EBR made me do it! (new Vado SL 5.0 EQ)

[Slaphappygamer]

@Slaphappygamer Are you wearing gloves now when you ride your e-bike?

My gloves don't fit worth a crap but I still wear them,..

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Men's XL my ass. Maybe if I was Chinese?

So I bought leather XXXL motorcycle gloves,..

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They fit much better but my finger tips are still cramped. I have to keep my nails cut short.

I may have some Alien DNA in me?
I dunno?

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I wear them more so others can see my hand signals better AND so I can touch my phone.

 

[DaveMatthews]

Nicely done mate.
I suspect that you will be one happy SOB once you get comfy on it.
CONGRATS!

 

[kevinmccune]

Congrats, you got the best color!

yellow vados?,ahem,vados again( my vados are usually natural) actually that is a very good visibitity color- better than white imo,congrads!

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Nicely done mate.
I suspect that you will be one happy SOB once you get comfy on it.
CONGRATS!

Thanks! I'm pretty slow sometimes, and not just on the bike. The dealer never mentioned the satisfaction guarantee, and I just assumed that the bike would be unreturnable once I rode away on it. Or returnable but with a big restocking fee. Duh.

Except for 10 minutes around a flattish shopping center parking lot on an SL 4 EQ, I've never ridden anything like the SL. There would have been a lot less dithering if I'd known up front that I could try the SL 5 EQ for 30 days and still get a full refund.

 

[Taylor57]

At least that's what I told my wife. And just what did I do in your name?

Just ordered a Specialized Vado SL 5.0 EQ in yellow, my favorite bike color!

View attachment 180896

Many thanks to the many knowledgeable EBR members who shared their time and experience to get me to this point.

Why the SL 5 EQ? Just for something completely different, I wanted a fun, light, nimble, non-MTB flat-bar ebike as far removed from my 61 lb hub-drive commuter as possible. (The commuter will stay on as a utility bike.)

First thought was a 32 lb Creo 2 Comp, but realistically, the drop bars would have been a mistake with my stiff neck. And properly outfitting the bare Creo would have taken it from barely within budget to a life sentence in the doghouse.

That makes the 36 lb SL 5 EQ my best bet. Under the Specialized satisfaction guarantee (no restocking fees on new bikes), I'll have 30 days to give my 3 main reservations a thorough test:

1. Will 240W and 35 Nm be enough help on local hills, many above 10%? Probably, but making no assumptions at age 76.

2. Will I have to cough up another $485 for a range extender and cable?

3. Will the stiff, unsuspended alloy frame be too jarring — even with the stock FutureShock 1.5 stem and the added Redshift suspension seat post?

Taking delivery in 8 days. Putting the odds of keeping this beauty at 90%. Fingers and toes crossed.

Thanks again for all the help, guys! Thoughts on accessories and upgrades welcome.

Nice lookin machine!

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Congrats! For the hilly terrain that you’ll encounter, perhaps an RE is an accessory you might consider but give it a few weeks before you decide to pony up for one. Enjoy your new SL and look forward to seeing more of it in the rides section.

We look forward to a similar victory pose with your new ride. Ok, perhaps just one with it slung over your shoulder will do.

Thanks! Will post photos as soon as I manage to get it over my head. (May take some gym time.)

Figured I'm so much like Pogacar in every other respect that I just needed a yellow bike I can actually get off the ground to make it even.
;^}

 

[JGcycle]

Congrats on the flashy new wheels Jeremy--looking good.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Thanks! Will post photos as soon as I manage to get it over my head. (May take some gym time.)

Figured I'm so much like Pogacar in every other respect that I just needed a yellow bike I can actually get off the ground to make it even.
;^}

Perfect. The only missing piece then would be the UAE laser cut skin suit. At first glance I thought it was a T de F onesie for infants.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

@Jeremy McCreary : I did a little research for you.

It looks that the yellow Vado SL 5.0 EQ (current model) comes with a 110 BCD, 5-hole, 44T chainring. It is totally doable to find a smaller replacement even from 34T up.

Garbaruk 110 BCD, 5-hole chainrings

Garbaruk is a renowned manufacturer of drivetrain components.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Congratulations, Jeremy! I hope you'd like your Vado SL and get many happy miles on it!
(I know you have Ignored me but anyway...)

