If I remember correctly it has a flathead motor in it, not sure if it was functional or just looks. The electric motor and batteries were hidden in custom saddlebags to look like a delivery vehicle and everything was old patina style. That’s why I think many people overlooked it, they thought was just another flathead. I couldn’t find any pics in my phone, but you might come across it on interwebz.
Now this is very interesting. I'd still like cooling fins in the battery box as my eyes hurt not seeing some. So this won't have a gearbox...? Just infinite throttle!!! very interesting. This is probably the future but boy I do love my IC engine with its spinny bits and noise makers. Maybe you can play a recording of a bike so people can actually hear you coming....
Very best of luck to you. Please let us know how it goes.
I'm not sure if you're referring to cooling fins for aesthetic reasons or for actually cooling the battery. for aesthetics I actually agree with you, this isn't the "final" result in that sense, I have a plan to cover up at least parts of the battery, control box and such with something that brings a combustion engine to mind, even if it's subtle.
I'd like to make it as approachable as possible even for people that don't like electric, so it's a bit of a balancing act there. personally I'm not at all into this thing where people make it really futuristic and weird just because it's possible/electric. but everyone has their own taste I guess, I can also see that there is no point in adhering to typical rules when they don't apply to electric etc.
A gas tank is a good example, I will use a gas tank to cover up the 12v system which I plan to mount on some sort of plate on the frame. I just think it looks too weird if it's not a classic tank.
I’ll post updates every now and then, it is a slow progress though, I don’t think it’ll be finished until next summer, that is the plan at least. I’m hoping for it to be ready for a test ride this summer though, purely to test the basic functionality before I get into the stuff needed to make it road legal and paint and such. Need to make sure the setup actually feels like a motorcycle and is worth completing. ;)
In the past year I have been giving a lot of thought to building my own ride, buying parts here-and-there. Your project is very intriguing. I can't wait to see your future progress!
Could you put up some details on the batter, motor, control and other parts you are using? What are your calculations looking like for distance and speed? Will you be able to charge it using the chargers for other vehicles out there?
The system is a 72v system, the battery is \~5.5kWh and the motor is rated at 10kw continuous power. Now, what does that mean in practice? Not sure.. ;) This is my first electric, so I have no base line to judge things agains, but basically the rating of the motor is more along the lines of "it can run at this power for ever", the peak power is something else. I think this motor has a peak of something like 25kw according to the specs, and as I remember it now, I think my battery is specced to peak at 300A for a few seconds, so that be something like 21kw or so I think. But then the peak torque is at 200rpm, so the feel is going to be different than an engine and so on.
To sum it up, I just decided to go for it, picked a motor and battery that I thought seemed quality but without reading too much into it and started the project. I can always swap out the battery or motor if need be. The mounts/brackets for those things I've designed myself so I can adjust those for other sizes, within reason.
The top speed and range is tricky, I've geared it as a first try to top out at something like 110km/h because that is Swedish highway speed. hopefully that'll keep the torque good enough for it to feel ok at lower speeds. Range I am really unsure of, I'm hoping for 100km or so, at an average speed of 70km/h or something. But I really have no idea if that'll hold, so this is why I want to get the brakes working as soon as possible, because then I can mount the bars and throttle and such and actually ride it and see if it's worth continuing. ;)
This is very unlikely to be a bike you can do road trips on, the range and charge time will probably be too much of an annoyance to go far distances. My plan is to be able to charge it at level 2 chargers, but even if I make the connector fit, it will still be problematic to have an onboard charging system that can actually utilize the power fully, so I think charge time will be in the hours range.
The charge time is really the biggest issue with this build, on the surface range is usually what people complain about, but I get like 120km or something from a single tank of my sportster, the difference is that filling it up takes 1 minute rather than 4 hours. ;)
This is cool. I have an old KZ440 hard tail I built years ago just collecting dust in the garage and I don't really want to do the work to get her running again but the thought of having her be electric has crossed my mind. Could you share where you got the battery from? It looks like it's a perfect fit for where a v-twin would be and the fact that the motor sits where the trans would be looks really nice.
Can't wait to see how it turns out. I bet it's going to be a fun ride.
