Bike Conversion Components

Reader Dave asked me to list the components I purchased to convert my Merida Crossway 20 to an ebike.

Everything was purchased from Aliexpress (Chinese eBay). I’m not going to provide links to the actually sellers as their prices regularly change.  A good seller today can be the reverse tomorrow.  All my orders were placed on 11/11 Day to get the best price.  For those that don’t know it 11/11 Day is a major online shopping day in China, often with discounts greater than Black Friday.

Components and price paid in Aust currency.

• Bafang BBS01 36V 250W motor with 19Ah battery, C965 monochrome display and hydraulic brake sensors  ($1050.73) 

I opted for the largest capacity battery I could find at the cheapest price.  I also chose the C965 display over a colour screen as I find the mono display easier to read in bright Australian sunlight.  The seller agreed to exchange the usual cable brake levers for hydraulic brake sensors.

The following items were optional

• Gear sensor $22.41 (takes the strain off the chain and sprocket) by pausing the motor during a gear change)
• ‘Y’ splitter cable. $6.16  (required to fit the gear sensor to the stock wiring loom)
• Bullet connectors $3.65 qty 10 (I decided to replace the existing motor to battery cable connectors with something more substantial.  One connector was used)
• Headlight.  (a gift from the Bafang motor seller)
• USB patch cable $18.67 (required to access the motor controller and reprogram the stock parameters)
• Bike toolkit $20..60 (sockets required to remove the Merida stock central hub and cranks.

Ebike conversion cost $1122.22

The bike cost me $720

Total cost A$1842.22 (£975 approx).  By comparison Jan’s eTrike cost us $2740 and isn’t nearly as sophisticated.

For any interested readers in the UK you may find some sellers have a warehouse in Europe. 

The converted bike has now travelled 30km and my initial thoughts are:

• I’d like the rivet nuts to arrive enabling me to permanently secure the battery to the bike frame.
• More “tweaking” of the control parameters are required.  I suspect I have the wrong wheel diameter in the system.
• The change between power levels is noticeable but the change is also very smooth.  My brother-in-law rode the bike today and comments on how much smoother the changes were compared to my sisters expensive ebike where the bike “jerks” between changes.
• Hills are no longer a struggle.
• There is only slightly more resistance when riding the bike with the motor turned off.  On level ground I don’t require the motor to assist.