Is there an inexpensive eBike w/ a 20-25 mile range

[steve marino]

I have a $600 Ancheer eBike w/ a 36V 8ah battery. I like it a lot, but would like more range. Realistically it will do 10 to 12 miles if I watch the gauge, something I dislike doing. To get more miles per charge, I'm gong to buy another battery like the one I have for $180, mount it on the bike w/ the original, and switch over to that one when the first one gets low. Should be able to get an honest 20-24 miles that way, and wiring it will be simple since it will be running on just the one until I switch to the other. No need to change controllers or worry about frying anything.

At some point I plan on selling this one and buying a replacement bike, and was wondering if there are any $800 bikes being made w/ a 15 ah battery? To me, an eBike needs at least a 20-25 mile range to make riding it stress free and fun. When I rode the old Currie eBikes w/ lead acid batteries, having two batteries on the bike meant that you never had to worry about getting home. If one got you x amount of miles before one ran down, then the other would surely get you back.

 

[harryS]

Could be your 36V8AH pack was worn out when you got it, and maybe it's now more like 4AH. I tyoically see 30 miles on a 36V 10AH pack on my 250W-500W hub motor bikes. Pedal assist 1. I don't know how far they would run under throttle only.

For a 36V battery, 10 AH allows them to use 40 inexpensive 2.5AH cells, To get 15AH, it would take 50 more expensive 3.0 AH cells, and 50 cells probably won't fit in the bottle batteries we see on Ancheer frames.

 

[steve marino]

I've owned two of these bikes and that's the real life range (the way I ride it). Very minimal pedaling, often into the wind, some grades, mostly at 15+ mph, occasionally wide open, often hauling groceries, and don't run it below probably 30%-35%. I can mount the extra battery on my bike in the basket on the rear rack, that's easy. Just wondering if there's an $800 eBike that would get 25 miles the way I ride it and still have 30%-35% left. Sorry, I wasn't very specific. Probably others don't ride their bikes the way I do. Oh, I COULD get a lot further, but I have a regular bike for exercise, the eBike is more for errands and taking it easy.

 

[oojoe]

hey steve.. I have 2 ancheers and a couple of others ..and a few (15) bottle batteries they are 40x18650 lipo cell packs as you know there are other battery packs you can get for them that are not the bottle . the lifepo4 this is a sample..of a 30 amp = to 3 bottle batteries..
https://www.ebay.com/itm/36-Volt-30...372840?hash=item1cb93575e8:g:bW4AAOSwXB1bfr3j

(notice:I have no Pecuniary Interest in cycling...aka $$$$ I make zero from cycling..)

just match connectors.(crimped bullet connectors)..

many of the better ebikes are 48 volt and as you know much of the price is for the battery..
the price of those bottle batteries just doesn't seen to wanna drop..

I have 3 bottles mounted to 1 of my ancheers & 3 on a mongoose,e trike has 2...
(if I had to start over...I would go 48 volt and no proprietary packs)
..the ancheer bottle pack is an odd ball..@260$ https://www.ancheer.shop/collections/ebike-battery
the generics are 180$ ....and you will need to either add the new carrier or swap them out..or .buy the ancheer bottle @260$..... good luck...

 

[steve marino]

That's for the input. The generic Ancheer batteries are about $180 on fleabay, and they're 10AH vs the original 8AH. so not too bad.

However, I've decided that these mileage questions are unanswerable. Too many variables. The biker in San Francisco isn't going to get the same mileage as the rider in flat-as-a-pancake Florida. The 150 lb rider won't get the same range as the rider that weighs 220. Head winds vs tail winds....no comparison. A route that has a gazillion stop signs can't be compared to steady cruising. My bike isn't the same bike as someone else's bike. And on and on.

I normally pedal very little, keep the bike in high gear, use the motor from a standing start, and go 12-14 mph. That usually gets me 8 miles before my 5 light LED battery readout shows 2 or 3 lights. Today, just for the heck of it, I always used the pedals from a standing start, engaged the motor once I was up to speed, used all the gearing on the bike, and rode at 8-10 MPH. At the end of 9.7 miles, this is what I saw below. Judging by that, I can go 40 miles on a charge, easy. But I don't ride like that.

In the end my question is unanswerable. There IS no way to know how far a bike can go on a charge. It just depends. The only relevant question is, what do I expect from the bike?

It's currently outfitted w/ slime in the tires, a rear rack/basket, full bottle of water, mirror, and a heavy Kryptonite lock, making it over 60 lbs. It can be hoisted onto a bus rack, but it isn't fun. If I double the batteries I double the battery weight, and at that point it would be unpleasant to take it on and off a bus rack.

