Trying to buy an e-bike, lost with all the choices, care to help?

[rz514]

Hello everyone,

Before making this thread I did research a lot and the more i researched, the more I got lost! lol, there are WAY too many choices\parts out there to make a proper decision with I don't have that much experience with bike parts in general...

My budget sweet spot would be 3000$ and up to 4000$ canadian.

Usage: going from house to bike trails (road pavement, gravel road, sand\earth trails in forest\mountain). would be like 70% road 30% trails +/- i don't think i'll hit the mountain bike trails with the e-bike, but if it can be all in one for this usage, why not.

Would like something comfortable with a more upright posture as long forward leaning rides can mess with my back issues and around 70km distance autonomy would be nice, or more.

I feel like a electric mountain bike would be too forward for posture.. I have a trek marlin 6 and after a while being forward while riding on the road starts to get me but maybe there is a e-bike out there that can do roads and trails without having a too forward posture? or perhaps an adjustable way for straight posture when on roads and forward posture when in trails?

thanks in advance


edit: i'm 6ft'1 and 220lbs

 

[indianajo]

The elektra townie wins the prize for extremely upright. Today there is only one post on "known problems & solutions" thread of brand forum. https://electra.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/townie/
Your size limb length and weight matter. If you are "normal" size, 5'8" to 6'6" most bikes will fit you. Otherwise you need to look for special frames.
Posture change requires an adjustment to the handlebar stem on the road. As this joint can throw you if it gets loose I don't suggest doing that.
Gravel trails indicate a bike with 1.75" tires to 2.7" tires IMHO. I've ridden gravel on 1 3/8" tires but the wider ones work better. Almost all e-bikes except "fat tire" bikes have those these days. I suggest 26" wheels or bigger are suitable for rough surfaces.
Torque sensing is a nice feature to have, making the ride much more natural than fixed speed cadance assist. One popular bike with few complaints on "known problems and solutions" is surface604. It does come in 2 sizes frames. https://surface604bikes.com/
Your budget leaves out most mid drives although some would qualify. You find these for sale in bike shops mostly, as mid-drive is required for climbing mountains of over 333 meters in an hour.
Kona is one brand which has no posts on "known problems & solutions" but has been around since 2010. Their ecoco for $2999 looks useful. https://www.konaworld.com/bikes_electric.cfm
Blix Sol & Aveny are upright bikes that meet your price point. www.blixbike.com They have no complaints on "known problems and solutions" thread today. These are geared hub motor bikes, as I ride.

 

[Bicyclista]

I have back issues too. I modified both my 2016 Haibike full-suspension mountain bike and my 2022 all-terrain Yuba cargo bike so that I could ride upright. I added stem risers and stem spacers to raise the handlebars and I replaced the handlebars with Jones H-Bars with 2.5-inch rise. The Jones H-Bars have a 45-degree sweep for more a comfortable hand position, and there is plenty of real estate on them for alternate hand positions (helpful on a long ride), and accesories such as bells, cameras, lights, smarphones, etc. I also replaced the stem on the Yuba with a very short stem to shorten the reach. I was fortunate that both bikes had enough slack on all cables to allow this modification. Otherwise, re-cabling is a lot of work and can be expensive.

So, I would say, look for a mountain ebike that has enough cable slack to allow raising the handlebars. That will probably be the best match for the kind of riding you propose to do. Good luck!

 

[rz514]

The elektra townie wins the prize for extremely upright. Today there is only one post on "known problems & solutions" thread of brand forum. https://electra.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/townie/
Your size limb length and weight matter. If you are "normal" size, 5'8" to 6'6" most bikes will fit you. Otherwise you need to look for special frames.
Posture change requires an adjustment to the handlebar stem on the road. As this joint can throw you if it gets loose I don't suggest doing that.
Gravel trails indicate a bike with 1.75" tires to 2.7" tires IMHO. I've ridden gravel on 1 3/8" tires but the wider ones work better. Almost all e-bikes except "fat tire" bikes have those these days. I suggest 26" wheels or bigger are suitable for rough surfaces.
Torque sensing is a nice feature to have, making the ride much more natural than fixed speed cadance assist. One popular bike with few complaints on "known problems and solutions" is surface604. It does come in 2 sizes frames. https://surface604bikes.com/
Your budget leaves out most mid drives although some would qualify. You find these for sale in bike shops mostly, as mid-drive is required for climbing mountains of over 333 meters in an hour.
Kona is one brand which has no posts on "known problems & solutions" but has been around since 2010. Their ecoco for $2999 looks useful. https://www.konaworld.com/bikes_electric.cfm
Blix Sol & Aveny are upright bikes that meet your price point. www.blixbike.com They have no complaints on "known problems and solutions" thread today. These are geared hub motor bikes, as I ride.

