First Budget ebike for leisure : Pace 350 or local shop’s “House Brand”

[RMT]

Hi everyone

I am a total noob who have been wanting ebike for a while. I am 5’2” and in my 50’s. My main reason for ebike is to keep up with my husband who is a much better and stronger biker than me. We hope that I can ride ebike while he rides his regular road bike on the trail. We live in Wisconsin.

I am interested in Pace 350 but it is still not available yet. There’s no elite dealer in WI. And I don’t have a local place to test ride the 500 for size and fit.

Crazy Lenny’s ebike here in WI has just launched their own ebike, and they said I should go try it out. The link is below. Not a lot of details on spec. But I am hoping to get your expert thoughts on it based on what is listed, and also on getting house brand. I am pretty sure it’s probably a lot of no name generic parts. But the store is an established business and they would stand behind the product if there are issues. They are also willing to give a discount from sticker price.


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Any thoughts on this, or any other alternative I should look into are much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[harryS]

I think all hub motor bikes are basically no name generic. The Aventon 350 is a nice bike, but it's also a collection of parts. The one big part is the stylish generic (in my opinon) step thru ebike frame with an integrated battery. Lenny's bike has a similar motor and controller, battery of similar capacity. Both will probably have the same top speed and range. The American cruiser is a bit old school with its rack battery, but I prefer its round curves over the rigid lines of the Pace.

The $500 price difference will shrink a lot after you get his price, but you can't get around the sales tax. I wouldn't worry about spare parts from either company. The simple ebikes are easy to fix. Worst case you replace the motor or controller, which are easily sourced. It might just be a case of instant gratification. Pay a little more and enjoy a summer of riding or maybe get a bike in the Fall just in time for frost.

I'm partial to Crazy Lennys. My wife's first ebike came from Lennys back in 2015. We met him while we were there. Nice guy. I would suggest you pick a nice warm day, call ahead and spend it test riding bikes on the bike path that runs behind his shop. We didn't go that far, but there must be some hills in Madison.

Fit is important. Make sure you can hop on and hop off. The novelty of an ebike for first time rider is such that one needs more time to really examine the bike handling. My wife eventually thought her cruiser was too unwieldy for crowded bike paths and now rides a smaller ebike.

Do keep a hand on one brake lever so you can squeeze it and stop the motor. EBikes with cadence sensors can start up if the pedals are bumped far enough. I was rolling one into the garage this week when the pedals hit something and whoa, the bike almost took off on me.

 

[Ravi Kempaiah]

Hi everyone

I am a total noob who have been wanting ebike for a while. I am 5’2” and in my 50’s. My main reason for ebike is to keep up with my husband who is a much better and stronger biker than me. We hope that I can ride ebike while he rides his regular road bike on the trail. We live in Wisconsin.

I am interested in Pace 350 but it is still not available yet. There’s no elite dealer in WI. And I don’t have a local place to test ride the 500 for size and fit.

Crazy Lenny’s ebike here in WI has just launched their own ebike, and they said I should go try it out. The link is below. Not a lot of details on spec. But I am hoping to get your expert thoughts on it based on what is listed, and also on getting house brand. I am pretty sure it’s probably a lot of no name generic parts. But the store is an established business and they would stand behind the product if there are issues. They are also willing to give a discount from sticker price.


(Link Removed - No Longer Exists)

Any thoughts on this, or any other alternative I should look into are much appreciated. Thanks!

You should go visit him instead of trying to make a decision online. The sheer number and quality of bikes they carry is astounding.

If I were you, I would spend a bit more and get a bike with a torque sensor. This makes the ride quality lot more enjoyable. Also, get something with hydraulic brakes.

Here are some options: Izip moda at $1999 (really fantastic bike and your husband would end up drafting you )

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Izip path plus with shimano drive for $1500

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[RMT]

Thank you both harryS and Ravi. Your recommendations are really helpful.
I plan to go and check out his store. But was wondering if it would be worth holding out for Pace 350. I like Aventon’s more modern styling.
But I am anxious to get out on the bike trail sooner rather than later. Sounds like I will find something in their shop. I will check out iZip as well.

