my new bike out of the box

will_start

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9:21 AM
Joined
Jan 20, 2008
Messages
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Location
Sydney, Australia
Hey All,

I have been posting over in the 2 Stroke area for a while
and have finally got my 2 Stroke bike under control after 6 months
on and mostly off road works.

My bikes are old, and worn out, and Frankly not up for the Commute
on a long-term basis.

So I was looking to buy a bike and also add electrics to it as well.

So I have landed with the below bike.

The Panther

http://www.zbike.com.au/

I went for a ride on the bike last weekend as a test ride,
and the thing weighs a ton compared to my other bikes.
But I wanted a solid bike, and it looks like I've finally got one.

So, I wanted a 500W motor which wouldn't fit the frame,
so he's given me a 1000W motor for the same price.
The 200W motor I tried, just didn't have any real grunt to it.

Only issue is now I have to wait for a Battery order,
or go out and buy myself a better battery.

Anyone know where I can get good a quality 20 AH Battery
in Australia ?

The below is the prices I was given on LiFePO4:

Then we go to the latest LiFePO4 which is a jump up in price:
10AH - $520 upgrade
20AH - $920 upgrade
30AH - $1,290 upgrade

How do these prices compare ?
 
Wow that looks like a really awesome Ebike for sure. Given the fact that you have a 1000w motor the more AH the better for more grunt and better range. It looks like their pricing scale on the batteries is made so the higher the AH the less $ per amp hour they cost. If it's within your price range of course use the 20 or 30 ah battery. Personally I like having an over abundance of capacity in case I want to go on an extra long trip OR just so I don't have to discharge the batteries as much. The more you keep from discharging your batteries completely the longer they will last. Say if normally you only eat 19ah from your 30 pack it should last 1/3 more charge cycles than if you drained the 20ah completely.... It's up to you though, the batteries are quite expensive right now and paying 1300 for a battery plus the bike is getting in the range of owning a motorcycle rather than a bike. Let us know how she rides, I like my ebike because it gives me a little exercise and it's really quiet (even though it's a geared system). But yeah it is heavier than the rest of my bikes.
 
The bike is quite heavy to ride when the battery is discharged, as its 50kg.
But the cruise factor makes it a good ride. When you get it running on straights, it really hums along. The front and back shocks means it will handle just about any bump in the road.

The disc breaks make it safe tho.

At the moment, I only have an 8AH battery so only get about 5km before
it starts to settle out.

the motor I have is apparently a 1500W version.

Its not been without its issues already, as the back wheel had spokes
not tensioned out of the box, so some came loose.
Once I tensioned the wheel its fine.

I compared to the site high-rider, and the price I have of
30AH - $1,290 upgrade, compares better than the below.

24v 20AH Battery LiFePO4 (3000 re-charges)
FREE 8A Charger and Battery Bag (VALUE $279) Use on up to 3000 Watts Motors 1 YEAR WARRANTY
Price $ 1299.00
 
Why do more people not use Lithium Polymer batteries? They are alot lighter and higher current density than LifePo4 and they cost less. They also can put out more current per ounce than anything else. My 10 AH 48 volt pack was $435. It is capable of 100 amp output continuous.

Why are Lipo cells not used more in E-bikes (or at all)?

Matt
 
fire in the hole

ok,

I had the ZBike guy come out and we "worked" on my electrics,
end result was a fire and burnt wiring after my first ride.

Its taken me a week to get around to accepting this
disappointment. :eek:

I'm going to try and work out how to wire this thing back together.

Not sure how the forum will help, but at least it will document the issue.

See attached Circuit diagram for bike in PDF format.
 

Attachments

  • Circuit Diagram 011 Panther.pdf
    52.9 KB · Views: 1,642
If you want a hand, give me a hoy, I'm pretty handy with the soldering iron!
 
Why do more people not use Lithium Polymer batteries? They are alot lighter and higher current density than LifePo4 and they cost less. They also can put out more current per ounce than anything else. My 10 AH 48 volt pack was $435. It is capable of 100 amp output continuous.

Why are Lipo cells not used more in E-bikes (or at all)?
I think the short answer is that most people just don't know.

However, I haven't found it true that Li Polymer batteries are cheaper. $435 for a 10Ah battery seems pretty cruddy to me.
 
That is a 48 volt 10AH battery. Also, it only weighs 80 ounces.

That is very innexpensive for the watt hour rating as well as very light.

The best price I have ever seen for a LifePo4 was $600 for the same rating battery and it weighed ALOT more.

Matt
 
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