Nirmala
Active Member
I just got a Magnum Ui5 and I posted some impressions in the comments for the main review on here of this bike. But I thought I would copy and paste them here also for anyone who finds their way to this forum first:
So, our Ui5 arrived today. I had a few hiccups setting it up: I was not familiar with the Neco headset and so at first I had no idea how to get the fork attached properly – you tighten a hex bolt inside the stem to connect the stem to the tube coming up through the headset from the fork. Also the adjustable stem still has about 1/2 inch of play in it even after I tightened it up very firmly. This means the handlebars move up and down 1/2 an inch as I ride. It is a little annoying, but it is still very ride-able. So far Magnum has been very helpful over the phone and I am still hoping to work with them to solve the up and down play in the stem. I will report back on how that gets resolved. (Note added: see this new video for clear instructions on how to install and adjust the handlebars and stem:
)
In the meantime, I was able to take it for a couple of nice long spins. Here are my first impressions:
1-Size is a little small for me. I am 6’0″ and I have a 32 inch pant inseam. With the seatpost all the way up to the maximum allowed, my legs were still a little too bent while pedaling. Fortunately, I had a different saddle (this one) and that gave me a few more inches of height than with the stock saddle, which is now almost enough. The stock seat post is only about 300 mm, so it seems to me that Magnum could give you a bit longer seatpost to accommodate taller riders. I am also thinking of getting a Thudbuster suspension seatpost, and I know they have a 450 mm extra long version in the 27.2 diameter, so with that seat post, I will have more than enough height.
2-The fenders are included now in the base price (rack is still $39 extra), but I immediately removed them as they were rubbing a bit, and here in Arizona, I will probably never need them. I do not commute to work, so I will not head out on rainy days which are few and far between in this climate.
3-I used the trick of turning off the bike by only using the power switch on the battery. That way, everything gets turned off for sure, so I intend to make that a habit when shutting it off.
4-Now for the fun part: this bike was a joy to ride. It handles very nicely, is much lighter than some other electric bikes I have rented by the day, and boy, is it fun to have that assist helping me along. I rode up some moderate hills and with full assist and low gear, I made it up pretty easily. There were a few steeper stretches where I still had to work a bit, but even then, the electric assist made it doable. The hills around here will mean that I still get some exercise even if I use a lot of electric power.
5- I am about 180 lbs and I was riding up and down hills and sometimes against the wind for over an hour, and the battery is still showing about 2/3rds of its charge, so I think the 13 amp hour battery is going to be plenty for the kinds of moderate rides I intend to do on this.
6-Someone at Magnum said that most people end up leaving their bike in power assist level 6. And again for a nice 1-3 hour joy ride where conserving battery is not an issue, I can see why that might be true for me. I quickly got spoiled by the effortless speed on the flats and also not having to think about upping the assist when approaching a hill. I guess it would be nice to have a full power throttle override in all assist levels, but when riding in the top level (6), it becomes a moot point. I also found that I quickly got the hang of adjusting the assist on the fly to a lower level whenever I wanted a more relaxed pace, and actually used the throttle less than I thought I would. Pedaling was generally so easy that I tended to forget about the throttle. Note: Pedal assist is a new experience for me as the ebikes I have ridden in the past were throttle only. I did go off road for just a little bit, and there I could see using the lower levels of power assist as it gets tricky to have the motor surging when you are navigating rougher terrain. But the Ui5 is not really a mountain bike, so I will probably stick to smoother dirt trails.
7-This bike looks really good in person. I like the color scheme and the brown tires are classy. They also are a good compromise between a thicker tire for cushioning and a fairly smooth tread for easy rolling. I intend to add some slime to the tubes, and between that and the kevlar puncture resistance, I am hoping to not have to worry too much about flats. When these tires wear out, I am thinking of trying a pair of the Tannus tires that never go flat and never need pumping up: http://www.tannus.com/#intro
To sum up: I think this bike offers a lot for the money based on having read a lot of the reviews on here, although I have not tried many other ebikes, so my opinion is based on very limited actual experience. It easily blows away the rental ebikes I have tried, and I have enjoyed the Ui5 a lot so far. I did have a few problems with the setup and assembly, even though I worked on a lot of bikes in my younger days. I spoke to someone at Magnum and they explained that they will be mostly selling through dealers once they get their network established, so anyone buying an assembled bike will avoid that issue.
