Custom ebike build: Mid-Drive or Hub?

I had to put this project on hold because my landlord increased my rent by 25% in march 2023 so i decided to look for a new place. Found a new place literally off the W&OD trail (unbelievable place, i hit the jackpot. It's basically a horse ranch and i am an animal lover) and the new land lord is very accommodating to me and my biking, he will give me a shed that i can store and work on my bikes and it will have electricity so i can keep and charge all my bikes there and work on them.

Now at my new location, hills are not as important. To get to one grocery store, that is about 2 miles away, i do have to travel up one giant hill but my 750 wott hub motor took it like a champ. I am thinking that i will have my current bike be my cargo bike, i would use that to get groceries and run errands and my new bike will be my daily commuter. My new commute will be 18 miles total everyday, almost all on paved trail with some hills but not as hilly as before.

I have been thinking about this since i made the post, and the most important thing now is reliability. I will be riding 20 miles a day, often times leaving before sunrise so i do not want problems on my ride into work. Luckily in 1.5 years of riding to work i never have had a problem going to work, only on the way home and thats how i like it.

It seems like a hub motor might be more reliable. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Also i will have to ride my bike about 1000 feet or so on grass and forest floor, does anyone know if a hub or mid-drive would be better suited for this?
 
I suspect hub vs mid matters less than the quality of the components, maintenance etc. You carry a repair kit for chain breakage and flats? You've done each at your base? On the road is no time to learn!
Be interesting to see what others think.
 
I had to put this project on hold because my landlord increased my rent by 25% in march 2023 so i decided to look for a new place. Found a new place literally off the W&OD trail (unbelievable place, i hit the jackpot. It's basically a horse ranch and i am an animal lover) and the new land lord is very accommodating to me and my biking, he will give me a shed that i can store and work on my bikes and it will have electricity so i can keep and charge all my bikes there and work on them.

Now at my new location, hills are not as important. To get to one grocery store, that is about 2 miles away, i do have to travel up one giant hill but my 750 wott hub motor took it like a champ. I am thinking that i will have my current bike be my cargo bike, i would use that to get groceries and run errands and my new bike will be my daily commuter. My new commute will be 18 miles total everyday, almost all on paved trail with some hills but not as hilly as before.

I have been thinking about this since i made the post, and the most important thing now is reliability. I will be riding 20 miles a day, often times leaving before sunrise so i do not want problems on my ride into work. Luckily in 1.5 years of riding to work i never have had a problem going to work, only on the way home and thats how i like it.

It seems like a hub motor might be more reliable. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Also i will have to ride my bike about 1000 feet or so on grass and forest floor, does anyone know if a hub or mid-drive would be better suited for this?
Don't fix what's not broken. I recently purchased a 9C direct drive hub from Grin, ebikes.ca. It's the DD everyone copied but still more advanced than the budget drives. I added cooling fluid and it's a fantastic build motor. Very little if any potential issues and no issues with the hills you report riding. With a Grin controller, it can run 24V-60V batteries. 25MPH all day long, 20MPH up a 4%grade
 
Back