RadCity 1200 mile report (new owner)

[Auldphart]

Over 1200 miles on my RadCity. Here goes.
I am fortunate to live within a trad-bike riding distance of the Ballard shop for Rad Power Bikes. In April 2018, I had my lovely bride (the Usually Lovely Mrs AuldPhart) take me to the store and do some test rides. This was after many weeks of online reviews. Side note, I'd been in Tel Aviv for a conference in March and the number of e-vehicles was really eye-opening. Staff at the store were friendly, but very (very) busy. Got a test ride and was hooked. I used to bike commute when we lived closer to my work (about ten miles) and I started doing it again when further out a couple of years ago. But we live at the top of a hill. By many standards, not a big deal, but having to do that 400 foot climb at the end of a long day at work made me grouchy. Yes, I could do it, but I ended up being grumpy about it. My solution was to drive my bike down the hill to get on the very flat Burke-Gilman trail (BGT), a very nice rail-based multi-purpose paved trail that is a standard go-to for those of us lucky enough to be able to use it. That was a (almost exactly) ten mile ride to work and then back to my parked car.
Here is your grumpy cure: get an ebike. I don't actually make that little climb much faster than I used to before ebike, but there's a lot more happiness about the situation. Benefit #1: I'm not totally sweated out getting to work. Benefit #2: I can dial back the assist and get a good workout when I don't care about getting all sweaty on the trip home...my one way trip is a little under 13 miles.
I'm at more than 1200 miles on the RadCity.
Observations:

1. the charge level seems to influence the performance. When the battery is full, doing PAS 2 is quite vigorous, like close to 20 MPH. I don't get that performance when the batt is at 80% or below. Yes, I may have changed a setting in the controller, but this behavior is uniform. Or maybe I'm not right. Anyone else?

2. For #diety's sake, keep it cool. We just had the BGT and other trails opened up for ebike use, officially (I have seen them on the BGT for at least 2 years). I have seen some really terrible behavior by ebikers going way too fast. The trail limit is 15 mph. Many are way over that, but a jerk on an ebike is going to be more memorable than one with no assist. I get passed nearly every day by trad bikes and I have no problem with that. Please don't be the fastest person on the heavily used multi-purpose trail. Please.

(Bonus thing #3). Get your hills measured. If you think it's a steep hill, it still might be under the 15% for limiting the assist to below 500 watts. Your hills are already measured. What I thought was a steep hill coming home is maybe 12% at most. I have taken the time to get off the bike and put my hand on the motor and things are cool so now when I'm feeling unstrengthly I hit the assist hard on my last push toward home.

Mods: Not many. The cheap rear light died within two months, I have a new one that I don't like much but it works. I have a water bottle holder on the handlebars
The bags I used to use on my Kona don't really work well and since I'm committing to wet transits, I have a pair of Ortliebs on the racks so now I have a surplus of room. I carry the charger so I can hit it at both ends. I could likley do a 1 out of three trip charge cycle but I hate wondering and the plan for getting a 60 pound bike up my hill will always involve fossil fuel.
Future mods: have had two rear flats in the last two weeks. One slow (looked like a wire from some radial) and one super fast, a two inch screw. I put some Slime in today, will be interesting to see how it does. Out of the nearly 13 mile ride, only two miles or so are on streets and really the threat is on the morning run....

 

[rannyv]

Thanks for your thoughtful review and good on you for doing the 26 mile one-way trip. That's more than twice what I was doing when I was working.

I have also experienced voltage sag and power loss on my 52V BBS-HD powered bike, but it was at more like 25% charge than 80%. There was voltage reduction before that point, but it did not affect power significantly until the battery got really low. I recently switched to a Bosch powered bike with 500WH 36V battery and power loss at low charge levels doesn't seem as noticable. I don't think there is a way to display voltage on the Bosch system, so I don't know if the sag is occurring.

 

[indianajo]

Glad your experience is positive.
To cut the incidence of tire repairs, I get good results from thick tread off road tires. I don't ride off road, and they are noisy, but turning the bike over and changing tubes (usually the rear) is a nuisance. I ride 2000 miles a year and usually can go over a year before the thread gets too thin and the tires pick up road trash. Kenda brand usually. The thin tread road tire that came with my new bike in January went flat in July. The front road tire got too thin in August, about 1000 miles.

