There was a time when the dual hub motor e-bike design was a bit of an outlier, a rogue, powerful steed let loose on the emerging wild west of the e-bike scene here in the U.S. But as a few years have passed since I’ve seen my first dual hub motor e-bike, it seems more and more brands are dabbling in doubling the power of their fat bike lineups.
Now, PuckiPuppy has stepped into the market with the GoldenR Pro, a dual hub motor, full-suspension fat bike with a massive 1,600W (combined) power output that pushes 115 Nm of torque (combined) from a 48V, 960Whn battery.
Kitted with 130mm of travel up front and 50mm in the rear and rolling on 4-inch fatties, it’s clear the GoldenR Pro is looking to get rowdy off-road on the weekends. However, PuckiPuppy included lots of everyday practical features like fenders, a rear rack, and front to back lighting with turn signals, flexing its ability to do double-duty as a weekday commuter as well.
While the specs and features are impressive, the claims from PuckiPuppy are bold, they say the GoldenR Pro lets owners ‘seamlessly’ tackle loose sand, uneven climbs or challenging traction for ‘a bike that’s ready for anything’.
Living in the unforgiving Southern Utah red rock landscape, it feels like the perfect pasture to let our rough terrain, in this PuckiPuppy GoldenR Pro review.
My Experience Riding The PuckiPuppy Golden R Pro E-Bike
The look of the GoldenR is on par with most fat bikes these days, a flat bar up front, 4 inch fat tires, thick tubing for the frame and integrated battery. Color-wise, the model we were sent for testing is the camouflage, which will likely appeal to hunters and outdoorsy types. But, for those who don’t like camo, they have gray, blue and gray, orange and a red/black option, so there should be something for everyone.
The riding position is slightly more aggressive than expected and that means you are bending forward at the hips and leaning into the flat handlebar up front. Keep that in mind if you think you need an upright and relaxed riding bike. While the Golder R isn’t aggressively slammed forward, it is a touch more sporty than expected, especially paired to that overall look of the dual hub motors.
The GoldenR Pro packs plenty of power and speed, not in the ‘too much’ territory, but rather controlled and confident power, not scary punchy despite the beefy specs. Most of that is a result of the torque sensor. It allows you to either pedaling and get going with a relaxed cadence, or push hard and fast and get going quickly. HIlls are essentially non-existent for the GoldenR Pro and I had no trouble tackling even the steeper accents in town. There’s also a throttle to 20 mph that when mated to the max pedal assist can really get you up and moving quickly. After 20 mph, to reach the class 3 speeds, you get to the max 287 mph using the pedal assistance.
I like having all the commuter perks like the rear rack and front to back led lighting with turn signals, but, one gripe I found very quickly was the mounting hardware positions of the rear fender. The mounting keeps the rear fender in place, but the lack of a mounting point at the highest point of the rounded fender means it just slaps over and over even on city streets with even small bumps, very annoying and it lead me to start looking for ways to silence it and I found myself not wanting to drill a hole in the rear rack for a small nut and bolt, so removing it made the most sense….just not on rainy or muddy rides.
The Shimano 8-speed setup with Under the bar trigger shifters is a fairly common choice these days on fat bikes and a step above the cheaper 7-Speed Tourney and Shimano INdes Shifters that hover over the bar, so that’s good to see. The 46t chain ring and 13-32T cassette is sufficient for a ride that has the power to take over at any time leaving less concern for a super wide range cassette and plenty of gears for managing pedal power around town.
The Logan Hydraulic Disc brakes are also a fairly standard setup with 2-Piston calipers and 180mm rotors, although, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, bikes pushing upwards of 100 lbs should just have 4-Piston brakes for better/more confident stopping power. Sure, the 2P’s worked fine but stopping is a place I’d want more rather than less when cruising nearly 30mph on this beefy rig.
The detachable face display unit is 2.8” and looks great in all sunlight positions I had it in. I like the ability to remove the faceplate and toss it in my work bag or pocket should I run inside a coffee shop or gas station and not want to give a would-be thief a powered ride. At least with the faceplate removed they are left with only being able to pedal the GOldenR Pro with no assistance and that’s no easy task.
Overall, despite the dual motor beef and overall look of the GoldenR PRO that gives new riders the impression they will be on some sort of offroad rocket, the entire setup is fairly dialed in and the resulting ride is nice and confident rather than punchy and startling. If you are considering this and want a rocket to launch you at every start, you will be disappointed. Instead, with the GoldenR Pro, you still have all the power you need for varied terrain and steep inclines but not so much that you get nervous when you use it, it walks a fine line and does it pretty well.