I hope this is helpful to anyone considering this bike.
Some more observations added later:
1-I definitely need a longer seatpost, so I am going to order the 450mm long Thudbuster. Even my wife who is 5’9″ found that she needs every inch of available seatpost as well as the added height provided by the cushier saddle we added to the bike. So anyone who is a bit taller may need to plan on at least getting a longer seatpost than the 300 mm post that comes with the bike. Note added: I got a 400 mm Thudbuster ST and it gives me plenty of saddle height. But now I am thinking about getting some handlebars with more height as I prefer to sit pretty upright. Anyone who is close to 6 feet or taller will probably need to make some adjustments to get this bike to fit well. Edit added: Instead of changing the handlebars which would be pretty hard to do as there is not a lot of extra cable length on the wires going to the handlebars, I raised the bars as far as I could with the adjustable stem, and also put a couple of slip on cushions that give a softer and thicker feel to the grips. This made the bike much more comfortable on my hands and wrists. The ones I used are made for motorcycles and are a real bear to get on (you better have really strong hands to pull them over the existing grips - note added: I discovered that it helps to use some liquid dishwashing soap on the existing grips and the cushions will slip on easily). These are the ones I used: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00230P2E4 They fit well on the Ui5 once you get them on.
2-I put slime in the tires and added some other weight ( a rack, bag, toolkit, etc) but the motor is still plenty peppy enough for me. Very occasionally I need to work a bit on really steep hills, but that is also a chance to get some good exercise. The motor still makes a big difference on the steeper hills, compared to no electric assist, and more moderate hills are a piece of cake. I may someday upgrade the rear cogs to a wider range freewheel. Currently, the rear cogs are 14-28 and the front chainring is pretty big for a single chainring at 48 teeth. I think a 11-34 tooth freewheel set would work a bit better for the hills around here.
3- Magnum has continued to be very helpful with the problems that showed up. They posted a youtube video that explains how the handlebars and stem are mounted and adjusted and I strongly recommend anyone who is interested in this bike to take a look: see video above. This video also showed me how to fix the problem with the 1/2 inch of play in the handlebars. Note added: Tightening the hex bolts under the Promax sticker as shown in the video above did correct the 1/2 inch of play in the handlebars, but the bolts loosened up again when I rode the bike. Magnum suggested using some locktite adhesive on the threads, and so far that is working to keep the handlebars tight and solid.
4-Mount your handlebars right away when the bike arrives as otherwise the fork will fall out of the headtube and the bearings might get lost. If you are not particularly handy, you might want to take the bike in its box to a bike shop as the assembly is a bit challenging, or wait until Magnum gets more dealers up and running, and buy your bike assembled.
5- A couple of other problems that showed up: My rack must have gotten slightly bent in shipping (it was in the box with the bike) and so it was a bear to get it on the bike. The good news is that it will probably never come off as the screws holding it on are under a bit of pressure. Also the charger that came with my bike was defective (the light should turn red when charging and green when fully charged) but Magnum took care of that with a replacement.
6-I am quickly getting used to the controls on this bike. While the throttle override is limited to the assist level you are in, it is not at all difficult to change assist levels on the fly. It is no more complicated to operate than a typical multi-speed bike with both front and rear derailleurs, only instead of a front derailleur, you select different assist levels with your left hand. I am still surprised at how little I use the throttle on this bike. I just shift gears and power levels to adjust to the terrain and keep a nice easy cadence most of the time. Someday, I would like to try a mid-drive bike to see what it is like to have the motor drive the chain, but for now, I think I prefer having the motor input and my own pedaling input function separately to drive the rear wheel.
7-I found that when maneuvering at very slow speeds, such as when making a tight u-turn in a cul-de-sac, it helps to lightly apply the left brake. This cuts the motor and allows me to pedal through the turn without the electric assist kicking in and surging me forward at the wrong time. It seems easier to balance also when pedaling through tight maneuvers at slow speed, and the motor surging can really mess you up if you are not careful. So the motor cutoff on the left brake lever has proven to be a very helpful feature.
Overall, I am very happy with my purchase. Now that we have both had a chance to ride this bike, we are definitely going to buy another Ui5 so my wife and I can ride together.
