Hi all, I’ve been riding the path of the electric bike. I love working on my bike. I’ve literally turned it inside out. I’ve always loved to tinker with thingies, so this was a move in the right direction, for me. Anywho, my buddy called me and said “dudebro, there is a pile of bikes right here. I think they were electric. You might want to stop by.”. My buddy knows that I like to tinker and find out why thingies work. I went right by and sussed the scene. There was a gas minibike with a rusted up frame, and another one in worse condition. I continued to circle the pile of trash like a coyote circling a kill. I found a piece of shit electric scooter. It was missing the seat and the right handlebar. This was not a mobility scooter, this was a Sharper Image CityBug! It was sold in the early 2000’s. Part of the deck was missing and there were no batteries to be found. Figuring that it wouldn’t take up much room in my work truck, I loaded it up and brought it back to the yard. In the following days, I would further inspect the piece of shit scooter. My buddy was laughing that I even found it, let alone bring it back! After identifying and digging up the service manual, I found out what I was working with. This is a 24 volt system running on SLA batteries. Luckily, I happen to know a source for these types of batteries. They are being phased out and many are being shipped out to be recycled. I found one and hooked it up to the motor to test it. THE WHEEL SPUN! I just confirmed that the motor works. Next, I hooked it up to the controller and it beeped. It was like Morse code. Referring back to the manual (Save the Manuals!) the code was for pow voltage. This made sense since I was using a 12v battery. I got another battery and hooked them up in series to create a 24v source. The beeping was more pleasant and quick. I believed the controller worked. I brought the piece of shit scooter home. My wife wasn’t very stoked, but she loves me and she knows I like to tinker with thingies so, she smiled at me. I told her that my goal is to get it running without buying anything. 
In the following weekends, I would find out that the throttle works much like the carburetor linkage for the gas pedal, in a car. I tried as best I could to get it to work. Originally, the (missing) right handlebar had a throttle lever. Much like a brake lever. The cable was tied to the throttle, as opposed to the brake. I got a brake cable from another bike that my kid outgrew and rigged it up as best I could. The fucker wouldn’t work right. I messed with that thingie for a while. I was able to ride the scooter, but it was very jenky. I had to Emily my pliers to actuate the throttle. That was awkward. I finally broke down and spent $10 for a new controller. The controller manages (among other things) the current flow from the battery to the motor. This controller puts out more amperage, so I get more torque now. I really just bought it to get away from the horrible throttle linkage. I had an extra 3wire throttle from my ebike (I went for a more comfortable throttle there). Wired it all up to the scooter and SLAP! The scooter runs now. From the same bike I took the brake cable from, I took the handlebars. The scooter now has bike handlebars! RIGHT AND LEFT!! Rode it up and down the street with quickness. After checking out the controller more, I found out that I can overvolt it. I gained a third 12v battery and added it to the series. At 36v, the scooter is much more peppier. It’s a bit much. Enough to throw you back some. That was fun, but dangerous.
Over the next few weeks, I decided to find a replacement for the seat. Hey, that bike no longer needs a seat. It doesn’t even have handlebars anymore. Lol. I snagged that and rode around some more. Got a chuckle from a neighbor.
Feeling not very enthused about the seat from a 14” kids bike, I decided on finding a light office chair. One I could just take the legs off and use the top half. This was a ridiculous task, because all the office chairs I came across Att had the stupid plastic “stem” that connected the seat to the legs. My search went on for more weeks. I ended up finding this chair from the 80’s. It’s a metal chair with a metal “stem”. It’s a light chair that just has the seat and backrest. It was also on the smaller side. Perfect! Even more perfect was the fact that I found this chair on the top most floor, in a machine room that no one uses and no one will miss this ridiculous chair. Upon further tinkering, I was able to secure the seat to the scooter.
I’ve been keeping my buddy updated on my progress and he just shakes his head and laughs. I’m laughing too because I’m having a blast and learning lots. I’ve learned that I am dealing with a brushed DC motor. It is belt driven and has a band brake. I also found out that the SLA batteries that I’m using are rated at 8 amps/20hours. That means I get 2.5ah. Pretty shitty. Ive ordered 2 12v 18ah LiFePo4 batteries. Lithium batteries are rated per hour, instead of per 20 hours. This will dramatically increase my range. I told my wife that I’ll run errands for her now that I have this in a better working condition. I’m super stoked to get the new batteries in and get jamming. Looking at kickstands now. What a fun project this has become!
In the following weekends, I would find out that the throttle works much like the carburetor linkage for the gas pedal, in a car. I tried as best I could to get it to work. Originally, the (missing) right handlebar had a throttle lever. Much like a brake lever. The cable was tied to the throttle, as opposed to the brake. I got a brake cable from another bike that my kid outgrew and rigged it up as best I could. The fucker wouldn’t work right. I messed with that thingie for a while. I was able to ride the scooter, but it was very jenky. I had to Emily my pliers to actuate the throttle. That was awkward. I finally broke down and spent $10 for a new controller. The controller manages (among other things) the current flow from the battery to the motor. This controller puts out more amperage, so I get more torque now. I really just bought it to get away from the horrible throttle linkage. I had an extra 3wire throttle from my ebike (I went for a more comfortable throttle there). Wired it all up to the scooter and SLAP! The scooter runs now. From the same bike I took the brake cable from, I took the handlebars. The scooter now has bike handlebars! RIGHT AND LEFT!! Rode it up and down the street with quickness. After checking out the controller more, I found out that I can overvolt it. I gained a third 12v battery and added it to the series. At 36v, the scooter is much more peppier. It’s a bit much. Enough to throw you back some. That was fun, but dangerous.
Over the next few weeks, I decided to find a replacement for the seat. Hey, that bike no longer needs a seat. It doesn’t even have handlebars anymore. Lol. I snagged that and rode around some more. Got a chuckle from a neighbor.
Feeling not very enthused about the seat from a 14” kids bike, I decided on finding a light office chair. One I could just take the legs off and use the top half. This was a ridiculous task, because all the office chairs I came across Att had the stupid plastic “stem” that connected the seat to the legs. My search went on for more weeks. I ended up finding this chair from the 80’s. It’s a metal chair with a metal “stem”. It’s a light chair that just has the seat and backrest. It was also on the smaller side. Perfect! Even more perfect was the fact that I found this chair on the top most floor, in a machine room that no one uses and no one will miss this ridiculous chair. Upon further tinkering, I was able to secure the seat to the scooter.
I’ve been keeping my buddy updated on my progress and he just shakes his head and laughs. I’m laughing too because I’m having a blast and learning lots. I’ve learned that I am dealing with a brushed DC motor. It is belt driven and has a band brake. I also found out that the SLA batteries that I’m using are rated at 8 amps/20hours. That means I get 2.5ah. Pretty shitty. Ive ordered 2 12v 18ah LiFePo4 batteries. Lithium batteries are rated per hour, instead of per 20 hours. This will dramatically increase my range. I told my wife that I’ll run errands for her now that I have this in a better working condition. I’m super stoked to get the new batteries in and get jamming. Looking at kickstands now. What a fun project this has become!
