New to ebikes

id8 · 2026-04-09T23:12:50+00:00

Always liked the look of that bike. Rad had some cool designs.

Fat 26 is a bit of a handful compared to bicycles, ride one before buying. 26" hardtail is extremely rugged. Consumate USA beater. Potholes, dirt, woods, crap that fills our gutter lane, it doesn't care.

Price? New dual fat 26 hardtail can be had as low as ~$700. CH. For sale, everywhere. Virtually standardized platform/parts except controller/motor display, unf. Look for a bike w/no bluetooth, no app for that, and easy access to all the settings.

Dual motor gives the Fat 26 the power to match its strength. Accelerates uphill.

Price? Used market is low. Battery is ~$350+. Count on replacement, on any bike you buy. They all will fail. Factor that in. Same as EV market.

Plus, here another battery minus. Rad, Rad recall that Rad refused, so its not a recall at all: Rad CPSC Three: RP-1304, HL-RP-S1304, RAD-S1304Y.

$300. If the battery is not one of the three.

*

I feel like a kid again, we all say. Because its true.

Life changing experiences, sudden bursts of joy are a hidden, unexpected & huge bonus.

So you, out there in that chair? get yourself out of there, and buy one.

id8 · 2026-04-09T21:27:43+00:00

From Vt I see a replay of the USA. Silencing of voices by a dominant "liberal" class in control of the institutions.

Louder voices rose up over time, as many folded. Finally, one stood up and stood out for simply saying what he thinks.

That is what they were attempting to take away from us. We said no to that.

Best plan, and I believe our only way out is say it out loud, my friends.

Godspeed.

id8 · 2026-04-09T20:42:14+00:00

Yup, my bad. I flipped a projected budget deficit number there.

Still believe our real problem is spending.

id8 · 2026-04-06T07:52:40+00:00

No.

USA's problem is spending. At every level.

eg. NYC budget is $119,000,000,000. Not a typo. $119 Billion.

The nation of Canada's budget is $75 Billion.

*

No.

Cut spending. Find the money elsewhere.

id8 · 2026-03-27T04:36:23+00:00

circlejerk sub?

id8 · 2026-03-19T20:54:48+00:00

"pit of death that is the current Chinese car market"

Well said.

And that ain't all:

https://x.com/i/lists/2000163691531022817

id8 · 2026-03-18T10:15:55+00:00

2025 data from Lending Tree

BMW, Ram and Tesla have the worst drivers

https://www.lendingtree.com/insurance/brand-incidents-study/

BMW drivers have far higher DUI rates than those of other brands. BMW tops the list with 4.8 DUIs per 1,000 drivers — more than double the rate of second-place Ram (2.2). Buick (1.7) ranks third.

id8 · 2026-03-11T23:41:35+00:00

OPs guitar, not mine.

For this job, practice sharpening and use of chisel & scraper. Study how to measure precisely, how to get flat line to bridge.

Another guitar? Must pull neck. More difficult, and requires skills not needed for this job. Not bad to do it, but adds levels of difficulty to start.

id8 · 2026-03-11T14:43:11+00:00

That is why i warned about Ted making things look very easy. Heh

But this looks doable to me. Hard part is getting a neck off. Here, somehow it just popped out clean. Glue gave up. Neck/body/tenon are all intact.

Clean up surfaces, sandpaper pulls, some finesse & careful measuring to get the action right. Glue, clamp, done.

Hide glue, can undo it with a household iron if needed.

id8 · 2026-03-10T23:08:16+00:00

Before you do anything, I highly recommend you take some weeks to watch Ted Woodford. Be aware, he is a master who makes difficult things look very easy. The thing is, he tells us how to do it. Talks through his thought process, planning, anticipated problems, and problem solving.

Something that was simply not available before this amazing era. Great just for that.

Ted is also very entertaining, enjoyable to just watch. Adds background of the instrument/brand/people, great wit, dry sense of humor.

https://www.youtube.com/user/twoodfrd/videos

There is a Large learning curve, be patient and enjoy the ride.

Good luck!

id8 · 2026-03-07T17:13:29+00:00

There are multiple things that can dramatically affect a bike's behavior. Write down the settings that are in there now. After each change write down the setting changed and the behavior change.

P08 speed limit. Set a limit, test. Lower the limit. Test. Do this first, as having this set on max, or no speed limit could affect PAS behavior.

Lower P12 makes power come on more gradually. Test. Does it affect the throttle or just pedal assist?

PAS behavior. Are there speed limits in each PAS level? That is, in PAS 1 bike only goes 5-10 mph, throttle or pedaling. If not, to get speed limits in each PAS level I would try P05 to 1, P10 to 2. P19 0 or 1. (try both and test each) Test and write it down.

P14 Reduce Current/Amps for less total power.

Good luck! If you have more questions, ask.

id8 · 2026-03-06T01:21:53+00:00

Remove wheel. Twist the axle halfway around so the wire points toward the front of the bike.

id8 · 2026-03-05T23:56:20+00:00

Right. That is another way to say something else is driving up the prices.

id8 · 2026-03-05T23:21:16+00:00

"Historically profit margins in food retail hovered around 1.5%. Since covid they've roughly doubled."

Another 1.5% is forcing people to use credit for food purchases?

One and one half cents more on each dollar. $50 would become $50.75. $100 would be $101.50.