So, our Ui5 arrived today. I had a few hiccups setting it up: I was not familiar with the Neco headset and so at first I had no idea how to get the fork attached properly – you tighten a hex bolt inside the stem to connect the stem to the tube coming up through the headset from the fork. Also the adjustable stem still has about 1/2 inch of play in it even after I tightened it up very firmly. This means the handlebars move up and down 1/2 an inch as I ride. It is a little annoying, but it is still very ride-able. So far Magnum has been very helpful over the phone and I am still hoping to work with them to solve the up and down play in the stem. I will report back on how that gets resolved. (Note added: see this new video for clear instructions on how to install and adjust the handlebars and stem:
In the meantime, I was able to take it for a couple of nice long spins. Here are my first impressions:
1-Size is a little small for me. I am 6’0″ and I have a 32 inch pant inseam. With the seatpost all the way up to the maximum allowed, my legs were still a little too bent while pedaling. Fortunately, I had a different saddle (this one) and that gave me a few more inches of height than with the stock saddle, which is now almost enough. The stock seat post is only about 300 mm, so it seems to me that Magnum could give you a bit longer seatpost to accommodate taller riders. I am also thinking of getting a Thudbuster suspension seatpost, and I know they have a 450 mm extra long version in the 27.2 diameter, so with that seat post, I will have more than enough height.
2-The fenders are included now in the base price (rack is still $39 extra), but I immediately removed them as they were rubbing a bit, and here in Arizona, I will probably never need them. I do not commute to work, so I will not head out on rainy days which are few and far between in this climate.
3-I used the trick of turning off the bike by only using the power switch on the battery. That way, everything gets turned off for sure, so I intend to make that a habit when shutting it off.
4-Now for the fun part: this bike was a joy to ride. It handles very nicely, is much lighter than some other electric bikes I have rented by the day, and boy, is it fun to have that assist helping me along. I rode up some moderate hills and with full assist and low gear, I made it up pretty easily. There were a few steeper stretches where I still had to work a bit, but even then, the electric assist made it doable. The hills around here will mean that I still get some exercise even if I use a lot of electric power.
5- I am about 180 lbs and I was riding up and down hills and sometimes against the wind for over an hour, and the battery is still showing about 2/3rds of its charge, so I think the 13 amp hour battery is going to be plenty for the kinds of moderate rides I intend to do on this.
6-Someone at Magnum said that most people end up leaving their bike in power assist level 6. And again for a nice 1-3 hour joy ride where conserving battery is not an issue, I can see why that might be true for me. I quickly got spoiled by the effortless speed on the flats and also not having to think about upping the assist when approaching a hill. I guess it would be nice to have a full power throttle override in all assist levels, but when riding in the top level (6), it becomes a moot point. I also found that I quickly got the hang of adjusting the assist on the fly to a lower level whenever I wanted a more relaxed pace, and actually used the throttle less than I thought I would. Pedaling was generally so easy that I tended to forget about the throttle. Note: Pedal assist is a new experience for me as the ebikes I have ridden in the past were throttle only. I did go off road for just a little bit, and there I could see using the lower levels of power assist as it gets tricky to have the motor surging when you are navigating rougher terrain. But the Ui5 is not really a mountain bike, so I will probably stick to smoother dirt trails.
7-This bike looks really good in person. I like the color scheme and the brown tires are classy. They also are a good compromise between a thicker tire for cushioning and a fairly smooth tread for easy rolling. I intend to add some slime to the tubes, and between that and the kevlar puncture resistance, I am hoping to not have to worry too much about flats. When these tires wear out, I am thinking of trying a pair of the Tannus tires that never go flat and never need pumping up: http://www.tannus.com/#intro
To sum up: I think this bike offers a lot for the money based on having read a lot of the reviews on here, although I have not tried many other ebikes, so my opinion is based on very limited actual experience. It easily blows away the rental ebikes I have tried, and I have enjoyed the Ui5 a lot so far. I did have a few problems with the setup and assembly, even though I worked on a lot of bikes in my younger days. I spoke to someone at Magnum and they explained that they will be mostly selling through dealers once they get their network established, so anyone buying an assembled bike will avoid that issue.
I hope this is helpful to anyone considering this bike.
