Cyclone Motor Performance Testing
360 Watt Motor - 26" Mountain Bike
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Bike:
Model: Montague Hummer
Source: E-bay
Price: Approx. $500
Tire Size: 26"
Tire Pressure: 65psi
Cassette: 7 speed, 11-28
Bike Weight w/ Batteries: 72 lbs
Rider Weight: 220 lbs
Gross Weight: 292 lbs
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Motor Kit:
Model: Cyclone 360 Watt
Chainwheel: 44 Tooth
Optional Watt Meter: Watt's-Up
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Battery Pack:
Type: Sealed Lead Acid - Series Wired
Capacity: 24 Volt 18Ahr
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Trip Description:
Location: Santa Ana River Trail, Orange County, CA
Elevation: 50' Above sea level average
Terrain: Level, asphalt bikeway
Weather: Sunny, Wind 5-7mph, 72°F
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Trip Start Readings:
Voltage: 25.49
Amps: 0
Watts: 0
V-min: 25.49
A-max: 0.07
W-max: 0
AmpHours: 0
WattHours: 0
Battery Temp: 73°F
Motor Temp: 74°F
Top Speed: -
Avg. Speed: -
Total Distance: 0
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Trip End Readings:
Voltage: 23.01
Amps: 0
Watts: 0
V-min: 17.03
A-max: 30.35
W-max: 679.5
AmpHours: 9.867
WattHours: 225.2
Battery Temp: 86°F
Motor Temp: 92°F
Top Speed: 31.3mph
Avg. Speed: 13.9mph
Total Distance: 14.8 miles
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Calculated Values:
WattHours/Mile: 15.22
Miles/KWh: 65.72
Voltage Drop: 2.48
Actual Whrs vs Rated Whrs: 225.2 vs 432 = 52.13%
Actual Ahrs vs Rated Ahrs: 9.867 vs 18 = 54.81%
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Trip Log:
Once again on this ride, my objective was to see how many miles I could go
under electric power without pedaling. For this test the SLA batteries were
not fully charged because they had been used the previous afternoon on another
test. With the small 1 amp chargers about 18 hours are required for full
charging but in this case they were only charged for about 12 hours or so. The
partial charge is indicated by the start voltage which was only 25.49 volts
(no load) rather than the 26.2 to 26.5 that is normal for a fully charged pack.
Compared to my previous test of the 360 watt motor on a 20" folding bike, I found
that lower gears worked better with the 26" mountain bike. Cruising at 12-15mph
was possible in 2nd to 4th gears (7 speeds available). Traveling in 3rd gear at
about 14mph the motor was requiring 275-325 watts - around 11-12 amps. Under
motor power only I achieved about 26.2mph top speed. With motor power and pedaling on a
slight downhill I managed to post a top speed of 31.3mph. I'd guess that the
cadence is about 90 at this speed - I could not keep this up for very long!
With the 26" mountain bike I frequently saw the orange and even red LED almost
from the very start of the trip. This simply indicates that the 26" tire requires
more power to turn because of its larger diameter. At about 8 miles, the orange
LED came on constantly. After 12.5 miles the red LED was on constantly and I reduced
my speed to about 9-10mph to minimize the required current and extend my range a little.
Finally at 14.8 miles, the motor controller cut off indicating that the battery voltage
had dropped below 18.5 volts.
Conclusions:
While the overall mileage for this trip was disappointingly short at 14.8 miles
this is easily explained by the partially charged batteries. What is surprising is
to compare the Miles/KWh figure to that of my ride using the same motor/battery
combination on the 20" bike. The 20" bike delivered 63.11 M/KWh but the 26" bike
bettered that mark with 65.72M/KWh. The M/KWh measurement is like MPH in gas-powered
vehicle. Our 24v 18Ahr battery has .432 KWhrs available in theory. If we assume that we
can get 80% of that in reality (.3456KWh) this battery/motor combination should be
capable of about 22.7 miles with this setup. This is almost exactly the range we
did achieve with the same motor/battery combination on the 20" bike.
Again I was surprised at how well these inexpensive SLA batteries did in powering the
bike over level ground. As with the 20" bike and this setup, I think it is adequate
on the level but would not perform very well in hilly terrain.
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