Converting an Old Bike Into An All-Electric Cruiser

Why would you want to convert a bicycle, which has no outside energy draw other than the rider and very little maintenance requirement, to run off of an electric motor? That seems a bit like backward progression. Are we really so lazy that we need powered assistance just to ride a bike now?

Would there be a way to use pedaling to recharge the batteries. I can see this working out if that were the case, otherwise, as stated above, you're giving it a carbon footprint when it normally doesn't have one.

qlmmb2086 -

Lazy? Perhaps. Or perhaps just asthmatic. Or recovering from a debilitating illness. Or simply old.

Personally, I have advanced osteoarthritis in both knees, and could imagine that a little help on the hills would be welcome.

Not everyone is perfectly fit and perfectly strong. A little electric assist to get them outside and moving again could be a Godsend.

So, recycling some surplus parts to make an electric bike for those not able(or unwilling) to supply full muscle power, thereby adding to the bike's carbon footprint, is less desirable than just barrelling around in my gas guzzler? Thank you Enviro Nazi for the heads-up. I wouldn't want to offend anyone by using my homemade electric-assist bike.

Come on folks, let's look at the WHOLE system, not just one piece of it before we start decrying this as (gasp!) adding to a carbon footprint. You really should consider the alternatives. Right now if people want to make a 3-5 mile trip (say to get a few things or go see someone, for example), they are either going to ride their bikes or drive. Most will drive, pushing their big heavy cars around by burning gas (or even some other form of power, but in the end all power comes from the sun anyways). But if some of those same people had the desire to modify their bikes to have electric assist, they could have the option (and be more likely) to use the lower-power option.

See, it is all relative and all tied together. Looking at just one piece and branding it as good or evil is a VERY dangerous practice, and all systems should be looked at as a whole. I mean, I could look at a guy pedaling a bike and consider that evil because he'll have to consume extra food, and that food is much more energy intensive than just burning gas, etc. But that would be a flawed analysis based on looking at just one piece of the whole system. In the end, if a person wants to go from point A to point B, the less energy used the better, and that means pushing the least amount of weight around as possible. If that means an electric bike over a car, you have an improvement.

the linked motor controller is just a throttle. Is there a link to an actual motor controller?

I'm working on an ebike conversion right now and it's powered by - SOLAR! I live in an apartment in Queens, NY (1 of the 5 boros of NYC) and have great southern exposure. I have 2 folding solar panels taking up the top half of 2 of my windows in my living room. They're covered with drapes and are completely hidden. They charge 4 7AH 12v batteries in a few hours. All I have to do is swap out 2 of the batteries at a time and hook them up to the bike. The system I'm working on is portable, modular and has NO CARBON FOOTPRINT!

It CAN be done. It CAN be done from an apartment in a big city even. Anyone that would like to challenge me on the greenness of my particular system is more than welcome to come on over and K.M.A. :)

Cheers to everyone out there for whom the box doesn't exist. And anyone criticizing this thinking should come up with something better before opening their mouths. Put up or shut up.

M

qlmmb2086:
another f^*~$@ m*#%n who doesn't understand the tech behind present lithium/motor/controller.

"A traveler has no protection besides his fire-arms; and the constant habit of carrying them is the main check to more frequent robberies" --Charles Darwin from The Voyage Of The Beagle

I am truly sorry you feel that I am being lazy by not pedaling a bicycle. Two things 1.my prostate cause me so much pain I can not set on a bicycle seat. 2. The five cracked and broken vertebra in my back prevent me from having enough strength to pedal. Actually I do not wish to build a electric bicycle. I would like to fit motors to all four wheels and then be able to take it off road into rough areas so I may enjoy the outdoors places normally reserved for ATV that are much more powerful than a person can pedal.

73 dray