New e-Cargo bike in New Mexico!

[Tys]

Hi everybody!
I’m in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA and just bought a used Riese & Muller Load 60 Nuvinci HS with dual batteries
It’s my first ebike and first cargo bike. I’ve wanted a cargo bike ever since I learned of their existence, and have wanted an ebike ever since riding my sister’s Yamaha in Tokyo.
So far, I love it!
I’ve already learned quite a bit from this forum and am looking forward to participating more.

Cheers,
Ryan

 

[indianajo]

Welcome to the site & the hobby.
I do all my shopping off the Yuba bodaboda shown in the avatar. Your load could be even more bulky than mine.

 

[RGVCycling]

Hi everybody!
I’m in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA and just bought a used Riese & Muller Load 60 Nuvinci HS with dual batteries
It’s my first ebike and first cargo bike. I’ve wanted a cargo bike ever since I learned of their existence, and have wanted an ebike ever since riding my sister’s Yamaha in Tokyo.
So far, I love it!
I’ve already learned quite a bit from this forum and am looking forward to participating more.

Cheers,
Ryan

Wow, that's a nice-looking bike. Looks to be in excellent shape for a used bike.

 

[Art Deco]

That one gets today's 'Big Bike' award. Welcome to EBR.

 

[PowerflyLee formerly known as CheetahLee]

Yep, that's quite a rig! Now get out there!!!

 

[Tys]

Thanks everyone!
Yes, it's in really good shape, only 750 miles on the odometer and looks like it.
It's big, but handles beautifully. I'm really impressed with how it rides both with a load and without.
I had a recumbent years ago with a similarly long wheelbase and steering linkage, so I got used to it pretty quick.

 

[Art Deco]

Thanks everyone!
Yes, it's in really good shape, only 750 miles on the odometer and looks like it.
It's big, but handles beautifully. I'm really impressed with how it rides both with a load and without.
I had a recumbent years ago with a similarly long wheelbase and steering linkage, so I got used to it pretty quick.

I am hoping to ride around Albuquerque on a big loop around new mexico and Arizona that I'm planning now. Where do you like to ride ? Post pictures if possible.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I am hoping to ride around Albuquerque on a big loop around new mexico and Arizona that I'm planning now. Where do you like to ride ? Post pictures if possible.

It's called "necroposting", Art

 

[Tys]

I am hoping to ride around Albuquerque on a big loop around new mexico and Arizona that I'm planning now. Where do you like to ride ? Post pictures if possible.

I always seek out twisty roads and big climbs, so my suggestions will be biased toward the mountains. See if you find the route for the Sangre de Cristo 600K, part of the now defunct NM Brevet series, basically two big loops out of Taos. There’s great riding in the Gila area, around Silver City. Also the Sacramento Mountains around Ruidoso and Cloudcroft. The back way from Albuquerque to Santa Fe, aka Turquoise Trail, is great. I often ride it one way and take the train back! Not sure if this is an ebike trip? There are a lot of long, remote stretches where you could easily run out of battery and have no way to charge up!

 

[Art Deco]

I always seek out twisty roads and big climbs, so my suggestions will be biased toward the mountains. See if you find the route for the Sangre de Cristo 600K, part of the now defunct NM Brevet series, basically two big loops out of Taos. There’s great riding in the Gila area, around Silver City. Also the Sacramento Mountains around Ruidoso and Cloudcroft. The back way from Albuquerque to Santa Fe, aka Turquoise Trail, is great. I often ride it one way and take the train back! Not sure if this is an ebike trip? There are a lot of long, remote stretches where you could easily run out of battery and have no way to charge up!

Thanks. This will be a campervan trip with ebikes for transportation to and from the van and for use on easy trails. I am looking at the Gila area, hadn't heard about the torquoise trail , but Albuquerque and Santa Fe is on the list, so I will check it out.

 

[Tys]

Thanks. This will be a campervan trip with ebikes for transportation to and from the van and for use on easy trails. I am looking at the Gila area, hadn't heard about the torquoise trail , but Albuquerque and Santa Fe is on the list, so I will check it out.

Nice, I recently got a nifty Ecoflow solar/battery setup to keep my ebike charged on camper van trips!

 

[Art Deco]

Nice, I recently got a nifty Ecoflow solar/battery setup to keep my ebike charged on camper van trips!

My van only has a 100 ah house battery and a 400 w inverter, so I am stuck with needing 110 campground power.

 

[Tys]

My van only has a 100 ah house battery and a 400 w inverter, so I am stuck with needing 110 campground power.

