Over50's Specialized Turbo Vado SL 5 EQ (& Como SL 5) Chronicles

[Stefan Mikes]

Ah, but I don't take the Range Extender for rides of less than 30 miles. I don't want to drag along the extra weight when I know I won't need it. And sometimes I want the extra water bottle.

I apologize for my generalization. I meant "if I use the RE, I discharge both batteries at the same time". Of course, there is no meaning to take the Range Extender for short local rides.

 

[kahn]

I apologize for my generalization. I meant "if I use the RE, I discharge both batteries at the same time". Of course, there is no meaning to take the Range Extender for short local rides.

Well, I know some people do really nurse these LITHIUM beauties like they are living things. My problem with that treatment is that most of my rides seem to exceed 50% capacity. So after every ride I recharge the Main battery. I don't know the ultimate impact of such charging over the life of the battery. There are all these "rules" about how low or how high the battery charge should be. I have to hope that if I really kill the Main battery prematurely that Specialized will have replacement batteries. I know inventory is a problem now with most bike parts and circuit boards (and in all kinds of other industries) but again, hopefully, this will be resolved when my battery needs replacement.

If I chose to ignore the weight issue, I guess I could predominately use the Range Extender (RE) battery first method and then only use a small percentage of the Main Battery to complete the ride. Come home and recharge the RE and leave the Main battery at 90 or 93 or XX. Only charging the RE and then only after 5 or 10 rides recharge the Main battery. But does trying such a strategy have the ability to drive me nuts????

I just want to ride my bike and not deal with these issues.

 

[rochrunner]

Roch, I’ve been through a lot of saddles. Now I have three Selle Anatomica saddles, so I like them. They’re great. If they ever get uncomfortable I just tighten the bolt to stretch the leather and they’re instantly back to form. SA is good for hours of comfortable road riding.

I recently bought a Specialized Power Saddle with Mirror. Very comfortable. Very similar to Selle Anatomica. But very expensive. The Selle is absolutely the better deal. They’re both great on the road. On a stationary bike, using Zwift, they both hurt after an hour. That’s why I bought the Power saddle, to solve the Zwift issue. Didn’t work out. Turns out the Selle Anatomica is as good as it gets. Maybe I just need a big, fat Cloud 9 saddle for Zwifting.

@Rincon Reviving an old post, does the Anatomica allow you to shift positions a bit on the seat, or does it lock you into one position? Being able to shift occasionally is helpful for my comfort.

 

[kahn]

You're free to shift positions as you wish. Forward, backward, ride on one cheek if you wish. I usually slide back on a long ride.

Specialized just released a new, less expensive, version. It is called the Pro Power with Mirror. About $100 less than the other models. Instead of carbon fiber rails, the Pro uses titanium rails. They are more durable and rated for trail riding. Sounds good to me. I'd buy the Pro over the S-Works just for the higher impact rating -- I ride gravel.

They don't seem to mention rider weight. They do in the "manual" for the S-works version which has carbon rails.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

They don't seem to mention rider weight. They do in the "manual" for the S-works version which has carbon rails.

Because carbon fibre snaps

 

[BEC111]

Well, I know some people do really nurse these LITHIUM beauties like they are living things. My problem with that treatment is that most of my rides seem to exceed 50% capacity. So after every ride I recharge the Main battery. I don't know the ultimate impact of such charging over the life of the battery. There are all these "rules" about how low or how high the battery charge should be. I have to hope that if I really kill the Main battery prematurely that Specialized will have replacement batteries. I know inventory is a problem now with most bike parts and circuit boards (and in all kinds of other industries) but again, hopefully, this will be resolved when my battery needs replacement.

If I chose to ignore the weight issue, I guess I could predominately use the Range Extender (RE) battery first method and then only use a small percentage of the Main Battery to complete the ride. Come home and recharge the RE and leave the Main battery at 90 or 93 or XX. Only charging the RE and then only after 5 or 10 rides recharge the Main battery. But does trying such a strategy have the ability to drive me nuts????

