The e-bike thread.
08-02-2011, 01:26 PM
#121
Boost Pope
Thread Starter
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,019
Total Cats: 6,587
It's funny, actually.
Endless-Sphere seems to be the EV equivalent of MiataTurbo. Lots of hardcore guys running massively-powerful homebrewed systems, some of which have ventilation holes shaped like little penises cut into the motors. And more than the occasional spectacular failure.
Well, in retrospect I might have done things a bit differently.
I went with Amped primarily because this was my first foray into electric bicycling, and they seemed to have the cleanest, most complete-looking kit. Now, to be certain, there's nothing particularly wrong with the system. It's perfectly adequate for my needs. It won't climb a hill of any significant on the motor alone, but given that the whole point for me is to get some exercise, that's not a particularly bad thing.
Moving to a higher voltage system will obviously buy you some extra torque, but just as upping the boost beyond a certain point starts to put Miata drivetrains at risk, as you increase the voltage you also increase both the current and the wattage in the system, and that's when things like beefier controller come into play.
Endless-Sphere seems to be the EV equivalent of MiataTurbo. Lots of hardcore guys running massively-powerful homebrewed systems, some of which have ventilation holes shaped like little penises cut into the motors. And more than the occasional spectacular failure.
I like the clean simple battery pack in your Amped kit, but it sounds a little weak. Would you recommend upping the volts? Perhaps changing to a 48v 15 Ah LiFePo4 pack in a trunk bag on the back rack?
I went with Amped primarily because this was my first foray into electric bicycling, and they seemed to have the cleanest, most complete-looking kit. Now, to be certain, there's nothing particularly wrong with the system. It's perfectly adequate for my needs. It won't climb a hill of any significant on the motor alone, but given that the whole point for me is to get some exercise, that's not a particularly bad thing.
Moving to a higher voltage system will obviously buy you some extra torque, but just as upping the boost beyond a certain point starts to put Miata drivetrains at risk, as you increase the voltage you also increase both the current and the wattage in the system, and that's when things like beefier controller come into play.
Reply
0
0
08-02-2011, 03:43 PM
#122
It's funny, actually.
Endless-Sphere seems to be the EV equivalent of MiataTurbo. Lots of hardcore guys running massively-powerful homebrewed systems, some of which have ventilation holes shaped like little penises cut into the motors. And more than the occasional spectacular failure...
Endless-Sphere seems to be the EV equivalent of MiataTurbo. Lots of hardcore guys running massively-powerful homebrewed systems, some of which have ventilation holes shaped like little penises cut into the motors. And more than the occasional spectacular failure...
I would probably have Brain, uh, I mean Lyen, build a controller for me.
Well, in retrospect I might have done things a bit differently...
Moving to a higher voltage system will obviously buy you some extra torque, but just as upping the boost beyond a certain point starts to put Miata drivetrains at risk, as you increase the voltage you also increase both the current and the wattage in the system, and that's when things like beefier controller come into play.
Moving to a higher voltage system will obviously buy you some extra torque, but just as upping the boost beyond a certain point starts to put Miata drivetrains at risk, as you increase the voltage you also increase both the current and the wattage in the system, and that's when things like beefier controller come into play.
I cruised around on SLA electric scooters in China (visiting the in-laws) and the damn things were a blast.
Reply
0
0
08-03-2011, 01:29 AM
#125
Boost Pope
Thread Starter
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,019
Total Cats: 6,587
There's a neat little simulator you can play with here: http://www.ebikes.ca/simulator/
Problem is that I don't know the exact internal specs of the motor. It appears to be a slightly higher-quality knockoff of a NineCo "28" series design, but I've never been able to find hard data on the windings. Amped is fairly tight-lipped about the details of their system, and in all honesty, the owner (Danny) isn't exactly an engineer- I've spoken with him on several occasions, and he doesn't really understand electronic theory. He's just a guy who imports stuff from China and re-packages it. On the plus side, they do have good QC and the stuff is of consistently reasonable quality, just don't expect to have a high-level EE conversation with them.
