Go For $$ Or Not?

[DouglasB]

Just getting ready to take her out for a spin now. I find it curious that at times, I have difficulty getting out of a chair or bending over to pick up an object because of my arthritis but when I'm on my bicycle I'm 15 again! I'm 72 and will continue riding until I fall over and can't get back up. My father had both of his knees replacd at 80 and shortly after the operation went to Europe for a year, traveling on his bicycle. Of course he took boats and trains as well but when he was in country he traveled by bike, staying at hosels and with king folks who found a old man traveling by himself, so far from home, interesting.

 

[DouglasB]

Dude I can find single bottles of scotch that cost more than your bike.

And $3200 isn't really high end for a bicycle. And if you were to ride one of the high-end Breadwinner or Stinner builds for a couple of hours you would probably begin scheming furiously over how to buy one.

I'm quite happy where I am. I'm a cheapskate at heart and start loosing interest when the return on my dollar begins to diminish drastically. I have no problem passing on $100 bottles of scotch or $10,000 bicycles. I'll leave those for the guys with the big bucks or have more money than they know what to do with. My current bike well surpasses my talents. I had a roommate once who was a serious wine connisseur. He turned me on to some exquisites and expensive bottles of wine. He thought that people who drank wine should have to pass a taste test and thereafter, only buy wine they were capable of apreciateing. His reasoning was that this would leave the good wine for those who could apreiate it.

 

[jim6b]

I do figure if I'm going to spring for a spendy bike, it had better fit. I had trouble with hands, wrists and neck on a road bike. Then got my mountain bike and had those handle extension things put on it so I could move my hands around. There's too much stuff on the handlebar of the Rad to put those on.

Get your drift. I got around it by putting the horns on inside the of the grips, i.e. between the grip and the brake attachment. The multiple hand positions ease the wrist stress but does not eliminate entirely.

Enjoy your bike.

 

[DouglasB]

Get your drift. I got around it by putting the horns on inside the of the grips, i.e. between the grip and the brake attachment. The multiple hand positions ease the wrist stress but does not eliminate entirely.

Enjoy your bike.

In the world of ergonomics when someone asks what the best position for this or that is, we say, "the next one". Changeing position is essential. It breaks up the stress.

 

[jim6b]

Especially important as we grow older and lose collagen . . . in all the wrong places.

 

[Alaskan]

The ouch of paying what I paid for my Riese & Muller Homage Rohloff HS has faded into the mist of the past.

Every time I ride it, the joy of riding such a solid, comfortable, well designed bike is as good if not better than the first ride. If you can afford it, go for it.

Things get real small in the rear view mirror, especially when you are moving on down the road.

 

[Cowlitz]

I have been in contact with an E bike shop. They will ship, but I will try out some that they have. It'll mean hitching up the little trailer, loading the dog and taking off for a few days, maybe as soon as next week. Stay tuned.

 

[Alaskan]

If you are Seattle bound, you must stop and visit Davey and Tyler at https://familycyclery.com/ They are great guys, Riese & Muller Dealers and also carry an amazing assortment of cargo bikes.

 

[harryS]

There's a lot more in the ebike world than a radmini, and you can still have a lot of fun w/o paying much more than radmini money or less if you want. Good luck in your search for a second bike.

 

[Cowlitz]

If you are Seattle bound, you must stop and visit Davey and Tyler at https://familycyclery.com/ They are great guys, Riese & Muller Dealers and also carry an amazing assortment of cargo bikes.

Thanks, but I fear Seattle. I'll head south of the border to Hood River, I think. I get honked at and flipped off when I drive in cities. One time I found myself driving on the trolley lines in Portland, going the wrong way. I are a country bumpkin.

 

[Pragmatic]

I'd say a suspension front & rear is worth paying for. Big wheels are much more comfortable over bumps, I'm short so I use 26" but 700 mm is available for tall people. Buy an aluminum frame that fits, not that posts in the air mini.
Hydraulic brakes, not worth it IMHO. Takes special tools to bleed in some cases and one brand takes $30 a pint special brake fluid. I've got mechanical 160 mm disk brakes & I'm fine down 15% grades if a deer jumps out. If I weighed >220 lb I'd opt for 180 mm rotors. (I'm 160 lb) I have to adjust the pad annually to keep the handle pull small enough, takes removing the pannier bag in the rear and a 5 mm wrench. No big deal. After a year and one cable end pulled off, I did upgrade to stainless coated jaguar cables and jaguar brake housing for less drag: from modernbike.com or thebikepartsstore.com
Long trips doesn't require a premium e-bike, it requires a nice regular bike, a motor kit, & two huge batteries and a quick swap setup. You say you're handy, buy some 12 ga wire, some dorman bullet connectors at the auto supply & a 8.3" klein or ideal brand terminal crimp tool. Make some connections. Try to pull them off. (you have to peel back a few strands to fit 12 ga in blue connectors). No, no copper showing out the insulator, you're ready to wire a hub motor kit. Match the wire colors. Make red & black battery connection opposite sex so that you can't install the battery backwards in the dark.
My battery mount is aluminum angle from the home store, connected with 10-24 stainless screws and elastic stop nuts from mcmaster. Mounts to frame on the front basket mount bosses, in the front to balance my loads. Will swap in about 8 minutes with two 7/16" combo wrenches on the 1/4-20 screws. A second battery would fit in the pannier, carried low. 5 mm frame screws & 6 mm mount screws would work too if you have a lot of import stuff.
Voila, you have an 80 mile range bike you paid $3500 for instead of altogether $6000 premium model.
My limit on ride duration is my hips, they get tired of sitting. I already have a wide comfy seat, am exploring options to put a comfy foam cushion on it. Fat melted off my hips instead of my belly, blah.

