Noob looking for low power kit

[fastgoose]

Hi, Sorry if this has been asked before, but I didn't see anything exactly matching my scenario. I'm looking to just get a little oomph to my pedaling, not looking to be riding with just a throttle and no pedaling. I'm ok with custimizing a bit, but would want to order most of the kit together from a trusted company.

My project bike I'm looking to convert is a REI Coop CTY, kinda like this one:

Co-op Cycles CTY 1.1 Bike | REI Co-op

Ideal for urban and suburban outings, the Co-op Cycles CTY 1.1 hybrid bike offers rack and fender compatibility, a versatile 3 x 8 drivetrain, an upright ride, and beefy tires.

www.rei.com

I've done a bunch of searching, and have been eyeing kits with 250W front hub motors and a battery life that would have ~20mi range.
For instance, I like the specs of this, and the price point isn't bad:

https://leedsbikes.com/product/leeds-front-wheel-10-4-ah-e-bike-kit-24-volts-250-watts-20-miles/

I don't mind that there's no pedal assist, but it would be nice if I have a variable throttle to manually give just a little boost instead of simply on/off.
I'm also concerned that there's not as many replacement parts out there for 24V instead of say, 36V

I also like the ease of install and simplicity of this kit:

Sprinter Electric Bike Kit - Hilltopper Electric Bike Company

Electric bike kit for turning any bike into an electric bike. Go further, last longer, climb higher with a Hilltopper Electric Bike kit. Shop now!

hilltopperbikes.com

but the battery seems small, and the next step up (https://hilltopperbikes.com/product/horizon-40-mile-36v-electric-bike-kit/) seems a little pricey for the specs. I also don't like that the controller and battery seemed bundled together, so it might be harder to replace/customize down the line.

Finally, there's this kit, which has everything I want (can get variable throttle and pedal assist), and lets me chose whatever 36V (or 48V) battery I want.

36V 500W Geared Ebike Conversion Kits

SPECIFICATIONS SHIPPING All orders are processed within 1 business day. We offer free shipping, to Lower-48 states, on all orders over $50. Regardless of order total, shipping to Hawaii, Alaska, APO, FPO, and Puerto Rico shall be the responsibility of the buyer. Orders are shipped via USPS and...

ebikeling.com

I can get their battery, or I'm looking at reputable companies that have ~10-12Ahr 36V packs.
This is the kit I'm leaning towards, but the one concern is that the 500W motor is as low as they go, and I'm wondering if that's too much oomph. Would it be less with a 36V battery instead of 48V?


How's my thinking? Are there any popular kits I'm missing, or do I have any bad assumptions? Please let me know, and thanks!

 

[harryS]

My first bike conversion was ebikeling, back in 2015, Rear wheel, 500W, and I supplied my own battery. The kit was around $240. The battery was the same price, from a chinese seller on ebay.



I've bought a couple of other ebikeling kits since then, with no complaints, except that I didn't like his LCD upgrade in the last kit I bought in 2018, Crappy LCD that was designed for a direct drive motor, not a geared one. It would not show speed when coasting and the assist was too powerful. I used a better controller/LCD. Well, it's 2023 now, so surely he has fixed that.
.
Probably the same or similar motor, Now 500W on 36V is going to top out around 20 mph, Whether it feels too strong will depend on the granularity of the pedal assist. Cannot help you with the 2023 kit, but the 2018 kit with the SW900 was terrible, He is a big amazon seller, and you can ask a question there.
.
Meanwhile, the above conversion has never come off my bike, I haven't even had a flat tire that would require removing the wheel. I've converted other bikes since then, but I still grab some seat time on that bike. My average speed on a bike ride is 12 mph. To my surprise, the 36V battery is still working well too. Seven years, Amazing. I've got other packs that didn't last seven weeks.