Thanks for the reply and the information!
I was actually looking at surface 604 bikes, the Shred is interesting! seems to have good reviews and a upright \forward position in reviews.. I think i prefer more something like this than the elektra townie for example, just because i will be doing some light trails with it and by the looks of that bike i am not sure that will be suitable for that purpose haha!

my worry about getting a mountain bike type was that i would be too forward however if it has a upright body position and maybe i can use some stem risers and such as user Bicyclista replied with his mods, perhaps that can be a good match?

There is no "best mountain bike" section on this website, but mostly reviews on mountain bikes and it was over 80 pages lol, is there a why to get a top 10 of those type of bikes somehow? I feel like even though my mountain trail usage will be less than road usage, perhaps going the mountain bike route as long as i can configure it differently to be more upright, be a good bet? i guess i can always remove the mods easily if i were to go on more trails..
Are there other contenders to do surface 604 Shred bike? with the bigger battery pack it has a pretty good range! it's a hard tail though, would've been nice to have a top 10 page so i can check if theres maybe a dual suspension around the same price or at 4k

 

[rz514]

I have back issues too. I modified both my 2016 Haibike full-suspension mountain bike and my 2022 all-terrain Yuba cargo bike so that I could ride upright. I added stem risers and stem spacers to raise the handlebars and I replaced the handlebars with Jones H-Bars with 2.5-inch rise. The Jones H-Bars have a 45-degree sweep for more a comfortable hand position, and there is plenty of real estate on them for alternate hand positions (helpful on a long ride), and accesories such as bells, cameras, lights, smarphones, etc. I also replaced the stem on the Yuba with a very short stem to shorten the reach. I was fortunate that both bikes had enough slack on all cables to allow this modification. Otherwise, re-cabling is a lot of work and can be expensive.

So, I would say, look for a mountain ebike that has enough cable slack to allow raising the handlebars. That will probably be the best match for the kind of riding you propose to do. Good luck!

ah so its always possible to modify any ebike with stem risers and such to make it a more upright position? as i mentionned in other reply from other user, perhaps even though i plan to do more road % than mountain trail, it would be a better idea to get a mountain bike model and just mod it when necessary to match my road needs? i feel like the other bike "model types" that were mentionned like the elektra townie wouldn't work out too well in forest trails lol

 

[AHicks]

I've just gotten used to the idea I'm going to have to set up about anything I buy to get the riding position I prefer. Generally, I end up running right up to the max. height I can get with the standard cables and that works pretty good. To get there it's about handlebars and the handlebar riser for me. I don't care for the extensions and shims, preferring something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/TRIWONDER-Adjustable-Mountain-Handlebar-Bicycle/dp/B08F7PHCJH/ref=sr_1_41?crid=1F9E8BYLSHJ0B&keywords=handlebar%2Briser&qid=1654370199&sprefix=handlebar%2520riser%2Caps%2C121&sr=8-41&th=1

And handlebars with built in rise that are also pulled back for wrist comfort.

Amazon.com

Then there's the seat, suspension seat post and hand grips. At that point, it's starting to get pretty comfortable.....

You can get a lot of bike on your budget. Have a look at the Rize bikes, and maybe Biktrix.

Suggest you consider the differences between geared rear hub power, and the mid drives. Difference here can make all the difference in the world when it comes to climbing power. Homework here will pay off for you....

 

[Tartanlad]

Step thru is the way for you ..Its way i went for first such frame in all my days of riding bicycles and why also recently
ive went the e bike route the step thru as opposed to mans bike with bar along top
Step thru bikes are classed as Unisex , and i even went for ladies type saddle for more comfort
and dont give ajot what any one thinks .

I got my e bike from Bikester in Germany and all good although i havent been out hardly with it
apart from one ride , though i intend to get out much more in next few weeks and months
back problems made me go for step thru as easier to get on and off makes sense .

 

[dmark]

When in doubt, get the Biktrix Juggernaut. Personally, I think the Monte Capro (One of the most expensive bikes in the Biktrix lineup) is overkill for your planned use.

Biktrix and Rize are two Canadian companies that now have bikes in local bike shops in major Canadian cities.

Rize is very affordable but with lower end components. Biktrix is still very affordable compared to competitors.

I have a Rize Blade and a Biktrix Juggernaut Ultra. The hub drive Blade gets more battery life, but the mid drive Ultra climbs much better.

I recommend getting a large battery (and a spare), or even a dual battery option because the website estimates (of virtually all ebike companies) of battery life are huge overestimates.

 

[Alaskan]

Hi,

Have a nice day and all the best.
This is Changzhou Feinidi Co., Ltd. Located in Changzhou, China.
We build e-bikes according to your wishes, but we can build them at a more competitive price.
Please send us OEM or ODM inquiries. thanks.

best wishes
Marcus Liu
Sales Manager
Changzhou Feinidi Co., Ltd.
WhatsApp: +86 17768253673
EBIKE sales link : https://finiti.en.alibaba.com/?spm=a2700.7756200.0.0.145d71d2c8w4cz

Your post is totally inappropriate. There is a classified forum where this belong. You should not be hocking your junky ebikes directly to our members like this. Your posting here is most unwelcome.