Cargo Bikes

Got a new battery for my Douze as the range is very limited in cold weather (sub 5 degrees) and under load (80+kg on top of my weight). Range has not been an issue this year as the weather has been good.

In cold conditions, I would get about 15 miles tops out of it. It is a MPF Drive 6.0 assistance with a MPF Juice 12 battery.

I looked around for a long while to get a half decent price but all prices were nuts:

• Douze wanted 599€+VAT
  
• The official EU importer for MPF (in the Netherlands) wanted 499€+VAT
  
• MPF did not want to sell directly and the battery is actually made in Germany by BMZ-Group who also do not want to sell directly.
  
  

I found a French company called Doctibike who were great to deal with and had the best price and offered free shipping to the UK.

End price is 380.90€ + VAT

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Would you really notice the weight difference if you're lugging heavy stuff on a heavy bike? I can't imagine I'd be able to tell the difference between a bike that weighs 50kg and 52.5kg!

Really nice looking bike though, that bag is banging.

Shit pic but elephant bike/pashley mailstar arrived, for the misses, needed something cheap/utility /able to carry junk /less likely to be stolen than her regular bike.
Changed the sprocket from 20t to 24t as was very ambitious for its intended use. Even then might be changing the chainset too (chain line is bad makea a noise) and go to a smaller chain ring

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The cold is a drag.

I've read that using the battery in cold weather is doesn't harm it, just temporarily decreases it's capacity to discharge efficiently.

Charging the battery in cold is bad for it, however. Shimano have a thermostat in the battery that disallows charging below 0°C, in fact. When winter, I bring mine inside to charge and "usually try" to wait until it warms up a bit before plugging it in. In warmer months, the whole kit lives in the garage.

Tldr

Interesting. As a relative newcomer to cargo bike riding I was concerned about sidewind, however I've hd more grief from headwind. I find if I'm loaded up & not too light the mass seems to cancel out the sideways movement.

My next cargo-box (only just built this one so don't hold your breath) will be a bit more aerodynamic

The wind that day was absolutely bonkers to be fair! Not often it's that dodgy. Headwind is normally more of an issue.

(chain line is bad makea a noise)

This could be old chain on new sprocket if nothing is rubbing?

Rodford email...

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If anyone is interested in a cargo bike project / good base for modifications, I have brought back to London a bike from the french post office (La Poste).

I did sort it out about 3 years ago before storing it so will give it a lookover but it is safe to ride.

26" wheels, rear drum brake, large rear rack.
The front mounted rack has been lost at some stage.

£150?

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nice fork

Just putting the feelers out again for this 1991 cargo bike from La Poste.

This was the bike my postman used back in the day! He used to get an £8 per month maintenance fee and kept it going for about 20 years. It is in amazing condition considering the miles it has done.

I will put fresh grips on and a rear derailleur with a shorter cage.

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That is actually excellent, @fussballclub has something similar but British

Beautiful bike!

Looks almost new!

added the signage over hols

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front

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I like your style dude.

Can I make one suggestion? Swap out the bungee cords for ratchet straps today. Bungee cords are so dangerous they should be outlawed. It's only matter of time before one whacks you in the face.

Fantastic!

Bike rack /kayak straps are good too, mainly because fast! Some have an elastic element to them (for kayaks) which is ideal for lashing two rigid objects together so they don't rattle.
Good to see more trade type people using cargo bikes, was in new york a while back and would say the majority of cargo bikes were being used by the trades, no tunnel fee, no parking cost and in some cases you can wheel it right into the building your working in and use the goods lift to take it right to the job site, can't do that with a ford f150

The black Thule straps with the metal catches in Halfords are spendy but excellent. My original set are over 15 years old and have had some abuse. Strong enough to use as straps to lift an engine out a car.

Old inner tubes are great for securing loads too. Anything but bungees really...

Or head to Lidl, they stock ratchet straps semi-regularly. £6 for 4 (?), can't go wrong

If you want a permanent solution, I can check my parts box for the big screw/bolt-on ratchet things you see on the side of lorry curtain sider. Pretty sure I have a few somewhere. You could permanently attach one or two to the box and use wide lashing to hold everything down.

Will have a look later.