The eBike thread

reni10

Outlaw Pete wrote: »

Some further thoughts on the Fiido D2S after another few days of living with it.

Biggest gripe would be that when using the highest setting, battery life only lasts for 20km and as low as 15km if using the throttle at its max. A little jerky at times with regards to power delivery too but overall I'd still recommend one as they're really fun to use and a great alternative to the stand-up scooters I think.

My nephew has pretty much nicked it off me now and so looks like I'll be getting something else that maybe better suit my needs. The D2S is excellent for whizzing about the local area or even the city to avoid the traffic but wouldn't be at all suited for rides over 15km to 20km and that's what I think I'd prefer.

The Fiido was my first foray into the world of ebikes and have to say it has for sure resulted in me being bitten by the bug. Not sure what I'll get next but it'll be have to have bigger wheels, better battery life and most likely something a little faster too.

I am looking at a Fiido D2S as well and hoping to have it once it is back in stock by the end of this month.

Any other things to look out for and also if you did give up the D2S what did you get next?

unkel

Picked up another cheap, but dead, electric scooter last week. Pretty cool yoke. Looks like a pedelec too, so road legal (you can fit pedals to it, but it's not exactly assist only)

Tidied it up, ripped out the dead lead acid batteries, rewired the essentials and moved all the electronics from the open box that even with a cover would have been a trap for moisture to under the seat. Adjusted my vruzend battery to make a 36V pack, made up some wires, connected it all up and off she went

reni10

unkel wrote: »

Picked up another cheap, but dead, electric scooter last week. Pretty cool yoke. Looks like a pedelec too, so road legal (you can fit pedals to it, but it's not exactly assist only)

Tidied it up, ripped out the dead lead acid batteries, rewired the essentials and moved all the electronics from the open box that even with a cover would have been a trap for moisture to under the seat. Adjusted my vruzend battery to make a 36V pack, made up some wires, connected it all up and off she went

Where did you get something like that?

It looks more like a moped than a bike!

unkel

Adverts.ie

It's where I buy and sell almost all of my second hand things. And have done for a very long time.

John Hutton

Thought I'd give a quick update on how I'm getting on with my BBS02 touring bike conversion.

I had the speed limit on it set to 40kmph. This is way too fast and a little scary. By default it was set to 9 assist levels. This was way too many and got annoying having to change this frequently as well as the bikes normal gears. The assist level changer requires a firm enough press which can easily not register if you sorta just snatch at it coming up to a junction. If I was in assist level 8 or 9 and came to a stop at traffic lights and forgot to switch down the assist levels taking off again was scary and more than a little dangerous. I switched it to five assist levels which exacerbated things because when in a low assist level, because there were only five, it was still too powerful for slow manouvers. I have since reduced the speed limit to a road legal 25 and the assist levels to only 3. This is much more user friendly and "street legal".

When the prospect of encountering gardai on my private road is gone (covid restrictions) I may up the speed to a Max of 28 or 30 bit there is no real need.

I have found myself for at least half of the time cycling faster than the 25 under my own steam on the flat with the motor kicking in on hills or when I decide to relax a little. I am getting great distances, since my last charge I have covered 100km and the battery voltage is still 46v, around 40% or so. This is with moderate exercise, think the level of a brisk walk, never out of breath.

I have a 90km cycle planned which should be amply covered by my battery the way I use it.

At the outset in the thread I was anxious to basically flatten the hills and get a range of 100km. BBS02 was worked out great.

Only slight thing I would reccomend to someone else would be to fit it to a touring bike which allows you to fit wider tires. I can only fit 28s on mine, which is fine, but 35 would be a little nicer I think.

unkel

Not sure if I mentioned it on here already, but I did a speed test of my BBS02B in the air and I think it reached 64km/h

On the road even with this big heavy man (100kg) on it, it can reach nearly 45km/h, which is insanely fast. I would be plenty happy with a 30km/h restriction on eBikes if that meant we could have our bikes as pedelecs meaning no insurance, no license, no tax, no helmet.

loughside

John Hutton wrote: »

I switched it to five assist levels which exacerbated things because when in a low assist level, because there were only five, it was still too powerful for slow manouvers.

You really need to get yourself that programming cable and pull those amps down on the first couple of assists, (Limit Current).... it makes all the difference... smoother

John Hutton

loughside wrote: »

You really need to get yourself that programming cable and pull those amps down on the first couple of assists, (Limit Current).... it makes all the difference... smoother

I have the cable but to be completely honest, despite reading loads, I don't really understand the settings and how it works or what I'd be changing. Bit reluctant to tinker around without knowing what I'm actually changing. I understand people have posted their settings but I don't like messing with things when I don't understand the concept and implication of the settings I'm changing

atahuapla

reni10 wrote: »

I am looking at a Fiido D2S as well and hoping to have it once it is back in stock by the end of this month.

Any other things to look out for and also if you did give up the D2S what did you get next?

I'm seeing these pop up everywhere. They seem to be catching on with jungfellas in a big way.

