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Understanding the Differences Between Direct Drive & Geared Electric Bike Hub Motors

You’ve no doubt seen references to geared hub motors and direct drive hub motors (also known as gearless hub motors) in descriptions of e-bikes. Often the references mention the supposed pros and cons of each but seem to assume you actually know what the different terms mean. If you need a quick rundown of what these two different types of motor design are and which might suit you, then Electric Bike Report has you covered.

What’s the difference between direct-drive and geared hub motors on e-bikes?

The terms geared and gearless refer to the way power is transferred from the motor to drive the bike forward. In practice, the distinction usually applies to hub motors (found in the center of the wheels) rather than mid-drives (found around the pedal cranks) – the vast majority of mid-drives are geared motors.

Geared hub motor parts
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Guide To E-Bike Gearing Systems

Lectric XP 2.0 Electric Folding Bike Review 500W Brushless Geard Rear Hub Motor

– Confused by the pros and cons of derailleurs, hub gears and continuously variable transmission? We demystify all of this down below. –

A lot of e-bike publicity focuses on the performance capabilities of the motor or the size of the battery. One often-overlooked area is gearing.

Surely you just get the same choice as on a regular bike? Only to a point; the e-bike revolution has meant many things for e-bike design, one of which is an expansion of the gearing options available.

With extra motor power available bigger and better-performing gears can be used, gears which would be too heavy or difficult to pedal for most riders of non-electric bikes. These are covered in the Advanced Systems section dow below.

But for now, let’s stick with gearing systems 101: derailleurs and hub gears

The Basics: Derailleur and Hub Gears

The majority of e-bikes are equipped with derailleur gears, with hub gears being the major alternative choice. Both options go back many, many decades so the technology on both is well advanced and should work well for its intended purposes. But what are they and what are the pros and cons of each system?

[Read more…] about Guide To E-Bike Gearing Systems

E-bike News: New Lightweights from Trek and Brompton, Shimano Expands Mid-drive Tech and Much More!

Electric bike news 14th July

It’s that exciting time of the year when e-bike companies start to announce new tech and new e-bikes thick and fast. So this week we have not only a brand new full-sus e-mtb from Trek but one of the lightest mid-drives out there with it. Brompton continue their recent launch of new bikes with their lightest e-bike yet and Shimano map out how urban e-bikes can now feature a more powerful mid-drive, electronic automatic gear shifting and ABS braking. Plus milestones for Eli’s micro electric car, e-cargo bikes in the UK and European e-bike sales.

In this week’s e-bike news:

  • Trek’s bike like 38.5lb Fuel EXe e-mtb
  • Brompton’s 34.4lb electric folder
  • Shimano’s new mid-drive rolls out alongside ABS braking and auto gear shifting & Bosch brings out new ABS system
  • Ducati’s new e-folders
  • European e-bike sales over 5 million for the first time
  • Eli deliver first one hundred neighborhood electric vehicles
  • Vancouver OKs 270 miles of protected bike lane
  • UK e-cargo boom

[Read more…] about E-bike News: New Lightweights from Trek and Brompton, Shimano Expands Mid-drive Tech and Much More!

E-bike News: National Park E-bike Access, Amazon Announce E-cargobike Deliveries and Much More!

Electric bike news 8th July

This week sees very few new e-bike announcements. More in the headlines have been attitudes to e-bikes. People’s overwhelmingly positive perception and experience of e-bikes is at the root of their fantastic recent success.

But clearly there is still work to do; the implementation of the 2019 Federal directive to public land authorities (including the National Park Service) to establish policies for e-bike access to public lands was clearly a huge win for e-bikes. This week’s news though, shows that there are still those out there who perceive e-bikes as some kind of threat rather than a benefit. This is despite the fact that most public land management policies limit e-bike use off-road to class 1 pedelecs (meaning the rider has to pedal and the assisted speed limit is 20mph). In terms of weight and speed, class 1 e-bikes are pretty similar to non-electric bikes that were already allowed on many of these trails – that is surely the message that still needs to be communicated to those worried about e-bike access.