I have an Ecoflow Delta and 160W solar panel, and I’m seriously impressed. The often have great deals on refurbished units through their eBay store. I actually decided that from now on I will charge my ebike batteries solely off the solar setup, even when I’m at home, so I can be exclusively solar/pedal powered

 

[Art Deco]

Those Ecoflow units pook pretty good...and at under $1500 for generator and panels with current sale prices, less expensive than a DIY van conversion ( panels, inverter, and another battery). And no cables to pull .

 

[m@Robertson]

Those Ecoflow units pook pretty good...and at under $1500 for generator and panels with current sale prices, less expensive than a DIY van conversion ( panels, inverter, and another battery). And no cables to pull .

I ended up going with a Blueti AC200P after comparing them to the Ecoflow units. The Bluettis have the advantage of using LifePO4 cell chemistry, which gives them a cycle count in the 2000-3000 range, while the Ecoflows that use the more 'conventional' Li-NMC - like we use in our ebikes - give the expected 800 cycles if treated gently (ecoFlow specs only 500 cycles if charged to 80% on the Delta's spec sheet). Other benefits of LifePO4 are that it is more tolerant of leaving it sitting in a high charge state - so you can leave it fully charged and ready for a power outage for example - and better tolerance for depth of discharge so you can drain it without such severe consequences to cell longevity. Also much less volatile/explosive like the li-ion cells we all know and love so there's a big safety benefit there.

On the flip side, LifePO4 is is less energy-dense, so to get the same kind of performance you need a bigger battery. This was the one drawback that meant anything to me as the AC200P weighs I think 61 lbs as a direct result of the batteries.

They sell an AC200Max that I would stay away from. Teething pains on it. The AC200P is one model back and cheaper. I bought mine while the 200Max had come on the mkt and no regrets. 1599 on Amazon.

I use the AC200P and three 200w portable panels when I go off-grid camping in the lower Sierras to re-charge my ebike. In the pic you can see I am getting over 400w in from those three panels out in the back yard, which can recharge the 2000wh unit fully from about 7 am to 1 pm. the amperage reading of 0.09 was momentary when the pic snapped. I get about 10a and 480-ish watts typically.

those panels, by the way, are pricey. they go on sale with big discounts regularly. I sure as hell didn't pay $499 each for my 3. And there are competitor panels out there that are just as good if not better. The Bluetti panels use Sunpower cells which are maybe industry-best for off-angle collection, but wired in such a way that they suffer severely if there is any shading.

I have an AC300 plus 3 B300 batteries on order along with ten used Sunpower 200w panels I got for $70 each (commercial building take-offs) used that I will be integrating into a quasi-DIY home solar install (I buy the parts and do the solar eq setup, electrician does the tie-in into the home).

 

[Art Deco]

I ended up going with a Blueti AC200P after comparing them to the Ecoflow units. The Bluettis have the advantage of using LifePO4 cell chemistry, which gives them a cycle count in the 2000-3000 range, while the Ecoflows that use the more 'conventional' Li-NMC - like we use in our ebikes - give the expected 800 cycles if treated gently (ecoFlow specs only 500 cycles if charged to 80% on the Delta's spec sheet). Other benefits of LifePO4 are that it is more tolerant of leaving it sitting in a high charge state - so you can leave it fully charged and ready for a power outage for example - and better tolerance for depth of discharge so you can drain it without such severe consequences to cell longevity. Also much less volatile/explosive like the li-ion cells we all know and love so there's a big safety benefit there.

On the flip side, LifePO4 is is less energy-dense, so to get the same kind of performance you need a bigger battery. This was the one drawback that meant anything to me as the AC200P weighs I think 61 lbs as a direct result of the batteries.

They sell an AC200Max that I would stay away from. Teething pains on it. The AC200P is one model back and cheaper. I bought mine while the 200Max had come on the mkt and no regrets. 1599 on Amazon.

I use the AC200P and three 200w portable panels when I go off-grid camping in the lower Sierras to re-charge my ebike. In the pic you can see I am getting over 400w in from those three panels out in the back yard, which can recharge the 2000wh unit fully from about 7 am to 1 pm. the amperage reading of 0.09 was momentary when the pic snapped. I get about 10a and 480-ish watts typically.

those panels, by the way, are pricey. they go on sale with big discounts regularly. I sure as hell didn't pay $499 each for my 3. And there are competitor panels out there that are just as good if not better. The Bluetti panels use Sunpower cells which are maybe industry-best for off-angle collection, but wired in such a way that they suffer severely if there is any shading.
View attachment 108924View attachment 108925

I have an AC300 plus 3 B300 batteries on order along with ten used Sunpower 200w panels I got for $70 each (commercial building take-offs) used that I will be integrating into a quasi-DIY home solar install (I buy the parts and do the solar eq setup, electrician does the tie-in into the home).

