Still searching for the perfect ultra-light ebike kit for road bikes — here’s the idea in my head

[PedalUma]

Made in the Basque Country actually. Pretty famously from there. Owned by a a worker cooperative originally established in 1840 by the Orbea brothers and currently selling approx 200,000 bikes a year. The Gain is hugely popular currently with 13 carbon & alloy versions on sale and winner of many awards including the US Outside magazine Gear Of The Year award in the road bike category. Pretty clear from your entries here you have zero clue about lightweight road bikes.

Oh, I know about them. I have ridden them and sold them; it is just not my cup of tea. Just like I am not into BMX. Those also are only for sport and it is funny to me to see an adult riding one. Not a great way to get around. Now Dutch bikes, that is more like it. They are practical, comfortable, solid, and useful. And you dress for your destination, not in a costume. And with real shoes so you do not click and walk like a slippery pregnant penguin on ice. A roadie will do 100k then drive three blocks to get a six-pack after. In parallel people will load BMX bikes in trucks to take to the park or track, not ride to there. Bike culture on the other hand makes cars useless, unnecessary, old fashioned, and obsolete. BMX are also lightweight and totally useless.

 

[Base]

a few moments a go I've seen the Ananda R820, looks promising. 40Nm at 2 kg, 142 roadboost TA.

 

[Katrina92]

There is also the KMC (the chain people) lightweight hub motor released last year:

KMC Kynamic hub motor review​

Pros
Compact
Lightweight
Nearly silent
Smooth response
Repairable

Cons
Small display

Features
Replaceable freehub
Removable from the hub shell for maintenance

Specifications
Kynamic 250W
36V
45Nm
142mm power hub with replaceable freehub
32-spokes

https://www.cyclingelectric.com/reviews/kmc-kynamic-hub-review

I might’ve missed it, but did they mention the weight anywhere?

 

[Katrina92]

If you look at the links I attached you'd see that this isn't the same model of Hyena motor on Treks but a new motor designed for road bikes released last month and due out later this year.

Set for a first showing at Taiwan’s leading trade show later this month and to appear on e-bikes from the middle of this year, the new H250 series is a second-generation system that somehow manages to shave 400 grams from the prior model’s weight, all the while reducing its overall size by 5%. This should further reduce the gap between e-bike weights and that of standard road bikes, a void that has only been reducing. Better still, Hyena’s presence will put more competition into a space where prices can be perceived as high.

Weight reduction is obviously a key design want from road and gravel bike makers, but so too is available power and with the new rear-hub motor Hyena ups its peak power availability to 425W, which will add excitement to road sprints and sharp inclines.

As an aside to this, Hyena has also introduced a new Thru-axle solution for the electric road segment, with the MRC-F250 motor landing again at the low weight of just 2kg (Mahle’s X20 is currently the lightest at 1.37kg, though this has only 23Nm of torque). This rear hub motor can be utilised on wheels of 26″, 27.5″ and 28″, assuming the frame allows a 142mm axle installation.

https://www.cyclingelectric.com/news/hyena-hub-motor

Totally agree – weight savings are a top priority for road and gravel builds. I’m curious about Hyena’s torque though – judging from the motor size, I’d guess it’s pushing 30Nm or more?

 

[Katrina92]

The Luna is 39 lbs. The OP rides a non-electric Scott Addict which probably weighs around 17 lbs. (unless she spent $16,000 for the 13 lbs. version). She thinks the Scott Addict eRide is too heavy at 24 lbs. The Luna is not in the same ballpark.

Luna does look pretty stealth — I wouldn’t have guessed it was an e-bike just by glancing. The internal gear hub actually looks really close to what I’ve been looking for.

 

[Katrina92]

Yes, a motor can offset the adverse effects of weight on acceleration and climbing. But motor or not, weight still counts WRT responsiveness and handling. And those qualities could well be important to someone with the OP's current lightweight road bike.

That’s why I’ve been more drawn to minimal, lightweight assist systems — just enough support without compromising the ride feel.

 

[Katrina92]

a few moments a go I've seen the Ananda R820, looks promising. 40Nm at 2 kg, 142 roadboost TA.

