding, and occasional sandy conditions in dry or wet weather. Less weight, better grip, way less noise, and more thorn resistant compared to the Kenda. I'm expecting to get 2X to 3X extra treadlife compared to the Kenda.

Other have switched to the 26X2.5 Maxxis Hookworm or Orgin8 Supercell tires. Nothing but excellent reviews for urban riding. Both of these tire may not work as well as it gets wet/muddy or anything more than hard packed dry trail compared to the Kenda or Vee8.

The Vee8, Hookworm, and Orgin8 all have lower rolling resistance for faster acceleration, higher sustained speed, and higher max speed compared to the Kenda. That translate into better range with less effort just by switching tires. I would never go back to the Kenda again.

I did add Mr. Tuffy liners and 2 bottles of Stans tire sealant to each tire. You may not need Stans if you don't have goathead thorns in your area.

 

[Barry S]

@mrgold35 Thanks for the tire recommendations. I've been following a commuter on YT who rolls on Maxxis tires and his route is 95% asphalt or cement bikeway. No goathead thorns in my area, but I encounter a lot of glass shards from broken bottles and dodge quite a few screws and bolts on the side of the road.

 

[ace20ri]

@PCDoctorUSA I commute with my Yukon and love it. Granted, I have changed a lot on my ebike, I recently swapped out the nubby stock Juggernauts for Origin8 Supercell tires. Talk about a huge difference! My ride is so much smoother and quite. I also converted the wheels to tubeless and have not looked back. Here are a few pics:

Origin8 next to the stock Kenda's:

Gorilla tape shown applied to wheel for tubeless conversion. I also took the liberty to change the liner from red to black. A lot more stealthy

Origin8 mounted next to stock Kenda's mounted.

Picture of my beast of a Yukon.

Close up on tire tread (I took some frustration out on the front fender during another upgrade).

Side view of front tire tread.

Side view of rear tire.

 

[Denis Shelston]

@PCDoctorUSA I commute with my Yukon and love it. Granted, I have changed a lot on my ebike, I recently swapped out the nubby stock Juggernauts for Origin8 Supercell tires. Talk about a huge difference! My ride is so much smoother and quite. I also converted the wheels to tubeless and have not looked back. Here are a few pics:

Origin8 next to the stock Kenda's:
View attachment 18704

Gorilla tape shown applied to wheel for tubeless conversion. I also took the liberty to change the liner from red to black. A lot more stealthy
View attachment 18705

Origin8 mounted next to stock Kenda's mounted.
View attachment 18712

Picture of my beast of a Yukon.
View attachment 18713

Close up on tire tread (I took some frustration out on the front fender during another upgrade).
View attachment 18714

Side view of front tire tread. View attachment 18715

Side view of rear tire. View attachment 18716

Thanks for those photos.

How many TPI for the Origin8 you installed, 30TPI ?

 

[Barry S]

@ace20ri Great looking Yukon! I checked out your post "Customized Voltbikes", and you have definitely taken the bike to a new level. Those Supercell tires would definitely be the first thing I change if I go with the Yukon. How do they hold up against punctures and what PSI are you running them at? What motivated you to go tubeless and where did you get the black liner? Can I also ask what your commute is like? Distance, road surface, grades, etc. Sorry for all the questions.

 

[ace20ri]

Thanks for those photos.

How many TPI for the Origin8 you installed, 30TPI ?

They are 30TPI

@ace20ri Great looking Yukon! I checked out your post "Customized Voltbikes", and you have definitely taken the bike to a new level. Those Supercell tires would definitely be the first thing I change if I go with the Yukon. How do they hold up against punctures and what PSI are you running them at? What motivated you to go tubeless and where did you get the black liner? Can I also ask what your commute is like? Distance, road surface, grades, etc. Sorry for all the questions.

Thanks for checking out the post. I only have 125 miles on the Origin8 Supercell tires but so far but no punctures yet.. I have had 5 flats on my rear wheel in the past 4 months so this last flat I decided to go tubeless. I am still messing around with the PSI setting, but right now I run them at 18PSI, with a max of 20PSI possible. I ordered the Origin8 liners from Amazon (hyperlink attached). My commute 25mi/day is all paved road (both asphalt and concrete) with about 300 feet of elevation. I live in Silicon Valley in California so we have great bike lanes but depending on the city the lanes can have lots of debris due to the lack of street sweepers. I am itching to try them out on the beaches here.

