Have electric bikes taken over motor bicycling?

[biknut]

My solid "ordinary" $300 china girls ended up costing me about $1600 by the time I built a reasonable amount of reliability into them, but even so they couldn't compare to my Fatty in most respects, especially dependability.

I'm fairly confidant that after sampling both styles of comparable builds, a huge majority of riders will opt for the electrics. This only applies to motor bicycles though. When it somes to motorcycles, or cars, most of your criticisms I agree with.

 

[dogcatcher]

The E bikes are quiet, the ordinary person on the street accepts the E bike a lot more than the gas bikes. No smell, you can bring it into the house and not have the house smelling like a garage. There is no leaking oil and gas mix to clean up. assembled versions is minimal, especially on the commercially assembled versions. Even the hardcore bicycle shops have accepted them as "almost" equals.

 

[biknut]

I'm sure gas bikes will be around for awhile in ever diminishing numbers, but I don't think they'll survive through the next generation.

 

[biknut]

edit

 

[biknut]

This was your basic $500 eBike, one of the first of it's kind in 2015. Many were claiming you can't make an eBike that cheap, and it would be the lowest quality poc ever seen of gods earth. It turned out they were all wrong. What it lacked in all out performance, it make up for in other ways, such as convenience, ease of operation, reliability, and low maintenance. Storm Sondors sold 5000 bikes on the first offering.

Almost immediately an army of owners united on Facebook went to work addressing the perceived performance deficiency's. Soon afterwards parts vendors salivating about the possibility's of this huge new untapped market swooped in to help fill the need for speed, and everything else out hearts desired. Now 4 years later my fatty looks like this.

 

[biknut]

This was 5 years ago

Last week​

 

[biknut]

This was my first eBike, and 5 years ago when I made this video I was blown away by the amazing versatility of the bike. Gas bikes were so limiting, but eBikes can ride anywhere. That was how I felt, and it's proven to be true. Since then I've put over 10,000 miles on it, and the only mechanical failure it's ever suffered was a swing arm bearing that I was able to source locally for $16.

As far as this video is concerned, the only difference between this fancy bike, and any other eBike is the difference in top speed.

 

[Tony01]

Ebikes are cheaper in the long run. Above a certain performance level they are cheaper in the short run too (15-30hp).

Gas bikes in California being generally classified as limited lightweight motorcycles must have brake lights, turn signals, a horn too. So most CA gas bikes are illegal.

When you consider reliability, comfort, maintenance, legality, there is no comparison.

 

[MotorBicycleRacing]

This was your basic $500 eBike, one of the first of it's kind in 2015.

The Sondors was $700
You could not buy one without the shipping.

Rad does not play that game of false prices without the shipping.

 

[biknut]

Yes, a typical eBikes level of maintenance and repairs are so low now, it's practically unheard of in the bike world. Only a straight bicycle needs less.

Stupid laws aren't limited to gas bikes though, they affect eBikes with the same idiocy. That's something we all have to live with for now, but at least with eBikes it easier to remain under the radar.

 

[biknut]

Rad does not play that game of false prices without the shipping.

Haha you're right Neil, but at the time the price of shipping wasn't known, because no one knew how many containers, if any, would be needed. Free shipping was never suggested, but we were promised it would be no more than cost. Turned out it was $194. You were the only one that felt cheated.

But since you bring up false prices anyone thinking about buying a rad might in interested in these videos.

 

[Tony01]

This was my first eBike, and 5 years ago when I made this video I was blown away by the amazing versatility of the bike. Gas bikes were so limiting, but eBikes can ride anywhere. That was how I felt, and it's proven to be true. Since then I've put over 10,000 miles on it, and the only mechanical failure it's ever suffered was a swing arm bearing that I was able to source locally for $16.

As far as this video is concerned, the only difference between this fancy bike, and any other eBike is the difference in top speed.

Loved the video!! Can’t do any of that on a gas bike.

 

[biknut]

My fatty was one of the many prototypes that multiple riders in the Storm owners group perfected. Storm Sondors saw what we were doing, and decided to start offering a factory version called the XS, for $1799 shipped. You can't build one for cheaper then that. I know because I've built 3 of them.

 

[Venice Motor Bikes]

For my next bit of testimony, I present the evidence that ebikes will never be as cool as my gas bikes!

 

[Venice Motor Bikes]

 

[biknut]

Hey, no fair playing the cool card.

That kind of cool's not cheap though lol.

 

[mason_man]

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Norm, those are beautiful!

Ray

 

[mason_man]

This was my first eBike, and 5 years ago when I made this video I was blown away by the amazing versatility of the bike. Gas bikes were so limiting, but eBikes can ride anywhere. That was how I felt, and it's proven to be true. Since then I've put over 10,000 miles on it, and the only mechanical failure it's ever suffered was a swing arm bearing that I was able to source locally for $16.

As far as this video is concerned, the only difference between this fancy bike, and any other eBike is the difference in top speed.

LOVE that suspension!!

Ray

 

[biknut]

I ask a friend to post some pictures of his eChopper for us. It's a work in progress, but it'll serve to show that just because it's electric doesn't mean it can't have a little style.

 

[Tony01]

1980 schwinn slowly coming together.