This should shut up the naysayers. I'm glad Storm was able to come thru and make a simple, smart, affordable ebike available.The invasion has begun. This is one of the first bikes delivered to a lucky dawg in L.A.
Say Hello to Storm
- Thread starter biknut
- Start date
Glad to see STORM stateside--best of luck with it and let everyone know your thoughts and experiences with it please.
I never doubted that it was all going to materialize
Biknut-- I have followed and told the Storm story to many people -- the model T of E-bikes
Ride Safe
I never doubted that it was all going to materialize
Biknut-- I have followed and told the Storm story to many people -- the model T of E-bikes
Ride Safe
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I'm on the Storm Owners Group on Facebook. Many people have gotten their bikes and now they're no longer funders, they're owners. Everyone to a man is reporting very good impressions. For most of them this is their first eBike. Every single one has been totally delighted with their bikes. It seems to be pretty easy to assemble out of the box, because no one has had much trouble.
There's no speedometer but some people have bicycle tracking apps on their phones and no one has had any trouble going 20 mph. Of course everyone is paddle throttle happy right now, and I haven't seen anyone reporting a lot of range yet, but it's only been 2 days. The bike also comes with pas, and it reportedly works well to. I think it only has one power level though, and it sounds like high.
The bike apparently weighs about 61 lbs. Some people have reported 59. About the same as an average china girl. Everyone says it feels well made, and looks like 6 million dollars. One person reported getting up to 31 mph going down a big hill, and he said it felt very stable.
They all believe this bike is a hit. Bikes are going to keep being delivered for over a month. The signature yellow bikes won't be out till near the end of the month. That's what I have ordered.
There's no speedometer but some people have bicycle tracking apps on their phones and no one has had any trouble going 20 mph. Of course everyone is paddle throttle happy right now, and I haven't seen anyone reporting a lot of range yet, but it's only been 2 days. The bike also comes with pas, and it reportedly works well to. I think it only has one power level though, and it sounds like high.
The bike apparently weighs about 61 lbs. Some people have reported 59. About the same as an average china girl. Everyone says it feels well made, and looks like 6 million dollars. One person reported getting up to 31 mph going down a big hill, and he said it felt very stable.
They all believe this bike is a hit. Bikes are going to keep being delivered for over a month. The signature yellow bikes won't be out till near the end of the month. That's what I have ordered.
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Here's one more. These guys are all so happy now. For 5 months the trolls have been scaring many of them to death, and making everyone generally miserable. What's been happening with all the trolling is an outrage. Someone needs to have their ass kicked. It's all good now though.
Here's a couple of typical reviews
This is Jeanette
Got home from work and my honey Craig had her put together and waiting for me!!! She is AWESOME!!! Thank you Storm for creating such a high quality ebike! Craig had gotten delivery of a Radrover a couple days ago and the motor broke within the first 2 miles, not to mention it was shipped shoddy with torn shipping box and gouges and scrapes in the frame/paint ... My Sondors bike was packaged like an Apple product and in perfect condition!!! I rode her 8 miles on a not quite full charge, pedal assist on gentle inclines and she just purred the whole way!!! Started green and ended yellow on battery indicator. Craig is so looking forward to his yellow/ black Sondors delivery and is waaaay impressed with Storm's ebike quality/ packaging as compared with the more expensive Radrover disappointment. Way to gogogo Storm!!!
Erik
Totally impressed took it out on a 16 mile ride used the pedal assist on hills and electric on flats even had motorist comment on the fast pace I was keeping on pch big smiles the whole time thanks for making an outstanding bike.
This is Jeanette
Got home from work and my honey Craig had her put together and waiting for me!!! She is AWESOME!!! Thank you Storm for creating such a high quality ebike! Craig had gotten delivery of a Radrover a couple days ago and the motor broke within the first 2 miles, not to mention it was shipped shoddy with torn shipping box and gouges and scrapes in the frame/paint ... My Sondors bike was packaged like an Apple product and in perfect condition!!! I rode her 8 miles on a not quite full charge, pedal assist on gentle inclines and she just purred the whole way!!! Started green and ended yellow on battery indicator. Craig is so looking forward to his yellow/ black Sondors delivery and is waaaay impressed with Storm's ebike quality/ packaging as compared with the more expensive Radrover disappointment. Way to gogogo Storm!!!
Erik
Totally impressed took it out on a 16 mile ride used the pedal assist on hills and electric on flats even had motorist comment on the fast pace I was keeping on pch big smiles the whole time thanks for making an outstanding bike.
Those look like pretty nice bikes!