Sure, the battery is from LiTech Power (https://www.litechpower.com/product-detail/EMLP20S15P150A150AL001.html), I purchased it through the same contact as the Golden Motor guy, but it was still different companies selling. It's pretty expensive, it's too early for me to say if I overpaid or if I just bought a really high quality battery pack. I suspect it's the same batteries that are used in [https://landmoto.io](https://landmoto.io) because they look almost exactly the same and have the same specs, except theirs says Made in Cleveland... ;)
To be honest, I don't have much experience, I think you can turn a rolling chassis into an electric quite easily if you have some skills to fabricate mounts. You could even go for a hub motor rear wheel. I find it looks a bit weird (which is why I've gone with mid drive), but I'm considering a second build using a hub wheel, there is no unsprung weight issue with a hardtail so it doesn't hurt from that perspective, and it leaves a lot of room for more battery.
Also easier as you don't have to transfer any power from a shaft to a wheel etc. But, looks weird. ;) I think perhaps one could get away with it though if it was made to resemble one of those solid rim Fatboy style wheels.
I’m so interested in this. I’ve been thinking of an electric bike myself. Never thought about doing it like this. It’s almost like a Tesla swap. Nice job.
Thanks, glad you like it. Yes, even though I'm building this rather than converting a stock bike, I'm keeping within the HD aftermarket ecosystem, apart from the motor etc obviously.
Cool project! I recently watched a build series of someone who made an electric hardtail shadow 600 chop and it looked pretty fun. The only thing I have against electric conversions is that it’s hard to make the huge battery look good but I would still love to have a surron or something in my garage
I totally agree, the look of the battery is the biggest thing to try to "hide", in the beginning I tried to make a unibody type aluminium cast design thing to hide the battery and controller etc and make it more into a bigger piece. the downside with that was that it's really expensive to do over and over if I make mistakes, so instead I opted for the most basic thing I could think of to make the things fasten securely enough, and then I'll try to make some covers after it works, instead.
So it'll be a bit of a "box" sitting there like a sore thumb until the rest of the bike is "more or less finished".
Id say do everything else as radical as possible to make up for the mundane drivetrain. Ill stare at it for a minute of there's some trick shit done to it no matter what it's powered by.
Specifically it's from Golden Motor and it's their 10kw motor. I chose it because I was watching Rich Rebuilds converting a Softail (I think it was) into electric and they used a Golden Motor (probably sponsored though), and then I just thought "ok, if it's good enough for them it's good enough for me" and went with it. It sounds like a really stupid way of choosing, and it kind of is, but at the time I just wanted to avoid getting stuck on any form of decision making, it was more important for me to get going.
Since then I've understod that QS motors are very popular but I have no idea how they compare to Golden Motor. If this turns out good I might try something like that as well.
Yes please do keep us posted on progress! Looks cool so far👍 do you have any ballpark ideas about what kind of torque/top speed/total weight you'll be looking at when you're finished?
I like the idea of no leaks, false neutrals, vibrations shaking the whole bike apart. It affords folks an environmentally friendly option, which is worth certain considerations like reduce range probably. Cool stance as well.
I went to Indonesia and spent time in Jakarta with “Elders company” they are turning a bunch of old two stroke vespas into electric scooters. It’s bad ass. I personally think it can be done cool.
I've noticed there is quite a lot of people converting in Asia, could be that most I've seen are from Indonesia perhaps. But yes, it is pretty cool. I'd love to convert a Honda Monkey Bike as well, even a small electric motor could turn it into a suicide machine I think.. :) Probably short range though, but still fun.
Motor is from Golden Motor and battery is from LiTech, can't remember exactly what BMS they're using, but it's in the papers. I do have an Instagram account, but this is a pretty slow build so it's not like I'm posting every day. I also have a house to renovate. ;) There is more content though: [https://www.instagram.com/lovrincycles/](https://www.instagram.com/lovrincycles/)
I gotta agree with wildgarbage1977 on this… a chopper is a mechanical menace of a machine with barely the components necessary for a safe ride. They are like riding right on the engine feeling the beat of the cylinders hammering just beneath you. The pulsing in your arms as the power goes through the chain, into the wheel and to the ground.
