While thinking about laser cutting wheel covers/rim fillers at a later date I bumped into an interesting post on XS650.com; a Yamaha enthusiast forum. Instead of laser cutting rim fillers they modify pizza pans. Yes, pizza pans. JRay77 goes through the steps he completed to make some convincing fillers. The whole post is here: http://www.xs650.com/threads/wheel-covers-ideas.46953
Category: Benchmark
Benchmark: Biggar’s e-fighter
Text from his site are as follows: In this video I build a custom electric streetfighter motorcycle. Plans for this project are available at the following link: https://www.resystech.com/electric-st… Though equivalent to most 300cc street bikes in overall power, this little monster boasts a massive 250 ft-lb of max starting torque and over 100 ft-lb of…
94% State of health on cells
Despite the COV19 lockdowns that have ground the UK to a halt Dr. Oliver Curnick has worked his magic to test the capacity of the Nissan Leaf cells and it turns out that I have been a lucky guy. All the cells have a rated capacity around 106Ah, 375Wh. ‘They would’ve been 112.6Ah at beginning…
Hub motorcycle temeratures
Interesting to look at electric Motorcycles from a thermal point of view. A recent post on Facebook took a termal map of an Evoke. In -5 degrees C ambient temperature in Beijing and the hottest part of the 2019 Evoke Urban S is only 26C on the hub motor after a brisk 20 minute ride….
Benchmark: bikes of interest v1.0
Some interesting bikes and features… That is all!
Benchmark: leather on bikes
have been interested in traditional approaches to leather on bikes lately. Some examples here.
Benchmark: Hyperdrive
At the battery technology show I noticed a company that have a licence to use Nissan leaf batteries in other forms. In camper vans for example. Hyperdrive take the battery modules from the Nissan Sunderland factory.
Benchmark: 48v powertrain
Interesting 48v conversation here using a Honda 250 frame with thunderstruck mid-powered motor, Nissan leaf cells, and Curtis 350amp controller.
Benchmark: Shanghai Customs
A Shanghai based custom bike builder have started to retrofit the legendary Honda Super Cub. Shanghai Customs spec is as below: 1.2-kilowatt battery 2,000-watt hub motor, bldc controller Panasonic 3.7v 3.400 mAh lithium-ion 18650 cells. 40 kilometers at 45km/h. FB site is here: https://www.facebook.com/shanghaicustoms
Benchmark: eStel Scrambler
Apocalypse Custom Electric Motorcycles are a Philippines’ custom bike builders. They specialise in retro-fitment of donor bikes for customers. One of there show bikes is a eStelle a personal favourite. Very cool. Spec is below: 72v 30ah lifepo4 batteries 18 fet 4110 infineon controller (120 battery/220 phase) QS273 v3 hub. Facebook page is here.
Benchmark: XJ600 Terror Cafe
have been looking at XJ600 Cafe racer conversions on the internet and bumped into this ‘Cafe Terror’ bike on Custom Motorcycles Poland Blog. Looks good, nice to see how a low XJ600 sits on the road. Have noticed that the suspension at the rear is similar to mine in terms of stance. The front forks…
Benchmark: Solid aesthetic
Looking for a while at aesthetics. A trend of custom builds that I feel pulled towards is the filled in wheel as can be seen in the rides pictured by Le French Atelier. As I have a hub motor I keep thinking of ways to hide the main drive unit. Not sure why but I…
Benchmark: Night Shift Leafy Savage
Night shift have produced a beaut of a retro fitted e-bike. Using the battery packs from a Nissan Leaf and using Enertrac’s hub motor. Reflecting on my XJ600 build, this could be an option. Recycling some automotive cells. Anyway, some pics of the Suzuki re-born , from the nights shift website, are below. Text from…
Benchmark: CAKE Kalk
CAKE have produced an off road e-bike called Kalk. I like the emphasis on being light weight and skeletal but am not sure about the traditional use of the chain, trying to cut down on mechanical moving parts. More things to maintain and fail. Company text states: The Kalk production series is the second among…
Benchmark: UNIMOKE
Unimoke have released a new e-bike that appeals to the new generaation of electric bike users apparently. Looks like a minimalist wee moped – Nice. Looks like a L1-e B category. The company text is as follows: “The UNIMOKE is a cool and tough crossover urban utility e-bike that blends the amazing looks of a…
Benchmark: Sarolea Manx7
A nice electric bike being promoted by Sarolea. Text below: The core of the MANX7 is a carbon fibre monocoque chassis. This combination of materials and techniques results in a lightweight, super strong and rigid chassis. For a low total weight and optimum safety, the swingarm is also made of lightweight carbon fibre. Due to…
Benchmark: The cafe racer
Looking around I thought it would be interesting to build the bike it to a cafe racer style. Seems like a popular format for the modern hipster crowd. After funding out that sportbikes and replica sports bikes are on the downturn I’m eager to avoid a format that visually shouts ‘speed’. It seems that a…
Benchmark: Barbara custom renders
Found a very interesting article on Designboom that visualised various brands in futuristic forms — Barbara custom motorcycles. Quite awesome!
An electrifying life on two wheels... 