In this week’s e-bike news:

  • Ruling on lawsuit against National Park e-bike access
  • NOKO reduce prices on their lightweight e-bikes
  • Jeep’s full suspension e-scooter comes to the UK
  • Rad Power’s sixth store opens in Salt Lake City
  • Amazon e-cargobike deliveries for London
  • Dutch compulsory battery recycling scheme
  • UK’s Pure Electric stop selling e-bikes and go online only
  • E-bikes help NYC cope with crazy free lunch offer
  • Accessories roundup

[Read more…] about E-bike News: National Park E-bike Access, Amazon Announce E-cargobike Deliveries and Much More!

Lectric XP 2.0 Review 2022

Lectric XP 2.0 Electric Folding Bike Review

Lectric XP 2.0 Review: Overview

*Looking for the latest? Check out the Lectric XP 3.0 review here

The Lectric XP 2.0 is a folding fat tire electric bike that was created based on Lectric’s original bike, the XP. The XP took the e-bike industry by storm in the summer of 2019 with its friendly price point and fun-based riding characteristics. We reviewed both the Lectric XP Lite and Lectric XP Step-Thru this year as well.

Similar to its predecessors, the XP 2.0 is based around fun and versatility — With a 500W rear hub motor, 20” x 3.0” inch tires and a suspension fork, the XP 2.0 is a fun and vibrant feeling bike that has enough power for steep hills and a tight enough turn radius to bob and weave through town. When we started this Lectric XP 2.0 review, we wondered how much had changed from the prior model. So we conducted a brake test, hill climb test, battery range test and more to get a good idea how the XP 2.0 compares.

If you’re looking for an electric bike that has a very prevalent fun factor, is easy on the wallet and is easy to stow-away then the Lectric XP 2.0 is a good option. E-bikes like this that The XP 2.0 is a good example of an electric bike that only exists because its electric — folding 20-inch standard bikes aren’t really a thing, and with good reason. It’s the motor and battery that really allow this design to come alive. By the end of this write up you should be able to decide if the Lectric XP 2.0 is the right folding fat tire e-bike for you. Let’s get started.

[Read more…] about Lectric XP 2.0 Review 2022

Gen3 The Stride Review 2022

Gen3 The Stride E-Bike Review

Though price is usually a pretty safe indicator of quality, a high(er) price tag is not always a foolproof bellwether of a high-performing electric bike. Sometimes, it’s the cheap ones that steal your heart.

The Gen3 The Stride electric commuter bike is one such exception to the cost/quality rule. Powered by a 500W Bafang rear hub motor, a fully integrated 500Wh battery and a full Shimano Drivetrain, The Stride is a serious contender in the commuter category. The best part, however, is the price — just $1,499 MSRP. In this Gen3 The Stride Review, we’ll dive into the details of the bike and parse out just what makes this such a solid affordable e-bike.

In addition to taking a hard look at the specs, Electric Bike Report also put The Stride through a series of real-world tests designed to demonstrate how the bike will perform in the real world. Giving you an idea of how well the bike rides, brakes, climbs and even how long the battery will last.

[Read more…] about Gen3 The Stride Review 2022

Ask Electric Bike Report: Are e-bikes safe for seniors?

Are e-bikes safe for seniors

The team at Electric Bike Report fields a surprising number of questions on whether electric bikes are safe for seniors and older people.

We get so many of these questions, that we actually tailor-made a list of our recommendations of the best e-bikes for senior riders.

But to answer the question in short: Yes, e-bikes are safe for seniors. Not only are they safe, they offer a host of health benefits from low-impact physical exercise to boosts in mental and cognitive health.

But it makes a lot of sense that we get this question so often — cycling, at least before e-bikes grew popular, hasn’t always been the most friendly sport for older demographics. It’s an activity with a reputation for hard physical exertion; one where pedaling unaided up hills and over long distances, among other things, could be obstacles unkind to aging bodies.

That paradigm quickly changed as e-bikes gained popularity.

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E-bike News: Yet Another New E-bike from Tern, BMX Electric Style, Heavy Cargo and Much More!

Electric bike news 1st July

In the early days of e-bikes the aim was simply to make reliable systems with enough power and battery range that weren’t too heavy. Now it’s more about pushing the limits of what is possible and catering for as many potential e-bikers as possible.

