The Original

Click on image for a larger picture of  2003 model Diamondback Vectra.
I have been talking about  an electric bike for well over a year . I  really wanted one in 2007 because I was walking to work... it was  too much of an incline for a standard bike . At that time I earbashed my colleagues about my ideas of electric cars and bikes but really hadn't  seen what I wanted. Late in 2008 I found the Elation system which seemed to fit my requirements. It is sort of expensive but  in these times  what constitutes  good value can be  a little hard to determine.  So I paid the money  and waited for the kit to arrive.

eLation kit Installed

     

Install completed!. Have been for a few rides . Going up hills is a breeze, what Ive found so far is that  you need  to imagine that you have no assistance and choose a gear as you normally would then add in the amount of assistance that you feel you need .

A mod

     

I have noticed a small amount of flex in the frame that the motor mounts on due to the 'pull' on the chain....no I'm not pulling your chain. If you see the first picure the motor is mounted on a piece of heavy aluminium angle which tends to bend around its 90 degree vertex.. So  Ive added a clamp to see if it makes a difference. I'm also going to add a rubber block  between the motor and the added piece that the  hose clamp goes around. This will enable me to tighten the  clamp up fully without  bending the frame (as it does in the photo).

Changes in the Throttle

     

As can be seen in the first photo, the right hand is a little over loaded with throttle, 8 speed gear change and front brake... All the important stuff. I thought it would be a good idea to offload the gearchange to the left hand. I had a bit of a look around and found that SRAM make a "Grip shift" - the "Attack" range being compatible with Shimano system - It was only $25 for the twist grip. It is shown in the forth photo - It is working upside down on the left of course but that wont take long to get used to I ve had a couple of short rides and it really makes everything SO much easier. Having that extra power available with the motor means that you can race through the gears and the twist mechanism allows you to go up or down very quickly..

I'm changing the brake levers also so it all fits together better. Ive still got the left hand side to do but i havent got a  3 speed shifter yet. ... looking on ebay right now!

The new shifter/brake arrangement

 
The new arrangement is easy to use