Cargo ebikes, what's your experience, your ideal set up, or your wish list.

Trail Cruiser

Well-Known Member
There are many configurations of cargo ebikes. In your opnion, what would be your ideal cargo ebike and what do you think of the trend on cargo ebikes?.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlto...P0iFHQcruTn80y7Qlj2_-cNfTOuYJi_Q#70f5729ae790
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I wish the manufacturers were emphasizing cargo bikes as much as they do eMtb's. That V Dub one is pretty darn cool!
 
My ideal cargo bike would be one that would carry a 400# load up and down the slopes on my property. The steepest has a 19% grade.
 
My ideal cargo bike would be one that would carry a 400# load up and down the slopes on my property. The steepest has a 19% grade.
This one is rated at 500 pound cargo capacity. Going to rough getting something with 2 or 3 wheels to carry 400. Probably will be cheaper than the VW trike too.
 

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This one is rated at 500 pound cargo capacity. Going to rough getting something with 2 or 3 wheels to carry 400. Probably will be cheaper than the VW trike too.

I should have been clearer. The 400 pounds I was referring to was rider + cargo weight. For heavier loads, I just use my pickup. ATV's are great but take up too much space. Right now, I have my eye on the Pedego Stretch dual motor. I can't find any data on it's hill climbing ability though.

https://www.pedegoelectricbikes.com/product/stretch-dual-drive-edition/

They are offering a "Try One Free" promotion but I doubt they will be able to service my remote location.
 
I should have been clearer. The 400 pounds I was referring to was rider + cargo weight. For heavier loads, I just use my pickup. ATV's are great but take up too much space. Right now, I have my eye on the Pedego Stretch dual motor. I can't find any data on it's hill climbing ability though.

https://www.pedegoelectricbikes.com/product/stretch-dual-drive-edition/

They are offering a "Try One Free" promotion but I doubt they will be able to service my remote location.
I rode the Evo Big Bud Pro AWD fat bike. It did not climb as well as the Evo Atom Big Bud Pro fat bike with Brose motor and rear wheel drive. I thought the AWD may be better for traction, but not climbing ability. I was riding on grass hills, so no traction issues. Not a scientific evaluation, just my feeling in the ride.
 
This is my favorite.
 

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Tern GSD. Especially with the dual batteries and an internally geared hub (an IGH is rumored to be available).

The nice thing about the GSD is that it can carry a lot but still fit in the back of a car (or pickup) or on a regular bike rack. Most cargo bikes have a longer wheelbase and you can't do that. Which is a problem if you have to haul the pig to the bike shop for repairs.

 
My idea of an ideal cargo bike would be longtail; I'd want a cargo bike that still rides somewhat like a normal bike. So something like the Tern GSD or Yuba Spicy Curry Bosch.

The VW prototype looks cool, but unless it has a tilting mechanism like the Butchers & Bicycles MK1-E, trikes are really terrible for cornering at anything approaching speed.
 
Those tiny wheels would jar my teeth on the pavement we have here. Perfect city cargo only.
I carry up to 60 lb cargo 30 miles on the following bikes. Cargo includes 6-7 gallons of water, weeks groceries plus weed killer, appliances from the store, a flat truck tire, 10' lengths of lumber or pipe from the home store, about anything I need. Above 70 lb I rent a U-haul or ask someone with a truck for a favor.

