Another Frey Savannah Ultra - CC owner

[keithj69]

Finally received my CC. Due to buying during the sale they had in March, and not having the configuration I ordered in the warehouse in the U.S. (free dropper post and such) I had to wait for delivery. Ordered March 30 and received it on May 17th (shipped to Florida).

I am loving the bike so far. My basis of comparisons of bike is the following:
A 2020 himiway cruiser, a 2022 Surface604 Werk. These 2 have been my alternating rides. Still have them. Planning on selling the himiway. Really like the Surface604 and will not get rid of it anytime soon.
2 lectrics 1.0's - these were for family, but they ended up going (sold at a loss) to friends to get them riding.
I briefly had a Serial1 rush/cty speed- frame was too small, could not raise the handlebars, and no spare battery in sight at the time.

I have about 40 miles on the bike so far and it has been a blast. Wildly, I have gotten more exercise on this bike compared to the others. Or at least my legs are screaming that to me.

I will add on to this as I go. Have some thoughts/suggestions/complaints(minor) to go over. But it is Friday night and I need to finish my beer and prep for the first "off road" ride tomorrow.

If anyone is wondering about the bag on the bike, it is a Arkel Tailrider Trunk bag and it does work with a dropper seatpost mostly. I do hit it slightly when dropping the seatpost. I have been adjusting the seat height some, so it is not bad. Dropped it with a 6 pack in the bag and no issues.

Updates
Parts ordered and installed on the bike:
EggRider V2
Wolftooth 46t chainring
Surly Sunrise handlebars
Ergon GA3 (large) grips
Cloud9 Kush Plus airflow comfort saddle (wide)
Second speed sensor magnet
Arundel looney bin bottle cage. ( ABC by Bikase does not fit)

Parts ordered and waiting:
schwalbe johnny watts 2.6 wide

According to Frey the stock chain on the bike is a KMC x9 with 124 links.
Also double check with Frey when ordering the CC. It has a bigger battery option (21ah) . Depending on when you order, you may get old stock that doesn't have the 21AH option. Seems the newer bikes are working off the CC Fat frame and accepts either the 17.5ah or the 21ah battery.

 

[juggernaut]

Love the bike, love the motor

 

[keithj69]

Love the bike, love the motor

Not going to lie, but for me so far, the dropper seatpost is a game changer. Plus the nimbleness of the bike.

 

[juggernaut]

Not going to lie, but for me so far, the dropper seatpost is a game changer. Plus the nimbleness of the bike.

I’m sure 160nm torque is going to make any ebike feel nimble

 

[Tom@WashDC]

View attachment 154036
Finally received my CC. Due to buying during the sale they had in March, and not having the configuration I ordered in the warehouse in the U.S. (free dropper post and such) I had to wait for delivery. Ordered March 30 and received it on May 17th (shipped to Florida).

I am loving the bike so far. My basis of comparisons of bike is the following:
A 2020 himiway cruiser, a 2022 Surface604 Werk. These 2 have been my alternating rides. Still have them. Planning on selling the himiway. Really like the Surface604 and will not get rid of it anytime soon.
2 lectrics 1.0's - these were for family, but they ended up going (sold at a loss) to friends to get them riding.
I briefly had a Serial1 rush/cty speed- frame was too small, could not raise the handlebars, and no spare battery in sight at the time.

I have about 40 miles on the bike so far and it has been a blast. Wildly, I have gotten more exercise on this bike compared to the others. Or at least my legs are screaming that to me.

I will add on to this as I go. Have some thoughts/suggestions/complaints(minor) to go over. But it is Friday night and I need to finish my beer and prep for the first "off road" ride tomorrow.

If anyone is wondering about the bag on the bike, it is a Arkel Tailrider Trunk bag and it does work with a dropper seatpost mostly. I do hit it slightly when dropping the seatpost. I have been adjusting the seat height some, so it is not bad. Dropped it with a 6 pack in the bag and no issues.

Glad you are enjoying the CC. It is a sweet ride, and I love the suspension.