 

[rannyv]

FWIW, I've had great luck with Schwalbe and super thick tubes. Expensive, but worth it. Any dedicated cyclist should know how to change a flat on the road and it's worth doing a dry run at home so you're comfortable with it. Some e-bikes can be a huge pain to remove the rear wheel (or front one if it's got a hub motor), but many flats can be repaired without removing the while. Flats can often be repaired in just a few minutes once you're comfortable doing it.

 

[mrgold35]

I love reading about you experiences with the Radcity Step-Thru. I purchased one for my wife around the same time; but, she only put less than 200 miles on it since. I have to ask her about the power drop-off once the city drops a few bars of power. Never felt this with the Radrover with the geared hub. Would be interesting to find out if the power issue is limited to the 18 models only (Step-thru, city, radwagon) or all generations models with regen direct drive hubs?

I did add an extra light that blinks/strobe for daytime because I think that get folks attention better than a solid light. Also added:
- Cloud-9 seat
- bodyfloat v2.0 suspension seatpost
- handlebar extender (for extra light and cell phone holder
- Topeak rack bag
- Mr. Tuffy liners with Stans tire sealant
- 1859 Northwest thumb throttle
- Lizard skins large clear frame protector for road side tube and step over area

 

[ebikemom]

Get your hills measured.

How do you do that? Do you use the veloroutes website?

 

[Auldphart]

I love reading about you experiences with the Radcity Step-Thru. I purchased one for my wife around the same time; but, she only put less than 200 miles on it since. I have to ask her about the power drop-off once the city drops a few bars of power. Never felt this with the Radrover with the geared hub. Would be interesting to find out if the power issue is limited to the 18 models only (Step-thru, city, radwagon) or all generations models with regen direct drive hubs?

I did add an extra light that blinks/strobe for daytime because I think that get folks attention better than a solid light. Also added:
- Cloud-9 seat
- bodyfloat v2.0 suspension seatpost
- handlebar extender (for extra light and cell phone holder
- Topeak rack bag
- Mr. Tuffy liners with Stans tire sealant
- 1859 Northwest thumb throttle
- Lizard skins large clear frame protector for road side tube and step over area

I have the large frame RadCity. Mrs A just got the step-thru a couple of weeks ago but she's a bit timid on it.

The one time I got down to a single flashing bar on the battery, about a mile from work, the bike really lagged in power. I wonder if it's the regen hubs as well...pedaling at PAS 0 was a real chore.

Flashing front strobe is good on the street but a PITA for other users on multi-use trails.

Like the look of the BodyFloat but $250 is pretty steep!

My traditional Kona used to be a converted e-bike (from Bike Swift) and came with some nice Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires that really impressed me when I rode that bike on the Palouse to Cascades trail from North Bend to the Columbia river earlier in the summer. Some fairly punishing areas on the last bits and the tires held up well. I would not use them if I do that ride again, though, as they were too narrow for the sandy sections through the Yakima Training Center. Thinking about swapping them onto the RadCity.

Changing/repairing the rear tire on this e-bike is not very much fun. I now carry CO2 and a spare tube at all times, along with side cutters and replacement zip ties. Has anyone found a portable pump that can inflate these high volume tires well? My current one is a joke.

How do you do that? Do you use the veloroutes website?

Veloroutes is an option. I use Strava but in this case I have a friend who is the city engineer and I just asked him. What I thought was steep was only 7.5% (not 10% as I said earlier).

 

[mrgold35]

I just use the flashing AUX light when on the road with vehicles during the day. I turn it off once on the bike trails.

I really like the Topeak Mountain Morph Bike Pump, Amazon, $35: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FI6XJE/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I can take a little force to put the valve on/off; but, the pump action is real easy. You can hold in both hands or pump very easy standing upright on the ground while you kneel. It takes about 13-15 pumps to equal 1 PSI for my Radrover (usually top off at 20-22 PSI). I haven't tried on the Radcity plus size tires with the 50-55 PSI rating. I just toss it in my foldout pannier on the Topeak Rack bag.

