Month: August 2020

AeeDEA E-TRIKE … INDIA’S FIRST OFFERING INTO THE RECUMBENT TRIKE MARKET

 

The Aeedea Company in India is now offering a tadpole trike. It is available in both a manual version as well as an electric motorized version. My first impression of it is summed up in two words … ugly and crude. But hey, maybe it will grow on me.

HERE is their web page. This trike has a 250 watt motor. The starting price is 113,312 Indian rupee which is currently $1,526.36 US dollars. The top price is 176,750 Indian rupee which is currently $2,380.84 US dollars. There is no further information on their website explaining these prices. My guess is the lower price is for the manual (non-motorized) version while the higher price is for the motorized version. Their website , like their trike, isn’t very professional looking.

As you can see, it has a very wide wheel base. The steering is somewhat unique as to turn the wheels the rider moves the handlebars forwards and backwards vs pivoting them around a central axis. You can see this in the video below. The handlebars are way too high for my liking. I would find them uncomfortable compared to if they were about a foot lower. The seat material looks like it would be quite hot to sit on. I much prefer a mesh seat like most trikes have. Again, this looks like something put together by an amateur builder.

Their website does not provide much useful information such as seat height, seat back angle, turning radius,  wheel base, number of gears, gear inches, tire sizes, included accessories, etc.

Specifications and features:

1. Made of light weight aluminium
2. Highly engineered indirect steering system
3. Digital pedal assist modes 0 to 100%
4. Range varies between 100 to 160 kms on one full charge, varies based on work derived from the motor
5. Maintenance free Brushless DC motor
6. All rain proof
7. 20 amps 36 volts 3c high quality Li-Ion cells, with water proof encasing
8. Comes with a 5amp high speed charger, full charge in 3 to 4 hours
9. All wheels with disc brakes
10. Adjustable seat with recline and position adjustment
11. Adjustable pedal boom to accommodate rider height between 5 ft  6 inch to 6 feet 2 inch
12. Electric variant comes with water proof saddle bags
13. Direct throttle to bypass pedal assist
14. Motor power cut off with 15. Street legal with a 250 watts motor
16. A 5 amp wall plug high speed charger

Color options :

1. Matt Fluorescent yellow and Matt Black
with Blue and Black upholstery

2. Matt white and Matt black
with White and Black upholstery

That definitely looks like a very high boom yet with a rider seated onboard it doesn’t look all that high.

A FREE GIFT awaits you!

WHY YOU SHOULD NOT REUSE THE PINS IN BICYCLE CHAIN LINKS

For many years I reused the pins I have pushed out of the side plate of chains but I don’t do it anymore. I have had a few chain failures as a result which resulted in my having to do some repair/maintenance alongside of the trail. This video explains why pins should not be reused along with other topics.

A FREE GIFT awaits you!

BEST CRANKDRIVE E-MOTORS

NOTE: Since I wrote this article I bought the Tongsheng crankdrive motor and installed it on my trike. It lasted less than 2 months so I was not impressed with it and therefore I can not recommend it. The motor quit working and while it was working it destroyed my drive train costing a small fortune to repair. The mechanics at my local bike shop agree with me that crankdrive motors are rough on  the drive train. I would recommend the 1000 watt Bafang that offers  torque sensing.

I have a hub motor on my trike and quite frankly I am not a fan of crank drive systems for various reasons. However, certainly crank drive systems are quite popular. Probably the name we hear the most is Bafang. I am sure it is a good system and lower cost than most others making it an attractive option. One can spend more money … much more … and do better. Recently I visited the website of Victory Cycles in Kokomo, Indiana. I have dealt with them several times. I bought my first e-motor from them, a 350 watt BionX unit. As many know BionX went out of business leaving their dealers caught off guard. Victory Cycle sold lots of BionX units so when BionX went belly up they found themselves in a predicament. They had lots of customers who want an e-motor on their trike. Having lost BionX they had to come up with something. They started looking at what all is available. Since BionX is a hub motor system they hoped to remain with a hub motor. They tried one well known brand (which I won’t mention by name) but ran into lots of issues so they said goodbye to that company and continued their search. They looked at Bafang but decided against it. You can read about this HERE. The bottom line is they objected to Bafang saying that it is not smooth. So their search continued and led to the two systems they are selling today. Both are crank drive. You can read about these two systems by clicking on the same link above.

One is the TONGSHENG TSDZ2 750 Watt mid drive system which they sell for $1800 installed on most tadpole trikes.

The other e-motor they sell and highly recommend for Catrike is the Bosch E-Cat system which they sell installed for $2600 on a new Catrike you buy from them or you can have them install it on an existing Catrike for $2750.

I am sure that the Bosch E-Cat system is a very good system, but I personally don’t think I would want it for two main reasons. First it is only 250 watts … which just isn’t enough in my opinion. Secondly, it is e-assist only. No hand throttle is available. That is a real turnoff for me. That being said, I am sure many will love it and not have an issue.

The Bosch Active Line Plus electric-assist system features four power assist levels: Eco – 40%, Tour – 100%, Sport – 180% and Turbo – 270%. Each level also features a maximum drive torque to ensure smooth, gentle acceleration. The Bosch Active Line Plus delivers assist up to 20 mph and a cadence of 105.

That is the straight skinny from this dealer. This is what they recommend and sell to their customers. I ponder over the question of “would I consider going with a crank drive system” if i were wanting to buy a new e-motor for my trike. Right now if I had to answer that I think I would say no, I will stick to a hub motor system. But again, that’s me. Many like the crank drive system. If you are interested in why I prefer hub drive you can read about it HERE.

Having an e-motor on a trike most definitely helps us to …

ENJOY THE RIDE

(especially when climbing a hill.)

A FREE GIFT awaits you!

AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION STILL EQUALS …

I am sure most of us remember the saying “an ounce of prevention equals a pound of cure” … or … “is worth a pound of cure”. It proved true today while I was out on my daily ride. The small bolt (machine screw) which holds my flag pole holder onto the back of my seat frame broke off and everything went south. At least it tried to. Fortunately I have a plastic cable tie around the flag holder bracket securing it to another place nearby which does not allow the flag holder to fall down onto the ground. I also have my two flag poles connected together by a small elastic bungee cord which prevents the loss of a flag as I ride along. Between these two safeguards I didn’t lose anything. I replaced the broken bolt upon arriving back home and everything is good to go. I have lost various stuff before so taking these preventative measures have paid off.

In the picture below you can see the black bungee cord connecting the two flag poles together.

And here is the plastic cable tie (yellow) which saved the loss of the flag holder. The red line points to the bolt that broke.

Yep, an ounce of prevention still equals (is worth) a pound of cure.

KEEP ON TRIKIN’

A FREE GIFT awaits you!

THE PROS AND CONS OF RIDING A RECUMBENT TRIKE

Here is a video of a tadpole trike rider sharing about the pros and cons of riding a recumbent trike. He states that he is expressing his personal opinion. I agree with most of what he says but I can’t agree with everything he says. But hey, that’s what make the world go around. Right? HERE are David’s other videos.

A FREE GIFT awaits you!

LOW COST TRAVEL TRAILER

It is almost hard to imagine this … pulling a fully supplied mini travel camper on your journey around wherever you choose to go. And the cost … equally amazing … only $150 total. I saw this mini camper video a few years ago. It just resurfaced so I thought I would share it here as I am sure many of you will find it as fascinating as I do. As for me I would be very uneasy this day and age being inside of such a structure. There are just too many people out there who are dangerous and threatening to others.

A FREE GIFT awaits you!