I was researching them for ages in Jan for my commute but alas, since COVID, i no longer have a commute.
Another one you should check out before you pull the trigger is the Alfawise X1.
This guys is pretty convinced that it beats the Fiido.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeujpolkPoE

Joe1919

John Hutton wrote: »

.......By default it was set to 9 assist levels. This was way too many and got annoying having to change this frequently as well as the bikes normal gears. ........slow manouvers.
.....touring bike which allows you to fit wider tires. I can only fit 28s on mine, which is fine, but 35 would be a little nicer I think.

Glad to see things going well. As regards above, a pas cadence sensor only takes pedal motion into account (and not pressure/torque) so may not be as maneuverable as torque sensor or throttle. They do work a bit better (I think) when used in conjunction with a throttle by setting the pas level low (cruising speed) and giving the throttle a blip when you need the extra power.
Torque sensor kits (e.g TSDZ2) have a slight advantage here but on the other hand they need a bit of pressure kept on the pedals which can be a bit tiring (for me anyway).
Re tyres etc, one of the advantages of motor kits is that they can be transferred to another bike reasonably easily if the owner is mechanically inclined. Your kit would fit easily on many hybrid or mountain bike which can be got reasonably cheaply and are ideal donor bikes. I paid 20 euro for bike below.

championc

Hi all,

I hope that someone can help me. I have an eBike PAS sensor which I think may not be working. I'm looking for a way to test it.

From what I have read, it seems that the sensor has one or two reed switches inside. I'm thinking therefore that as a sensor passes a magnet, it will close the reed switch, meaning that I should have continuity through two of the three cables. I currently don't get any continuity.

Photo attached

Joe1919

championc wrote: »

Hi all,

I hope that someone can help me. I have an eBike PAS sensor which I think may not be working. I'm looking for a way to test it.

From what I have read, it seems that the sensor has one or two reed switches inside. I'm thinking therefore that as a sensor passes a magnet, it will close the reed switch, meaning that I should have continuity through two of the three cables. I currently don't get any continuity.

Photo attached

Hi. The pas sensor contains a 'hall sensor' which is solid state and does not have mechanical contacts, so you will not get continuity. The three wires usually are negative (ground), plus 5 volts, and the pulse wire to the controller. Replacements are reasonably cheap but you need a left side sensor. There are two common faults, the first been the magnet moving away from sensor leaving too wide of a gap and can be fixed by re-positioning of magnet; the second is water getting in.
Testing depends on situation and wiring. What type of plug is fitted on controller end of sensor? Photo?

championc

Joe1919 wrote: »

Hi. The pas sensor contains a 'hall sensor' which is solid state and does not have mechanical contacts, so you will not get continuity. The three wires usually are negative (ground), plus 5 volts, and the pulse wire to the controller. Replacements are reasonably cheap but you need a left side sensor. There are two common faults, the first been the magnet moving away from sensor leaving too wide of a gap and can be fixed by re-positioning of magnet; the second is water getting in.
Testing depends on situation and wiring. What type of plug is fitted on controller end of sensor? Photo?

The controller and the sensor connectors clip perfectly together. The sensor has a Red, Blue and Yellow wire cable, with the Blue being linked to the pulse cable from the controller.

You can see from my previously attached photo that I left little or no gap between the sensor and the magnet wheel. Can it be too close ?

Joe1919

I am assuming connector is like above. Using multi meter in 20v scale and with pas connected, connect black neg lead to yellow wire and red positive lead to blue wire and when rotating pedal forward, the meter should pulse from about 0 volt to about 4.2 volt every time magnet passes sensor. Connecting the meter can be tricky. You may need 'shirt pins' on ends of probes to puncture plastic wire to get connection so as to avoid cutting cables. You may need bike on stand or take chain off chainwheel. Do not shortcircuit the 5 volts or you may damage controller. I dont think the magnet can be too close, other than causing it to rub off sensor etc but I think a gap of about 1.2mm or so in norm.

championc

Joe1919 wrote: »

I am assuming connector is like above. Using multi meter in 20v scale and with pas connected, connect black neg lead to yellow wire and red positive lead to blue wire and when rotating pedal forward, the meter should pulse from about 0 volt to about 4.2 volt every time magnet passes sensor. Connecting the meter can be tricky. You may need 'shirt pins' on ends of probes to puncture plastic wire to get connection so as to avoid cutting cables. You may need bike on stand or take chain off chainwheel. Do not shortcircuit the 5 volts or you may damage controller. I dont think the magnet can be too close, other than causing it to rub off sensor etc but I think a gap of about 1.2mm or so in norm.

Thanks @Joe1919

It's hard to know if my wiring is actually correct or if it's a dud sensor. Attached is a photo of my connection. When disconnected, I measured the controller connection with the Negative being the Black cable, I was getting about 5.35v on the Yellow/Blue cable, and just under 5v on the Pink/White.

Assuming that Black --> Yellow is correct, with getting nothing working when Pink/White --> Red and Yellow/Blue --> Blue, i swapped these both around and (Pink/White --> Blue and Yellow/Blue --> Red, but still nothing)

Can I just go through all 6 permutations of
1,2,3 --> 1,2,3
1,2,3 --> 1,3,2
1,2,3 --> 2,1,3
1,2,3 --> 2,3,1
1,2,3 --> 3,1,2
1,2,3 --> 3,2,1
without the fear of blowing something ?