 

[keithj69]

Rode around today on some mountain bike trails. Bike was awesome. Wrong tires, but I didn't fall. My buddy on his Lectric did though.

 

[keithj69]

Later today riding the C.C. rode up on a Florida Bobcat.

Animal list of the things I have seen in Central Florida riding the trails around here: turtles, rabbits, deer, black snakes. rattle snakes, pigs, goats, donkeys, horses, cows, cats, dogs, children, bobcat, multiple birds/birds of prey. chickens, turkeys, suicidal squirrels, sane squirrels, squirrel falling out of tree and splatting on the trail.

 

[keithj69]

So far I have about 78 miles on the bike. 43 of those was this weekend.

Pros:
It is fast.
In low speed, it is controllable.
Dropper post is the #$%
Bike was delivered in great condition. No damage to the box
No issues with assembly
No issues with the bike other than the rear derailleur needs a slight adjustment that the barrel connectors can't quite get right for downshifts.
No paint issues with the flat black paint job
Speaking of low speed, it is slow-fast enough to be in crowds. Disclaimer I have tweaked the PAS levels


Cons:
I have issues with the riding position. I am used to a more upright riding position. So since REI is having the anniversary sale I ordered some Surly Sunshine bars for it. Hopefully they will be just right. Plus the bar across will be a good place for my camera setup.
For the flat areas I ride, the chainring is too small. I am spinning out on the rpms at higher speeds. I will order a new one soon. Just need to figure out the chain size I need if I go to a 46 tooth chainring
The torque sensor is different. My Surface604 has a torque sensor that is part of the derailleur not in the motor/bottom bracket. I understand that the bafang likes the higher rpm's to be efficient. But as I said I ride flat. I did expect a difference though.
The black paint captures sweat stains. Easily fixed after a ride.
I need to bleed the front brake. It works, but it isn't the same as the back brake lever.
The seat wasn't good for me. I ordered a Cloud 9 Kush plus airflow comfort saddle (wide) and that helped immensely on todays ride.
I swapped out the stock grips after a couple of rides for some ergon grips. Not great due to my riding position. Hopefully the new handlebars will correct this.

​

In summary for the cons when it comes to a bike straight from the builder: Front brakes need to be bleed and the derailleur needs to be tuned. Not bad, not bad at all. The rest is me being picky.

Also on the ride this morning a family of deer crossed the trail as we rode up. So bobcat and deer sightings in less than 24 hours is a great weekend ride.

 

[Tom@WashDC]

So far I have about 78 miles on the bike. 43 of those was this weekend.

Pros:
It is fast.
In low speed, it is controllable.
Dropper post is the #$%
Bike was delivered in great condition. No damage to the box
No issues with assembly
No issues with the bike other than the rear derailleur needs a slight adjustment that the barrel connectors can't quite get right for downshifts.
No paint issues with the flat black paint job
Speaking of low speed, it is slow-fast enough to be in crowds. Disclaimer I have tweaked the PAS levels


Cons:
I have issues with the riding position. I am used to a more upright riding position. So since REI is having the anniversary sale I ordered some Surly Sunshine bars for it. Hopefully they will be just right. Plus the bar across will be a good place for my camera setup.
For the flat areas I ride, the chainring is too small. I am spinning out on the rpms at higher speeds. I will order a new one soon. Just need to figure out the chain size I need if I go to a 46 tooth chainring
The torque sensor is different. My Surface604 has a torque sensor that is part of the derailleur not in the motor/bottom bracket. I understand that the bafang likes the higher rpm's to be efficient. But as I said I ride flat. I did expect a difference though.
The black paint captures sweat stains. Easily fixed after a ride.
I need to bleed the front brake. It works, but it isn't the same as the back brake lever.
The seat wasn't good for me. I ordered a Cloud 9 Kush plus airflow comfort saddle (wide) and that helped immensely on todays ride.
I swapped out the stock grips after a couple of rides for some ergon grips. Not great due to my riding position. Hopefully the new handlebars will correct this.