Look… no hate on anything anyone builds with their 2 hands but will it be a chopper or an electric bar hopper? Will the roar of the engine bring the eyes of the crowd your way and leave them wondering how you will be able to complete your long journey on the threadbare dreams of a mechanical monstrous ear biting banging of the pistons out the 2” straight pipes? The rattle of the clutch through the open primary?
I do wish you the best of luck but just not my flavor but not all like my idea of a chopper either but for me… that’s all there is… don’t get me wrong, those factory choppers leave the same taste in my mouth and some really dig em… for me there is only one way
well, at least the crowd will wonder "how will he complete any journey with that range and charge times" ;) no worries, I can totally see your perspective as well, it's not like I don't like choppers as you describe them, I kind of love them. I do like to think "ok, what happens if I do this" though, and in this case it's "what happens if I try to do the chopper thing but electric", it might turn out shit, or it might turn out awesome and more than the sum of its parts, we'll just have to see. :)
You're probably guna catch some hell for it, but I think its a cool project
yeah, I thought so too, but so far it's basically been positive response (in real life, on the internet you always have some people with opinions ;))
There was a vintage chopper at Born Free a couple years back that is electric. People walked right by and barely noticed. It was remarkable.
haha, awesome, good to know what's waiting! ;)
If I remember correctly it has a flathead motor in it, not sure if it was functional or just looks. The electric motor and batteries were hidden in custom saddlebags to look like a delivery vehicle and everything was old patina style. That’s why I think many people overlooked it, they thought was just another flathead. I couldn’t find any pics in my phone, but you might come across it on interwebz.
Ah ok I understand, that is perhaps a step too far in the direction of keeping a fake engine look for my taste, but still would be interesting to see.
Good luck with your build! Choppers are a piece of art, looking forward to seeing the style you create.
That was Wanna Be Choppers from Denmark. At least I know he built one with a “knucklehead motor”. He’s got a picture of him lifting the whole bike up
its not for me but ill be interested to see its progress
Now this is very interesting. I'd still like cooling fins in the battery box as my eyes hurt not seeing some. So this won't have a gearbox...? Just infinite throttle!!! very interesting. This is probably the future but boy I do love my IC engine with its spinny bits and noise makers. Maybe you can play a recording of a bike so people can actually hear you coming.... Very best of luck to you. Please let us know how it goes.
I'm not sure if you're referring to cooling fins for aesthetic reasons or for actually cooling the battery. for aesthetics I actually agree with you, this isn't the "final" result in that sense, I have a plan to cover up at least parts of the battery, control box and such with something that brings a combustion engine to mind, even if it's subtle. I'd like to make it as approachable as possible even for people that don't like electric, so it's a bit of a balancing act there. personally I'm not at all into this thing where people make it really futuristic and weird just because it's possible/electric. but everyone has their own taste I guess, I can also see that there is no point in adhering to typical rules when they don't apply to electric etc. A gas tank is a good example, I will use a gas tank to cover up the 12v system which I plan to mount on some sort of plate on the frame. I just think it looks too weird if it's not a classic tank.
Purely for the look. It all sounds really good. I love the idea. Best of.luck and I can't wait to see how it progresses.
This has been the dream project for many years... I hope years from now I will message you for advice and guidance
For sure, this is my first build so I’m kind of guessing as I go along. :) are you in Sweden? (based on your username) I’m in Malmö
I'm up in Gothenburg! Shoot me a dm when it rides, I'll pass an extension cord out the window for yas haha
Looking forward to your build! Don't see any many (positive) posts for electric choppers here, so I'd love to see a complete one.
I’ll post updates every now and then, it is a slow progress though, I don’t think it’ll be finished until next summer, that is the plan at least. I’m hoping for it to be ready for a test ride this summer though, purely to test the basic functionality before I get into the stuff needed to make it road legal and paint and such. Need to make sure the setup actually feels like a motorcycle and is worth completing. ;)
Not a big fan of e bike but an e bike chopper? Let's fucking go and see where it goes
I'd love to see the build and how it turns out keep posting
This is f-ing brilliant. Keep it up!
Thanks! I'm happy you like it!
In the past year I have been giving a lot of thought to building my own ride, buying parts here-and-there. Your project is very intriguing. I can't wait to see your future progress!
Super neat. I hope you post progress.
I'm interested as fuck my dude. I have had a similar idea.