Some more observations added later:
1-I definitely need a longer seatpost, so I am going to order the 450mm long Thudbuster. Even my wife who is 5’9″ found that she needs every inch of available seatpost as well as the added height provided by the cushier saddle we added to the bike. So anyone who is a bit taller may need to plan on at least getting a longer seatpost than the 300 mm post that comes with the bike. Note added: I got a 400 mm Thudbuster ST and it gives me plenty of saddle height. But now I am thinking about getting some handlebars with more height as I prefer to sit pretty upright. Anyone who is close to 6 feet or taller will probably need to make some adjustments to get this bike to fit well. Edit added: Instead of changing the handlebars which would be pretty hard to do as there is not a lot of extra cable length on the wires going to the handlebars, I raised the bars as far as I could with the adjustable stem, and also put a couple of slip on cushions that give a softer and thicker feel to the grips. This made the bike much more comfortable on my hands and wrists. The ones I used are made for motorcycles and are a real bear to get on (you better have really strong hands to pull them over the existing grips - note added: I discovered that it helps to use some liquid dishwashing soap on the existing grips and the cushions will slip on easily). These are the ones I used: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00230P2E4 They fit well on the Ui5 once you get them on.
2-I put slime in the tires and added some other weight ( a rack, bag, toolkit, etc) but the motor is still plenty peppy enough for me. Very occasionally I need to work a bit on really steep hills, but that is also a chance to get some good exercise. The motor still makes a big difference on the steeper hills, compared to no electric assist, and more moderate hills are a piece of cake. I may someday upgrade the rear cogs to a wider range freewheel. Currently, the rear cogs are 14-28 and the front chainring is pretty big for a single chainring at 48 teeth. I think a 11-34 tooth freewheel set would work a bit better for the hills around here.
3- Magnum has continued to be very helpful with the problems that showed up. They posted a youtube video that explains how the handlebars and stem are mounted and adjusted and I strongly recommend anyone who is interested in this bike to take a look: see video above. This video also showed me how to fix the problem with the 1/2 inch of play in the handlebars. Note added: Tightening the hex bolts under the Promax sticker as shown in the video above did correct the 1/2 inch of play in the handlebars, but the bolts loosened up again when I rode the bike. Magnum suggested using some locktite adhesive on the threads, and so far that is working to keep the handlebars tight and solid.
4-Mount your handlebars right away when the bike arrives as otherwise the fork will fall out of the headtube and the bearings might get lost. If you are not particularly handy, you might want to take the bike in its box to a bike shop as the assembly is a bit challenging, or wait until Magnum gets more dealers up and running, and buy your bike assembled.
5- A couple of other problems that showed up: My rack must have gotten slightly bent in shipping (it was in the box with the bike) and so it was a bear to get it on the bike. The good news is that it will probably never come off as the screws holding it on are under a bit of pressure. Also the charger that came with my bike was defective (the light should turn red when charging and green when fully charged) but Magnum took care of that with a replacement.
6-I am quickly getting used to the controls on this bike. While the throttle override is limited to the assist level you are in, it is not at all difficult to change assist levels on the fly. It is no more complicated to operate than a typical multi-speed bike with both front and rear derailleurs, only instead of a front derailleur, you select different assist levels with your left hand. I am still surprised at how little I use the throttle on this bike. I just shift gears and power levels to adjust to the terrain and keep a nice easy cadence most of the time. Someday, I would like to try a mid-drive bike to see what it is like to have the motor drive the chain, but for now, I think I prefer having the motor input and my own pedaling input function separately to drive the rear wheel.
7-I found that when maneuvering at very slow speeds, such as when making a tight u-turn in a cul-de-sac, it helps to lightly apply the left brake. This cuts the motor and allows me to pedal through the turn without the electric assist kicking in and surging me forward at the wrong time. It seems easier to balance also when pedaling through tight maneuvers at slow speed, and the motor surging can really mess you up if you are not careful. So the motor cutoff on the left brake lever has proven to be a very helpful feature.
Overall, I am very happy with my purchase. Now that we have both had a chance to ride this bike, we are definitely going to buy another Ui5 so my wife and I can ride together.
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It was two different batteries, but I doubt there is that much difference in capacity. This is also more in line with the first report where I traveled 70 miles while running the battery down twice. So I would guess that 35 miles is a pretty realistic number when using pedal assist and pedaling most of the time.
