48V 1,000W eBay kits?

I often get questions from customers asking if we carry a 1,000W kit. The simple answer is there is no such thing. It is just a selling tactic. A true 1,000W wheel/motor weighs on the order of 50 lbs. What they are doing is simply overvolting a 500W motor. so that it is pulling the same amount of amps as a 1,000W motor. Our motors can run up to 750W without generating any heat due to over amperage. Keep in mind if you over volt our kits you will be voiding your warranty as our product liability only allows the federal law speed, not to mention that overvolting for higher speeds is incredibly dangerous.

Range??
I often get asked what kind of range I get. The large companies and some eBay'ers will tell you that you will get 20 miles from 12AH batteries without pedaling at all. This is just a flat out lie, unless you weigh 60 lbs and happen to live in a vacuum. If you use the kits as they are supposed to be used "pedal assist" is the key word here there is really no limit on the mileage you can get out of a pack (within reason).

Front VS Rear?

Front wheel kits= easy to install, easy to maintain. This is the best for balance if you are using SLA batteries on a rear mounted rack because of the weight.

Rear wheel kits= harder to install, Installation only for the very mechanically inclined or professional. Only enough space for 7 rear speeds max (we ship with 5 speed). Bad balance if you are using heavy SLA batteries... Good for wheelies lol but bad and unsafe balance with SLA. Good points are that they are a slightly more natural feeling ride when using lightweight Lifepo4 batteries.

Will it fit on my bike?

Read the writing on your bicycles tires. for 26" to make sure (a 26" rim is actually about 22 1/2" if you measure across the rim, they call it 26 because that is the overall diameter after the tire is installed). For front wheel kits you will need a minimum of 3 3/4" between the dropouts. For rear kits you will need minimum of 5 3/8" between the dropouts. (side note rear kits come with a 5 speed cluster, they are capable of accepting a 7 speed but it is a tight squeeze.)

Why do we use a Double Walled rim and heavy duty 12Gauge spokes??

In the beginning we tried various kits and many of the brushless motors were very good motors. The problem with most of the conversion kits available are that they are spoked incorrectly, use a single walled weak rim., have spokes that are the wrong length causing the spokes to be bent in an "s" shape. Simply put bicycle wheels were not made for this type of torque on them and on occasion you will need to tighten your spokes until they finally "seat" themselves.

Speed

All of our E-Bike hub kits use the same 9x7 windings. The 26" runs right at 23mph, but the 700c runs 2-3 mph faster and the 20" runs about 2-3 mph slower.

Brushed VS Brushless?

What's the big difference? The main differences are that a brushless motor is close to 30% more efficient than a brushed motor. This means 30% more range/distance. The main reasons that brushless motors are more efficient is that they are microprocessor controlled in the same way that the magnetic levitated trains are, the microprocessor reads where the motor is and tells the next electro magnet to push it along. Also brushed motors lose much of their power due to heat loss at the brushes that rub on the shaft.

All of the designer brand name brushless hub motors are all basically the same with the exception of the windings and bearings. The windings inside the motor simply determine torque or speed, much in the same way gears do and the only other thing was the bearings, but the kits vary in price from $400 all the way up to $1300.

Warranty..

Your kit is covered bumper for 90 days. These kits are flawless and will last you a lifetime. What we do not cover is over voltage, we do not cover if you spin out the axles inside of your dropouts. We do not cover if you burn the speed controller by connecting backwards. We stand 100% behind our products. If in fact you connected your battery backward and fried the speed controller we can tell immediately. So please if you have done this be honest and we will work with you.

All kits are bench tested as a complete unit with all of the components in your box. We are unable to be there when the kit is installed so it is up to you to understand the high torque involved at the dropouts and install them correctly. These kits are over designed to put up with the harshest conditions and are completely over engineered.

The motors are tank tested and designed to be run completely submerged while running for 6 days! I don't suggest using it as a boat motor, but if the odd situation came around you can feel confident that it could lol...

Also these kits are capable of running at higher voltages with no modification. Although we will not warranty anything over 36V. At 36V it runs at the correct and safe speed that it was meant for. If you are running at 72V and fry your controller please do not try and return to me as we will know immediately upon opening the speed controller what happened to it.

.If for any reason you do not feel confident about installing our kit then you should have it professionally done as you may harm your kit, you may harm yourself. All kits must be shipped back with all original connectors for any warranty work. If the kit has been altered in any way it is not covered by warranty. We will not pay for any shipping costs unless it was an actual component failure. We have had less than 10 in 5 years returned that had actually had a manufacturing failure

Aluminum forks?

You cannot use aluminum forks with ANY electric hub kit. Aluminum forks are "cast" aluminum at the dropouts and are not malleable (they will not give) the twist force generated by the axle WILL break them . Its a simple test. If a magnet sticks to your forks you are ok. Steel, Chrome molly etc are malleable and can take the stresses at the dropouts. aluminum forks are primarily cast at the dropout points and are not malleable at all and unfortunately will break. I learned this the hard way by ruining a set of $700 suspension forks.

Aluminum frames?

Aluminum frames are predominantly standard aluminum and not "cast" aluminum and should be fine.

Regenerative Braking?

At best regenerative braking restores 3% (that's 3 miles for every 100) in mild hilly areas and 5-6% in very hilly mountain areas. But the problem is that it will ruin most batteries by forcing too much amperage into them, also weakens the dropouts on the bikes by twisting the axle back and forth. So at this time regen braking is basically a gimmick and in my personal opinion it is not worth it because it can harm a $700 Lifepo4 battery pack and work the dropouts loose.

I thought hard on this, crunched the numbers, asked every vendor, talked to many people with regen systems and we decided against it until a new generation of regen with a soft engage and a better system for returning the amperage to the batteries.

Batteries!!

We have manufactured our own battery, found on our home page. I will update the website when these are available.

There are many different options for batteries these days. So I will make a list from high end to standard.

1. Phylion, Phylions are Lithium Manganese and are 4-5 year old proven technology. They deliver more amperage than Lifepo4, have proven BMS and cell balancing and are lighter weight.
3. NiMH, (nickel metal hydride) These are good lightweight batteries but also costly the technology is a bit old bit they are still 3x as good as Lead Acid if you can get a deal on them. Again you want a pack with charger at 36V 10AH-20AH. The cost on these will run from $250-$350 and again search EBay for the best deals.
5. Lifepo4, (lithium iron phosphate) are in fact the best technology out there but unfortunately they are very sensitive batteries. Many companies claim up to 2,000 lifecycles but unfortunately the proper BMS (battery management system) and cell balancing system circuit board costs more than the batteries themselves. I personally have 14 on my shelf and none have lasted more than a month due to poor BMS or cell balancing circuit.
7. SLA (Sealed Lead Acid) These are heavy and old technology but cheap. It is tried and true and will get you through your first year or two of your E-bike. These are the ones that we use for our kits.