Carbon fiber ebike for $699 on Kickstarter

Nirmala

Nirmala

Active Member
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/867054068/daymak-ec1-ebike-carbon-fiber-electric-bicycle

Sounds too good to be true, but it is an established manufacturer. The $699 options are all gone but there are seven $799 options left and then it goes to $994.

Or you can pledge $1269 for an option with a 36v battery and carbon fiber rims.An even lighter bike with carbon seat, post, handlebars, rims is $1989. That one is supposed to only weigh 28 pounds with battery and motor!
 
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Cool bike.

I can't help but notice the absence of a team member w eng degree background on their team. Are there any U.S. Regs on safe bike ore bike design calcs and safety factors? Or do they leave this to the China mnfr?
 
Here is a shot from the photoshoot of my new oxygen based e-bicycle. The frame, seat, wheels, handlebars, motor and battery are all made from oxygen. It is extremely lightweight, however it is recommended that you wear sturdy walking shoes whenever you ride it in case you end up walking most of the way:
images.jpg


I am sorry to say that there was no one with an engineering degree involved in the design.
 
The price is right. Obviously a 250 watt motor and 200 watt hour battery represents something very basic. It would work, but it would be at a real disadvantage on hills. The 28 pound version is fairly impressive, but the price kind of jumps.

I've decided (I) don't want to make an ebike like a bike. You use the power, the motor, to overcome things like weight. You let people ride in a comfortable position, or have fat tires. So I guess I would spend the money buying a BBBS02 and a battery, then find something to put it on. Maybe in a ditch, or beside the road or at the thrift store. Same basic money as the cheapest model. It would climb the side of a building, pretty much. But I don't have an engineering degree, so who's to say?
 
I agree that an ebike does not need to be light like a regular bike. But this carbon ebike might still be fun to have around. I bet the 250 watt motor will work pretty well on a bike that light, especially with the multiple gear crankset up front. It would be like a regular bike with just a little extra. Ultimately, there are lots of options out there and more coming every day, which is a good thing.
 
I just tried to start a new project on Kickstarter for "Vaporware". I figured that it would be one of the few 100% honest and truthful Kickstarters. My funding goal was going to be $0.00 and the lowest pledge amount would also be $0.00. For that amount you would be 100% guaranteed to receive absolutely nothing at all. Higher pledges would receive even less.

However, Kickstarter has a rule that you actually have to offer something. Oh well.
 
For more range on a lightweight bike like this you could buy an extra battery and carry it in a frame bag. It would be extra weight, but the bike would still be very light. And for shorter trips of course you could leave it home. This seems like it might be a good approach on a lot of bikes. Have a lighter weight primary battery and then a spare for longer trips that you only carry with you when actually needed.

In fact, I just figured out how I can strap a spare battery to the upper frame tube of my Magnum Ui5 and thereby have 26 amp hours of juice for longer rides. Since we own two Ui5s and my wife is not up for that long of a ride, I can just take her battery with me and go 50-60 miles or more.
 
Nirmala said:
Sounds too good to be true, but it is an established manufacturer.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't go as far as saying that Daymak is an established manufacturer. All the bikes they sell are made in China, and are likely designed there, too. A quick look at the e-bike models that they currently sell shows that they're likely just importing Chinese designs into North America and re-badging them:

http://daymak.com

Their bikes look like a bunch of low-cost Alibaba bikes.
 
Good points about Daymak. But the lower price points are out there, and perhaps a company like Daymak will be around to help when something goes wrong. There is a Daymak forum on here now, so maybe eventually there will be some reports from actual owners of their ebikes.

Some of those bikes are interesting....but I would be skeptical about quality. I do like this one where the second battery seems to be mounted to look like an exhaust pipe!
http://daymak.com
But I wonder if it could get you pulled over by the police when they do not see a license plate.

And interesting that they already have a carbon fiber bike listed:
http://daymak.com
 
Here is a nice looking carbon fiber bike with a much higher quality drivetrain for $2700:
(Link Removed - No Longer Exists)
 
Nirmala said:
Here is a shot from the photoshoot of my new oxygen based e-bicycle. The frame, seat, wheels, handlebars, motor and battery are all made from oxygen. It is extremely lightweight, however it is recommended that you wear sturdy walking shoes whenever you ride it in case you end up walking most of the way:
View attachment 4669

I am sorry to say that there was no one with an engineering degree involved in the design.
Click to expand...

+1 - Anyone price CF bikes WITHOUT motor and batteries? Dont' think there's one for less than 1k.
And the CF process isn't like casting a frame. Strength of the part is very much dependent on the skills and materials used.
A fork or frame failing at 20+mph on a 40lb bike isn't going to be a fun ride.
 
To be fair, these prices are early bird prices to get the project going. Once the bike is launched, the prices may be more in the expected range for a carbon bike with lower end components and a small motor/battery.

That does not mean that there is not still a question as to how well the frame will be designed and constructed.
 
But even there, you have no way of knowing if the crank area of the frame is strong enough for the not unconsiderable twisting forces of the motor. CF is as strong as steel in SOME attributes, not in all.
Of course that's true with any unknow E conversion, but we have a lot more track record with steel and aluminum, which again are much less dependent on the craftsmanship of the man building the part.
If I were interested in a CF E bike (makes ZERO sense to go speculative quality on the frame to save a few lbs when the motor and battery add 10-20) I'd sure want it to be from one of the reputable names that we can be sure have trashed numerous prototypes over many miles prior to actually shipping product.
JMO
 
Good points. I am finding I am perfectly happy with my approximately 50 pound ebike which I have loaded up with 10 more pounds of accessories, so the benefits of a superlight bike are proving to be not as important to me personally. It still is interesting to see the alternatives showing up, and a bike like this could make sense if you want to ride it sometimes without the motor. The folks doing this kickstarter even include an extra rear wheel with their bikes for riding it without the motor and battery. To each their own...
 
I thought it said a lot that BH Easy Motion made a carbon ebike (not BH's only carbon bike) and still it wasn't the lightest ebike they offered, I think the aluminum Race was lighter. As @MLB suggests, carbon doesn't always mean better, or lighter.
 
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