Range
Estimated Range (from PuckiPuppy):
- Up to 80 miles
Real World Range Test Results:
- 36 miles
- 68 miles
Going into the range test, I’ll be honest, I had more questions than expectations. Two motors drawing power from a single battery is not exactly a recipe that screams ‘efficient’, and PuckiPuppy’s own range estimate of 40 to 80 miles is about as wide a window as you’ll find in this space. That’s not a range estimate, that’s a weather forecast.
But the 960Wh battery isn’t lightweight either, and if any battery was going to hold its own against the dual-motor draw, this was the one to do it.
We ran two tests to cover both ends of the spectrum. First up, full send, both motors engaged, max assist, PAS 5. That run netted 36 miles, which is a solid result for a bike of this weight pushing this much power. Then after a full overnight recharge, we ran the opposite end: minimum assist, PAS 1, single motor. That’s where things got interesting, 68 miles. For a bike that tips the scales just under 95 lbs with two motors on board, that number was genuinely surprising and well above what I walked in expecting.
The takeaway is that the GoldenR Pro manages its power better than the spec sheet might lead you to believe, and the range reflects that.
The one legitimate gripe here is the charger. PuckiPuppy ships the GoldenR Pro with a 2A charger on a 20Ah battery, which means you’re staring down roughly 10 hours from empty to full. After a long day on the trails, that’s a frustrating wait, and it’s an area where a 3A or 4A charger option would go a long way.
Power (Motor & Battery)
The GoldenR Pro makes its case in the beefy e-bike world with two words: Dual-Hub Motors.
Ok fine, that’s three words, but you get the point.
Slapping a motor into both hubs is a bold move, and it’s one that immediately plants a picture in most people’s heads, some kind of off-road rocket that launches you into the handlebar every time you breathe on the throttle. And look, with a combined peak output of 1,600W and 115Nm of torque split between a 750W rear hub and a 500W front hub, the numbers are there to back up that mental image.
But here’s the thing, the GoldenR Pro doesn’t ride like its spec sheet suggests it might. The torque sensor does a lot of heavy lifting here, metering out power in a way that feels measured and confidence-inspiring rather than chaotic. You have all the grunt you need for steep climbs, loose terrain, and hauling yourself and your gear across varied ground, but it’s not going to catch you off guard at every green light. Think less dirt bike, more a well-trained working dog that can absolutely sprint when you ask it to.
Flip the switch to single motor mode and you’re running on the 750W rear hub alone, which is still plenty capable on flatter ground and a smart way to stretch your range on less demanding rides. Dual motor is where the fun lives though, and the way the two work together for traction across loose or uneven surfaces is genuinely one of the stronger arguments for the dual-hub setup over a single powerful motor.
Fueling all of that is a 48V, 20Ah battery, 960Wh in total, that carries a UL 2271 certification by SGS, which matters more than most people realize when you’re talking about a battery this size living under you on a trail. It’s a substantial pack, and as we covered in the range section, it holds up well against the dual-motor draw better than you might expect going in.
A couple of details worth highlighting here. First, the battery ships with a keyed lock, so whether it’s on the bike or off for storage or charging, it’s not going anywhere without you. Small thing, appreciated thing.
Second, and this one is genuinely hard to overlook, PuckiPuppy sells additional 960Wh batteries for just $99. Let that sink in for a second. Most brands charge $400–$600 for a replacement battery, and finding one for an older bike that’s a few years out of production is often a dead end entirely.
At $99, picking up a second battery is about as close to a no-brainer add-on purchase as you’ll find in this space. Stow it as gear on a long ride and you’ve effectively doubled your range. Buy a couple now and you’ve got yourself a long-term supply plan for a bike you intend to keep riding for years. We hear regularly from riders hunting down replacement batteries for bikes they love, and it’s usually a frustrating and expensive search. PuckiPuppy just made that a non-issue.
Components
Full suspension on a fat tire e-bike at this price point is a genuine differentiator, and PuckiPuppy leans into it as a selling point, rightfully so. Most competitors in this range are still running hardtail setups, so having both ends sorted is worth acknowledging.
