1)
uspd The kit I installed on my bike, the
motor has a whine to it and it increases in pitch as you give
it more power. When your close to the bike it's very
noticeable. From that I have to assume
all uspd motors have some kind of a whine to them.
w-energy The kit I installed on my
test bike was next to being dead silent. I have nowhere near the
mileage on this kit as I have on the uspd, so
whether it remains that silent as more mileage
is put on remains to be seen.
2)
uspd There is a chain on the motor which
could break. To date I have only heard of one broken
chain.
w-energy The kit has a hub motor so
there is no chain to break.
3)
uspd The kit has a chain tension plasic
arm to take up slack on the chain. The chain will stretch a
bit as mileage is put on. This arm is made of plastic
and it wears down quite fast.
w-energy This kit has no chain
therefore no chain tension arm to wear
4) uspd
The motor does not have smooth acceleration. I am not sure if this is
the fault of the thumb
throttle or a combination of the throttle and the high
torque of the motor. My guess would be
it's a combination of both. The result is the motor
jerks on the spoke adapter which over
a period of time may result in broken and loose
spokes. After one season of use I had
6 broken spokes on my wheel and 3 others that were
loose. With a conscious effort one
can learn to control the acceleration so that it is
somewhat smooth.
w-energy The throttle is more like a
motorcycle throttle and it gives the motor extremely smooth
acceleration. This is probably due to the fact
that the motor does not have the same
hi torque as the uspd.
5) uspd
The frame mounted battery locks in place with a key. I am not sure
about the rack mounted
battery but I believe it also locks in place.
w-energy This kit has a rack
mounted battery and it does not lock in place unless you design
something yourself. The battery is held in
place by velcro straps to the rack.
6) uspd
This kit for the most part needs someone with a little mechanical
knowledge to install it.
w-energy This kit is extremely easy
to install.
7) uspd
This kit needs the rear rim to have the correct dimensions for the spoke
adapter to fit.
However even if the rim has the correct dimensions
this does not guarantee a fit. The
solution buy a new rear rim with the correct
dimensions. The bike must be 26 or
27 inch in size
w-energy This kit is manufactured
in different wheels sizes so it fits just about any bike.
You need 3.75 inches distance between the front
forks or hydraulic shocks so that
the supplied rim will fit.
8) uspd
This kit adds 28 lbs to the bike.
w-energy This kit with a standard
battery adds 34 lbs to the bike and with the extended battery
adds 46 lbs to the bike.
9) uspd
This kit is a rear wheel drive.
w-energy This kit is a front wheel
drive.
Note I have tested both and in my opinion I found no
advantage or disadvantage to front or
rear wheel drive.
10) uspd
This kit has very strong torque from a standing stop and strong torque
throught out
the throttle range.
w-energy This kit has weak torque
from a standing stop but once the bike gets rolling a bit
you can feel the torque building.
11) The uspd has faster acceleration
compared to the w-energy
12) The top end speed for both kits
is about the same.
13) uspd
This kit has no lock out feature for the power. One could come along
and move the battery
switch to the on position and press the throttle
which would cause the bike to lunge
forward.
w-energy This kit has a key
switch which mounts on the handle bar. You can turn the key to the
off position and then remove the key and one
can not acciddently engage the motor.
14) uspd
This kit with the frame mounted battery which is two 12 a/h battery
cells gives a
distance of 20 miles on a single charge according
to the manufacturer.
The rack mounted kit which Currie also sells are
two 10 a/h battery cells which give a
distance of 20 miles on a single charge according
to the manufacturer.
If you need an additional battery to give you more
mileasge, you can only get this when
your able to install the frame and rack mounted
battery on your bike. The cost for the
second battery is considerable about $400 Canadian.
I estimate with the two batteries you
would probably get a distance of 40 miles.
w-energy This kit with the
standard battery three 7 a/h battery cells gives a distance of 20 miles
on a single charge according to the
manufacturer.
This kit with the extended battery
three 12 a/h battery cells gives a distance of
30 miles on a single charge according to the
manufacturer
The additional cost for this extended battery
is approximately $75 Canadian.
Keep in mind distance is subject to rider weight, type of
terrain and how much or how litttle one
uses the motor.
15) uspd
With this kit you get their standard smart battery charger which has
a 2 amp output.
w-energy With this kit you
get their standard smart battery charger which has a 1 amp output
16) uspd
At this point in time you get a manual with the kit that tells you
how to install the kit on
your bike. However they do not have an operators
manual with the kit.
w-energy With this kit they
give you a installation and operators manual combined in one.
When you purchase your conversion kit from me I also include a
tips sheet I have put together.
It gives you valuable information to get the most from your
kit and to help you from making
mistakes which could be costly down the road.
17) W-energy have a fuel gauge
option you can now purchase which tells you how much charge is
left in your battery at any given time. It also tells you how
much electricity your pulling from the
battery at any given time. This is a great feature if your
trying to make your battery last for
long distance travel. The cost of this gauge is $79.95
Canadian.
At this point in time the uspd has no such gauge available
that I am aware of.
The w-energy gauge can not be used on the uspd kit to my
knowledge.
18) Added on Aug 12/03
uspd If the bike falls over
on the side that has the motor the extent of the damage will
most likely be limited to a scratched cover. One
thing I should note is that the last group
of brushless motors have a heavy wire cage around
the motor which would protect it.
w-energy If the bike falls
over on the side that has the cable coming out of the hub, the
cable may or may not be damaged. One thing
is for sure this cable needs to
be protected.
19) Added on Sept 3/03
The following piece of information came from a fellow I know
who has been involved in the
electric bike field for some time now. I have not been able
to verify it however I believe it
to be accurate.
Electric bikes that have
brushless motors run at about 97 percent efficiency
Electric bikes that have brush motors run at about 73 percent
efficiency.
uspd Currie is now coming
out with a brush motor and external controller which will replace
their brushless motor. This could mean that
their new motor will be about 25 percent
less efficient. So where will this loss in
efficiency take place., I am told in the battery.
I am told all things being the equal with the
brush motor you can expect about a 25
percent decrease in mileage. That's not good.
w-energy Wilderness Energy has
told me they are coming out with a brush hub motor. Not
to fear they are keeping their brushless
motor to. If you choose the brush motor
they told me one can expect a 25 percent
decrease in mileage. However the
starting torque will be a bit stronger and
they told me the overall durability of
the motor will be increased. Cost will be
the same. I have been getting some feed-
back from customers and all agree mileage
is rated high on the list.
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