Qiroll Friction bike kit

[ebike]

Hello Everyone:

I have a folding 20" worksman bicycle, 7 speed internal shimano, and it's great for those under 7 mile rides. However there is a hill or 2 that make that a bit difficult. All I wanted was some assistance to tackle those hills. I didn't want a heavy front wheel hub motor kit so I've done a lot of research and found a friction drive motor kit with battery that comes in under 5 pounds and cost around $350.

I've searched all over and can't find any user reviews of this though so I'm asking anyone if they've tried this particular kit.

The website is: http://www.qiroll.com/

There are youtube vids of the kit, installation, advertisement as well. The seller told me the battery has 300 cycles till 80%. Which is good?

Also, from the explanation on the site and from asking the seller who is Chinese, I got the impression there are two modes for the roller in regards to it's contact with the tire. You can manually separate the roller from the tire. The other is where the roller is manually set against the tire and you can use the throttle which will set the roller in motion to get the assistance.

My question is, how much drag if any wouild one feel in this mode where the roller is in contact with the tire? Because of the language difference, I don't quite understand what the seller meant:


"QR-E uses a virtual electronic clutch to eliminate the resistance of the motor, and will not feel the resistance when installing the battery."

Anyone who has used this kit and can answer my question especially about the drag one feels when you are in the mode where the throttle engages the roller please let me know. Also, how well does it help you up a hill?

Here's a pic of my bike attached.

Thanks again everyone!

 

[harryS]

Most friction drives are designed so the motor swings into contact with the tire when the motor spins. That's probaby been the weakest link. Some installs will have poor contact and slip.

This guy makes you do it manually by turning a thumb screw. Might be inconvenient, but I suppose the contact is less problematic. . He says that pedaling effort isn't too bad when riding around with no battery. I bet you feel something, even though it's a little motor.

That's why this one costs 3X more, but it gets good reviews.

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onemotor.co

That's overly expensive in my opinion. I have motorized several of our folders with hubmotors for a lot less money, not much more than what you would spend for a Qiroll, say $450 for a bike with an equivalent tiny battery (about $100 of that $450). Motor is 4.5 pounds. Batteries range from 3 pounds to 5 pounds. We don't roll our bikes folded up in train stations nor do we carry them up stairs and into buildings, so the extra weight doesn't affect us. WIth a bigger/better battery, my costs go up.

 

[ebike]

Most friction drives are designed so the motor swings into contact with the tire when the motor spins. That's probaby been the weakest link. Some installs will have poor contact and slip.

This guy makes you do it manually by turning a thumb screw. Might be inconvenient, but I suppose the contact is less problematic. . He says that pedaling effort isn't too bad when riding around with no battery. I bet you feel something, even though it's a little motor.

That's why this one costs 3X more, but it gets good reviews.

Customize: ONEMOTOR: Revolutionary Personal Mobility Solution. E-Bike | E-Scooter | E-Bike share

ONEMOTOR Powers Everything You Ride. E-Bike | E-Scooter | E-Bike share

onemotor.co

That's overly expensive in my opinion. I have motorized several of our folders with hubmotors for a lot less money, not much more than what you would spend for a Qiroll, say $450 for a bike with an equivalent tiny battery (about $100 of that $450). Motor is 4.5 pounds. Batteries range from 3 pounds to 5 pounds. We don't roll our bikes folded up in train stations nor do we carry them up stairs and into buildings, so the extra weight doesn't affect us. WIth a bigger/better battery, my costs go up.

Hi, Harry:

Thanks for replying.

I've read a review of this Qiroll kit on Alieexpress and it appears to be pretty weak and when no pedal assistance, it might go 8-10mph. Maybe that's enough for my purposes to get up that hill, I have a moneyback guarantee so I might take a chance.

Also, Qiroll seems to be an ongoing development. I found another of their vids:

It's from 2017 and I don't know if that's an old model version of the kit but it seems to have a roller that doesn't look as smooth as the one I was contemplating, in fact the roller looks like a sandpaper and I'm wondering what kind of wear that does to the tire! The electronics seems different as well and the mount is not at the kickstand plate area but behind the seat. In any case, I don't think that version would work on my bicycle as I have fenders.

The other option like you said and it's probably the most efficient as far as performance/power is the front wheel hub. I have another bicycle with a front hub motor, and that thing is pretty powerful. Pic attached. It's a semi-recumbent and so you don't get much manual pedal power and it's heavy, so the hub really was necessary. That motor would drag me up a hill 8% slope with pedal assist. (Pic attached).

I suppose I could use a front hub motor if I used quick release adapters but I really wanted something that I could just leave on there. The Qiroll ad says both the motor and battery come in at around 2.6 pounds total. So if I totally disengage the roller from the tire, there would be no drag at all, if drag is an issue when the roller is touching the tire in that other mode.

I love my little folding bicycle. I can just stick it into the trunk and go anywhere. An additional 2.6 pounds won't make it too much heavier to pick up and toss into the trunk. So I guess I may take a chance on the Qiroll, with a moneyback guarantee it's worth a shot. If I get it I'll write a review here.

Maybe one day they'll make a mini-hub motor and mini-battery under 3 pounds!