I just want to ride my bike and not deal with these issues.

I’ve been riding with both batteries draining together. My usual rides are between 13 and 30 miles in Eco or Sport with the occasional Turbo boost. I charge either whenever the battery level after a ride is below 30% or when I my next ride is expected to be 30 or more miles. I was charging every 2 or 3 weeks over the winter - riding as few as one or two times per month. As it warms up and I ride more often and for longer distance so I’m charging more often too.

Therefore, I am usually charging after 60-80 miles. Since my goal when I bought the bike was to be able to ride 40 plus miles, I think this works out pretty well. I don’t plan most of my rides. If the weather is OK and I have time I go for a ride.

I’ve learned that a 30% charge will allow me a comfortable 30+ mile range so I can go for an extra ride if needed. Thus my charging approach. It‘s worked every time but one, when the Y charge cable disconnected from the charger the night before an ebike group ride last summer. I ended up grateful for the Vado SL since I was supposed to be the lead rider. I rode 40 miles without assist. Also an answer to the question about whether riding an e-bike is exercise.

 

[kahn]

I’ve been riding with both batteries draining together. My usual rides are between 13 and 30 miles in Eco or Sport with the occasional Turbo boost. I charge either whenever the battery level after a ride is below 30% or when I my next ride is expected to be 30 or more miles. I was charging every 2 or 3 weeks over the winter - riding as few as one or two times per month. As it warms up and I ride more often and for longer distance so I’m charging more often too.

Therefore, I am usually charging after 60-80 miles. Since my goal when I bought the bike was to be able to ride 40 plus miles, I think this works out pretty well. I don’t plan most of my rides. If the weather is OK and I have time I go for a ride.

I’ve learned that a 30% charge will allow me a comfortable 30+ mile range so I can go for an extra ride if needed. Thus my charging approach. It‘s worked every time but one, when the Y charge cable disconnected from the charger the night before an ebike group ride last summer. I ended up grateful for the Vado SL since I was supposed to be the lead rider. I rode 40 miles without assist. Also an answer to the question about whether riding an e-bike is exercise.

I think I like your method of both batteries. Yesterday, I ALMOST talked myself in adding the RE battery and depleting it first but then I knew I was tired and even throwing on another two pounds was just not inviting - especially since that means hefting that weight both up and down my three short flights of stairs.

 

[GuruUno]

I've been using the RE battery from the very beginning and the best part (I too 'drain' both at the same time), the very, very best part of it all is I suffer zero range anxiety. I did a 52-mile run last fall and with the combo of both batteries at the start of 150%, I returned with about 100%. So, it is truly the best. Albeit, I tweaked the assistance levels with Blevo from the OEM factory settings to make me work a bit harder, but as Stefan says, it's a fitness bike.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

If I chose to ignore the weight issue, I guess I could predominately use the Range Extender (RE) battery first method and then only use a small percentage of the Main Battery to complete the ride. Come home and recharge the RE and leave the Main battery at 90 or 93 or XX. Only charging the RE and then only after 5 or 10 rides recharge the Main battery. But does trying such a strategy have the ability to drive me nuts????

I actually do that, and am honest to say depleting the Range Extender first sucks. Here is the situation:

• My main battery got 60 re-charges and is only 95% healthy (according to BLEvo)
• As I own as many as 3 Range Extenders, I rotate them on my shorter rides to make the number of re-charges on any battery equal
• When you need the battery the most -- that is on the climb -- the Range Extender typically is at low level already...
• Below 20% of RE, the assistance is being reduced. It is even weaker below 15%, and becomes hopelessly low between 10 and 5%.
• My RE #1 works as expected. It is being drained down to 5%. Then, there is a while of no assistance. Eventually, the main battery kicks in.
• The RE #2 and 3# both behave erratically. At 8% of the RE, a "Battery Low Error" is being issued and the e-bike shuts off.

