1st time custom eBike

[BillDeLong]

@harryS good info, but can you provide a typical elevation chart you might put on your bike? I've only been to chitown once many years ago, don't recall seeing many hills out that way, but I was mostly in the thick of the city for my business trip. You also mentioned earlier that you don't run 52V anymore... these are variables I'm trying to consider, i.e. cheaper to gear down than to buy a lower voltage battery pack... thanks!

***EDIT
BTW, nice looking ride!

 

[stanmiller]

Does it make sense for me to try and match up with the same tooth count that we use the most when pedaling manually up the hills?

You can use BikeCalc.com to help sort out these "what if" decisions. Just enter in your existing configuration then use that to compare different chainring / rear cog gearing scenarios.

 

[BillDeLong]

You can use BikeCalc.com to help sort out these "what if" decisions. Just enter in your existing configuration then use that to compare different chainring / rear cog gearing scenarios.

Much appreciated for this suggestion!

I've broken this down into 3 scenarios, where the speed of my average hill climb is around 8 mph and I typically ride around 12 mph on relatively flat path and might top out around 18 mph when cruising down hills. No idea what my cadence is, so I kept the default at 90. Goal is to gear my wife's bike to match my skill level as I will be riding a non-powered bike ahead of her on the trails.

I find it interesting that the recommended chain ring sizes are 29T, 38T, 39T respectively for these 3 speed targets:

So my options are to choose between 36T and 42T for the Lekkie, I'm leaning toward the 36T being reasonable with the following fixed at 36T chainring:

It looks like the bike will top out at 17.83MPH with the 36T chain ring, but that seems like a decent compromise to ensure optimal hill climbing efficiency, correct?

*** UPDATE
Another assumption with these calculations is the cadence is fixed at 90, so I'm thinking that the BBS can probably handle a higher cadence to help the bike reach the 20mph max speed limit anyway.

 

[harryS]

Typical elevation chart for me,

!____________________________________!

I jest. Illinois is the prairie state. There is an elevation changes of 50 feet up and down on my typical 10 mile jaunt around the local path per Strava.

However, 500 watts on the crank is lot of power and 42T is only 5% less than a 44T. If I had something at 36T, I'd "spin out" as a recreational rider.

Do they give you the original BBS02 crank when you buy a Lekkie?

 

[BillDeLong]

No, Lekkie only sells the chain ring separately.

The BBS I ordered comes with a 44T chain ring so I can always swap back to that one if the 36T doesn't work out like planned. Seeing the gearing options mapped out with BikeCalc has reinforced my assumption that the 36T may be a good fit, but I concede that the ideal size would be a 38T (based on BikeCalc), but unfortunately they don't make that size, so I'm hoping the 36T will be a decent compromise in favor of more torque rather than speed

*** UPDATE
I can also plan to swap to the 44T chain ring if we decide to take the bike to trails without any hills, though I don't really see that happening until after we retire in 10+ years, ha!

 

[harryS]

That's great. You can switch chain rings as needed!

 

[BillDeLong]

As luck will have it, I found a generic HD130 Chainring Adapter which can accept chain rings from 38T - 55T which seems to be the best of all worlds so I can play around with different gearing options until I figure out what works best for the hills in our area!

What I like the most is having the option to get at 38T chain ring which is what BikeCalc suggests to be the sweet spot:

*** UPDATE***

I just read the fine print and the adapter will not fit the BBS02B that I have ordered

*** UPDATE #2 ****

Looks like I'm back in business, I found a BBS02B compatible adapter here with a range of 34T - 54T

SALE Chainring Adapter - California BA110 (BBS01B & BBS02B) | eBay

Compatible with the BBS01B and BBS02B mid drive conversion kits only, not the BBSHD. The BA110 Bafang chainring adapter from California Ebike is a great upgrade, allowing you to mount chainrings other than the standard that is supplied with each kit.

www.ebay.com

 

[BillDeLong]

I have decided on ordering the BA104 Chainring Adapter which is a 4 bolt pattern on 104mm BCD which offers significantly less expensive Chainring's to choose from, in case I feel the need to change gearing later.

I've updated the OP with my current order list and running total of $689.76... so far I am on target with my budget

I have found a Schwinn Cabo Cruiser at Walmart for only $200 which may be a suitable bike to swap the electronics over when it comes back in stock... hopefully with more appealing color options:

 

[Thomas Jaszewski]

Below 42T the chainwheel will lose offset and unfortunately bugger the chain line on many bikes Excepting a Lekkie Kit with a 40T.

