First impressions - Juggernaut Ultra

[TForan]

These are the tires I changed to on my Juggernaut.

(Link Removed - No Longer Exists)

They are much smoother and quieter. These are good for hard surfaces or gravel, but probably not for offroad or snow (neither of which I do).

I just ordered these for my bike. Looking forward to a smoother and more quiet ride.

 

[botbar]

Let us know what you think of the tires. I am looking for softer ride thanks

 

[TForan]

What's the latest from the Ultra owners ? I'm starting to put some serious miles on mine with the beginning of spring. Loving the new tires inflated to 20 lbs and it has virtually zero self steer. A big reduction in noise and can actually use the bike without assist , though I choose , not to. I easily hit 28mph into stiff wind yesterday and that's as fast as I want to go. I love the way it eats hills without even breathing hard.

So, who else is out there enjoying their Juggernaut ?

 

[roshan]

I’m seriously thinking of pulling the trigger on a ultra , I only question how much use it will see.

The answer is very highly likely going to be "a heck of a lot". Haha.

 

[TForan]

Hope so it would be quite the economical way to commute to work and back , but the weather could be a bit of a issue . You mentioned that rain and puddles shouldn’t be a issue .
Q: I know in the settings that you can set a top speed , is ot possible to limit the wattage going to the motor , other than just using assist 1 to 3 for example?

Set it to zero for a real workout ! Seriously, setting one is all you need commuting.

 

[roshan]

Hope so it would be quite the economical way to commute to work and back , but the weather could be a bit of a issue . You mentioned that rain and puddles shouldn’t be a issue .
Q: I know in the settings that you can set a top speed , is ot possible to limit the wattage going to the motor , other than just using assist 1 to 3 for example?

When you connect the motor to a windows computer and its programming app, you can set power level to each assist level. For example, you can set level 1 to be 20% off max power and so on. This way you can even set a limit on the max assist level. You can even set the max current draw from the motor. Ie. By default it's set to 30A. You can set this to 25A to reduce power to 750W from 1000W.

In short, yes, you can fine tune max power output and we can show you how.

 

[roshan]

Excellent on zero there is no assist ?
But the speedometer and the odometer would still work ?
My commute is about 50kms round trip mostly flat , would the smallest battery 12 AH , be big enough if i ran only #1?
I know it would be hard to guess , I would plan on buying another battery at a later date.

Yeah, it depends on several factors. But it should be possible if you're only using basic assist.

We have a special on extra 12Ah batteries - $399 for current owners

Yes, the speedo and odometer etc. still work when assist is set to 0.

 

[TForan]

Excellent on zero there is no assist ?
But the speedometer and the odometer would still work ?
My commute is about 50kms round trip mostly flat , would the smallest battery 12 AH , be big enough if i ran only #1?
I know it would be hard to guess , I would plan on buying another battery at a later date.

J/K. Setting to zero and you feel like you're riding in wet concrete.

 

[TForan]

Oh that sucks , because I really did want to be able to well ride it with minimal assist to get a workout , but it sounds like the ultra does have quite a bit of drag with the motor off.
Perhaps maybe the HD would be a better choice for pedaling with the motor off?

Oh that sucks , because I really did want to be able to well ride it with minimal assist to get a workout , but it sounds like the ultra does have quite a bit of drag with the motor off.
Perhaps maybe the HD would be a better choice for pedaling with the motor off?

I don't think its drag , just considerable weight, which is unavoidable. Riding in the first setting gives you plenty of exercise and the battery lasts a really long time.

 

[MisterM]

I don't think its drag , just considerable weight, which is unavoidable. Riding in the first setting gives you plenty of exercise and the battery lasts a really long time.

The Ultra is a very heavy bike. The

Oh that sucks , because I really did want to be able to well ride it with minimal assist to get a workout , but it sounds like the ultra does have quite a bit of drag with the motor off.
Perhaps maybe the HD would be a better choice for pedaling with the motor off?
Edit : now the hd isn’t showing up ..

Almost all ebikes, especially very heavy full suspension bikes and high rolling resistance fat bikes, will be unpleasant to ride w/o assist. But as Roshan explained, the Ultra can be user-programmed to set power levels to whatever assist settings you want. Do yourself a favor and get a bigger battery - nobody ever complains about "too much" battery, while there are plenty of people who wish they had opted for the larger batteries (regardless of ebike)

 

[TForan]

I would get a bigger battery its just a cost thing , if I end up using the bike that much i will grab another. But I totally get where you are coming from.
If need be I could always just plug the battery in for a while at work .