As I use my Vado SL for relatively short rides Mon-Fri, I can live with that. I know I would make 30 km at 60/60% assistance on the RE and that's fine. However, any longer rides only make sense with both batteries running together. Or, carrying spare REs in the backpack.

 

[Over50]

Edited the thread title to include my wife's somewhat new Como SL (size S). Nice bike and I think she likes it. The only mods are a Thudbuster ST and Tannus inserts.

Getting this bike through what is now a Specialized corporate store was an experience (and not a great one). I noted in my purchase of the Vado SL that the retail experience with my local Specialized dealer was awful. Since then, Specialized bought that store and its now corporate owned - so I thought it would be much better. It really wasn't. I put a deposit in December with an estimate of the bike being available early Spring. But by late February, my shop couldn't provide any information or estimate on when a bike might arrive however I could see some availability for order via the Specialized website. My shop advised me to order via the website because they had no ability to get the bikes or to even get a firm answer on when their shop orders might arrive - and they even felt it could be mid-Summer before their shop orders were filled. How could this be I wondered? So they refunded my deposit and I ordered via the website with ship to store. In the end it worked out but that is a really odd business model IMO.

 

[GuruUno]

Edited the thread title to include my wife's somewhat new Como SL (size S). Nice bike and I think she likes it. The only mods are a Thudbuster ST and Tannus inserts.

Getting this bike through what is now a Specialized corporate store was an experience (and not a great one). I noted in my purchase of the Vado SL that the retail experience with my local Specialized dealer was awful. Since then, Specialized bought that store and its now corporate owned - so I thought it would be much better. It really wasn't. I put a deposit in December with an estimate of the bike being available early Spring. But by late February, my shop couldn't provide any information or estimate on when a bike might arrive however I could see some availability for order via the Specialized website. My shop advised me to order via the website because they had no ability to get the bikes or to even get a firm answer on when their shop orders might arrive - and they even felt it could be mid-Summer before their shop orders were filled. How could this be I wondered? So they refunded my deposit and I ordered via the website with ship to store. In the end it worked out but that is a really odd business model IMO.

Exactly ( My shop advised me to order via the website because they had no ability to get the bikes or to even get a firm answer on when their shop orders might arrive - and they even felt it could be mid-Summer before their shop orders were filled )
Good, bad, indifferent, this seems to be the "new" model for a lot of things.
The perfect analogy/story to see the direction things are going:

Death to the car dealership — the Tesla sales model is poised to take over America

No more haggling over prices, no more languishing in the finance manager's office.

www.marketwatch.com

 

[Over50]

Started e-bike commuting beginning of 2017 and was fortunate to avoid any breakdowns until I had 2 recently in a span of 3 weeks - both on the Vado SL but neither fault of the bike.

First, I broke a chain 2 miles from home. I usually replace chains prior to 1K miles but had pushed this one to 1200 miles. I haven't been inspecting the chains on my commuters because, early this year, I started paying my LBS to wax them - and in the process inspect. I was only doing the wax because I ride to work already dressed for the office - and inevitably in locking up the bike I would pick up some chain grease and manage to transfer it to my pants. The wax just seemed a lot cleaner. I don't think it had anything to do with the chain breaking and more likely we just missed the signs of a worn chain. LBS had last waxed at 1K miles.

The second breakdown was a rear flat. Earlier in this thread, there are pictures of the Schwalbe Marathon E-Plus tires I installed - with Schwalbe's Aerothan tubes. The tires are advertised as flat-less although I never had faith in that marketing claim. A small portion of my commute passes through a fairly insecure area. Right in the middle of this section I was cruising at about 23 mph when quite suddenly the bike started to wobble and quickly became unstable. I think one marketing claim with the Aerothan tubes is that they release air more slowly with a puncture. Well not quite the case for me. I had picked up some sort of industrial staple - a v-shaped piece of metal with 2 very sharp points and they went through the tread rather than finding a spot between the tread. To make matters much worse, the Aerothan tube escaped from the tire and got pulled up into my disc brake pads completely disabling the bike. I couldn't even push it to safer ground. I had to call for a rescue ride and was just thankful it was still daylight out. So as much as I hate to add some rotational weight to this bike, I'll have to go with the Tannus liners. For me, those are proven to, if not completely prevent flats, to allow low speed riding in the event of a puncture.