I did pick up on something- I could tell when the rider was motoring and when he was pedaling.
The front wheel kinda hunts back and forth during the pedaling, but is steady and straight while he's on the motor.
The battery lasted quite a ways.
Nice.
Most people don't yet understand this is an all out invasion. That's why the trolling has been 24/7 by industry trolls trying to save the established industry. It's only been 3 days now. Every day hundreds more bikes are being delivered. This will go on for weeks. After that the next wave is coming. As soon as word gets out about these videos, and the word of mouth about these bikes, sales are going to explode all over again.
These are exciting times to live in for eBikes. Just wait till the aftermarket catches up.
These are exciting times to live in for eBikes. Just wait till the aftermarket catches up.
It's very good people are getting their investment back and that its working out. Electric bikes are indeed great and I think the real mass adoption of the ebikes will come with the next generation of batteries which will be cheaper and have more capacity, so the bikes can have a lot more than 250W and still achieve range, while meeting a low pricetag. 250w (1/3) hp is basically enough power to alleviate the weight of the bike plus a bit of assistance, 750W with selectable gearing can go 40+ mph and climb hills.
I've been thinking it swould be nice to have another one of these:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Hyper-Motobike-Boys-36-Volt-Electric-Bike/23149110
I have a fast one with a gas motor, but it would be cool to take one of these 500W electric ones, and maybe overvolt it to 48V so its 750W by adding a battery or getting a LiFePO4 and strip off the unnecessary dirtbike fairing parts to make it "trail people" friendly. Supposedly the Hyper Motobike 36V 500W can go for a couple hours in between recharges.
250-750W electric bikes have been on sale at the major chain retailers and their websites for years now, I think price is the major factor whether people will be buying a lot in the future, the economy isn't exactly prime for sales of electric ride-on toys right now.
I've been thinking it swould be nice to have another one of these:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Hyper-Motobike-Boys-36-Volt-Electric-Bike/23149110
I have a fast one with a gas motor, but it would be cool to take one of these 500W electric ones, and maybe overvolt it to 48V so its 750W by adding a battery or getting a LiFePO4 and strip off the unnecessary dirtbike fairing parts to make it "trail people" friendly. Supposedly the Hyper Motobike 36V 500W can go for a couple hours in between recharges.
250-750W electric bikes have been on sale at the major chain retailers and their websites for years now, I think price is the major factor whether people will be buying a lot in the future, the economy isn't exactly prime for sales of electric ride-on toys right now.
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I just really don't understand why people don't demand and strive for better, rather they turn into cheerleaders and provide free advertisement.
It's almost like biknut's a paid lobbyist/hype man for Sondors, why else would you go out of your way to promote a fatbike with a lunchbox and pedelec HP?
Yes, electric vehicles will be integrated into society at a rate at which it is practical and affordable. To call it an explosion would be to act like all of the existing motor vehicles on earth of worth are disappearing, there are more used cars and motorcycles on earth than people. Its better for the environment to simnply use up what we have already created rather than to make new products which require hazardous materials and emit greenhouse gases in production.
Okay, keep slurping up the huevos rancheros, you too can sound like another hipster promoting technology which you do not completely understand. lol
We haven't entered the golden era of these electric bikes yet, better things await once batteries get better. Batteries are and always have been the engineering constraint of the electric vehicle.
People are buying them because they like the look, the performance and the value.
They are selling like hotcakes.
You, on the other hand, ain't selling the same stuff you've been trying to sell for a year now.
That should tell you something.
They are selling like hotcakes.
You, on the other hand, ain't selling the same stuff you've been trying to sell for a year now.
That should tell you something.
What I found to be a big problem with my gas bikes is they're too limited. Unless you have friends with other gas bikes to ride with, you'll be riding alone. You can't ride one on a bike trail. I like to ride the critical mass. I like riding with the young urban bicyclers. They're my kind of people, they like to go on rides around town, and end up at bars and restaurants, and socialize. They ride in groups of 30 or more. A gas bike would be like a skunk in the parlor, but as long as you're not riding like an ass, they don't mind eBikes.
An eBike can go anywhere. A gas bike really can't. In comparison gas bikes are quite limited. I've really just lost all my interest in gas bikes.
An eBike can go anywhere. A gas bike really can't. In comparison gas bikes are quite limited. I've really just lost all my interest in gas bikes.
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Better get used to this, there's already about 7000 people that want to show off their bikes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZWRZpUcpqE&feature=youtu.be
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZWRZpUcpqE&feature=youtu.be
Alright Mike B, thanks for using a personal insult to be an a-hole. What the heck did I ever say to you?