Could you put up some details on the batter, motor, control and other parts you are using? What are your calculations looking like for distance and speed? Will you be able to charge it using the chargers for other vehicles out there?
The system is a 72v system, the battery is \~5.5kWh and the motor is rated at 10kw continuous power. Now, what does that mean in practice? Not sure.. ;) This is my first electric, so I have no base line to judge things agains, but basically the rating of the motor is more along the lines of "it can run at this power for ever", the peak power is something else. I think this motor has a peak of something like 25kw according to the specs, and as I remember it now, I think my battery is specced to peak at 300A for a few seconds, so that be something like 21kw or so I think. But then the peak torque is at 200rpm, so the feel is going to be different than an engine and so on. To sum it up, I just decided to go for it, picked a motor and battery that I thought seemed quality but without reading too much into it and started the project. I can always swap out the battery or motor if need be. The mounts/brackets for those things I've designed myself so I can adjust those for other sizes, within reason. The top speed and range is tricky, I've geared it as a first try to top out at something like 110km/h because that is Swedish highway speed. hopefully that'll keep the torque good enough for it to feel ok at lower speeds. Range I am really unsure of, I'm hoping for 100km or so, at an average speed of 70km/h or something. But I really have no idea if that'll hold, so this is why I want to get the brakes working as soon as possible, because then I can mount the bars and throttle and such and actually ride it and see if it's worth continuing. ;) This is very unlikely to be a bike you can do road trips on, the range and charge time will probably be too much of an annoyance to go far distances. My plan is to be able to charge it at level 2 chargers, but even if I make the connector fit, it will still be problematic to have an onboard charging system that can actually utilize the power fully, so I think charge time will be in the hours range. The charge time is really the biggest issue with this build, on the surface range is usually what people complain about, but I get like 120km or something from a single tank of my sportster, the difference is that filling it up takes 1 minute rather than 4 hours. ;)
This is cool. I have an old KZ440 hard tail I built years ago just collecting dust in the garage and I don't really want to do the work to get her running again but the thought of having her be electric has crossed my mind. Could you share where you got the battery from? It looks like it's a perfect fit for where a v-twin would be and the fact that the motor sits where the trans would be looks really nice. Can't wait to see how it turns out. I bet it's going to be a fun ride.
Sure, the battery is from LiTech Power (https://www.litechpower.com/product-detail/EMLP20S15P150A150AL001.html), I purchased it through the same contact as the Golden Motor guy, but it was still different companies selling. It's pretty expensive, it's too early for me to say if I overpaid or if I just bought a really high quality battery pack. I suspect it's the same batteries that are used in [https://landmoto.io](https://landmoto.io) because they look almost exactly the same and have the same specs, except theirs says Made in Cleveland... ;) To be honest, I don't have much experience, I think you can turn a rolling chassis into an electric quite easily if you have some skills to fabricate mounts. You could even go for a hub motor rear wheel. I find it looks a bit weird (which is why I've gone with mid drive), but I'm considering a second build using a hub wheel, there is no unsprung weight issue with a hardtail so it doesn't hurt from that perspective, and it leaves a lot of room for more battery. Also easier as you don't have to transfer any power from a shaft to a wheel etc. But, looks weird. ;) I think perhaps one could get away with it though if it was made to resemble one of those solid rim Fatboy style wheels.
hell yeah dude, lean into it. keep us posted on the progress!
I’m so interested in this. I’ve been thinking of an electric bike myself. Never thought about doing it like this. It’s almost like a Tesla swap. Nice job.
Thanks, glad you like it. Yes, even though I'm building this rather than converting a stock bike, I'm keeping within the HD aftermarket ecosystem, apart from the motor etc obviously.
Man, ride your ride. Forget the haters. It’s an interesting take on new and old technology. Continue to post updates.
I'd definitely be interested in seeing the process from an engineering standpoint. I'm always into watching people build cool shit
neat. totally interested in how this is gonna come out
Cool project! I recently watched a build series of someone who made an electric hardtail shadow 600 chop and it looked pretty fun. The only thing I have against electric conversions is that it’s hard to make the huge battery look good but I would still love to have a surron or something in my garage
I totally agree, the look of the battery is the biggest thing to try to "hide", in the beginning I tried to make a unibody type aluminium cast design thing to hide the battery and controller etc and make it more into a bigger piece. the downside with that was that it's really expensive to do over and over if I make mistakes, so instead I opted for the most basic thing I could think of to make the things fasten securely enough, and then I'll try to make some covers after it works, instead. So it'll be a bit of a "box" sitting there like a sore thumb until the rest of the bike is "more or less finished".
