i was/am an urban cyclist for the last 15 years and would like an ebike because i find more and more excuses not to ride, and part of that is - riding a bike is kinda tiring.

i have a surly steel frame bike with 41mm tires that would be a great candidate for an ebike conversion. i don’t think i’m interested in a bike doing most of the work for me, i still want to exercise. i want a stealthy conversion (don’t want to look too much like an ebike, trying to avoid large battery bricks). torque sensors preferred over cadence.

budget: ~$1k

what i’ve learned is that there are four ways to convert a regular bike to ebike, listed in increasing cost/complexity (see table pic below - couldn’t figure out how to format a table)

What I’m determining is - around $400-$600 can get you a basic front hub or friction kit if one wants an entry level/starter option, with kits starting to get “good” at about the $800 range and really good above $1000. I’ve priced out a good front hub kit at $700 and a good rear hub kit at $860. A friction drive kit would be around $400.

As the price approaches $1000, it seems more sensible to get an entire ebike for that price rather than add $1000 in parts to my existing bike. There’s lots of great ebike options out there in the ~$1500 range and having an extra bike could be really useful for guests etc.

So, I guess the question becomes: $500 subpar front/friction kit or $1000+ new ebike? after typing this up, I’m leaning towards the “QiRoll” friction motor as a lower cost of entry option

  • happybadger [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
    0·
    12 days ago

    A cheap bike is expensive. Ebikes put a lot of chain stress on the motor. If you get a crappy one, it will last a year or two before it needs repairs that you probably can’t do at home. Your best option here is trying out a mid-drive and a rear-hub bike with a torque sensor before choosing between them. The mid-drive is worth the extra cost in terms of feeling natural- your legs are 5x stronger instead of feeling like there’s a motor pushing you from behind. A proper Bosch mid-drive can last 80,000km before experiencing issues. The rear-hub makes repairing that tyre more complicated which I also don’t like. With the rear-hub you can use a throttle which is nice for starting a heavier bike, but mid-drives typically won’t have them.

    You also can’t cheap out on the electronics or brakes. A proper battery on its own is $300-500, but you’re paying for a battery that will reliably last 10k+ cycles without having corrosion or fire risks. You’ll be casually pedaling at your normal top speed with a bike that weighs 2-5x as much, so quality hydraulic brakes are essential along with upgrading the tyres.

    In your situation I’d save up $1500 and buy a 2025 model from https://upway.co/. You can get a great $2000-3500 tier ebike with a one year warranty. They don’t currently have any in stock, but the cheapest good rear-hub option would be the Aventon Level 3: https://www.aventon.com/products/level-3-commuter-ebike . My Abound LR is a fantastic cargo bike and it’s nice to have the extra electronic features.

    edit: I’d also suggest just going with a cargo bike for maximum utility. All ebikes within class 2/3 feel just as agile as a road bike. The only difference is 10-15kg in weight that you mainly notice when lifting it. I’d compare the feel of my cargo bike to a sporty subcompact car, able to carry 60kg of cargo with ease. It’s nice to do all the week’s shopping on a bike, bring everything needed for a day trip, and commute with all my work gear.