Thanks again.

 

[NWMI]

Hi RMT,

Welcome to the Forum and The Quest.

Total disclosure: I am a newbie also and have not been on an ebike yet so take the following with a grain of salt.

However I have been on a crash course to learn about this and have been shopping the same category of bikes that you have pretty extensively with a lot of help from Court's excellent reviews on this website and the very helpful people on this forum. They helped me so I will try to help you.

Any of the bikes above would probably be good choices....the challenge is to find the one that is BEST for YOU.

As Ravi said, get hydraulic brakes.

Based on what you said, some other things that you may want to consider:

1. How fast do you need to go to keep up with your husband and how fast are you comfortable going?
You said that the main objective is to keep up with your husband. How fast does he go? And how fast are you comfortable going?

The fastest e-bikes can go 28 mph if you are pedaling and are called Class 3. Both the Pace 500 (but probably not the 350) and the izpip moda mentioned above are Class 3 28 mph bikes. The Pace 350 and the American Classic probably are not but I do not have specs. If the goal is to keep up with him, you may want to take this into consideration.

2. Which ebikes are legal on the trails that you want to go on?
Complicating # 1 above is that trails may not allow Ebikes or certain classes of Ebikes. Class 1 Ebikes can go 20 mph with pedal assist and are the ones most often allowed. Class 2 can go 20 mph but without pedal assist (use throttle) and Class 3 can go 28 mph with pedal assist. You may want to look into what is allowed.

3. How important is the quality of the experience to you?
Lower price bikes use a cadence (how FAST you are pedaling) to determine how much assist. It works OK but can be somewhat artificial feeling....a slight delay coming on and then stays on based on how fast you are pedaling, regardless of how hard you are pedaling.

As Ravi says above, most people prefer a torque sensor (comes on based on how HARD you are peddling) because they feel that it gives a more authentic bike experience.

I was ready to order the Pace 500 but then changed my mind when I learned about this because it is cadence sensing and after learning about the difference, I wanted torque sensing.

As both Ravi and Harry suggest above, you should ride them, specifically one that is cadence sensing vs one that is torque sensing to see how important this might be to you.

The challenge will be to sort out the importance of all 3 of the above and other things to you.

If you want to go 28 mph and want torque sensing, of the bikes above, the izip moda is your choice. (other bikes above probably do not have torque sensing)

If you only need to go 20 mph and want torque sensing,

 

[harryS]

For a bike limited to 20 mph, V-brakes are often smoother and just as strong as mechanical disk brakes, The advantage of disks for me is that the wheel comes off easy. whereas sometimes I have to loosen the cables on v-brakes.

NWMI. Torque sensing (T/S) has been highly developed for the European speed pedelecs.where throttles were illegal in many countries. Bailing on the Aventon which you can afford in favor of something far more expensive because it has T/S is getting yourself bogged down with reading. It's a nice feature but there's more than that to ebiking. If your cadence has enough assist levels, set it at a level where you can pedal faster than the motor and it feels natural (to me). That also puts you around 50/50 and you get good range.

The Aveton is also wink wink not a true Class II or Class III. Can't have power over 20 mph for the former and can't have throttle on the later. I am dubious about its ability to hit 28 mph on throttle only. My experience with my 48V motor kits is that was done with a 130 pound rider laying down flat. Marketing hype aside, it sounds like a good value for a Class II and it's at a price point needed here.

It's too bad for any ebike company that is ramping up inventory for the summer biking season when all product arriving after today gets a 25% tax slapped on it.

 

[indianajo]

As Ravi said, get hydraulic brakes.

