Project Avalon: E-bike build

[jjackstone]

First voyage out the battery lasted 11.1 miles with pedaling. The kill-a-watt says the charger and battery took .35KWH according to my math that is 31.5 watts per mile.

Razor,
I have a few thoughts and questions that may help.

First off, what speed are you riding at or attempting to average?
Over 20 mph will suck the batteries down fast. I had a purposely small pack(150WH) and used to cruise at around 18mph. That was good for 5 miles with no pedalling. If I rode in the upper 20's I would only get about a mile and a quarter.
With about 50/50 pedalling I easily travelled 11 to 12 miles on a full charge.

When accelerating from a stop, always use pedal only either until you reach the speed you want or just can't go any faster on your own power, then start using the motor. Just like in a car it takes a lot more energy to get that mass up to speed than to maintain the speed.

Put a wheel cover on the rear wheel for better aero.

Consider a small front fairing that you could crouch behind. Again, better aero.

Hope this helps.

JJ

[jjackstone]

Additional thought. Get rid of those tires and put some smooth ones on. They look as though they will kill your mileage. Unless you plan on some off roading.
JJ

[razor02097]

On the road to get to the sidewalk I travel at top speed which is about 25MPH with bursts of furious pedaling to get up to 30MPH. The road is a 2 lane 35MPH road which has no shoulder and some blind corners. I hope cars flying up behind me will be able to react appropriately if I am traveling close to their speed.

According to the watts up meter I use 1.3 amps each way to get to the sidewalk. So far I can squeeze about 8 amps from the pack before the speed controller refuses to send power to the motor.

I did swap tires to ones that hold higher pressure and are a smoother tread. There is a little dirt so I don't want completely smooth tires.

On a side note this NiMH battery pack weighs 13 lbs. If I decide to upgrade my battery I can always make a 12V 40AH battery that would weigh the same. I could stick a small inverter on it and have a portable 110V power station.