What is Electric Mountain Bike | Are E MTB Better?

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Most people enjoy riding a mountain bike but avoid it because of the extra effort one would have to make on rough terrains. What is an electric mountain bike and how to ride it? A person who does not ride a bike regularly does not want to take the extra hassle of pedaling manually all the way–up and down hills. So some help from the bikes in the form of electric bikes can become very handy. Let’s look at what is electric Mountain Bike.

What is Electric Mountain Bike and How it is different from Normal MTB

Electric Bike
A Picture of EBike

Thinking or hearing of an electric bike, simply, known as an e-bike, a person imagines a bike, motorcycle, or scooter. Nonetheless, an e-bike is just like a regular mountain bike but with some added electrical and motor components. An electric bike has the same components and features: wheels, handlebars, and frame styles. However, an electric bike comes in addition to a motor, a battery, and a controller–blended well into the sleek structure of an e-bike. Electric bikes have been in the market since the 19th century but they have recently gained much popularity because of recent engineering advances made to them. Lightweight but more powerful batteries have made a great impact on the overall weight of the bike. It has made them much lighter in weight and easy to carry around. E-bikes have also become more affordable and efficient in function. Buy the Best Electric mountain bike.

What is the benefit of an electric mountain bike?

For a bike to be classified as an e-bike it has to help you drive along rather than doing all the work by itself. A rider should pedal to get assistance from the motor which is determined by how much the rider is pedaling. It also depends on the level of assistance selected by the rider from the control system. E-bikes are very much similar to regular bikes, largely; except that they use electrical components to pedal the bike. It does not eliminate the human pedaling component altogether but only supplements it.

It provides the rider with an opportunity to travel and explore further their diverse terrains without getting tired, easily. Power from the motor makes it attainable to travel up and down hills smoothly. Nonetheless, an E-bike has multiple modes to choose from which allows the rider an opportunity to decide on the amount of assistance he or she requires through the motor. It also lets you balance the pedals with range and battery life.

Ebikes Repairs and Maintenance

One should not worry too much about the repairs and maintenance of an e-bike as there is nothing special that it requires that is distinct from a regular bike. It has the same features and components as a regular bike and, therefore, if anything goes wrong you can repair and maintain it the same way as a regular bike. However, if anything goes wrong with its electrical component then you should go to an e-bike specialist. A specialist should be able to properly examine and replace the part and let you know exactly what went wrong. Having said that, it will be good to know that damages to any electrical components of an e-bike are rare. If there are still damages that occur then most of them come with a warranty which should cover most of these repairs. For more details on MTD maintenance, click here.

Different types of Ebike Batteries

Batteries are the most crucial part of an e-bike as they affect the weight, style, price, and range of the bike. There are two major types of batteries: Sealed Lead Acid (SLA) and Lithium (Ion/Polymer/Manganese/Etc.) Both of these batteries have their advantages and disadvantages:

Electric Bike Battery
A Picture of Electric Bike Battery

1. SLA Batteries

SLA batteries have been the standard type of battery for many years. It has been used for electric scooters and electric bicycles. However, recently electric bicycles have opted for newer technology batteries; electric scooters still use SLA, mainly. They are inexpensive but heavy and bulky causing bikes to become heavier and offer a shorter riding span. They also have a shorter life span of charges which is about 100-300 full cycle charges. SLA batteries are high maintenance and have to be immediately charged after every use.

2. Lithium Battery (Ion, Polymer, Manganese, Etc.)

The lifetime of a lithium battery is 2-3 times more than that of an SLA battery. Lithium batteries are the newest technology in batteries and require minimum to no maintenance at all. They are very light in weight which helps the mountain bike in maintaining its sleek and slim structure and contributes less to its weight compared with SLA batteries. Lithium batteries have a longer life span of about 800 charges or 3 years of daily use and travel up to about 40 miles on the pedal-assist mode. Due to their long-lasting battery life and compact size; the only disadvantage to these batteries is that they make mountain bikes expensive and not affordable for everyone.

Riding without the Battery

It is the rider’s personal choice to ride the bike without a battery but no one will recommend it. This is because the battery and motor in an e-bike make it heavier than a regular bike and therefore there is added weight to the e-bike. We suggest that you ride the e-bike with the battery as no one would want to get stuck in the middle of an uphill ride and push their bike.

Different Types of Controllers

Mountain Bikes have different types of controllers located on the handlebar which lets you operate the bike using either pedal activation or throttle activation.

1. Pedal-activated System

When the rider pedals down the bike, the pedal-activated system will activate. It then offers electric assistance as the rider pedals. A rider can adjust the amount of support or assistance it needs from the controller mounted on the handlebar ranging from little to no assistance.

2. Throttle-activated system

Throttle activated system works with a simple throttle mechanism. A rider will either pull back a simple twist grip-type throttle or press down on the thumb-type throttle. By using either of the controllers, the rider receives the electric assistance they would need. Many electric bikes require only activating the throttle which permits you to ride the bike without pedaling.

Electric bikes are simple to use bikes compared with regular standard bikes as they are easy to ride. They also require little to no maintenance.

Hope you have enjoyed reading this post and can benefit from the details.  If you have any questions about Electric Bikes and need any more details then let me know in the comments section below. I will be more than happy to help.

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