I'm not selling bikes at the price range of this Sondors bike, they are worth more. When I experimentally lowered the prices to around $700 for my electric, plenty of people wanted to buy it that day with cash in hand. The experiment proved my point that people are only willing to pay so much for a motorized toy. If you want lots of power and range the price goes up considerably. These prices will go down as battery technology improves.
Sure the 250W fatbike is selling like hotcakes, but it is undeniably a mediocre product at best, and anybody here that has ridden even a HT bicycle would surely get bored with its lackluster performance. If you need to upgrade the motor, then controller and battery, it's worthwhile to start off with one of the kits that are 750+ watts and have something actually worth the money you spent.
Anyways... my point is, you guys all sound like you're getting paid to advertise this thing. If you're not, then why worship a company making bottom of the line ebikes and act as a free lobbyist for them? If you are paid advertisers, then you are technically trolling and should disclose your affiliations.
I like ebikes a lot, and would like one for the reason that biknut talked about. You can go a lot more places with an ebike because the LAWS prohibit a gas bike from certain trails and such. Sometimes electric bikes are illegal on these same trails, but its harder to enforce because they are quiet. In practical reality though, a gas powered motorbike can go everywhere an electric can go and more, and you can refuel and keep going instead of stopping to recharge for 4+ hours. I'm sure electric ride-on toy company lobbyists from CHina helped to formulate the federal electric guidelines which shape state laws, which restrict gasoline powered motorbicycles to the roadways.
Hoo Raah Yayyy Ebikes! You don't hear many electrical and mechanical engineers expressing the same type of unbridled optimism and obsession about electric bikes as on here, because we know what the shortcomings are which still need to be developed to make them perform on-par with gasoline powered equivalents. People that think electric vehicles are "green" neglect that the electricity must be generated somehow, by conventional power plants primarily.
I'm not trying to argue that ebikes are bad, or that the Sondors is necessarily a bad product, I think that they are great. What I want to know is, what causes grown men to turn into cheerleaders for companies with which they are not affiliated? There needs to be less blind cheering and more criticisms of the shortcomings of this stuff, only then will the products get better when the consumers actually are educated on the electric crap they are buying.
Speaking as someone with a disability who has a need for lower powered short range transport I think the Sonders would be spot on for my needs. The only thing that stops me from buying one is the prohibitive freight cost to new Zealand. I like gas engines, I've messed with them all my life, but for the transport needs I now have a gas engine just isn't suitable anymore.
E.bikes have been available here for a long while now, but they tend to be far too expensive for me to even think about buying one. The only way for me to own an electric bike is for me to buy parts directly out of China and make the conversion myself. That's fine because I have the skills to do it, but a lot of people don't and that's where an e.bike like the Sonders has a perfect fit in the market. To my mind it's not so much that people want a cheap throwaway toy, but more that money is very tight for a large segment of the population at the moment and they simply don't have the money to spend on a more expensive e.bike.
E.bikes have been available here for a long while now, but they tend to be far too expensive for me to even think about buying one. The only way for me to own an electric bike is for me to buy parts directly out of China and make the conversion myself. That's fine because I have the skills to do it, but a lot of people don't and that's where an e.bike like the Sonders has a perfect fit in the market. To my mind it's not so much that people want a cheap throwaway toy, but more that money is very tight for a large segment of the population at the moment and they simply don't have the money to spend on a more expensive e.bike.
Hey 16v, I didn't mean to be offensive, sorry.
It was just to illustrate that most people don't care about or want "cutting edge performance" You have built your bikes the way you wanted. High speed, wheelie capable performance bikes. Most people just want to get down the road, have fun and get some excercise.
The Sonders hit a lot of folks the right way. Fat bike with electric assist. And priced so low that essentially you were buying the fat bike and getting the e-drive for free. It's no wonder they sold like hotcakes eh? Give the people what they want.
Voting with the wallet is the most sincere vote we make.
It was just to illustrate that most people don't care about or want "cutting edge performance" You have built your bikes the way you wanted. High speed, wheelie capable performance bikes. Most people just want to get down the road, have fun and get some excercise.
The Sonders hit a lot of folks the right way. Fat bike with electric assist. And priced so low that essentially you were buying the fat bike and getting the e-drive for free. It's no wonder they sold like hotcakes eh? Give the people what they want.
Voting with the wallet is the most sincere vote we make.
Not enough power over here. Too small for me. Is however a great concept I think! I live next to mountains and often travel clear down to the valley. No way would I be impressed in the long run. Get it lol. I have yet to do any wheelies on any of my MB contraptions.
