Pashley to launch a consumer ebike in 2024

[Dewey]

In a recent crowdfunding announcement seeking funding to expand its existing e-cargo and e-bikeshare production, Pashley announced it plans to launch a consumer ebike next year. Over the past 10 years consumer Pashley ebikes have been DIY conversions of their traditional steel framed models mostly using Bafang mid-drive motors, first by the public, then by bike shops like Blackwell & Sons in New Zealand, and lately Pashley itself began offering pre-converted commercial trikes and bikes. Pashley report they weathered the pandemic bike boom and bust cycle thanks to being able to rely on existing relationships with suppliers, and growth in supplying the bikeshare market.

Pashley seeks funding to accelerate growth in e-bike and e-cargo markets - BikeBiz

Pashley, Britain’s longest-established bicycle maker, is launching a crowdfunding campaign, inviting

bikebiz.com

 

[PedalUma]

Pashley has some cool bikes in my opinion. But then again my tastes are different than most. I would ditch the white tires on this one and go for something like Super Moto X. The frame is setup to take a Gates Belt with a break in the seat stay. I would probably flip the bar for practical reasons. Who has a double top tube? Really! I would also use polished crank arms on the mid-drive, keeping the polished chainring guard. Those are roller brakes. Super clean with a hand brazed lugged frame. There is one US distributor in AZ. They are pricy but very rare. It is a head turner and thing of beauty. You are ridding a work of art.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

crowdfunding

It used to be called "begging'; when I was young

 

[Djangodog]

It used to be called "begging'; when I was young

I’m with you there. I can see the benefit of crowdfunding for health emergencies or for a disaster, but it seems that it is commonly used as a way to get money without earning it. I might consider donating to a worthwhile project that otherwise wouldn’t happen, but Pashley doesn’t deserve my charity.

 

[Dewey]

It will be increasingly common to use crowdfunding in an environment where the venture capitalists have burned their fingers on the likes of VanMoof. I noticed this week VVolt have also launched their own campaign, see https://www.startengine.com/offering/vvolt, and they’re related to the successful Showers Pass cycling clothing company. It’s a legitimate strategy for established brands like Pashley and Showers Pass because they can leverage existing trust and goodwill relationships. As of this morning the Pashley campaign appears to have raised 2/3 of its 500 grand goal. Still investors should go in with the expectation they may lose all their investment.

 

[PedalUma]

These bikes have Taiwan all over them. I very strongly suspect 'Made in UK' is a crock. Maybe unboxed in the UK is more accurate.

 

[Dewey]

These bikes have Taiwan all over them. I very strongly suspect 'Made in UK' is a crock. Maybe unboxed in the UK is more accurate.

The link in my previous post was for VVolt brand ebikes, not Pashley, in the context of their entirely separate crowdfunding campaign that just happened to launch the same week as Pashley. Just as Brompton ebikes have the frame made in London, so I believe any future Pashley ebike frame would be made in Stratford, UK. I am interested to see how close the design of a future ‘leisure market’ Pashley ebike would adhere to their traditional design cues.

 

[PedalUma]

Pashley ebike would adhere to their traditional design cues

Yes, I hope they don't make them like a hunk clunky Rad and do retain some of that style that sets them apart. The Princess looks very Dutch from the 1950's. I once made a similar bike electric. It was a beauty with an IGH, dynamo, lugged frame, and integrated wheel lock. I would like to think that they really are made in Stafford but suspect that they are made in the same factories as other Omafiets. Here is a high quality steel frame being produced by Leeche in Taiwan.

 

[Dewey]

The upcoming new Pashley Morgan 10 model looks like a fantastic daily commuter

 

[Dewey]

A five year old interview by Forbes quotes Adrian Williams the Pashley CEO saying he experimented with front hub ebikes back in 1992 before joining Pashley two years later.

 

[Dewey]

They’re here!