And not a breakdown but a few weeks ago on the commute home I was caught in a downpour of biblical proportions. Me and the bike were completely soaked by heavy rain for 20 minutes. And I had to ride through some pretty high water to get home. The electronics on the bike never failed. Got home, dried it off and both the bike's electrical system and the SRAM components/battery all working perfectly.

The Schwalbe's are really good tires but take this with a grain of salt:

 

[Stefan Mikes]

@Over50: You own a Vado SL 5.0 with tubeless ready rims? Why not to go with Specialized Pathfinder Pro 2Bliss tubeless? Solves most of tyre punctures. Just saying.

 

[Over50]

I swapped the rims early on for WTB I23 gravel rims - I'm not sure but I don't think they are tubeless ready. Anyway, I don't have any experience with tubeless. When I set up the Trek Allant for commuting - a year prior to buying the Specialized - we were originally thinking to set that up tubeless (Whisky carbon rims). The shop had trouble getting the tubeless setup to work. After discussion and determining that highest priority is not to be disabled in a treacherous part of my commute, we opted for the Tannus setup. And that proved itself when I did pick up a finishing nail on the Trek but it held enough air for the bike to be rideable for 3 days - until I had time address it. The Specialized is a different beast because it is so light compared to my Trek. The setup I had was really nice but yeah, I don't want a repeat of being stranded. I may consider changing tires because the flatless Schwalbes combined with Tannus seems like overkill.

Edited: @Stefan Mikes. You did prompt me to start looking at tires and tire-weights. Those Schwalbe Marathon E-Plus are like 990 grams and a 7 on Schwalbe's puncture scale (the highest). So maybe I do need a lighter tire if moving to the Tannus liners. Would still want something good on mixed surfaces. I was thinking maybe the Almotion - it is about 60% of the weight of the Marathons and a 5 on the puncture scale - looks also like a good mixed surface tread.
Marathon Almotion | V-Guard | Folding | Black-Reflex | Tube | 28x1.50 | Addix | Evolution Line | 40-622 | 11654056 (schwalbetires.com)

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Edited: @Stefan Mikes. You did prompt me to start looking at tires and tire-weights.

Pathfinder Pro 2Bliss 42-622 (especially the S-Works version) are the Holy Grail of a gravel cyclist. Pretty heavy but durable. Supple. Fast rolling on the pavement but keeping great traction on rough surfaces. My wheels are not tubeless ready but I use them tubed. Just give them a break.

 

[Over50]

Pathfinder Pro 2Bliss 42-622 (especially the S-Works version) are the Holy Grail of a gravel cyclist. Pretty heavy but durable. Supple. Fast rolling on the pavement but keeping great traction on rough surfaces. My wheels are not tubeless ready but I use them tubed. Just give them a break.

@Stefan Mikes I'm sure your recommendation was a good one. I just couldn't warm up to the idea of a devoted gravel tire. Most of my riding is city - good roads, very crappy roads, some dirt roads, railroad tracks - sometimes on wet surfaces. And a little trail, crushed gravel or limestone. So just seems like a touring tire would be the way to go. And to that end, I settled on the Schwalbe Marathon Efficiency (the Almotions were sold-out) with Tannus liners. Just 20 miles on a test ride and they seem to corner well. Haven't ridden wet or on gravel yet. I think the whole setup is rolling a little slower - or could be my imagination. They are about 60% the weight of the Marathon E-Plus but with added Tannus and normal tubes it is probably a net weight gain versus my prior setup.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Thank you for your interesting post.
I just need to mention the PPs are equally good on the pavement (as gravel cyclists ride asphalt often and achieve high speed there!) The feature of PPs is the slick center tread. This and the Gripton compound make PPs one of the fastest rolling tyres.

Maybe you'll try them the next time!