Well I finally got round to finishing off the bike conversion. Last
post I hadn't figured out how to conceal the battery, controller, etc
from view to make it less pinchable and be able to charge the battery
easily without the need to undo screws, etc. Well I found the solution
and here's how it works:
The controller and battery go
in the bottom of the crate. The controller is screwed down and the
battery is nice and snug, wedged between bits of wood.
I bought a
2m XLR 3 pin extension lead to go from the battery charge point and cut off the female end. Then I asked a friend to weld this to a
plate with a female socket. Here's the view from the back.
The
plate is then screwed on to the back of my crate which allows me to
recharge the battery without the need to remove the false floor covering
the battery.
The final touch was a
dust cover
to keep dust and moisture out. It's a very snug fit which makes it hard
to remove so I only put it on when riding in the rain (about twice a
year in Perth!).
It
works a treat. I can charge easily and the goodies in the crate are
safe. I can't see anyone going to the bother of unscrewing 4 screws to
get a 36V battery, but maybe when peak oil really hits I will look into
further security measures.
I've been happily riding it
around for months now but hadn't found a light set up I was happy with.
After nearly getting cleaned up at a roundabout by a taxi a while ago
with Quin on board I resolved to get a very bright front light.
My
original thinking was to set up a bottle dynamo to avoid the need for
changing/charging batteries, however I couldn't get one to fit. I bought
a Nordlicht dynamo but due to the Magura hydraulic brakes and the
bracket installed on the front left fork of the Fr8 it wouldn't fit. So
then I tried it on the rear but it either interfered with the integral
lock or would potentially be vulnerable to being knocked by Quin on the
rear seat. So then I bought a left version of the dynamo but that didn't
work either, even with 2 types of bracket. So I gave up on the dynamo
idea. My next thought was rechargeable battery operated LED lights such
as the Phillips Safe Ride. I looked at the price and the inconvenience
of needing to charge them and decided against them.
Then
I saw exactly what I wanted, a 36V light which runs off the eZee
battery I already have on board and need to charge anyway. The best one I
found was the
1,000 lumen 36V light sold by Glowworm in Sydney (it's listed as the L700 but now comes even brighter), paired with a
Spanninga 36V rear light.
The lights will reduce the assisted range of the bike at night but this
doesn't bother me too much since I tend not to ride long distances at
night anyway. Safety is the priority with lights in my view. This
combination is great, but not cheap. The front light is $180, the rear
$40, plus $11 postage. But I think my life and that of my son are worth a
bit more than $231 so what the heck. Here's how I installed the lights:
Firstly I figured out the best position for the front light. The options were:
1) On the handle bars. No good, the light beam just hits the front box.
2) On the front forks. No good, the light sits on its side and the beam shines in the wrong direction, plus it looks silly.
3) On the front box. Good, it's highly visible to oncoming traffic and easy to install. Also looks wicked.
The
bracket the light comes with is metal. First I attached a small piece
of jarrah (local hardwood) to the front of the crate. I bent the bracket
a bit to raise the light beam higher. Then I attached the bracket to
the crate with a 1/4" threaded 60mm bolt, with a washer and locknut at
the back which sit underneath the false floor of the crate. This makes
it nice and sturdy and neat.
Underneath the crate I cable tied the cord for the light, this makes it easier for me to remove the light when needed.
When the false floor is replaced the nut, etc are not visible and cannot be tampered with.
With
the front light installed I turned my attention to the rear light. The
Spanninga has a pair of screws spaced 80mm apart which fit the Fr8
perfectly.
Then
it was simply a question of running the cable from the rear light to
the front light and attaching it with cable ties. How many cable ties
are there on this bike? I'd say there would have to be at least 50, but
most are surreptitious and not too ugly. My best cable route was down
the rear rack, past the bottom bracket, up under the tube and into the
crate. I asked for 2.35m of cable and this was plenty. Then it was just a
question of plugging the input cable of the front light into the
controller and then there was light!
The front light
can easily be removed by unplugging it, which I will do when I leave the
bike unattended in town. I'd rather not have a $180 light pinched
that's for sure. I'm really happy with the setup, the front light is
super bright and has 2 settings, bright and very bright. The rear light
is tidy and functional. I was disappointed when I discovered that it
wasn't possible to turn it off with the bike running, but when I heard
that it uses less than 1W of power I wasn't too worried. It would take
500 hours to drain my battery with this light so it will hardly affect
the range of the bike at all.
Lastly I put a
universal drink bottle cage on. This model is great when there's nowhere to screw one on, which is the case with the Fr8.
Of
course I've installed a bike computer, the Cateye Velo 8. It's a basic
model, but does all I need it to. Most importantly I get the odometer
figure to go into the transport spreadsheet.The Fr8 has 1,600km on it
now and we are traveling 13km a day less by car compared to last year!
I was quite amused to see an ad for a new electric bike recently. It's called the
Faraday Porteur
and they market it as "The ultimate electric propelled utility
bicycle", which is funny because personally I don't see a lot of utility
in the design (see
this great article
on what makes most dutch bikes 'utility' bikes). It's also funny
because I think I now own the ultimate electric propelled utility
bicycle myself and it's not a Porteur, it's a retrofitted
Workcycles/eZee Fr8...
