First Ebike, want a mid drive with a throttle?

Fishwater said:
I had an opportunity to ride a few bikes at the shop yesterday & while I was ready to make a purchase I didn’t. The owner was awesome, I spent almost three hours there demoing bikes & while I liked them nothing unfortunately jumped out at me making me want to take it home. All the bikes I rode were 2017 models at discounted prices. Bikes I rode in no particular order.

I rode the Haibike XDURO HardSeven 6.0 with the Bosch CX for $2700 with the 500WH battery, the best spec out of all the bikes. I liked the bike but I had chainstay rub from my duck feet, light constant strikes to the chainstay as I pedaled. The chainstays are straight tube, no bends due to the plus size tires.

I rode the Izip E3 Peak Plus with the Bosch CX, a great deal at $2399 IMO, enjoyed the ride but the groupo spec was a little lower quality than the XDURO for sure, had a 400WH battery which I decided with my weight of 270lbs is not an option.

I rode the Surface Boar 350 hub motor bike which surprised me, I really liked the bike, it felt zippy & fun, definitely can feel the hub motor pushing you along. I didn’t expect to like the hubmotor so much since after being a “real mtb guy” in my younger fitter days it wasn’t as natural as the mid drive motors. Still, the bike was fun, would make an awesome campground cruiser. I just wish it was 750 Watts with a throttle for campground cruising. Fun bike no doubt.

I rode the Izip Sumo fat tire bike, great bike, great price at $2500 with a Bosch motor. Unfortunately no front suspension & a 400WH battery, also while petty I wasn’t digging the color scheme. The shop owner wanted to sell me a bike, not in an aggressive way but wanted to make me happy so he offered me the ability to upgrade to a new Bosch 500WH pack for $300 more, taking the 400 in trade essentially. I thought that was a very fair offer & considered it but decided to sleep on it for now.

I rode two Sduro FullNine bikes, both smoking deals IMO for a 29er full suspension bikes. Both had the Yamaha PW drives with 400WH batteries. Both felt super peppy & responsive but the skinny tires are a turn off for me. In fact while riding one I got a flat, possibly a pinch flat which reminded me why I don’t want skinny mtb tires anymore, too bad for me since they are killer prices. If only I could fit a boost wheel in there! Also not sure I really “need” a full suspension bike anymore even though I’ve had a few in the past.

So, the shop was great, the owner was great & I want to support the local guy but nothing is screaming at me to buy. The Bosch assisted bikes felt good, didn’t blow me away & in fact with my current horrible state of fitness didn’t feel like they had enough assist to impress me, also hitting the 20mph limit was like hitting a wall which is disappointing. The Yamaha bikes felt great BUT they were on skinny 2.25 29” tires with higher psi so they should feel faster than the mid 2.8 size tires at lower pressure. The hub bike surprised me, I enjoyed it but could definitely tell that it wasn’t a real off road trail bike, again great for the campground but not sure it will inspire me to get to the trails & improve my fitness.

In a nutshell I want a fat tire or mid plus tire bike but my budget is holding me back unless I go Chinese Rad Bikestyle bike with super low spec. I’m trying to decide what I want, more of a trail bike or campground cruiser. My budget is $2500 & I went up to $2800 mentally with some of the bikes I rode. Can I stretch a little further? Possibly but not sure I can justify $3300-3500 to get what. I really (think) I want. I’m ready to buy a bike just not sure what yet.......

The bike shop is Ebikes of New England btw, great shop, great owner & they do a big mail order business so check them out sometime!
Click to expand...

Hello Fishwater,
I get the whole searching out for an ebike and the techie parts. I'm a techie guy myself, but it seems as if you may be
experiencing 'analysis paralysis' : ) . You said you've found a great Local Bike Shop...great. Pick one two bikes that meet your needs
and buy one.

I'm not suggesting anyone do as I did when I bought my first ebike. I took a Trek XM700+ ebike out for a test ride ( I had never ridden an ebike in my life ) and in 10 minutes I knew the bike was meant for me. I loved it and bought it on the spot.

I rode the Trek for awhile, but wanted to ride rail to trails, because of my riding insecurities I wanted a little more of a stable ground hugging bike, so I bought a Trek Powerfly 7 eMTB having never ridden one, but based on my love of the XM700+...the Powerfly 7 is absolutely a fantastic bike ( in my opinion) as is the XM700+ Best money I've ever spent....Bottom line, Buy a bike..Start having some fun. You will never find the perfect e-bike. It hasn't been made yet.

John from CT
 
I appreciate the banter on Magnum. I admittedly did not check out every possible brand, but did check quite a few. To me came down to personal fit/requirements and what you get for the money. At a certain point, everyone needs to make that decision of what matters to them and how much you are willing to pay for it. I actually tend to drive myself crazy with my cheapness and pursuit of value. If money was no object, I probably would not have gotten the Peak. I say that not because I didn't/don't love the bike, but simply because I'd buy the bike with all premium components and full stealth. (I was looking a Bulls, Stromer, etc., and loved... (except for the no throttle), but the price was too much). But for $2000, the Peak power, range, pas/throttle, style-stealth, road-trail capability, 24 gears, Court's review... so tough to beat. And my LBS in CT was terrific. Full ongoing support. I have also called Magnum HQ in Utah a number of times and have gotten terrific support them. Very reassuring.