These "generators " are all new to me. I have a small 1500 / 2000 watt propane generator built in to the van. But I'm not going to run the noisy thing all night to charge ebike batteries and /or run the a/c .
So how well do they work ? Can you set them outside in bad weather ? Like to run a motor or pump outside ?

 

[m@Robertson]

These "generators " are all new to me. I have a small 1500 / 2000 watt propane generator built in to the van. But I'm not going to run the noisy thing all night to charge ebike batteries and /or run the a/c .
So how well do they work ? Can you set them outside in bad weather ? Like to run a motor or pump outside ?

I am fairly new to them myself but basically jumped into the deep end of the pool several months back. I need generator power - sometimes for extended periods - thanks to a coastal home subject to nasty windstorms.

Lots of people use AC200P's in vans.

Setting them outside in bad weather is a total no no However, since they do not emit fumes or make any noise, you no longer need to leave them outside. What you would do is run an outdoor power cord to the external device. OR... patch the SoGen into your home electrical system and use your home as normal, but off the grid. The AC200P I am linking above is not really in the class of being able to run a whole home like this and is better suited to smaller jobs - although at 2000ah its a pretty beefy solution as portables go.

My home system is going to be sitting on a wheeled cart inside my garage. Its a Bluetti AC300 along with 3 B300 batteries which totals about 9000 aH of storage. I could if I wanted to run a power cord out of it to an external device of some kind (like a pump). A buttload of solar panels tops it back up. If we're hit by an asteroid and there's no sun, I do have my old school gas generator to fall back on - to recharge the SoGen. That AC300 - as big as it is - does not have the sapacity to run a home that needs air conditioning, but I live in an area with mild climate so no AC draw to worry about. My furnace is gas so the only electricity is the fan that runs it so that IS manageable to the limited extent I would use central heating in an emergency (I've got a fireplace etc.).

For a van you might consider flexible panels and mount them right on the van roof. Flush and flat. No real weight to speak of.

 

[Art Deco]

I am fairly new to them myself but basically jumped into the deep end of the pool several months back. I need generator power - sometimes for extended periods - thanks to a coastal home subject to nasty windstorms.

Lots of people use AC200P's in vans.

Setting them outside in bad weather is a total no no However, since they do not emit fumes or make any noise, you no longer need to leave them outside. What you would do is run an outdoor power cord to the external device. OR... patch the SoGen into your home electrical system and use your home as normal, but off the grid. The AC200P I am linking above is not really in the class of being able to run a whole home like this and is better suited to smaller jobs - although at 2000ah its a pretty beefy solution as portables go.

My home system is going to be sitting on a wheeled cart inside my garage. Its a Bluetti AC300 along with 3 B300 batteries which totals about 9000 aH of storage. I could if I wanted to run a power cord out of it to an external device of some kind (like a pump). A buttload of solar panels tops it back up. If we're hit by an asteroid and there's no sun, I do have my old school gas generator to fall back on - to recharge the SoGen. That AC300 - as big as it is - does not have the sapacity to run a home that needs air conditioning, but I live in an area with mild climate so no AC draw to worry about. My furnace is gas so the only electricity is the fan that runs it so that IS manageable to the limited extent I would use central heating in an emergency (I've got a fireplace etc.).

For a van you might consider flexible panels and mount them right on the van roof. Flush and flat. No real weight to speak of.

I actually like the "suitcase" panels over the rooftop b/c I try to park in the shade in summer, but they are theft magnets, I bet.

 

[m@Robertson]

I actually like the "suitcase" panels over the rooftop b/c I try to park in the shade in summer, but they are theft magnets, I bet.

Yup mine fold up into quarters and have handles. Super easy to transport. My home panels not so much. I did this test-fit last night. I am putting 5" casters on the bottom of these mounts and they will be on the ground. Two of these will provide solar power to the bike shop I am setting up in this storage space to free up space at home. Roll 'em out the door to get some sunlight. These are ordinarily rooftop van mounts.

 

[m@Robertson]

@Tys since you are going full time solar for the bike, have you considered going to hard panels? I'm assuming you have a backyard installation or similar. I've heard there are issues with the folding panels (not the hinged type like for example Rich Solar's) breaking down thanks to the repeated folding and unfolding. I am saving my folders for my semi-annual camping trips for this reason.