​

In summary for the cons when it comes to a bike straight from the builder: Front brakes need to be bleed and the derailleur needs to be tuned. Not bad, not bad at all. The rest is me being picky.

Also on the ride this morning a family of deer crossed the trail as we rode up. So bobcat and deer sightings in less than 24 hours is a great weekend ride.

Yup, Cloud9 on all my bikes. I've never found an OEM seat that I liked.

 

[Gionnirocket]

Glad you're liking it...
How's the weight? Is it noticeable or does it feel nimble?
I also noticed that the flat black paint job was very flat. Most bike paint jobs described as flat are usually a little more satin.
But I wouldn't sweat it!

 

[keithj69]

Glad you're liking it...
How's the weight? Is it noticeable or does it feel nimble?
I also noticed that the flat black paint job was very flat. Most bike paint jobs described as flat are usually a little more satin.
But I wouldn't sweat it!

I was actually surprised by the weight balance on the bike. I am not a strong bike rider (yet) and riding without power in low gears made me comfortable enough to realize i could get home in the last mile.
As far as nimble, I will say that the serial1 rush/cty is a very nimble bike and slightly better. This one is a tad bit bigger, but it excels on the suspension side.
The crank arms on this bike are too big. On my "mountain bike" ride yesterday I did hit the cranks on some roots which was really my fault. But as a commuter (normal riding) have not had an issue.
The black is very flat and I am really happy about it. I really really wanted the blue, but after reading up on the reviews, which are far and between, It seemed the black had the least amount of chipping issues. So i went with it thinking I could color match it if I chipped the paint.
Any sweat that comes out is happy sweat and worth the wipe down.

 

[keithj69]

New con. The crank arms are to big for this bike for a beginner riding easy mountain bike trails. I hit the crank on roots a couple of times because i forgot to position them properly. I think if i had 165mm it may have made a diff.

 

[Rome]

I hereby named it Black Beauty.
She's got some sheen.
Aventon level seat is my favorite OEM
I'm riding on one now.
If any of you well-known members have a seat from an Aventon level. I like buy it.
LMK.
Frey makes beautiful ebikes.

 

[Rome]

New con. The crank arms are to big for this bike for a beginner riding easy mountain bike trails. I hit the crank on roots a couple of times because i forgot to position them properly. I think if i had 165mm it may have made a diff.

It is a not necessarily crank arms length. On full suspension Emtbs/Commuter bike.
You needs to adjustment suspension sag. My M620 has 170mm crank arms.
My black beauties.

 

[Tom@WashDC]

I hereby named it Black Beauty.
She's got some sheen.
Aventon level seat is my favorite OEM
I'm riding on one now.
If any of you well-known members have a seat from an Aventon level. I like buy it.
LMK.
Frey makes beautiful ebikes.

You are right, The Aventon VELO seat is pretty nice as OEM goes.

 

[Tom@WashDC]

New con. The crank arms are to big for this bike for a beginner riding easy mountain bike trails. I hit the crank on roots a couple of times because i forgot to position them properly. I think if i had 165mm it may have made a diff.

I had to put 155's on my Luna Z1

 

[juggernaut]

If you want more satin than flat in your flat paint just try a little polish. My new ebike came with flat black/red and I applied Meguires Professional Cleaner Wax no.6 which gave it a more satin finish and a slicker finish for easy clean-up.

 

[Rome]

I'm mildly empress.
I started putting ruby red caps on my air valves.

 

[keithj69]

It is a not necessarily crank arms length. On full suspension Emtbs/Commuter bike.
You needs to adjustment suspension sag. My M620 has 170mm crank arms.
My black beauties.

It really wasn't the crank arms, it really was the rider. I had the sag set at 30%, but I will be checking again now that I have ridden it some.

 

[keithj69]

View attachment 154136If you want more satin than flat in your flat paint just try a little polish. My new ebike came with flat black/red and I applied Meguires Professional Cleaner Wax no.6 which gave it a more satin finish and a slicker finish for easy clean-up.

Thank you for the tip.