Oh btw, I wanted the Navigator at $2500 badly, but wasn't willing to wait... Love that integrated battery, mid-drive, throttle and price... Also hope they can pull it off.
 
One more observation... I was at a LBS the other day that focuses mostly on repairs, and was surprised when the repair guy under his breath said to me, "ebikes power-wise are all pretty much all the same". It made me wonder if all of us with all our different brands and bikes, essentially get very similar performance. In other words, are these brands alike and are we overthinking this whole thing?
 
Kurt in CT said:
One more observation... I was at a LBS the other day that focuses mostly on repairs, and was surprised when the repair guy under his breath said to me, "ebikes power-wise are all pretty much all the same". It made me wonder if all of us with all our different brands and bikes, essentially get very similar performance. In other words, are these brands alike and are we overthinking this whole thing?
Click to expand...

Maybe the European standard bikes but from my limited experience , there's quite a difference between a 250/350 watt motor and a 1000+ Bafang Ultra. I rode a mid drive Felt and it wasn't even close in power.
 
TForan said:
Maybe the European standard bikes but from my limited experience , there's quite a difference between a 250/350 watt motor and a 1000+ Bafang Ultra. I rode a mid drive Felt and it wasn't even close in power.
Click to expand...
Power isn’t the only requirement for an enjoyable ride for many people.
 
So after extensive searching online here's what I've come up with, please correct me if I'm wrong.

There's either the mid drive Bosch, Brose, Yamaha units built into "real style" mountain bikes, ie traditional mountain bike brand components with full frame geometry specs listed. Pros are quality components, LBS support, trail geometry & most bike like feel. Cons the class 1 20 mph limit, 350w output, proprietary batteries, 36V low watt hour batteries (400-500WH max) & cost.

Or there's the internet brands like Biktrix, FLX, Rad power, etc. Pros are 28mph pedal assist at minimum, throttles, non proprietary batteries & adjustable motor output, ie 500w, 750 or 1000. Cons are no frame specs given, many share the same exact frame with only some components differing between brands, possible quality concerns depending on vendor, possible support based on vendor & sustainability of the company long term for warranty.

I'm not knocking the internet guys since I really don't need local support for tuning & repairs.
But it seems that I can't find a big wattage drive unit with a throttle in a frame that lists geometry or is most like traditional bikes unless I build one correct?
 
Do you absolutely have to have a fat bike? Cause crazy Lenny has some great deals on mid drive Haibikes
 
JoePah said:
Do you absolutely have to have a fat bike? Cause crazy Lenny has some great deals on mid drive Haibikes
Click to expand...

Not absolutely have to have a fat bike but prefer at least a plus bike which Crazy Lenny has plenty of. I've been looking & trying to decide if I can live with the 350 mid drive vs higher amp motor with a throttle.
 
Fishwater said:
I'm not knocking the internet guys since I really don't need local support for tuning & repairs.
But it seems that I can't find a big wattage drive unit with a throttle in a frame that lists geometry or is most like traditional bikes unless I build one correct?
Click to expand...

Sadly, you're right. Many of the online sellers are so lame they can't give geometry, nor do many even bother giving full specs of components. It's amazing how fly-by-night a lot of the internet guys are - too many seem like fast-buck artists doing it as a sideline business, or are incompetent wannabes.

How hard is it to pull out a tape measure and give basic dimensions, or give complete components list? (probably because even the resellers don't know what will actually be on the bike until it arrives from China)

Problem with building your own is finding ebike-specific frames - otherwise you end up with a kit bike with exposed wires/cables and slapped-on batteries and motors.
 
MisterM said:
Sadly, you're right. Many of the online sellers are so lame they can't give geometry, nor do many even bother giving full specs of components. It's amazing how fly-by-night a lot of the internet guys are - too many seem like fast-buck artists doing it as a sideline business, or are incompetent wannabes.

How hard is it to pull out a tape measure and give basic dimensions, or give complete components list? (probably because even the resellers don't know what will actually be on the bike until it arrives from China)

Problem with building your own is finding ebike-specific frames - otherwise you end up with a kit bike with exposed wires/cables and slapped-on batteries and motors.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately that's how I'm feeling, it's either a money grab from some of these companies or they don't know/care figure that their customer's don't know/care. With the amount these bikes cost you'd think that there would be more info available to the consumer. Again, not a knock to ALL the companies since I've very positive experiences from the upper tier companies like Biktrix, Rad Power, etc but even still those guys fail to note geometry & all seem to purchase the frames at least from the same factories over seas.
 
I found complete frame geometry specs and list of components for both Voltbike's Yukon 750 Limited and Rad Power's Rad Rover on their websites. Both companies are also quick to answer any product questions, which I have appreciated in researching ebikes.

Unfortunately, Biktrix does not list frame geometry specs for the Juggernauts. I think it's probably more of an oversight on their part, and I'm sure they could provide such if you requested it. @roshan is very receptive to customer input and quick to make corrections to the website when pointed out.
 
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