@indianajo Thanks for posting a matter of fact, pragmatic view... Didn't know that brake fluid was so pricey BTW.

 

[harryS]

Hydraulic brakes, not worth it IMHO. Takes special tools to bleed in some cases and one brand takes $30 a pint special brake fluid.

32 bucks a pint (473ml) is about the same as $4 for a 60ml bottle (Shimano) that will probably last 5 years unless you have a leaky system.

I haven't yet serviced the hydraulic brakes in my GT Transeo I got in 2015. They are very nice, but I have mechanical disks and v-brakes in my ebikes.

 

[MechaNut]

As somebody that stepped up from a RadCity to a RipCurrent S here has been my general impressions.

Rad Power Bikes makes an excellent package regardless of form factor (the minis, city bikes, rover, etc). It is a very compelling, affordable, and complete package for somebody looking to test the waters of e-bikes and for many people it is more than enough. I'd probably still be riding the RadCity as my main bike but I made the mistake of ordering the wrong sized frame and then waited 2-3 months for the weather to clear before riding it so I couldn't exchange it for the correct frame size. Completely wasn't Rad's fault that was entirely my bad. I've found the RadCity a home with somebody that it fits and they enjoy it as much as I did.

However, when I started riding the RipCurrent S (which I made sure had the correct frame size) I found out that the extra $1000 I paid for it was all in significantly higher spec hardware. I frankly got a lot more bike for that money. The Ripcurrent S has a massive battery pack (52v 19.2 amp hour which is 998 watt hours), hydraulic brakes, 9 gears and a mountain bike style thumb shifter, better motor, beefier wheels, and so on.

More or less if you look at the component specifications on the bike you want to buy you can get a lot more bike for your money.

 

[smorgasbord]

Are they worth it?

For some people, absolutely. For others, absolutely not.

Since you have more than enough experience with the Rads, find a bike shop that sells the R&Ms and take a test ride. My guess is you'll notice the difference right away, but then it'll be up to you to decide if it's really worth thousands of dollars more.

Don't let anyone tell you that you have to be a pro or expert to decide that the better bike is worth the money to you. Better components stay in tune and last longer. Shifting is smoother, so you don't end up in the wrong gear when climbing a hill, for instance. Braking is more sure footed, and so safer.

Besides, if you spend a lot on your bike, you'll feel guilty not riding it. Any motivation to get on a bike helps in my book!

 

[Cowlitz]

I'm impressed with the Gazelle Arroyo from watching the review on it. It's one of three that the bike shop folks have suggested. I'm liking the way the handlebars can be adjusted almost on the fly. I also want to try an R&M bike at the same place. They suggest the Nevo GT.

They both might be dangerous. I might be tempted to put a milk crate on the back and see if my 23 pound dog of hell would ride. Maybe not. The low step through makes that possible.

 

[Alaskan]

When you are test riding the Nevo, try out the Riese & Muller Packster. Your hell hound will love it...no need for a milk crate. Splendid Cycles in Portland carries a wide variety of cargo bike and has a locally made wooden dog box for the Packster. https://www.splendidcycles.com/products/riese-and-muller/riese-muller-cargo-bikes

 

[MikeDD]

I went from a RadMini to a Specialized Turbo Levo since I ride 60% dirt and gravel. The poor Mini is wasting away. I bought my bike as a rental in Hood River last September with a good savings and a new warranty. It had been charged 10 times and ridden 165 miles. You might shop around for used rental bikes in this area.

 

[TForan]

I'd recommend buying one with some real power. Every time I ride one of these Bosch/ Brose powered bikes I keep trying to find the next assist level that isn't there. At least 750 and preferably 1000 watts.

 

[DouglasB]

I went from a RadMini to a Specialized Turbo Levo since I ride 60% dirt and gravel. The poor Mini is wasting away. I bought my bike as a rental in Hood River last September with a good savings and a new warranty. It had been charged 10 times and ridden 165 miles. You might shop around for used rental bikes in this area.

The Ries Muller quality certainly shines through. I could see getting one in a cargo bike or a trike with extened range. That dog crate is a bit over built though. They certainly did a beautiful job, but from a wood worker's perspective, you could have made it a lot lighter an gotten something just as nice. 1/4 inch ply would have been plenty strong.

 

[Cowlitz]

I guess a cargo bike like that would solve the problem of "I'd like to go bike touring but what to do with the dog". But it does look a bit too long to store in my house.

Watched an EBR long video of Court and people riding around NYC and one guy was riding that cargo bike with two batteries. He was going right along on it in heavy traffic.