Joe1919

championc wrote: »

Thanks @Joe1919

...It's hard to know if my wiring is actually correct or if it's a dud sensor. ....

Can I just go through all 6 permutations of .....
without the fear of blowing something ?

Ah....Is it the case that this sensor has worked in the past but no longer does,
or,
you are fitting this as a replacement sensor,
or
you are fitting a sensor for the first time to this bike.

Re permutations, I dont think you will do harm.

championc

Joe1919 wrote: »

Ah....Is it the case that this sensor has worked in the past but no longer does,
or,
you are fitting this as a replacement sensor,
or
you are fitting a sensor for the first time to this bike.

Re permutations, I dont think you will do harm.

I'm building a bike for my Dad. I'm retrofitting his current bike. 1st ebike. Everything working except this. I have the throttle connected for testing, but I'll be disconnecting it before giving the bike back to him - I couldn't trust what he might do by mistake.

Joe1919

championc wrote: »

I'm building a bike for my Dad. I'm retrofitting his current bike. 1st ebike. Everything working except this. I have the throttle connected for testing, but I'll be disconnecting it before giving the bike back to him - I couldn't trust what he might do by mistake.

So is it a kit that you have fitted? Normally they come with all the components matched and they plug in together, the only wiring is with the battery if not supplied with kit.
There are some controllers that do not support pedal assist or need a matching handlebar switch/led/display unit to enable/disable pedal assist or to set the pas level.
Also the pedal assist sensor is designed for a particular side of bike (left or right) with magnet wheel in correct rotation.

championc

Joe1919 wrote: »

So is it a kit that you have fitted? Normally they come with all the components matched and they plug in together, the only wiring is with the battery if not supplied with kit.
There are some controllers that do not support pedal assist or need a matching handlebar switch/led/display unit to enable/disable pedal assist or to set the pas level.
Also the pedal assist sensor is designed for a particular side of bike (left or right) with magnet wheel in correct rotation.

It's a complete DIY jobbie. I bought all components separately. I've built a battery pack. I got a 28" wheel built here from a hub motor I bought becuase the wheel is narrow and most kits with big wheels were only for wide wheels

So if the PAS is the wrong way around, I assume it should work if I back pedal.

Do you think I can safely go through all permutations of the wiring ?

Joe1919

championc wrote: »

Do you think I can safely go through all permutations of the wiring ?

I think you can as the power and voltage is low.

championc

Anyone know anywhere in Dublin where I might be able to get a replacement PAS ? No joy in Cycle superstore, Halfords or MacDonalds rathgar. Joe Daly's Dundrum closed

Sheep Shagger

championc wrote: »

Anyone know anywhere in Dublin where I might be able to get a replacement PAS ? No joy in Cycle superstore, Halfords or MacDonalds rathgar. Joe Daly's Dundrum closed

Trying giving these guys a shout.

https://www.greenaer.ie

championc

Sheep Shagger wrote: »

Trying giving these guys a shout.

https://www.greenaer.ie

Crap, they close at 4, and no answer on the phone

championc

Joe1919 wrote: »

I think you can as the power and voltage is low.

Hopefully all is not lost. I broke it open and it looks like the GND pin connection has broken off inside the hall effect sensor

unkel

Well done! That's most likely your culprit.

championc

Crap - Still no joy.

I'm beginning to question the controller. The two legs of the controller cable with + volts are both reading about 5v (even with the PAS disconnected) whereas I'm sure the return signal cable should be near to zero ???

I assume that the throttle controller output should be similar or identical to the PAS connection ?

Could I use the Throttle cable for the PAS ?

The throttle works but I don't intend to use it.

championc

Further update - I ran just the + and - legs to the PAS. I assume that I should have been able to read something from the signal cable, which I sort of did (very low volts)

What sort of voltage should I see on the signal line coming back ?

Joe1919

championc wrote: »

Further update - I ran just the + and - legs to the PAS. I assume that I should have been able to read something from the signal cable, which I sort of did (very low volts)

What sort of voltage should I see on the signal line coming back ?

I think you sometimes need a 'pullup resistor' of about 10k ohms ( I think) between the hall output and the 5v positive if testing the hall output when not connected to controller.
You can for example bench test things like pas sensor, throttles etc by connecting 5 volts from say a mobile phone charger and a pullup resistor (if necessary) in this way.
I would expect to see something like .5v to 4.5 volts pulses when magnets pass over sensor.

Joe1919

championc wrote: »

Crap - Still no joy.
Could I use the Throttle cable for the PAS ?

No

liamog

Anybody else willing to try an e-bike from a washing machine motor


https://www.autoevolution.com/news/guy-builds-himself-an-e-bike-with-washing-machine-motor-able-to-do-68-mph-146128.html?fbclid=IwAR3D9m3dKV53mlfS7NlFd4FM5-yTa9aaqZYKYYcmGnAynrThR0f_DuWCWLA#agal_0