How far is your commute ?

 

[TForan]

50ish kms round trip

No problem with the 48 volt 19.5 Ah battery.

 

[tomjasz]

The Ultra is a very heavy bike. The

Almost all ebikes, especially very heavy full suspension bikes and high rolling resistance fat bikes, will be unpleasant to ride w/o assist. But as Roshan explained, the Ultra can be user-programmed to set power levels to whatever assist settings you want. Do yourself a favor and get a bigger battery - nobody ever complains about "too much" battery, while there are plenty of people who wish they had opted for the larger batteries (regardless of ebike)

Almost without question, every person I built for or sold a kit that was fretting about pedaling without power NEVER rides without assist once bitten. I have a bike with no electrics. When I want to ride it I do. I have found that a properly geared eBike with a decent setup will pedal home with little problem, even if heavy. But then I'm old enough to have ridden and remember 60lb steel one speed cruisers...

 

[Fred]

Excellent on zero there is no assist ?
But the speedometer and the odometer would still work ?
My commute is about 50kms round trip mostly flat , would the smallest battery 12 AH , be big enough if i ran only #1?
I know it would be hard to guess , I would plan on buying another battery at a later date.

I believe you will have no problem doing 50Km on a 12Ah battery if you do some of the pedaling on the lower assist levels. On my older Juggernaut with a BBS02 and an 11.6Ah battery, I have done 60Km plus with me doing some pedaling, but not an excessive amount.

 

[Deafcat]

Yea the only reason you're going to need the big 20Ah is if you need to ride more than 60km a day and you're throttle-happy. the 12Ah goes a long way!

 

[Fred]

That's good to hear ! I think I would rather have 2 12 ah batteries rather than one 20 ah.
Who knows though, I am sure pedal assist is equally or more addictive than crack!

I agree with the 2-pack idea. I actually have a second15Ah pack that fits in my saddlebag. My intent is to take it with me if I take a really long trip. I haven't yet but am planning one this summer.

 

[tomjasz]

That's good to hear ! I think I would rather have 2 12 ah batteries rather than one 20 ah.
Who knows though, I am sure pedal assist is equally or more addictive than crack!

I preferred 20Ah on a 1000W 30A BBSHD. But 12-15Ah on my 500W 36v is good enough. I have a couple of backup packs that are 6Ah. I sometimes carry one as a spare, and also use in winter to carry inside when making short rides and parking outside in freezing weather. 17Ah is the smallest I’d consider with a 48-52v motor.

 

[TForan]

Well considering the rules allowing ebikes on the pathways , instead of running the full 30a , I will probably dial that down to 25a (750w) or maybe lower . After a while I will purchase the second battery and depending on how many bylaw guys look at me I may turn the amps up.

Are the rules strictly enforced ?

 

[Barry S]

There is also a guy that is trying to sell a older juggernaut with the bbsHD mounted on the outside of the frame , for 2500 , he says he bought it new last oct but looking on the forums here it looks like last fall they already had the inframe version.

Having the BBSHD mounted on the outside of the frame would be an advantage if it ever needs to be replaced. You could just order another from Luna Cycle or the vendor of your choice and swap it out.

 

[Barry S]

Wouldn’t the bbsHD in the classic juggernaut be the same in the non frame to the inframe one , I thought they would be the same .
My concerns with that bike is that I think it is far older than the guy is letting on , plus it was in a bad crash guy had to replace a ton of parts .
I wonder what the battery condition would be .

@TForan or @roshan could answer better since I don't own a JC, but my thinking is it would seem to be a lot easier to remove the whole external BBSxx unit from the bike and swap with another one than to remove the internal workings from another BBSxx kit and fit it into the frame if that's even possible. I know you can change parts like the gears and controller on the in-frame version, but not sure if there's a limit to what can be removed/replaced.

Since the owner had a bad crash requiring the changing of a "ton" of parts, you got to suspect that the battery has been damaged even if the outer casing appears intact. I'd play it safe and change the battery instead of taking a chance of it catching fire while charging overnight due to internal damage.