On the other hand, a 36V 6AH battery is $70 and weighs only 4 lbs. It's also small, measuring just 2" X 3" x 8", so it can mounted low on the down tube to avoid extra weight at the top of the bike. If it's wired in parallel to my current 36V 8AH battery, I then have essentially a 36V 14AH battery. Besides the $70 for the 6AH battery, figure another $15 for wire, connectors and a few materials to make a mount. Or, if I add two 36V 6AH batteries, then maybe I don't need to put the bike on a bus, it will get me around until the end of the day charge.

So that's the plan. Add the one 6AH battery and go from there. The bike is great for $600 (before rack, basket, lock, etc). It now goes 20 MPH w/ the speed limiter disconnected, and just needed more battery AH to go further. If an investment of $85 and a little work does the trick, I'm happy. When it wears out, I'll just do this all over again. My experience w/ eBikes is that by the time the battery gets weak and the tires, chain and sprockets wear out, it's better to sell it and put the money toward a new bike.

 

[harryS]

Those laudation 20 cell packs give me the fire safety worries but I admit I use bare 2 x10 packs, although I know what's inside. (decent cells and quality BMS). Mine never come inside the house and I added shrink wrap and padding. Often, nothing more than the spot welds and shrink wrap bind these cheaper packs together.

The 2x10 will fit inside a section of plastic downspout. Makes a good protection so that you can strap to your bike w/o worrying about breaking any welds or glue.,

 

[oojoe]

hey steve ,double check those generic ancheer bottle batteries and I think you will find, they are not the same holder.. even if they may look the same
you have to swap the cages...I tried a few(3).. some longer ,some have connections in other direction...
Please:
If you know one that fits the standard ancheer bottle mount..for $180. shoot me that link as far as I know ...they are all odd balls,,,,I have 4 different types bottle batteries now all 36 volt..40 cell,,,8-10 ahr ,,,again this is the only battery I know that fits those cages/holder and they want way too much for what it is...
https://www.ancheer.shop/collections/ebike-battery/products/replaceable-lithium-battery-36v-8ah

 

[oojoe]

Will this battery from AliExpress fit your Ancheer?

36V 18Ah available, $275 free shipping

165.57US $ 9% OFF|Water Bottle Lithium Battery 36v48v52v 8/10/12/15/18ah Electric Bike Lithium Ion Ebike Battery Bike Scooter With Charger - Electric Bicycle Battery - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

that must have been a secured link... but at $275 for an 18...ah ...are they knock off china cells

and you missed the point..to stay in the same package/holder/cage/ so the answer was no they do not fit.

 

[oojoe]

36V 10Ah from Amazon, but $239.
I found that Amazon is generally more expensive than AliExpress, but AliExpress usually takes a long time to arrive.

https://www.amazon.com/Electric-Kettle-Battery-Lithium-Rechargeable/dp/B0792Y1G9D/ref=sr_1_12?dchild=1&keywords=water%2Bbottle%2Bbattery&qid=1582880015&sr=8-12&th=1

yes I have that bottle battery ..It does not fit the ancheer holder and you must change the cage/rack/holder,,, it is about an inch taller if memory serves me...

but it looks like this one is the correct one.from amazon.... 8ah @ $240+20 shipping is the fit for the stock ancheer rack
https://www.amazon.com/ANCHEER-Ligh...04E4D0GRY2C&psc=1&refRID=P2BQDNBSG04E4D0GRY2C

 

[oojoe]

It would only take like 2 min max to change the cage/rack/holder.

But the question is, does Ancheer have extra an inch of space to fit though?
I don't have an Ancheer, and just by looking at the picture, looks pretty tight fit.

but then you have to carry a second rack/holder.......with you ......who want's to do that
he wanted to keep using his ancheer ..as I do...yes the extra 1" on the ancheer fame is no problem

 

[antboy]

In the end my question is unanswerable. There IS no way to know how far a bike can go on a charge. It just depends. The only relevant question is, what do I expect from the bike?

There are some decent rule of thumbs though. One of them is a very rough 20Wh (watt hours) of battery energy consumed per mile, depending on riding style, weather (temp/wind), road conditions, elevation change, bike/rider weight etc, etc.

The good thing is that you already have statistics to figure out roughly what you'll need moving forward. Since you have a route you've done often, and know what kind of mileage you get on a given battery, you can figure out with some level of certainty what how much battery power you're using per mile.

Your 36V 8ah battery is 288Wh (36x8=288).

With this battery you say you get 10-12 miles out of it. Let's split the difference and say 11 miles.

Divide 288Wh by 11miles = using 26.18Wh per mile from the battery which sounds about right, since you say you rely more on the battery than pedaling, often with groceries, with mixed terrain.

If you're shopping for a new bike or a new battery, you can reverse engineer the formula to get fair idea of what YOU need.