Side Note: I drop about 1-2 PSI on my rover in about a month; but, the PSI can drop 7-9 PSI for the Radcity for the same time. I have an old full size Schwinn bike pump at home and save the Topeak mini pump for the road.

I started out with the Suntour NCX SP-12 seatpost for about $100 and that is also a very good suspension seatpost. Both perform the same for medium to large bumps and undulating surfaces. The bodyfloat outshines the Suntour when the bumps have a lot of vibration or jack hammer effect like washboard surfaces, cracks in paved roads, or pockmarked trails. The Suntour would still be the 85%-90% solution if you wanted to upgrade to a suspension seatpost.

 

[MadManMark]

Auldphart, you sound just like us -- large frame RadCity for me, a Step-Thru for the wife. She's also still trying to get comfortable with it. In the meantime it's rather humorous when we go out together to be on ebikes and almost never pass any other bikers, even the human-pedaled folks pass us. Does that also sound familiar?

I haven't done any mods yet (well other than a seat replacement), but have the parts en route for my first one, I'm going to replace the rear freewheel with the 11-32t DNP that many others here have also done and raved about. Just on mine; obviously, per my description above, the current 14t highest gear has not yet become an issue for my better half

Regarding the flashing strobe, I hope it's at least dim (low lumens) & aimed down rather than at eye level (I'm assuming you positioned it facing forward). I see them sometimes when I'm out, whether on a bike or in a car, and I'll confess I've not been a fan most times I've seen one. Yes I see there's something there, but often I can't tell what you are, a biker pedestrian or ?, because the blinking light makes it impossible to see, sustain eye contact, and so on.

 

[Auldphart]

I just use the flashing AUX light when on the road with vehicles during the day. I turn it off once on the bike trails.

I really like the Topeak Mountain Morph Bike Pump, Amazon, $35: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FI6XJE/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I can take a little force to put the valve on/off; but, the pump action is real easy. You can hold in both hands or pump very easy standing upright on the ground while you kneel. It takes about 13-15 pumps to equal 1 PSI for my Radrover (usually top off at 20-22 PSI). I haven't tried on the Radcity plus size tires with the 50-55 PSI rating. I just toss it in my foldout pannier on the Topeak Rack bag.

Side Note: I drop about 1-2 PSI on my rover in about a month; but, the PSI can drop 7-9 PSI for the Radcity for the same time. I have an old full size Schwinn bike pump at home and save the Topeak mini pump for the road.

I started out with the Suntour NCX SP-12 seatpost for about $100 and that is also a very good suspension seatpost. Both perform the same for medium to large bumps and undulating surfaces. The bodyfloat outshines the Suntour when the bumps have a lot of vibration or jack hammer effect like washboard surfaces, cracks in paved roads, or pockmarked trails. The Suntour would still be the 85%-90% solution if you wanted to upgrade to a suspension seatpost.

Thank you for the suggestion on the pump. Just ordered one. I got a high volume floor pump for home that gets pressure up to 65psi in just a couple of minutes. The Kendas on the Radcity are rated something like 30-80 psi.

And also thanks for not using the strobe on the trails. I wish more riders would turn them off or go to steady-on mode -- they're really irritating/blinding when passing so closely.

 

[Auldphart]

Auldphart, you sound just like us -- large frame RadCity for me, a Step-Thru for the wife. She's also still trying to get comfortable with it. In the meantime it's rather humorous when we go out together to be on ebikes and almost never pass any other bikers, even the human-pedaled folks pass us. Does that also sound familiar?

I haven't done any mods yet (well other than a seat replacement), but have the parts en route for my first one, I'm going to replace the rear freewheel with the 11-32t DNP that many others here have also done and raved about. Just on mine; obviously, per my description above, the current 14t highest gear has not yet become an issue for my better half

Regarding the flashing strobe, I hope it's at least dim (low lumens) & aimed down rather than at eye level (I'm assuming you positioned it facing forward). I see them sometimes when I'm out, whether on a bike or in a car, and I'll confess I've not been a fan most times I've seen one. Yes I see there's something there, but often I can't tell what you are, a biker pedestrian or ?, because the blinking light makes it impossible to see, sustain eye contact, and so on.