Up front is an unbranded 130mm coil fork with preload adjustment and a lockout feature, sitting on 32mm stanchions with a bolted axle. It does its job well enough, soaking up light to medium chatter without complaint. That said, at 95 lbs of bike with a 400 lb payload rating, I’d feel more confident with 34–36mm stanchions. The 32mm tubes are on the thinner side for an off-road rig of this weight and intended use, and while they held up fine in our testing, it’s an area where a heavier rider pushing the bike harder off-road might start to feel the limitation.
Out back, the rear shock carries PuckiPuppy’s own branding and a plastic housing that doesn’t exactly inspire confidence on first look. But here’s the thing, it actually performs. We’ve tested bikes with unbranded rear shocks that were effectively decorative, doing little more than compressing once and calling it a day. This one genuinely absorbs bumps, feels reasonably plush despite the lack of adjustability, and paired with the fat tires and cushioned saddle, keeps the ride comfortable across rougher ground. It’s not a high-end unit by any stretch, but it punches above its appearance and that counts for something.
The drivetrain on the GoldenR Pro is a Shimano Altus 8-Speed mated to a 13-32T cassette with a 46T chain ring. PuckiPuppy is also tossed in a zinc-coated chain which tends to fare better over time with less rusting and issues, which was a pleasant surprise.
Up top, the shifters are Shimano Altus 8-speed trigger shifters. I like the under the bar shifters rather than the more entry level over-the-bar index shifters, these are easy to use and with the window on the shifter, you can see your gearing at a quick glance rather than looking behind you at a rear cassette and trying to count on the go.
The wheels are a 26” alloy wheel wrapped in 26”x4.0” All-Terrain tires that lend to the GoldenR Pro’s ‘do-it-all’ attitude and hold an air pressure of 5 to 30PSI. Because most fat tire e-bikes don’t have a full-suspension setup, I tend to air down more to let the tires do a little bit of the suspension work. But, being that the GoldenR Pro has a rear shock, I let the tires run closer to 25-30PSI to improve efficiency.
Bringing those fat tires to a halt is a pair of Logan branded hydraulic disc brakes with 2-piston calipers and 180mm rotors on both front and rear wheels. These brakes do a sufficient job of allowing the bike to slow down and stop safely, it just takes a bit more distance to bring it to a full-stop due to the sheer 94 lbs rolling mass of the GoldenR Pro. Personally, I’d like to see 4-piston calipers as they have a lot more stopping power, and on a bike of this weight, it feels like the right call.
The saddle is DDK branded and has a wide platform with deep cushioning. Pair that saddle up with the GoldenR Pro’s full-suspension and you have a genuinely comfy ride that tackles rough roads without passing that roughness to your lower back as you ride. The handlebar is an aluminum alloy, 28.5”, mostly-flat bar, that does have a slight 15mm rise to it for some extra comfort.
Rounding out the practical side of the GoldenR Pro is a decent accessories package that covers the everyday bases. The rear rack doesn’t carry a stamped payload rating from PuckiPuppy, but it’s built in line with most racks in this category and we’re comfortable calling it at the fairly standard 55 lbs until we hear otherwise.
Up front, an adjustable-angle LED headlight does double duty, bright enough to actually see the trail ahead and visible enough to be seen by traffic, which isn’t always a given at this price point. Out back, a rack-mounted tail light functions as a brake indicator and includes integrated turn signals, a nice touch for anyone mixing trail rides with road miles.
The metal fenders are a welcome inclusion and save you from having to source them separately, but the rear fender has one nagging issue worth flagging. There’s no mounting point at the apex of the fender, which means it has nothing anchoring it at its highest point and it slaps around against the rear rack even on mild pavement. A single bolt at that spot would solve it entirely. It’s a minor oversight that creates a disproportionately annoying noise on an otherwise solid ride.
Screen / User Interface / App
The display on the GoldenR Pro is a 2.8” color display with bright contrasting colors and good visibility. The display faceplate can be removed in a split second for security or storage reasons with a quick push of the retention bracket on the backside.
On the home screen, you have all the basics like speed, battery level, wattage meter, pedal assist level in use, headlight, turn signal and walk mode indicators.
Holding the down button and a single turn signal button for about 2-3 seconds will open the alternate data screen that shows the trip meter as well as trip distance and total mileage.
Holding the left and right turn signals at the same time will open the GoldenR Pro’s ‘Function Settings’ where you can make adjustments to the screen brightness, units of measurement, startup mode (which requires pedaling to start using the motor), reset the trip meter, choose a language and last up, you can conduct a factory reset. Tapping the back button (or left hand turn signal).
