Hi and looking for any tips others have

[Shaun MacDonald]

Hi All, my name is Shaun. I am a Principal of a high school in New Brunswick Canada. I am new to the whole ebike thing. Looking to purchase my first one and would take any tips people have out there from best bikes to best seats and all points in-between. Thanks

 

[Denis Shelston]

Hi Shaun.

I'm in Whitby Ontario and am also newish.

I suggest you look around this site, there is much to learn from it. Lots of reviews, lots of relevant Canadian info too. YouTube is also a great resource.

Establish your budget and how you'd like to use your E-bike. This will help you figure out the type of E-bike you wish for, or can afford.

If you look under brand discussions on the forum, you will get a feel for them.

I did that and bought a fat bike from Téo Fat Bike out of Montréal. It met with all my requirements and could not be happier with my purchase. Téo is one of a few that sell direct to consumers, hence their lower prices. Voltbike is another one, they're from BC. Both will ship anywhere.

Another popular, less expensive direct to the consumer, is RAD Power bikes out of the US.

Here are some links:
https://teofatbike.com
http://www.voltbike.ca
https://www.radpowerbikes.com

Hope this helps and good luck.

 

[AguassissiM]

Hi there @Shaun MacDonald welcome to the forums.
First forgive all the grammar and spelling mistakes i`m about to make it has been a while since i graduated.
This will sound like a sales pitch, trust me it is not i have nothing to gain from your choice of bike brand that you purchase, my only reason is to give back to the community that has given so much to myself .
Back few months i was looking around to purchase my first electric bicycle, browsed a lot of forums and looked a ton of YouTube videos of experts talking about why their choice of the bike they ride should become my choice. Than one day i seen @Court reviewing one of the Volts bikes, intrigued i had a look at the website. The excitement started building once i saw the Yukon 750 for that would be my new bike to purchase. Being over cautious i read everything i could possibly find and exchanged few e-mails with George at Volt regarding the bike, was ready to pull the trigger until i seen (Link Removed - No Longer Exists) by @america94 and then this one. Actually it took me a long time to decide (being over cautious) to pull the trigger on my Teo fat bike, come to think of it even @Denis Shelston pulled the trigger before i did. Just like Denis mentioned have a look around this site and i`m sure eventually you will make the best choice that will make you happy. You can read about my first experience with Teo here.
Wish you all the best Shaun in your choice and hopefully you`ll shock all your students come September by riding in on your brand new bike.

 

[rich c]

Hi Shaun. I'm new here, but not new to ebikes. I bought a Sondors on Craigslist about 2 years ago to get started. A $500 investment, so why not try it. Now I'm hooked, and have two Haibikes along with the Sondors. I put 1500 trouble free miles on the Sondors, and combined 1900 so far on the two Haibikes. The most common suggestion on buying an ebike, is to buy as much battery as you can afford. If you want to buy a bike and not be a bike mechanic, buy a completed bike. Like to be a mechanic, but a kit and retrofit on a good quality conventional bike. Now is not a good time to buy a new bike, I've gotten some great deals when buying in November and March. Both of those purchases were at 40% off retail. Buying now, in prime season, will be at retail. The riding difference between the Chinese built Sondors and the German Haibikes are polar opposites. Precision components, hydraulic brakes, suspension forks, and even down to quality sealed ball bearing pedals. So choose a budget, then find a shop that sells them. I would definitely not buy one over the internet without riding it. If you must buy on the internet, really check the return policy!

 

[Shaun MacDonald]

Thanks rich. I live in an area where there are hardly any ebikes so cannot take them for test drives. I have driven the volt and enjoyed it. When you say to buy as much battery as you can afford I am unsure what you mean. I guess I would not know a good one from a poor one. Do you know of any sites that would explain this?

Thanks

 

[rich c]

What I meant is pack size. For instance, Haibike offers a 400 watt/hour and a 500 watt/hour for the 36 volt motors. Buy the 500 if you can. Batteries are the most expensive component on the bike, but usually the upgrade battery is not that much more than a stock pack. You'll find cheap bikes with a throttle that won't last 15 miles if you don't pedal.

 

[mrgold35]

I'm new to ebiking and have his/her Radrovers since Sept/2016 with +2600 miles between them. I enjoyed riding so much, I parked my car and ebike work commute 3-4 times a week (switch off both bikes to keep wear/tear/mileage the same). I put around half my mileage trail riding single tracks. Things I've learned:

- factor in about 20%-40% at a minimum above the cost of the ebike for gear, maint, tools, accessories, cold/wet/warm weather clothing, bike rack, etc...
- check out the max weight and utility. The Radrover can handle 275lbs with the rider weight and gear. I also added a rear rack+bag w/ foldout panniers when needed. Some bikes may have wight restrictions or no mounting points for a full rear rack.
- bottle cage points. My Radrover has 3 pre-drilled bottle cage mounting points. Comes in handy for securing locks, extra water bottles, or I use the downtube bottle cage mounting point for my Boomerang GPS tracker.
- regular tires, plus size tires (around 2"-3"), or fat tire (+4"). I like my 4" fat tires because they smooth out the ride and I can transition between pavement, dirt trails, uneven surfaces, and sand smoothly.
- storage and charging at work and home
- public transportation friendly; fat tire bikes are too big for bus racks, some utility cargo ebikes too long, folding ebike might work better.
- Commute range, hills, wind, weight, weather, (cold) temp: Everything lessens your range except riding downhill and/or a stiff tailwind. May need a larger battery, spare battery, or bring a charger if environmental conditions take too much of a hit on your range (I have another charger I leave at work to top off).
- any local bike and/or ebike restrictions (bike paths, parks, no bike lanes on main roads, etc...)
- front suspension with either springs or hydraulic forks help smooth out the ride at +20 mph. Some folks prefer locking out the front suspension; but, all that vibration has to go somewhere? I rather have the suspension vibrate instead of my arms.
- full suspension or hard tail. Some full suspension bikes may not have points for adding a rear rack for a bag with panniers. Sucks wearing a backpack when it is hot outside.
- with or without throttle. I rather have it and not need it compared to need it and not have it. I use my throttle on every ride and I wouldn't want to ride an ebike without one because of the way I ride.
- Hub or mid-drive. Hubs can be cheaper, always tail heavy, average hill climbing depending on grade and weight, easier to fix/upgrade, can have throttle+PAS, take 10 seconds to learn how to operate, and usually less range in the 20-40 mile range. Mid-drives can be 2X-4X more expensive, a lot more range of choices, much longer range, better at inclines, less weight, more balanced, hard to find with throttle, and ebike components can be more $$ to fix.

I would plan a weekend to test ride different ebikes depending on how far you are from the closest ebike store. I would mostly compare hub-vs-mid, narrow-vs-plus-vs-fat tires, with or without suspension, and eMTB-vs-cargo-vs-city bikes.