Electric bikes

My dad bought a swytch early last year and it arrived just before Christmas. V v long lead times!

Taking the opportunity to do some maintenance and convert his front end to disc. Long wait but I reckon it’ll be great when he’s up and running

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Just got the invite for Swytch today, not convinced I'll go for it. Cheapest option for the Max (30km range) is £624 for delivery in May (equivalent Air, 15km, is £479 but I don't think 15km is enough).

What did you decide in the end?

I've gone for 15km, definitely not as cheap as had been implied it would be when I signed up. I want to take the edge off start / stop effort on commute / errands or to battle occasional headwinds so figure this option should be sufficient. Delivery in May!

As per aqa thread need for disc brakes means I might make my old inbred a daily rider, making the pompino effectively redundant. N-1 will please others in the household.

But 700c would give options across more of my bikes, so could be better shout but none have disc brakes. Maybe n-3 then n+1 would solve this, especially if px do the disc kaff at 699 again soon.

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I haven't yet. Tempted to get one to go with a dutch bike and child seat to make a very heavy bike more usable but not sure how the rest of the spec would match up.

Probably need to decide in the next few hours I suspect.

Yeah it's a tough decision when considering how the bike will be adapted by it & what other changes it might immediately prompt.

I think my other option would be Tern or similar, which are much more pricey. Probably an inevitable next step in the future I guess, so better start saving now.

We’ve signed up for a May delivery for Mrs M’s Pashley, not quite as heavy as your Dutch bike but heavy enough. Will be interesting to see how it works out.

Well it's not quite a dutch bike, one of these https://winstanleysbikes.co.uk/bikes/dawes-sahara-low-step-2022-bike which is probably similar to a Pashley in weight.

Have signed up for the Max for May but may still cancel it.

Just finished converting my Dad’s Marin (with the swytch kit). Relatively painless- I’d say the most annoying bits where the axle not quite fitting and the handlebar battery mount. It’s width sat it partially over the clamp area (25.4) and a little over the narrower 22.2 section either side of the clamp. Also it was a little awkward routing the gear and hydro cables. So many potential variables though I guess they did alright.

Impressed with how natural it feels- was worried it would be lurchy and awkward. Quite fast and feels pretty powerful on the flat. Haven’t tested up any hills. Overall, positive review so far.. will update when he’s done a few miles on it

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One of the things about the Swytch that people like so much is that it doesn’t look like an ebike.

I just wish the handlebar clamp was removable so it would be simple to build a custom mount

hmm, it is on the new ones

Don't suppose you've ridden a lime bike and can compare it to how that feels

Ahh nice i have the older kit

I know it's very hard to accurately measure due to masses of variables, but does anybody have any anecdotal evidence of Swytch range when climbing?

Hired an e-gravel bike in the Alps last summer for my wife, and it was a revelation as it allowed us to do some climbs together. It was a Giant with a 500Wh battery and lasted a lot longer than we expected (seem to remember we easily got around 1500m climbing and 60km out of it - she was using it on eco mode the whole time, but that extra bit of power really helped). It was also easy to carry the charger and just recharge when we stopped for lunch etc.

We have been considering buying her something similar, but the battery capacity is always a problem, as we would be unable to take them on a plane, which is something we would want to do a reasonable amount. I just discovered the Swytch from this thread, and it seems a pretty good option, as the 'air' battery is just under 100Wh. We could get a few batteries and take them with us on the plane/in my saddle bag when riding. It would still work out way cheaper than buying her an ebike. It think that it may also be a little more efficient climbing as her bike + Swytch would be way around 6-7kg lighter than the dedicated ebike she rode in the summer.

Any stories involving climbing would be appreciated!

Did your confirmation email come through OK? I have order number on screenshot but no email arrived, I've asked about it and had no reply.

Yes, I got it straightaway.

Ok, I'll get on their case. They took payment too. Thanks for info.

yes but a while ago- prob not the most reliable for me to say but it felt similar. The swytch is on a nicer bike though so more enjoyable to ride.

Cheers. Lime bikes are the only electric bikes I've really ridden and quite like how they ride

I got another confirmation email today too

Yes, they resent my missing email & I got the update today too. Decision time imminent.

Does anyone have advice on getting a battery refurbished?
I have a dead one that I would like to re-use

What voltage? Have 48v bmss and 21700s and 18650s cells. I can test it, replace cells and replace bms.

It's 36V

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Have you treid to check output voltage?