Old Schwinn cruiser...want to make it electric.

[Jaypem]

Been thinking of converting an old middleweight Schwinn...looking for advice as to which direction to explore.
Hub drive? Mid drive? Rear?
Dont know anything about ebikes really but I would like to use this on dirt roads and hills.
Advice?

 

[Marci jo]

Put it in the dumpster and move on.

 

[Jaypem]

Nice.
Well then nevermind, wont bother you all with stupid questions.

 

[stanmiller]

I think Marci was being funny?

Anyhow, post a picture of the bike as that will help guide recommendations.

 

[Marci jo]

Oops my bad! I thought you were not serious. That conversion would be an interesting project.

 

[harryS]

Sure. A front hubmotor is easiest, but do it wrong and it can break the fork and maybe your jaw at the same time, so a rear motor is a little more work but safer.

A mid motor will cost more, but is often easier to wire up.

This newer Schwinn really did came out of the dumpster. Free bike. $200 motor kit. I happened to run across a set of surplus scooter batteries for $75, so this bike is atypical coming in under $300.

I like it because I don't have to tell folks it's expensive when they ask. However batteries can and will run $250-500 and up.

 

[indianajo]

Little chance of breaking a fork on a pre 2000 schwinn. I converted a 199? huffy savannah with a front geared hubmotor. I did use torque arms. I had to grind out the axle slots a little with a 4 1/2" body grinder. Use safety glasses.
That kit had PAS magnetic pickup, a springy plastic wheel with magnets that fits right around the axle of a 3 piece MTB crank. Old US steel bikes have a one piece crank. I had to wallow out the hole of the PAS sensor with a die grinder (use safety glasses), then after I got it on, fill the hole back up again with wood wedges glued in with 3m windshield adhesive. I hung the pickup on a el bracket from the kickstand hole in the frame.
I put the 18 lb battery over the front wheel on aluminum brackets hung from the handlebar and the motor axle. I had to buy second nuts for the axle at the motorcycle supply, no bike shop auto supply or industrial supply had them. They were 14 mm x 1.75 mm threads. I lost a nut, and the motorcycle shop deleted that bin of parts. So I had to make the next nut with a $15 tap I bought from victornet.com.
I learned a lot about what batteries not to buy on that bike. Amazon.com and e-bay.com briefly. A battery costing 2.2 times as much from lunacycle worked, you see on the cargo bike in the picture left. I left off the PAS magnet wheel on that conversion, just a throttle on that $189 1000 W dd kit.
I splice the battery wires with dorman bullett connectors crimped on with a klein tool. Use male for - and female for + so you can't interchange them. The first battery came with andersn plug, which since I couldn't find a mate for it I cut off and threw away. The luna battery came with XT90 plug, which can be ordered in packs of 5 off e-bay. Plug the mating plug in while soldering xt90, or the pins will move out of alignment from the heat of the iron. I built a 4 amp 53.6 v charger out of surplus to replace the wimpy 2 amp one that came with the luna battery. Dual voltage, will also stop charging at 52 v for 90% charges.

 

[Jaypem]

I think Marci was being funny?

Anyhow, post a picture of the bike as that will help guide recommendations.

Ahh..got it ?

At this point I think Im starting to agree that buying an electric bike is the way smarter way to go...

But since you asked, perhaps Ill post a pic of a different build that could be a great candidate for an electric front hub drive.

 

[indianajo]

Conversion cost me $350 + battery for the front hub because of the PAS and the fancy $120 display I bought. PAS & fancy display were a waste of money. Neither battery voltage speed or kilometers ridden were accurate. Minimum speed PAS is too fast and accelerates too quickly.
Converting the bodaboda left with a 1000 W DD motor was $210 plus battery. Advantage of building the battery frame out of aluminum, when the battery wears out in 5 years I don't have to spend $1500 on a new one from the bike manufacturer that fits in the downtube, or fits their custom patented connector. It takes 20 minutes to unscrew the aluminum battery frame so it hasn't been stolen yet, besides not looking like an e-bike battery. I cable the bike up to light poles or cart racks out in the city nearly every day. I like an 80 mile range so I bought a 17.5 AH battery for $620. Not many bikes have that much, and those that do it is usually a $600 up option.