The mountain bike with the personally made rear baskets proved to be unsafe. I went over the handlebars 3 times in 4 years when the handlebar whipped sideways when I hit a pavement separator, a piece of tree, a ridge of gravel. I landed on my chin. The last time in November 2017 at 25 mph and only 5 lb cargo, I broke my jaw.
The suggestions on roadbikereview included 1. hold on to the handlebars 2 pay attention, and 3 man up. I don't post there anymore.
I weighed the MTB with about 60 lb cargo in the baskets, got 20 lb on the front scale and 120 lb on the rear scale, I was not on the bike. The baskets weigh about 40 lb with a steel 1/2" perimeter around the top. I suspect that lack of weight on the front tire leads to lack of centering force.
So I bought the cargo bike January 2018, a yubabikes bodaboda. The stretch in the frame behind the seat puts my weight on the front tire. The pannier bags weigh less than my welded up basket, although they are a nuisance to load at the store due to the narrow top. The aluminum perimeter frame allows longer loads like the truck tire or a box of power wheel (shown) to be carried. I had seven gallons of water on the bodaboda this summer several times, with one on the rack in the front. the front rack was also useful for carrying 3 two liter bottles of diet soda this summer, but I've lost that capability now that I put the battery up there.
The direct drive hub motor is behind the panniers in the picture. I've been riding it unpowered for a month, no issues although 8 speeds including 32 tooth would be nice. I bought a 11-32 cluster from competitivecyclist, it came in 11 speeds, the picture was wrong, and the overnight freight was "free" which would have knocked $55 off the value of the $56 sprocket if I returned it (2 boxes from California) . I bought another 8 speed cluster from e-bay, it turned out to be for unthreaded hubs instead of threaded ones. Language on e-bay is not very precise. So I'm making do with a 14-28 7 speed cluster, not suitable for taking 320 lb up 15% grade without electricity.
What I would like, but cannot buy, is a frame with more length seat to handlebar, longer handlebars, and a straight up and down head tube so my feet don't hit the front wheel turning. I'd also like more rake in the front fork to provide more centering force on the front wheel. My Mother's 1946 Firestone bike had this arrangement, with the same 2.25" x 26" tires, and I could ride that bike without hands on the bars through a chughole and it would never falter. I've talked to a custom frame builder, he wants to build me the same bike he built for his wife. Nice, but just like every other bike made now on this planet. I checked the rake versus head angle on a bike frame database, all 26" wheel forks have exactly the same trail or caster. Bleah. I don't want fast steering, I want to not fall off the bike. Gaining strength in my arms is not going to happen, I've torn two shoulder tendons and a biceps tendon already with the feeble muscles I've got.
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Horses for courses. I wanted a lightweight, fast-ish, cargo bike under $3000. My Omnium Cargo with a mac10T front wheel has been brilliant. I have taken at most about 70-80lbs of load, which puts the weight of me, bike (plus bike tools and two locks) and cargo at just over 320lbs. I can get around Los Angeles at an average speed of 16mph with that kind of weight. Faster if I allowed the motor full power access - I've tuned the 1200w down to max 500w to get greater distances. I've done handyman work around carrying all my tools and whatever materials needed. Home Depot runs and gotten small loads of 8' lumber. With lighter loads I'm getting around at more like 18-20mph average. Never gone more than 24 miles on one charge yet.

Downsides are a very heavy, high mounted load (past the handle bars) or a sloppy one that moves around can require a more thoughtful riding style. The 20", 100psi, front wheel gets the s*it beaten out of it (and then I get it) on the terrible roads here. The load eats battery. I have an 11ah 48v battery and might consider a second one on board to allow me more consistent higher speeds. If it breaks down, then I'd need a truck to collect it - it's about 7' long and 65lbs. But only if it was unrideable. I can ride it "analogue" if the motor/battery goes out. In hindsight, a mid drive might well have been the (slightly) better option, but the FWD works well as part of the 2WD. And it's kinda cool when it spins out as I crest hills unloaded at speed.

If I was doing loads best done in my truck then a trike is a better option. Trade speed off for load capacity, as someone mentioned above, trikes don't turn corners so well at speed. Sheet material is still a problem though!

I've spoken with folks who ride Larry vs Harry Bullitts (my other dream bike) and they love them but they're expensive and "fall" into turns, the Omnium carves it's way around. Something about where the weight sits. Either one feels a little awkward at low speeds with big loads but once moving it's amazing. The Omnium rides like a regular bike with small or no load. Just a very long bike. If anything I tend to not act my age on this bike.

For general getting around I'd be up for another Omnium - the mini. Same 20" front but the front tray is more like a fixed rack. I hate racks fitted to forks, almost as much as I hate riding with a back pack on. Put an electric front wheel on that and I'd be sweet for the teaching job commute.
 
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