WIsconsen does not have notoriously long steep grades like California & Colorado. I'm doing fine with mechanical disk brakes, which need adjusting less than once per year at 2000 miles/yr. I do have 100' 15% grades here.
If you ever ride in the rain, I view rim brakes or v-brakes as harryS says, to be an absolute safety hazard. I've hated them ever since my 2 speed Bendix coaster brake bike was stolen. I hit a car that ran a stop sign with wet rim brakes 2 years ago, at a scary 2 mph since I had stopped at the 4 way intersection already. Knocked the handlebar loose from the stem as the wheel whipped around.
Hydraulic disk brakes require bleeding which is a complicated process that doesn't always work. Sometimes special tools are required. Some brands require $30 a bottle special fluid. Hydraulic brakes are required for cars at 2 tons, not on a 70 lb bicycle IMHO. Bike brakes are applied individually with the rear one accentuated, not evenly as car brakes need to be.
Crazy lenny has a great reputation, and I love geared hub drives for the ultimate replaceability & lack of drag unpowered, but torque sensor would be nice. I like cadence sensor so much I never turn it on, using the throttle instead.

 

[Deleted member 4210]

I'm an Aventon Elite dealer, and the only one who will have the 350's for awhile. Should be in by next week. There are people who have been willing to drive a few hours from here in northern Illinois to go to that shop in Madison. If you don't mind the reverse commute, you are welcome to come on down and compare the 350 and 500 side by side.

 

[Ravi Kempaiah]

Hi everyone

I am a total noob who have been wanting ebike for a while. I am 5’2” and in my 50’s. My main reason for ebike is to keep up with my husband who is a much better and stronger biker than me. We hope that I can ride ebike while he rides his regular road bike on the trail. We live in Wisconsin.

I am interested in Pace 350 but it is still not available yet. There’s no elite dealer in WI. And I don’t have a local place to test ride the 500 for size and fit.

Crazy Lenny’s ebike here in WI has just launched their own ebike, and they said I should go try it out. The link is below. Not a lot of details on spec. But I am hoping to get your expert thoughts on it based on what is listed, and also on getting house brand. I am pretty sure it’s probably a lot of no name generic parts. But the store is an established business and they would stand behind the product if there are issues. They are also willing to give a discount from sticker price.


(Link Removed - No Longer Exists)

Any thoughts on this, or any other alternative I should look into are much appreciated. Thanks!

Did you try out bikes?
What did you find out?

 

[RMT]

Hi everyone:

Thank you for your help and suggestions. I went to Crazy Lenny’s to try out the bike and ended up purchasing one yesterday early afternoon. By 7 pm, I rode 22 miles on it. And yes, I had to stop and waited for my husband to catch up a few times, especially when we go uphill. And I only use mostly PAS 1, And went up to PAS 4 on the steepest climb.

I ended up getting a foldable fat tire bike (similar to Rad Mini Step-Through). It’s this one: (Link Removed - No Longer Exists). It is more expensive than the two I was asking about, but is still within my budget.

HarryS - Your comment about your wife finding the cruiser too big and unwieldy on a busy bike path really got me thinking. I feel more confident when I can still touch the ground with my tiptoe, and I want something easy to handle. I did my research and decided I should give folding fat tire bike a spin. Thanks for that !

Ravi - The Bagi bike I bought has hydraulic bike. . BTW, I tried sitting on IZip bikes at Erik’s a few weeks ago and found it big and awkward.

NWMI &IndianaJo - Thanks for your suggestions too. I think my new ebike might have a cadence sensor, and I kept that in mind while test riding. It didn’t bother me

Mike - Thanks! I was planning on going to test out the Pace 350 if I didn’t find anything I like yesterday. But I fell in love with the BagiBike.

Thank you everyone. I am very happy with my new ebike so far, though I heard some whining noise from the rear when walking it into the garage last night. Will be posting question on that soon.

 

[harryS]

Glad you found something you liked.

 

[Riding High]

Looks like a fun bike, congrats. Nice that you are so close to Lenny's that would make it easy to buy there.

 

[indianajo]

I am very happy with my new ebike so far, though I heard some whining noise from the rear when walking it into the garage last night. Will be posting question on that soon.

Geared hub motors turn when you push the bike backwards unpowered. With the gearing the rotor whirrs around quite a bit. This noise is normal.

 

[harryS]

Saw a guy riding an Aventon 500 last week on my local loop around the forest preserve lake. I caught up and chatted briefly. Looks like a nice bike.