 

[AHicks]

These bikes were built using new bikes from WalMart and all new parts a little over a year ago. I had never owned or even ridden an e-bike, so these were quite an education. They cost a little less that 1100. including top shelf batteries. Today, I think they could be duplicated for less than 900. using batteries that would go 25 miles easily. I sold the men's bike cause it was too darn tall (29'er). The women's bike is still going strong with probably 1500 miles on it. No failures or unusual maintenance required to date. Charge and ride. Or maybe ride several times and then charge would be more accurate. Batteries didn't really need to be near the capacity of what I used. Noteworthy as well is the fact they both use 1000w DD hubs, 30a controllers, have LCD3 displays and disc brakes. All good or better hardware. Specs like these in a production bike in this price range are not going to happen any time soon.

 

[rich c]

These bikes were built using new bikes from WalMart and all new parts a little over a year ago. I had never owned or even ridden an e-bike, so these were quite an education. They cost a little less that 1100. including top shelf batteries. Today, I think they could be duplicated for less than 900. using batteries that would go 25 miles easily. I sold the men's bike cause it was too darn tall (29'er). The women's bike is still going strong with probably 1500 miles on it. No failures or unusual maintenance required to date. Charge and ride. Or maybe ride several times and then charge would be more accurate. Batteries didn't really need to be near the capacity of what I used. Noteworthy as well is the fact they both use 1000w DD hubs, 30a controllers, have LCD3 displays and disc brakes. All good or better hardware. Specs like these in a production bike in this price range are not going to happen any time soon.

Never have liked the battery pack mounted in the "Nutcracker" position on top of the tube. It must bring back some suppressed bad childhood experiences!

 

[AHicks]

Never have liked the battery pack mounted in the "Nutcracker" position on top of the tube. It must bring back some suppressed bad childhood experiences!

Rich, on a conversion, you do what you gotta do. In this case it was mount it here or on the rear rack. Rear rack handling sucks, it's something else to get in your way swinging a leg over, and in this case, the lady rider fits just fine. Other than that, I'd agree. A smaller battery might have been able to be wadded into the triangle.

 

[linklemming]

How much does conversion cost you though? I looked around online and it doesn't seem THAT cheap.

But do kind of like the idea of building your own ebike though, kinda fun. I've been looking around for Bafang Ultra compatible frames on Alibaba.

Simple hub motor kits on amazon are around $150-$200 on amazon (possibly cheaper on ebay?).

You will need to file dropouts to get hub motor axle to fit properly (probably moreso if using disc brakes). Also need to make some sort of torque arm setup. Its all doable though. If thats what you want to do, endless-sphere is probably a better place to hangout. Add duct tape, cable clamps and zip ties to your hearts content.

I did a DIY tsdz2 on an old MTB. Due to disc brake adapter required for rear wheel, a rear hub motor wasnt really an option without some work (which I didnt want to do). Front hub motor, no thanks although many use it just fine.

In the end, the tsdz2 was about $450 plus about the same for a battery. I initially used a hailong 48V battery which failed after about 5 rides (bad cell bank). So another $500 for a battery (52V 13.5ah luna) + 52V charger.

My mid-drive project was about $1400(minus bike). I used opensource software which allowed me to up the power over a stock tsdz2 (650w). It was ok and powerful but noisey(gear noise). After 400 miles or so the tsdz2 developed clunks and click noises. When I checked axle play on the BB it was for the lack of a better term....horrendous. Converted the bike back to non-electric. I might try another setup in the future(grin thru-axle)

While it was a great experience, it wasnt cost effective for me. I test rode an iZip Moda e3 a week or so ago (Brose motor, 28mph speed pedelec, $2250) and have since ordered one.

Bafang Ultra compatible frames would be AWESOME

 

[AHicks]

I didn't have a minutes trouble with the disk brake. It lined right up and after spending a minute to adjust, it's still working fine. The only work I had to do to the drop out slot was to square off the bottom. They are rounded, and need to be squared off a little to get the hub axle to fit correctly. Maybe 10 minutes a side with a good file.