 

[Dewey]

For a front hub kit in the US an alternative to budget kits from ebikeling or Hilltopper include the Golden Motor Pro 902. No personal experience but there are reviews on Endless Sphere. AFAIK Yosepower only do rear hub motor kits. If you want more features, choice of PAS sensor, etc, Grin Tech offer good service, for your purposes their Bafang G311 kit is what you might like to build up.

Whatever you choose, be sure to fit two torque arms

 

[fastgoose]

Thanks for all the info. I didn't know about Golden Motor, and I'm liking the Pro 902. It might just fix the things about the Leeds 250W kit I didn't like. 36V option, and variable controller for a 250W motor.

Honestly, I'm still drawn to the simplicity and lightness of the Leeds 250W kit. I don't want to have a ton of weight (that's why I'm guessing I want a ~10Ahr battery, and not much more). If I knew that I could get replacements for the 24V battery in the future, and if I could swap the throttle with a variable one, I would be 200% sold.

 

[fastgoose]

The Grin Tech G311 minimal kit also looks nice. I like how durable the controller and connectors look. But it looks like it'd be pretty expensive to ship to the US

 

[fastgoose]

I'd thought I'd give an update: I ended up going with the Leeds Kit. Overall, It seems a pretty good fit for my needs. It is pretty light on my bike with the 250W motor and 10.4Ahr 24V battery. I can almost forget the kit is on my bike when pedaling unpowered. And it's doable to get it up and down some stairs. Also, I don't seem to mind the on/off button throttle like I thought.

The one issue is, I didn't realize the axle only has flat faces close to the hub, just wide enough to fit the included tabbed washers (it's not super clear in the pic with it assembled on the bike). The rest of the axle resting through the dropouts is round, so the torque arms I got won't fit. This seems very similar to the setup with the Grin Tech G311 kit (https://ebikes.ca/product-info/grin-kits/bafang-g310-g311.html#WasherStackandTorqueArm).

Since the dimensions look right, I wonder if I can use Grin Tech's torque G11 torque arm meant to replace it's tabbed washer and sit inside the fork? (https://ebikes.ca/shop/electric-bicycle-parts/torque-arms/torqarm-311.html). I'll make some measurements soon and see if I can order that.

 

[tomjasz]

As long as there’s a fender mount eyelet on the fork the grin front fork torque arms are perfect. riding with just tabbed washers is not safe. Grin now sells them on Amazon. far less expensive shipping. there should be nothing to measure.

 

[fastgoose]

So the axle diameter doesn't matter? I was going to double check. I did look at what Grin Tech had on Amazon, but I didn't see the inside-fork torque arm like in the link I gave. Did you see it on there? The closest I saw was the fender-mounted TorqArmV2 (www.amazon.com/Torque-Mounting-Fender-Eyelets-Stainless/dp/B00JOUOPY4), which seems like it uses the same plate and arm, but without the wide spacer and bits of hardware.

 

[tomjasz]

interesting. I’m using 2 https://ebikes.ca/shop/electric-bicycle-parts/torque-arms/torqarm-v2.html

I’m a bit confused by the difference unless the 311 has an odd axel configuration/size

hmmmmm…

 

[fastgoose]

interesting. I’m using 2 https://ebikes.ca/shop/electric-bicycle-parts/torque-arms/torqarm-v2.html

I’m a bit confused by the difference unless the 311 has an odd axel configuration/size

hmmmmm…

Yeah, maybe it's not super clear because I was too lazy to include a photo of the motor axle off the bike forks. It looks very similar to the photo in this section: https://ebikes.ca/product-info/grin-kits/bafang-g310-g311.html#WasherStackandTorqueArm
It looks like the 311 hub motor axle is round 10mm for most of it's length, except for very close to the hub, where it's flattened long enough to fit either the keyed/tabbed washer in the 311 kit, or the 311 torque arm. The only way a torque arm would fit is on the inside of the fork. The kit I got from Leeds is very similar. The question I have is if the 311 torque arm can replace the keyed washer in my kit. It looks like in both case to fit a 14mm flattened section of the axle, but I want to be sure before buying. I sent a message to Grin Tech to ask.