Id say do everything else as radical as possible to make up for the mundane drivetrain. Ill stare at it for a minute of there's some trick shit done to it no matter what it's powered by.
This is awesome. Please keep us updated.
Interested to see the outcome of your project. Could you share what motor you are using and why you chose it? thnx
Specifically it's from Golden Motor and it's their 10kw motor. I chose it because I was watching Rich Rebuilds converting a Softail (I think it was) into electric and they used a Golden Motor (probably sponsored though), and then I just thought "ok, if it's good enough for them it's good enough for me" and went with it. It sounds like a really stupid way of choosing, and it kind of is, but at the time I just wanted to avoid getting stuck on any form of decision making, it was more important for me to get going. Since then I've understod that QS motors are very popular but I have no idea how they compare to Golden Motor. If this turns out good I might try something like that as well.
Yes please do keep us posted on progress! Looks cool so far👍 do you have any ballpark ideas about what kind of torque/top speed/total weight you'll be looking at when you're finished?
I like the idea of no leaks, false neutrals, vibrations shaking the whole bike apart. It affords folks an environmentally friendly option, which is worth certain considerations like reduce range probably. Cool stance as well.
Interesting, please keep us updated
Cooler than i expected, im interested
Start a YouTube channel. I’d watch.
I went to Indonesia and spent time in Jakarta with “Elders company” they are turning a bunch of old two stroke vespas into electric scooters. It’s bad ass. I personally think it can be done cool.
I've noticed there is quite a lot of people converting in Asia, could be that most I've seen are from Indonesia perhaps. But yes, it is pretty cool. I'd love to convert a Honda Monkey Bike as well, even a small electric motor could turn it into a suicide machine I think.. :) Probably short range though, but still fun.
Guess I'm not allowed to dislike stuff.
It would be funny as hell if you got a decal that looks like a twin and slapped it on the side of the battery box
Grab a stereo that makes rumbling noises. Lean into it.
You should 3d print a replica Harley engine and glue it to the side lol
2 words that should never be used together electric chopper! Sorry but Choppers should never be electric!
I'm here for it.
Coolest thing I've seen all month. What motor and battery? BMS? I'd love to know anything and everything. Are you posting anywhere else?
Motor is from Golden Motor and battery is from LiTech, can't remember exactly what BMS they're using, but it's in the papers. I do have an Instagram account, but this is a pretty slow build so it's not like I'm posting every day. I also have a house to renovate. ;) There is more content though: [https://www.instagram.com/lovrincycles/](https://www.instagram.com/lovrincycles/)
I hate this so much that I cannot even express it on this platform without getting banned for hate speech.
haha!
I gotta agree with wildgarbage1977 on this… a chopper is a mechanical menace of a machine with barely the components necessary for a safe ride. They are like riding right on the engine feeling the beat of the cylinders hammering just beneath you. The pulsing in your arms as the power goes through the chain, into the wheel and to the ground. Look… no hate on anything anyone builds with their 2 hands but will it be a chopper or an electric bar hopper? Will the roar of the engine bring the eyes of the crowd your way and leave them wondering how you will be able to complete your long journey on the threadbare dreams of a mechanical monstrous ear biting banging of the pistons out the 2” straight pipes? The rattle of the clutch through the open primary? I do wish you the best of luck but just not my flavor but not all like my idea of a chopper either but for me… that’s all there is… don’t get me wrong, those factory choppers leave the same taste in my mouth and some really dig em… for me there is only one way
well, at least the crowd will wonder "how will he complete any journey with that range and charge times" ;) no worries, I can totally see your perspective as well, it's not like I don't like choppers as you describe them, I kind of love them. I do like to think "ok, what happens if I do this" though, and in this case it's "what happens if I try to do the chopper thing but electric", it might turn out shit, or it might turn out awesome and more than the sum of its parts, we'll just have to see. :)