This week’s news shows these trends very clearly; we have a newly announced e-cargo bike with a revolutionary-sounding motor system that is one of several mammoth e-cargo offerings now on the market (we are talking several hundred lbs of cargo carrying…) whilst Tern’s new NBD looks to cater for smaller or older riders or those who just want to get into biking the easiest way possible. High speed, high performance BMX electric stunts anyone? Yep, we’ve got that covered too….Or if you just suffer overly from punctures we look and the 2nd gen puncture proof Geck tires, their lightest yet.

In this week’s e-bike news:

  • Tern’s NBD looks to broaden the appeal of the e-bike
  • Chimera’s titanium e-BMX with patented high performance motor system
  • Are Rivian autos the latest auto company getting seriously into e-bikes?
  • Heavy duty e-cargo bike category now includes Finland’s Ouca
  • Gecko 2nd gen cellular rubber puncture-proof tires now on Kickstarter

[Read more…] about E-bike News: Yet Another New E-bike from Tern, BMX Electric Style, Heavy Cargo and Much More!

E-bike News: State Bicycle Co’s First E-bike, Delta Euro Sec, Eole Crowdfunds and Much More!

Electric bike news 24th June

A single speed e-bike is about as simple as they come and EBR have already written about their pros and cons here. Low maintenance and easy to use, they have a lot going for them as long as the hills aren’t excessively steep for the model you pick (not all single speeds were created equal…).

So it’s refreshing to see State Bicycle Co. choose a single speed as their first bicycle rather than trying to overspec a budget model which may only lead to the most cut price components possible whose performance may be disappointing. Very recently we looked at Walmart’s full-sus e-mtb that retails for little more than the State Bicycle Co single speed – you may appear to get less for your money with a single speed but the end product and components may well be higher quality.

In this week’s e-bike news:

  • State Bicycle Co.’s first e-bike is a single speed
  • Delta Cycles moves from accessories into e-bikes
  • Eole’s X models combine folding and suspension
  • Bafang announces automatically changing three speed hub gear
  • PeopleForBikes reveal top US cycling cities for 2022

[Read more…] about E-bike News: State Bicycle Co’s First E-bike, Delta Euro Sec, Eole Crowdfunds and Much More!

Serial 1 SWITCH/MTN: Harley Davidson’s Serial 1 Launches First eMTB

Serial 1, the electric bike brand built on Harley Davidson’s legacy and engineering, announced on Friday its latest foray into the world of electric mountain bikes with a model that promises off-road performance accessible to all riders.

The new eMTB, called the Serial 1 SWITCH/MTN, is built around the backbone of the brand’s riotously successful /CTY models but with off-road specific geometry and a component suite chosen for performance in dirt. Like all of Serial 1’s other e-bikes, the new SWITCH/MTN is built on the Brose S Mag mid-drive motor that makes 90Nm of torque and offers 410% support at peak power. It also uses a 529Wh battery integrated into the lower portion of the frame for good looks and a low center of gravity.

Though Serial 1 has recently been releasing a series of special edition and otherwise one-off e-bikes, the SWITCH/MTN will be a permanent fixture in the brand’s e-bike lineup. It will be priced at $4,499 MSRP and is expected to begin shipping in early August of this year.

Serial 1 SWITCH/MTN

The all-new Serial 1 SWITCH/MTN eMTB.

“The vast majority of our world is unpaved,” said Aaron Frank, Brand Director at Serial 1, in a release announcing the new e-bike. “Fire roads, Jeep trails, singletrack paths, terrain parks, ski hills, state forests—there are so many great destinations to explore on two wheels and SWITCH/MTN, with its powerful motor, large-capacity battery, fully adjustable front suspension, and wide-ratio 1×12 drivetrain, has the all the performance and capability to take you anywhere you want to go.”

READ MORE: Our one-on-one interview with Serial 1’s Aaron Frank

Electric Bike Report had actually been invited to attend a special press event this week at the Bentonville Bike Fest in Arkansas, so I’d planned on having some first ride impressions ready for you. Unfortunately, a bout with COVID-19 derailed those plans so a first-glance spec review will have to do until we get the Serial 1 SWITCH/MTN in for full review.

[Read more…] about Serial 1 SWITCH/MTN: Harley Davidson’s Serial 1 Launches First eMTB

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