Converting old Raleigh 3 speed

[Dewey]

Hmm, this could solve the problem of removal in a tight space like between the upper and lower tubes on a girls Raleigh. Has anyone heard or used one of these?

I use a top loading version of a similar bullet style battery case, (this Sondors Original battery on a cradle similar to this). I measured it up on my bike and at the base it's 4" wide. I measured the gap between the two tubes on my wife's 1973 Raleigh Sports step through and it is 3 and a half inches so I'm afraid this won't fit between the upper and lower tubes. You could fit it above the top tube using three Topeak Versamount's as @PedalUma suggests, or Grin Tech Bottle Bob's, or these Lekkie frame clamps possibly with a shim or even a piece of old inner tube wrapped around the tube under the clamp, I'm unsure what the outer tube diameter of the Raleigh's frame tubing is, Lekkie designed their clamps for a New Zealand Pashley dealer to fit a battery to those bike's 1 1/8" seatpost tubing as in these photos.

 

[Antonella]

Mine is 4" wide or wider up to 5" from the mounting area of the bottom bracket between the tubes.

I have a question: are the 250w, 350w and 500w ts motors all the same except for how the controller is programmed to limit the power in three different ways?
I be confused.

 

[Dewey]

I don’t know anything about the TSDZ2 motor, but Ron ‘Spinning Magnets‘ wrote up a blog post about the motor suggesting the higher watt versions use reflashed KT controller firmware.

 

[tomjasz]

I had an evaluation motor from them. I disliked it. Enough of a disappointment to gift it along with a KHS Smoothie and a sample EM3EV battery to a guy living on $650/ month social security. Life changing for him, but my least favorite kit. I don’t agree with the poster writing eliminating a throttle and brake cutouts. Not something a shop can risk supporting.

 

[EMGX]

Throttle and the brake motor cutouts/inhibitors are optional on a TSDZ2. Most kits don't include them, only the large screen VLCD5 even has ports for a throttle and the brake motor inhibitors. As far as I have seen there are two motor options for TSDZ2, one wound for 36v and one wound for 48v. There are several different controller options which AFIK is due to different programming for voltage and amperage input/wattage output. The controllers come with either a 6 pin connector for the small display which does not support either throttle nor brake motor inhibitors or a 8 pin connector which is usually paired with the large VLCD5 display which has plugs for the brake levers and throttle. You can use a small display and a throttle with the 8 pin controller if you use a separate 8pin to 6+3 splitter. I use the splitter on my motor with the 8 pin connector so I can use a small display, I don't use brake actuated motor inhibitors or a throttle on either of my TSDZ2 motors (and my similar performing Yamaha PW-SE doesn't have brake/motor inhibitors or a throttle either). As Pedaluma notes you don't have to use the magnet and pickup but if you do that then you lose the speedometer/odometer functions and with the small twist xh18 display the motor assist will keep cutting out as it times out if you don't use the wheel magnet and pickup. After trying that both ways I decided that it worked better for me to use the wheel magnet and pickup.

Bottom line is that you don't have to worry about it, pick the kit with the display/options that you want and just install and use it. I'd ignore those who spend hours on endless sphere and attempt to program the controller themselves trying to make the TSDZ2 something that it is not. I think one of them reported that he read posts on endless sphere several times each (there are hundreds of posts, I read some - many of them frankly moronic) then failed to get the performance he wanted, then disposed of his kit in a trash dump - that's just nuts.

 

[EMGX]

PS
the tsdz2 performs about as well as a Yamaha PW-SE that I also have, it might be slightly more powerful than the Yamaha or vice versa but they are both great. I don't read many complaints about the Yamaha performance. Either the Yamaha or the tongsheng are assist motors not super powered motor scooter motors like the Bafang mid drives on steroids that many prefer.

 

[PedalUma]

The six pin is better. And not using the wheel magnet speed senor dramatically improves the feel. Try it both ways for a while. I had a bike with tight chain stays which could not fit the regular wheel magnet pickup, so disappointed I rode it for 18-months that way. Then I figured out a way to reduce its size and installed it. For the last 10-months it has shown 2.3Km on the odometer. That is because when I installed it the bike became a dud. So I immediately chopped it off, sealed the wires and tucked it into the secret compartment. On other bikes when I would install a throttle the bikes would suddenly suck, so I stopped using them. I ordered a spare controler yesterday. They are just programed for the V and W. Low nominal is better. And without the speed sensor it will feel more powerful. We just got back from 35-miles in the foggy Marin Headlands above the GG Bridge with wind and climbs. It was a blast!
Remember that knock offs or seconds will account for disparities when someone gets a low-end dud. Know your supplier.

 

[Antonella]

I don’t know anything about the TSDZ2 motor, but Ron ‘Spinning Magnets‘ wrote up a blog post about the motor suggesting the higher watt versions use reflashed KT controller firmware.

I have no idea what you just said. ()

 

[Art Deco]

I have no idea what you just said. ()

Happens a lot. Welcome to EBR.

 

[Antonella]

PS
the tsdz2 performs about as well as a Yamaha PW-SE that I also have, it might be slightly more powerful than the Yamaha or vice versa but they are both great. I don't read many complaints about the Yamaha performance. Either the Yamaha or the tongsheng are assist motors not super powered motor scooter motors like the Bafang mid drives on steroids that many prefer.