The bike:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/29-Mens-Schwinn-Boundary-Dark-Green-and-Black/153585860

Here's the conversion kit I used. It was complete with an LCD3 display and a controller with plenty of capacity. Nothing much to add but the battery. Company has a pretty decent reputation, and very competitive on a bucks spent for bang received basis.
https://www.leafbike.com/products/d...-rear-hub-motor-bike-conversion-kit-1014.html

Here the battery I used. As mentioned, lesson learned is it could be smaller. I thing less expensive now as well.
(Link Removed - No Longer Exists)

You can add it up and see for yourself what these main components cost. I would add another 100. for a decent seat, a rack, and other misc stuff from Amazon. Whole thing done easily for under 1000 at todays prices.

 

[Al P]

Jaypem, if you like riding your Schwinn, it is probably a good candidate for a kit. The nice thing about a kit is that you don't have to hunt around for parts piecemeal. Everything is included. There are a few companies selling them. I chose Leeds because they received excellent reviews and their customer service is very good. They sell both front and rear hub kits. The front hub is easy to install and comes already laced into a rim. I would recommend a torque arm to prevent the possibility of the wheel coming off if the axle should break. Front hubs are not good for riding on dirt as there is little traction, so for your purposes, the rear hub might be a better choice. For the hills, it's fine. Leeds offers both 250 and 500w kits. I would recommend the 500w motor for hills. The 500w kit can be bought for under $1100. You can buy an entire ebike for that much, but my old Mongoose is extremely lightweight (about 32 lbs. without battery), in excellent condition and a perfect candidate for a kit. I've been riding it for three years with no issues at all.
https://www.e-bikerig.com/

 

[indianajo]

yeah sounds like if you add motor, battery, speed controller, display, motor inhibitor brakes, torque arms, wires and all the little things, you're spending well over $1,000... for me buying an ebike is easier and many cases, maybe cheaper considering you get a whole bicycle and it's gonna be brand new.

I did it for $840. Forget the display, the one I bought for $120 had all wrong numbers. 1000 w Motor controller throttle connector $180. Mount wires connectors locknuts $40. Battery $620 17.5 AH 48 v luna , which might go 60 miles in the summer. Torque arms made of scrap metal.
I have a garage full of **** bicycles, gave one away this winter. No more rim brakes that don't stop in the rain, no more shimano thumb shifter that caused a 10x 1 cm cm cyst, no more fallapart cheap shimano rear axles. The bodaboad left is premium and can't be bought with a hub motor. No bar to dance around trying to mount. No steel frame to add 15 lb. No battery on the back lifting the front wheel and making it whip sideways. Lots of those cheap **** components on the entry point electric bikes. Plus a custom mount battery to "look good" , attract thieves, and make $$$ for the OEM when replacement time comes.

 

[Off road all day]

Go for it Jaypem, 450 watt/24 volt chinese frame mounted motor kit.
change the rear gear from 16 teeth to 22 or 28 teeth, the more teeth the more power but less speed.
Your going to need modified wheel locks to keep the motor from actually pulling the rear wheel forward and off the bike. Lesson i learned in about 2 seconds. Couple of bucks.
You can get a 20 amp hour/24 volt lithium battery for about $350. Sla's are just to heavy and unstable unless you mount them low.
2 12 volt SLA's at 20 amp hours wired in series for 24 volts and 20 amp hours are about $180 cdn

 

[Jaypem]

Good stuff all...
Next question, has anyone put an electric motor on a Vespa or similar?? ?

 

[harryS]

If you electrify a Vespa. It's still a motor scooter when you're done and depending on your local laws, you may still need a license to ride it, plus plates and insurance. If you have do all of that to ride it, then the gas Vespa makes more sense. You can go father and faster and never get stuck (if it runs).

The challenges for electricying a Vespa is that it's a lot heavier than a bike. You're going to be carrying extra battery just to move the added weight, and that costs money.

Just don't think it makes economic sense. Someone with a whole bunch of lead acid wheelchair batteries sitting around might have fun.

 

[harryS]

I reason it like this. If your Vespa started as a scooter, it's still a scooter no matter if you run it on steam.

States that have passed the common Class I, II, III ebike regulations require operable pedals for an ebike. All those Chinese scooters have vestigal pedals to meet that requirement.