My wife has not been brave enough to go on the trail yet and has only been passed by me . So far we've just done laps around the neighborhood. She doesn't hold a line very well yet -- needs more practice and even more so while going slowly uphill.

Looking forward to hearing how your new freewheel works out. That's my main complaint about this bike is that the gearing is not high enough. Was even worse when my derailleur wouldn't go into highest gear on my ride home yesterday. That's now set straight.

I don't use a strobing headlamp -- that's @mrgold35. I agree that some of them are viciously bright -- and usually on some trad biker going like hell on the trail. I dunno if they make a difference on the road but part of me wants to think that they at least get drivers to notice that a bike is out there. The stock headlight has been good so far in spring/summer use. Will have to see if that's the case once winter hours have the evening commute happening in full dark. Most of the trail I use has no lighting and can be pretty dark due to trees even in the full daylight.

 

[larry-new]

2018 Rad City here with almost 500 miles...have not ever noticed a fall-off in battery performance. I always recharge before the next ride.
The Slime should help your flats...I swear by Bike-On liquid, but that should do just fine. I've had two inside flats, caused by my habit of running at 80f/90#rear...solved by cloth rim tape, with the original rubber over that. I did exceed the generic 4oz./tire, as these fat tires needed more in my estimation. Not the responsibility of the liquid, btw.

The Niagara Escarpment, which causes Niagara Falls, continues to be a sharp hill for another thirty miles or so. Certain routes, and I have to deal with going back up it...it's 34 tooth and Pas 4, which doesn't seem to help a bit, but of course does. Other than that it's all gentle long grades, good territory for top gear and Pas 2/3.

Glad to see you've gotten in 1200 miles...keep smiling!

 

[CodyDog]

You are so right! I thought my hills were a lot steeper until I started using a GPS program. What I thought was be a 15% was only 10-12% which meansI can now use level 5 or throttle if needed. I also stop once and in a while and feel the motor on the hills. Never more than slightly warm. Of course it has been in the high 90's when I ride.

 

[BlueGenes]

I have a 2018 Rad City with over 1700 miles (purchased last February). I too have noticed a drop in "umph" after the battery goes below 80%. It's mildly annoying, but not a deal breaker, and I'm kind of used to it by this point.
I've had the battery down to one flashing bar a few times. The lack of power at that point is quite significant. To me it feels like I'm pedaling through deep, wet sand.
After three flats in the first 300 miles I replaced the cheap Kenda tires for Schwalbe Big Bens. I've had no flats since.
I have a very bright, flashing red, auxiliary light on my seat post. I additionally have another very bright, modulating white light attached to my handlebars. I've been told by some the white light is irritating to see coming. To this I say "good!" I once spent over three months in a wheel chair (and will never walk correctly again) because a car "didn't see" my bright red motorcycle. If someone is irritated by my light, it means they can clearly see me, and I'll live see another day.

 

[Auldphart]

Now just under 1600 miles. Daily commute is 26 miles round trip and I charge at both ends now. The ride home leaves me with approx 70-80% (very much a guesstimate based on the bars showing) and I really don't like climbing with less than that remaining as it seems like quite a lot more work than when it's closer to 80%.

Have had to adjust the brakes a couple of times. First for cable stretch and then did pad adjustment yesterday. Doing the rear pad adjustment requires removing the caliper, which is something of a pain, but once the right tools are in hand -- 5mm hex socket with extension -- not too terrible. So far my cheapo work stand (non-affiliate Amazon link) supports the bike adequately, making sure to remove the battery and panniers before using.

Most of my mods lately are figuring out clothing for commuting. Had one really wet ride home earlier this week and it was quite cold (for this time of year) this morning. Both situations will increase as fall and winter ramp up. I am finding I need a lot more insulation and wind protection than I did on my trad bike, due to faster speed and less self-heat generation. An extension flap to the front fender is definitely in the future -- the existing flap is not long/wide enough and feet get really wet when it's solid rain.

Side note: My wife's RadCity step-thru speed sensor is not working, probably since she got it. Was not discovered until I was following a friend trying it out and he immediately launched well past 20 mph. Zero MPH is what's displayed and odo does not accumulate. I suspect the controller is giving max power all the time as it doesn't think it's moving. This likely explains her nervousness on the bike, but she is not used to looking at the display and never noticed it. Bike is going back to the shop for warranty repair tomorrow. My only complaint about the Rad Power Bikes shop is that they are so busy that getting quick turnaround is tough. A good problem for them to have. All customer support contacts have been excellent.