Pashley Pathfinder E

Pathfinder E

A hand-crafted and lightweight performance frame is outfitted with a smooth and powerful rear hub motor to create the Pathfinder E, a versatile performance electric bicycle available with a standard or low step over Reynolds steel frame.

www.pashley.co.uk

Pashley Pathfinder XE

Pathfinder XE

An e-bike like no other. British made with Reynolds steel, Mountain bike tyres and a 1 x 11 drivetrain all supported by a Mahle motor system.

www.pashley.co.uk

38-40lb and uses the Mahle X30 motor

 

[PedalUma]

It is an Asian made hub drive. With an X35. And a proprietary fit battery, so you are so totally screwed. It is essentially a rebranded T1ST. That sucks. The tweed is cool. The bike is Walmart. Walmart in Lion's clothing.

 

[Dewey]

Respectfully you are not comparing like with like. A better comparison for the Velotric T1 would surely be ebikes like the Cannondale Treadwell Neo or Momentum Voya E+. This Electric Bike Report post about hub motors speculated the Velopower E35 motor system used on the Velotric T1 may be a license-built copy of another company's system, but the Velotric controller looks different to the Mahle iWoc controller and Velotric are not listed as a bicycle brand partner on the Mahle website.

Mahle is a natural partner for Pashley as their new CEO previously worked for Ribble who also use Mahle ebike systems. The Mahle X30 system is UL 2849 electrical safety certified, with a battery pack using Panasonic cells that is backwards compatible with the 5 years older Mahle X35, the pack is internal but can be replaced with disassembly. Mahle parts are carried by QBP for distribution in the US/Canada, so they can be ordered in by any bike shop.

The Pashley Pathfinder-E can be compared with other bikes that use the Mahle X30 system and higher quality Shimano components, including the Stevens E-Strada (Germany) or Origine Montmartre (France). By comparison with those bikes that use an aluminum frame/fork, Pashley make a hand-brazed Reynolds steel frame in their Stratford, UK, factory with some 3D-printed steel parts and add a carbon fork. It's great to see the traditional bicycle brand Pashley assembling e-bikes in the UK using modern components and production methods.

 

[Slaphappygamer]

It is an Asian made hub drive. With an X35. And a proprietary fit battery, so you are so totally screwed. It is essentially a rebranded T1ST. That sucks. The tweed is cool. The bike is Walmart. Walmart in Lion's clothing.
View attachment 183414

Well, the Pashley seems to come with pedals.

 

[PedalUma]

@Dewey, You have gone deep. I was merely saying that a bike that has a similar configuration and feel can be had for less. I am a Pashley fan, yet the economics of having frames built in Asia where they do it best is far too compelling to overlook. I get it. If your socks were made by hand by blind virgins in a monastery they might have greater value to you than those made by a modern factory. But do they serve the given purpose any better on a hike? The fact is I want a mid-drive where the motor's power is shiftable. That bike is a lot like an old Orbea Gain. Tweed or Spandex, it kind of sucks. Now a cleanly converted Speed 5 with a Nexus e5 hub and 90Nm DM02 would be cool. The bar gets flipped. No one rides a eBike bar like that when wind is not a factor. With no visible wires or connectors on a clean conversion. I am currently converting a Surley Straggler. It has aggressive bikepack/tour 28's, a drop gravel bar, and matching tan Brooks. That is a cool bike. Steel is real. It will do 45kph on the progressively smooth torque sensor, so it does not perform like a dud EU hub-drive and can climb. We have hills in the San Francisco area. Mid-drive is the way to go.

 

[Dewey]

You’re describing what sounds like a cross between the Achielle Esmee and Ernest steel frames and the drivetrain from the Azor Zandvoort with the Nexus 5-speed option and Shimano EP6 mid-drive (85nm). Pashley could have gone this way, and may yet decide at some future point to compete with Achielle or Azor or Gazelle or Moustache or Bianchi or dozens of other European brands with a step-through town bike with mid-drive but there’s a lot of competition.

For their first leisure market e-bike Pashley have chosen to modernize their in-house production strengths building steel frames. As for aesthetics the Pathfinder-e looks like Pashley instead of converting their traditional Princess loop-frame step-through and Roadster diamond frame bicycles, decided instead to take inspiration from their lighter Aurora and Countryman frames but swap out the IGH for a Shimano Cues derailleur, and add a carbon fork & hub motor. I wonder if Pashley are hoping to follow the success of Ribble and Brompton with hub drives? I’m sure Pashley will continue with mid-drives for their cargo bikes & trikes. I’d like to see for their next e-bike launch a Pashley/Morgan branded lightweight steel frame model!