I took a quick look — seems like Ananda actually has more than one motor that fits road bikes. But I couldn’t really find much info on their battery options.

 

[Mike_V]

Luna does look pretty stealth — I wouldn’t have guessed it was an e-bike just by glancing. The internal gear hub actually looks really close to what I’ve been looking for.

Ballpark of $1,750 ? You made of money Cyclista ?
Or just MONTHLY Payments ?

Katrina ; You could be riding instead of Writing
An Electric Bike 'pulls it own weight' unless you ride without assist. Why bother because:
You have the Scott Bicycle for more exercise.
Ballpark? or Spectator ?

 

[Bicyclista]

I don't know if @Katrina92 is still around, but there is a Kickstarter project for a Superbike weighing less than 20 lbs. Apparently, they will achieve this low weight by making it all carbon fiber with a small hub motor and small integrated battery. Not my cup of tea, but this may be the way to get below 20 lbs on an ebike. I am not endorsing this project at all. Just posting the link for the community's information.

 

[jabberwocky]

I personally think its extremely foolish to crowdfund an ebike in 2025. Theres so much readily available on the market. Theres zero reason to crowdfund one and take on that financial risk. There is no guarantee you will ever get anything with kickstarter.

If the modern slate of ultra light ebikes aren't ultra light enough for you, just wait. They will get there eventually.

 

[stompandgo]

Wasn't Urtopia crowdfunded? Time will tell with them.

 

[Rás Cnoic]

I personally think its extremely foolish to crowdfund an ebike in 2025. Theres so much readily available on the market. Theres zero reason to crowdfund one and take on that financial risk. There is no guarantee you will ever get anything with kickstarter.

If the modern slate of ultra light ebikes aren't ultra light enough for you, just wait. They will get there eventually.

No need to wait. No need for small hub motor anymore either. The new TQ40 mid drive just released at Eurobike last week, is already on a Canyon Endurace ONfly weighing just over 21lbs. Full name the Endurace ONfly SUB 10 (for under 10kg). 40nm, 290wh battery:

Endurace:ONfly SUB-10

The world’s most advanced e-road bike Elite SUB-10 kg overall weight Natural-feeling motor support, road bike aesthetics Featherweight components, world-class carbon Special superlight high-vis artwork, integrated lighting

www.canyon.com

 

[PedalUma]

TQHPR40 bike motor

Newly unveiled electric bike motor is 'world's lightest, most efficient'

TQ, the German force behind some of the lightest and quietest e-bike motors on the market, just took a leap...

electrek.co

Solid State battery

Solid State Battery Technology | QuantumScape

QuantumScape’s innovative solid state battery technology brings us into a new era of energy storage with improved energy density, charging speeds and safety.

www.quantumscape.com

I want something higher performing by a factor of 2 or 3X, even if it weighs a little more. A six-year old who I took on a eCargo ride with his mom to get a fun outdoor lunch today said, 'Boys have three knees: Left knees, right knees and wienies!' I do not need to be a weight wienie. He made that up. Like when building a bridge, a little extra robustness is a good thing. I will take a Reynolds 631 steel over carbon any day. And a DM02 over a TQHR40. With the added power weight is not as large of a factor. I have also been riding analog a lot. It is faster than most eBikes when properly tuned.

 

[Catalyzt]

I don't know if @Katrina92 is still around, but there is a Kickstarter project for a Superbike weighing less than 20 lbs. Apparently, they will achieve this low weight by making it all carbon fiber with a small hub motor and small integrated battery. Not my cup of tea, but this may be the way to get below 20 lbs on an ebike. I am not endorsing this project at all. Just posting the link for the community's information.

The main reason I joined this forum was because in 2021 I stumbled across an Indiegogo project for (I think) a 39 pound aluminum hardtail for about $1,700. I think it was called Avarax.

I came SO close to buying it. My finger hovered over the 'buy' button for weeks. It was a very convincing project with a great website that showed bikes being assembled in the factory. They listed all the parts! And the physics almost checked out...

But not quite. I spent hours and hours adding up the numbers and looking at the costs, and finally realized: Not quite. This bike could not exist for this price.