Unexpected things I enjoy: having trad bikers draft off me. Many of them are quite happy and thank me when we part ways. Also enjoyed: the Angry Jogger Dude who has flipped me the bird numerous times, usually on the trip home. I love a good mystery.

 

[mrgold35]

Side note: My wife's RadCity step-thru speed sensor is not working, probably since she got it. Was not discovered until I was following a friend trying it out and he immediately launched well past 20 mph. Zero MPH is what's displayed and odo does not accumulate.

My 2016 Radrover started doing this after 2168 miles (out of warranty). No mph, trip computer, or odo readings. The throttle, PAS 0-5 levels, watt levels, and 20 mph motor cut-off all work fine. Worked with Rad and replaced LCD, wiring harness, and controller with no luck. Excellent customer service and they gave me a full refund on the 3 parts that didn't work. Narrowed down to the whatever sensor in the rear hub motor that calculates mph/odo is probably the issue. Replacement rear hub motor with rim is around $350. I just added a wired odo to the front wheel for $17 and called it a day.

 

[Auldphart]

My 2016 Radrover started doing this after 2168 miles (out of warranty). No mph, trip computer, or odo readings. The throttle, PAS 0-5 levels, watt levels, and 20 mph motor cut-off all work fine. Worked with Rad and replaced LCD, wiring harness, and controller with no luck. Excellent customer service and they gave me a full refund on the 3 parts that didn't work. Narrowed down to the whatever sensor in the rear hub motor that calculates mph/odo is probably the issue. Replacement rear hub motor with rim is around $350. I just added a wired odo to the front wheel for $17 and called it a day.

Sounds similar, but not exactly the same, as assist does not stop at 20MPH, it seems to stop at max ability of the motor. I'm glad we're doing this as a warranty repair and the mothership is a short drive away.

Forgot to add: I put the Suntour seatpost on the bike about 200 miles ago and really smoothed out the ride with the exceptions that @mrgold35 mentions. Recommended.

 

[Rover1701]

Have had to adjust the brakes a couple of times. First for cable stretch and then did pad adjustment yesterday. Doing the rear pad adjustment requires removing the caliper, which is something of a pain, but once the right tools are in hand -- 5mm hex socket with extension -- not too terrible.

Save yourself the hassle and get a quicker, better adjustment with one of these:

www.radpaul.weebly.com

(Link Removed - No Longer Exists)

 

[larry-new]

A set of t-handle metric hex wrenches (from Harbor Freight) make adjustments easy.

 

[Rover1701]

A set of t-handle metric hex wrenches (from Harbor Freight) make adjustments easy.

Thanks for the tip; can you please post a link as I've been looking for some T handle Hex wrenches?

BTW: I discovered that a regular hex wrench won't help with adjusting the inner rear brake pad on a RadCity, Step-Thru or RadWagon due to the large direct drive hub motor blocking easy access to the hex adjustment.

Usually, to properly adjust bicycle mechanical disc brakes, with only one moving brake pad, you need to adjust them while the caliper is mounted to the rotor.
Because of the large direct drive motor on the Rad ebikes, you can't easily access the rear pad hex adjustment without a special tool.
If you don't have a special thin handle hex wrench, you'll frustrate yourself, like I did, by removing the caliper to do the rear non-moving pad.
Removing the caliper to make adjustments to the non moving pad will put the front cable pull moving pad out of alignment, requiring re-adjustment, with no guarantee of getting the rear pad set correctly, making this a trial and error process.

My understanding is that these adjustments will maximize stopping power while minimizing brake rotor flex and also minimize pad drag and friction while the brakes are not applied. This is achieved by adjusting for proper gaps between both pads and rotor while the caliper is mounted to the rotor.

This reminds me of a discussion about car tire/wheel balancing. The thought was why can't a car wheel and tire be balanced separately, from the factory, before mounting tire to wheel. If this approach worked as well it would be common practice, eliminating a step when getting new tires. Sometimes adjustments need to be done while everything's in place.