E-bike conversation kit for 24 mile work commute in the UK?

elieen

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Well met!

I have a DBR (Diamondback Racing) Mountain type bike. I don't know what model it is. I assume it's 26 inch one. It was sitting in the cellar for a couple of years and now I need it, with some upgrades. My bike:
Diamondback Racing Mountain bike.jpeg


I have to commute 24 miles to work and back.
I am looking to convert it to an e-bike.

What I've done so far;
- I pumped air in the tires and it rides well now.
- I have read loads of stuff online about e-bike conversion (such as thıs one.)
- I understand the equipment. I need front wheel kit that has the motor, controllers, throttle and a battery that suits the kit. (The reason I'm going with front wheel kit is because I simply do not trust myself with rear wheel work.)
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What I need/have/look4;
However, I just cannot choose which one I should go for due to my budget. My actual budget is £350 but I can go overdraft by another £50. So let's say £400 max.
I don't want a cheap Chinese set where motor will break after a couple of weeks or something. I also need it water proof as I'll be riding in the rain a lot (I live in the UK).
I unfortunately cannot afford a good £800 kit like Bafang.
I need it asap so I do not want to order parts and wait for weeks for them to arrive.
I guess need more than 12ah so I do not have to worry about the charging constantly.
Legal limits in the UK is 250W but AFAIK the 1000W-500W motors have cables-switches that limits it to 250W.
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What I've found so far;
Kit 1
Battery 1
___
Kit 2
Battery 2


I am kinda lost now. I'd appreciate any help and suggestion. Thank you very much, stay safe!

(This was my post at Reddit)
 
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If you want to build a near-certain deathtrap, either of those kits would work just fine.

Your fork is likely aluminum and not steel, the dropout which contains the motor axle is not strong enough, torque applied by motor will also cause sticktion in the fork sleeves and make it stiff without cushioning function. Even with torque arms added, I would not go over 500W. Consider what happens if your front wheel leaves the bike while at speed, the results are not pleasant. Can be fatal.

A front install is much easier than a rear, but also a VERY much weaker mount.

48 miles is a long way. You can charge at each end, or carry a large, expensive, heavy battery. Chargers are cheap, get one for home, one for work, and one spare. They fail fairly often. If you cannot charge at work, many grocery stores and other such have available outdoor outlets, do buy something there occasionally.

Neither one of your battery links worked, so I have no idea what you are looking at. How much and how hard you pedal, and how many hills you have, and how much weight the bike is carrying, also how fast you want to go, are all factors which affect your range.

Are you currently pedaling this route, are there any hills which take more than 5 minutes to climb? If not, you can trade torque for speed. You will loose some acceleration and hill-climbing ability, but gain speed and efficiency. Also lighter weight, if you choose carefully.

In your price range, they are ALL made in China.

For waterproofing, start collecting some old, narrow 700C tubes. Flexible, waterproof, cheap conduit to enclose cable, and make a tight fit for the cover over the axle hole into your motor, where the power cables go. Avoid a cradle-mounted battery, get one with an extension cable and connectors matching those on your controller, and enclose that with tube, sealed or covered at both ends and with a drip loop. Look for a "fully potted" controller, or open yours and fill it with epoxy. Waterproof, but care must be taken not to overheat. Learn how many amps you will use, and get a controller intended for a higher load, it will get less hot.

I can tell you what motor worked for me, and my usage conditions, flawlessly for over 10 years and within your budget, but I do not know if it will meet your usage requirements, which need to be very tightly defined.
 
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