You will need to practise it out. To my surprise, it has turned our your Vado SL (depending on the exact specification) might be equipped with a 110 BCD chainring, which could make it problematic if you wanted to go with a smaller chainring. Please first determine whether your chainring would be 110 BCD or 104 BCD (if the latter then no issue to find a smaller chainring).

Not necessarily. I don't think your rides are overly long. As long as you would not ride in Turbo mode all the time, the main battery could suffice. These configurations give a long range and a decently strong assistance:

• 40/100%, where hard or high cadence pedalling gives a lot of assistance but regular pedalling saves the battery a lot
• 60/60%, which is the max assistance for the long range

Of course you would use 100/100% Turbo for any steep climb but then no pedalling on descents.
Bear in mind the Mastermind display can show you the remaining Range, and the Microtune mode allows you regulating the assistance as you are riding (my version of Vado SL has none of it!)

It is a great pleasure to ride a Vado SL in the "clean" configuration, that is, without the Range Extender. You could install a second water-bottle-cage and carry a second water bottle instead, which might be useful in South California


I am all against unnecessary mods, and making the necessary ones only when the need arises. First of all, most of the vibration comes from the e-bike front (but that's handled by the FutureShock). Secondly, it is all about the tyre type and the inflation pressure. If you install Pathfinder Pro tyres (especially tubeless) and run them at the minimum pressure allowed for the rider + e-bike + cargo weight, you'd get as much of the suspension as even the suspension seat post might not be necessary! (Currently, I am very attracted to the idea of replacing my ShockStop seatpost with a dropper post - but it has to be either an electronic one or the one activated by a handle under the saddle. I need the dropper for descents in rough terrain or riding in the sand).

Very interested about your experiences!

Yes, I was ignoring you, but this was a very gracious gesture full of valuable info. Plus, I've missed your ride logs. So let's try again.

The stock SL 5 chainring is now a 5-bolt, 110 BCD affair with 44t. Oddly, dealer found some smaller Specialized chainrings for it but got a "potential motor damage" alert when he tried to select 38t. Don't understand that, but if testing says I need to gear down, 40t could well be small enough.

I'll get a feel for the stock assist settings under typical conditions, then try yours. Sounds like I need to learn Microtune. I'm used to 9 nicely spaced assist levels, with 1/9 being quite low. Will be interesting to see how the SL gets by with just 3 levels plus Microtune.

Hoping this bike promotes much longer rides going forward — hence the range anxiety. Ride at lowest assist most of the time already, hills and all, and will soon find out (a) if I can continue that on the SL, and (b) how much more I'll ride without assist. Will buy the RE if I have to, but like you, I'd like to haul it around as little as possible.

Yes, looking forward to the tubeless Pathfinders at lower pressure. Job #1 after deciding it's a keeper.

Went ahead with the suspension seat post because (a) it was $90 off, and (b) with at widest 38 mm tires, hard to imagine I won't end up with one based on current experience on 2.3" tires and ride quality comments and solutions from several other SL members.

Of course, testing could prove any or all of these expectations wrong. I've already been wrong once this year.
;^}

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Perfect. The only missing piece then would be the UAE laser cut skin suit. At first glance I thought it was a T de F onesie for infants.

View attachment 180969

Trust me, no one wants to see me in any skin suit, let alone a yellow one. Might get one for my dog, though.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Sounds like I need to learn Microtune

It only requires a single click on a function button on the remote. Then each + click increases the assistance with +10/10%, and the - does the opposite. This gives you 11 assistance levels within a single separate and distinct MICRO mode

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

It only requires a single click on a function button on the remote. Then each + click increases the assistance with +10/10%, and the - does the opposite. This gives you 11 assistance levels within a single and distinct MICRO mode

Thanks, music to my ears! So in a sense, Eco Sport, and Turbo are just presets for Microtune to depart from.

 

[Taylor57]

Thanks! Will post photos as soon as I manage to get it over my head. (May take some gym time.)

Figured I'm so much like Pogacar in every other respect that I just needed a yellow bike I can actually get off the ground to make it even.
;^}

I tried to lift my 33 lb Gravelster up to a hook in my garage and had huge failure! My bikes are all stabled side by each on the ground. I'm guessing the previous owner of our home was either a heck of a lot stronger than me or his bikes were lighter. Or both!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Thanks, music to my ears! So in a sense, Eco Sport, and Turbo are just presets for Microtune to depart from.