I don't want ridiculous speed or power just reliable assist for hills and level ground up to 20 mph max because it is an old bike with all the standards of a bike that doesn't go that fast like the regular steel caliper brakes, spoked wheels, you know what I mean.
I would like the motor cuttoff handles and I want to add front and rear lights. I also like the large VLCD5 screen.

 

[Antonella]

The six pin is better. And not using the wheel magnet speed senor dramatically improves the feel. Try it both ways for a while. I had a bike with tight chain stays which could not fit the regular wheel magnet pickup, so disappointed I rode it for 18-months that way. Then I figured out a way to reduce its size and installed it. For the last 10-months it has shown 2.3Km on the odometer. That is because when I installed it the bike became a dud. So I immediately chopped it off, sealed the wires and tucked it into the secret compartment. On other bikes when I would install a throttle the bikes would suddenly suck, so I stopped using them. I ordered a spare controler yesterday. They are just programed for the V and W. Low nominal is better. And without the speed sensor it will feel more powerful. We just got back from 35-miles in the foggy Marin Headlands above the GG Bridge with wind and climbs. It was a blast!
Remember that knock offs or seconds will account for disparities when someone gets a low-end dud. Know your supplier.

Beautiful place you rode to! Why do you say that the six pin is better? Thank you.

 

[PedalUma]

I don't want ridiculous speed or power just reliable assist for hills and level ground up to 20 mph max because it is an old bike with all the standards of a bike that doesn't go that fast like the regular steel caliper brakes, spoked wheels, you know what I mean.
I would like the motor cuttoff handles and I want to add front and rear lights. I also like the large VLCD5 screen.

Got it. You will not look at the screen any more than your squint at a shifter to know your gear. The cutoffs do nothing useful for a mid-drive, as they were designed for front hub-drives. For lights, small USBs are better and will not require ugly wires. The big display is a dud. I have made these same assumptions and mistakes before I learned better. I do not like to show screw ups but here you go. That is how I learned.

 

[Art Deco]

Looks OK for a DIY Kit bike, but quite a difference to the recent builds that look like acoustic bikes.

 

[Dewey]

I have no idea what you just said. ()

Have you owned an Android phone and changed the software version running on it (aka jailbreaking), Just like that.

 

[Dewey]

I would like the motor cuttoff handles

Good for you, when I replaced the cheap nasty Bafang ebrake handles that came with my BBS01 kit I fit ebrake sensors to better quality brake levers. When I wrote it up in a blog post and posted it here on EBR, one of the mods commented he liked that because many conversions he sees omit ebrake handles or sensors, I was surprised to read that as they are a safety feature.

 

[EMGX]

If you have a throttle then brake cut offs are important in case the throttle gets actuated accidentally or stuck on. If no throttle then they don't serve a practical purpose for torque sensing mid drives. As I mentioned before, my Yamaha powered gravel bike doesn't have brake actuated motor cut offs. Cadence sensing systems also need brake cut offs because there is a slight lag when pedaling is stopped. TSDZ2 is torque sensing so brake cut offs are only included in kits that include a throttle option, like those with the large display VLCD5. Antonella, if you decide to go with a TSDZ2 just choose whichever system you prefer and feel comfortable with.

 

[Antonella]

Have you owned an Android phone and changed the software version running on it (aka jailbreaking), Just like that.

Never did and never will. I use the user friendly iPhone.

 

[Antonella]

If you have a throttle then brake cut offs are important in case the throttle gets actuated accidentally or stuck on. If no throttle then they don't serve a practical purpose for torque sensing mid drives. As I mentioned before, my Yamaha powered gravel bike doesn't have brake actuated motor cut offs. Cadence sensing systems also need brake cut offs because there is a slight lag when pedaling is stopped. TSDZ2 is torque sensing so brake cut offs are only included in kits that include a throttle option, like those with the large display VLCD5. Antonella, if you decide to go with a TSDZ2 just choose whichever system you prefer and feel comfortable with.

Thank you. Your post is very clear. I do like the idea of a throttle just because I think it can be fun to use like it is a make-believe motorcycle, ahaha.

 

[PedalUma]

If you have a throttle then brake cut offs are important in case the throttle gets actuated accidentally or stuck on. If no throttle then they don't serve a practical purpose for torque sensing mid drives. As I mentioned before, my Yamaha powered gravel bike doesn't have brake actuated motor cut offs. Cadence sensing systems also need brake cut offs because there is a slight lag when pedaling is stopped. TSDZ2 is torque sensing so brake cut offs are only included in kits that include a throttle option, like those with the large display VLCD5. Antonella, if you decide to go with a TSDZ2 just choose whichever system you prefer and feel comfortable with.

The six-pin is so simple. The wire is so thin it blends in. And you can get the thumb sized VLCD6 which you will rarely look at as you will ride by feel, intuitively. Here is what it looks like on a bike. See how clean the cockpit looks. And another photo or two from the fog ride yesterday. The TSDZ2 36V 350W kept up with the more expensive bikes from stores. Finally you can see the VLCD5, its remote, throttle, light kit, speed sensor and levers. This is how it looks on a bike, cluttered even without the throttle and levers.

 

[tomjasz]

Never did and never will. I use the user friendly iPhone

I find the iPhone version iOS works consistently with BT BMS. Android version compatibility can be an issue.