 

[Barry S]

@ace20ri Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm guessing with going tubeless it will be easier to plug a tire puncture than having to go through the hassle of removing the wheel to replace a tube. My commute is 16 miles round-trip and 100% paved surface (asphalt/concrete). In Hawaii, a street sweeper would be a truck with a broom caught underneath the frame. In all fairness, I did see a street sweeper here once, but I haven't seen it since. We probably only have one.

 

[Joy]

Forgive me, but ive owned the yukon 750 for about 3 hours now, and I have lots of questions. I would greatly appreciate the help since I do not see any details guide aside from one PDF.
1. does pedal assist need to be at zero in order for the throttle to engage completely ie: so I can not pedal at all?
2. how can I go into advanced settings and set pedal assist to 0?
3. as I am in Canada and I want to bike in the winter, aside from the neoprene battery cover, do you have any other suggestions? Will the display be OK if snowed upon? Is there something simple that I could cover that with?
I am sure I will have more questions once I actually ride it for more than a minute! Thank you !

 

[ace20ri]

@ace20ri Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm guessing with going tubeless it will be easier to plug a tire puncture than having to go through the hassle of removing the wheel to replace a tube. My commute is 16 miles round-trip and 100% paved surface (asphalt/concrete). In Hawaii, a street sweeper would be a truck with a broom caught underneath the frame. In all fairness, I did see a street sweeper here once, but I haven't seen it since. We probably only have one.

That's the thought, whether that turns out to be true I'll eventually find out. The 30TPI Juggernauts on the Yukon are a bear to remove. I have the process down now but I break a tire lever every time I had to remove the tires on the Yukon. I have been checking tire for punctures and have not found any yet. The tires have been holding pressure at 18 psi. The day after I converted them to tubeless I had to add a few psi, which I read is pretty normal after going tubeless, especially on a rim that is not tubeless ready. One thing to know is the rim used on Yukon's purchased around October/November of 2016 have a seem that I found leaks. Eventually Stan's sealant did it's job but it took about a day to seal so keep that in mind if you go that route. Nice joke about the street sweeper. Seems like there is probably only one in Silicon Valley as well

 

[mrgold35]

About 99% of my flats were from work commuting and running over road debris like glass, screws, wood, rocks, and broken car parts. Hard to see those larger items at 5am going 20 mph. Stans tire sealant takes care of smaller leaks from mostly goathead thorns. On two separate occasions; I ran over something sharp that put a 1/4" slit in my rear tire and about a month later I ran over a 4" wood screw that ended up putting 3 large holes in my tube when it got stuck in the tire. All of my flats that totally deflated my tires were on the Kenda tires and I decided to switch tires to Vee8 after that. I've had a few wet spots on The Vee8s and the tire sealant fixed 100%; but, zero flats after +800 miles with the Vee8s riding the exact same routes.

I really don't like "share the road" bike lanes compared to separate bike/walk/jog lanes that run parallel to the roadways. Share the road lanes just ends up filling up with all kinds of road debris and driver pass me feet away at 10-25 mph over the posted speed. I end up riding home slower on the sidewalks because I don't want to get rear ended at 50 mph on the 3 foot wide bike lane during rush hour traffic. A very small % of people are A-holes and you will get cussed out, stuff thrown at you, and near misses when you share the road. I always wear a helmet, eye protection, gloves, bright front/rear flashing lights, and loud neon colors when riding.

My Topeak rack bag is pretty full with tools, tire sealant, gloves, tire pump, handy wipes, patches, zip ties, velcro straps, and extra tube. Everything I need to change a flat in the middle of nowhere. I also have my wife as back-up to pick me up when weather or time wasn't there for fixing a flat.

Getting rid of the Kenda might save you from getting a few flats down the road.

 

[Denis Shelston]

The 30TPI Juggernauts on the Yukon are a bear to remove. I have the process down now but I break a tire lever every time I had to remove the tires on the Yukon.

I've seen a few youtube videos using zip ties, wonder if it's makes it easier...