 

[Thomas Jaszewski]

I have found a Schwinn Cabo Cruiser at Walmart for only $200 which may be a suitable bike to swap the electronics over when it comes back in stock... hopefully with more appealing color options:

That is a one piece crank and an adapter is needed.

 

[BillDeLong]

Below 42T the chainwheel will lose offset and unfortunately bugger the chain line on many bikes Excepting a Lekkie Kit with a 40T.

What do you recommend to mitigate this? Or, are you suggesting there is no fix and the limit is 42T min?

That is a one piece crank and an adapter is needed.

Much appreciated, I have ordered the Truvativ American-to-Euro BMX Adapter and updated the OP accordingly, though I probably won't need it for my wife's current bike, hopefully it won't be too much trouble swapping the parts between bikes when I eventually buy a new cruiser for her

 

[Thomas Jaszewski]

Much appreciated, I have ordered the Truvativ American-to-Euro BMX Adapter

You MAY have to grind off some of the lip.

Disclaimer. I sell and support BBSxx drives. You are saving dollars for sure! I just want to share the fact that we get numerous requests for assistance on motors sold by others. So many that we know ask for an order number and can only support our customers and our shop customers. Recently we saw some NOS drives that were from 2016. No problem for me as I'm able to rebuild a motor. There are other shops like Empowered cycles that have after sale support.

Your link shows an arrival date of Arrives: June 25 - 29

 

[Thomas Jaszewski]

There's a reason dished 42T chainrings are the most popular. They maintain the chainline and are a decent performer with 11T-36T freewheel/cassette. Riding and shifting properly is what will add to longevity. These motors cannot last long if riders don't shift as they would without assistance. Lugging these motors will kill them regardless of whether they are 25A or 18A. I worked for a company that sold custom chainrings. I reverted back to the OEM because I couldn't run Connex eBike chains, or on any narrow-wide chainring. I've had them all. And have assisted, sold, or built scores of kits.

 

[BillDeLong]

I saw the "dished" style chain rings, but they were marketed for the BBSHD and I ordered the BBS02B, so I limited myself to select products that were marked as "compatible", hopefully I didn't make any mistakes

Not sure I follow your illustration on the "lip" that may need to be removed, in the video you linked, he filed down the cylinder on the end opposite from the lip so that it would fully seat into the opening:

Thanks for the heads up on after sales support! With COVID, all the bike shops in my area are either closed or only doing curbside pickup only right now, and yes it does suck that some of my parts may not arrive for 4-6 weeks... I'm sort of used to lengthy delivery times with my primary hobby as racing radio controlled cars and often placing parts orders from China.

I had made a few calls to several eBike manufactures in the USA, and none were willing to sell their bike sans electronics, that would've at least been a decent compromise.... shrug

 

[BillDeLong]

I haz a box!

Just need to wait for my tools to arrive then I can get started.... I also need to design/create a custom battery mount for my EGO 56V packs too... the fun is about to begin, hopefully I didn't bite off more than I can chew

 

[BillDeLong]

All my parts have finally arrived, most items arrived within a couple of weeks, but it took roughly 8 weeks to get the Crankset Tool, that was the last tool to arrive a couple days ago. I plan to start working on the conversion this weekend now that I have everything I need, more updates to come soon!

 

[Clyde]

Here's a nice cruiser with disc brakes for $399 delivered: http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/windsor/rover3.htm

 

[BillDeLong]

Here's a nice cruiser with disc brakes for $399 delivered: http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/windsor/rover3.htm

Thanks, I will keep these in mind, looks like they are only taking pre-orders right now and won't be shipping for another 5 months or so

 

[Clyde]

Ah. Did not see the preorder status. Mine was delivered with almost alarming speed this week.

 

[Thomas Jaszewski]

Ah. Did not see the preorder status. Mine was delivered with almost alarming speed this week.

My purchase from them came damaged and was a total PIA getting the parts I needed. A twisted fork and replacement came missing a bearing race. I had to remove the old and use it. No easy task and the right tools cost me 1/3 of the price of the POS fat bike. A $300 bike is exactly what you pay for. Not much better than Walfart crap.