Commuter eBike

[cvpsmith]

Here are a couple of pictures of my commuter eBike with the new LiFePO4 pack installed.

Specs:
Phoenix Racer Kit from ElectricRider
3640 Controller (36V, 1440 Watts)
36V 20AH LiFePO4 battery from eBay

The battery was 2" too big for my Topeak bag, so I had to use a Walmart toolbox bag and modify it for the MTX rack. You'll notice that I've rain-proofed it as much as possible for commuter use. As you can see, zip-ties are my friend...


--
Paul

 

[grouchyolfart]

I use SLA's and had them mounted in a Laurentian rack bag that I had from a previous commuter bike. The 2 12v SLA's fit perfect. Judging from the size of the 12v LiFePo batts, 2 of those would fit perfect as well, except one would be a spare. The bag is probably too short for the 36v batts cause that tool bag looks hemangous.

I think I paid around $35 for the bag, which can double as a cooler as well. There's also a bunch of small pockets on the outside for tools and such.

I now use the bag only for my work stuff and use a saddle bag for the batts. Keeps the center of gravity lower, making the bike much more stable. I'm waiting till I have the extra moolah for a LiFePo batt.

Btw, that bag looks good on that rear rack.

 

[cvpsmith]

The bag is probably too short for the 36v batts cause that tool bag looks hemangous.

Yea, it is a little big but it worked out good because I packed the battery on all sides with foam (double-packed on the bottom). As expensive as the battery was, I didn't want to take any chances on a bike with no rear suspension.

Btw, that bag looks good on that rear rack.

Thanks, I think the color matches the bike pretty good; I got lucky there. Your seat looks way more comfortable than mine!

 

[deacon]

how far do you commute on this bike...

 

[cvpsmith]

how far do you commute on this bike...

It's about 10 miles round trip. The 12AH SLA's worked okay for the ride when they were new, but their charge capacity degraded over time...

 

[deacon]

That's a reasonable commute for ebike. I hope my sla batteries hold up but I'm not counting on them one way or another. I would love to see the price of better batteries go down before I have to go searching for a new propulsion fuel.

Maybe a flux generator lol

 

[cvpsmith]

That's a reasonable commute for ebike. I hope my sla batteries hold up but I'm not counting on them one way or another. I would love to see the price of better batteries go down before I have to go searching for a new propulsion fuel.

I'll still keep my SLA pack to use while putting around campus at work. I think the prices on LiFePO4 will start to go down since they are mass-producing for cars like the Tesla now. I think the reason that they are cheaper in China right now is because they have ways of getting around pesky patent issues. From what I've read, UTexas has a patent on the LiFePO4 manufacturing process.

Maybe a flux generator lol

Or maybe an arc reactor...