Then I looked at the reviews for Indiegogo itself. I know lots of people will disagree with me, but I think the platform is, basically, a scam, and so is Kickstarter. They shouldn't be allowed to exist, or not to market directly to consumers. Just because some of the projects make it to market does not excuse having such a large percentage of revenue come from brazen thievery.

Of course, the bike did not exist. No bikes were ever delivered or ever existed. A Facebook group formed for disgruntled buyers and I followed it for months. Seems like about 20-30% of the buyers got some money back from their credit card companies, the rest were just out of luck.

 

[PedalUma]

Stripping away redundancy in the name of efficiency has a certain ideological appeal. But there is a practical reason aircraft have redundant systems: Back-ups of back-ups with a little added weight and some inefficiency. I do not want the lightest tires and fewest spokes, the lightest chain, or frame, or motor.

 

[PedalUma]

Another thing is where you ride. If that is not bike conducive, the bike may not be used much. I ride daily all year.
https://weatherspark.com/y/619/Average-Weather-in-Petaluma-California-United-States-Year-Round. Late afternoons and nights are cool all Summer. Winter is a green flowering extended Spring. Technical aspects matter less when you can ride more.

Petaluma Climate, Weather By Month, Average Temperature (California, United States) - Weather Spark

In Petaluma, the summers are long, warm, arid, and mostly clear and the winters are short, cold, wet, and partly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 39°F to 83°F and is rarely below 30°F or above 93°F.

weatherspark.com

Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Petaluma California, United States​

In Petaluma, the summers are long, warm, arid, and mostly clear and the winters are short, cold, wet, and partly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 39°F to 83°F and is rarely below 30°F or above 93°F.

 

[jabberwocky]

Then I looked at the reviews for Indiegogo itself. I know lots of people will disagree with me, but I think the platform is, basically, a scam, and so is Kickstarter. They shouldn't be allowed to exist, or not to market directly to consumers. Just because some of the projects make it to market does not excuse having such a large percentage of revenue come from brazen thievery.

Kickstarter/Indiegogo have their place, but I would always be extremely skeptical of any crowdfunding campaign that is basically "we, a small company you've never heard of, will totally be releasing a product that is better then [every product from large established companies with decades of experience] for [price that is less than anything on the market]. Hard to say if its a scam or just people completely in over their heads, but either way its generally not a wise bet. IMO. Its your money, I suppose.

Crowdfunding sites ethical failure is they make it real easy to think you're purchasing a product, just in advance. You aren't. You're investing in a startup. And many (most?) startups fail.

 

[stompandgo]

The only product I've invested in via crowdfunding was the original Cycliq Fly6. It had plenty of issues during the beta, with terrible support, but they eventually made most of the promised features work successfully. I rode with it until the internal battery died, then upgraded to the Fly6 CE, which I currently use. They never got the Garmin Light Network (automatic start and stop) to work correctly. Otherwise, the video is crisp, the lights are bright, and it runs for quite a while. I don't think I'll ever take that risk again, though.

 

[Catalyzt]

Kickstarter/Indiegogo have their place, but I would always be extremely skeptical of any crowdfunding campaign that is basically "we, a small company you've never heard of, will totally be releasing a product that is better then [every product from large established companies with decades of experience] for [price that is less than anything on the market]. Hard to say if its a scam or just people completely in over their heads, but either way its generally not a wise bet. IMO. Its your money, I suppose.

Crowdfunding sites ethical failure is they make it real easy to think you're purchasing a product, just in advance. You aren't. You're investing in a startup. And many (most?) startups fail.

Your take on this is more level-headed than mine. That's exactly it-- if it were clearer you were investing in a startup, that would level the playing field a bit more. I also think that Indiegogo and KS could be more proactive about flagging high-risk projects or potential scams.

 

[PedalUma]

dang,a bikers wet dream!

For a cyclist I have it pretty good. Also everything grows here. I bit off half a dried fig and put the other half in the ground. Now I have a fig tree. We also have things such as redwoods. The down side is for people with allergies. Again, because everything they are allergic to also grows here.