This is my Stealth Bomber

GoldenMotor.com

biknut

Well-Known Member
Sep 28, 2010
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I like them but I have to wonder if at speed they will slap the heck out of you,
A little while ago I was doing 52 mph, and didn't notice anything with my jacket on. Maybe in the summer they can act as a kind of speed limiter lol.

I just can't help myself from going fast on this thing. The look on peoples face is just crazy, and no matter how fast I go they want to keep driving next to me. People just can't believe what they're seeing.
 

xseler

Well-Known Member
Apr 14, 2013
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OKC, OK
That's right along the lines I was thinking.

Another thing in the back of my mind,

nothing says bicycle like handlebar streamers. First impressions are important. Those streamers act as a kind of camouflage. On this bike, something tells me that may come in handy someday.

Above all else though, I actually like the way they look of this bike, and they're funny too. Motor bicycles are all about fun to me. On Stunner they looked embarrassing though. They just didn't look right.

A handlebar mounted thumb-lever bell would just be icing on the cake!!

For some strange reason, I just had a flashback to Benny Hill riding a bicycle, ringing the bell, and chasing the girls..............:D
 

16v4nrbrgr

Active Member
Mar 17, 2012
1,728
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North Bay
If I ever won the lottery, and was able to afford one I'd put the dirtbike seat and some moto plastics on it and a lighted number plate, with a moped plate I'm sure there would be no problems around here.
 

biknut

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Sep 28, 2010
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When I calibrated the speedo on Electronaut I just copied the same numbers I had from Stunner, which has the same tires, but wider rims. Yesterday I decided to actually measure the tires on this bike, and I found there was a slight discrepancy of 16mm. That doesn't work out to much speedometer error, but it was about 1/2 mph optimistic. After correcting the calibration it should have lowered top speed a little, but even after that I set a new top speed record 53.2 mph. That's really insane, and I got to stop doing that. It sucked my battery dry in 18.1 miles too. Half of those miles were against a heavy headwind.

I don't think that's safe. The brakes on this thing are world class, but coming to a fast stop starts smoking these little bicycle tires. I can feel both tires struggling for traction, and both ends of the bike get squirmy. It needs wider rims.

 

biknut

Well-Known Member
Sep 28, 2010
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I'm starting to realize better ways to ride an electric bike. It's not the best idea to just peg the throttle from a stop. It kind of ODs the battery, especially in cold weather, and it wastes power. The voltage sags below 72 volts, and I think acceleration suffers. A better method is to only use enough throttle to keep the voltage hovering slightly above 72v, and roll the throttle just to the edge of that voltage. Acceleration seems better like that and top speed comes faster. I'm thinking the battery sags more in cold weather.
 

paul

Well-Known Member
Dec 23, 2007
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Kalamazoo, MI
I cannot even begin to imagine speeds like that on a motorized bicycle, I sure would like to experience it though
 

biknut

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Sep 28, 2010
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Another update report

I have enough miles now that I've become pretty aware of this bikes strong points, and also it's weak points. It has a lot more strong points than weak ones, but no bike is perfect.

First the strong points.

Number 1, it's very fast, and powerful. The build quality is battleship. This bike reminds me of a Harley in that it's made to be easily rebuilt, and could last forever. Everything is stronger, and heavier than it needs to be. The suspension has motorcycle quality, and strength. The brakes are 2 finger front and rear. The frame and swing arm are overbuilt and have lifetime warranty. I like that the battery in inside the frame, and there's lots of room for a big battery.

Now the bad.

Number 1 is the lack of range. It's equal in shortness to how incredibly fast it is. Running at speeds above 40 mph you can only expect barely 20 mile range. At 50 mph it eats about 1 ah per mile. Since the battery is 18 ah that's even less than 20 miles. Riding at bicycle speeds 10-15 mph, it get's closer to 5 miles per ah. That would be about 90 miles. That's great but it takes forever to get anywhere. You can expect to get the claimed 50 mile range only by keeping the speed limited to about 25 mph and less. 20 mph would be easier. Pedaling seems to have little effect on the battery consumption, but plays a significant role in acceleration above 40 mph, especially riding against the wind.

The other area of concern is, this bike doesn't like water. The manufacturer recommends giving it a sponge bath for cleaning, instead of washing with a hose. I've washed it one time so far and of course I disregarded this recommendation, only to find it running crappy for a day afterwards. It was cutting off on it's own, and when it ran it stuttered on the throttle. It cleared itself up a day later, but I don't like my chances of getting home if I get caught out in the rain. Luckily I hardly ever ride in the rain. From now on I'll be using a sponge to clean it.