Reply
0
0
08-08-2011, 08:48 AM
#126
I didn't want to start a new thread for this, so I'm going to just put this right here.
http://omaha.craigslist.org/cto/2528116918.html
http://omaha.craigslist.org/cto/2528116918.html
Reply
0
0
08-08-2011, 09:49 AM
#128
Elite Member
iTrader: (11)
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Overland Park, Kansas
Posts: 5,360
Total Cats: 43
I didn't want to start a new thread for this, so I'm going to just put this right here.
http://omaha.craigslist.org/cto/2528116918.html
http://omaha.craigslist.org/cto/2528116918.html
How much do 10-12 Deep cycle industrial batteries weigh? 40# a battery?
60 miles of city driving @ 35mph average would get me to and from work nicely..
Reply
0
0
08-23-2011, 11:24 AM
#131
Boost Pope
Thread Starter
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,019
Total Cats: 6,587
Reply
0
0
09-28-2011, 09:47 PM
#132
Boost Pope
Thread Starter
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,019
Total Cats: 6,587
Well, I suppose it was inevitable.
It's a vehicle. It has wheels and a motor. And I own it.
It had to be hot-rodded.
The wiring and tie-wraps are temporary (this is just a proof-of-concept) but it's really amazing what a difference another 12 volts makes. Picked up a pair of 12v 10Ah deep-cycle SLAs, wired them in parallel, then put that in series with the main 36v battery.
It's always been fun to pass the spandex-clad crowd as they're gunning it up a hill at full-tilt-boogie. Now I can pass them like they're standing still.
The problem is that now I want even more, and yet I'm out of headroom. The FETs in the controller I have are only rated for 60v, so I've reached the voltage limit of the current setup.
It's a vehicle. It has wheels and a motor. And I own it.
It had to be hot-rodded.
The wiring and tie-wraps are temporary (this is just a proof-of-concept) but it's really amazing what a difference another 12 volts makes. Picked up a pair of 12v 10Ah deep-cycle SLAs, wired them in parallel, then put that in series with the main 36v battery.
It's always been fun to pass the spandex-clad crowd as they're gunning it up a hill at full-tilt-boogie. Now I can pass them like they're standing still.
The problem is that now I want even more, and yet I'm out of headroom. The FETs in the controller I have are only rated for 60v, so I've reached the voltage limit of the current setup.
Reply
0
0
09-29-2011, 09:58 AM
#136
2 Props,3 Dildos,& 1 Cat
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Fake Virginia
Posts: 19,338
Total Cats: 573
get three poles with wiper arms on them and ride only under massive power lines.
THAT would be an impressive feat of technology.
incidentally, there is a substantial system of bike paths in northern virginia that are built on right-of-ways that now parallel power lines.
it could work, I swear
Reply
0
0
09-30-2011, 03:47 PM
#138
Boost Pope
Thread Starter
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,019
Total Cats: 6,587
It does not. And they do make FWD hubmotors for people who are afraid to touch their chain and gearstack.
Doing this, however, would double the current draw on the battery, and my main battery (the 36v lithium) is internally current-limited. So I'd basically need not just a second motor and controller, but a whole second battery stack as well.
No, I'm sticking with RWD on this one. The next evolutionary step will retain the current motor and battery and replace the controller with one capable of operating at 72v.
Going from 36v to 48v made the difference between "underwhelming" and "adequate," but it's not scary-fast yet. I think we can get there.
Doing this, however, would double the current draw on the battery, and my main battery (the 36v lithium) is internally current-limited. So I'd basically need not just a second motor and controller, but a whole second battery stack as well.
No, I'm sticking with RWD on this one. The next evolutionary step will retain the current motor and battery and replace the controller with one capable of operating at 72v.
Going from 36v to 48v made the difference between "underwhelming" and "adequate," but it's not scary-fast yet. I think we can get there.
Reply
0
0