To be precise:
Each Eco, Sport or Turbo are fixed (but programmable) presets that are either set to their defaults or to the values set by you in the Specialized app:


My current settings defined in the App. They will stay there until modified or reset. (I had to set Eco to a really low assistance to be able to ride with weak cyclists and keep a long range for a single main battery and Range Extender combo*. Had I Mastermind, my life would be far easier!)

Let's assume you have started riding in any of the three fixed modes. Now, press F2 on the remote. You will see the default value of 50%. Pushing + or - will increase or decrease the assistance. Pushing F2 again will take you back to the mode you departed from.

Micro remembers its last setting. That's why I said it was a distinct assist mode.
------------
*) The Barbecue Ride

 

[Bill G]

My neighbor swears by his helmet mirror, but my helmet already has a big add-on visor that complicates mounting. For now, will try a Mirrycle bar-end mirror.

Congratulations on the new bike; love the color. I use a Garmin Varia, Mirrycle, and this helmet mirror https://www.amazon.com/EVT-Safe-Bic...IjoiMSJ9.cAsDQVt0qEatIe5owHDr-kL4O11CcBgoUJkn. After some initial frustration with adjusting the helmet mirror, I really like it. Its optics are outstanding. I find myself glancing at it (no head turn required) far more frequently than down at the bar-end Mirrycle. The Varia, in my opinion, is one of the best tech based safety solutions to come along. Happy riding!

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Congratulations on the new bike; love the color. I use a Garmin Varia, Mirrycle, and this helmet mirror https://www.amazon.com/EVT-Safe-Bic...IjoiMSJ9.cAsDQVt0qEatIe5owHDr-kL4O11CcBgoUJkn. After some initial frustration with adjusting the helmet mirror, I really like it. Its optics are outstanding. I find myself glancing at it (no head turn required) far more frequently than down at the bar-end Mirrycle. The Varia, in my opinion, is one of the best tech based safety solutions to come along. Happy riding!

Thanks! That helmet mirror makes a lot of sense to me, but I'd probably have to give up my big brim to mount it.

Dorky as it is, eyes are too sensitive to stray light to give up the brim — a safety issue in itself. But I'll look at the neighbor's mirror when he's back in town and see what can be done.

The Varia's definitely on the list. But just as time's there to keep everything from happening at once, so my wife's there to keep me from buying all the pricey new-bike goodies at once.
;^}

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

TCD questions, please:
Dealer says the Mastermind TCD is incompatible with my bike's Mastermind TCU. Nothing about this on the web, including here. Can anyone confim?

Interested in the TCD mainly out of concern for the TCU's readability while riding. Also not wild about having to look down that far. (This from a 15-minute test ride on an SL 4 EQ.)

Hoping the TCD might also show more data at once. I'd really like to see distance, speed, cadence, and rider power on one page.

However, NOT interested in springing for a bike computer at this time. Credit card's already on the verge of melting from new bike stuff, and my wife's not far behind.
;^}

Thanks!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

TCD questions, please:
Dealer says the Mastermind TCD is incompatible with my bike's Mastermind TCU. Nothing about this on the web, including here. Can anyone confim?

Interested in the TCD mainly out of concern for the TCU's readability while riding. Also not wild about having to look down that far. (This from a 15-minute test ride on an SL 4 EQ.)

Hoping the TCD might also show more data at once. I'd really like to see distance, speed, cadence, and rider power on one page.

However, NOT interested in springing for a bike computer at this time. Credit card's already on the verge of melting from new bike stuff, and my wife's not far behind.
;^}

Thanks!

Mastermind TCD is incompatible with Mastermind TCU. However, the original wireless TCD is compatible (it is an ANT+ device) and it would work with Mastermind TCU. The wireless TCD costs dimes compared to a Wahoo or Garmin. Of course, the original TCD will not show you all the e-bike data but a Wahoo or Garmin would not do it, either.

I think you can configure the Mastermind TCU the way it is showing only vital data in a big type.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

@Jeremy McCreary, reconsidering... Just do something to mount your smartphone on the stem for the time being. @Prairie Dog can give an advice. Just use the Specialized App as the universal display on the phone.