Hi Court. And hello contributors.
I have owned a EJoe Anggun for a month now. I probably got about 400 miles on the bicycle itself. My first impression was good and that never changed. It is an excellent bike but there are tiny issues. Upon delivery I had to take it back to the shop for a detailed tuning. There are complaints of brake squeaking but this did not occur with my bicycle. The disc brakes are excellent. However it's important to keep them adjusted and note the rear brake is far less powerful than the front brake, at least on my bicycle it is. From what I know of the manufacturer the owner continuously improves the product by tweaking individual parts. From what I've been told he goes to China regularly and has created this line of bicycles from independent sources of parts that he chooses himself. One thing your review missed is that the seat is not comfortable enough for long leisurely rides. In fact it is extremely uncomfortable after 30 minutes. Once I replaced the seat it double the joy of riding this wonderful bicycle. It's good to know this because sometimes we may dismiss this problem and live with it. One should never do that with a bicycle with the range and joy potential of this one.
My bicycle had the problem of the chain coming off quite often. When you go over a big bump sometimes the chain flails about and falls off the front gear. It's easy to put back on but it still falls off sometimes even know I have had it adjusted. Also the left pedal Armature is held to the framed by standard screw which often becomes loose. It did on my bike, not saying it happens on every one. I simply took it to a bike shop and have them add Loctite to the screw and torque it down significantly more than it was from the factory. It was a bit disturbing to have that become loose while on a long ride without tools.
What I like the best about this bicycle is how balanced it is. Bye balanced I mean when you are riding it in pedal assist mode level one is perfect for slower speed cruising where you don't want to wear is through a community at top speed. Level one assist allows you to receive assistance peddling but drops your speed so that you can navigate more intricate pathways and around people if you're in a populated area. It also means the power of the motor of that so that you don't lurch forward which could be hazardous when cruising the boardwalk with people and other bicycles skateboards etc. on it.
At Level 2 pedal assist you get a lot more power but only up to about 14 mph which is a nice clip and you can add significant range on level two but also maintain a fairly rapid clip. On level III you move a little bit faster than level two and at level IV pedal assist you really moving at the maximum speed of the bicycle. In fact it's hard to keep up with the motor because the gearing isn't so low that you can pedal slowly but instead you must pedal quickly at the level for pedal assist there is no option for this. But you are hauling booty across town with some serious is speed but it is hard to add to battery range when the motor is doing most of the work... This is when you wish you had a lower gear because your legs can hardly keep up the pace. Generally you're moving out about 20 mph in this situation.
I wrote this like 40 miles in one day on one charge without depleting the battery more than 80%. That was pretty amazing, but the bike was brand-new and the battery had a full charge. It is recommended that you buy a Belkin 30 minute three-hour and six-hour charger which cuts out electricity at those time points. It's important never to over charge your battery so timing your charges is an important practice.
The experience of riding an Ebike like this one is surprisingly enjoyable. I say this because it shocked me how much I was able to enjoy the passing surroundings over what I would've enjoyed on my standard bicycle. I do not like getting exhausted or feeling stressed or strained when I ride. My age is 58 and I am over the stress and strain of heavy uncomfortable bike trips. This bicycle allows me all of the joy of riding when I was a kid without any of the stress or strain to my body as it gets older. Also I get plenty of exercise and have lost a significant amount of weight in one month. I think this is important for a huge range of the population who like to have fun but do not like to exercise intensely. It seems that two hours on the bike each day delivers incredible amounts of aerobic exercise in a stealth mode. You're having so much fun that you don't even notice that you're exercising. But You are!
Over time you find yourself plop plotting and planning trips with this bicycle. There are many hidden joys of riding a bike like this. It's like building a relationship with an entirely new kind of transportation. It is virtually nothing like a standard bicycle though it can be written as one. The flexibility of the motor drive gives a person so much range and possibility to explore the local neighborhood that you really get to know your community. It fits in the back of almost any lift-back car and quite often will fit in the trunk. It fits perfectly in the back of my Prius but you have to deal with the weight of the bicycle. Maneuvering it into the car can be difficult. A bike rack is best but be sure to remove the battery and put it in the car before you depart.
The only additions I made to the bicycle were I put a motion sensitive security alarm on it which is about $2.50 from China. And it works great by the way. Also I added up and near to the back. I recommend one that is easily removed because you don't always need it. I brought my bicycle at Electric Bike Central down on India street in downtown San Diego. Matt James took very good care of me and gave us a good deal. He also gave me a bike for an entire afternoon to ride around the waterfront in order to experience what it is to ride an electric bike. I thought that was pivotal to my personal understanding of what it is to own an electric bike. If you can manage it buy three and negotiate a discount from any dealership. So get a couple friends together and buy in bulk and you'll save at least $150.00 on your bike. This is a good bike to buy in bulk. At least so far after a month I'm happy with it. No telling what the future holds but for now I feel as though I made a good investment.
Final thoughts. This bicycle is either the high-end of low-end bikes or the low-end of the high-end bikes. Either way it is not a temporary or bridge vehicle to a better bike. You will not feel the need to traded in for a more robust model. That's what makes it a brilliant design. Enjoy your travels. Bill Zimmermann
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