Conclusion,

The Bomber is both greater than expected, and also slightly disappointing. It's speed and power are beyond my expectations. 50 mph is always at your finger tips. It's very stable riding at speed. The problem is it needs a battery with about twice the capacity. Then no matter how fast you ride, it would have at least 40-50 mile range. Where I live everything is 20 miles away. I need a minimum of 40 mile range to get home. I like to do it at 40 plus. I can't do that both directions right now, so that's a little disappointing, but one thing you'll never hear me complain about is the speed and power.

What I'm waiting for now is the day when I can build a 40 ah battery that will fit in my frame. I predict that day will come.
 
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2door

Moderator
Staff member
Sep 15, 2008
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Littleton, Colorado
I'm curious about, what gets wet? The controller? Battery connections? Why does a little water cause the problem? Could you isolate those areas that doesn't like moisture?
I mean, really; you can't always be assured that a rain storm won't come, or an unexpected puddle. Elaborate.

Tom
 

biknut

Well-Known Member
Sep 28, 2010
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I'm curious about, what gets wet? The controller? Battery connections? Why does a little water cause the problem? Could you isolate those areas that doesn't like moisture?
I mean, really; you can't always be assured that a rain storm won't come, or an unexpected puddle. Elaborate.

Tom
Tom, I haven't done any investigating yet so this is just a guess, but my main suspect is a 5 pin connector located between the frame and swing arm that runs between the hall effect sensors in the motor, and the controller. It's a metal connector that doesn't look in any way waterproof.

Another possibility could be the throttle.
 

biknut

Well-Known Member
Sep 28, 2010
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These new prismatic pouch cells look like they'd be a compact solution to fit 40Ah inside the frame all lined up vertically.
http://www.amazon.com/LifePo4-A123-Powerful-PRISMATIC-shipping/dp/B008P2PO6K
The only drawback is that you'd need about 36 of them to make that pack plus a custom battery management system. You should be able to get a bulk deal ordering that many though.
it's going to be a while before I'm ready to start building a battery. Don't let that stop you from recommending them though.

I'm not sure those would fit very well though. Without making an accurate measurement the battery compartment is roughly 4.5 x 7.5 x 12

Might be able to squeeze a little more out of it, but not much.

Since my battery is good I'll probably drag my feet waiting to see if any new improvements pop up.

I think I could be very happy with 35-40 ah. My butt can't even take that much. That would get me anywhere in town at any speed I want to go.
 

paul

Well-Known Member
Dec 23, 2007
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Kalamazoo, MI
I would email the company right away and let them know about your concerns with moisture and they can probably let you know what others have done when they had the same problem. let them know as much as you can how the moisture made your motorized bicycle not run properly, do not leave out any details. I am sure you will get the problem resolved because what is happening should not be
 

wheelbender6

Well-Known Member
Sep 4, 2008
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TX
Thanks for the good and bad on the Stealth Bomber. I guess high speeds drain the batteries much more rapidly on both low end and high end e-bikes. Doing 20 mph to increase range wouldn't feel so slow if you hadn't already been cruising at 50 mph on the same e-bike.
 

biknut

Well-Known Member
Sep 28, 2010
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Doing 20 mph to increase range wouldn't feel so slow if you hadn't already been cruising at 50 mph on the same e-bike.
Ain't that the truth. This isn't a big problem for me, but I am considering options. Right now what I'm thinking, is maybe buy an extra battery to occasionally carry on my rear rack. Maybe 10 or 15 amp hour. That could probably make me happy for a few years till technology catches up with my need for speed.
 

biknut

Well-Known Member
Sep 28, 2010
6,653
475
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Dallas
I would email the company right away and let them know about your concerns with moisture and they can probably let you know what others have done when they had the same problem. let them know as much as you can how the moisture made your motorized bicycle not run properly, do not leave out any details. I am sure you will get the problem resolved because what is happening should not be
Paul I doubt that would get me very far. Many people have reported the same problem. I guess that's why Stealth recommends washing the bike with a sponge instead of a hose.

I also read where some people have replaced the 5 pin connector I'm suspicious about with a different type.
 

biknut

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Sep 28, 2010
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what kind of range at 30 to 35 mph do you get?
I haven't got a good handle on that speed range yet. So far I've tested the top speed range, and the very low speed range, but I don't have much experience in the middle. My guess would be around 25 miles. That's going to be the next area I'm planning to explore. The way the weather has been lately I only get to ride about 1 day a week, if that.

I do know that when I first got the bike I did 3 charge cycles with the governor on. Limited to 750w and a top speed with light pedaling of about 23 mph, I was getting just under 40 miles. Since the bike was brand new, I didn't have much skill riding it, and I'm sure a lot of power was wasted from poor throttle application. I was mostly just whacking it from a dead stop to go. I've since learned that's not the best way to save power.

I'm pretty sure I can't get 50 miles going over 20 mph.

On second thought maybe I can. It just depends on how you take off.
 
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