electric bike kit
Front hub motor and rear hub motor
When installing a front hub motor in an electric bicycle school, you have only two choices: front hub motor or rear hub motor. (In fact, there are some electric bicycles that install the hub motor as a mid-drive motor, but this is beyond the scope of this article.) If you search around, you may find that both the front and rear hub motors provide the same hub motor hub motor kit. “What’s the difference?” question.
Front wheel electric bicycle
The front-wheel electric bicycle is one of two wheel drive configurations: of course the front wheel or the rear wheel. In this setup, the motor of the electric bicycle is located on the hub of the front wheel, and the motor increases your pedaling speed by providing some extra movement to the wheel. With the faster moving front wheels, you will find that there is no need to press the pedals too hard. The front hub motor is popular with modders because of its ease of installation-just connect the motor to the hub. Ebike Essentials’ front hub motor electric bike kit has everything needed to transform a bicycle: a complete motor integrated front wheel, LCD display, battery, charger, throttle, brake sensor, cadence sensor and all the hardware you need to install.
Rear wheel electric bicycle
Just as a car can have front-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive, electric bicycles can also get power from the front or rear wheels. The rear wheel electric bicycle uses the same technology as the front wheel hub design to install the motor on the rear wheel hub. It’s just a question whether the motor pulls the bicycle forward, as if it were from the front, or pushes it forward, as if it were from the back. Like the front hub motor, it is a relatively easy retrofit, but some cyclists struggle with the feeling of being pushed forward, feeling that this reduces their natural control of the bike, and conquering steep hills will drain the battery.
In-wheel motors: weight matters
There are few issues to consider when deciding whether to use a front hub motor or a rear hub motor. Let’s start with weight.
Generally speaking, you want to spread the weight of your electric bike as much as possible, from front to back. You don’t want to concentrate all the weight in one area. Most batteries are installed in the middle or the rear of the electric bicycle, which means that the front hub motor helps distribute the weight forward and can improve the weight distribution of the electric bicycle.
Bicycles with heavy-duty rear hub motors and batteries are also installed far behind, such as on the rear frame, and are prone to “puncture” during acceleration. This is especially true if the motor has a fairly high torque and/or the wheel diameter is small
Traction is affected by the position of the hub motor
Traction is another important consideration. Although moving the hub motor forward to the front wheels solves the weight distribution problem, it can cause another problem: traction control. Since the weight of the front wheel of an electric bicycle is already small, the traction of the front hub motor is smaller than that of the rear wheel.
The higher the voltage and the smaller the wheels, the more likely you are to “peel” during acceleration with the front hub motor. 36V in-wheel motors on 26-inch in-wheel motors usually still get good traction, but 20-inch front in-wheel motors will almost certainly experience front tire rotation, as do 48V in-wheel motors on any wheel size.
Most of your weight is supported by the rear wheels of your bicycle, which is why the rear hub motors get more traction than the front hub motors. Almost all motors operate at a voltage of 48V or lower, and it is very difficult for the rear hub motor wheels to spin freely on dry roads. If you are one of the people pushing the limits of high-voltage and high-power electric bicycles, you can make any wheel spin.
Hub motors and flat tires
Another thing to consider is a flat tire. Compared with the front tires, you are more likely to pick up road debris and cause the rear tires to be punctured.
Why? Because your front tires often kick up objects laid on the road, such as nails, glass shards, staples, etc. that were originally laid flat. They will not cause much damage to the front tires because their flat surfaces are not sharp. However, once they bounce off the impact of your front tire, you will be unlucky from time to time to have it perfectly aligned to pierce your rear tire on the second pass.
Consider your in-wheel motor installation
Another advantage of front hub motors is that they are easier to install than rear hub motors. You don’t have to worry about shifting on the flywheel or trying to adjust the derailleur to eliminate this interesting chain noise.
With the front hub motor, you only need to replace the tire on the wheel and then put the motor back in the hook. The front hub motor installation is easier than the pie, no matter what that means.
Rear wheel hub motors still have advantages
Don’t count the rear hub motors for now. It can be said that many people like their electric bicycles to look like a standard bicycle without any “assisted” dead ends. Many small in-wheel motors almost disappear behind the gears of the rear wheels and are usually covered by brake discs. This gives the bicycle an extra concealed appearance and hides the bare corners of the front hub motor.
The powerful hub motor is also more suitable for rear installation, because the stronger rear fork of the bicycle can better handle the higher power.
In practice, many small, weaker in-wheel motors are used in the front of the bicycle to take advantage of the weight distribution while avoiding the problem of tire slippage due to weaker motors, while larger and more powerful in-wheel motors are placed in the rear. To take advantage of the benefits of traction. After all, what is most suitable for you is the most important.