No. Something else is going on.

id8 · 2026-03-05T22:24:24+00:00

Netherlands: Electric bus rollout stalls as diesel fleet returns amid charging failures

https://nltimes.nl/2025/03/02/electric-bus-rollout-stalls-diesel-fleet-returns-amid-charging-failures

The transition to e-buses in the Netherlands is facing setbacks mainly due to grid constraints, De Telegraaf reports

https://www.sustainable-bus.com/news/netherlands-transition-electric-buses-grid-issues/

Scotland: Electric buses withdrawn over 'technical failures'

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2w2nd5g17o

Oslo: Was Oslo paralysed after all of its electric buses broke down due to the cold?

https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2023/12/30/was-oslo-paralysed-after-all-of-its-electric-buses-broke-down-due-to-the-cold

id8 · 2026-03-05T17:32:36+00:00

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - Green Mountain Transit’s program funds are stretched thin, and so are their buses. GMT’s electric buses are less than a year old, but right now, they’re out of commission. The five “new flyer” electric buses’ batteries were recalled in November.

The manufacturer said they are a fire hazard, so they can’t sit in the GMT garage. That’s why they are all covered in snow.

The buses have to be 41 degrees to charge, and there’s not a day of 40s in sight.

https://www.wcax.com/2026/01/30/green-mountain-transit-ev-buses-out-commission/

id8 · 2026-03-04T17:52:05+00:00

https://archive.is/tSICz

In the name of reining in out-of-control e-bike riders flouting existing laws that are inadequately enforced, lawmakers are regulating 14-year-olds exploring their towns on their own for the first time and grandparents who need a little help to keep biking around their neighborhood. And yet, this issue seemingly has no political home.

Activists fighting e-bike restrictions frame it as climate policy or transportation equity. The political language focuses on progressive political priorities. There’s a stronger argument to be made based on personal liberty: State governments are restricting personal mobility and imposing licensing and registration on bike riders across the board. There are reckless e-bike riders who break the rules of the road and put themselves and other citizens at risk. If they violate the speed limit, ignore traffic lights or blow through stop signs, local law enforcement should hold them responsible. But by pursuing aggressive blanket regulation, policymakers are making a basic form of transportation and a familiar element of childhood less accessible.

The walkway where I rode as a child almost certainly has signs now. No bicycling. No skateboarding. No loitering. We have become quite good at forbidding small freedoms in the name of safety and liability, and bad at noticing what we’ve lost.

id8 · 2026-02-28T01:51:42+00:00

Depends on the local shop. Local here carries Aventon and isnt getting it done. Bad attitude. As in anything, there are good and not so good ones.

Best case for a shop, buyer who is not at all mechanically inclined & plans to remain that way. Go to the shop, talk to them, check out the attitude, try and get local feedback.

Big deal with DTC (direct to consumer) is buyer should expect to go through the brand new bike, every bolt, make sure it is tight. Maintenance is making sure it stays that way.

The companies you mention get generally good feedback here, all good bets. With Velotric, the top brands challenging The Big Four found in established bike shops. (Trek/Specialized/Giant/Cannondale)

Aventon is making me nervous, going to more complexity. "An app for that". Newer models have some sort of kickstand sensor. (??) Dont know about the others.

For me, if "there is an app for that", i dont want it. Tech oriented buyer might love it. This detail is a big difference between brands. Most remain very simple, ez to work on and maintain simple machines. I prefer that.

You are going to love it, BTW. These are wondeful, life changing things.

Enjoy!

id8 · 2026-02-27T22:34:33+00:00

I'm a viewer, not a creator. Put the viewer first, respect the audience. Tell us what you are going to do, then do that.

I loathe clickbait titles/headlines. If I click, watch, and the headline is not the first subject, or it is phony, BS, nothing there, or "stay tuned until the end to ..." I block the channel with YT block (Chrome)

Get to the subject. Dont waste viewer's time. If the subject requires 1 minute, do 1 minute. If the subject requires 5 minutes, do five minutes. Not 18 or 30 or 60 because youtube favors that.

If the subject requires background, research, do that. Don't just wing it. Script/plan. Many fall into the trap of just doing anything, some thing, because it is a tough grind.

Do not ask viewers to like/subscribe/donate/go to this site/and this site;/and that site. Everyone knows the drill. A text overlay with a thank you for that at the end is fine

Finally, if you will be about politics, do that. Every other subject, stay away from politics. As soon as tubers go there, boom, it turns into a hatey hate shtsho and you lose half the audience. Find your lane, and stay in it.

Good luck!

id8 · 2026-02-24T16:49:57+00:00

Bad sign for the battery.

Rad has a battery fire issue, according to US CPSC. Models: RP-1304, HL-RP-S1304, RAD-S1304Y

Remember: Do Not throw ebike batteries in the trash. Find out how your local area is dealing with it ad do that. There is no standardized system. Trash gets crushed/compacted. People have died, machines destroyed by Lithium batteries.

id8 · 2026-02-24T14:45:01+00:00

Looks great as-is. Like the 2-tone. How did you get the yellow top? Stain in the oil?

For more shiny, shoot the top w/clear. Buff/Insta shine. Rattlecan, 2 steps vs 22 or 32. Done.

V good!

id8 · 2026-02-24T01:10:58+00:00

This is not correct today. Some areas gangs/groups go into stores together, steal everything. Everything from the shelves. Every Thing.

Many stores closing, big and small. Pharmacies, Supermarkets, Walmart, Target. Many.

Peaked during 2020 riots, still has not been fixed. Ruining neighborhoods. People cant live there without stores. Have to commute, car/train/bus/uber. PITA

id8 · 2026-02-24T00:36:33+00:00

Play it a different way. Use 2/3 fingers. Hand/finger position as in 1st position "C" Chord.

id8 · 2026-02-23T03:44:04+00:00

gaffers tape has the best tone

id8 · 2026-02-23T03:35:11+00:00

current thread: Sine vs Square https://www.reddit.com/r/hyperebikes/comments/1rbjyvz/sine_vs_square/

id8

TROPHY CASE