My riding is every where from simply cruising to a thrill. Always felt like a OK medium to me. Their bike will do well selling. Easy enough to see from experience.
I got a machine going on 30 K. Guess which one?
Anyway from working in small engine shops. The sort of shop where folks are ready to give up and pull the plug on what we are fixing? I think folks can figure it out later? I mean we live in a disposable world. Not everything can live up to instant gratification society.
I got to work on stuff that boarders on get a new one all the time. Mopeds yes ''even electric'' golf carts, motorcycles ''think some of the kiddy sized cheep ones'', chain saws weed whackers etc.
Small engine shop is a tuff racket. Would not have believed it until I worked commission a such a place. Yet such a place is a bit of a paradise for me. I take disposable boarder on junk and love making stuff. Note this is not instant gratification territory lol.
When our battery tech gets there look out! Its coming!!!!
My riding is every where from simply cruising to a thrill. Always felt like a OK medium to me. Their bike will do well selling. Easy enough to see from experience.
I got a machine going on 30 K. Guess which one?
Anyway from working in small engine shops. The sort of shop where folks are ready to give up and pull the plug on what we are fixing? I think folks can figure it out later? I mean we live in a disposable world. Not everything can live up to instant gratification society.
I got to work on stuff that boarders on get a new one all the time. Mopeds yes ''even electric'' golf carts, motorcycles ''think some of the kiddy sized cheep ones'', chain saws weed whackers etc.
Small engine shop is a tuff racket. Would not have believed it until I worked commission a such a place. Yet such a place is a bit of a paradise for me. I take disposable boarder on junk and love making stuff. Note this is not instant gratification territory lol.
When our battery tech gets there look out! Its coming!!!!
It's all good, there's a large market for pedelec bikes and its been around for a long time. I just wanted to offer perspective, my mistake for joining a thread which was intended as an infomercial from the onset. lol
I'd like to build something in the 750-1000W range with gears (mid drive) to be able to tackle the long steep hills around here and pull less amps. The amount of power required for a flowing ride depends a lot on the terrain you plan to ride, because when you are underpowered uphill the weight of the battery and anything else heavy (fatbike) come into play. The idea of a fatbike is great not only for snow and sand, but it should be kind to trails because it distributes load at the contact patch, I think a well equipped electric fatbike would make a good machine for long distance trail riding, but from my experience with electric so far, it would really need 750w to be able to get out of its own way and tackle the hardest trails in the mountains here. Most people wouldn't need that if just using the bike to cruise and hit slight hills, so the Storm will have enough power for those folks.
To declare the sale of one type of mountain bike in limited quantities to prepayers a "takeover" and all this stuff, just reeks to me of marketing hype. To call people who point out said hype as "trolls" is just a verification of this. When you present a new product in such a one-sided fashion on a forum it automatically comes off as a paid advertisement, and on a public forum, is subject to scrutiny. I'm glad everything worked out and the orders will be met, and I hope that they make newer ones which have elevated specs which are competitive with the kit prices. I have no doubt that the current version are fun to ride! lol
I'd like to build something in the 750-1000W range with gears (mid drive) to be able to tackle the long steep hills around here and pull less amps. The amount of power required for a flowing ride depends a lot on the terrain you plan to ride, because when you are underpowered uphill the weight of the battery and anything else heavy (fatbike) come into play. The idea of a fatbike is great not only for snow and sand, but it should be kind to trails because it distributes load at the contact patch, I think a well equipped electric fatbike would make a good machine for long distance trail riding, but from my experience with electric so far, it would really need 750w to be able to get out of its own way and tackle the hardest trails in the mountains here. Most people wouldn't need that if just using the bike to cruise and hit slight hills, so the Storm will have enough power for those folks.
To declare the sale of one type of mountain bike in limited quantities to prepayers a "takeover" and all this stuff, just reeks to me of marketing hype. To call people who point out said hype as "trolls" is just a verification of this. When you present a new product in such a one-sided fashion on a forum it automatically comes off as a paid advertisement, and on a public forum, is subject to scrutiny. I'm glad everything worked out and the orders will be met, and I hope that they make newer ones which have elevated specs which are competitive with the kit prices. I have no doubt that the current version are fun to ride! lol
Well seeing that Bike Nut does have a hotrod electric. It will be interesting to get his prospective on this 250 watt machine in a couple of months? I think he will always like the later machine more. IMHO. No body likes a non playful puppy aye?
No body likes a non playful puppy aye?