PuckiPuppy Golden R Pro Model Options
The GoldenR Pro sits $300 above the standard GoldenR, and that gap buys you three meaningful upgrades.
First, color options, the Pro opens up to five choices including the hunter-friendly camo, while the base model limits you to two. Second, and most importantly, the Pro adds a torque sensor working alongside the cadence sensor for smoother, more natural power delivery. It’s worth noting they work together, not independently, you can’t toggle between them.
The base GoldenR runs cadence only, which means less refined power response. Third, the Pro bumps the drivetrain from a 7-speed Shimano Tourney with over-the-bar index shifters to an 8-speed Shimano Altus with under-bar trigger shifters. That’s a legitimate step up in both function and feel.
For $300, those three upgrades, particularly the torque sensor, make the Pro the easy call in my book.
PuckiPuppy also sent along their Premium Package, which runs $59 and adds rearview mirrors, an extendable bottle cage, and a universal phone mount. I’ll be straight, I went in with low expectations on the accessories, as most bundled freebies feel like an afterthought. The phone mount changed that. It’s a matte black aluminum unit with red accents, solid build quality, and it held an iPhone 16 Pro without a hint of wobble or vibration across mixed terrain. The cable lock and weatherproof bike cover also cleared the bar easily, these are things I’d actually use, not toss in a drawer.
One detail that stood out more than expected: PuckiPuppy included roughly 20 small labeled bags of hardware, screws, clamps, adapters, the odds and ends that keep the bike together. That alone is a smarter move than most brands make. Sourcing a single missing bolt locally or waiting on a brand to ship one is a real headache, and having spares on hand from day one removes that friction entirely. They even threw in a second set of brake pads and retainer pins for the calipers. For anyone who wrenches on their own gear, that’s genuinely thoughtful.
The $99 spare battery we covered in the Power section deserves another mention here, at that price it’s the first thing worth adding to your cart. The Premium Package at $59 is solid value if it wasn’t included with your order. And if you’re buying two GoldenR’s, PuckiPuppy offers a hitch-mounted platform rack designed specifically to carry two of them, which matters more than it might sound. At close to 95 lbs per bike, whatever rack you currently own is probably not rated for this, so having a purpose-built option that’s compatible right out of the gate is a practical solution rather than a sales gimmick.
Finally, in terms of protecting your investment, PuckiPuppy covers the GoldenR Pro with a standard 2-year warranty out of the box, which is in line with what the better brands in this space offer. At checkout, they also offer extended warranty options through a third-party provider, 1, 2, or 3 additional years, which could take your total coverage up to 5 years if you go all in. For a bike you’re planning to put through its paces off-road, that kind of long-term coverage option is worth factoring into the purchase decision.
Is The PuckiPuppy Golden R Pro Worth Buying?
If you’re looking for a dual-motor fat bike that delivers real, usable power without turning every ride into a white-knuckle experience, the GoldenR Pro makes a strong case for itself. The dual-hub setup pushes it into the top tier of hill climbers we’ve tested, and we’ve tested hundreds, genuinely top 10 territory when it comes to conquering steep grades with confidence. That’s not a small thing.
The full suspension is another legitimate win, not just a spec sheet checkbox. Both ends of the bike are doing real work, keeping the ride comfortable and controlled whether you’re navigating rutted dirt roads, loose gravel, or just a beat-up stretch of pavement on the way to the trail. Paired with the fat tires, cushioned saddle and the smooth torque-sensor power delivery, the GoldenR Pro has a ride feel that’s genuinely comfortable across the miles in a way that heavier, more powerful bikes often aren’t.
But it’s not perfect. I’d prefer to have 4-piston brakes at this weight. Also, the one-size-fits most frame offering with only 4.5 inches of seat post adjustability and a non-adjustable stem means riders at the outer edges of PuckiPuppy’s claimed 5’4″ to 6’6″ fit range are going to be making some compromises to dial in their position. For most riders in the middle of that range it won’t be an issue, but if you’re sitting at either end, it’s worth paying close attention to the geometry numbers before you buy.
Those quirks aside, the GoldenR Pro delivers where it counts. Strong power, effective suspension, genuine comfort, and a value proposition that’s hard to argue with when you stack it against what comparable dual-motor builds cost elsewhere. If the fit works for you and you’re after a capable, confidence-inspiring fat bike that can handle whatever terrain your weekends throw at it, the GoldenR Pro is well worth your attention.
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